Hold Me Until Morning

by Christina Phillips

  “All right. In the forest yesterday? That’s never happened to me before. I’ve never gotten in that condition without being able to, uh, finish off properly.”

  She stared at him, transfixed. Was Cooper Grayson blushing? It was a breathtaking sight. She tugged her fingers from his hair and cradled his face instead. His brow scrunched up in the most adorable way, and she hooked her ankles over his calves in case he was thinking of running.

  “Your turn.” He growled the words, and her intention to give him a neat and tidy excuse wavered.

  Just because she thought what had happened in the forest was awesome didn’t mean Cooper felt the same way. Was it possible he wouldn’t think she was strange if she told him she thought receiving oral sex was gross?

  She took a deep breath. It was one thing to decide to tell him the truth. It was another to actually push the words out of her mouth.

  “I don’t like it.” It came out in an undignified rush. “It’s disgusting.”

  His frown remained in place. It was unnerving. She released his legs and dropped her hands to his chest. His silence was starting to freak her out, but at least he wasn’t laughing.

  But he wouldn’t laugh at her. That’s why she’d told him. Although now she wished she hadn’t.

  Finally he cleared his throat. “You don’t like it in theory or practice?”

  Huh?

  “It’s just nasty.” Her face was burning. How had they gotten onto this subject? She should’ve just let him get on with it and done a Lola. After all, she was very experienced in the art of faking it in front of the camera. Why hadn’t she thought of that before?

  Instead of backing off, or pressuring her to go for it, he looked fascinated by her confession. That really wasn’t her intention. But not only was he not moving away, he kept on stroking her with the tips of his fingers. It was making it hard to remember what she was talking about.

  “Is that why you didn’t have sex for two years? Because your ex was lousy at oral?”

  Oh fuck it. She wriggled, but Cooper just settled himself more comfortably on top of her. She gave up and covered her face with her hands instead.

  “No.” Well, if she was honest she did think Hudson sucked balls when it came to giving her oral, but that wasn’t the reason she’d given up on sex.

  Cooper tugged her hands from her face. “Don’t do that, babe. I’m just trying to help.”

  Help? If she weren’t burning up with mortification she would’ve laughed. “You do this kind of thing often?”

  “Another first for me.” He released her hands and went back to driving her insane with his fingertips. “I don’t usually spend much time talking to girls when I’m in bed with them.”

  She laughed then, although she hadn’t meant to. “Should I be insulted or flattered?”

  “I don’t know. Which are you?”

  She ran her hands over his hard biceps. His muscles were to die for. “I think that’s a trick question.”

  He kissed the tip of her nipple and then slowly sucked it inside his mouth. Her thighs relaxed and she arched into him with a breathy sigh.

  “I don’t want to do anything you hate.” He spoke against her nipple. “But you don’t want to miss out on something you might find you like. Not wanting to brag or anything.” He looked up at her then, and the evil grin on his face made her so wet she almost told him to do whatever the hell he wanted with her.

  “You just did,” she panted. “You all think you’re so great at it.” Had she said that out loud? The look on his face was answer enough. “Sorry. That wasn’t really aimed at you.”

  “Huh. You’ve got some major issues here, babe.”

  “No I haven’t.” If he weren’t doing crazy wonderful things to her boobs, his comment would’ve really annoyed her. As it was, she didn’t have energy left for anything more than trying not to wrap her legs around him and have hot, unprotected sex.

  He kissed her—a long, slow kiss, using his tongue in ways that shouldn’t be allowed.

  “Your mouth drives me crazy.” His husky whisper caused delicate shivers across her naked skin. “I’m getting hard just thinking about you going down on me again.”

  “God, Cooper.” She closed her eyes and gave into the magical sensations spiraling through her body. “Just do me already.”

  She felt him smile against her throat, before he continued tormenting her with his tongue and teeth. “You want me to stop anytime, just tell me.”

  Like that was going to happen. She stretched her arms over her head and writhed beneath his hard body. His mouth was hot and the things he did with his hands were illegal.

  He shifted his weight, and for a second she froze, until his mouth landed on the inside of her thigh. Her eyes flew open. Wow. She’d no idea kissing there could be such a turn-on.

  “You okay?” His voice was muffled.

  “Uh, yes.” She snuck a peek of him and then couldn’t look away. Seeing Cooper’s dark head between her legs was seriously hot.

  His hands molded her hips then trailed lower. She wriggled, hoping he got the message, but his fingers didn’t go anywhere near where she wanted them. Instead, he touched her everywhere else. Which was awesome, but frustrating. She gripped the iron bedframe behind her.

  “Your skin’s so soft.” He nuzzled her just below where her leg met her hip. For a heart stopping second his head brushed against her swollen clit. “You taste so fucking sweet.”

  Her legs started to shake. Did he mean her skin tasted sweet or was he talking about something else? Could he taste anything else? Did she want him to?

  She couldn’t stop herself. “What do I taste of?”

  He lifted his head and slowly licked his lips as though he was savoring her. It was completely mesmerizing.

  “Oranges.” He made it sound like the sexiest thing on earth.

  She hitched in a shallow breath. “Blossoms. Orange blossoms.” There was a huge difference. “Is that all you can taste?”

  He drew in a long breath and his gorgeous eyelashes hid his eyes. “Your scent is fucking awesome.”

  She was so wet. She desperately wanted him inside her, but having his head between her spread thighs was riveting. Did I really just think that?

  Maybe it was because he didn’t make a beeline for her clit, like it was a homing signal or something—and she had to admit, she loved the way he talked while he was down there.

  She shifted restlessly. “You got a condom ready?”

  “Don’t rush me.” Now his fingers joined his lips in tormenting her, but he still didn’t touch her sex. “Slap me on the head if you want me to stop.”

  “I’ll slap you if you do stop.” She gripped a handful of his hair and shook him to underline her point. He laughed, a deep rumbling sound that vibrated along the length of her thigh. She groaned and closed her eyes. Every single thing he did felt so right.

  His kisses inched closer to ground zero. She couldn’t make up her mind whether she wanted him to keep going or not. Her fingers stilled in his hair and her breath stalled in her chest. Was he going to stop? Do I really want him to stop?

  He brushed a feathery kiss over her sensitive folds. She went rigid, but not because she didn’t like it. He followed up with the tip of his tongue. She shuddered and opened her legs wider for him.

  Cooper didn’t dive in like a cruise missile. He didn’t slobber like a rabid dog, or use his thumbs to pull her open like a candy wrapper. He stroked and teased, and the only difference from all the other times he’d played with her was she could feel the heat from his breath.

  “You still okay up there?” He followed his question by swirling the tip of his tongue around her clit. She damn near shot off the bed. “Was that good or bad?” He raised his head and offered her a killer smile.

  It wasn’t bad. Which meant it was… “Good.” She tightened her grip on his hair and pushed him back between her legs. She didn’t even care that he’d managed to win her over so easily. This was like nothing she
’d experienced before. “Don’t stop.”

  He took her at her word. He kissed her as though he was kissing her mouth, his tongue teasing her in ways she’d never even dreamed about. She gasped and writhed and clutched his head. It was too much. Amazing.

  Her orgasm hit, and a hoarse scream tore from her lips. Cooper kept his tongue on her clit as she came on his mouth.

  Never let me go…

  Chapter Ten

  Cooper leaned on the shovel and turned toward the front door where Paris was madly waving at him. “Breakfast,” she called. “Get it while it’s hot.”

  A couple of days ago, the morning after she’d given him the best blow job of his life, he’d shown her how to make pancakes. It wasn’t just in the bedroom that she was a quick learner. She’d then made them for breakfast yesterday, and again today while he got on with clearing her front yard.

  He strolled into the kitchen to wash. The smell of freshly ground coffee hit him, and an unfamiliar warmth inched through him. He kissed the tip of her nose, which happened to be covered in flour¸ and then eyed the mess surrounding them.

  “This is even worse than yesterday.” Sure, she was a quick learner when it came to cooking, but she hadn’t yet grasped the idea of clearing up as she went along.

  She shrugged. “Cleaning up is boring.” She waved her hand at the table. “I used those blueberries we got the other day, but I’ll tell you what, I’m really going to have to hit the gym soon.”

  He chugged down some coffee. “You’re not sitting on your ass all day. Gardening is a good workout.”

  Paris spread her hands, palms up. “It’s killing my hands. Look at them.”

  He grabbed her hand and planted a kiss over her solitary blister. “I told you to leave the heavy work for me. You can do the weeding.”

  She pulled a face and pushed him into a chair. “Weeding is boring.”

  He laughed and dug into his breakfast. She propped her tablet up and started showing him stuff she wanted to do to transform her yard into works of art. He grunted and nodded at appropriate intervals, but his mind wasn’t fully focused on pots and paving and fancy arbors.

  They had been together for five days. It might’ve started out as a job, but that had been blown to hell the minute he’d seen her again. The reality was, he and Paris had been living together. Like a couple. And facing that fact wasn’t freaking the shit out of him.

  He shoveled in another mouthful of pancake and tried to dislodge the thought—but he couldn’t. Because the truth was, he liked it.

  He liked sleeping with her. Enjoyed waking up next to her every morning. Hell, he even liked the way she spread out all her stuff in the bathroom.

  In two days time she was due back in Hollywood. Would she still want to see him once she was back in her real life, surrounded by the glitz and glamour?

  He looked at her as she sat beside him. Her hair was pulled up into a ponytail, and she was wearing a cutoff top with denim shorts. She looked like the girl next door. A fucking hot girl next door for sure, but she didn’t give off a Hollywood soap star vibe.

  But she was a Hollywood soap star, and although they hadn’t talked about it any more, she’d mentioned she was going into movies.

  Even movie stars had lovers.

  He finished his coffee and poured them both a second cup while he tried to process what that was supposed to mean. That she would want to keep him as her lover?

  Really?

  He pushed his plate back and shoved his hand through his hair. What the fuck was he thinking? He’d never fit in her world.

  “Hey, are you okay?” Paris ran her hand along his bicep, a frown on her face. Was she concerned about him? Aside from his brothers, the only person he could remember who’d ever given a shit about him was his gran.

  Jesus. Get a grip.

  “I’m fine.”

  “It’s not my cooking giving you indigestion or something?”

  “Nah.”

  She propped her elbow on the table and cradled her chin. “Maybe I’ll cook dinner for us tonight, then. How about that?”

  “You’re talking meat, right?”

  She sighed. “If you insist.”

  “Sure. I have a cast iron stomach.”

  “I’m so glad you have so much faith in my culinary efforts.”

  He leaned back in the chair and gave her a faint smile. Until this week he’d never shared breakfast with a woman, and no girl had ever offered to cook him dinner.

  Truth was, he’d never been in a relationship before, and he was truly fucked up if he thought this week with Paris amounted to anything close to a relationship.

  “Bike or car?” They hadn’t been shopping since the day they’d come across the guy who’d tailed them. Trouble was, thinking of that reminded him of why he was with her in the first place—as if he needed reminding.

  “Bike.” Her smile was pure sex. “D’you really think I’d miss a chance to ride with you?”

  For one insane moment he almost told her she could ride with him any time she wanted, but the words lodged in his throat. Because what did he mean by them? That he’d go visit her in Beverly Hills once a week? He could just imagine how that’d go down with her usual circle.

  Paris was frowning again but before he had the chance to say anything, her cell rang.

  She pulled a face. “Oh, God. It’s Mom again.”

  Great. Her mom called or texted at least half a dozen times a day. While a part of him was pissed off by her constant interruptions, there was another part of him that wasn’t…exactly. He couldn’t figure out how he felt about it, except that no matter what Paris did, her mom was always there for her. Even if she did drive Paris mad half the time.

  He let out a long breath and started on his third cup of coffee of the morning.

  Paris bit her lip as Cooper drank his coffee. Something wasn’t right, but she couldn’t figure out what.

  Well, that wasn’t quite true. She was afraid it was because he was getting sick of her always being around.

  She knew from their endless talks, he’d never lived with a girl. Never even had a proper girlfriend, from what she could make out. And yet that week they’d been thrown together like they were an old married couple.

  She answered her cell. If she didn’t, her mom would only call her again. “Hey.”

  “Honey, it’s been five days. You’ve made your point. Please tell me where you are.”

  Five perfect days with Cooper—and she wasn’t just thinking of the sex, although that was pretty spectacular.

  “Mom, I’ve told you.” About fifty thousand times. “I just need to get my head together. It’s only for a week. I’ll be back in a couple of days.”

  She wasn’t looking forward to that. In fact, it made her stomach churn, knowing she had only two days left with Cooper.

  He appeared oblivious to her conversation. Did he even care she was due to leave in a couple of days? Or could he not wait to get back to civilization?

  “Paris, I didn’t want to tell you over the phone, but you’re on the shortlist for the new Augustus movie. It’s top secret.”

  Her mom’s excitement made her heart sink. Her mom had wanted her to get into movies for years but Lola was so popular, and once Paris became the face of an exclusive cosmetics brand and launched her own perfume, it was all too lucrative to give up.

  Last year, when she’d been offered a place at Brown, she’d finally gotten the nerve to tell her mom she was tired of playing Lola and wanted to do something different with her life. Her mom had taken it as a sign that the time was right. After a fleeting discussion where she said they’d talk about Paris finishing her education “in a year or so”, she’d instructed her agent to put out feelers.

  She’d gone along with her mom’s wish to go for the Milo Mallory movie. If she agreed to go for this second one it would never end.

  Stop being such a freaking coward.

  “Can we talk about that when I get back?”

  There w
as an ominous silence. She refused to fidget, even though those silences of her mom’s always grated along her nerves.

  “Two more days then.” There was a note of finality in her mom’s voice. “Okay, honey. I love you.”

  Paris tossed her cell onto the table. She knew her mom loved her, and that was why she felt so guilty. When she returned home, she was out of time. She had to tell her mom she was taking up her place at Brown next month.

  She knew how much her mom loved the Hollywood lifestyle, but it wasn’t as though Paris wanted to give up her career forever. Just a few years while she earned her longed for degree.

  “Guess your mom’s missing you.”

  She looked at him. There was a brooding expression on his face. What he was thinking?

  “Guess so.” She wanted to tell him about her acceptance to college and her dilemma about the movies but wasn’t sure where to start.

  “Had enough of living in the wilds?”

  “I could get used to it.” She gave him a mocking smile so he wouldn’t guess she could get used to practically anything as long as he was there with her. How pathetic was that. It didn’t change the way she felt, though.

  “At least you have a weekend retreat now.”

  “True.” She glanced out of the window. He’d done a really fabulous job of tidying everything up. There was still a ton of work to do, though. She had no idea what was happening between them, but maybe there was a way they could keep seeing each other without having to make any kind of decision. “I don’t suppose you’d be interested in an ongoing, uh, arrangement to knock the yard into shape, would you?”

  Her stomach knotted while she waited for his answer. He seemed to be taking an awful long time to think about it.

  “Could be.” There was a distinct lack of enthusiasm in his voice, and she pulled up Lola to hide behind before he saw how badly she’d taken his response.

  It had been a long shot. Why would he want to give up any of his time to help with her yard? Would he be more interested if she mentioned sex would definitely be on offer?

  She didn’t quite have the nerve to say that, though.