After Hurricane Nina, Reed's Resolution (Hot Hunks-Steamy Romance Collection Book 1)

by Natalie Ann

  “Three years is a long time,” she said to him when he started to nibble around her collarbone. More than three years if she was really counting, but she wasn’t.

  Yeah, she wanted to be pleasured, but she wanted it right now and she wanted it fast. It was best she made that known.

  “So is six months. I’ll make it up to you. Or better yet, let me get right to it.”

  She wasn’t sure what he meant, but before she could ask, her shorts were off and his finger was inside her deep, having just shifted her panties out of the way. Her head went back on the bed. The invasion was swift and it was plentiful. More so when he added another and started to move them in and out.

  “Look at me, Taylor.” She fought the urge to close her eyes and looked into his dark ones. “I want to watch your face when you come. I want to see what you like.”

  “Right now I like what you’re doing a whole lot,” she said, her voice catching when he went in even deeper, then stayed there, curled his fingers just right and found a spot she hadn’t known existed.

  “Ah,” he said. “Right there, huh?”

  There was no way she could answer. The feelings inside of her were coiled up tighter than a spring on an old mattress just waiting for the material to give way while it popped through and made its presence known.

  She started to moan when he slipped his other hand down the front of the lace covering her and found her swollen bud begging for a touch. Her hips went up and she knew any minute she was going to go over the edge. Her own hands never felt this good on her body.

  “I’ve got to taste you,” he said. She wasn’t sure she heard him correctly, but the next thing she knew, not only were those fingers inside of her curling more and moving in and out, but his lips were on her clit and he was sucking on her like she was the sweetest piece of candy he’d ever discovered.

  “Holy shit!” Her head lifted up and pounded back on the bed, her hips went up and her hands went to his head to hold him there, threading through his thick mane of dark hair. The only regret she had was it was over with so fast when she’d been hoping for a longer ride.

  “Now that is what I call letting go,” he said, leaning back.

  She was taking in great gulps of air and struggling to push herself up to her elbows. There was a tiny wet spot in front of the budge in his jeans.

  He wasn’t wasting any time undressing, so she joined right in and flung off the rest of her clothes. “When do I get my turn?” she asked.

  “Later. Right now, I’ve got to be inside of you. Your tightness, the slickness, all of it has me right on the edge. If I don’t get in you now I’m going to come like an inexperienced teen.”

  “Don’t you dare waste that,” she said, eying the steel cock that just sprang forth in front of her as he lowered his boxers. The moisture clinging to the tip was just making her own mouth water.

  She’d scooted up the bed, spreading her legs wide like a welcome sign into the heat of her body.

  A drawer opened, a condom came out and was slipped on, then he all but dove on the bed and slid into her, wrapping her up tight, his mouth going to hers.

  The kiss was savage, their bodies slamming into each other looking for fortification they were hoping to bring each other. No, not hoping, knowing that only the two of them could give it to each other.

  Their sweat-dampened bodies were sliding around, not hindering them, but messing up the rhythm she wanted to maintain.

  Her nails were biting into his shoulders, her legs coming up and wrapping around his hips. “Harder. Bring me right there with you now.”

  He slid his hands under her hips and held her in place as he slammed in and out of her, setting a pace that she was willing to let him control because he was leading her and she’d have it no other way.

  She hadn’t felt like a woman in a long time, and right now, she felt like a queen getting ready to conquer the world and Reed was her trusty knight that was going to guide her there and show her the light.

  All those muscles that were tightly wound in her had only released a little with her first orgasm, but right now, with his body in hers, making them one, that spring in the old mattress was ready to burst through.

  “Now. That’s it.”

  “Do it,” he said. “I want to feel every part of your body as you come. I want you to send me over the edge,” he said slightly out of breath.

  There was nothing holding her back now. Her muscles started to pulse around him, his body tensed, and for the first time ever, she actually felt a man as he came inside of her. She’d never felt that before with another man, but she did with Reed and knew there was something special here that friends just didn’t share.

  Whole Package

  “You’ve got a little something right there,” Reed said, leaning in and licking some hot wing sauce off of the corner of her mouth. “Spicy.”

  “Me or the remains of my food? Sorry, I’m not normally this messy when I eat, but you had me working up one hell of an appetite.”

  “You inspired a pretty phenomenal cardio workout for us.”

  She was sitting on his couch in one of his T-shirts that he’d tossed at her after they’d finished rolling around on his bed a second time. He’d had plenty of women grab his clothes from time to time and put them on, walk around and prance in front of him. This was the first time he’d more or less suggested a woman wear his clothing.

  It definitely meant more when he actually wanted to see a woman wearing his shirt than when one just assumed it was theirs for the taking.

  “I can’t say I’ve been told that often in my life,” she said, picking up the napkin and wiping her mouth. Bummer, he was looking forward to cleaning her up again.

  “Why’s that?” he asked. She was the whole package sitting in front of him right now. Beautiful, down to earth, to the point, with a smoking hot body and knew how to use it. And she wasn’t shy in the bedroom at all. Yep, every man’s fantasy...with no strings attached.

  “Not everyone had an easy life or parents that owned a business.”

  She didn’t say it sarcastically, but the underlying tone wasn’t lost on him. “So tell me about your life.”

  She started to cough. “Why?”

  He didn’t care that she got almost a panicked look in her eye. “Because friends do that. They share with each other.”

  “I guess.”

  She reached for a piece of pizza and took a large bite. He put his hand on her bare thigh. “If you don’t give me something I’m going to think you might be running from the police and not only am I employing a fugitive but harboring one too.”

  “Hardly running. I’ve never even had a speeding ticket.”

  “Are you married?” he asked seriously. He did just tell himself this was no strings attached, right? Yet he wanted to know more about her. He was just going to go with it. And wondered why he never thought to ask before. It wouldn’t be the first time he’d slept with a woman he’d picked up in a bar and found out later she had a husband at home. His self-worth took a major hit that night driving him toward the bottle. Thinking back, that was probably when he decided he’d had enough of that life and needed the change.

  “Hell no,” she said. He’d felt that way recently too. Funny thing is, he wasn’t feeling quite as emphatic as that now.

  “Divorced?”

  “Nope. Never been married. Single as can be,” she said, smiling, but he wasn’t sure he believed her.

  “Not dating anyone?” he asked, grinning. He hoped the hell not since she was in his bed.

  “Just a friends with benefits situation with my boss. Does that count? Besides, I thought we covered this topic before. Didn’t you believe me?”

  He laughed. “It could count now if anyone else asks you. And I just wanted to make sure nothing had changed since the last time we talked about it.”

  “I doubt anyone will ask. You want to know some things, fine, I’ll tell you.”

  “I do.” He couldn’t remember the last ti
me he’d asked that question of a woman. Hell, half the time he was lucky he knew their last name if he even asked for their first name. Wow, had times changed.

  “I lived outside of Miami. I’m one of six kids.”

  “Six? Lucky you.”

  “Your sarcasm is about how I felt growing up. I’m in the middle.”

  “Give me their names and occupations. The same with your parents if they’re still around.”

  “Oh they’re around. I hear from my mother more often than not. The oldest is Kyle, he’s thirty-four and a policeman. He’s married with two kids right now. Then there is Anne who’s thirty-one, she’s a pre-K teacher and engaged. I’m next at almost twenty-nine. Single as we’ve already established.”

  “Sort of single,” he corrected her.

  She took another bite of her pizza and he picked up his second slice. “Then there is Landon, he’s twenty-seven and a grocery store manager, the only one to not go to college at all. He’s single and will probably remain that way too.”

  “How come?” he asked.

  “He’s a bit like you. He didn’t have a good experience in high school and just wants some action now and again with no commitment.”

  He wanted to argue with her, but couldn’t. Not without saying that he was starting to have a change of heart. That would most likely make her go running out the door just in his T-shirt alone. As much as he’d enjoy the sight of her ass on the way out, he wasn’t willing to risk it. “It works for some people until it doesn’t work anymore.”

  “If you say so. Next is Kurt and he does something with computers or networks or whatnot. He’s got a girlfriend and I expect them to get engaged soon, but he’s only twenty-five and I hope they wait. They both have a ton of debt from college.”

  “Do you?” he asked.

  “What? Have a ton of college debt?” He nodded. “Yep. Not as much as him because I went to a community college first and lived at home, then went to a state school. Also lived at home.”

  “So who is the baby of the family?”

  “That would be Crystal. She’s twenty-three and single because she can’t decide what she wants to do with her life or what side of the fence she wants to be on.”

  “Meaning?” he asked, completely lost.

  “Guys or girls. She likes them both and can’t figure out which way to go. Until then, she’s just floating through life between jobs and significant others. She went to college, but dropped out.”

  “Sounds like you’ve got an interesting family,” he said, wondering what that was like. He could barely handle Rachel let alone anyone else.

  “Oh, the stories I could tell you,” she said.

  “So tell me.”

  “I don’t think so. It’s not like it’s happy stories half the time. My parents are still married. My father is a janitor for the high school we went to. Let me tell you, that isn’t fun growing up.”

  “Kids can be rough,” he said. He never had any worries like her, but he knew how it was in high school. He and Josh were in the popular gang and hung out with lots of people, but that didn’t stop the girls from playing with their heads.

  Whitney being right up there in the mix. The first time he’d seen her in junior high he was half in love, but she wanted nothing to do with him or anyone else in their class. Upperclassmen were always her target and she went through plenty of them.

  “They can. I’d like to think it’s worse for the girls, but my brothers say otherwise. My father worked second shift for years so it wasn’t until we were older that anyone even knew of the relation, but once a first shift opened up, he took it. It wasn’t like they needed to figure out daycare at that point as we were all in school.”

  “And your mother?” he asked.

  “She’s a secretary for some local business. I can’t even remember the name of the place now. When we were younger she had a few different jobs. All entry-level positions. She floated between retail and office work. Whoever was hiring and could work around daycare issues. Not a lot of money in the house and a lot of mouths to feed.”

  “So you moved here for what?” he asked. “A better life?” Not that there was anything wrong with the Capital Region, but he didn’t know too many people that moved up here from Florida for no specific reason or a job transfer.

  “It was time for a change,” she said, like she had before and he knew he wasn’t going to get much more out of her.

  She finished off her pizza and reached for her bottle of water. He’d offered her beer and wine, but she’d declined. It was barely five right now and he hoped that she didn’t plan on leaving.

  “Do you like it here? Wish you never left sunny Florida?”

  “There are ups and downs here.”

  She was grinning when she dropped her eyes to his lap. He was sitting there in boxers and they shifted when the member inside of them started to grow.

  He pushed his plate aside and stretched out on top of her. “I think you like the ups.”

  “What woman doesn’t?” she asked, then wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down for a kiss.

  Negative Spin

  “Do you really need to leave?” Reed asked her when she finished pulling her shirt over her head. She’d stayed longer than she’d planned, but it was still only nine.

  “I do.” She opted for a bit more honesty and said, “I should get home to my dog.”

  “You’ve got a dog? What kind?”

  She’d told him a lot more than she’d planned on tonight, but knew if she didn’t give him something it would raise some suspicions she didn’t want to deal with right now.

  They’d had a spectacular day and evening together and she didn’t want anything to ruin that. She knew once she got home and started to think more about this day she’d have enough doubts to put a negative spin on it in her mind.

  “A little bit of this and that and everything in between. We adopted him.”

  “We?”

  “Me,” she corrected. How the hell had she let that slip? “I say ‘we’ when I think of him and me.”

  He nodded like he bought it. She hoped. “What’s his name?”

  “Mutt. Like ‘you ugly mutt’.” Reed laughed. She didn’t want to say part of the reason was because that was what Angie called him once Taylor had said “come on, mutt, out of the car,” when they brought him home.

  “So he’s been home all alone today?”

  “He’s got food and water and a dog door to a fenced-in backyard. He’s good, but I’ve never left him overnight, nor did I plan on spending the night.”

  “Why?” he asked. He sure did ask a lot of questions. They were standing in his bedroom right now, both of them dressed, but she knew Reed had done it reluctantly. She also knew darn well he would have stayed in bed messing up his sheets if she’d suggested it.

  “Because that’s pushing it for just being friends, don’t you think?”

  He didn’t say anything at first, just stared at her, and then finally responded with, “Maybe next time.”

  “Or maybe not,” she said, grinning and poking her finger into his stomach. What was she supposed to say? She had no intention of telling him she had a child. He didn’t need to know anyway. She’d already confessed that they were pretty much poor growing up and it wasn’t easy. Her life was nothing like his and the last thing she wanted to worry about was that he thought she was eying him like a meal ticket.

  “So when do I get to see you again?” he asked.

  “I’ll be to work on Monday morning. You can see me there if you have a reason to come into the building.”

  He laughed and she took that moment to walk past him and out of the room. His relaxed face and casual attire were enough to make her want to change her mind. What was it about bare feet that made a man sexy?

  “How about after work?”

  “After work on Monday?” she asked. “Sorry, during the week is hard.”

  “And you aren’t going to tell me the reason for that?” he s
aid sighing.

  “Nope.” She started to trot down the stairs with him following. “By the time I get home at night and do household things, I’m tired. Weekends are for fun, weekdays for work.”

  “You’re right. We’re swamped. I’ve got the men working all sorts of overtime and I need to be on site too. Not sure what I was thinking.”

  She was glad that he understood. Or maybe he wasn’t thinking either. They both probably fried a few brain cells in his bedroom tonight. She was nice and limber at the moment and though she was looking forward to the next time they could get some bedroom exercise in, it was going to be at least two weeks.

  When she got to the bottom of the stairs, she wrapped him up tight, plastered a long lingering kiss on his lips and said, “Thanks for tonight.”

  “I should be thanking you,” he said, winking.

  “It was definitely mutual.”

  “I’ll be in touch,” he said, reaching for a lock of her hair, then dropping his hand away before he touched her. It was a soft move. A sensual one. A caring one.

  And she needed to get the hell out of there before she started to feel more for him than just being his friend.

  ***

  Almost two weeks had gone by and Reed was going nuts with need. His body was tight and ready for action and, surprisingly, his ice-cold heart was melting somewhat and needed to spend some time with Taylor.

  He’d honored her request about no weekdays and unfortunately last weekend he’d committed to helping one of his crew members do some work at their house. Or more like guiding them so they didn’t mess it up.

  If he could have gotten out of it, he would have, but told himself that his job always came first. Or it should now.

  Whitney never minded that he worked as much as he had. The only time she ever complained was when she was free and wanted him to be. Normally she was working much more than him. Her way of hiding the affair she was having, he knew that now.

  He had a good crew and that was hard to find. They helped each other out when they could and he wasn’t going to back out now.