I pull away with a gasp. “We need to stop if we are going to make it to dinner tonight.”
She looks at me with glazed eyes and swollen, red lips. “Okay,” she whispers.
I reach around her to grab her bag, ushering her out the door. She turns and locks it, following me to my bike. I place her bag in the saddlebag, giving her a small peck before placing the helmet on her head. “I hope jeans and helmet hair are okay for dinner,” she says, giggling.
I nod. “It’s perfect.”
Once on the bike, I drive us around for a while for two reasons. One, just to feel her holding me tightly, and two, to confuse her about where we are going. Finally, I turn onto my street, and she pinches me. I can feel her body shaking behind me as she laughs. When I pull into the garage and remove her helmet, she lightly smacks me. “You tricked me. I thought we were going out to dinner.”
“I never said out to dinner. I asked you if you wanted to have dinner with me. So, we are having dinner together. I happen to be an amazing cook, you know. Family restaurant and all…” I wink. She laughs and takes my hand as we head into the house.
I put her bag at the door to my room, not wanting her to feel obligated, but hoping for a repeat of the other night. I broke out of my reverie when I hear her mention how great the house smells. I smile. It should. I wasn’t just blowing smoke when I said I was a damn good cook. My mama didn’t raise a fool. I can cook with the best of them. I thought I was quite a catch, but seeing as all I had caught until Leire was Brittany, who the hell knows. Women are weird and impossible to understand.
I turn and see Leire still standing in the hall, waiting on me. I grab her hand and lead her into the kitchen, sitting her at the bar. “Drink? I have beer, wine, maybe some mixers somewhere…”
“Wine, please.”
“Perfect. It will go well with our dinner. I made us Ossobuco for dinner. It is my mom’s special dinner. We have it once a year on either Easter or Christmas. I couldn’t concentrate at work today, so I left early. When I was thinking of what to cook, I decided it needed it to be special. I hope you like it.”
“I’m sure I will love it if it’s anything like it smells.”
I hand her the wine and go about plating the food. As we sit and eat, we discuss our days. She admits to having caved and looked herself up in ratemyprofessor. She has me rolling with some of the comments people have left. I tell her all about my day and how upset Wyatt was that I kept pushing my clients off on him. I tell her how Wyatt and I have been friends for as long as I can remember and some of the funny shit we got ourselves into. I tell her about the time we decided to see if we could fly using the plastic sheet wrap my mom had around our house when she was painting. We duct taped that crap to our arms and leapt from the roof. I ended up with two broken wrists and some ribs, while Wyatt had one broken wrist and both his arms. Apparently, we went face first and were lucky we had helmets on. When I tell her the worst part was the removal of the duct tape, she loses it. I am so glad she is relaxed and laughing. It is a great evening.
When I stand up to clear the plates, Leire offers, but I tell her to sit, then set her up with a little glass of limoncello, my favorite. She sits at the bar, sipping and watching with a little sparkle in her eye. I hope she is feeling what I am feeling. Dinner and conversation has not been enough.
LEIRE
After a wonderful dinner and some amazing conversation, I am feeling extremely relaxed in Ander’s presence. This, of course, is aided by the wine and the amazing limoncello. God, where did he get this stuff? It’s like candy…lethal candy.
Once he finishes cleaning up the kitchen, he takes me to his family room, which is dominated by a massive TV. I turn to look at him and he smiles shyly. “Um, I own the Briar Rose. I hire only the best so I make a very good living. We are always booked and people come from miles to see us. So this is my other baby. It’s an eighty-four inch Sony 4k ultra HD TV. It’s, like, the king of all TVs. Every man needs one.”
I nod. “I can think of a lot more fun things to do that don’t require a super-duper television.” The alcohol must be going to my head.
Ander smirks and stalks across the room, tossing me over his shoulder and carrying me to his room where he tosses me on the bed.
“More exciting, huh? Perhaps you can enlighten me on this. After all, I am but a lowly man with his TV.”
“Hmm… I do have vast knowledge from my books, but I wouldn’t want to do anything you feel uncomfortable with.”
He nods. “I understand. Start where you want and I will let you know as we go, okay?”
He kisses me fiercely, beginning to rip off my clothing. “Careful! I love this top! It’s an original!”
He laughs. “You telling me you like AC/DC?”
“Yes,” I answer. “And The Amity Affliction, Like a Storm, Pantera, Metallica, Avatar, Nothing More, WovenWar, Five Finger Death Punch, Avenged Sevenfold, and I still miss Disturbed.” I stop while he just stares. “Do I need to go on? I also like Hozier, if that’s better.” Without a word, he walks to his sound system and turns it on. The sounds of “Shepherd of Fire” starts playing all across the house. “You are shitting me! I love this album!”
ANDER
We both stand there in shock. The odds of another person, let alone a girl, knowing and loving these groups is slim. I know that. I leave the music on low and go to her. “Take your clothes off, Leire,” I say.
She blushes. “Ander, because of my history and scars, I don’t have anything pretty to wear under my clothes.”
“Leire, did I ask to see your clothes? No. I asked you to remove your clothes. Now.”
She shifts on the bed, blushing a beautiful red, and begins to remove her clothes. It is rather rushed and clumsy, the movements of someone who has not had a lot of practice in the art of seduction, but it is heaven to me. When she is finally naked, I groan and lick my lips. “I intend to taste every inch of you tonight, making you scream my name and feel me for days. I intend to make it so there were no men before me and there will be no men after me.”
I reach behind my neck and pull my shirt off in one swift move, adding it to her pile of clothes on the floor. She is squirming on the bed, watching my show. I reach down and unbutton my jeans, pushing them down. I don’t believe in any underwear for men. For a while, I just stand there, gently stroking my erect cock to the vision that is before me. “You are so beautiful, Leire. I will never tire of telling you this, nor will you ever stop hearing it. Just like the sun rises and sets every day, it is a fact that you are beautiful to me.”
She flushes and reaches for me. “Nope. We do this my way,” I say, rummaging around in a chest at the foot of my bed, grabbing four blue silk ties. Leire’s eyes grow wide. I have tied her up before, but not completely. “Trust me?” I ask. She nods. “Words, Leire. I need to hear them. Do…you…trust…me?”
“Yes,” comes her firm reply.
I smile and reach for one foot, running my thumb down the underside of it, causing her toes to bend and a moan to escape. I wrap the rope around both her ankle and the bed, then test its comfort and mobility. “How does this feel?” I ask. Leire just nods and motions to her other foot. I repeat the motions, leaving her legs spread wide and tied to the bedposts. I then walk around to her head and grab her right wrist. I caress it for a moment before following the same motions as with her feet, tying her to the post on the headboard. When I am finished, I gently kiss her wrist. I then move around the bed and repeat the process, including the kiss.
Then I stand up to admire my handiwork. My cock is proud, jutting straight out and leaking from the tip. I stroke it a few more times, ending with a twist each time. Leire is watching with rapture. I walk to the end of the bed and slowly start licking and kissing up her legs, nipping behind her knees. When I get close to the center of her, I move to a different place. Leire is begging and writhing on the bed. “Please, please, please, Ander!”
“Please what, baby? What would you like me to do?”<
br />
“Kiss me!” she answers.
And so I do, but as happy as she is to have that kiss, she is still groaning and writhing against me. This time, I work my way downwards, licking and kissing her ears and neck, nibbling on that sweet spot between her neck and shoulder, then sucking hard, causing her to moan even louder. I move down to her breasts, taking my time with each one, lovingly kissing all around them. I pull and nip one nipple until it is so erect, it has to be almost painful for her, but she doesn’t stop me. Instead, she is holding my head, her fingers tangled in my hair.
With one final kiss, I let go of that breast and move to the other. “Ander,” she cries. “I need more. I need something more.”
I understand that. I’m in pain myself, but I’m not ready to go there yet. Our first night together had been all about the end result, rushing toward that end feeling as many times as possible. This time, I want it to be different. This time, we are learning each other.
I move my head down and make one long lick from one end of her delicious cunt to the other. It tastes of the very essence of her and I love it. I’ve heard men say women taste like fruit or vanilla or something along those lines, but I don’t believe it. I have the perfect woman and she tastes just like herself. I could die a happy man with the taste of her on my lips. I lap up and down her slit, stopping frequently to tease her clit, causing her to nearly thrash out of bed. When I add two fingers to the mix, she begins screaming for me. I hook my fingers up and begin to move them quickly, flicking my tongue back and forth on her clit. In no time at all, she is coming, squeezing my fingers so tight, I wonder if I am getting blood flow to them.
When I am able, I pull them out and lick them clean. I then lean over her and ask, “Leire, I bought some condoms to use. I know you said you cannot get pregnant, but let’s use them; at least until we both get tested. Okay?” She nods.
I reach over her to the night table and grab a new box of condoms, ripping it open and snagging one. I deftly rip the corner of it open and roll it onto my cock. I then move forward to slide it back and forth in her wetness, lubricating myself.
“Are you ready, baby?” I ask.
“Ander, I have been ready since you told me to strip. Please, get inside me now,” she moans.
“Anything for you, baby.”
I enter her slowly, an inch at a time. Being tied up, she can do nothing but absorb the feelings. She wants to close her thighs and rub them together to ease the ache, to reach down and touch her clit to set fire to her body, but she can’t. I can see all these emotions running across her face. When I am finally fully in her, I begin to torturously move back and forth, in and out, giving her some relief but not enough to get her off. I am dying, but this is about her trusting me and giving herself to me. I move slowly until her little whimpers and cries become such that I have to move faster. I start pounding into her. She will be feeling me inside her for days, just like I want.
When she begins to scream and I feel her muscles tightening, I bend over and whisper in her ear, “That’s it. Come on my cock, baby. Make me wet. Make my dick yours.”
I bite her on the same spot again. She will be seeing that mark for days. She comes so hard, she nearly pushes me out of her, but I am still going. Her aftershocks are what do me in, the gripping of her muscles causing me to lose it in her, yelling her name as I come fiercely.
When we get our breathing under control, I get up to remove the condom, then begin to gently remove the restraints, massaging each limb as I do, working my way up each arm and leg. By the time I am done, she is fast asleep and I am ready to sleep, as well. I hope she felt what I did tonight. That wasn’t just fucking. That was claiming. We may not know exactly what we are yet, but we know enough to know that whatever it is, it needs to be explored and trusted. I need her with me, and I know she feels the same way about me. I set the alarm so she’ll have plenty of time to eat and get ready before work, then fall asleep with her cuddling my chest. For the first time in ages, I fall asleep in peace.
In the morning, we seem to fall into our same routine from earlier…coffee, sex on the table, grab a bite to eat, then she races out the door for work. I get to see her in professor mode, which makes me feel the need to make sure all those horny college boys know she is taken. I am going to have to plan something soon to get this point across. Sexy little pencil skirts, while considered perfect business attire, are way too sexy for the male mind to handle while sitting in a class trying to focus. I know. I was one once. Hell, the way I follow her around the house while she is getting ready shows me I’m still one. Just the look of her in that tight skirt has me pressing down on my dick to get more control. I need to get to work today, as well. Not only do I have customers, but I have been neglecting my paperwork. Smiling, I grab a to-go coffee mug, fill it, and go into the shop.
It’s already bustling by the time I get there, and Wyatt gives me a look that says he’s not happy. I smirk back at him. “What’s wrong, Wy? No one to share your cold bed with last night so you missed me even more?”
“Fuck you. It has been crazy this morning and you were off fucking some tattoo groupie instead of doing your job. We are in need of quite a few new colors, gloves, paper towels, witch hazel, Hustle Butter, and so much more that I had to write it down just to remember it,” he grumbles.
“First, don’t you ever call Leire a tattoo groupie. You know nothing about her and what she has been through. If there is anyone who deserves kindness and love in this life, it is her. I intend to be the person who gives it to her. You want to stay here? You get on board with that fast.
“Second, I know I have been slacking, but you know how to order the supplies we need. We have two apprentices who also can order supplies. In fact, that is a part of their job. My job, besides being the best tattooist here, is to make sure all the bills and you get paid. So, unless you have more to bitch about, I am going to see about those things. Maybe I will decide to pay you, you ass. Take your list to one of the apprentices and have them check to see if anything else needs to be added before they order. Got it?” I look at him. I love this man, he is like my brother, but he does this whenever another person comes into my life. It is like he doesn’t want to share me. I don’t understand, but I’m not going to stand for it this time.
“Hey, Wy, you know I love you. You are not just my best friend, you are my brother. You have been with me through the depths of hell with my sister, then with Brittany. You’ve stuck by me and picked me up on more than one occasion. I love and appreciate that, man. But, dude, you have got to let me go sometimes. I will always need my brother, but I also need to move forward in life and not dwell on the mistakes I’ve made in the past. They will always haunt me, but being with Leire gives me a sense of peace I haven’t ever felt before. She is like a balm on my sore nerves, soothing my heart. Please try and understand that I am not leaving you. I’m bringing a new person in with me, hopefully for the long term. Okay?” I spoke clearly and firmly, but still lovingly.
He blinks and nods. “You’re right. You deserve some relief from the crap life has given you. I am just being cautious because I am the one who always has to pull you out when your new balm ends up being poison. So, please be careful this time, okay? Promise me. If you do, I will happily support you both.”
“I will. I promise. I am being careful, but it feels different this time. It feels real and I am not giving that up. So, please, focus on your job and be my friend, but don’t hate on us.” With that, Wyatt nods and heads back into his room.
I walk into my office and begin shuffling through the bills, filing what needs to be and paying the rest. At one point, I find Leire’s design and look at the calendar. We are coming up on two weeks at the end of this week. I need to schedule her to get more work done on that phoenix. I make a mental note to speak with her about it tonight, then I remember we haven’t discussed any plans for tonight. She will be at her place, and I will be at mine. This sucks. I know it is too early to move in together, but I still
hate not being able to go home to her every night. We are moving fast, but my feelings can’t be slowed down. I need to call her tonight to discuss seeing her as often as I can. Then I realize I don’t need to wait for tonight to see Leire. When I get a break today, I am going to surprise her at her office.
When Cora calls back to say I have a client, I quickly finish up my paperwork and go out to see what I will be inking today. I love this job, even the paperwork. With that thought, I start setting up for my next client, humming to myself the entire way through.
LEIRE
Why is leaving him in the morning so painful? It has only been about two weeks, a handful of nights together in that time, but our mornings go so well that when I leave, I feel alone again. And the sex… Oh god, the sex. Just thinking about it makes my thighs clench. This man is changing me. I have just finished my 3rd class for the day, then run to my office to apply cream to my tattoo, which is healing rather quickly. As I am rubbing in the cream, there is a knock on my door. “Who is it?” I ask, hands covered in goo and clothing in disarray. Hopefully it isn’t my department head.
“Babe, open the door.”
Smiling, I wipe my hands on some paper towels and try to straighten my clothes. Opening my door, I smile at him. “What are you doing here?” I throw my arms around him for a hug. I stick my head in the crook of his neck and inhale his amazing scent.
“Happy to see me?” he asks.
“Beyond happy. I missed you. Is that weird?” I ask, still clinging to him.
“Babe, why do you think I’m here?”
I relax and smile. “Then you don’t mind if I finish putting on my cream.”
I turn to my desk and grab the cream. He quickly snatches the bottle from my hand, flips the lock on the door, and motions for me to turn and strip.
One More Breath Page 8
