Sips & Strokes: Love wasn't part of the deal

by Sarah Skye

  It’s been forever since someone expressed a genuine interest in the pieces I created.

  “Thanks for being so kind,” I say to Calder.

  He squeezes my hand and then lets go. “Don’t thank me. I’m just stating the obvious. You’re a talented artist. Beyond incredible. It’s weird to me that everyone around you isn’t constantly saying that to you. They all must be dense.”

  I let out a laugh. “Just wait till you meet everyone when we go apple picking.”

  “You still haven’t explained what that is.”

  “Promise I will, but first we should probably work on our… issue... from earlier this evening.”

  He blinks, and the amusement in his face disappears. He takes a drink of water and sets the glass back on the table. “Tell me then. What do you think we need to practice?”

  “Kissing.”

  Calder’s brow lifts the slightest bit. I’m caught off guard too at how quickly I said it. But it’s the truth. Our PDA this evening was unconvincing, as evidenced by the comments that Nate made.

  “I don’t mean to sound so forward about all this.”

  “Don’t apologize,” he says with a smile. “What man wouldn’t want to spend an evening kissing you?”

  As my heart flips in my chest, a grin splits my face. Calder slides over to my side of the couch. When he pivots to face me, I do the same. I hold my breath as he leans his face close to mine and cups my cheek in his hand.

  “No sense fucking about,” he whispers.

  And then he presses his mouth to mine. At first, contact is slow and soft, almost tentative. But a second later, I sink into the rhythm. I move my lips against his, unable to help myself as I let out a soft moan. Those lips. Oh my fucking god, those lips. How can they be so soft and so firm at the same time?

  The scratch of his thick stubble against my smooth cheeks shoots fire inside of me. That little bit of roughness is absolute perfection. I’ve always, always loved the feel of rough stubble against my face. Yeah, it’s scratchy and even hurts a bit, but it’s a good hurt. Like a delicious reminder of all the gruff masculine deliciousness that’s mine for the taking.

  I hum again, relishing the hard feel once more. Then he hums too. I smile against his mouth and run my tongue along his bottom lip.

  At that moment, I expect Calder to capture my tongue in his mouth and go to town. That’s what every other guy I’ve kissed seems to want to do—get hot and heavy as soon as possible.

  But not Calder.

  Instead, he slowly runs his tongue along my bottom lip too, then parts my mouth open.

  And then the teasing begins.

  My breath turns ragged as he softly flicks my tongue with his. My mouth waters. He tastes faintly of whisky and strawberries from dessert. His hold on my face turns firm as he amps things up. It’s gentle lap after gentle lap that sends electricity to every particle of my body.

  When I start to feel dizzy, I steady myself by running my fingers through his hair. I hum even louder at how good it feels to touch even more of him.

  This teasing act goes on for minutes until we’re both panting and grabbing at each other. It’s like we’re animals in a frenzied heat.

  I pull away when I run out of breath and rest my hands on his shoulders to steady myself. His hands fall to my waist, then he slowly, softly runs his palms along my back. Yet another sheet of goosebumps covers my skin at the tantalizing touch. Our chests heave in tandem as we gaze at each other. When my vision finally focuses, I notice that his eyes are cloudy—hopefully with lust. Mine definitely are.

  “That was…”

  Calder frowns and clears his throat. “Hopefully okay?”

  I cup my hand over my mouth, my head still spinning. Holy fucking hell. No one, not anyone, has ever kissed me like that. Even though I’ve been kissed multiple times by multiple men, no kiss has ever been that phenomenal.

  Calder starts to say something, but I cannot compute. His slow, teasing kisses have short-circuited my brain. He’s moving his mouth, but my hearing has gone fuzzy. All because of that kiss.

  Holy crap, Calder has one hell of a mouth… and one hell of a tongue. And in this moment, all I know is that I need more of both on me.

  When I try to refocus on what he’s saying, I’ve only caught the tail end of it.

  “—or if you think it should be slower or faster or—”

  I slice a hand through the air, cutting him off while I shake my head.

  He frowns, seemingly confused. “Oh sorry. It’s just that you didn’t say anything for a while. I thought that maybe you didn’t like it, or you wanted me to change something, or…”

  He drifts off when I push him against the couch. Then his eyes go wide as I straddle him. I know this is way more than kissing at this point. But I don’t care. My body is vibrating, in desperate need of more.

  “Whoa.” He chuckles. “Alright then.”

  “I just… I don’t want to stop. That kiss was amazing and I...I…” I stammer as I struggle to catch my breath.

  His grin fades into a neutral line on his face. He doesn’t lose any of the amusement in his expression though. It’s still dancing in his jewel-toned eyes. And even without the smile, the line of his mouth reads knowing, flitting on the edge of smug. It makes me lose all the oxygen in my body once more.

  When he swallows, I’m hypnotized. All can do is gaze at the glorious thickness of his stubbled neck.

  “I want...I need…”

  “Lily,” he growls softly. “Just say so.”

  “I want to kiss you some more.”

  My mouth is on his before he can even take a breath. And as good as all that teasing was, I don’t have the patience for it this time. This time, I want as much of Calder as I can possibly have.

  I tug at his hair as our tongues get filthier and filthier. He seems to be on board with the more hurried rhythm I’m employing as he moans into my mouth, clearly enjoying himself. We’re out of air just as quickly as last time. But this time, I get the added perk of having more of his body on me.

  Just the feel of his hard mass writhing against mine sends jolts of pleasure inside of me. Between my legs it starts to throb.

  I grin against his mouth for the zillionth time as I delight in all the blissful physical sensations I’m experiencing. The arousal inside of me. The sound of Calder’s panting and moaning and soft grunting. The taste of this mouth and tongue. The firm feel of his body underneath me. I shudder in pleasure. His thighs are hard as steel. So is his chest. And his arms. And his back.

  I run my hands all over his torso, pressing and grabbing at all that dense, chiseled flesh.

  I probably shouldn’t be so shocked at what I’m feeling. I’ve seen him buck naked in my classroom several times already. I’m very, very familiar with all that cut muscle that adorns his flawless physique. I’ve spent hours upon hours staring at him and quietly ogling him...but to touch him is a whole different ball game.

  I break our kiss and inhale the musky scent of his cologne. “Your thighs. Your whole body.”

  His hands, which are resting on my hips, give me a gentle squeeze as he smirks up at me. “I’m delighted you’re a fan. I’m definitely a fan of your insanely hot body.”

  I start to blush, but then he hooks his finger under my chin and tilts me to look at him. “Don’t you even think about denying that compliment. Accept it because it’s true. You’re gorgeous, Lily.”

  The feather-like kiss he presses to my mouth sets me on fire just as much as those more desperate, more tongue-heavy kisses. Probably because of the sweetness in his words and the conviction in his eyes as he spoke them to me.

  Soon we’re tugging at each other’s clothes, in full defiance of the no sex rule I set just days ago. But right now, I don’t give a flying fuck about the rules. It’s been ages since I’ve had sex and, given how orgasmic making out with Calder is, I’m guessing that getting naked with him would be more of the same—maybe even better. My clit is throbbing, aching to find out
just how much better. I’m on the verge of ripping his dress shirt open when his phone rings.

  “Leave it,” I say against his mouth.

  He grunts his agreement as the ringing finally stops. But then it starts back up again. When his phone blares on for the third time, we finally break apart.

  “I should probably answer that,” Calder says, a frown marring his expression. He runs a hand through his hair, which is a tousled mess due to me.

  I lean back and nod, taking the moment to catch my breath.

  The way he says Nate’s name as he answers sounds like a harsh bark. But the longer he stays on the call listening to whatever Nate’s saying, the more his expression eases. And then the smiles.

  “Yeah, that would be fucking grand, mate. Thanks.”

  He hangs up and looks at me. “Good news. The dinner left a positive impression on the Sonce execs. It sounds like they’re buying me as a wholesome and responsible bloke.”

  “That’s great, Calder.” I smile, thrilled for him.

  “They want me to get on the phone so they can introduce me to the Sonce brand reps in Scotland.”

  “Right now?”

  “Yeah.” He swallows. “Nothing’s set in stone, but things are looking good. It sounds like I’m actually in the running to be the face of the brand now.”

  I beam. “That’s freaking awesome!”

  The wide grin he flashes makes my chest ache. I can tell just how much this opportunity means to him and just how close he is to getting it.

  “Nate said there are a couple more events to attend before I seal the deal. Some hoity-toity whisky tasting and a holiday launch party.”

  I hug him in congratulations. The deep rumble of his laughter vibrates against my body. It feels like heaven.

  “I couldn’t have done it without you, Lily,” he says softly into my ear as he holds me tight. I grin so wide my mouth aches.

  “I guess we did a better job of pretending than I thought we did,” he says.

  The way he chuckles jolts me. It almost sounds like relief. My smile drops. “Oh yeah. That’s, um, great.”

  I quickly slide off his lap and sit next to him on the couch. “I guess we don’t need to practice anymore. You nailed it.” I tug my top back down.

  A different kind of heat flashes across my skin. The kind of warmth that hits when I’m embarrassed.

  There’s a pause as Calder clears his throat. I stand up from the couch and force a smile at him. “As much fun as that was, you should probably leave to take that call, right?”

  Calder stammers for a second, but then shakes his head. “Yeah, I should.”

  I back up to give him enough room to stand and then walk back toward the front door and open it for him.

  “Thank you for helping me tonight, Lily.”

  I nod once, that tight smile still on my face. “No problem. See you in class. And remember, we um need to be professional there.”

  I lock the door after I shut it behind him. For a second I stand there, my head spinning in a million dizzying circles. And then I lean my back against the door and slide all the way down until my ass hits the hardwood, wondering how the hell I’m going to fake it through apple picking, a rehearsal dinner, a wedding, and more Sconce events if this is how badly I lose my shit after just one kiss with Calder.

  11

  Calder

  I press my forehead against her front door and take a long, slow breath. Goddamn, pretending just got a lot more fun.

  Sure, I’ll remember to be a professional. I’ll be a professional and pose for the students. I’ll be a professional and call her Professor Lily.

  And I’ll be a professional and wank it long and hard before I go into that classroom because thinking about that sweet, hot mouth is enough to change the class’s focal point if I’m not careful.

  My eyes open slowly, and I realize my hand is on the doorknob, itching to turn it. Before I do anything desperate, I stumble backwards and spin for my car. On the drive home, a question sinks deeper and deeper into my brain.

  If this is pretending, then what the hell is the real thing?

  12

  Lily

  “Okay, everyone. That’s it for today. Thank you.” I dismiss the students and try my hardest not to look at Calder as he slips his robe back on.

  It is not easy.

  Because I’ve tried not to look at him this entire class and failed miserably. Ever since our crazy hot makeout session on my couch this past weekend, he’s all I could think about. And now that he’s been standing just a few feet in front of me for the past hour wearing nothing at all, I know just how weak my resolve is.

  Because I definitely snuck a peek at his muscles as they twitched and bulged while he held his various poses today.

  I shake my head, trying to will away the endless images of his flawless, naked form. No more ogling. We need to talk about what happened Saturday night, and I need to apologize for how handsy and hot I got with him. My family’s apple picking excursion is happening this weekend, and I need to be on the same page with Calder to make sure that we sell ourselves as a couple—while also keeping ourselves in check.

  Once the last student is gone, I shut the door behind them and turn to face Calder.

  “How’d I do today?” he asks, tightening the belt on his robe.

  “Excellent. The students love you.”

  He flashes a slight smile, then glances down at the ground. I wonder if he had a hard time getting through the week like I did. I wonder if he thought about that kiss as often as I did, if he relived the heat between us, the taste, the feel, the heart-pounding arousal that I close my eyes and imagine every time I’m in the shower or lying in bed.

  I quell the thought in my mind. Probably not. He was probably too focused on working with the Sonce execs to think about me much. He didn’t even text me the past few days. And even though I thought about texting him more times than I care to admit, I didn’t. If he wasn’t going to reach out, I didn’t want to come off like I was desperate for his attention—especially after I threw myself at him Saturday night.

  But now there’s no excuse. It’s time to set everything straight.

  “I owe you an apology.”

  Calder looks up at me, his eyebrows wrinkled together. “For what?”

  “For mauling you the other night. On my couch.” I swallow and try not to burst into flames of embarrassment.

  His mouth hooks up into that adorable smirk I can never get enough of. “No need to be sorry about that.”

  I fold my hands in front of me. “I let myself get carried away. We had an agreement not to let things get too heated, and I crossed those boundaries.”

  “Lily, you didn’t cross any boundaries. I was more than happy to go along with it too. If you couldn’t tell, I was enjoying myself quite a bit.”

  “I… appreciate you saying that.”

  He lifts an eyebrow, probably amused at my awkward wording.

  “But this weekend we’re supposed to go apple picking at Sawyer Farms with my family and their friends, remember? And I just want to make sure that we stick to the plan. Let’s keep things PG, okay? Hand holding, kisses on the cheek, that sort of thing.”

  He steps toward me. “So I can’t kiss you on the lips?”

  Inside my chest, my heart is doing somersaults. “Sure you can. Just no tongue.”

  He crinkles his lips, then grins before stepping closer to me once more. We’re so close that if I lean forward slightly, I could show him exactly how I want him to kiss me.

  “So… something like this?” He hovers his lips right over mine, and I stop breathing. I should tell him to stop, that this violates our agreed-upon rule to never do anything physical in the classroom.

  But I don’t. Instead, I stay right there as the wet heat of his soft breath coats my lips.

  “No… classroom… stuff,” I stammer through the arousal swirling through me.

  “Relax, Lily. I know your rules,” he whispers. “I’m not
kissing you, am I?”

  I shake my head slightly.

  The corner of his mouth twitches up into a playful half-smile. I want to lick his lips, but not here.

  “I’m just making sure we’re on the same page about what kind of kiss—what kind of peck—is acceptable in front of your family,” he says softly. “I’d obviously press my lips against yours when we’re there this weekend. But not right now, of course.”

  Just then he leans away and takes a step back. I deflate on the inside, even though I know it’s for the best. I can’t lose my inhibitions here, not in my classroom.

  “Um, yeah,” I say through a huff of air. “Just like that is perfectly fine.”

  “Good to know,” he says. He turns around and grabs his bag of clothes, then heads over to the back corner of the room where the room divider is and changes into his street clothes. I take a minute to collect myself and quietly deep-breathe my way to a regular heartbeat.

  When he walks out with his clothes on, I breathe a sigh of relief. It’s a lot easier to talk about serious things when he’s dressed.

  “Nice try pulling that sneaky move a minute ago,” I say.

  “I didn’t technically kiss you,” he says with a lift of his eyebrow.

  I roll my eyes and smile. “Fine. You got off on a technicality. But this weekend, no pushing boundaries. We need to be a cute couple who doesn’t cross the line. Promise me you’ll be on your best behavior?”

  I stick out my hand for him to shake.

  He clasps his hand around mine. “I promise.”

  13

  Calder

  Sunday is custom-made for an autumn day outdoors, bright and blue with just a bit of chill in the air. Lily emerges from her house with two travel mugs in her hands and grins when she sees I’ve got the top down. I accept her offer of coffee gratefully and hit the road.

  It’s about an hour and a half drive out of town to this farm. Once I’m cruising down the highway, I sneak a glance at my “girlfriend” to see if she seems tense. No lie, it has the potential to be a very long day—Lily warned me we’d not be back until well after dinner—but she’s snuggled in the seat, cradling her coffee and smiling at the passing countryside. Her dark hair whips behind her, making her the picture of relaxation. She catches my glance and smiles a little brighter, so I let go of any concern about how this will play out and instead daydream about Sonce. It’s my new favorite pastime.