by Quinn, Cari
“You got it.”
She’d been dealing with them for days now. In fact, she was beginning to recognize the more obnoxious ones. Those two were new, but she wouldn’t forget them.
She stopped in front of Michael. “Look, I don’t know if you brought in the new reporters or they’re just finding their way to the bar now too, but I’d appreciate it if you went home and left me the hell alone.”
He flicked his aviators open and put them over his eyes. “Look, I’m sorry—”
“I know you’re sorry. I don’t care. You’re trouble with a billboard sized T. I don’t have any room in my life for you or your cargo plane full of problems. Got me?”
“You were there and married me too, you know.”
“Obviously, I can make a mistake. But what I can’t do is have this kind of upheaval in my life. Every time I turn around, there’s some news story about you and some Tabitha Tremaine. The last time she was spotted in your apartment was a week ago.” She lowered her voice when two people turned around from a whole table away.
Cripes. He was making her nuts. She was a very calm and together person usually.
The mirrored glasses didn’t allow her to see what was going on in his eyes, but the way his jaw clenched told her enough. Not all rumors there evidently.
He clicked his ring against the bar. “Me and Tabby are over.”
“Was that before or after you crawled out of her bed last week?”
“No, she was crawling out of my bed. Not me into hers.”
“Oh, that’s better.”
“No.” He made a grab for her and Chloe skipped out of reach.
She pulled her towel out of her back pocket and mopped up a puddle of condensation. “Get the hell out of my bar.”
“It’s not like that.” He growled.
“Oh, really?” She stopped and twisted her towel so tight she heard threads pop. “What’s it like then?”
“I didn’t sleep with her, she—dude, she’s crazy. As soon as I found out she was engaged, I cut ties. She’s the one who kept thinking we should be together. I don’t do married chicks.”
She stared at him. There were just no words. She whirled away and caught Lou in the doorway of his office, hands on his hips. She grabbed a glass, filled it with Dr. Pepper, and set it in front of him.
“Actually, the only married chick I am going to do is you, but we’ve been over that.”
Going? Was he high? “Do you actually hear yourself when you say stuff like that?”
He leaned on the bar, his fingertips reaching over to her side. “You pretend to be all indignant, but you like my mouth more than you let on.” He smirked. “You liked it the other night.”
She slapped the top of his hand and lowered her voice. “You’re going to get me fired. Isn’t it bad enough that my landlord wants to freaking evict me?”
“What?” He stood up to his full height, his brow furrowed.
Awesome. You and your big mouth, Chloe.
“It’s nothing.”
“I told you to come live with me.”
“We are not going over this again.”
“You’re my wife—”
“Don’t say that so loud. There are freaking reporters everywhere.”
“I believe that particular cat has streaked out of the bag, Red.”
“Chloe, the keg is kicked. Can you change it over?”
She swung her gaze to Wanda. “Yeah. I got it.” She dragged Michael down to the other side of the bar. “You know what people think of me right now? That I’m married to a cheater. A cheater.” Again. “I have a kid to worry about.” She ducked under the pass-through to the bar.
He took a step back. She tried not to notice the very firm thighs he had going on under his board shorts. Or that he was wearing Chucks instead of stupid dress shoes like most guys in L.A.. Nope, she definitely wasn’t going to notice that about him.
“Where are you going?”
“To grab a keg.”
He looked around. “Don’t you have guys for that?”
“You think I can’t lift one?”
“No, of course not. Just you know…you shouldn’t have to.”
“You probably haven’t lifted a keg in your entire life.”
“Sure I have. For parties.”
“Why doesn’t that surprise me?” She glanced around. “Amber, can you cover the bar for a sec? I need to change an empty.”
“Sure, sure.” Amber sauntered over, making sure to put a bit more of a sway in her step. “Who’s your friend?” She frowned, then looked closer. “Oh, I know who you are.” She jerked her shoulders back until her boobs were pressed forward for maximum effect.
Chloe rolled her eyes and went around her. “I’m going to take my break after I change it over. I’ll be back in fifteen.”
“Hi. Um, I’m just going to…Yeah, with her.” Michael jogged after her. “Does she do that a lot?”
“What? Make sure men check out her boobs? Yes. I’m sure you did.”
He lengthened his stride until he was right beside her. “Well, I kinda had to, but I like yours better.”
“Are you sure you’re not high?”
“Of course not.” He whipped off his sunglasses again and hung them on his shirt. “And they’re perfect. Next to your hair and cute freckles, it’s my favorite feature. At least until I get my face between your thighs. I need a little refresher there.”
Her nipples instantly tightened. She stopped so fast that he bumped into her. “Really? Could you say it a little louder?”
“What?” He curled his arm around her waist.
“Back up, buddy.”
He grinned down at her as his hand slid down to her butt. His sea-colored eyes danced as he waggled his eyebrows. “You look hot in these jeans too. Forgot to tell you.”
Chloe knocked his hand away and spun away from him. She was not going to focus on the fact that she wanted to curl into his very distracting chest.
“That Amber chick knows I’m your husband, right?”
“Would you stop saying that?”
“Doesn’t make it any less true. Even if you want to ignore it.” He crowded her into the wall beside the door to the cooler. “Would you hold up for a second?”
“Did you notice how busy it was?” She peered up at him. “Or haven’t you ever had a real job?”
“I was like any other guy and had to do crap for money.”
“Really?”
He invaded her space. “Just because I’ve never lugged around a keg doesn’t mean I don’t know how to earn money.”
“Dial 1-800-Daddy?”
“You don’t know anything about me or my father’s money. I haven’t taken a dime from him since I was in college.”
“Aww. Should I shine you up a medal? Was that before or after you went to a fancy school?”
The little muscle in his jaw flexed, but instead of snarling at her like she hoped, he only smiled. “You did Google me.”
She pushed him away. “You’re incorrigible.”
“So I’ve been told.” He reached around her and opened the cooler for her, then followed her inside. “Let me get it.”
“I can do it.” She reached up for the large silver keg.
He gently moved her aside. “You know just because you can do stuff, doesn’t mean you have to.”
She put her hands on her hips. “Yeah, well that’s not usually the case for me.”
Michael lifted the full keg with a grunt. “Holy shit.”
“Need to go to the gym more?”
“I go enough, thanks.” He hauled it to the door. “Where is this going?”
She laughed. If he wanted to carry it, she wasn’t going to stop him. She definitely wasn’t going to tell him that she usually used a hand truck to wheel it out either. She grinned for the first time all day as he waddled his way to the bar.
When he turned around, he absently lifted the edge of his shirt to wipe his brow. Her grin slid away and all the spit dried i
n her mouth. So much muscle and a perfect line of hair bisected his abs. Sweet mercy. Yeah, it had been a few days since she’d seen that view and she really didn’t mind the repeat showing.
She cleared her throat and turned on her heel when he caught her looking.
“I saw that,” he called.
She held up her middle finger. When she heard his footsteps behind her, she ran for the side door to the break room. He caught her around the waist and lugged her through the door and shut it behind them.
“This is an employees only area.”
He turned the lock on the doorknob. “You said you were going on your break.”
“I’m down to ten minutes.” She backed into the arm of the old couch and fell over the side. She quickly scrambled to sit up.
He stood in front of her and slid his knee between her legs. “I’ll make it work.”
“Oh, that’s an endorsement.”
He grinned down at her and jerked her shirt out of her jeans. “I’ll make you come twice in two.”
“I don’t think so.”
Michael lifted her up and sat down with her astride him. “This is becoming my favorite position.” He pulled her down over the bulge in his shorts.
She gripped his shoulder. “We can’t.”
He buried his scruffy jaw in her neck. “Tell me this couch hasn’t gotten action before.”
“And this is helping your cause?” She was saved from thinking about that when he wrapped those beautiful lips around her pulse. How did he find that perfect spot every time? And then he did that swirl thing with his tongue.
A sense memory curled through her. He’d done that to her before. At the Foundation Room. She hissed out a breath. Her heart rate kicked up and the delicious slide of lust took hold.
Jet fuel engaged.
Honestly. It had to be something that could be bottled for the general public. She could make millions. She groaned. Too bad she was already getting greedy about it.
He flipped up the cup of her bra and sucked her nipple hard. Enough that the sweet tingle went dark and hot immediately. He cupped both of her breasts and tweaked her left nipple. She swallowed a moan. Instead of stopping, he focused on her left breast. Did he have a chart in his brain about what did it for her?
No one else did, dammit.
The quick shudder betrayed her, and his eyes opened.
He tugged her nipple until she twisted her fingers into his hair. The heat between them shuffled her brain until she was was all need. She ground against him and a cry escaped her chest.
He let her go with a purring groan against her cleavage. “God, you’re so fucking hot when you try so hard not to like what I do to you.”
“Just shut up.”
“Why? You like when I talk.”
She shook her head. She didn’t want to like it. It made her uncomfortable. How did he learn to talk to a woman like that? Oh, right—he had to do this a lot.
“Don’t.” He rolled his hips under her. “Don’t go away.” He scraped his teeth over her shoulder and back down to her breast. “Don’t think, Chloe. It’s okay to feel good. We’re so good together. The minute I get my hands on you, I can’t think about anything else.”
“It’s just sex.” She strained against the threads that got tighter and bulkier each time she touched Michael. She didn’t want to get attached to him. She couldn’t get attached to him.
He slid his hand up her back and into her hair. “If you think it’s ever been just sex, then you better reassess, Chloe.” His mouth sealed over hers.
Her heart slammed against her chest as her arms curled around his neck. She wanted to buck against his words—every single time it seemed—but she couldn’t. Because he was right. The moment he touched her, something happened between them. Something bigger than she could name.
And she hated it as much as she craved it.
Her hips rolled against him and the seam of her jeans hit her just right. She shuddered over him. No. No. No. She would not give him the satisfaction of making her come this freaking fast. But it rolled over her like a monster truck tire. Dammit, she buried her face into his neck as she hung onto him.
Why was it like this with him? Surely it would blow itself out one of these times.
He clawed at her jeans and she couldn’t help him fast enough. She popped open the buttons and his fingers slid down deep past her zipper to her pulsing center.
“Off.”
“Oh, yeah, I got off.” She sucked in a breath and tried to calm her racing heart.
“You always do, babe.” He flicked his tongue over her nipple, then sucked hard enough to make her hiss. “But if you don’t get these jeans off, I’m going to rip them off.”
“Yeah?”
“Unless you don’t want to work the rest of your shift in anything other than your panties.” He dug deeper, his fingers filling her up so good. “Then again, these are a little wet.” His thumb circled her clit. “But I don’t want the whole bar to know what my girl’s pussy smells like.”
“Jesus.” The tremors started again. That freaking mouth should not get her going.
“My wife’s pussy,” he said against her throat. “My pussy.”
She bowed up off of him as he increased his pace. She slapped her own hand over her mouth as the scream tried to claw itself out of her throat.
“Fuck, yes. That’s it.” He pulled her hand away. “I want that scream. Give it to me.”
She shook her head. She was at work. There was no music loud enough in Rafferty’s bar to drown out the scream living inside of her.
He pulled her hand around her back and laced their fingers together. She bowed off of him so much that she was afraid she was going to tumble to the floor. “I need to feel all this on my cock. So fucking wet.” The harsh words got her moving. It should have forced sense into her stupid brain, but it only seemed to incite her further.
She scrambled off of him with a growl. “If you don’t have a condom in your wallet, there might be a crime scene.”
He laughed. “Jesus, I hope so. Otherwise, we’re raiding every fucking locker in here.” He struggled out of the hole in the couch and unearthed his wallet from his back pocket.
She ripped it out of his hands. Her fingers shook as she searched in and around the credit cards, an emergency hundred folded four times, and…a wet nap? She pulled it out and flashed it at him.
“You need one right about now, don’t you?”
She flipped the wallet at him. “Yes, I do, because you don’t have a condom.”
He caught it against his chest. “You didn’t look in the right spot.” He dug his long finger along the center of the wallet and came out with a black and gold plastic wrapped piece of glory.
“Need a Magnum, huh?” She plucked it out of his hand. “We’ll see about that.”
“If you can’t tell by now, then I have some work to do.” He slid his hands inside the back of her loosened jeans and pushed them and her underwear over her ass. He crouched in front of her, his nose bumping along her inner thigh. “Freckles and red everywhere.”
She tried not to blush, but she couldn’t remember the last time when someone had been between her legs. Snake had amassed a nice arsenal of sexual moves over the years they’d been together, but he’d definitely figured out her combination and didn’t look for others after awhile.
Michael drew his tongue along her seam. “Soft,” he said with a groan. “So soft and delicate.” He looked up at her as he swiped the tip of his tongue along her clit. “When we have time, I’ll have you dripping and screaming.”
Too late. At least on the first part.
She slipped her fingers into his hair until she had a handful and gripped. She toed off her shoes and pulled off her jeans. She couldn’t have worn her boot cut jeans tonight. Nope. Had to be her skinny jeans that were impossible to maneuver in. “Just get inside me, would you?”
He stood up, then unhooked his shorts. “Yes, ma’am.” He pulled himself free and her
mouth watered.
Okay, so maybe the Magnum wasn’t an overstatement. It wasn’t like she hadn’t seen him before, but in Vegas, they hadn’t exactly been at their best.
It had been awhile—at least she was pretty sure it had been awhile. Somehow she knew that particular piece of him had never been inside her. Because she would have been walking a lot more gingerly the next day in Vegas.
She pushed him back onto the couch. “Time to suit up, pal.” She ripped open the plastic and carefully pulled it free. She knew firsthand just how fragile these things were.
There was one out there somewhere with Axl’s name on it.
His chest heaved a bit as he stared up at her. “I’ve never had a woman do the honors.”
She curled her fingers around his shaft and couldn’t stop herself from stroking every blessed inch. He was deliciously hard and his blue-green eyes fired with heat as she swiped her thumb along the tip of his cock. She swirled the pad of her thumb along the drop of pre-cum and brought it to her mouth.
He gripped her hips, his fingertips digging into her ass. “I’m literally going to die here.”
She covered the tip of him with the condom and rolled it down him slowly. “You can die after.” She kneeled on the couch and swung her other leg over him until the head of his shaft brushed her cleft.
He lifted his hips off the couch and the head of his cock slipped inside of her. “Please tell me you’re wet enough to take me.”
She rolled her hips forward and sighed as her body stretched to accommodate him. She hissed out a shuddering breath as the thickest part of him burned everywhere, then she sunk down the last few inches. “Michael.”
“Chloe,” he said with a reverence that made her eyes mist.
Sex. That’s all it was.
Chemistry at its highest level.
But when he rose up to meet her next downward glide, she couldn’t lie to herself any longer. Even in this dingy little room, he watched her with rapt attention. Wonder and lust dueled in the blues and greens of his fathomless gaze.
His arm slid around her lower back, and his other hand came up to cup the back of her head. He dragged her down to his mouth. Their bodies rode in tandem to their hungry mouths. They started off slow, but there was no way to stop the bullet train once he was inside of her.
