Dark Universe (The Universe Series)

by Devon Herrera

  “I’m not trying to be a douche here, Lo, but that is fucked up logic,” he says.

  “I know it doesn’t make much sense, just trust me on this. Familiar men are far more dangerous than strangers.” He thinks about that for a few minutes and then nods again.

  “When you put it that way, I can’t disagree with you.”

  I stand and make my way over to his chair and put my hand out, “Deal?”

  Drake takes my hand in his and pulls me down and captures my mouth again for a deep brain scrambling kiss, before pulling away. “Deal.”

  CHAPTER 5

  "There is only one road away from trouble, and this is along the straight and narrow road."

  - Otto Wood

  The next day, I decide to go see Nina to tell her everything that’s been going on with Drake. We don’t keep secrets from each other, and I know if it were her planning some sordid relationship with a hunky cowboy, I would demand to know everything. That thought makes me smile because I’m really not too far off. I can’t decide what I’m more excited for, talking about my non-relationship with Drake or her budding one with Connor.

  I walk up to her door and ram my fist into the door several times. Nina sleeps like the dead. Well, despite the nightmares anyway. This is early for either one of us, so I’m assuming she’s still in bed, hence the forceful knocking. The door flies open and on the other side is the exact opposite of a petite, cranky and sleep worn brunette. Thick legs meet tight boxer briefs that cut across the bottom of a rippling six pack and a hard chest that finally extends into a smirking blonde male. Connor.

  “HOLY SHIT!” I yell and Connor winces.

  “Morning, Lola.” He pushes the door all the way open with a smirk and walks back inside. I follow close behind him, and he grabs a pair of jeans off the back of the couch and pulls them on before shrugging on a white cotton t-shirt. I take in the fact he answered the door so brazenly in his underwear only seconds ago and is now rushing to get dressed. Either he forgot he was naked or...laughter bubbles up my throat and I have to bend at the waist to hold back my hysterics.

  Connor raises his eyebrows at me and I grin back. “You are smart, Con Man! Does Nina know exactly how dirty you’re playing?”

  He smiles at me and shrugs. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  “Sure you don’t. Just an FYI, you don’t have to worry about a man knocking on her door. Just little me; though feel free to forget your pants whenever you want anyway.” I wiggle my eyebrows and smirk at him.

  Connor frowns at that, and sighs sadly. Wow, intense much. He runs his hands through his hair and then crosses his arms over his chest. “On one hand, that makes me extremely happy, but I can’t help but imagine how lonely that’s been for her.”

  “Oh, Connor. Yes, I’m sure it has, but it’s what she wanted, and as much as it kills me to say this, I can’t blame her. She’s been let down by people a lot in her short life.”

  “Yea, I’m getting that. How long has she been having nightmares?”

  My hackles rise and I look him dead in the eyes and plant a finger in his chest. “What exactly do you want with her, Connor? Because these questions, they come with some heavy answers. Nina isn’t going to be easy or normal and it’s going to be rocky, so if she is just a challenge or some passing fling in a small town you’re visiting, you better just cut your losses now. I had no control over her being hurt the first time, and failed at protecting her the second, so I will not allow there to be a third. You get me?” I stab my finger deeper into his chest and glare up into his baby blues, putting every ounce of threat I can muster into my words.

  “You don’t need to worry about that. I’m more likely to get hurt than she is at this point.” His words completely shock me. Guys don’t ever admit to things like that. “Now, I hate to be rude, but Nina is going to be out of the shower any minute now and I have some things to say to her when she does. If you’re here when she gets out, she’ll use you as an excuse to get out of facing whatever progress I made with her last night.”

  I smile wide at him and pat him on the shoulder. “It’s about time that girl had someone to care about again.” I walk towards the door and turn around before exiting, to hammer the point home. “Connor, I like you, but if you hurt her, I will not hesitate to nail your balls to my fence post and leave you for the birds, understood?” Connor’s hand instinctively goes to protect the object in question and swallows.

  “Like I said, unnecessary, but yea… I hear you. You know, you’re sort of scary.” I look up at the hulking man who outweighs me by at least seventy pounds and has a good eight inches on me and smile.

  “I know, and when she finally trusts you, you’ll have a better understanding of why.” He nods and I smile mischievously. “Oh, I was going to ask her to go to the bar with me and a friend tonight. It could be a double date. Make sure she calls me,” I stress the last part. I love making Nina spill her guts. It’s so fun to get her all flustered. He chuckles and shuts the door behind me. As I’m walking away, I feel as though a huge weight has left my heart. She’ll be okay.

  I drive back to the club and notice Drake mucking the stalls on my way pass the barn. I never considered shoveling shit to be a sexy activity until now. Drake’s muscles bunch and bulge as he scoops and dumps, pausing to wipe the sweat off of his brow. Everything south of my neckline is standing at attention and heating up quickly as I watch the show he is unintentionally giving me.

  I really can’t help that my mind flashes to the physical aspect of our deal. Although neither of us came out and said it, we both knew what we were agreeing to. Right now, watching him parade that body all over the place is making me want to dip into the fringe benefits of our arrangement now rather than later. This boy needs to cool down before he starts a fire! I smile at where my thoughts are heading and leisurely make my way to the barn. Just outside the front door there is a water spigot surrounded by logs and a hose attached that I believe is long enough to reach him.

  I turn on the water and carry the hose over to the stall Drake is currently working on and casually put my foot up on one of the posts. Drake notices me standing there and leans his shovel against the wheel barrow before jogging over.

  “Hey, thanks, I’m dying of thirst here. I swear if horses didn’t shit they would be perfect. At least it’s not summer yet. I hate doing this in the summer.” I smile innocently at his small talk and nod while I hold up the hose for him to take a drink from. Drake smirks at me and removes his ball cap to lean down and take a pull from the stream of water at the end. When I’m sure he’s had a decent drink, I reach forward and pull the neck of his t-shirt out and shove the end of the hose into his shirt.

  “Son of a bitch!!!” Drake hollers as the freezing cold water cascades down his body and into his pants. I dissolve into fits of laughter and choke out incoherent sentences about how he was too hot and I needed to cool him off.

  After thrashing around a bit, he manages to get the hose out of his now sopping wet shirt and kinks the end to stop the flow of water. I’m doubled over laughing at the image before me; Drake soaking wet and shivering with a fierce scowl on his face. I’m very pleased with my joke and just managing to control my laughter when the subject of my hilarity smiles broadly at me and reaches down to strip the clinging black tee from his body. My laughter immediately halts and I have a hard time drawing a deep enough breath to manage anything other than a small gasp. Damn!

  “Will you hold this for a second?” Drake asks, handing me his sopping t-shirt. I numbly reach out to take it in my hands and he turns and walks the hose back over to the spigot before turning the tap off. Now that his back is to me I manage to pull my shit together and form a semblance of a smile before he turns around and saunters back to me. Drake holds his hand out to take his shirt back and lays it across his left shoulder.

  “Sorry. I couldn’t help myself,” I giggle. “You’ve got to admit, that was hilarious. No hard feelings, right?” I put my hand out. Drake sm
iles wider and puts his palm in mine. Even though it’s ice cold, warmth still manages to seep from his skin into mine.

  “Sure, no hard feelings,” he drawls, and then reaches out with his other hand and grips me at the waist before hoisting me up and over his right shoulder.

  “EEEK!” I squeak as I hit the hard muscle and start to flail my limbs around. “Drake, put me down! I’m sorry, okay!” I holler. Drake’s baritone laughter rumbles through him causing my body to quake across his shoulder as he carries me effortlessly. All I can see is Drake’s perfectly formed backside and his boots as he slowly treads across the gravel.

  “Don’t be sorry, Lola. Besides, Thomas’ don’t get mad…” he says cryptically as he comes to a halt. “They get even.”

  I’m thrown back over Drake’s shoulder and the next thing I know, I’m dunked into ice cold liquid backwards. I emerge freezing and sputtering in the middle of the mother loving water trough. Well played, Thomas, well played. I do not say this, however. What I do say is…

  “You fucking asshat!” Does Drake hear my insult? No. He is too busy shaking and rolling on the ground, paying no mind to the fact he has no shirt on and it’s barely forty degrees outside. I shake my head and trip my sopping wet ass out of the giant bucket of ice, then stomp past Drake who is choking he’s laughing so hard.

  I vaguely hear him get up and follow me the rest of the way to the apartment. I walk into the house and to the bathroom and immediately turn the shower to steaming hot. I feel Drake walk into the bathroom behind me, and I turn around and give him my best scowl. He smiles and shakes his head. “Don’t even think about trying that one, Lo. You started this,” he says, and I growl at him a little before turning back to the shower. I’m so cold I don’t even care Drake is standing only a few inches away from me; I start to strip off my wet clothes, desperate to get into the warmth the shower has to offer.

  I hear Drake catch his breath behind me and when my underwear hits the tile floor with a slap, I swear he stopped breathing completely. This all registers in my mind, and I’m silently reveling in his reaction. I’m also just really fucking cold. I pull the curtain away and step into the tub and under the spray. I yelp the first time the spray hits my frozen body but as the hot water starts to soak through the cold, a soft moan follows. My brain has finally turned back on now that I’m warm and I notice I never heard Drake leave the bathroom. In fact, I have no idea why he followed me to my apartment when he could have just gone back to his loft.

  I move to peak out of the shower and see if he is still in the bathroom. I spot the closed door, a pair of boots on the rug, and jeans draped over the sink just as the opposite end of the curtain slides across the pole in my direction. Within seconds the large tub is suddenly completely full of a very naked Drake Thomas. I’m pretty certain my eyes bulge out of my head as I take in his naked form. Calm, cool, sexually confident Lo has officially left the building, and drooling, incoherent and sexually deprived Lola has taken her place.

  Drake reaches one hand out and places it safely on my waist. My lids lower to half-mast and I lean towards him, ready to throw my body into his, completely throwing my no sex yet rule out the window. His free hand lands on my other side just as he takes one baby step towards me, before spinning us so he is now directly under the warm spray. He tightens his hold on my waist as soon as his back hits the cascade of water and then releases me to wipe the water out of his face and push his dripping locks out of his eyes.

  At this point I feel like I might explode with wanting him, but I’m not ready to let him win just yet. I play this game better than anyone, damn it! I smile seductively and lean my head across his chest to dampen my hair in the water before pulling back and flinging it over my shoulder. I then reach behind him, grazing his perfect ass with my knuckles to pull my loofah from the hook in the corner and squeeze a large dollop of my black currant and vanilla body wash onto it. I create a good lather, pretending to be completely focused on my task, knowing Drake has no choice except to watch my every move in such small confines. I dramatically slide the sponge down one arm and then the other before bending down to repeat the motion on my legs, slowing as I reach the tops of my thighs.

  When I straighten, Drake’s entire body is stiff and his eyes are riveted to the soap trailing down my skin. And I mean his. Entire. Body. Is. Stiff. I start to bring the loofah up to my chest when it’s snatched out of my hand. Drake places the loofah back on my skin where I left off and has moved dangerously close. He brings his free hand around me to press into the small of my back, as he meticulously washes every inch of my breasts. His eyes lock with mine and he puts pressure on the hand resting at my back to bring us back under the spray to rinse off the soap. I stare through pouring water and into smoky eyes, silently pleading for him to kiss me.

  The sponge rasps against our legs as it drops to the floor and Drake’s large palm is covering my now very clean breast. His head leans forward, and his mouth brushes mine in a gentle kiss before moving to the corner of my lips, then across my jaw and finally down my neck. I feel one gentle peck at my collar bone and then his hand moves from my breast as his mouth takes over. I arch into him gasping at the sensations the suction of his warm mouth is making.

  He makes sure to keep one hand occupied stroking one nipple, while his mouth works on the other, before switching, never leaving one unattended, and giving the same attention to both. It’s as if my boobs are living things that can get jealous of one another. The thought makes me chuckle before I can stop it. Ridiculous!

  “You know, that’s not the reaction I usually get in this situation.” He whispers before nipping my ear.

  I gasp at the slight sting and that’s when my patience breaks. “I’ve heard of delayed gratification, but do you think we could get to the good stuff any time soon.” To punctuate my words I summon every ounce of boldness I possess and grip his length in my hand.

  My back hits the wall so hard I feel every grove and edge of the square tiles behind me. I barely manage a surprised gasp before Drake’s mouth slams into mine. He pulls one of my legs up harshly to hook around his hip and grinds the other hand between my thighs. I flinch in surprise and barely have enough time to take in a breath before he’s is back on me, thrusting his tongue in time with his fingers. When I struggle to keep up with the kiss, I rip my face away from his and drag in a lungful of air that is accompanied by my whimper.

  Drake is not hindered in the slightest and his lips seek my jaw and then my neck, biting and scraping and kissing his way across every inch of skin he can get to. The whiplash his sudden change in demeanor gives me sends my head spinning. I’ve seen Drake quiet, teasing, and especially annoyed. I’ve never seen him lose control. I like it. A lot.

  The pressure begins to spiral out of control causing me to lose my train of thought. Drake must sense the change in me because he growls into my neck just as I’m reaching the top of the peak. I turn my head when Drake raises his and he looks down into my eyes and his are the blackest I’ve ever seen them. Like liquid obsidian. He brings his head down and kisses me softly, then runs the pad of this thumb on my sweet spot with just enough pressure to send me off.

  In that moment I wave goodbye to calm, cool, collected Lola Chase as she stands on the edge of the cliff the rest of me was just pushed off of. She smirks down at me as I fall, keening obnoxiously, and probably wearing the most ridiculous smile on my face. In those thirty seconds or more of suspended time, I shed my defenses and just feel. When I finally surface from the depths of my climax, I realize something. Feelings, especially strong ones, are quite scary.

  As startled as I am, I’m no coward, so I open my eyes and brace myself, only to find Drake has closed his. Both of his hands are clenched on my waist and he’s placed as much distance between us as he can with both arms extended. He’s barely breathing and when I push off of the wall he waits a moment until he’s sure I’m steady before dropping his hands and turning back into the spray of the shower. He never once opens his eyes
.

  I’m almost grateful for the moment to gather my wits, but there is still an irritating twinge lodged in my chest from his reaction. I refuse to be the one who loses their shit over this. So he gave me an orgasm. It’s not my first. There is nothing special about this orgasm. It was just a normal, everyday, average orgasm. Why do I keep thinking the word “orgasm?” I shake my head and giggle at my wayward thoughts, and Drake finally turns and raises his eyebrows at me. I smirk back at him and grab my shampoo, squirting a big dollop into my hand before running my hands through my hair.

  I hum and scrape my nails against my scalp through my tresses, then step under the spray forcing Drake to the side as I wash the suds out. I step back out and repeat the process with my conditioner, noting the way Drake seems at a loss of what to do. When I’m finished I smile at Drake and step out of the shower. Locating my towel on the rack behind the toilet I dry off and wrap up. I open the door to walk out and stop at the threshold for a moment before speaking.

  “Drake.”

  He coughs and clears his throat before answering. “Yea.”

  “I was going to tell you before our little water fight that I want to go out tonight. My best friend and her new man are going to meet us out there after dinner.”

  “Us?” he asks, and I notice the outline of his body through the curtain has gone completely still.

  “Uh, yea us. We had a deal, Thomas; don’t think that one little orgasm is going to get you out of it.”

  There is a slight pause, and I wonder if he heard me. “Little?” he asks, and I roll my eyes at the smug tone I hear in his voice.