Stripped Love (Guys Next Door Book 1)

by Baylin Crow

  My gaze drifted to the sky and the faint stars beyond the outer-city smog. "I don't, and won't, like it."

  Phoenix cleared his throat and shifted next to me. "Fair enough."

  His voice was rough, as if speaking was a challenge, and I hurried to finish my explanation. "But if it were to ever get to the point that I'd have to decide whether I could live with it—I trust you. So yeah, I could."

  Strong fingers gripped my chin and Phoenix forced me to look at him. "It's fast, I know. But we are at that point. Or at least I am."

  My heart hammered against my ribcage. "I…"

  He lips tilted in a crooked grin. "I'm not proposing, Arch. Breathe." A whoosh of air I hadn't realized I'd been holding rushed from my lungs, and his grin broadened. "But I'm not going to pretend that I don't want to see where this goes either."

  I blinked. "Well, okay then."

  "Okay?" He leaned in and dusted his lips over mine, and I nodded as I pressed closer, parting my lips. "I've created a monster," he mumbled against my mouth and pulled back.

  An exasperated sigh rattled in my chest. "You're always pushing me away."

  Phoenix chuckled. "Believe me, I'll be taking a quick rain check on that kiss. But I have something I wanted to tell you, and I don't really talk about it anymore."

  Worried, I shuffled around to where I was facing him. "You can tell me anything."

  He chewed on the inside of his cheek as he considered me. Finally, he relaxed. "I know and that's why I wanted to see you." I waited patiently for him to continue as he dropped his gaze to his rings he began twisting around his fingers.

  "Two years ago," he began. "Well, a little more than that now…I lived in Nashville. The pictures on my wall weren't just bands I met because I was a fan. I mean, I was…but I was always trying to make connections."

  "Connections?" I tried to catch his gaze and finally he looked at me.

  Phoenix’s eye held a note of sadness that clutched my heart. "I saved up to buy that guitar in my living room and then packed up nothing but my clothes, phone and charger. I moved into a small loft I shared with two other artists. During the day I worked at both a diner, bussing tables, and a record store, selling old vinyls." He rubbed his palms along his thighs. "And then at night, I'd be holed up in my room or the park…anywhere I could write. I submitted my songs anywhere and everywhere I could. Even performed my songs for a while, hoping I'd get a lucky break." Stroking his bottom lip, he murmured, "Me and everyone else."

  I processed what he'd said, imagining him on stage singing for an audience as he played the guitar I'd seen so many times. "So, you were trying to make it as a singer-songwriter?"

  He shook his head slightly. "Not really. I just wanted to write the lyrics. I mean, I liked to sing, but funny thing…" He scoffed and raised his brows at me. "I wasn't a huge fan of performing on stage. The irony, yeah?"

  My lips twitched, caught between amusement and disappointment for him. "What happened?"

  Phoenix swallowed audibly, and I tensed when he sniffed before clearing his throat. A bad feeling wouldn’t budge from my gut. “My mom got sick and asked me to come home. The bank was threatening foreclosure—I didn't even know she was sick. I hadn't been home in six months at that time and she…didn't look like my mom anymore."

  "Phoenix," I whispered and reached out, clutching his hand.

  "We were never really close. She’d been a foster kid and had run off when she was young. Didn't know if she had any family, but she didn't look for anyone. Sometimes I wonder if she remembered more about her childhood than she let on, you know?" His hand tightened around mine. "She wasn't super affectionate. Maybe a product of her past, I'm not sure. But she loved me in her own way…and she was my mom. So, I gave up the music and came home. I had no idea how bad it was until I started digging through the bills. Long story short, I got in touch with a friend who was working at the club. Still does, and you'll probably meet Damon at some point. Anyway, he got me the job."

  "And your mom?"

  His jaw ticced. "Died a few months later. Cancer ate her lungs."

  We sat in silence as I soaked in his grief. "I'm so sorry."

  "Yeah." He huffed a shaky breath. "Me too."

  "Your dad?" I hedged.

  “Never knew him. My mom said they’d only briefly dated and that he’d died in a motorcycle accident while she’d been pregnant. Saw a picture of him once, and I looked like him. His features anyway.” He traced over the tattoos on his hands.

  While my dad hadn’t died, he had left and signed over his rights when I was young. It was approved when the court agreed he was unfit. But I was absorbed in Phoenix’s story. I could tell him mine another time. “What about Nashville?”

  He shrugged. "I’d planned to go back, but I couldn't write. It was like…the music died with her." He locked onto my gaze. "Until recently."

  "You're writing again?" A sudden thought occurred to me, and I let out a soft sigh. "The notebook."

  It wasn't a question, but still he nodded. "Yeah, and it's been…exactly what I've needed for so fucking long. I wasn't sure I'd ever write again."

  His strong fingers curled around my forearms and he tugged me toward him until I understood what he wanted. I climbed in his lap, straddling his hips.

  Gripping the back of my neck, he bit his lip. "I'm cashing in that rain check now."

  "Maybe we should wait. I mean, that was a lot to take in," I reasoned but was met with a shake of his head.

  Phoenix took those sturdy hands and framed my face. "I didn't tell you all of that to create distance between us. That's the last thing I want. You're the only person I've ever confided the whole story to. You've given me back so much already without even knowing it. Maybe I'm selfish," he said, voice husky and raw, "but I want even more."

  Banding an arm around my waist, he hauled me so close there wasn't an inch of space between us before pressing his lips to mine. He slid his tongue along the seam, encouraging them to part and groaned when I opened for him.

  The slick slide of his tongue and hands that moved to grab my hips as he hardened against me drove me crazy.

  "I need you, Arch. Don't push me away." His raw plea made me hold him tighter.

  He rocked me against him until I fell into the rhythm he set. A moan slipped free when the friction became too delicious to deny.

  "That's better," he rasped out and tugged on my lip with his teeth. "You feel so good. If we weren't out in the open, I'd show you just how good."

  His words were followed by a harder nip before he soothed the pain with his tongue.

  Easing from his grip was hard when he clutched me so tight. When he reluctantly loosened his hold, I climbed to my feet and dusted off the back of my shorts before holding out a hand to him.

  Phoenix eyed me with hunger as he took my hand, pushing himself up. Standing at full height, he stared down at me with a searching gaze. "Arch?"

  My hand tightened on his as I reached behind me and slid the door open and then slowly led him inside my darkened room. Releasing his hand, I backed up and drew my shirt over my head, casually dropping it to the ground. His gaze followed the material before snapping back up to meet mine.

  Eyes full of scalding heat held mine as pulled the door shut and then took unhurried steps forward until he stood only inches away. With a fingertip, Phoenix traced a line down the side of my face and along my jaw before dipping to my neck. I shivered at the slight caress and his lips curled into a smile that promised he was just getting started.

  He studied me as he lowered his finger, dragging it along my collarbone and then lower still, softly running the pad of his thumb over my hardened nipple.

  When I shuddered from the stimulation, he growled as he finally swooped down, catching my mouth in a devouring kiss that tasted of mint. Teeth, tongues and lips fought and tangled as he slanted his mouth firmly over mine.

  "Phoenix," I panted as I wrenched free to gasp for air. "I want you."

  "You do, huh?" He chan
ged direction and ran his nose up the side of my neck. "Tell me what you want from me, babe. Tell me and I'll give it to you."

  I wanted so many things, but I couldn't grasp the runaway thoughts. My mind was spinning with the way he touched me and the rasp of his voice.

  His voice sounded like it had been scrubbed with sandpaper—violent with need—and my body responded like a sparked flame that spread like wildfire.

  Boldly, I reached out and stroked my shaking fingers along the denim pressed tight over his thickened cock. He groaned, the vibration stirring my sensitive skin, and backed me against the bed.

  Phoenix lifted his head and licked his lips. "You want my cock, babe? Is that what you need?"

  "Yes," I whispered as my dick jerked at the way his gaze roamed my body.

  "Good." His lips quirked as he pushed my chest, making me fall back on the soft bed where I scooted toward the center. "I want to see every last inch of your body. I want to touch you and I want to suck you. You good with that?"

  Wide-eyed, I nodded. "Very good with that."

  Phoenix slowly crawled over me, settling between my bent legs and hovered over me braced on his forearms. "Think you can be quiet, Arch? We aren't alone."

  I hadn't even considered my uncle being home when I'd dragged Phoenix into my room. But it would have taken the equivalent of a natural disaster to put a stop to what I was determined would happen in this bed. So, I nodded again, though I wasn't sure it was the truth.

  As if sensing my half lie, his lips curled in a crooked grin. "Undo my jeans, my little liar."

  My tongue darted out to wet my lips as he lifted to give me access, and I eagerly reached between our bodies, tugged his button free and then lowered his zipper. The whirring sound as the teeth parted was loud in the quiet room, and anticipation thrummed in my veins.

  Driven by a sudden frenzied urge, I reached around him and stuffed my hands inside his jeans, shoving them just under the swell of his ass until nothing but a thin pair of boxer briefs and my shorts separated our hard cocks.

  His breathing grew shallow. "Reach inside my boxers and touch me."

  I swallowed hard as I brought my hands back around. One I gripped around his bicep. The other I placed flat on his stomach, feeling the tickle against my palm from the thin line of hair that traveled from his belly button and disappeared beneath the band of his underwear. His cock strained against the navy-blue fabric, and I dipped two fingers beneath the band, drawing it away from his skin as I looked down until I could see his tip, bare and cut. Swollen and red.

  Slowly, I slid my hand inside. Trapped in the fabric with his dick, I curled my fingers around his length and tightened my fist. His hiss drew my eyes to his, searching his burning gaze.

  "Keep going," he said through gritted teeth.

  I could feel my own precome leaking onto my belly and knew I'd never make it long enough to get his hands on me. Still, I was completely enthralled by touching him. It was the first bare cock, other than mine, I'd ever held. The last time I'd felt his hard length had been through a pair of shorts. Different and the same, his heated flesh pulsed in my hand as I began moving my wrist.

  His quiet grunts of pleasure echoed in the room as he let me do what I wanted to him. A wet drop rolled over my fingers and I rubbed circles over his tip, smearing the sticky fluid. He groaned and flexed his hips forward.

  "Fucking hell," he cursed and reached down, pulling my hand away.

  "What did I do?" I asked, panicked, as he climbed off the bed. I gaped when he shed his clothes and stood still as I ate up the sight of him bared.

  Phoenix cocked a brow. "Aside from making me look bad because I almost busted a nut from a few strokes? Nothing."

  "Oh," I said on a hushed breath. His dick curved toward his stomach, and my mouth watered as he fisted the base. But there was so much more to look at. My gaze stopped and started, sweeping over the miles of skin covered in ink.

  He chuckled and leaned down, slipping his hands into the sides of my shorts at my hips. Anticipation sizzled in my veins as I waited for his next move.

  "My turn," he whispered.

  There was nothing in that moment I wanted more than to fuel the fire blazing in those eyes. Heart racing, I was desperate enough to beg after a week of waiting. "Please take them off."

  "Gladly." He peeled them over my ass and down my legs before tossing them to the floor.

  He stilled as he stared down at me. I followed his gaze to where my dick tented the cotton underwear. I knew my dick was above average, and it peeked over the top of the band, holding the fabric away. A string of come already stretched to my stomach where it pooled. Reaching down, I ran my finger through it, and Phoenix's eyes narrowed.

  Lightning fast, he tore my underwear from my body and slid onto the bed where he dropped to his stomach between my legs.

  Breath held tight in my chest, I watched wide-eyed as he took hold of my dick, angling it toward his waiting mouth and lowered his head.

  Tingles danced along my nerves, and a moan ripped free from my throat as my length disappeared between his lips. When he tightened his lips and sucked as he pulled back in slow motion, my back bowed off the bed. I cried out from the intense rush that lashed through my entire body. "Phoenix."

  His hand whipped up and covered my mouth, muffling the sounds I couldn't control. At the same time, mine flew to his short hair, seeking purchase but settled with my hands on the back of his head. He took me deep again, and my eyelashes fluttered closed and my hips moved restlessly.

  "I want you too," I managed to choke out, struggling to peer down at him. "I want you in my mouth. Please."

  Not needing to be asked twice, he released my dick that shined, slick with spit. He flipped onto his back. "Up," he commanded and I scrambled to my knees, hesitating when I wasn't sure of my next move. "Turn around and straddle my face."

  Knowing I was about to expose the most intimate parts of myself to Phoenix sent a surprising rush of heat through my body.

  Exhaling through the renewed butterflies that worked into a frenzy in my stomach, I crawled over him, following his instructions. His hands took hold of my cheeks, parting them, and I held my breath.

  He was quiet for a moment, and a sliver of doubt crept into my mind before his hands began massaging my ass. His voice grew rougher. Deeper. "That little hole is just begging for my tongue, isn't it?"

  My ass clenched as the deliciously filthy image that filled my head. But his bold words fueled mine. "Yes."

  He groaned just before a warm, wet swipe over my entrance made me jerk forward. Strong hands hauled me back, and I moaned when he ran his tongue over me again. Again and again, he licked and prodded me while driving me mindless with need.

  "Shhh," he reminded me and I bit my lip to keep quiet as he tormented me until I couldn't take it anymore.

  "Phoenix, I want—"

  Before I could finish my sentence, I was yanked farther back and warmth engulfed my dick. A sharp cry shot up my throat, and the sting from a loud smack against my ass shut me up. A hand at my back encouraged me to bend forward until my lips hovered over his leaking tip.

  Despite my mouth watering to taste him, I hesitated until he softly ran his hand over my back in assurance. The wetness of his mouth around me as he bobbed his head under me created a sucking noise I already knew would be stuck in my head on repeat. Just the thought made my sac draw up tight.

  I parted my lips and took his tip in my mouth, lapping at the salty flavor that burst over my tongue. I’d never tasted myself so hadn’t known what to expect, but it definitely wasn’t the intense rush of greed for more.

  With jerky movements, caught between my inexperience and the determined way he sucked my dick, I went down on him. He thrust up, pushing deeper, spurring me on as I gained confidence.

  The sounds. The feel. The taste… it was too much, and my parted legs shook as I fought the unstoppable orgasm barreling through me. My hips bucked, and Phoenix swatted my ass again, doubling his effor
ts.

  It was enough to send me spiraling over the edge. With a gasp, I popped off his cock, releasing him from my mouth, and my lips formed a silent o as wave after wave of pure bliss coursed through my entire body. He slowed to a leisurely pace that drained the last of my energy and left me boneless.

  Without warning, I was flipped onto my back and Phoenix shot to his knees between my legs. Eyes fixed on my body, he wrapped his long, adorned fingers around his shaft and snapped his wrist back and forth, jerking himself off.

  Riveted, I watched the tendons in his neck pull tight as he thrusted through the tight ring of his fist. His nostrils flared, and his eyes snapped to mine just as the first ribbon of come painted my belly. Rope after rope, more of his release hit my skin before he collapsed over me, catching himself just before he crushed me.

  Phoenix’s ragged breathing mixed with mine and he panted out, "Fuck, Arch."

  A smile crept across my face, knowing I’d caused the dopey grin he wore. “That was…amazing.”

  The word didn’t carry enough weigh to encompass the true satisfaction coursing through my body as it sagged into the mattress.

  His lids lowered, and a wicked smile slanted his lips. "There are so many things I’m going to do to you, babe. This was only the beginning."

  A shiver raced down my spine at the promise in his tone.

  He rolled over until he lay on his back beside me. "Arch?"

  I turned my head where I found him watching me. "Yeah?"

  His mouth opened and then closed. Finally, he just leaned forward, feathering a kiss over my lips. "Let's get you cleaned up."

  9

  Phoenix

  Archer dozed beside me, curled up on his side with his forehead pressed against my arm where I laid on my back, staring at the spinning fan over the bed. He'd fallen asleep within minutes of returning from the bathroom to wipe my come from his body. A sight I'd never forget and hoped to repeat.

  Between thinking about everything we'd shared and lyrics falling into place in my head, I couldn't sleep. But I also couldn't stay long.