by Regina Cole
He let his hand fall away, and then her soft lips wrapped around his head. His hands balled into fists at his sides, and he gritted his teeth. The urge to thrust into her mouth was so strong, but he forced himself to remain still as she took him deep, her sweet tongue swirling around his cock head.
Her mouth was hot, wet, so sweet as she sucked him, her palm gently cupping his balls. The tight, swirling sensations gripped him, shooting fire through his blood as his nails dug into his palms. Too good, much too good. He wanted it to last, but there was no hope for it. The sensations were too incredible. He breathed hard, trying to hang on, but his lower back tightened in warning, and he spoke in a hoarse groan.
“I’m coming!”
But she didn’t move away. Her lips worked around his cock as he lost himself into her waiting mouth.
It was the most intense orgasm he’d had in a very long time. In the darkness, there with her, he could almost believe that anything was possible. Hell, he would never have imagined this, and here they were.
For a long moment, it was quiet. Only her breath, and that was softer, more even now. She moved away and the sudden chill on the skin of his cock made him shake involuntarily.
Her voice was small in the dark. “Was that okay?”
He wanted to laugh. “You have to ask?”
“I can’t see your face. But you sound pretty happy.”
He stood on shaky legs. “I’m more than happy.”
Reaching for his clothes, he wondered what he should say. Thank you? Let’s do that again?
It wasn’t like him to be so completely uncertain of himself. That wasn’t Rob. Rob was the guy who made a decision and then put his head down while driving toward it. It was how he’d managed to build this business, shaky though it was, even though his entire family was against the idea.
But in this situation? With this woman?
“I should get the lights,” he said. “I’ll leave the phone here with you.”
“Don’t you need it to find the keys?”
“The streetlight will be enough.”
He left the room, hoping a few minutes away would give him some much-needed clarity.
Stacey Hough had just befuddled the hell out of him.
* * *
Stacey dressed quickly, refusing to let the fact that her legs felt like Jell-O slow her down.
The weakness was from the workout, that was all. Her muscles were tired, unused to the way she’d pushed them. The fact that Robert Liston had just buried his face between her thighs had fuck-all to do with it.
She paused halfway through hooking her bra. Jesus. They’d really done that. She could still taste him, sweet and tangy, on her lips. What the hell had she been thinking? Obviously, she hadn’t. But holy hell, she’d never had an orgasm like that before.
Her face got hot as she shoved her arms through her bra straps. Well, obviously she’d never had an orgasm like that before. How could she have when nobody had ever given her oral before? She wasn’t exactly collecting notches on her headboard at home, after all. But to think that such a moment had just happened in the darkness of a locker room . . .
She’d stop thinking. That was it. Nonissue, right?
Fumbling for her shoes in the dark, she cursed when her knuckles brushed the bench. Just keep your brain in the off position, Stacey. No need to think, no need to remember how Rob just kind of ran out of the room as if he’d forgotten that he left the stove on at home. No big deal, just like the time when—
“Oh, thank Christ,” she said as the lights popped back on. She jammed her feet into her shoes without bothering to unlace them first. The backs of the heels turned over, but she didn’t stop to adjust them. Bundling her clothes and towel into a wad, she shoved them into her duffel bag and hightailed it out of the locker room.
“Sorry about that,” Rob said as she met him near the front counter. “It’s a really convenient feature, until it isn’t.”
“No big deal,” she said, too brightly. God, what was wrong with her? Why couldn’t she play this cool?
Rob looked down at the bundle of keys in his hand, turning them over with a soft jingle.
Wait a minute. Had something gone wrong? He’d said he enjoyed it, but why wasn’t he looking her in the eye? Shit. Was all that stuff about men not respecting the girl in the morning actually true?
“I’m making a huge mess of this,” Rob said as he pocketed the keys. “But I’ll be honest with you. I wasn’t planning that.”
“Neither was I.” She wanted to melt into the floor.
“I’m glad it happened, though.”
Say what? Stacey blinked, but his expression didn’t change. There was a warm, sated smile on his face.
“Can you repeat that?”
He laughed, and the sound made her heart fall over itself, then resume its beat in triple time. “I’m glad that happened. I do regret not having a condom, though.”
Well, miracles did happen. “Next time?”
Her question was met with a nod as he slid closer, wrapping one arm around her waist. “Next time, for sure.”
He bent his head down and kissed her again—long, slow, thorough. She let herself be swept away. How could she not? His arm was warm and hard against her back, his chest firm against her breasts, his tongue so demanding and careful as he tasted her.
She was falling, and she had no desire to slow her descent.
“We should get going,” he murmured against her mouth. She sighed.
“Do we have to?”
His grin was almost hungry. “If you want to come back to my place . . .”
Never had an offer been more tempting, but at some point sanity had to return. Stacey moved backward, breaking the embrace. “I should get home.” She had to create some distance in order to make some sense out of this. Any sense at all. There had to be some logic in this night, didn’t there?
“I understand.”
Rob walked Stacey to the door of the gym, and she shrugged into her coat as he made small talk about her workout routine. She nodded, said all the right things, but her brain was anywhere but on the amount of weights she should lift and number of reps she should do.
“So, tomorrow morning?”
That was the time she’d originally slated, but—Stacey looked around the deserted gym.
“Can we do another late session? This worked out really well.”
His laugh echoed a bit in the empty space. “It did, didn’t it? Tomorrow night works for me. I’ll even take you out for a beer afterward. And now, if you don’t mind . . .”
One last kiss seared her lips, and then Rob stepped back. “Good night, Stacey.”
“’Night, Rob.”
She smiled, then walked out of the gym’s front door feeling like a meteor had struck her right between the eyeballs. Like a robot, she dug through her coat pocket and retrieved her keys. Fumbling for the correct button, she wondered if she’d ever manage to get into her freaking car and out of the cold. Her wet hair reminded her that she needed to hustle, but her fidgeting fingers weren’t exactly cooperative.
Autopilot drove her to her building, and carried her up the three flights of stairs to her apartment. She’d just tossed her bag on the table in the foyer when her cell phone buzzed.
“Hannah?”
“You didn’t call me.” Her friend’s voice was hushed, almost a whisper. Made sense, since it was way past her kiddos’ bedtime.
“I just got home.”
“Really? That’s a hell of a long workout.”
Stacey collapsed onto her couch with a huge sigh. “You have no. Freaking. Clue.”
Hannah couldn’t manage to control her squeal of delight when Stacey broke the news, but the conversation got cut short when Hannah had to get her toddler back to sleep. But Stacey grinned anyway as she began getting ready for bed herself.
She’d done it. Practice? Hell, she’d skipped straight from practice to the big game, and she’d sunk the winning shot. As to what she did with
the trophy?
She could figure that out tomorrow. Now she had a whole night to replay the most delicious experience through the theater of her mind, and she intended to enjoy every second of it.
Chapter 8
“You’re joking.”
“Nope,” Stacey smiled around the straw she’d just put in her mouth. The strawberry-banana protein smoothie she’d picked up at the gym before work tasted amazing. And the quick glimpse she’d gotten of Rob? Totally made the extra trip worth it.
“You flirted, everyone left, the lights went out, and you sixty-nined in the locker room?!” Hannah’s squeal was much too loud, and Stacey shushed her.
“Do you mind? I don’t want everyone and their uncle to know!” Stacey hissed, then sat back in her office chair with a contented smile. “And it wasn’t sixty-nine. We took turns.”
“I’ve never done anything that sexy in my life,” Hannah moaned, leaning against Stacey’s desk and grabbing her stapler to toy with it. “Hottest thing I’ve ever done was make out in the back of Allen’s mom’s station wagon when we were fourteen.”
Stacey put her empty cup aside and wiggled her mouse to wake her computer. “I’ll give you all the gory details you want, but you’ve got to let me get back to work. I’ve got cost projections to finish, a report to type up, e-mails to send—”
“I get it,” Hannah said, closing the stapler with a snap. Her short brown hair bounced around her ears as she whirled to face Stacey. “But you’ve got to tell me one thing first. Are you guys seeing one another? Was this a onetime thing?”
Stacey frowned, a little of her morning glow fading at the question. “I wish I could say, but I don’t know. It wasn’t planned at all. We’re still seeing one another at the gym, because he’s my trainer, but as far as anything else?” Stacey shrugged, and one strawberry-blond curl fell in front of her shoulder with the motion. She tossed it back with a quick flick of her wrist.
“How was he this morning?”
The memory popped into her mind’s eye, and she smiled. He’d looked amazing, dressed in a form-fitting white HEALTHY LIVING TRAINING tee and black track pants. His arms were definitely shown to advantage in the form-fitting shirt, his sandy hair perfectly tousled. He’d winked at her, those steely gray eyes looking bright and interested.
“Good. He didn’t say anything out of the ordinary.”
“And you’re meeting him tonight. What if it happens again?”
“Then I’ll have another incredible orgasm?” Stacey laughed at Hannah’s delighted shock. “Seriously, it probably won’t. It had to be a fluke, a onetime deal. I mean, it’s not like we planned it.”
“Planned what?” Vance stuck his head through Stacey’s office door, causing both her and Hannah to jump.
“Nothing, why do you ask?” Her cheeks were burning, damn it. Why hadn’t she asked Hannah to lock the door behind them?
“You were being loud in here.” Vance’s beady eyes scanned them both.
“We’ll quiet down, sorry to disturb you,” Hannah said before turning her back on him. “Anyway, Stacey, at the holiday party, I’ll be happy to help with the decorations. Now, you were saying gold and black for the colors, yes?”
Stacey nodded, keeping up the conversation until a disappointed-looking Vance disappeared. Hannah shut and locked the door, and they breathed a collective sigh of relief.
“That was much too close,” Stacey groaned, placing a hand on her midsection to steady her breath. “The last thing I need is Vance sticking his nose into my love life.”
“It’s not your love life he’s after,” Hannah said, her freckles bunching up as she wrinkled her nose in obvious distaste. “He’s been trying to find out the details on your solar panel project.”
“What?” The floor beneath Stacey seemed to wobble, and she clutched the arms of her chair as she leaned forward.
“I caught him reading some pages on the fax machine yesterday.”
“The fax machine? But hardly anyone he deals with faxes anything anymore. I thought the utility services had all gone digital.”
“They have,” Hannah said. “When I asked him what was up, he blustered and stuttered, but he dropped the pages and left. Know what they were?”
Stacey’s stomach sank. “They were the budget reports from the housing project, weren’t they?”
Hannah’s solemn nod was enough confirmation.
Shit. This was the last thing she needed. Her last project had been scuttled by competition from her own department, and it looked like this one would face the same fate if she wasn’t careful. The constant battle of an underfunded department was competition for the dollars. But Stacey wouldn’t lose, not this time. This project would save the city money, and it would also provide some much-needed updates to the government housing projects. But only if she could make her presentation shine and win the city council’s approval.
“I’m sorry,” Hannah said. “If I’d known they were coming, I would have waited for them.”
“It’s not your fault. I’ll just have to be more careful. I’ve only got a day left to polish up this presentation, so until then, I’ll just have to keep everything under lock and key.” Stacey forced a smile and took another sip of her smoothie. There was nothing left but warm foam and no flavor. Just like her morning. Brilliant at the start, and then full of disappointment.
Hannah frowned as she smoothed her knee-length black pencil skirt. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to bring you down. I just thought you should know.”
Stacey smiled at her friend as she tossed her cup into the trash. “No, I’m glad you did. And thanks for covering for me. You’re the best.”
Hannah grinned. “I still want to know every little detail. Want to grab lunch later?”
“It’s got to be healthy.”
“Oooh, trying to impress our trainer?” Hannah’s wink was just this side of ridiculous, and Stacey laughed.
“Think it’ll get me a gold star?”
“It might get you that sixty-nine,” Hannah cracked as she left the office.
A bit of her good mood restored, Stacey hummed to herself as she opened her project file. Vance wasn’t a big enough threat to her project on his own. Yes, it would take a bit of the department’s budget to pull off, but it was a good thing. She’d show the council exactly what they needed to do, and then everything would work out.
And as for her and Rob? Well, a little more flirting practice sure wouldn’t hurt. And she’d just have a salad for lunch. Maybe Hannah was right. Stacey smiled down at her keyboard. It was certainly worth a shot.
* * *
Rob had to hand it to her. She was more focused and driven than he’d ever seen her tonight. She’d come in with bright eyes and a will to work, and he’d really put her through her paces. Heck, he’d just given her a break, and she was already champing at the bit to get back to it.
“Sure you’ve got your breath?”
Stacey nodded as she settled back down on the weight bench. “If you’re going to take me out for a drink, I’ve got to get this done.”
A delicious hunger curled in his belly. “What makes you think I’ll be satisfied with just a drink?”
She ignored that. “Or dinner, your choice.” She grunted as Rob helped her lift the bar into position. ”Nothing too fancy, since you’re making me sweat like a racehorse and I won’t have the chance to get pretty.”
Rob’s laugh echoed in the otherwise empty gym. “Bar food all right?”
“As long as you’re not counting my—oomph—calories. I’m in desperate need of a greasy cheeseburger. I had a small salad for lunch, so I’m starving now.”
“We’ll talk nutrition tomorrow.” Rob stood by as Stacey continued her set of reps.
That little line between her eyebrows only appeared when she was focused and centered. He’d started watching out for it early on in her workout tonight.
She seemed different. The flirting, for one thing. She’d had an air of affected confidence before, but it s
eemed that tonight she was much more comfortable around him.
Of course, that probably had everything to do with the fact that they’d been together last night. She was as into him as he was her, and it felt damn good. It was fun, actually. He hadn’t done any flirting at all since Rebecca. With his business and his dad’s health, finding a new relationship had taken a back burner. Just that day, he’d gotten another worrying text from his mom. Dr. Liston never rested during the daytime, and he’d had his second nap of the day after lunch.
Rob shook his head. Focus. Stacey. Maybe he should consider taking things further with her. Of course, there was the inherent problem of their trainer/trainee relationship, but a barrier like that could be overcome somehow. For the moment, the delicious distraction was good enough for him, and, he hoped, for her.
“Eight, up, good. Nine, breathe through it.” Rob stood by her side, ready to jump in if her arms buckled. Even though her muscles trembled and her cheeks were on fire, that little line between her brows was furrowed and her eyes were calm and focused.
“Last one, ready, ten!” Rob helped her rack the bar, and she instantly bounced off the bench as if she’d just heard her name called on The Price Is Right.
“I did it,” she said, eyes sparkling and voice breathy. “I really, really did it!”
She threw her arms around him, and without thinking, Rob hugged her back. She laughed and squeezed him hard.
And when she pulled back, grinning widely, he leaned forward and pressed a kiss on her smiling mouth.
Her eyes slid closed and she leaned into him, twining her arms around his neck. His tongue darted out to taste her, tracing her full lower lip for the barest of seconds before reality doused him like a bucket of ice water.
He pulled away.
What the hell was he doing? The gym was still open. There were only a couple of clients left, and they were getting ready to leave, but still, completely unprofessional. He wasn’t even really sure why he’d done it. Was it because he was proud of her? Was it to share in the incredible joy she was showing in her accomplishment? Or was it because he hadn’t gotten near enough of her last night?
He looked into her eyes. They were wide, a bit dazed-looking, but hot, hungry. She leaned in again.
