Pretty Little Lies

by Jennifer Miller

  I marvel at the realization that thinking about our past no longer feels painful. It’s like a very important piece of my life has been missing. Those years with Luke helped shape the person I am today and those years were some of the best of my life. Sure, they were in high school and many would say I couldn’t have known love then or that it’s ridiculous to feel that way, given the fact high school is so juvenile. I personally believe that only those that didn’t experience love at that intense and passionate age can say such a thing.

  At the age of sixteen, I had barely experienced life. I had no idea that love could be painful or destructive. I think that lack of knowledge enabled me to love with a different level of intensity. There was no fear, no trepidation; just magic and beauty. That was the kind of love I had with Luke.

  I smile and ask, “Do you remember our first date at Gino’s?”

  “Yes, I do. I thought I was super cool because I passed the waitress some extra cash in order to sit us in the corner booth.”

  “I didn’t know that!”

  “I can’t divulge all my secrets, woman,” he grumbles making me laugh.

  “Wow, you are super smooth. I’m impressed.”

  “As you should be, angel.”

  Man, he is sexy when he grins and laughs at himself like this. I just want to eat him for dinner instead of my pizza.

  “Well, I will always remember us signing our names on the wall.” That is one of the things I love about Gino’s East. Every square inch of the wall has graffiti all over it with the names of everyone that’s visited or couples professing their love. I know that even my parents put their names on the wall too. It’s very romantic.

  “I remember that too. Speaking of our names being signed in places…” he trails off.

  I know what he’s going to say, “Our tree,” I murmur.

  “Yes, our tree. Have you been by? To see if our initials are still there?”

  “No. I couldn’t bring myself to think about it, or go back there,” I confess.

  “Well, if you are up for it, maybe we can check it out together some time. See if our initials are still there,” he says softly.

  “I would love that.”

  “Me too. It’s a date. Girlfriend,” he says and the wicked grin and gleam in his eye is back.

  “Oh, no. I should have thought it through before I said that!”

  “I’m glad you didn’t. Now that it’s over and I can look back on the confrontation I can see that,” he pauses for dramatic effect, “it was totally hot! You, all feisty with your claws out fighting for me. Mmm mmm, angel, so sexy!”

  “Oh please. Dream on.”

  “Oh I do, angel,” he whispers.

  fter we finish our meal, I stand to clean up. Luke stops me immediately by taking the plates I have in my hands and sets them back on the table. “Someone will take care of it.” I reluctantly leave everything where it is as Luke takes my hand and guides me, suggesting we head down to the dance floor.

  “Let’s stop in my office first so I can hang up my jacket before we head down.”

  I nod my head and follow him inside the door, closing it behind us. He walks to his desk and takes off his jacket. When he unbuttons his jacket and opens the front I step behind him intent on helping him pull it off his shoulders. The action of removing his clothes is a huge turn on. As I slide it down his arms, I intentionally trail my fingertips down the length of his arms, feeling his muscles ripple underneath.

  Luke turns and faces me as I fold his jacket over my arm. “Thanks.” His voice is husky and I feel its effect in my belly.

  “You’re welcome.” We just stare into each other’s eyes. Can he see the desire in mine? Can he tell that I am done with keeping him at a distance, that I want him? All of him? As I move toward him, head tilting up, intent on ensuring he knows how I feel, his phone rings. Luke looks at me, a question in his eyes. “Go ahead and take it, it’s fine.”

  While I’m hanging up his jacket, Luke answers the phone behind me. “Luke Easton.” Standing and staring at the crowd, my enjoyment of people watching is salved. “No, that’s too much.” Luke’s tone is harsh, surprising me.

  “No. I said, that’s too much. No. I’m not willing to pay that much. Negotiate the price lower by at least twenty percent per case and then he has a deal; got it?” I turn to look at Luke and he winks and smiles at me. “That sounds like a you problem, Chuck, not a me problem. This is what I pay you to do, so get it done. Handle it.” Luke abruptly hangs up the phone and walks around his desk toward me. “I should have just let it ring.”

  “Oh, well,” I say shrugging my shoulders. Truthfully, hearing Luke be all business is hot. I turn back around to look through the window again and take in the colorful display of writhing bodies below me. They all look different from up here; intoxicating. Luke comes and stands behind me pressing his body against mine, and his very presence sends heat shooting up from my toes to the top of my head. I think I could be sizzling – is smoke rising?

  Leaning his head down so that his mouth is right next to my ear, he whispers, “Let’s go, I want to see you shake that sweet ass of yours in that dress.” His voice sends goose bumps running up my arms. I’m electrified; alive. My legs are quivering in anticipation.

  “Okay,” I squeak and then wince at how ridiculous I sound.

  I hear Luke chuckle softly, damn him. He knows the effect he’s having on me. Oh well, he’s playing with fire and I intend to drive him wild when we are dancing. He takes my hand and leads me out his office door and down the stairs to the club.

  On the floor, a large number of people look Luke’s way. Some women look him up and down with lust written on their faces, and guys nod their head in acknowledgement. Luke seems oblivious to the women and nods in return to the men. He never let’s go of my hand and in places where maneuvering through the crowd gets tight, he puts his hand on my back and guides me through, keeping me protected against the crowd.

  “Would you like a drink from the bar?” he asks.

  “Yes, please!”

  We weave in and out of the crowd and head to the bar. Like magic, people seem to move out of the way when Luke approaches and the bartender immediately makes his way over. He’s an attractive man, dirty blonde hair and hazel eyes, but it’s his bulging biceps that grab my attention when he places his hands on the edge of the bar and leans toward Luke to say, “Hey, boss. What can I get ya?”

  “Hello, Jimmy,” Luke says then turns to me, “What would you like?”

  “I’ll take a jack and coke please,” I tell Jimmy the bartender with a smile. Jimmy’s lips form into a large smile while he looks me up and down.

  A clearing of a throat catches my attention and I glance at Luke to see he is scowling at Jimmy. “And I will have the same as my girl please,” Luke says as I try to hide a smile. I think it’s cute that now he’s the one a little jealous.

  Jimmy quickly starts filling his boss’ request, and in no time our drinks are ready. Luke hands me my glass, and taking my other hand, steers me to a corner where there is a high top table. We lean on the table, facing each other and take sips of our drinks.

  The club’s music is blaring. Leaning in towards me, Luke presses that luscious mouth of his to my ear again and says, “Have I told you how beautiful you look tonight, angel?” I shudder again at the contact. The way he makes me feel is unlike anything I’ve ever felt before. Well, two can play that game.

  Standing on my tip toes, I press my lips to Luke’s ear and say, “I do think I remember hearing that somewhere. Have I told you how mouthwateringly scrumptious you look?”

  Luke’s grin is downright devilish, “Mouthwatering, you say?”

  The jack and coke combined with the wine I already drank makes me feel relaxed and bold. I lift my mouth back towards Luke’s ear again, dragging my lips up his cheekbone as I go. Pressing my mouth to his ear, “I could eat you with a spoon,” and then I flick my tongue and nibble gently on his ear lobe. A shudder wracks Luke’s bo
dy in response, his grip on his glass tightening. My breath catches audibly. Trembling, he pulls away, takes my drink, sets it on the table, and leads me to the dance floor.

  Luke doesn’t stop until we are in the middle of the crowded floor. The DJ’s current selection, a slow, sinful, steady rhythm resonates through the room. Luke pulls me against his body, hands caressing with enough pressure to make me tremble, before they land on my hips, gripping tightly. His legs are on either side of mine; my hands on his firm chest. I flatten my palms and slowly work them up his chest and over his shoulders, until I reach his nape and clutch handfuls of his hair. Placing my cheek against his chest, his fast thumping heart ignites me. We sway side to side, moving to the beat of the song, when I feel Luke’s chest rise and fall under my cheek in a big breath.

  I return the sigh. How amazing it is to be in Luke’s arms again. I nestle closer, unable to remember when I have felt absolute contentment. I believe all of us have another half. Not that we aren’t complete or enough as we are. But there’s a desire to find that compatible someone to fall in love with, one’s soul mate. I’ve always believed Luke was that person for me. I thought I had lost my soul mate forever, so it feels unreal that I am standing here again in his arms.

  Before I realize what has happened, the slow paced song has been replaced by one with a significantly faster beat. The bodies around us pick up speed instantly. The change of beat makes the bodies press in on us. People brush against my back and sides, adding to the heat I already feel coursing through my veins. I drop my arms from around Luke’s neck and move away from him, just a little, so I can dance faster. Luke doesn’t let go of my hips and when he moves, his pelvis brushes against mine and as I move, my breasts brush against his chest. The barely there touches make the lust I’m feeling almost unbearable, my body is demanding something more. Luke sways his hips faster and I totally get lost in the music. I put my arms above my head, close my eyes, and just move. The beat resonates through my body, giving it a life of its own.

  With effort, I open my eyes and see Luke’s hooded gaze looking back at me. The tops of his cheeks are flushed and I see more of his exposed chest. He looks so hot, completely and totally edible. His eyes are on fire and I know mine are too.

  The intensity is too much, I turn around and put my back to him, placing my ass right in his crotch. He lets out a groan, but I ignore it and start shaking my ass back and forth in his lap, purposefully rubbing against the hardness I feel there. I put my arms up, lock them around the back of his neck and keep dancing. Just to be a tease I let go from his neck and start a slow slide down his body to the floor, feeling my skirt come up my legs even more, and then I carefully, intently, work my way back up, feeling every inch of his form against my own.

  Luke takes hold of my waist again and spins me around to face him. I’m breathing hard, my breath coming in pants. The other dancers close around us even more, causing me to feel warmer. The heat from dancing, combined with my raging hormones, makes it hard for me to breathe. The air feels charged, my body a bomb ready to detonate at the slightest touch. Luke’s grip on my hips tightens and he pulls me against him so close there is no space between our bodies at all. One of his legs is wedged between both of mine and the friction is making me want to ride his leg until I feel the sweet pleasure of release.

  I look up, put my hands on either side of his face, and pull him towards me. I want, no I need, to taste his lips. Recognizing my intent, Luke doesn’t waste time. As soon as his lips meet mine, I open for him and he sucks my tongue into his mouth. We touch, seek, and explore one another’s mouth. My hands can no longer stay still, I’m running them all over his back needing to stroke and caress him. I clutch handfuls of his shirt and try to bring him even closer. Luke’s hands leave my waist and clutch my ass, driving me up higher on his leg. The friction, oh it feels so good.

  I’m lost in him. I can’t get enough. My hands move to the front of his body, I back up just enough so I can seize him. Across his strong shoulders, down his broad chest, down his rippled abs, and over his tight belly, with a slight pause at his taut thighs. And just as I reach my destination and barely touch the front of his pants, Luke takes his lips from mine and looks down, entreating me. For a moment, my tunnel vision is interrupted and it’s as though I am only now aware that others are in the room. Not sure that I care, I stare back into his eyes making my intent clear. I want him. Now.

  Leaning towards my ear, Luke says, “Follow me.”

  I nod my head, and Luke hurriedly makes his way through the crowd of bodies back towards the stairs, we climb them, headed towards his office for seclusion. I’m barely through the door before Luke slams it shut and immediately puts his mouth on mine and nearly engulfs me. The passion that became out of control on the dance floor is now set free. His lips part from mine and start trailing down my neck, I arch my head, extending it to the side as far as possible, granting him access, wanting more. This is need, it’s raw, desperate, and demanding.

  Luke’s body is pressed hard against mine. His hand eagerly, but purposefully trails down the side of my hip, my thigh and then grabs me behind the knee and places it onto his hip. Steadying myself by using his shoulders and the back of the door, I wrap my legs around his waist. I groan when I feel his hardness pressing against the ache at my core. A few thin layers of clothes is all that separates us, that awareness sends flames shooting through me and I gasp…I want him, and I want him to have me. I try to completely unbutton his shirt. I let out a soft groan of protest, unable, but resolved to complete my task, unwrap my legs from his waist and gently push him back.

  Luke raises an eyebrow in question but grins when I smile at him and keep unbuttoning his shirt. He walks backwards towards his desk and I follow, thoroughly engrossed in my mission. When his shirt is finally hanging open in the front, exposing his ripped and defined chest, I let out a deep groan. My fantasy has turned to reality and it is not disappointing.

  He’s beautiful. I can’t help but press a kiss to the center of his well-defined chest. I shimmer lower and place kisses on each of his six pack abs, ending at his hip bones, where I nibble for a bit on one and then trail my tongue across his stomach to the other side, where I obtain equal delight from the other. I feel my own tremble and tighten my now rubbery legs. Before I can proceed with my inventory, Luke interrupts, pulls me up, embraces me, and we lock lips. We kiss long and deep and then he abruptly steps away from me.

  Luke walks to the front of his desk and to my shock swipes the top of it, knocking everything to the floor. A high-pitched, but weak gasp is expelled and I giggle. “I’ve always wanted to do that,” he smiles mischievously. “Come here.”

  I go without hesitation. Whatever Luke’s intentions are, I am a one hundred percent willing participant. When I reach Luke’s side, he tugs on my dress with a question in his eyes. I lift up my arm and point to the zipper on the side. Luke unzips the dress, one unbearably slow inch at a time, drawing out the anticipation. When my side is fully exposed, he slides my dress down my body until it drops to the floor.

  Standing there in my lingerie and high heels, Luke gasps as he lets his eyes slowly roam my body from head to toe, lingering on my breasts and at the tops of my thighs. I blush. “Oh my god, you are absolutely breathtaking. My imagination didn’t even begin to do you justice.”

  I move closer, he puts his hands around my waist, and props me on the desk. Woah. How…erotic. He turns, grabs his desk chair and sits down, rolling it towards me. “I want to touch you and taste you angel. I want this to be about you. No buts, let me do this.”

  I look in his eyes and see the heat and raw desire there. I nod my head up and down. Well, if he insists, what kind of person would I be to deny him? Yeah right, Olivia, you are such a giver.

  With him sitting in the desk chair, he is eye-to-eye with my breasts. He leans forward, keeping eye contact with me the whole time. I begin to pant in and out in anticipation of him reaching his destination. He closes his mouth around my nipp
le and teases it through the fabric of my bra. The feel of his mouth, the lace, and his tongue further arouse me; my head falls back and I let out a moan. He gently bites down before moving to the other breast and gives it the same attention.

  His hands that were at my knees start climbing up my thighs and then they travel up my back to the clasp of my bra. Unfastening it, he slides the straps off my shoulders and down my arms. When he pulls the fabric away, I watch him take in the sight of my bare breasts. My nipples are hard, I’m beyond excited and ready to fall off the edge.

  Luke’s mouth is on me again and he circles his tongue around my nipples on each breast again and again, making me writhe in ecstasy. His hands slide to tease the inside of my thigh. He moves them up and comes close to my center, then moves them away again. He repeats this over and over, and every time I think he’s finally going to touch me, he moves away, teasing me mercilessly. He pulls back and looks at me, and I know he sees the need and want in my eyes; I don’t have to say a word. He leans in, his lips reaching for mine at the same time his hand moves up my inner thigh and finally, it doesn’t stop and he touches me right where I’m aching for him.

  He strokes me through my panties and I clench my teeth tight in an effort to keep myself from losing it. He moves my panties aside and strokes his long fingers up and down, teasing me before he starts moving a finger in and out, in and out. At the same time, his tongue is mirroring the same action in my mouth.

  I’m so close to coming. Just when I think I can’t take it anymore, Luke slides my panties down my hips and thighs. “Gorgeous. You’re lovely, angel. I’ve never seen anything so beautiful in my life. I can’t believe you are here. That I have you again.”

  I place my hand on the side of his face speechless, words are inadequate. “Lean back,” he says. Reclining on my elbows Luke grabs my knees pushing them open, my heels on the edge of the desk .

  When the warmth of his mouth touches my hot center, I nearly jolt off the desk raising my hips in excitement. Luke’s tongue repeatedly strokes me up and down and concentrates on that one sweet spot. I can feel my orgasm building and building. I’m almost there. Almost there. “Oh God. Luke. Don’t stop. Oh God.”