“Ryan,” she breathed, knees going weak. “I need you.”
“Soon,” he promised. “Sit down.”
She lowered to the sofa, and Ryan knelt between her legs. He aligned their hips, then rocked against her, long and slow, his steely erection sparking to life a thousand nerve endings that ripped a moan from her throat.
Joy pulled him in for a kiss while arching against him. Each lazy slide lit her up from within, but just when she neared the brink, Ryan froze and asked, “What’s that?”
Joy gasped for air and glanced around the dark living room. “What?”
“That noise.”
A chorus of groans drifted into the room on the breeze, instantly familiar. Joy hung her head. “It’s my neighbors. They’re really . . . affectionate.” She moved to stand. “I’ll shut the window.”
“No.” Ryan held her in place, grinning with fire in his eyes. “Leave it open. Let’s show them how it’s done.” Joy smiled and reached to unfasten his pants, but he shook his head. “It’s still my turn.” He hooked both thumbs around her panties and tugged them off. “Lie back, Cupcake.” His voice was rough with lust. “I want to find out what flavor you are.”
A surge of excitement prickled her skin into goose bumps. Once she reclined against the sofa, she allowed him to part her knees. He placed a gentle kiss inside each of her thighs and spread her wide open, completely exposing her to his worshipful gaze. Her cheeks heated, but as soon as he dipped his face between her legs to taste her, embarrassment morphed into pleasure.
“Oh, God,” she groaned.
He lapped at her, softly at first, teasing her with whisper licks that had her straining forward for more friction. He took his time and tormented her until she lifted her hips to his mouth. Then he raised his head and used the pad of his thumb to pet her.
“Still want to know what a tongue stud is for?”
Joy nodded, though she had a pretty decent idea of its purpose.
“Have you been nice?”
She released a shuddering breath. “Very nice.”
“Good.” He watched her and licked his lips. “I think you’ll like this.”
And he was right. Ryan flattened his tongue against her, rolling the metal bead around and around her sensitive bundle of nerves. It sent a shock of raw pleasure radiating down to her toes. Joy swore loudly and fisted the upholstery at her sides. The glide of warm steel felt so good she could barely stand it. A series of moans rose from her chest as he continued the lazy rotation. Her breath came in pants, and she let her head fall back against the sofa, simply giving herself up to his mouth.
Just when she thought it couldn’t feel any better, Ryan dipped two fingers inside and pumped her with shallow strokes, making her beg with her hips before he delved deep. A delicious tension built between her thighs, growing with each slippery touch. Then Ryan twisted his fingers and massaged her while pressing hard with his tongue, and the pressure broke into the sweetest ecstasy Joy had ever known.
She chanted his name, riding his fingers as her inner walls clenched in hot release. It went on and on until her lungs burned for air. When Joy’s muscles finally stopped quaking, she lay there slouched on the sofa, boneless with satisfaction.
Ryan gave her a moment to recover before pulling her to the floor with him. He rolled her onto the rug and covered her body with his. “Cookies and cream,” he whispered in her ear. “That’s what flavor you are. It’s my favorite.”
She wanted to laugh, but she was too weak.
He trailed kisses along her neck while unbuckling his belt. Then his mouth was at her throat, licking and sucking and sending all the blood in her body between her thighs.
“You taste good all over, Joy.”
“I want to taste you, too,” she whispered. She sensed him kicking off his pants, and she wanted to look her fill, but the tear of plastic told her his control was waning.
“Later,” he promised while rolling on the condom. “This is just the beginning.”
She shifted beneath him, angling her hips to meet the rounded head of his erection, and when he nudged inside, they shared a groan of pleasure. He pulled back and eased in deeper, repeating the motion until he was sheathed to the base.
He remained buried, giving her time to adjust to his considerable girth, then began grinding a slow rotation with his hips. Joy dug her heels into the rug and moved with him, feeling herself grow slick with desire. Ryan laced their fingers together and pinned both her hands above her head. He pulled out nearly to the tip before gliding in again.
Her eyes rolled back with bliss. He set a sultry rhythm, moving inside her so slowly she felt each ridge along his thick shaft. Ryan locked their gazes while he rode her body. He branded her inside and out, and when she whimpered for more, he stopped and repositioned her legs over his shoulders. Rising above her, he supported his weight on both hands and thrust hard, filling the room with the sound of their colliding bodies.
Each sensation was intensified by the angle of his shaft. Joy cried his name and cursed aloud and made animalistic noises that would have horrified her if she’d been able to focus on anything other than the mounting pleasure. She’d heard stories of people speaking in tongues, and now she understood. She cried out in a language of unchecked ecstasy, her own voice foreign to her ears.
Finally, the wave crested, and she sobbed in blissful agony, soaring over the edge in a white hot climax. Ryan bucked hard one last time and stiffened with a grunt of release. Then they collapsed in a sweaty tangle and heaved for oxygen.
Joy was awestruck. She’d never imagined anything could feel so good.
After he caught his breath, Ryan kissed her eyelids, then the tip of her nose. He brushed back her hair and gazed at her with such tenderness it brought a lump to her throat. In that moment, they shared something so intimate there wasn’t a name for it. Joy’s heart claimed him and surrendered to him, all at once.
Her eyes welled with emotion. She wanted to say something, but the words wouldn’t come. Just when the first tear fell, the sounds of applause and wild shouting drifted in from the open window. Joy was puzzled for a few beats, then she giggled when she realized the Horny Hippies had given her a standing ovation.
“WOO-HOO,” the strangers hollered in unison from their downstairs apartment. “GO, RYAN!”
Joy bit her lip. She’d never be able to face them in the stairwell. “I guess I yelled your name, huh?”
Ryan beamed brighter than a new penny. “Only a few hundred times.”
She cringed. “Oh, God.”
“Yeah,” he said with a smile. “You yelled that, too.”
“At least we taught them how it’s done.”
Grinning wickedly, Ryan shook his head.
“We didn’t?” she asked.
“That was only the first round.” He kissed the shell of her ear, and Joy felt him growing hard inside her. “Now let’s really give them a show.”
“Not so fast.” Joy rolled them aside until he was flat on his back, then she straddled his hips. She used a fingertip to trace his viper tattoo, starting with its head, winding over his bunching chest and abdomen, and ending at the inside of his hip. She still intended to lick every decadent inch. “It’s my turn.”
Quirking a crooked grin, Ryan folded one muscled arm behind his head. “I’m at your mercy, Cupcake.”
Joy matched his smile and leaned over his chest. Right before flicking her tongue over his nipple, she said, “That’s Mistress Cupcake to you.”
She wasn’t vanilla anymore.
Chapter 6
“Happy two-month anniversary.” Joy reached into her grocery bag and produced a pint of Ben & Jerry’s and a pair of plastic spoons. “I figured we could celebrate now, since I’ll be stuck at the rally all night.”
A slow warmth spread through Ryan’s chest as he watched Joy peel back the lid and d
ig in. He’d never been the type to commemorate month-a-versaries, but Joy brought out his inner romantic. Every day with her felt like a cause for celebration.
Besides, who could say no to cookies and cream?
“Let me lock up real quick.” After securing the front door and closing the blinds, he rejoined her near the cash register, where Joy hitched up her skirt, hopped onto the counter, and wrapped her legs loosely around his hips. “Looks delicious,” he said, leaning down to kiss the base of her neck. The floral scent of her skin gave him naughty thoughts. “And the ice cream doesn’t sound bad, either.”
She laughed and batted him away. “No playtime. I have to go soon.”
Ryan groaned in disappointment. Tonight Joy was playing the part of senator’s daughter, dressed to impress the media in a businesslike suit, pearls, and the kind of shoes that reminded him of someone’s grandma. To complete the look, Joy had removed her eyebrow hoops and gathered her hair in a twist.
“You shouldn’t take out your piercings,” he said. “Not if you want to keep them long-term.”
Reflexively, she touched her brow. “It’s just for tonight.”
“What about next time? Didn’t you say there’s a debate soon?”
She blew out a breath. “The election’s in five months. After that my public image won’t matter so much.”
“You sure about that?” It seemed to Ryan that if Judge McMasterson won the race, image would be more important than ever. “There’s always going to be another election.”
“Doesn’t matter,” she said with a firm shake of her head. “I promised myself I’d support him until November. After that, I’m reclaiming my life.”
“You can support him by being yourself,” Ryan said. “It might even make him more relatable. Nobody’s family is this—” he searched for the right word “—sterile.”
Instead of answering, she tucked another bite into her mouth.
It disheartened him to see her hide the real Joy—the one whose sixty-watt smile brightened the blackest days. The one who yelled at the television and kissed without holding back and made him feel like a superhero in bed.
The one he was quickly falling in love with.
“Or you could stay here tonight.” Ryan unfastened her suit jacket and slid both palms around her waist. “I recorded 2-Headed Shark Attack. It looks even worse than Sharktopus.”
She frowned around a chunk of cookie. “I wish I could. But I missed the last rally, and Dad took it kind of hard.”
“Want some company? I can come with you.”
He studied Joy’s expression while he undid the first few buttons of her blouse. This wasn’t the first time he’d offered to attend a public event with her, but she always had an excuse to say no. Two months had passed, and she hadn’t introduced him to her family or friends. Ryan told himself it was because he didn’t agree with her father’s politics.
But it felt like a lie.
She dropped her gaze, which told him everything he needed to know—she wasn’t ready for their worlds to collide. Ryan tried not to take it personally. He didn’t give a shit what anyone thought about him, and it wasn’t like he was ready to put a ring on her finger.
“I couldn’t do that to you,” she said. “These things are torture.”
“Right. Torture.”
A slow burn grew inside him. He’d resolved to act cool about this, but that didn’t mean he had to like it. If Joy didn’t want him at the rally tonight, he would make damn sure she remembered what she was missing.
He started by dipping his finger in a pool of melted ice cream and spreading it across her lower lip. Before she could insist there wasn’t time to play, he skimmed his tongue along the trail and delivered an erotic kiss that had her groaning into his mouth. When she broke contact to catch her breath, he made love to the top of her shoulder.
That was all it took to weaken her resolve.
He quickly unbuttoned her blouse, then pushed down both bra cups. As soon as he palmed her breasts, she bowed back for him. Again, he dipped a finger in melted cream, but this time he spread it in circles over her tight pink nipples. He didn’t tease her for long. After a gentle graze of his teeth, he sucked her hard and fast, simply because he loved the sound of her moans.
But he wanted more from her—he wanted complete surrender.
He slid a hand up her skirt, stopping at the satin-covered juncture of her thighs. She shifted on the counter to open for him, and he used a thumbnail to draw circles around her delicate bud, taunting her until it grew swollen and stiff.
“Should I stop?” he whispered against her nipple. “I don’t want to make you late.”
“No.” Her breathing hitched. “What’s a few more minutes?”
“A few minutes?” he asked with a lifted brow.
“Or half an hour.”
“That’s more like it.” He dipped two fingers beneath her panties and played at her entrance, spreading moisture over her folds before delving deeper. “Do you want this?” Then he took her palm and pressed it to the bulge straining the front of his Levi’s. “Or this?”
Her answer was clear. She curled her hand around his erection and stroked him to the rhythm of his own pumping fingers. “I want everything.”
“Then come down here.”
After helping Joy slide off the display case, he turned her facing away from him and bent her over the counter. He hiked up her skirt and unzipped his jeans. Leaving her panties on, he hooked aside the fabric and inched into her from behind. She was slick and ready for him, but he kept his strokes shallow, just giving her a taste.
“Ryan,” she pleaded.
He met her gaze in the reflection from the front window. “Ask me.”
Nodding, she gripped the counter ledge and begged, “Go all the way in.” When he refused, she added, “Please.”
With one smooth thrust, he drove upward until their bodies clapped together. He closed his eyes to savor the liquid heat of her body. They’d stopped using condoms more than a week ago, but the unencumbered pleasure still shook him every time.
Once he regained control, he rocked in and out of her slowly while touching her where they joined. She whimpered and chanted his name, already nearing orgasm. But when he felt her inner muscles tense, he brought her back down, repeating the pattern again and again until she was openly pleading for release.
“Look at me,” he said. When she met his gaze in the window, he told her, “When I let you come, we’ll finish together. But you won’t clean up. I want you to feel me in your panties tonight.” He gyrated his hips and made her gasp. “Do you understand?”
She nodded frantically.
“Say it,” he commanded.
“Yes,” she breathed. “I promise.”
Bending over her body, he braced himself on one elbow and rode her hard while using his fingers to massage between her legs. It didn’t take long before she cried out and contracted around his shaft. He followed her over the edge and thrust deep, spilling himself in pulsating waves of pleasure. He held there and swallowed a curse. Nothing in the world felt better than the inside of Joy.
Nothing.
Once they recovered, she pulled down her skirt and buttoned her blouse. Ryan hoped she’d stay a little bit longer, but she shrugged into her jacket and strode to the front entrance while tidying her hair. It felt like a hit and run—something he’d never minded before. Now sex with Joy felt incomplete without taking her to bed and holding her while she slept.
“Happy two-month,” she said. “I wish I could stay and celebrate some more.”
Ryan unlocked the front door and tried to hide his disappointment. “See you tomorrow?”
Joy shook her head. “Before then.” He shot her a questioning glance, and she whispered, “If it’s like any other night, I’ll see you in my dreams.” Then she gave him a soft, sweet kiss t
hat melted his heart like the pint of Ben & Jerry’s on his counter.
Just like that, she was forgiven. When Joy walked away, she left him with a smile.
Chapter 7
It didn’t take long for the effects of gravity to kick in, and just as Ryan had wanted, Joy felt him between her thighs during the rally. The experience was oddly titillating. She shook hands and posed for photographs, all the while remembering the way he’d bent her over the sales counter and made her beg.
Her pulse rushed just thinking about it.
“What are you smiling at?” Mom snapped her fingers in Joy’s face. “The podium is over there.” She turned a critical gaze to Joy’s outfit and began brushing the lapels of her blouse. “And why are you all wrinkled?”
Because an hour ago, my boyfriend was sucking ice cream off my nipples. “Must’ve happened in the car.”
“You missed a button.” Mom fastened the gap while shaking her head in exasperation. “Honestly, princess, you’re a mess lately. If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were—” She cut off with a gasp, her wide gaze fixed on the base of Joy’s neck. “Oh, my God.”
Joy touched her throat, probing for the source of the problem. “What’s wrong?”
“Hurry!” Without another word, Mom took her by the hand and towed her to the nearest restroom. She made sure each toilet stall was vacant before settling Joy in front of the mirror and pointing to a purple mark on the skin directly below her pearl choker. “Please tell me that’s not what I think it is.”
Joy tipped aside her head and leaned toward the mirror, then froze while her stomach dropped to the floor. The granddaddy of all hickeys stood in stark contrast to her skin like a flashing neon sign that screamed I just got laid!
Oh, God. How many people had noticed?
Mom was obviously thinking the same thing. “Your father’s promoting strong moral values and abstinence-only education and you show up with”—she wrinkled her nose—“a love bite on your neck and your shirt half unbuttoned!”
Make You Blush Page 4
