by Jenika Snow
He shifted on the bed so he was facing her now. “No, baby. In fact, I don’t want this to end either.” He still had his hand cupping the side of her face. “I want you with me, as mine. I don’t care that we work together, that our companies are merging. I don’t care what anybody would say. From the moment I saw you I knew that I wanted you, that you were mine.”
Her heart jumped into her throat.
“We might not have gotten along at first. I might have pissed you off royally.” He grinned. “But the attraction was undeniable.”
She couldn’t help but smile in return.
“But even through all that frustration I knew you were perfect. Your sass and fire drives me crazy … turns me on.” His voice dropped an octave lower. “And hearing you say that you were mine as I’m deep inside of you has every possessive and territorial instinct in me rising.” He shook his head slowly. “I can’t let you go. I won’t.”
Good, because she didn’t want him to let her go.
Sugar wanted to be his. Only his.
16
For the next week, Colton had three meetings in total with Sugar, each one to iron out the details of their mutual agreements. Every single day, he’d watch her and it was impossible not to think about her naked, open, spread out, ready to take his cock.
He wanted her all the time. No matter how many times he had her, the moment they got home, she was like a drug to him.
After another day of grueling negotiations, it was time to call it a day. His colleagues left and he lingered in the boardroom, waiting. Sugar was talking with a few of her colleagues.
It was a Friday night and everyone just wanted to either get home to relax or go out partying. He had no interest in either. Sugar was the object of his affections.
“We’ll talk about this on Monday. Thank you.” The woman she’d been talking to left and they were alone.
“That was a pretty intense day,” he said.
“Yes, but I think we’re making excellent progress for both of our companies.”
“This merge, when it does finally happen, will rock the fucking world.”
She chuckled. “It’ll certainly be something. I don’t think I’ve ever been so proud of an accomplishment. Your company certainly knows how to play hardball.”
“You’re a tough negotiator. I’m just used to getting what I want.”
“You are, are you?”
“Haven’t you realized that by now?” He reached out, taking hold of her hips and pulling her close.
He heard the little gasp in her voice and relished the sound. Good. He’d gotten under her skin, which was exactly what he wanted to do.
“We really shouldn’t do this here,” she said.
“No one is here to watch. No one is here to tell.” He ran his hands down around her ass, gripping her flesh. “And I can’t go another minute before I taste my sugar.”
She rolled her eyes and burst out laughing. “Is that what you’ve been doing all afternoon?”
“I’ve been paying attention but you can’t help but admit you want a bit of me.” Stroking across her ass, he curved around her hips then moved up to cup her full tits. He felt the press of her nipple against his palm. His cock was already rock hard but at that first touch, he knew he wanted her even more now. He left one hand on her breast and with the other he gripped the back of her neck, pulling her down to take possession of her lips. She released a little moan and he took full advantage, plunging his tongue inside.
Pinching at her nipple, he soothed out the pain with the pad of his thumb.
“Tell me that doesn’t feel good.”
“You know it does.”
“It has been driving me crazy all week, Sugar. I need you.” Kissing her neck, he sucked on her pulse.
Releasing her tit, he moved down her skirt, going to the hem and lifting it up around her waist. Stroking between her thighs, he felt how wet she was, how slick. There was no way she could deny this. Deny what was happening between them.
There was no one else that he wanted. The only woman he craved was her.
“Please, Colton.”
Sliding a finger beneath her panties, he found her soaking wet slit.
Touching her clit, he heard her cry out and he kissed her neck. She dropped her files to the floor. He’d help her clean them up later. For now, he had her right where he wanted her.
Standing up, he moved them so that she was pressed against the table.
She commanded attention and respect.
Everyone had to do her bidding and right now, she was going to do his.
Lifting her up on the table, he tugged her panties off and spread her legs. Looking down at her perfect, red pussy, the darker lips of her sex outlining that plump flesh, he wanted a taste.
He didn’t care who saw them or who knew.
All he cared about was having her coming on his tongue, giving him what he desired.
“I can’t believe I’m doing this. That feels so good. Don’t stop. Please don’t stop.”
He had no intention of stopping.
Staring at her cunt, he stroked her clit with his thumb and thrust two fingers inside her. With his other hand, he opened his belt, easing down the zipper, and gently pulled out his cock. Gritting his teeth to stop himself from groaning, he sat down in her chair with his cock in his hand.
Pulling his fingers away from her tight pussy, he flicked his tongue across her clit. She screamed his name, arching up.
With his name echoing off the walls and the taste of her pussy on his tongue, there was nothing else in the world that he wanted more. Sugar was his everything and now he just had to convince her that he was hers.
17
“So, things are getting pretty intense with you and this mystery man, huh?”
Sugar glanced up at Sassy, also known as Sass to Sugar. She was one of her closest, dearest friends. Yeah, their parents had been hilarious with the choosing of their kids’ names, that was for sure.
With work being hectic and her relationship with Colton growing, Sugar didn’t have a lot of free time. And she hated that. She and Sassy had been friends since grade school, going out monthly for drinks and to gossip. But this last month they hadn’t talked very much, not even on the phone.
But what Sugar had admitted to Sassy was the fact she was seeing someone. She just hadn’t said who that someone was. That is, she hadn’t until today, which she planned on doing. There was no hiding this. She wanted everyone to know about her and Colton, not just because she wasn’t the type of person that didn’t care what other people thought, but because she loved him.
Yeah, she was in love with Colton.
“So, what’s up?” Sassy said and picked up her scone, the cinnamon crunch glazing hard and delicious looking.
Damn, Sugar should have gotten one. Here she was thinking about eating when she was about to tell her best friend about the guy she had fallen in love with. Sassy took a bite of the scone and watched Sugar, the expression on her face curious.
“I know it’s something good, that’s why you’re stalling,” Sassy said around a mouthful of the pastry. She grabbed her iced tea and took a long drink from the glass, watching Sugar the entire time. “Man, this has to be good for the way you’re acting,” Sassy finally said after she’d set her glass back on the table.
“Yeah, it’s juicy alright,” Sugar said and leaned back on the patio chair, the metal digging into her skin. She stared at her lemonade, the condensation sliding down the blue glass. She reached out and moved her finger along the droplet of water.
Sassy grinned and cocked an eyebrow. With skin the same gorgeous dark shade, they had always had each other’s backs, knew what the other went through, and were more like sisters than friends. They were alike in almost every way, so Sugar supposed that’s why they got along so well, why most times they knew what the other was thinking.
Sisters separated at birth.
They’d joked about that more times than not, wanting it to be true w
hen they were younger, wanting to live together, do each other’s hair, makeup, the whole nine yards.
But all these years later they were still just as close. They might have had their own respective lives and responsibilities, but they always made time for each other. For their sanity they had to.
“What about your love life? How’s that going?” Sugar asked, stalling. She didn’t know why she didn’t just come out and tell Sassy. She knew her friend would be supportive no matter what.
“Oh no you don’t,” Sassy said and pursed her lips. “You aren’t going to deflect and start asking the questions. I want to hear all about what’s up with you and this mystery man.”
“His name is Colton and he’s…” Sugar started speaking but froze.
He’s what? The man of my dreams? The love of my life? The only guy who has ever made me feel alive?
“He’s everything I wanted but didn’t know I needed.”
The look Sassy gave Sugar had her throat tightening with emotion. It was genuine happiness.
For the next ten minutes Sugar told Sassy all about Colton, how they’d met, the dogs, the company merger, all of it. It was so good getting it out, telling someone, especially her best friend, and it had this weight lifting from her. It was different than when she’d mentioned it to Amanda. This was Sugar pouring her heart out to the one person who had always been there for her.
“So yeah, that’s all of it in raw, gritty detail.” She swallowed as Sassy sat there staring at her, not speaking right away, but also not judging. It wasn’t like Sugar jumped into shit. In fact, she was more standoffish then she liked to be most of the time. She was independent and worried about herself. She never let her heart get mixed into anything.
Until now.
“You love him?” Sassy asked, her fingers wrapped around her glass, the seriousness filling the space between them.
Sugar didn’t even have to think about it. “Yeah, I really do.”
Sassy grinned … a genuine one. “Then I’m happy for you. I’m glad you found someone who can deal with your sass.” Sassy winked.
Sugar chuckled. “What are you talking about, sass? I’m as sweet as my name implies.”
Sassy snorted. “Yeah, on what planet? You forget I’ve known you nearly my whole life. You got more fire in you then hell itself.”
Sugar tipped her head back and gave a mighty laugh. God, she loved Sassy for calling her out on the real shit.
“But I’m gonna have to meet this Colton guy, you know, just to make sure he’s up to par. Because if he can’t handle me as your best friend his ass is out the door.” Sassy winked and grinned, the teasing clear in her voice.
“You’ll love him and he’ll love you.” That, Sugar had no doubts about.
18
“So, are you going to spill what has that goofy as fuck look on your face or are you going to make me pry it out of you?” Flynn asked.
Colton burst out laughing as he lifted up the weights for three more presses before placing them across the bar. “When did you turn into a girl, wanting to gossip and shit?”
“When my brother from another mother started to ditch me. That only happens when a guy has got some pussy.”
Sugar wasn’t just any pussy. Flynn always had a way with words. Blunt and to the point. It was one of the reasons they’d stayed friends this many years. Flynn didn’t allow Colton to get above himself and kept him firmly on the ground.
Their lives had taken different turns. Where he’d started his own company from scratch, Flynn had knocked up his high school sweetheart, and even to this day, they were together. It hadn’t been all easy though. Being a dad at eighteen had fucking sucked. Colton helped him out where he could but the truth was, he wasn’t good with kids. He tended to offer money and he’d also helped Flynn to get out of a dead-end job and to have a real career, which improved things at home.
Flynn was the only family he had left and he hadn’t seen him since his sister’s funeral. This was the first chance he’d gotten. Between negotiations and his relationship with Sugar, there wasn’t a whole lot of time.
“I know you and you don’t invite your buddy to come and work out. I don’t swing that way and I don’t get turned on by all that flexing.” Flynn handed him a towel.
“Okay, fine. I’ve met someone.”
“Is it serious?”
“I want you to meet her. She’s … everything.”
“Be careful there, buddy. I know what it means to say a woman is everything and it’s not easy to come back from that.”
“I’m being serious.”
“How serious are we being? Like, she’s girlfriend material, or could this be something more? By something more I’m talking family, wife, the whole deal.”
Colton stared at his friend’s ring.
He thought about Sugar.
Other men looking at her.
A ring didn’t exactly deter people but it meant something.
He’d seen women come on to Flynn. His friend always held his hand up and said he was taken and very happily married.
Colton wiped his face on the towel Flynn had given him and tried to make sense of his own thoughts.
“Did you know with you and Andy?”
“Did I know I wanted to marry her?” Flynn asked.
“Yeah.”
“I knew that from the moment I first saw her in high school, I wanted her to be mine. Knocking her up wasn’t exactly part of the plan in senior year.” Flynn shrugged. “There’s not a lot I can do to change it. I love her. She’s my soulmate. Marrying Andy was the best decision I ever made.” Flynn stared down at his ring and Colton felt a pang of envy.
He could have that. The ring. The woman.
Sugar was everything to him.
Their dogs adored each other as well.
That had to be a plus in his favor.
He made her laugh, and again, that was another good sign for them to be together.
What the hell are you doing?
“I love her,” Colton said, looking at his friend.
“Whoa. You look like you only just realized that.”
“I mean I know I care about her, but shit, hearing you talk about Andy and marriage … makes me want that with Sugar.” He stared at his friend. “I love her and I want to be with her. I hate it when we’re apart. When I’m online and I see these goofy memes about dogs, I’m always sending them to her. I ask her about her day. Holy shit, I want to be with Sugar.”
Running fingers through his sweat-slicked hair, he let out a laugh. “I can’t believe I only just realized this now.”
“What’s stopping you from, you know, going to the next level?”
“My business is currently in negotiations with the company she works for. We’re finalizing the details and until we’ve worked through them, we need to keep our relationship a secret.”
“Secrets have a way of coming out, man.”
“What do I do? I’ve never been in love with anyone. Do I just tell her? Blurt it out while we’re walking our dogs?”
“Wow, first of all, you take a deep fucking breath. You’re going off at a mile a minute and I’m struggling to keep up. Second, do you know how she feels about you?”
“Don’t have a clue.”
“Then you need to figure out how she feels. It’s always easier for a guy to make his move if he knows his feelings are not one sided.”
“That sounds like total bullshit.”
“I’ve been happily married for years. So long in fact, I lost count. Just listen to me, marriage is not easy and you’ve got to be ready for this. You do want to get married?”
“Yeah.” He hadn’t realized exactly how much he wanted to until he admitted it. He thought about Sugar walking toward him in a white gown. Fuck yeah, he wanted that. There was no doubt in his mind that he wanted her, that he loved her. “This is what I want. I know I can make her happy and I know I can make her love me.”
“I’ve never seen you like this.” Flynn
grinned. “I’d love to meet her. Andy would as well. We could all do dinner, maybe?”
Colton nodded. He didn’t care about any of that right now. All he could think about was Sugar and making her his forever. What he wanted was to figure out a way to find out if Sugar loved him so he could admit his feelings to her.
19
Several weeks later
His mouth was dry, his tongue thick. He had his hands in his lap, the napkin he held in a death grip. Colton bounced his leg underneath the table, his nerves running high. He stared at Sugar. Whatever she was saying was going in one ear and out the other. It wasn’t because he wasn’t interested, but instead because his mind was consumed with one thing.
Over the last few weeks he’d really thought about his talk with Flynn. He loved Sugar, had never cared about anybody as much as he did her. The very thought of her not in his life was not something he wanted to even entertain. But they hadn’t known each other very long, and what he was going to ask her, what he wanted to do, could very well send her in the other direction.
“Hey, are you okay?”
He blinked a few times and looked up at her. Her brows were furrowed, confusion on her face. The way the light hit her skin, causing it to glow, causing the curls in her hair to really stand out, had his fingers itching to touch her.
Who the hell was he kidding? He always wanted to touch her. She could be in a burlap sack covered in dirt from head to toe and he’d still want her desperately.
“I’m good, yeah, I’m good.” He cleared his throat and reached for his wine glass, bringing it to his mouth and taking a long drink.
“Really? ‘Cause you seem the total opposite of good.”
Damn, why was his throat so dry, so tight? The feel of the little black box on the inside of his suit jacket pressed right over his heart. It felt heavy, so damn heavy that he just wanted to reach inside and pull it out, pop open the lid and ask her what he really wanted to.
He placed his hand on his chest, right over his heart and the ring box. He stared at her, saw the confusion deepen on her face.
