“Will you stay?” he asked breathlessly. I didn’t even need to think about it. I nodded immediately. “C’mon.” He stood and led me upstairs by the hand.
Jamie’s bedroom walls were light gray, and a feature wall was decorated with some beautiful gray and cream damask wallpaper. Dark walnut flooring ran along the vast area of his bedroom, and his furniture, which consisted of a double wardrobe, dresser, and bedside tables, matched the flooring perfectly. I instantly fell in love with his huge wooden sleigh bed, complete with matching gray plaid bedding, and a comforter lying across the bottom. Again, I was impressed with Jamie’s taste in decor.
I sat down on his bed and watched as he stripped off his shirt, showcasing his broad chest and toned abs, revealing the tattoo on his right side, which read, I’d rather die on my feet than live on my knees, in scripted blank ink. In the dim light of his room, he looked damn sexy standing there in just his sweats, and I wanted to devour him.
He walked over to where I was sitting and crouched a little, taking my mouth eagerly. The pressure of his kiss forced me to lie back on his bed, where he towered over me, resting his hands on either side of my head on the mattress and his feet still fixed on the floor. To my disappointment, he pulled away, and the look in his eyes told me he was contemplating something.
“Are you sure you want this?”
What? Alarm bells started to scream in my head that he was going to change his mind again. “Yes,” I breathed without hesitation. I had to remind myself that I’d made the decision to do this regardless of the consequences.
Like that was the answer he was looking for, his mouth came back to mine. He scooted me up to the middle of the bed and lay on top of me, his legs between mine. His hand went under my dress, squeezing my thigh tightly as he pressed himself into me. I ran my hands over his bare back, gently scraping my nails downward, and he let out a deep moan. Wanting to feel him, I lowered my hand to the soft material of his sweats, and curled my hand around him. He deeply moaned into my mouth as I took hold of him. I began to move my hands up and down, and more moans escaped him. Gripping his waistband, I began to pull his sweats down to free him, but he moved my hands away. “Not yet,” he panted.
I was aching for him, and it was killing me. He knelt over me and lifted my dress up over my head, revealing my black lace lingerie. He bit his lip and grinned his sexy smile in appreciation. His mouth moved on top of my breasts, while his fingers worked the clasp of my bra. Taking it off, he threw it to the floor. His tongue drew circles around each nipple before he sucked each one, sending pulses straight to my core.
Trembling with desperate need for him, I knew the only way it would stop would be when he was inside of me, and I needed that more than anything right now. I started for his waistband again, where he was practically straining to be freed. “Not yet,” he repeated. Why the hell are you not taking them off? I almost growled in frustration.
Enticingly, he placed soft butterfly kisses down my stomach, stopping at my panties. “Jamie…,” I breathed. He was getting closer and closer to the spot where I wanted him to take away all the ache I had for him. Hooking a finger under my panties, he pulled them down. I wriggled out of them and kicked them to the floor. Seeing he was still half dressed frustrated me. “Would you just take your sweats off?” I snapped.
He laughed quietly and stood up from the bed, and with a cocky smirk, he slid them down slowly and temptingly. First, showcasing the glistening head of his manhood, he then lowered them to expose his long shaft and dark, neat pubic hair, and lastly his balls. “Jesus, Jamie,” I groaned as he stepped out of his pants. He’d been commando this entire time.
“Not the usual response, but I like it.” He chuckled as he pulled a condom packet out of his bedside drawer and tore at the foil with his teeth. The way he rolled it down over himself nearly had me spontaneously combusting. There was something so carnal about a man holding himself, knowing how to pleasure himself. I started to wonder what it would be like to watch him jerk off.
“You like this?” He gave himself a few firm strokes, and captured by the moment, I felt my lips part and pants escaped me. His eyes were full of heat as he let go of himself and nestled back in between my legs. His erection lay against my stomach, teasing me. Not breaking his gaze, I took him in my hand again, and through the light sheath of the condom, I could feel every ridge along his length. His eyes fluttered closed and his head fell forward slightly as I worked my hand up and down a bit tighter and with more rhythm. He sucked in and bit down on his bottom lip, and with every stroke I made, a quiet whimper escaped him. When it got too much, he moved my hand away. “You like that?” I grinned.
Taking a ragged breath in, he shakily let it out. “Yeah.” His hand moved between my legs where his fingers touched and explored me, swirling around my core and dipping in and out of it. I could feel myself being brought to the very edge. Pressing my head back into the pillow, I tried to control myself. I didn’t want to come like this; I wanted to do it with him inside of me. “I can’t wait to sink myself inside of you. You feel so fucking good,” he said softly.
He parted my legs, moved down between them, and ran his tongue over my center. I cried out, gripping his bed sheet in my fists as his warm tongue made rhythmic patterns over and over. My head went dizzy and I could feel myself trembling. The amazing feeling suddenly stopped, and I snapped my eyes open to find him looking at me with that devilish grin of his. “Like that?” he asked, using my words against me.
“You’re a bad boy, Jamie O’Shea.” I placed my head back into the pillow, frustrated. “I need you now, Jamie, no messing around. Please?” I didn’t care how desperate I sounded.
He gently shook his head and lay back over me, teasing my entrance with the tip of himself. “Not yet.”
His reluctance was driving me insane, and I hated how desperate he was making me for it. I started to push against him, trying to get him to enter me, but he was full of restraint. “Jamie, I want you, now!” I snapped, panting.
“Say please,” he whispered huskily into my ear.
“Please!” I begged immediately. With one thrust, he slid inside me, and the feeling was euphoric. From the deep groan that came out of him, I knew it felt good for him too. He didn’t take his eyes off me while he drove in and out. His thrusts came faster and harder, and more groans escaped him as he got nearer to the end. I could feel myself tightening and trembling around him.
“I’m gonna come so fucking hard.” His husky voice came in short, sharp breaths and it drove me over the edge, my orgasm ripping through my body.
“Fuuuuck!” He exploded noisily and collapsed on top of me, his body heaving with his breath.
My whole body was trembling with aftershocks. Wrapping my arms around his shoulders, we lay there together breathless. Even under his heavy weight, it didn’t matter. I didn’t want to let him go just yet. When he had almost regained his breath back, he lifted his head up to look at me with heavy eyes. Little beads of sweat had formed on his forehead to showcase how hard he had just worked his body. “You okay?” He smiled eventually.
I just blinked and nodded. What just happened was out of this world. I’d never had sex like that before. I didn’t know it could be that intense or that good. Maybe it was because I’d just had shitty lays, or maybe it was just Jamie.
“That was something, huh?” He gently slid out of me, and I immediately missed the feel of him. I didn’t know if he was talking about his own performance or both, but I was still too stunned to talk. He playfully roused my hair before shuffling off the bed and walking to his bathroom, giving me a full view of his spectacular behind. I smiled at the Warrior tattoo across his shoulder blades. He certainly was a warrior—in the bedroom as well as inside the cage, that was for sure. I turned on my side, snuggling up in his bed, and wondered whether he was going to ask me to leave. I hoped not. A few minutes later, he emerged from the bathroom and padded across the floor to bed. “Hey, any room for me in there?” He tugged at th
e sheets, freeing some space to climb inside.
I turned to face him. “You’re not gonna kick me out?”
“Nah, I’ll let you stay. But don’t tell the others. They’ll think I’m giving you preferential treatment.” He winked. I shook my head at him and he clicked off his lamp. I didn’t want to think of him with other girls. As I turned back on my side, he scooted up as close as he could to me and wrapped his arm around my waist, burying his face into my hair. I smiled to myself as I heard him lightly inhale. I noticed it was something he’d started doing. Enjoying the comfort of being wrapped in his arms again, I listened to the sound of his quiet breathing, which eventually evened out, and before I knew it, he was fast asleep.
When I woke up, it was early morning. The first light was creeping in through a slit in the thick gray curtains. I was snuggled into his chest and his arms were tightly wrapped around me. Lifting my head to look at him, he looked so peaceful and content. He trained hard all day, every day, so it was nice to see him fully rested. The comforting scent of his skin made a warm, fuzzy feeling bubble up inside me. I didn’t want the night to end. After watching him sleep for some time, my eyes felt heavy again.
The next thing I knew, Jamie was waking me up. Standing at the edge of the bed with a protein shake in his hand, he was dressed for training. “C’mon, get up.” He sounded grumpy.
“What time is it?” I said sleepily.
“It’s 8:30.”
Why on earth was he waking me up this early on a Sunday? “Where are you going?”
“I need to go for a run.” He ran his hand over his head and drank some of his shake.
I wanted him to come back to bed. “Need to, or want to?” I asked, watching his seemingly irritable mood. I knew something was up with him.
“Both,” he replied bluntly.
Okay, he was definitely moody. I didn’t have a clue why. Was it because he didn’t want me here, or because he was hungover? He certainly wasn’t being as nice as he was last night. I was too tired to care about his attitude, and I just needed to sleep some more. “Can you let me sleep, and I’ll go as soon as you come back?”
“You want me to leave you here while I go out for a run?”
He was looking at me like I was plotting to rob him. “I just want to sleep. I’m not going to touch anything.”
He paused, thinking. “Right, fine. I’ll be back in an hour, but then you need to go.”
Boy, he was not a morning person. I nodded, turned over, and watched him leave the room.
“Lauren, wake up.” I felt my shoulder being shoved. “Lauren?” he repeated sternly. I opened my eyes slowly, and he was standing there damp with a towel wrapped around his waist. His solemn expression was still the same. Obviously, his run hadn’t helped shift his mood. He picked my dress and bra up and placed them on the bed before walking out of his room, and I knew that was my cue to leave. He was definitely back to being Jamie, the ass. After having such a good night with him, I couldn’t understand why he was acting the way he was.
Dragging myself out of his bed, I got dressed and walked down the stairs, where he was waiting by the front door, fully dressed and looking sheepish. “Look, I’m sorry about last night. It shouldn’t have happened.” He shook his head, looking anywhere but at me.
I stared at him in disbelief. “What?”
“I’m saying it shouldn’t have happened. I’m sorry.” He rubbed his hands over his face roughly. Why was he saying that? His poker face was on, and I couldn’t tell whether he was being truthful or not. After him being so hot and cold with me, last night he made it seem like he’d finally made the choice to ignore Kal, and now he was telling me he wished it had never happened. That hurt.
“Why are you doing this again?” I shouted angrily.
He didn’t respond and just stood there with a stony look on his face.
“So you didn’t enjoy last night?” I glared at him.
“I was drunk.” He started to pick his nails rather than look at me.
“No, you weren’t.” He wasn’t drunk at all. He’d had a bit to drink, we both did, but he was in no way drunk. I would definitely not have slept with him if that were the case. I did have some self-respect, although I was starting to doubt that at this moment in time.
He folded his arms and tensed his jaw in annoyance. “You don’t know me well enough to judge.” His whole stance was obnoxious and arrogant, and any feelings I had for him evaporated in seconds. I didn’t know him well enough to judge him? Was he serious? I narrowed my eyes at him, but his expression didn’t change. Again, he was being a head-fuck, and I willingly let myself go head first into it thinking I could cope when he changed his mind. I started doubting his so-called feelings for me and wondered if it was all a ploy so he could sleep with me.
I took a step closer to him and he watched me warily. I wondered for a second if he thought I was going to slap him. I bet he’d had a few cracks across his cheeks for doing this before. “You disgusting waste of a human being. You think you can treat me like I’m worthless? Well, you’re wrong. I deserve way more than you,” I seethed.
His eyes widened and he swallowed. That was harsh, but I didn’t care. Who the hell did he think he was? I grabbed my purse and opened the door, and he finally spoke, “This is why I warned you. Girls always cry and make it difficult.”
I turned back to him. “First of all, I am not crying, nor am I going to. Second, maybe you should stop fucking around then. You’re nothing but a disgusting dirty slut.” I stormed out of his front door and slammed it shut behind me. The truth was I did want to cry, but I’d be damned if I was going to do that in front of him.
The rain dripped slowly on me as I walked home, alone, in the dress I wore the night before. I didn’t even have a coat. Last night, I presumed Jamie was driving me home in the morning, but no, all that had changed. Here I was, trudging home in the cold rain, looking like some dirty skank, crying over the disrespectful asshole. I really didn’t expect him to react as badly as he did. I’d already steeled myself for getting some kind of reaction from him, given his recent indecisiveness, but actually going out of his way to be downright cold and nasty was something else. I knew there was no way I’d be able to move past this; it was unforgivable and I was cursing myself for making the naive decision to just go along with it. Making matters worse, I was going to have to suck it up and face him every time I was at work, and try to hide my hatred toward him from Kal.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
The dark, cloudy morning I woke up to did nothing for my exhausted and overworked mind. As soon as I opened my eyes, the same dread I felt about going into work yesterday resurfaced, and I really didn’t want to go in again today. Ringing Kal yesterday and lying to him about being sick made me feel horrible, especially because of how good he’d been to me, but I just couldn’t face going in.
I hoped I hadn’t put more stress on him because he would have had to cover the desk while juggling the guys’ training. I wondered if they had noticed I wasn’t in. They probably would have; I was always there for my shift. I hoped Jamie hadn’t told them what happened between us, especially Cam, but I knew the chances of that were slim, because of how close Cam and he were. I didn’t need to feel scrutinized by Cam. My stomach lurched at the thought of facing Jamie. I hadn’t heard from him at all since Sunday, and when I didn’t show for work, I thought he’d get scared in case I was planning on telling Kal, but I still heard nothing, and the fact he’d not even been decent enough to send me an apology was insulting.
Jamie aside, yesterday actually turned out to be quite productive. I managed to spend the day studying for finals at the campus library, and when I logged on to my emails, I’d received the contract for my new job at Roysten Elementary School, which was surreal, because the realization that I was actually going sank in further. I had a start date for the 20th of August, and with how things were going at the minute, it couldn’t come quick enough. On the back of that, I managed to find myself a nice one-be
droom apartment with reasonable rent near the school. I was worried what the area was like around it, and since I couldn’t afford to fly over and look myself, I emailed the principal to ask her advice. So I was hanging on for her opinion before putting a deposit down to secure it.
Pushing my bed covers back, I reached for my cell, contemplating ringing Kal. Finding his number in my contacts, I hovered my thumb over the call button, but I couldn’t find it in me to press it. Deep down, I knew the reality was that I just had to face Jamie. I needed to get it over with so I could just move on, even if I was feeling anxious about the reaction I would or wouldn’t get from him when I walked in. I didn’t know if he was going to act like nothing had happened, ignore me, or be a total ass. He was unpredictable and my tactic today was to pretend he didn’t exist. I didn’t want anyone finding out we’d had a fight, especially Kal. He would fire me for sure if there was any chance I would interfere with one of the guys and his training.
I left for work and took my time walking there, trying to put Jamie at the back of my mind. When I rounded the corner of the club, the sight of his truck made me want to turn back and run home. Taking deep breaths, I told myself I could go through with it.
Kal was sitting at the desk when I entered the building. I nervously looked around the place and saw the guys were all there training. Seeing Jamie jolted me, my anger toward him still raw. Thankfully, he was engrossed in his workout at the weight bench and hadn’t seen me come in.
Reckless Retribution (West Warriors Book 1) Page 16
