by Anne Rainey
She laughed and said, “Why, of course.”
Mac took her hand in his and led her to the middle of the crowded dance floor. Once there, he put his arms around her and pulled her into his hard length.
Crystal felt at home at last. With Mac’s strong arms surrounding her, she felt like nothing could ever harm her. She twined her arms around his neck, and he pulled her even closer still. She immediately felt what he was trying to show her. His rigid length pressed into her belly. She looked up into his eyes as if looking for confirmation; he smiled down at her and rotated his hips, just once. Immediately she felt heat pool between her legs, and her face flamed.
Mac leaned down to whisper in her ear, “Don’t be embarrassed. You’re beautiful, and feeling your sweet curves against me drives me nuts, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.” He rose up and smiled devilishly at her, then once again bent to whisper, “Except if we were both naked, that would be better. Of course, if we were naked, then dancing would be the furthest thing from my mind.”
“You are so bad!” She giggled.
“Later I will show you just how good I can be.” He winked.
They finished their dance in quiet, content to hold each other and sway to the beat of the music.
“Thank you for a wonderful time, Mac.” They stood at Mollie’s front door in that awkward moment when women were often left wondering, Is he going to kiss me? Should I invite him in? Will he think I’m being too forward if I do? Will he think I’m a prude if I don’t? She hadn’t a clue as to the answers. When she and Richard had dated, it all seemed so fast and he took all the control while she was left following his lead. This whole thing with Mac was new ground for her, and he was not Richard, thank God. She could tell he was leaving it up to her to decide whether things proceeded or not. She quickly acted on impulse and went for the plunge, saying, “Won’t you come in for a drink, Mac?” She held her breath.
“I thought you’d never ask.” His mouth quirked up in a devilish grin. She opened the door, and Mac followed her into the house. After their dance together, they had walked out of the bar and grill hand in hand without speaking to each other or anyone else. The drive home was made in silence, as well. It seemed that neither of them wanted to chance breaking the magical spell that had been woven around them. The whole night seemed special somehow, despite the events earlier in the evening. Maybe, just maybe, it was because of those events, as if God had granted them this enchanted evening as a reprieve. Whatever the reason, Mac was glad he was the man who was lucky enough to spend it with Crystal.
They walked into the living room, and Mac had the oddest feeling come over him. It was as if he was home. How strange for him to feel this way after all this time of never really feeling at home no matter where he was. He’d never felt this way before, even growing up. His father had always made him feel like he was a burden rather than a gift. His mother seemed to barely be there, like a shadow to his father. She was always in the background, quiet and content to bend to her husband’s rule. Still, he didn’t want thoughts of his less-than-ideal childhood to interfere with his night with the sexy woman at his side.
“Crystal, it’s a cool evening. Why don’t we take our drinks out to the porch? We could sit and watch the stars. What do you say?” While he was strolling down memory lane, she had already prepared a serving tray with iced tea and cookies.
“That sounds like a great idea.” Her eyes lit up like a child’s in a candy store.
“Here, I’ll carry the tray. You just get the door.” He picked up the laden tray and proceeded out the door.
“You just don’t want tea all over you.” She snorted as she held the door open for him.
“Well, you may have a point there, angel.” He waggled his eyebrows.
They sat down on the cushioned porch swing, and Mac put the tray on the table in front of them, then handed her a glass of tea. After taking a long swallow of his own, he remarked, “Mm, tastes good.”
“Thanks. I didn’t know if you took sugar in yours or not, but sweet tea is all I drink. I can get you something else if you want, though. I’m sure we have something in there.” She paused, then said, “I’m rambling, aren’t I? Sorry.” She took a deep fortifying breath and went on, “I’m just nervous.”
“Don’t be.” He leaned back into the swing, put his arm around her shoulders, and pulled her into the crook of one arm. “Just enjoy the night, Crystal.”
Crystal leaned her head on Mac’s shoulder and let out a contented sigh. “If time could just stand still right now.”
“No way, angel. I’ve got way too much in store for you later,” he murmured. “For now, just relax and look at the beautiful clear sky.” He smiled down at her and kissed the top of her head in a loving caress.
She closed her eyes and knew a sense of belonging in Mac’s arms. He was everything a woman could want. Now she just had to figure out a way to hold on to it. That would be the biggest challenge of all.
“Penny for your thoughts?” he said, his voice low and intimate.
“Just thinking what a wonderful night I had.”
“Ah, but the best is yet to come, angel,” he murmured.
She was about to ask what he meant by that, but he hushed her. “Let your fears go for now. Just feel me next to you, Crystal. Just me. Nothing else exists.”
“Oh Mac,” she breathed out. “The things you say . . . you make me want to let myself go and trust you to catch me.”
“I will catch you,” he replied emphatically. “You should have no fear when I’m with you. I won’t let anything happen to you.”
“Make love to me, Mac.”
He leaned near her ear and whispered, “That’s been the only thing on my mind since the first moment I saw you.”
After that stark confession, the only sounds were of Crystal and Mac touching and kissing. It was the single most beautiful experience of her life. When Crystal’s cell phone rang, breaking the spell, she heard Mac groan. A perfect moment ruined by technology. What else was new?
Crystal stirred at the familiar tinkling sound. She looked over at Mac and saw his frustration. “This will just take a minute, I promise,” she said as she reached for the phone on the table. “Hello?” The voice on the other end of the line sent chills down her spine. “What do you want, Richard?” Crystal tried to force a measure of calm into her voice, but found she was sorely lacking.
“Now is that any way to talk to your ex-husband, sweetheart?” Richard said, laughing.
“Don’t ever call me sweetheart again. You lost that right.” Now she was beginning to feel her temper. How dare he simply phone her after all this time and attempt to sweet-talk her? He was in for a rude awakening if he thought that tack was going to work. She was no longer a young innocent girl.
“I miss you. I’ve changed a lot since you left,” Richard said earnestly. “I know I made lots of mistakes by you, but just hear what I have to say, and then I will leave you alone. Okay?”
Crystal sighed and decided to let him say his peace and then hang up on the jerk. She turned and saw Mac looking at her with worry etched on his face. In her anxiety over hearing Richard’s voice, she’d forgotten Mac was still there. She leaned over to him and placed her hand on his shoulder in a gesture meant to say, I’m alright.
“Very well, get on with it, then,” Crystal said, getting more perturbed with every second she spent on the phone.
“I just wanted you to know that I’m in town. I thought it’d be real nice if we got together and talked about old times. What do you say? We could go to dinner and talk things through, figure out what went wrong.”
“I’m going to say this once, and then I’m hanging up the phone. I won’t go anywhere with you ever again. Our marriage is over, and I have moved on with my life. I suggest you do the same. Don’t attempt to call me again.” Crystal spoke with calm authority in her voice and then hung up the phone. After taking a deep breath, she once again turned to look at Mac’s worried face.
“What did he want?” Mac asked, his voice dripping icy venom.
“He says he’s back in town and wants to get together for old times’ sake.” Crystal went on with vehemence, “Can you believe the nerve of him to call and expect to just pick right up where we left off!” She was angry now just thinking of the whole thing. “What an idiot.” She scooted up next to Mac, pleased when his arm went around her in a protective embrace.
“I don’t like him calling you. Maybe you should change your number.”
Crystal stiffened and peered up at him. “I won’t hide and cower. Not again.”
Mac stared at her a few seconds before kissing the top of her head. “Okay, but if he calls again, you’ll let me know, right?”
“Yes,” she replied, loving that he cared so much. It was such a new experience for her. It was just the thing she needed to send her into a deep sleep.
Mac had no intention of sleeping. Whether Crystal would admit it or not, the phone call from her ex had shaken her up. She was so sturdy and determined, Mac didn’t think anything could bring Crystal down. But now, seeing her so fragile, he knew different. Richard. That son of a bitch had no rights to her. She belonged to him and Trent now. Richard was out of the picture. One way or another, Mac would keep it that way.
He carried her inside and locked the door behind him, then took her to her bedroom. He stood her on the floor and murmured, “Come on, sleepyhead. Let’s get you tucked in.”
She yawned and started to shuck her clothes. “I’m so sorry. I don’t know why I’m so tired.”
“Because Trent and I have been keeping you up late, probably,” he said as he kissed the top of her head. Once she was nude, he slipped his T-shirt over her head and laid her on the bed. He quickly stripped and got in beside her, then closed his eyes. It was several hours later when Mac woke to the gentle feel of Crystal stroking his chest with her fingers. “Is it morning already?” he asked. The room was semi-dark with the shades drawn, and he couldn’t tell the time of day.
“Not quite.” She glanced at the clock at the side of the bed. “Three in the morning,” she said as she flicked his nipple with a fingernail. The little sting brought him around instantly.
“Keep that up and you’re going to be in trouble.”
Crystal pulled her hand away. “I really love waking up to you. Thank you for staying.”
He tipped her chin up and kissed her lips. “I could get used to it, too.”
“Tell me something about yourself,” she stated. “What are your parents like? I really want to know more about you, Mac.”
He shifted, uncomfortable with this conversation already. His parents weren’t exactly the Cleavers. “Well, my dad was very rigid. He insisted his only son toe the line, and if I screwed up, there was hell to pay. Mom followed whatever Dad said. His orders were akin to the law with her.”
Her hand came back to his chest, and Mac relaxed. “I’m sorry. I never knew my dad. My mom did her best to raise me, but I know it wasn’t easy,” she said.
He tucked an arm behind his head. “Parents make a huge impact on our lives. I remember my dad telling me once that I was too stupid to amount to anything.”
“God, that’s awful.”
Mac shrugged. “When I graduated from law school, he had to eat his words.”
Her head shot up and she stared at him. “You’re a lawyer?”
“Yes, but I’m no longer practicing. Trent and I both got out of the business when Kinks began to do so well.”
“That takes a lot of schooling. Do you regret walking away from it all?”
“Not one bit. It was a high-stress job. Besides, Kinks makes a ton more money for me.”
Her palm continued to massage him, and her fingers toyed with his chest hair. Was she trying to comfort him? Probably. And damn, he loved every bit of her efforts. She was gentle and nurturing without even realizing it.
Her finger dipped into his belly button and he had to bite back a curse. “Do you get along with your parents now? And what do they think of the nightclub?”
“They don’t know much about Kinks. Just that it’s a nightclub. Mom would have a coronary if she knew the deets. Dad and I are civil. I see him on holidays and birthdays. It’s not ideal, but it’s more than what a lot of kids have.”
Her palm moved a few inches lower, then stopped. “You’re right. It’s good that you don’t hold a grudge. Some kids wouldn’t be so forgiving.”
Mac cleared his throat, unable to grasp on to the thread of the conversation with her touching him. “Huh?”
“I’m sorry, Mac. I’m sorry you didn’t have the type of parents you deserved.”
Her voice sounded shaky, and he didn’t like it one bit. “No, don’t be sorry. It wasn’t as bad as all that. I’m a grown man, and I make my own way in life. I’m happy with that.”
She smoothed her palm over him. “Yes, you are a grown man,” she murmured.
Without giving her any warning, Mac sat up and flipped Crystal over to her stomach. “Mac!”
“Hush, angel,” he murmured as he straddled her legs. “I did as you asked and talked about myself. Now it’s time I get what I want.” He swatted her upturned ass and Crystal yelped.
“You did not just spank me, Mac Anderson!”
“Yep. Now, are you going to give me what I want?” He rubbed away the sting, then swatted her again two more times. She stopped struggling and started moaning. “Damn, you’re fucking sexy like this,” Mac gritted out as he cupped both of her ass cheeks in his palms. “Yum.”
She moaned. “Mac, you’re driving me wild here.”
“Ah, but it’s only fair, since you’ve been driving me wild from the moment I first saw you.” When she shifted around to get more comfortable, Mac’s cock hardened.
“Let me up,” she pleaded. “I want to see you.”
Now they were getting somewhere. “I suppose I can allow that.” He moved to the side, and before he could take his next breath, she was on her knees in front of him. Jesus, she tore him up. So pretty and sweet. One minute he was taking a stroll down memory lane, and the next she was teasing him into a horny frenzy.
“Ah, that’s better,” she whispered.
“I’m all yours.”
With her silky mass of tangled brown hair drifting down her back and those big eyes smiling up at him as she descended on his cock, Mac forgot all about distant parents and his lonely childhood. With the first tentative touch of her lips to the bulbous tip, Mac lost all reason. Her touches and kisses pulled a primitive response from him. He put his hands on either side of her head and directed her onto his pulsing shaft.
“Damn, that’s nice. I love that sweet tongue of yours, Crystal.”
Her eyelids drifted downward, and Mac felt the gentle sigh she let out all the way down the length of his dick. With one hand, Crystal guided him inside the wet heat of her mouth, then farther still until he was nearly down her throat. She licked and teased, the tiny movements of her tongue and lips drawing his balls up tight. Mac clutched a fistful of her hair and pulled her mouth onto him tighter. She gagged and Mac immediately pulled out. Crystal whimpered and quickly took over, sucking him deep all over again. This time his balls were smashed against her chin.
“Goddamn,” he growled.
He watched as she threw herself into the task. Seeing her so anxious to please him and enjoying his taste had Mac close to coming already. Crystal pulled his rigid length all the way out and placed a gentle kiss to his tip before sweeping her tongue down the underside of his cock. She appeared to be in no hurry, as if she had all day to kneel in front of him and lick his dick. When she cupped his balls in her other hand and squeezed, every thought fled his mind. Only Crystal existed. Crystal and her talented mouth and fingers.
Mac groaned her name as her movements turned rapid, her own excitement growing. Crystal sucked, hard, once more. “Fuck!” He grabbed the back of her head and held her still while he shot over the edge, his come spurting into her mouth and do
wn her throat.
Long seconds passed, with Crystal still on her knees, Mac’s cock buried between her lips. He slid out of her and lifted her onto his lap. “I love you,” he admitted, “and I figured it was about time you knew it.”
She froze and stared at him. “Y-you love me? Seriously?”
He chuckled. “That’s not exactly what I was hoping you’d say, angel.”
She blushed and looked away. “I’m sorry. It’s just . . . I need time to think about all this. Between you and Trent, I mean.”
He tugged a lock of her hair until she was looking at him once more. “Are you worried that you’re in love with us both, Crystal? Or is it that maybe you only care for one and not the other?”
She slapped a hand over her face and groaned. “I don’t know. You are both so wonderful. I can’t imagine not being with the both of you. Saying that makes me feel guilty. Isn’t love supposed to be one-on-one?”
Mac shook his head. “Hell, sometimes it feels as if Trent and I are one person.” He winked and added, “We sure fell for the same woman, at any rate.”
Crystal placed her hand on his cheek and said, “Give me time to figure this out, okay?”
“I think I can handle that,” he murmured.
Crystal kissed him lightly and replied, “Thank you.”
“I’ve got other ways for you to thank me,” he groaned, as he took her mouth as if it were for the last time. Shit, for all he knew, it just might be.
11
Two days later, Crystal shook with stress as Trent stood in the bedroom of her apartment, watching her freak out over just the right outfit to wear around people with more money than she would ever see in a lifetime. And every time she told herself it shouldn’t matter whether they were rich, she realized she was only deluding herself. Of course it mattered! It wasn’t as if she could go to a dinner with Trent’s parents wearing shorts and a T-shirt.
“Pick something!” Trent shouted.
Crystal looked at the slate-gray slacks and cream-colored silk blouse, her current choice, in the mirror, standing this way and that, then she asked, “What do you think of this one?”
