by Tessa Layne
“Thank you. This will be a big help.” He extended his hand.
Brodie took it, giving an extra firm squeeze. Was Emma’s brother trying to intimidate him?
“Let’s consider this a gentleman’s agreement. You have my support.” He grinned again, a wild look entering his eye. “And if you hurt my sister in any way, I’ll be waiting for you in the tall grass.”
CHAPTER 19
Emma pulled into the circle in front of the new foreman’s house. So was this what a booty call felt like? Or was this more? Her college roommates had joked about booty calls, but back then she’d been more concerned with her studies than boys. Did you bring a housewarming gift to a booty call? She glanced over at the neatly wrapped package on the front seat, then nibbled on a fingernail, nervous energy winding through her. She had no need to be nervous, it was Sterling. But she shouldn’t be here. She should be back in Kansas City working on her other projects.
Driving over to Prairie in the middle of a Wednesday afternoon was completely out of character for her. And yet here she was, anticipation spooling tight in her belly at the thought of running her hands over Sterling’s body. Of saying a thousand dirty things that in any other circumstance would make her blush to her bones. Of chasing after a release so powerful she couldn’t think.
But it was just a booty call. Right? They couldn’t keep their hands off each other when they were together, and sure, they’d had several late-night conversations, but they’d never been intimate. Shared secrets. Bared their souls.
Emma drummed her fingers on the steering wheel. Sterling was the closest she’d come to baring her soul, but he wasn’t her boyfriend. He didn’t want a relationship. And she couldn’t do this commuting thing back and forth to Prairie forever. So it would end. It had to. A part of her chest hollowed at the thought. She liked being around him. Loved the way he made her feel like he only had eyes for her. But that was infatuation. Chemistry. You couldn’t build a life on that. She’d witnessed first-hand the disastrous consequences of orbiting a person who made you feel like you were the only one in the room. At least while he was looking your direction.
Sterling had given her no reasons to think he was even remotely the kind of sweet-talking philanderer her father had been. Yes, Sterling was devastatingly charming. But they were friends, too. Her parents had either thrown things at each other or passionately made up. And when her father went on a bender, her mother would take herself to bed and brood. Not come out for days. And after he’d died, it was like her mother had died too – couldn’t manage living without the toxic charisma of Jake Sinclaire to give her life direction.
Emma shook herself, pushing the maudlin thoughts away. None of her brothers had repeated history, and she wouldn’t either. And attempting to put a label on what was between her and Sterling would only complicate things. And they’d agreed to uncomplicated. She couldn’t help smiling as she grabbed the little gift to her right. Exiting the car, she skipped up the steps and knocked on the door.
No one answered. Where was he? He’d invited her over. She knocked again, more loudly. After a minute she tried the door. “Sterling?” She stuck her head in and scanned the office. The far door to the rest of the house stood open. Slipping inside and pulling the door shut behind her, she cautiously crossed the floor. “Sterling?” She stepped into the living space as he stepped out of the bathroom, freshly showered and in nothing but a towel slung low across his hips.
Her mouth turned to sawdust, and words vanished as she stared. Heavens, he was fine. From the top of his damp head, down his chiseled chest still glistening, to the tips of his bare toes. And he was freshly shaved. Her knees went weak at the thought of that smooth skin rubbing up against all her sensitive spots. And she couldn’t wait to get her hands on that towel. She licked her lips at what she knew she’d discover underneath.
He pinned her with a hungry gaze as a slow self-satisfied smile spread across his face. “Couldn’t get enough of me, could you?”
“Cocky much?” Let him think he had this under control. She’d turn the tables on him in a hot second.
“Why else would you come to town midweek?”
“Wanted to check on a few details,” she bluffed. It was partially true, but if she’d really wanted, she could have asked one of her brothers to help her out.
“Don’t ever play poker, Goldilocks.” His stayed locked on her.
“You knew I was coming over, how do you know it wasn’t purely for business?” she countered.
He cocked an eyebrow. “When has it ever been purely business between us?” His gaze grew heated as he raked his gaze down her body. She’d come straight from work and was overdressed for Prairie, wearing a navy pencil skirt and red stilettos. “You look amazing,” he said, his voice taking on a husky note.
Her nipples tightened to hard peaks under his gaze, and the way his eyes lit, it was obvious to him too. “Thank you.” The air charged between them.
“What’s in your hand?”
“Nothing. Something I thought you’d like.” She dragged her gaze away, searching for a place to put it down. She crossed the room and bent to lay the simply wrapped package on the end table. Sterling’s sharp intake of breath told her he’d glimpsed the lacy tops of her thigh-highs when she’d bent. She glanced over her shoulder with a seductive smile, not missing the growing bulge under his towel. “Like what you see?”
“You know I do,” he rasped.
A rush of warmth pooled in her center as his gaze turned feral. She loved this. The chase, the back and forth, the drawing out the tension until they both couldn’t stand it. She swallowed, relishing the waves of desire rushing to her fingertips, to her toes, making every part of her body hypersensitive, eagerly awaiting his touch. She brought her hand to the top button of her shirt, easily releasing it. “Would you like to touch me here?” She released the next button, and the next, drawing a finger down the exposed vee of skin.
“Yes.” His voice was dry. Hoarse.
She freed the last buttons, and with a shrug, the silk whispered to the floor. The sound of Sterling’s ragged breathing and her racing heart filled the room.
“You’re playing with fire, Goldilocks.”
“Burn me.” Her skirt pooled at her feet and she stepped out keeping her gaze riveted on him, closing the distance between them in two sultry steps.
He let out a harsh breath. “Keep the heels.”
The way he looked at her made her blood boil. She’d never felt so hot, so on fire. Sterling stood before her, body tight, clutching his towel like a lifeline. As if he’d devour her once he let go. It was heady, wielding this kind of power.
“I wanna bend you over the couch and fuck your brains out,” he said, voice tight with need.
She let out a little laugh as she drew a finger down the center of his torso, hooking it under the edge of his towel. “You’ll get your turn, Soldier. But we have some unfinished business.” He cocked his head, and she arched a brow, unable to stop a smile from spreading across her face. “Oh yes. I’ve been waiting very patiently.” She gave a little tug on the towel. Not enough to pull it off, but enough that he relinquished his hold on it. “Time’s up.” She snapped the towel off, and his cock sprang free, heavy and hard and thick.
Lust charged through her. His cock was incredible. And her body flooded with endorphins at the thought of him filling her in so many naughty satisfying ways. She stepped forward, and his hands rose to cup her hips. But she shook her head. “No touching. Not yet.”
“Emma,” he half pleaded, half groaned.
Using her fingers, she traced a path from his navel down across the tight flat of his abdomen, to the base of his cock bobbing in front of her. Sliding along the sensitive ridge, she explored his length, delighting in the silky feel of him. An instrument of pleasure that she craved. There weren’t enough days on earth to come close to slaking her thirst for him. She smeared the drop of pre-come over the engorged head, salivating at the slick feel. She licked her l
ips and glanced at him through her lashes as she dropped to her knees.
His breath came out in a sharp hiss as she cupped his balls in her palm while she ran her tongue along the underside of his shaft. She sighed as his taste filled her, sharp and manly. The scent of his arousal burned a path straight to her clit. As she took him into her mouth, her hand encircled the base of his cock, stroking up to meet her mouth. His palm came to her head, fingers tangling in her hair, and he moaned as she used her tongue.
When she looked up at him, her insides melted in a blaze of desire. His eyes were riveted on her, blazing and wild, mouth parted with shallow breaths. She kept her eyes trained on him, taking in the hard planes of his face, now etched with the most beautiful combination of ecstasy and agony. Something ripped open inside of her as she locked gazes with him. An awareness that whatever barriers stood between them were being burned to ash. She continued to suck and lick, half-dizzy from her own desire and the power of what was building between them.
His fingers tightened on her hair, pulling, as he involuntarily thrust his hips, gently pushing deeper into her mouth. Still looking at her, his voice came out razor sharp. “I want you so bad right now.”
She answered by taking him as deep as she could, until his cock pressed against the back of her throat. The feel of him filling her like this set her body trembling with her own unquenched need. But she didn’t want to stop. Not this time. She wanted him to think of this every time he walked into the living room. A primal need to mark this space as hers swept through her.
“I’m close,” he gritted, pulling harder on her hair and sending sizzles of fire through her veins.
She groaned with the beauty of him, imprinting this moment into her memory. The sound must have sent him over the edge, because he dropped his head with a shout, went rigid as a burst of hot come hit her and she swallowed, taking all of him until he was spent. Still gasping for air, he relaxed his fingers and pulled out, dropping to his knees and handing her the towel. “Fucking hell, that was hot.”
She grinned at him, body humming. “Like that, did you?”
His eyes glittered. “You’re not leaving here until I’ve bent you over the couch.”
A thrill ran through her. “That so?” she couldn’t resist teasing. “And how are you going to achieve that?”
Quick as lightning, he captured her wrist, turning it up. The heat returned to his eyes as he gently kissed the delicate skin, tonguing the flesh. “I can feel your pulse hammering,” he murmured, keeping her gaze. “You’re wound tighter than bailing wire.” He moved his mouth to her palm, not breaking eye contact.
Her head spun as need drove through her with the force of a tank. Every cell in Emma’s body vibrated, longing for more of his touch. He was right. There was no way she was leaving until he’d filled her completely. Satisfied the need for him that seemed to grow with each passing day.
He ran a finger across her collarbone, sending tingles across her flesh, making her nipples ache in anticipation. She shut her eyes, taking it in.
“Look at me, Emma.”
She opened her eyes, pulse rocketing. He gave her slow smile. “You’re so beautiful when you’re turned on.” He drew the back of a finger down her sternum, and traced along the edge of her bra, slipping down to rub back and forth against her tight peak. She drew a ragged breath, clit throbbing.
“And you’re even more beautiful when you come. Do you want to come, Em?”
“Yes,” she uttered, forgetting to breathe.
“Take off your bra. Show me those pretty tits.”
A rush of hot desire pooled between her legs. His words torched her. She reached behind herself and released the clasp, shimmying the straps off her arms.
Sterling’s breath released sharply as his finger continued moving back and forth over the sensitized tip. “So beautiful,” he murmured.
“Put your mouth on me,” she begged, not caring that he was supposed to be calling the shots. She wanted relief from the agony building inside her.
“Where?”
“Suck my tits, Sterling,” she said boldly as another hot rush of desire soaked her panties.
He lowered his head, breath skating across her skin like a tease. It wasn’t enough. She bit back a needy moan when his tongue lightly flicked across first one hard bud then the other. He went back and forth until her breath came out in great gasps. “More, I need more.”
“Mmm?”
“Stop teasing,” she said, need sharpening her voice to a point.
“Never,” he murmured with a ghost of a smile, before taking her nipple into his mouth and giving her what she wanted.
She arched into him, clasping his head as he dragged his teeth gentle across the end as she sucked. “Yes, that’s it.” Craving for him chased all other thoughts away except for the need to have him inside her. She cried out when he raised his head and pulled them both to their feet. She swayed and clutched his arm, punch drunk with desire.
“Take those pretty little panties off,” he said roughly.
She hooked a thumb through the elastic and peeled off the lace. Then grinned at his sharp intake of breath.
“You’ve been busy,”
She arched a brow. “Like?”
“Oh hell, yes.” He reached out a finger to trace her newly bare pussy.
On a whim, she’d picked up an issue of Cosmo the week before and took some of the advice she’d found inside. So far, she liked the results.
“You’re so soft, so wet.” He spoke almost reverently, like she was a treasure. He split her wet seam, exploring deeper, spreading her desire across her swollen folds until he brushed her clit with feather-light strokes. Bringing his finger to her mouth, he coated her lips with her essence before cupping the back of her head and lowering his mouth to hers. His tongue moved slowly over her lips, tasting her before teasing into her mouth to slide against her tongue.
She clutched his shoulder at the slow sensuality of it.
“I love the taste of you,” he murmured before kissing her more roughly.
She responded like a woman possessed, arching into him, hands stroking his back, squeezing his ass, as she kissed him back fervently, letting instinct and need drive her actions. His erection pressed into her thigh and she shifted wanting it where it could bring sweet relief.
“Not yet,” he murmured as he walked her backward toward the couch. “I want you to bend over that couch in your sexy heels and show me that gorgeous ass.”
Turning, she braced herself on the arm and glanced back at him. He looked positively predatory, cock jutting out, heavy and hard. She wiggled her ass and gave him a slow smile. “You mean like this?” Need tightened in her belly at his answering look.
“Spread your legs farther apart.”
She widened her stance and shook her ass again. “I’m ready. Come put your cock inside me.” Her pussy throbbed expectantly, and she cried out at the first touch of his cock sliding along her swollen folds. She leaned back, chasing the sensation, and he pulled away briefly.
“Sterling…” she squeezed out through a tight throat. “I swear to God, I’ll–” He cut her off, thrusting all the way home. “Yes,” she gasped, adjusting to his rhythm.
He slung an arm across her belly, pulling her close, supporting her as she ground into him. With each thrust, he touched a place deep inside her.
“Incredible,” he grunted.
“Yes,” she gasped as his fingers found her clit and fluttered against it as light and soft as his thrusts were hard and deep. The sensation was too much for her brain to hold. She spiraled out of control in an explosion of heat and sparkling light. Sterling was right there with her, thrusting deeply with a cry and grinding into her as they rode the tidal wave that caught them both.
CHAPTER 20
Sterling pulled a big blanket over them and settled her on his lap. She sighed and burrowed into him, relishing the feel of it against her skin. “Mmmm. Since when did you develop a taste for cashmere?”
> His chest shook against her. “Housewarming gift from Ma. Guess she knows what the ladies like.”
She socked him gently on the shoulder. “There better be only one lady,” she said sternly, then instantly regretted blurting the words. This was supposed to be a no-strings-attached thing. And if she’d learned one thing from watching her mother’s mistakes was that you can’t ever hold a man down. The second you pin expectations to them would be the second they ran for the hills.
Sterling stiffened under her, and she shut her eyes, bracing for the gentle let-down. “There’s no one else, Emma.”
Steeling herself for what she’d see in his eyes, she lifted her head. “I didn’t mean to, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have–”
Sterling placed a finger across her lips, shaking his head. “Shh. We’ve never talked about it, but for the record, there’s no one else.”
His words shouldn’t delight her, but they did. Warmth spilled across her chest and she snuggled closer.
He sighed deeply and continued. “I would never, I’d never dream of…” He coughed, shaking his head again. When he spoke again, his voice was thick. “There’s only you Emma. I can’t give you much, but you have my word on that.”
The air grew tense. Heavy. Uncomfortable. Like neither of them wanted to acknowledge what was hanging between them. She’d never ask for more than he could give, and if this was it… well, for now, that was okay. She leaned back and grabbed the package she’d placed on the end table. “Here.” She handed him the gift. “Not as warm and fuzzy as this blanket, but I hope you’ll like it.”
Her heart squeezed anxiously as he slowly unwrapped the brown paper, then released in a rush of warmth as he breathed out, arms encircling her tightly. When he spoke, his voice was gravelly. “I love it.”
“I was at River Market Antiques the other day, and there was another Never Give Up in the bins.” Her face burned. “I couldn’t resist.”
