“What happened?” she asked.
He shook his head, appearing on the verge of screaming. “Wheels came off. My head wasn’t in it. And they almost paid with their lives.”
“But they didn’t. They’re all okay. And, most importantly, you’re okay…” She dug her nails into his cheeks before launching at him again, locking her arms around his shoulders again. “Thank God you’re okay.”
She pulled back just enough to press her lips to his cheek, kissing it softly. She felt every hard muscle of his body tense against her, even harder than they already were by nature. She wondered if he could feel his arms tightening around her waist even as his muscles stiffened, serving only to pull her body even more flush to his. Her heart rate increased, and she could feel his heartbeat picking up too, pounding so hard under his black button-down she could hardly tell where her pounding heart ended and his began. Her cheeks went hot as fire, flushing deeply when she placed another tender kiss on his cheek, then his ear…
Then his neck.
His fingers dug into the robe at the small of her back. “Stella…”
She moaned softly as she wet the skin of his neck with the tip of her tongue, ever so softly, his soft gasp, making it vibrate as she tasted his smooth skin.
“Stella,” he croaked, his voice broken, almost pleading.
“I can’t help it,” she whispered, moving her kisses back up to his jaw, her nipples swelling under her white nightgown, as her pecks grew closer to the corner of his lips.
He pulled back before she could, but not far enough to stop the tip of his nose from caressing hers. Their eyes danced in the small sliver of space between them.
Her center grew slick at the heat permeating his eyes, sure that her own orbs were blazing in the same exact way. As his hardness became present on her stomach, she dug her fingers into his back to tried to draw him closer.
But he wouldn’t let her pull him in, shaking his head, making his nose angle against hers until she could feel how hard he was breathing against her cheek.
She watched his eyes close tight as if he was suddenly in incredible pain.
“I never understood how…” He exhaled heavily, opening his eyes and letting them run her face once more. “How he could give you the world so easily…”
She held her breath when his fingers splayed on her back, wide enough for the tips to brush the swell of her ass. She came to her toes as his touch lit fire to every inch of her, making her center swell to the point of pain. Her cavern begged to be entered—her clit to be touched. For those big fingers of his to travel down just a few inches lower.
His voice grew strangled. “I can’t stop thinking about you. Damn near got my whole team killed today because I can’t stop thinking about you. I want you so fucking bad—”
“So have me.”
He tightened his closed eyes.
“What do you think about? Huh?” She came to her toes until her lips brushed his ear, voice lowering. “Do you think about being inside me?”
His fingers clawed at her back, and the tips of his nails sinking in the soft curve of her ass was answer enough.
“You think about it… in my mouth?” She smiled. “Against my tongue?”
“Stella…” His breathing intensified. “Troy…”
She pulled back and searched his eyes; feeling tears stinging her own as her hands caressed his face. “I can’t keep running from a ghost, Rocco. I don’t wanna run anymore.”
Emotion saturated his own eyes, clenching his teeth when her hands traveled up his face and sank into his hair, breathing the gel cast and making the black strands tumble into his cloudy green orbs.
“What’s so wrong about something that feels so good?” she whispered. “Why can’t we make each other feel good? Even if only for tonight?”
“I don’t know how…” He swallowed thickly. “I don’t know how to have you… if I can’t keep you.”
She came to her toes again until her lips were a whisper from his. “So keep me.”
A wave of darkness passed over his face, and in the next instant, he’d cupped her ass in his big hands and yanked her forward, accepting the promise on offer as his lips caught hers in a fervent kiss. A promise neither of them had even known how long they’d been waiting for until their trembling bodies had come together once more, sealing like superglue as they tasted each other for the second time. Like an addict taking another hit, neither could get close enough, fast enough. Every taste was sweeter than the last, making their lips part a little wider, their heads dip a little deeper, and their hands travel a little farther with every fervent kiss. The tongues brushed tenderly as the kiss intensified, rendering every breath nothing more than a strangled gasp from their flared nostrils.
No longer worried about the importance of breathing, they were too busy running their splayed fingers all over each other’s bodies, touching every inch they could get their hands on and ripping away anything that stood in their path. The buttons of his shirt were soon torn apart by her trembling fingers so she could feel his heaving chest. The robe on her shoulders ripped down her arms and tossed to the floor so his greedy hands could claw at her arms. She gasped into his mouth when he ripped the straps of her nightgown next, all while keeping his gasping lips pressed firmly to hers, and let her ample breasts spill out, cupping them in his hands the moment they were free.
“Yes,” she gasped when he broke his lips away to look down at her heaving nipples. She bit her bottom lip hard enough to draw blood when he abandoned her lips to bend down and suck her nipple into his mouth instead, nibbling, kneading and lapping at the sensitive bud like a man enjoying his last meal.
If she thought the arousal pressing against her stomach had been hard a moment ago, it was only because she hadn’t felt the heat pummeling against her right then. So rock solid she wouldn’t be surprised if it burst right through his zipper just to get closer to her, faster. Moving with a mind of its own, driven by the shots of pleasure blasting over her body like a tidal wave growing taller every second, her shaking hands found the button of his pants and pulled it open, followed by the zipper. She reached into his pants just as his moaning lips moved to her other nipple and drew it into his warm, wet mouth as well, giving it the same desperate attention as he had the other.
His strangled cry made her nipple vibrate against his tongue when she wrapped her fingers around the hardness awaiting her beyond the waistband of his boxers, unable to stop the blissful smile crossing her face as she finally got the rod she’d been fantasizing about since the moment in the guesthouse, in her hand. It felt just as big and dangerous as it looked. So much so that she worried she might not even be able to get him inside of her. She’d be damned if she wasn’t willing to try.
Wrapping her fingers around his arousal like a vise, she took up a stroke that left him gasping against her breasts until he could no longer focus on sucking and swirling his tongue around the solid nub, instead, standing on shaking legs and drawing her bottom lip back between his. The filthy words he whispered between tongue-filled kisses only drove her to stroke him harder, faster, desperate to give him whatever glorious wave of euphoria was that was crashing through her right then.
The music of their breathing grew loud enough to touch the vaulted ceilings of the foyer, louder still when his hand slipped under her nightgown and sank into her slippery folds, finding her clit in an instant. His lips muffled her scream as he parted them over hers, tasting the pleasure rocketing through her body as he stroked the slick bud between her legs until her knees felt seconds from giving out from under her.
Keeping his thumb on her clit, he slipped three fingers inside her, and she broke her lips away from his to cry out, letting the sound permeate through the house before she found the presence of mind to muffle it in his shoulder. The hand she had in his pants stilled against his dick and the other clapped around his back, taking the fabric of his shirt in a fist, hips swirling in time with his magical fingers as he worked her to the edge.
He knew exactly how to touch her. Exactly where to go. He knew when to go faster and when to slow it down like a conductor guiding her up and down every thrilling dip and curve of a dangerous roller coaster until she wasn’t sure if she was more desperate for the grand finale to come, or for the thrill to go on forever.
Her body quickly decided for her.
“Oh my god, Rocco, yes, you’re gonna make me…” Her eyes opened and subconsciously shot towards the stairwell, and she screamed again. “Cum—oh my fucking God!”
Somehow, Rocco seemed to understand her last scream had nothing to do with the thumb lighting fire to her clit or the fingers deep inside her and followed her gaze towards the stairs, his soaking wet fingers freezing in mid-swirl in her warm cavern, at the sight that awaited him.
Blue giggled from where she was standing at the bottom of the stairs in a pink onesie, managing to remain upright only thanks to the tight hold she had around the rails of the baby gate Rocco had installed at the bottom. Her bowlegged knees bopped up and down as if she were dancing, a smile lighting up her face as she pointed to Stella and Rocco.
“Papa?” Blue’s smile grew even wider as her tiny voice filled the foyer.
Stella and Rocco both froze, eyes widening.
“She didn’t just say…?” Stella started.
“There’s no way she just said—”
“Papa!” Blue beamed again, this time releasing to gate to try to clap her hands together but succeeding only in collapsing onto the floor. She collected herself quickly enough, pointing up at Rocco again from where she’d landed on her butt. “Papa.”
“No, baby…” Stella pointed to Rocco. “Uncle.”
“Papa.”
“No, Uncle—Uncle Rocco.”
“Papa,” Blue decided, blushing as she smiled at Rocco. “Papa Wak.”
The air left Stella’s lungs, defeated, and she felt the moment the wind left Rocco’s sails too.
They separated like they’d just found out the other was contagious with a deadly disease, fixing their clothes all while gasping down at Blue with wide eyes.
And Blue kept saying it, “Papa Wak,” over and over until the color had drained from both their faces.
Until the taste of their lips, the swirling of their tongues, and the amazing feeling of having their hands on each other’s aching bodies was relegated to a distant memory, replaced with a tornado in both their guts that was impossible to describe, but enough to leave them utterly speechless.
——
Rocco and Stella stood side-by-side next to Blue’s crib hours later, watching her baby belly slowly rise and fall after they’d finally got her down for bed. Their arms brushed from where they were leaning against the white rails, the music of the mobile rotating overhead topped only by their breathing—which hadn’t calmed down since they’d been caught in the act by a toddler.
“I think we have to take this…” She looked at him in the dim room, illuminated only by the elephant nightlight next to Blue’s bed. “Really slowly, Rocco. Like, we need to crank it all the way back down.”
His green eyes ran her face.
“We got pretty out of control down there, but we can’t let ourselves forget that it’s not just us…” She looked down into the crib again. “It’s Blue, too. It wouldn’t be fair to her to jump into this, only for it not to work out because we rushed things. We have to be really, really careful. And if we get even a whiff that, for whatever reason, it might not work, then we can’t play with her feelings. We have to cut it off at the neck. Right away. A swift break.”
“You’re really gonna ask me to slow down after what just happened downstairs?”
“She thinks you’re her father,” she breathed, her heated eyes meeting his once more.
“I’m the closest thing she’s got.” He swallowed thickly. “Like I said earlier. I can’t have you if I can’t keep you. It’s one or the other. No in between.”
“I’m not saying you can’t have me. I’m just saying we need to take our time. Make sure it’s right. The family can’t know, either. We have to ease them in just like we’ll ease Blue in. Keep it tight-lipped until we decide if we even need to bother easing them in at all. DJ will go apeshit.”
“DJ? Try Justin. He’s already threatened my life.”
“DJ swore she’d never speak to me again.”
“Guess they weren’t wrong since I know what your tits feel like now. And taste like, for that matter.”
She shoved his shoulder.
“What?” He feigned innocence. “They’re delicious, don’t worry.”
“Rocco!” She shoved him again, making his grin move to a chuckle.
Silence fell as they watched Blue for a few moments longer.
“Hey?” he whispered.
Her smiling eyes moved back to him.
He took a deep breath. “I want you to buy the spa.”
“What? Rocco… stop.”
“I’m serious. You’re always talking about how desperate the owner is to sell—how much trouble it’s in. How much it stresses you out… Never shut up about all the ideas you have about turning it around. So do it.”
“With what money?”
“I’ll co-sign on a loan.”
“You’ve already done so much for me. I could never ask you to do that.”
“It’s a good thing you didn’t, then.”
She faced him completely. “I don’t know the first thing about running a business. I dropped out of business school to be a housewife, remember?”
“There’re plenty of billionaire entrepreneurs who never finished college.”
“Yeah and there’re plenty more broke entrepreneurs who never finished either.”
“So finish then. Go back to school. Re-build the spa on the side.”
“You must think I’ve transformed into Superwoman overnight.”
“No. I think you always were.”
A blush crept up her cheeks. “Not all of us have the GI Bill to take advantage of like you did.”
“Don’t worry about the money. Just do it. That 30k I found in your car? I never spent it. It’s in a savings account. Put it towards school, and I’ll have your back from there. You only have thirty credits left, right? That’s nothing. It’d be ridiculous not to finish—a huge waste of money and talent. If you could figure out a way to make your clients even half as beautiful and luminous as you are… it’ll be an incredible success.”
She blushed again.
“You’ve got something special, Freckles. I know if you put it toward something you really care about, something you only told me was your biggest dream a couple of months ago, I know you’d be incredible.”
“You believe in me that much?”
He searched her eyes. “I believe in us.”
Emotion charged through her, but she tried to collect herself. “What you believe in is seeing my boobs for the first time downstairs.”
“I believe in that too,” he admitted with a laugh. “Very inspirational.”
“We’re still taking things slowly.”
“I’m patient.”
She tilted her head at him, all while secretly wondering if she was even capable of being so patient.
“I also believe in these bills getting paid,” his voice grew joking. “And you could potentially make a lot more money as a business owner than the $12 an hour you’re pulling right now, that’s for sure. Double, maybe even triple, the money. If not more.”
“But what if I fail?”
“Yeah.” He nodded, reaching up to tuck a piece of hair behind her ear. “But what if you don’t?”
He caressed her jaw with his knuckles before cupping the back of her neck, his fingers tickling her hairline as he tugged her softly in. Their lips met tenderly in a kiss that gave her butterflies, foreheads remaining pressed together even as they parted with a soft smack, gazing deeply into each other’s eyes.
She swallowed. “I’m scared.”
“Me too.” His voice was strang
led, making her wonder what it was he was really talking about. What he was really scared of.
As their eyes remained locked, she also found herself wondering what she was really afraid of.
Of prospering?
Failing?
Of taking a leap of faith?
Or taking that leap of faith with Rocco Wolfe? A man who, once upon a time, she’d sworn was her worst enemy?
18
“No, it’s crooked!” Stella cried, cocking her leg out, making the heel of her black stilettos click on the floor. “A little more to the left.”
The two beautiful young girls standing on crates on either side of the wall behind the spa’s reception desk huffed at Stella as the massive mirrored sign made the tiny muscles on both of their skinny little arms explode under their skin.
“My arms are on fire!” One of the young girls cried. “This is abusive!”
“Seriously, Stella, I’m about to drop it!” The other added.
“You drop it, you bought it. It’s coming right out of your paycheck.”
“Shouldn’t the owner of the spa be hiring professional contractors to do this job?”
“Sure, the owner of the spa could hire contractors. As long as she was able to offset the astronomical invoice they’d eventually send her by giving every employee in her spa a massive pay-cut, whaddya say?” She paused then nodded sharply at the expected silence. “If you think I’m such a horrible, abusive boss you can feel free to mosey on down to the Hilton Spa across the street, where they’ll pay you half what I’m paying for double the work—with low-value clients that’ll tip you pennies. Don’t stand there and act like I’m some cold-hearted slave laborer. I treat you guys like gold!”
Man, these kids were spoiled. They were drop-dead gorgeous, which was why she’d hired them, but she was beginning to understand that women who looked like beauty queens usually had an attitude to match. Was this how she used to act? Her skin crawled at the thought.
Whining softly and nibbling their lips, her girls charged on, breathing heavily as they shifted the ‘Stella Wolfe’ sign—which matched the sign that also now hung on the building’s exterior, a little more to the left like she’d asked.
Forbidden (War Book 1) Page 21
