He was so fucking sexy. His chest muscles flexed and strained; his perfectly delineated abs bunched as he moved. Plus the bewildered expression on his face made him that much more appealing. It was clear he didn’t quite know what she had in store for him, but he was eager nonetheless.
Jessie massaged his balls with one hand and continued to tease his asshole with her finger, watching him as she did. Every now and then she would swipe her tongue along the thick length of his cock, enjoying the sight of his eyes rolling back in his head. She had just fallen into a delicious rhythm when Braydon jerked beneath her hands.
“Baby, wait. Not yet.”
Jessie grinned, very much interested in pushing him to the brink and then over. But Braydon apparently wasn’t having any of it because she found herself flat on her back, his comforting weight hovering above her once again.
“You’re good at that, you know?”
“Good at what?” she asked, playing coy.
“Making me crazy.”
“I can think of more ways to make you crazy.”
“I’m sure you can,” he said with a heartwarming smile. “But right now, it’s my turn.”
Braydon pressed his lips to hers gently, but that didn’t last long. The heat of their individual needs came together like a summer thunderstorm, and they collided. Tongues, teeth, hands. It was a glorious mishmash of sensation that catapulted her into an ever-intensifying state of bliss.
“Bray,” she moaned against his mouth.
He trailed his lips down her neck, across her collarbone. She closed her eyes and reveled in the amazing sensation as he continued to move lower. When he took her breast into his mouth, she gasped. The warmth of his tongue against her nipple had her body plummeting deeper into a whirlwind of pleasure.
But he didn’t stop there. Braydon gave equal attention to both of her breasts, licking, sucking, and nipping until she was writhing beneath him, trying desperately to maneuver so that he was right where she needed him.
That never happened, because Braydon was apparently on a mission. One that ended with his head between her legs, his tongue lapping at her pussy until she was immersed in so much pleasure, she didn’t think she could take it anymore.
“Braydon,” she moaned. “Braydon. Oh . . . Oh . . . You’re gonna make me come.” Jessie reached for his head, wishing she could grip his hair and pull him closer. She had to settle for palming his head and desperately trying to force him closer.
He chuckled and the vibration against her clit nearly sent her into orbit. When he slipped one finger inside of her, her breath caught, the potent friction lighting her up from the inside out.
“Come for me, Jess,” he told her. “That’s it, baby.”
He drove two fingers into her, and Jessie knew she couldn’t hold out much longer. When his lips suckled her clit once again, his fingers plummeting inside of her over and over, Jessie lost control. Crying out, she begged and pleaded for him to never stop as her orgasm started in her core and exploded into brilliant, colorful fragments of light behind her closed eyes.
“Did you like that?” he asked, the warmth of his body once again looming over her.
“Yes,” she whispered, so delightfully sated that she could barely speak.
The bed shifted and the cool air from the ceiling fan caressed her naked body. That was when she realized Braydon had left her. She peeked out of one eye to see him rummaging through his wallet.
“There are condoms in the nightstand,” she told him, assuming that was what he was looking for.
His wallet landed on the floor as he went for the drawer. A minute later, he was slowly sinking into her as she looked up at him.
“Oh, God, Jessie,” he growled, the words a mere whisper. “This is the absolute best place in the world. Right here, deep inside of you.”
Jessie found that she loved when he talked. It didn’t matter what he said. It was how he said it. The sound of his voice made her body yearn for him. She loved the aggressive man who had seemingly come out of his shell. Never had she seen this side of Braydon before. Especially not during sex. She knew it had a lot to do with their previous situation, which was why she found she liked this so much more.
One on one with Braydon was the best place in the world to be.
She rode wave after wave of exquisite sensation as he began sliding into her, pulling out. He didn’t seem to be in a hurry, but the sudden and frequent thrust of his hips as he entered her told her he was holding back.
“Harder, Bray. Fuck me hard.”
She met his gaze, saw the intensity radiating there. It wasn’t just lust that she saw glimmering in his blue-gray eyes. It should’ve scared her, should’ve made her want to distance herself, but Jessie knew she was long past that point. They might’ve gone into this backward, but there was no turning back. She’d fallen in love with him before tonight. The way he looked at her only sealed her destiny.
Her headboard thumped the wall and Jessie lifted her arms, pressing against the wood.
“Oh, yes, baby.” Braydon increased the tempo as he deepened the penetration. Jessie was riding a high that had her body trembling, launching her closer and closer to what she anticipated would be a devastating release. One she anxiously looked forward to.
“Harder,” she demanded. “Oh, yes. Just like that.” He slammed into her over and over while she used her arms to hold herself in place.
“Jess, baby. Come for me. Come on my cock.”
That did it. The titillating words in that deep, rich bass sent her spiraling out of control once again.
“Fuck, Jess. Oh, hell. Your pussy’s so tight. I’m gonna come, Jessie.” An animalistic growl followed his words, and Braydon stilled above her. She felt him pulsing inside of her as they both fought to suck in air.
Neither of them had looked away. Not once. And right then and there, in the dim yellow light cast from the small lamp on her bedside table, Jessie was quite certain that he knew as well as she did that they’d crossed a line they might never be able to uncross.
The question for tomorrow would be what they were going to do about that.
chapter FOURTEEN
Sunlight was spilling in through the faux-wood blinds when Braydon stirred. The first thing he noticed was the warm woman lying against his side, and he was tempted to drift off once again. Hell, he’d be content to stay in bed all day if she would let him.
But Braydon knew that with morning came regret. And he wasn’t about to let Jessie wake up before him. The last thing she needed was too much time to think.
It took him a few minutes to get his eyelids to cooperate, but he finally managed to force his eyes open.
“Hi,” Jessie whispered, her chin resting on her hand, which was lying on his chest.
“Hey,” he responded, a little surprised to see she was already awake.
“Hungry?” she asked.
Braydon just grinned, purposely letting her think he had misunderstood her question.
“I’m ready if you are, cowboy,” she teased, her fingertips trailing down his stomach.
Braydon bucked when she tickled the sensitive area at his groin, making her laugh.
Jessie tried to get away, her hand caressing his cock in her attempt to tease him some more.
Completely onto her game, he grabbed her hands and restrained her, keeping her in the same position so he could watch her. She was feisty in the morning. He liked that about her.
Hell, he liked everything about Jessica Prescott.
“As appealing as that sounds,” he began, holding on to her wrists when she tried to get away again, “nature’s calling.”
“Well, by all means,” she said, falling back on the bed but keeping her eyes on him. The smile on her face made his heart lurch. She was so beautiful. “When you’re done there, maybe we can take a shower together.”
&
nbsp; Braydon sat up, draping his legs over the edge of the bed and putting his feet on the hardwood. For the first time since he’d opened his eyes, he glanced at the clock.
“Fuck.”
“What’s wrong?” Jessie asked, the bed shifting behind him.
“It’s eleven o’clock.”
Braydon reached for his jeans, lying on the floor beside the bed. He felt around for his cell phone but came up empty.
Shit. His cell phone was in his truck because last night he hadn’t planned on staying the night. He needed to check the damn thing, but first things first. He slipped on his boxers, then yanked on his jeans and stood. Without bothering to zip or button them, he made his way to the attached master bath, pushing the door closed behind him.
Several minutes later, he emerged to find the bed made and Jessie gone. His T-shirt was lying on the bed, as was his John Deere hat. After pulling on his socks and his boots, he grabbed his shirt and hat and went in search of Jessie.
He found her in the kitchen, the single-cup coffeemaker filtering coffee into a mug. She didn’t look at him, although he cleared his throat to announce his presence.
This was what he’d wanted to avoid.
The morning after. For them, it wasn’t just a matter of Braydon doing the walk of shame, either. They had made so much progress yesterday, yet they’d fast-forwarded once again, bypassing all the important stuff last night by giving in to their baser urges.
And to think, hardly a lick of alcohol played into it. She’d had two margaritas, but the last one had been left on the table, nearly untouched.
At least there was that.
When she started to walk past, Braydon didn’t let her get around. He simply sidestepped so that he was standing directly in front of her. Jessie seemed ready for that move too because she studied her coffee cup instead of making eye contact. “Jess.”
“Hmm?”
“I promised Gage I’d help him take care of something today. Travis had to go to Dallas yesterday and he won’t be back until later this evening. They’ve been working on their fence. Lumber was being delivered yesterday afternoon, and I told him I’d help him get it where it needs to go today before Travis gets back.”
Jessie did look up at him then. Braydon took that moment to retrieve her cup from her hands. He set it on the granite-covered island and then put his finger beneath her chin, tilting her head back more.
“I don’t want to leave,” he informed her. “And I sure as shit plan to come back.”
Jessie just nodded, but he could see the doubt in her eyes.
“Come with me,” he finally said.
“What?”
“Consider it a second date. You can talk to Kylie while I help Gage.”
Jessie shook her head. “You don’t have to do this, Bray.”
“Come with me,” he said again, refusing to take no for an answer. He wanted to spend the day with her. “I’ll help Gage, you chat with your sister. And then when we’re done, we’ll get some dinner and . . .”
“And what?” she asked skeptically.
Braydon felt like a teenage boy trying to get up the nerve to ask a girl to prom. His tongue was tied and he was pretty sure that was sweat trickling down the back of his neck.
“I was thinking we could try a more traditional date. You know, dinner and a movie.”
“A movie?” she asked, the hint of a smile forming on her mouth. “I thought you said that was frowned upon.”
“Only for the first date,” he informed her. “It’s perfectly acceptable for a second date.”
The smallest of smiles tipped the corners of Jessie’s mouth, and her eyes crinkled just slightly.
“You find that funny?” he asked, feeling a little of the pressure subside.
“Not at all,” she said on a giggle.
“Yup,” he finally said decidedly, placing his hat on his head. “That’s what I’m gonna do.”
“What are you gonna do?” she asked, curiosity lighting up her pretty face.
“I’m gonna court you. I’m gonna take you out on a million dates until you get tired of going out. Then we’ll stay in, watch movies, make popcorn, cook dinner together.” Grow old together. He didn’t tack on the last part, because he knew she wouldn’t receive it well.
“Court me? That sounds a little old-fashioned, don’t you think?” Jessie giggled again.
“No, I don’t.” And yes, Braydon was grinning like he had just won the lottery. Only, for him, putting a smile on Jessie’s face was so much better than any sum of money. So maybe that particular word did sound a little old-fashioned, but it didn’t change the fact. “I’m gonna run home, shower, and change. I’ll be back in fifteen minutes. Be ready.”
“Fifteen minutes?” Jessie’s eyes flared wide.
“Okay, thirty. I’ll call Gage and let him know we’ll be there as soon as we can.” Braydon didn’t want to waste any more time, so he leaned down and gave her a quick kiss on the mouth. As much as he wanted to, he didn’t linger. “Thirty minutes.”
Jessie was laughing as she followed behind him toward the door.
“You’re serious?” she asked, causing Braydon to turn back around to face her.
“Yeah,” he answered, studying the way she nibbled on her bottom lip.
“Oh. Okay.”
Things might’ve started in reverse for them, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t start over. So what if they’d already had sex? So what if Braydon intended to fuck her nine ways to Sunday every day until . . .
He wasn’t going to think about that now. For now, he just wanted to take things one day at a time. And when they figured it out, they figured it out.
There was a long road ahead of them, he knew that. But he wanted it bad enough for both of them. Not to mention, he was a Walker. And that meant he was determined, to say the least.
JESSIE WATCHED BRAYDON’S enormous truck back out of her driveway and disappear down the winding dirt road that would lead to his house. It wasn’t until she remembered that he was coming back—in thirty freaking minutes—that she went to the kitchen and grabbed her coffee.
In a mad rush, Jessie managed to shower, shave her legs, and brush her teeth in record time. There was no chance of her getting both her hair dried and herself dressed before he came back, so she combed her wet hair and opted to focus on the latter. Grabbing panties and a bra, a pair of shorts, and a T-shirt from her drawer, she made quick work of making herself presentable. She contemplated wearing sandals, but then she thought about what Braydon had said. He was going to help Gage with the fence. And if she knew her sister, Kylie was going to be helping too, even if her husbands didn’t want her to. Not that they’d have any reason not to.
Forgoing her sandals, she grabbed her Nikes and a pair of socks before heading back to the living room. She was tying her shoe when there was a knock at her door.
“Come in,” Jessie hollered. She got to her feet and turned to look at the man now gracing her entryway with his handsome presence.
“Impressive,” he said with a grin.
“Hey. Just because I’m a girl doesn’t mean I can’t get ready in under an hour.”
“Clearly,” he agreed with a laugh.
“Let me just get a hair tie and my cell phone.”
Braydon nodded and Jessie turned back to her bedroom. Her heart did a strange leap and her tummy twisted with anticipation. It was time to move forward. See where things went. She wasn’t sure this could quite be called a date, but she wouldn’t deny that she was excited about it regardless. Just the simple fact that Braydon seemed so intent on truly dating her had caused her insides to mimic that fateful day when she’d tried Zumba and failed miserably. Quite the strain on her body, plus she was breathless in the end. Same feeling she had now.
This was new for them.
Hell, it was new for
her, period.
Truth was, Jessie hadn’t had too many traditional relationships in the past. She figured that was mostly her fault. Over the years, she’d had plenty of men ask her out, but she had found that her history was littered with long-term relationships. Again, her fault, because she couldn’t just date a guy and enjoy herself. She got attached and ended up exclusive with one.
Dating hadn’t been a priority when Jessie had already claimed to have fallen in love with a man. The men she’d been with took that as a sign that dating wasn’t necessary. And spending time with one at that point usually meant sex was on the agenda.
She’d been an idiot, never truly giving herself enough credit. Even her father had told her that a time or two.
And yes, from the moment she opened her eyes that morning, she had expected things to be weird between her and Braydon because of the whole falling-into-bed-on-the-first-date thing. After all, yesterday had been amazing, but they had still slept together in the heat of the moment. No matter what it might look like, there had been a significant amount of heat encompassing last night’s encounter, and she couldn’t take the blame for succumbing to it. She didn’t know a single red-blooded woman who wouldn’t lose her panties after one kiss with one of the Walker brothers.
What was different was the way things had been that morning. From experience, Jessie had been half expecting Braydon to disappear at dawn. Not that he deserved to be lumped in with the lot of losers she’d been with in the past, but she was known for jumping to conclusions. Almost as bad as making assumptions.
But when she woke up, Braydon had still been there. He’d actually still been asleep, which was what surprised her most.
Grabbing her ponytail holder and her phone, she practically skipped back into the living room. Braydon was leaning against the wall, his thumbs flying over his phone.
Texting.
He was obviously texting. Not to mention frowning.
“Everything all right?” she asked, praying that he wasn’t going to back out.
Braydon Page 19
