by A. m Madden
Another wave rushed behind my legs. The shift in our bodies, manipulated by the water, caused Cassie to settle against my erection, garnering a small moan from her and a louder one from me. With her arms around my neck, her legs gripping my hips, and her eyes boring into mine, she wasn’t helping our predicament.
“I riled you up?” Her voice barely above a whisper made me wish we were on a secluded beach.
“Yes. You. Now kiss me, Cassandra. And then we’ll head back.”
“Dante, that’s how we got here to begin with… from one kiss gone atomic. You’re not capable of one kiss.”
Not agreeing with her assessment, I took matters into my own hands, cupped the back of her head, and crushed her lips to mine. When she didn’t resist, I decided if she thought the first one was atomic, then I’d make sure this one would be nuclear.
The combination of saltiness, blending with her natural sweetness, made her lips one of the best things I’d ever tasted. As my tongue tangled with hers, our bodies clung together like magnets. Each swell of surf moved us like we weighed nothing. Her grip around my neck tightened; mine on her head and ass did as well. And just when things were getting good, a huge wave decided to end our foreplay yet again.
I surfaced first and caught a glimpse of Cassie sputtering a few feet away. “Are you okay?” I asked, reaching for her to pull her back into my hold.
“No!” She wasn’t amused at my chuckle, but survival had her accepting my help by jumping back into my arms. “Get me out of here, please. I hate the ocean.”
“Then why are you in it?” I asked, earning me a glare. “The ocean is one of my favorite things.”
“I love to look at it from afar. There are things that live in here I don’t want to meet. It feels gross, sand gets everywhere, and it’s itchy. The walk back is going to be torture.”
“I’ll carry you,” I easily offered. After picking up her cover-up and my camera, I then squatted and said, “Hop on.”
“Are you serious?”
“Absolutely.”
To my delight and without hesitation, she jumped on like a spider monkey and quipped, “Please don’t think less of me for accepting. Thank you.”
“Never, and it’s my pleasure.”
Cassie
Damn. I was sure I looked a mess—matted seawater hair, wet sand everywhere. Even through my disheveled state, the man made my body fill with need. Why? What was it about him that made me crave more? With each step he took, the more my hands itched to slide up and down his wet torso. My lips begged me to kiss his slick neck, and my vagina ached for him to turn, head back to the water, and fuck me.
Trying to fight or deny Dante’s sensuality was futile.
The walk back took no time at all, most likely because all I could think of was our time together in his bedroom. Christ, I wanted this man more and more with each minute I spent in his company, and despite trying, I wasn’t hiding it very well.
I thought back to Vanessa’s simplification of the situation. “You’re both adults. What is it with adults denying themselves because they think it’s wrong?” As I hung on his hard, muscular back, my arms snaked around his shoulders, my feet bumping against his thighs with each step he took, and it was harder and harder to argue with her rationale.
Laughter filled the air as Dante climbed the steps to the deck. When we were spotted, it was as if everyone forgot what they were talking about. The only sound left was the surf behind us and the seagulls singing overhead.
They were showered and neatly dressed, and sitting around the table laden with fresh fruit and a variety of cheeses. The men were enjoying beer, while the ladies were having margaritas. God, I could go for one of those.
“Looks like we missed the party,” Dante said with amusement.
Eyes as big as frisbees stared at us. Glancing at the stunned expressions, I was at a loss for words. Of course, in true Vanessa fashion, she popped a grape in her mouth and smirked like the devil. “Looks like you’re having a party for two. Did you kids have fun today?” she asked, before she began to chew. “What does Dante charge for piggyback rides?” She tossed in a wink for good measure.
“I hate walking in sand while wet,” I said with a shrug, pretending this was no big deal. Except it was.
“Where have you guys been?” Brae asked next. “We’ve been back for a while.”
“We went for a long walk,” Dante responded for me. “What did you guys do?”
“We went shopping and then once Kyle started bitching and moaning, we hit a brewery,” Vanessa said. “He hates shopping.”
“Well, that explains all the smiles,” Dante said with a chuckle.
I relaxed my legs a bit and whispered, “Put me down, please.” Dante craned his head back just a bit, squeezed my ass, and set me on my feet. “Thank you.” Trying to be cool and unfazed, I ran my fingers through my soaked hair, but they got stuck at the ends. Sabrina cringed and probably wished I was in her salon right now. Truth be told, so did I. Looking at everyone, I decided to focus on Vanessa. “Yes, we did have fun until I was attacked by seaweed.” I swept my hand in front of myself. “Hence the reason I look like this.”
Her smirk deepened. “Mm-hmm.” Ugh. I should have focused on Brae.
Dante set his camera on the table before offering me my soaked cover-up. “Cassandra, do you want this? It’s drenched.”
Luca, who was mid-swallow, began coughing. Once he regained his composure, he looked at his brother. “Cassandra? No one calls her that.”
“Well, that’s her name. And I do.” Everyone’s eyes bounced between us, while I stood stiff as a board that people could easily have used to surf on.
Kyle cocked his head to the side. “It is?”
We all turned to our fun Canadian friend. “What did you think it was short for?” I asked.
He shrugged. “I didn’t. I just thought your name was Cassie. Like mine is Kyle.”
“It’s a nickname, just like how you call Vanessa, Nessa.”
Kyle winked at Vanessa, who added, “That started when we started fucking.”
“Anyway,” I said, trying to take the attention off of myself, “what’s the plan for tonight? Is Jude gracing us with his fabulous grilling skills?” I snagged a towel and wrapped it around my waist before Brae handed me a margarita.
Jude cleared his throat. “Thank you for the compliment, but we’re going out for an early dinner.”
“Dinner? It’s closer to lunch,” Dante quipped.
“It was all I was able to get. Our reservations are in forty-five minutes. Our ride will be here in twenty.”
Was he kidding? It would probably take me an hour just to get all the sand off of me and out of my hair. Meanwhile, Dante casually sat down and popped open a beer like he didn’t have a care in the world. “I hate to be a wet blanket, but I can’t be ready in twenty minutes.”
“You have to come, Cass! We’re all heading back to the city tomorrow.” Brae gripped her husband’s arm and pouted. “Can you call to see if they’ll move it?”
“Babe, I practically had to sign over our firstborn to get in.” He turned his focus back to me. “How quick can you be ready?”
“An hour?” Deep down, I knew that would be tight.
“We’ll go on ahead… Dante, you hang back and drive Cassie over when she’s done. The keys are in the kitchen drawer. Take whichever car you want.”
Dante was quick to agree while giving me one of his salacious smirks, one that held and held. After what transpired on that beach a few minutes ago, I knew that look. I knew he knew we’d be alone in twenty minutes. I knew he knew what we had just done was vivid in my thoughts.
I didn’t think I had it in me to push him away, as I was still pulsing with lust even after being tossed around like a piece of driftwood. Screwing in his apartment with no one the wiser was one thing, but I didn’t think I could pretend nothing happened with Vanessa the bloodhound lurking about.
Deciding to take matters into my own hands,
and avoiding a possible encounter on his terms, I snatched my wet cover-up and said, “I’m going to go get ready. It’ll take most of the hour to get the sand out of my hair. Dante, I’ll meet you in the kitchen when I’m done.” Not waiting for a response, I grabbed the rest of my stuff and hightailed it off the deck like my ass was on fire.
Chapter 15
Dante
The way she tried to act cool was adorable. Did she truly think she was that great of an actress? Besides the constant blushing, fidgeting, and shifty eyes, didn’t she realize the way we kept staring at each other was a big-ass red flag?
No doubt our friends, and my brother, were on to us, so pretending seemed ridiculous. Even still, I happened to enjoy watching her fumble awkwardly. It was what drew me to Cassie to begin with on the night she hit my ride. The way she stood with hands on hips, trying to come off prim and proper in that ridiculous dress with pencils all over it, made me hard as stone. It was the two sides of her, equal parts geek and vixen, that I found hard to resist.
After Cassie sprinted off the deck, I waited a few minutes before excusing myself. Brae explained where I could find what I needed to shower, and I nodded with a polite smile, knowing damn well what I needed wasn’t in the bedroom I had slept in last night.
Not having a clue which of the four guest rooms Cassie stayed in, I opened two doors before hearing the sound of water running. With a quick glance behind me, I slipped in and turned the lock. Noticing she had left the bathroom door slightly ajar, my suit was on the floor even before I stepped into the steamy room.
The sight of her naked silhouette behind the frosted glass stopped me in my tracks. How she stood with her back to me, revealing the contour of her perfect ass, was a thing of beauty. The way she lifted up on her toes every so often, causing the lines of her legs to lengthen, was something I could’ve watched all day.
Christ, I desperately wanted to photograph her naked… and one day I would. I just needed to broach that delicately. The thought of her in my studio, my instructions manipulating her legs, arms, and the positioning of her head, excited me more than anything I’d ever shot in my career. A hint… a tease… a suggestion of the type of power she possessed over me would create a work of art that was all Cassandra.
Although not as big as a master-bath shower, there was still plenty of room for the both of us. I debated announcing myself but decided to slip in behind her, leaving no room for argument. What had happened between us on the beach left me thrumming with need. And if I had any doubt she didn’t feel the same, I wouldn’t be there forcing the issue. But I knew she felt the same… I felt how much she felt the same. Every part of her screamed for me, even if she tried to deny it.
The skim of my hands around her narrow waist caused her to gasp. I didn’t apologize for being there. I didn’t give her the opportunity to say it was wrong or that we shouldn’t be doing this. I merely grabbed the shampoo off the marble shelf, flipped the cap, poured a bit in my hand, and began massaging it into her scalp.
“You’re evil,” she whispered on the tail end of a moan. Meanwhile, she went lax against me as I kneaded my fingers in her silky blond hair. With each stroke at her temples, her sounds became more aggressive… more feral. Every slight movement she made caused blood to rush directly to my cock. He wanted her… he wanted in.
“I’m evil? How so?” I asked, my lips on her ear. Goosebumps spread over her warm flesh, and I smiled at how her body never failed to respond to mine. Rivulets of soapy water slicked down the slopes of her breasts, funneling through her cleavage and over her rosy nipples.
“Because I can’t resist this, that’s how,” she uttered, barely above a whisper.
“Then don’t resist it, Cassandra.” After her hair, she allowed me to wash every part of her. There wasn’t an inch of her warm skin spared from my touch… except her pussy. I purposely avoided it, teasing to bring her to unimaginable heights.
She leaned back, using my body for balance. Reaching behind her, she gripped my neck to brace herself while on her toes. The position forced her breasts forward. I cupped them while skimming my thumbs over her pebbled nipples. Wordless moans filling the steamy space instigated the need to hurry and finish the washing ritual, so I could bury myself deep and defile her. As a temporary substitute, I shamelessly rubbed myself against her to convey what I wanted.
“Dante…” She abruptly stopped her words, yet wiggled her ass against my cock, poking the beast within me.
“Hmm?” I asked, knowing her wheels spun with apprehension. “What, Cassandra? What is it you want to say?”
“The others…” Confirming my suspicion, she added, “They might hear.”
“Don’t worry about the others. Stop worrying about anything but us. Are you ready to surrender to this?” Using my touch to persuade, I skated my hand down her body toward her thigh and then into the gap between her legs. The move was met with silence, until my fingers brushing over her warm folds caused a whimper. “How does that feel, Cassandra? Am I satisfying your ache?”
“No… you’re worsening it.”
At her admission, I slid a finger inside her tight channel while my thumb firmly circled over her clit. “Is this better? Are you ready to surrender to me?”
“Yes, on both counts.” She allowed me to use her body by widening her stance, and by leaning on me for support, she gave me the permission I needed to soothe the ache I was responsible for.
My finger stroked in and out of her, and by adding another, I stretched where my dick wanted to be. Curling them just enough, I grazed that tender spot that acted like a detonator. Her warm pussy pulsed around my fingers, intensifying my ache to fuck her.
Having her coming apart at my hand, moaning through her pleasure without abandon, became the worst form of torture. But I’d take the torment, and a million forms of it, just to have her naked and wet against me.
After one final spasm, she relaxed, waited a few moments to catch her breath, and then turned to face me. Her blue eyes were wild with lust, her face flushed with pleasure. While staring into my eyes, she gripped my cock in one hand. “What about your ache, Dante?” she asked, stroking me in a tit-for-tat retaliation.
“Cassandra,” I growled, trying to maintain even a thread of control. But with each grope, that restraint I fought for frayed like a worn pair of jeans. It was when she dropped to her knees and pulled me into her mouth that my composure imploded. She barely got more than my tip in, because before we both knew what was happening, I had her straddling my body with her back up against the cold tile wall. “I’m fucking you, Cassandra. Right now, raw. Just you and me. All you need to do is tell me if I have to pull out.” She stared at me, shock and hunger fighting equally in the pale-blue depths of her eyes. “Do I?” I repeated through gritted teeth.
“I’m on the pill.” She met my gaze with a determined one of her own. And while her eyes boldly drilled into mine, I slid into her tight, wet heat.
“Jesus Christ.” I hadn’t fucked bare in years, but regardless of how long it had been I couldn’t ever remember it feeling this incredible. Almost to the point of debilitating, because there I was buried to the hilt, flesh to flesh, and I had yet to move.
“Faster,” she barked, not too kindly. And if I weren’t in the midst of a sexual meltdown, I would have laughed. But that would require basic motor skills, which I lacked at the moment, and it took every fiber of my being to remind myself to even breathe.
All the teasing, kissing, and foreplay we’d danced around since the first time we fucked fueled what happened between us in that steamy shower. As I pumped into her over and over, I knew whatever this obsession was, it needed to continue.
“Be mine,” flew out of my mouth before I could stop it. A slow blink meant she heard me. With our gazes tethered, she parted her lips, but no words came. “Say it, Cassandra,” I added almost angrily. Goddamn, I needed those words as much as I needed to come inside her. And both acted as an accelerant to the blaze smoldering within me.
At hearing that, I came harder than I ever have. This woman flipped my world upside down in a few short weeks. I liked that she had… and that should have fucking terrified me, but it didn’t.
Cassie
Damp sheets cocooned around our naked bodies. Dante’s suggestion of foregoing dinner seemed brilliant on the precipice of my third orgasm, but as my stomach rumbled with hunger, it might not have been such a great plan.
“Hungry?” Dante asked with a chuckle.
“I could eat.”
His lips pressed against my shoulder blade. “What would you like? I could send Luca another text and have him bring you something.”
A giddy snicker bubbled out of me. “No way. Right now, we’re the topic of their conversation. Haven’t you heard my phone buzzing since our lame excuses of you being tired and me being sunburned? Vanessa is having a field day with this.”
Cool air hit my backside just before a warm hand struck my right ass cheek. “Hey! What the hell did you do that for?”
“Now you look sunburned to me.” His laugh, followed by a kiss to where my skin tingled from his palm, had me forgetting my irritation. “Did you like that, Cassandra? Has a man spanked you before?”
Avoiding his question, I asked, “Weren’t we talking about dinner?” He resumed nibbling my shoulder, and I’d come to learn enough about him to know his silence meant he was waiting for me to answer his question. “Yes and no.”
Dante flipped me around, hedging his thigh between my legs, and stared into my eyes. “Yes and no, what? Yes, you liked it?”
Admitting that I liked his hands on me wasn’t easy. But for some reason, confessing such a personal yet embarrassing truth would be liberating, so I went for it. “Yes. And no one has ever spanked me before. Just you.”
