by Sable Hunter
What they both wanted.
Standing, he picked up the dirty dishes from in front of Glory and placed them in the sink. “I’ve got to get up early in the morning. I have a conference call for work. Let’s get you settled for the night, then I’m turning in.”
Knowing when she’d been dismissed, Glory helped him straighten up. “Thank you again for letting me crash here. I wasn’t prepared for the storm.”
“I know the feeling,” he replied.
She got the message that he wasn’t talking about the weather. He picked up a candle and took off for another part of the house. She couldn’t see everything clearly, but what she could see as she followed along behind him was nice. “I like your house, it’s a lot like you.”
“How’s that?”
“Sturdy. Masculine. Able to withstand whatever life throws its way.”
Her opinion of him was humbling. And wrong. “Looks can be deceiving,” was all he said before opening a door. “Here’s the guestroom. I hope you’re comfortable.” He handed her the candle. “Sleep well.”
Glory didn’t even get a chance to thank him before he was gone. “Good night to you too.” She sent one last wistful look out the door, then turned to take in the room. The light from the candle revealed a restroom, so she used it, wishing she had her toothbrush with her. After doing what she could with her finger and some toothpaste, she found her way to the bed and crawled underneath the covers. Leaning over, she blew out the candle, throwing the room into darkness. Lying back, she stared up at the ceiling. Just knowing she was in T’s house made her quiver. She smiled, knowing she’d teased him unmercifully. What a shame he hadn’t taken her up on her offer, she’d have loved to know what it was like to love on him a little bit.
Gazing at the window and watching the play of the lightning behind the curtains – a thought struck her. “Oh, crap!” All her crawfish would be ruined. How was she going to fulfill her contract? “Dang it!” Flouncing on her side, Glory tried to think of a plan. There probably wasn’t enough time to catch enough to make up for what she’d lost. She had a couple of hundred dollars put back, if she could find her wallet. Maybe she could buy them from someone. Glory hated to use her emergency funds, but breaking her word was worse. She’d rather do without her medicine than break her word. Weariness made it hard to think. Pulling the other pillow over her head, Glory vowed to worry about it tomorrow.
Across the house… T got ready for bed. His cock was as hard as steel. Knowing Glory Bee Hudson was under his roof and apparently attracted to him, was almost more than he could process. Oh, he knew he appealed to some women, physically. But most of the local females had been turned off by the sensational scandal he’d been hit with after Alice’s murder and the investigation into the death of his father. Couple that with the news of his DWI and arrest after crashing into the Middleton’s and his reputation was lower than a snake’s belly. If Glory knew the truth about him, she’d feel the same as the rest of the female population of Iberia Parish. Maybe he should just be honest – get it over with. No, he rejected the idea. Bringing up his horrible history was something he avoided at all costs.
Plumping his pillow, he hit it with more force than necessary. There were times when he was satisfied with his life. He had good friends, a good job, and a chance to be a worthwhile human being – thanks in great part to Lauren Middleton and her belief in him. No, he couldn’t have it all. He wouldn’t ever allow himself to be in a situation where someone like Glory was at his mercy for more than just a few hours. His mother assured him he was capable of doing great harm to others. She’d cried and told him when he defended Alice and attacked Rex Beaumont that she knew history would repeat itself. She’d seen it in his face.
T believed his mother. He believed her enough that he wouldn’t take the chance. He might not be able to control his temper, but he could control who he put at risk.
Despite the mental discussion he was having with himself, he couldn’t keep his mind off the woman down the hall. She was curled up in a bed that belonged to him. His arms ached to hold her. His cock ached to be buried inside of her. His heart ached for something he couldn’t have. With a sigh, he rolled onto his stomach, burying his face in the pillow. He should just go to sleep, no use torturing himself.
…A few hours later…
Warm. Soft. Sweet-smelling.
T-Rex pulled her closer, pressing his lips to velvety smooth skin. God, this was what he needed. His body responded naturally. His cock filling, hungry. His hips flexed, bumping against a round softness. His hand tightened pulling her up against him, his fingers inching upward in search of a breast he knew would fit his hand…just right.
“Hmmm…” A feminine whimper of delight brought an answering rumble from deep in his own chest. All his midnight dreams were coming true.
What the fuck?
His eyelids popped open.
This was no dream.
Glory was nestled in his arms like she belonged there and he was spooning her, his cock was a fraction of an inch from seeking penetration.
“For fuck’s sake!” He thrust her from him, harder than he intended and she slid off the bed and landed with a thump on the floor.
“Ow!” she yelped. “Good gracious!” Glory sat up, rubbing her eyes. “What the heck just happened?”
“What in God’s name are you doing in my bed?”
Hearing T grumble like the oldest of the three bears, Glory sighed. “Oops, I did it again.” She stood to her feet. “Sorry, T-Rex.” The electricity had come back on and the room was bathed in a soft glow from the bathroom light, shining through the partially open door. Enough light so she could read T’s thunderous expression easily. “I guess I should have told you, I sleepwalk. I’ve done it for a few years now. Whatever I’m thinking about before I go to bed seems to draw me.” She gave him an apologetic smile. “I guess that was you. If you want, you can lock me in my room. That seems to work pretty good.”
She stood there, waiting for him to reply. Had he kissed her neck or had she been dreaming? Raising her hand, she felt the place where the memory of his lips still burned.
“Get out.”
His firm command set her feet to motion and she made a bee line for the room she’d been assigned. “I apologize,” she called out as she ran. “If I do it again, just deposit me back in the bed, or have your wicked way with me – your choice.”
T-Rex threw himself back onto the bed, his hand going down to cover his throbbing cock. “She’s got to go,” he mumbled. “As soon as it’s daylight, she’s got to go.”
CHAPTER FOUR
“Give me strength,” he prayed under his breath.
T let it go on longer than he should have, he knew that in his heart. He didn’t have any experience with sleepwalkers, but sometime in the early morning hours, Glory had wandered into his bed again. As far as he could tell, she was genuinely asleep. This time he hadn’t shucked her off like before, he’d been weak and let her settle in right next to him. He’d lain there, staring at the ceiling for at least two hours, her warm, soft body cuddled up to his.
The feel of another human being next to him, especially a sweet, sexy, little thing like Glory was a feeling he dearly missed. Since he’d gotten sober, T had pretty much been celibate. His drinking and carousing days were a thing of the past. No more did he pick-up women in bars to bring them home for a quick fuck. He’d chosen a life of solitude and it was hitting him now just how much he missed having a living, breathing woman in his bed.
T’s arm had fallen asleep well over an hour ago and he had to pee like a Russian racehorse, but he just didn’t have the heart to wake Glory. He knew all he’d have to do is whistle for Buford and the big lumbering pup would come running, hop up onto the bed, and wake Glory for certain but T decided he was going to let this go on for a bit longer. For one, he was selfish. And for another thing, she’d been through so much last night. First having a huge tree crash through her place, then trudging all the way over to his p
lace in the middle of the storm to find shelter.
Shit! He scolded himself for letting that image of her on his steps invade his mind. Glory Bee was an appropriate name for his feisty little neighbor, because glory-be if she hadn’t looked like the finest woman on the planet, standing on the porch, rain-drenched, those magnificent curves of hers on display with her clothes clinging in the most wonderful way T had ever seen. If T-Rex Beaumont lived to be a thousand years old, he was sure he’d never get tired of seeing this little honey sopping-wet.
In his arms…Glory felt a bit guilty. She’d been awake for quite some time now, but she certainly wasn’t going to alert T to that fact. At some point in the middle of the night, she’d found her way back into the crook of his arm and woken up a while later with her face pressed into the solid muscle of his chest. Lord the man was built, big and hard as a rock. The feeling of protection was almost too overpowering for Glory to stand. She knew she ought to get up and return to her own bed. But here she was…so close…
What the heck. Life is short.
She wiggled in tighter to T and made a subtle move, at least she hoped it was subtle, bringing her hand up from her side and resting it on T’s lower stomach.
Fuck! T almost came unglued. His cock had already started to fill at the memory of her soaking wet at his door. He’d been able to quell that erection by going over Drew Brees’ statistics from the year the Saints won the Super Bowl in his head. Now Glory’s delicate little hand was resting mere inches from his cock and T’s heart rate spiked.
The rolling thunder of his pounding heart rang in Glory’s ears. Had the placement of her hand affected him so?
No way.
T had made it very clear he wasn’t interested in her. He avoided her like the plague when he wasn’t rescuing her from one disaster or another. Still, the thought that he might be responding to her touch sent a sizzling bolt of lightning right between Glory’s thighs. She wanted to be touched and not just by anyone. She craved the man who even now lay underneath her aching body.
Underneath.
Good god, just the thought of T on top of her, pressing her deep into the mattress with every thrust was intoxicating. She would swear she’d died and gone straight to heaven if she ever found herself lucky enough to be underneath T-Rex Beaumont. The idea sent extra voltage to her clit and Glory rubbed her thighs together, letting out a soft moan.
Her eyes came open wide. Whoops! Had T felt her move? Had he heard her whimper?
T bit back a groan as he looked down at the top of Glory’s head. Her hair smelled like sugar and cinnamon. What he wouldn’t give to see that head moving up and down on his cock.
The entire scene would have been quite comedic to anyone watching them.
Here were two people practically vibrating with desire for each other, actually lying in bed, one on top of the other, both wanting the same thing but neither would do anything about it.
Glory’s hand twitched, overwhelmed by a need to see if T was as big all over as she assumed him to be. She licked her lips in anticipation.
And T longed to see if those pouty, bee-stung lips of hers were as soft as they looked.
Glory felt a tickle in her throat and a small cough escaped her lips, no matter how hard she tried to keep it at bay. Damn! she grimaced.
“Oh, good. You’re awake.” The tension T felt was too much, if she hadn’t awakened, he might’ve done something rash, like grab her hair, pull her face up to his, and kiss her like the world was about to end.
Glory snuggled in to him. “Just five more minutes,” she said, wrapping her arm around his waist and holding T tighter. She didn’t care if she had to fake it a while longer, Glory was enjoying herself too much. And since the big lug was turning down all her advances, she was going to enjoy him as long as possible before he shucked her off onto the floor again like the pesky bedbug he considered her to be.
He was going to hell. T gave her a few more minutes, Drew Brees’ stats still running through his head. He hadn’t thought it possible for anything to feel better than Glory lying with him, but when she wrapped her arm around his waist, he almost came in his shorts.
Another five minutes passed, but still Glory made no movement to get up.
“All right, temptress.” T placed a hand on her shoulder. Damn, it was just as soft and smooth as he’d imagined it would be. “Time for you to get up.” He eased Glory over onto the other side of the bed, being mindful not to push too hard, he didn’t want to repeat last night’s shove that had probably left her with a bruised bottom. “You need to learn to curb your libido. Any other man might’ve been tempted to accept what you’re offering.” Yea, he was being cruel again. Cruel to be kind.
Glory winced at the prickly thorns of his words. “I know you don’t realise it, but I am a lady, Mr. Beaumont.” T slid out of the bed beside her, bent at the waist. “What’s wrong with you? Why are you all hunkered over? Did you hurt your back? I’m the one who took the tumble.” Glory pulled the blanket up over her, the room was warm but she felt the need to have a barrier between them.
Still bent over, he moved slowly. “It’s an old sports injury. I’m fine.” He made his way across the room and into the bathroom as quickly as possible. “Shit,” he grumbled when he shut the door behind him. His back was fine; he’d only made that lie up to explain his posture. T felt it would be better to blame it on an injury than to confess to Glory she made his dick as hard as a piece of steel rebar.
Standing at the toilet, he stared down into the bowl. Unfortunately for him, there was a rather large piece of wood blocking his view. Every guy knew that relieving yourself with a hard-on was about as easy as baptizing a cat. T grumbled, knowing his bladder would stay full unless he could find a way to rid himself of the memory of how soft Glory’s skin had felt when he’d rolled her over.
Retreating to the sink, he splashed water on his face. Cold water, in fact, but it did nothing to stifle the demand in his shorts.
In the other room…Glory laid in the bed, feeling a sexual frustration so epic she was certain she now knew the cause of spontaneous human combustion. She heard the water come on and a few odd grunts from the washroom. Glory was convinced T-Rex Beaumont had the most comfortable bed known to man and she was just about to cut her losses and try to go back to sleep when she heard a loud thump from the washroom.
“Oh, my god.” Glory was at the door in a heartbeat, still wearing nothing but his T-shirt. “Are you okay in there? Did you take a spill?”
T’s palm felt like it’d been danced on by a chorus line of hornets. Out of sheer frustration at his brains refusal to let him think about anything but Glory Bee, he’d slammed the palm of his right hand down on the dark gray countertop, hoping a sudden jolt would reset his brain.
“I’m fine,” T hollered through the door. “I didn’t take a spill!” he mocked her. “Just go away!” He paused, lowering his voice. “Get out of my head,” he mumbled to himself, glancing down at his shorts. Unfortunately, they still looked like a tent.
“Are you sure? Sounded like you fell or something. You aren’t hurt, are you?”
He was fine. The sudden pop to his palm had done nothing to dissuade his brain from the topic at hand. T’s mind and his body wanted the sexy little honey standing on the other side of the door and he couldn’t deny it. He steeled himself, knowing that if he was ever going to get rid of this erection, he’d have to get rid of her. “I just need a moment.”
Glory pounded again. “T. I’m worried. Are you sure you’re okay?”
T pulled open the door a second later. His face was twisted into a mask of annoyance and agony. “For god’s sakes, woman!” He meant to tell her he was fine and to leave him alone, but she stole his breath with how cute she looked.
T looked her up and down. She was pure sex on a stick, standing there with a shocked look on her face. He was so jealous of his shirt hugging her curves that he could have died. This woman was created to tempt him and him alone. Before either of the
m knew what was happening, T grabbed both of her arms and pulled her to him for a kiss that damn near set off the San Andreas Fault four whole states over.
The moment had come on T so suddenly; he had been utterly powerless to stop it. He’d wanted to kiss this woman the first time he laid eyes on her and this was the culmination of all that frustration.
Glory had no idea what just happened. She’d gone to the door fearing something bad had happened to T, and now here she was, fearing she’d never be able to form another coherent sentence after this kiss. Her body forced her brain to shut down and took full control. T’s kiss was so hot that Glory felt like her lips were on fire. His tongue prodded her mouth and Glory opened it for him. Saints above, this was a kiss born of sheer and unadulterated lust. The kiss deepened and Glory felt a solid object poke into her stomach. Her eyes snapped open and almost as if he had sensed it, T’s eyes opened as well.
There was a brief moment of acknowledgment between them and T pulled back immediately, leaving Glory standing there on unsteady legs. “Jesus…” T muttered. “For crying out…Oh hell.” He pulled away and moved back into the washroom, slamming the door behind him. “Put on some clothes, why don’t you?”
What the hell had he just done?
He’d spent weeks avoiding the temptation that was Glory Bee Hudson, then all of a sudden, he’d just opened the door and planted a kiss on her as if she was water and he was a man dying of thirst.
Glory was just as dumbfounded as he was. She placed a hand on the door, steadying herself. She needed a moment to compose herself, then she’d try to make sense of all of this in her head. Pulling her hand away from the door, she intended on knocking again, but something inside her said it might be best to let it go for the moment.
Inside…T paced the washroom, scolding himself for being so foolish. He could still taste Glory’s lips on his and it made him angry with himself. “What the fuck is wrong with you, T?” He looked at himself in the mirror. “You can’t be carrying on with a girl like that. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. You know better.”
