Deliciously Damaged

by KB Winters

  Before I could say anything else, he leaned into me, pressing his body against mine. “Say the word, and I’ll stop. But Allison, I want you.”

  He waited two beats, his face hovering over mine, creating a current of heat between our lips as they nearly touched with every word. My lips parted, trying to speak, but then I surged forward and pressed my lips against his, throwing aside any rational thought I might have had.

  Cooper charged at my initiation and within seconds, his hands were back on my thighs and working their way up my body, skimming over the skintight fabric, up to my breasts that were tight and firm, waiting for his touch. He cupped them in his hands and ran his thumb along my nipples that were hard under the fabric of my dress. I shuddered at the light touch and moaned into his kiss as his tongue pushed past my lips and tangled with my tongue in a frenzied dance.

  My hands slid up his chest and rested on his solid shoulders, feeling every movement as he continued to search my body with his own hands. He broke away from the kiss and his lips went to my neck. He worked his lips up to my ear and gave a nip to my earlobe before enclosing it between his lips and tugging slightly. The quick burst of pain, followed so closely by pleasure, sparked another moan of excitement and desire. I closed my eyes and let the sensations dance across my skin, lighting my body on fire, as they spread.

  “You’re so beautiful, Allison. I have to have you.”

  I opened my eyes and found him staring at me. His words were so sweet but the way he said them was pure lust. His eyes were darker than before and filled with need.

  “Say you’re mine.”

  I hesitated, my brain slow with the effects of the champagne. My eyes darted back and forth between his, as I searched for the right response.

  “Say it,” he repeated, his voice lower and huskier.

  “I’m yours,” I whispered.

  Cooper’s eyes flashed and his hands squeezed my breasts. I cried out and lay my head against his shoulder.

  “I want to see your beautiful tits,” he growled into my ear. “Show them to me.”

  I looked up at him and stared into his hungry eyes as I slipped out of the sleeves of my dress. I pushed the fabric down, over the left, and then the right breast. I hadn’t been able to wear a bra with the dress, so my breasts were exposed and bare for him. His eyes widened at the sight and he quickly placed his hands back on them. His palms were warm and I whimpered at the waves of heat and desire rushing through my body. Each touch drove me higher and higher, the pulses of pleasure gathering together and settling between my legs. I felt myself getting wet and shifted in my seat, trying to satiate the throbbing need between my thighs.

  He lowered his head and rolled his tongue along the pink buds of flesh, circling my nipple and teasing me.

  “Cooper, please,” I begged, arching back for him.

  He smiled up at me before he took the nipple in his mouth. He tugged slightly, his lips firm as he toyed with the tender skin. I moaned and closed my eyes again, laying my head back against the seat.

  He alternated between my breasts, licking, kissing, and sucking every inch. My hands were buried in his hair, pulling gently as he drove me higher and higher into ecstasy. His hand slid back down my body and went under my dress, skimming up the inside of my thigh towards the heat in between my legs. I spread my legs apart as much as I could, desperate for his touch.

  His fingers pushed aside the lace of my panties and stroked my tingling, wet lips. I gasped and cried out as he parted me and ran his finger through my slick, hot center. I shuddered as he circled my clit and teased the little bundle of nerves.

  “Cooper. Cooper, please,” I begged.

  His eyes watched mine as he continued. He drew little circles around me, driving me crazier with each touch. I gripped the seat, knowing I was close to exploding. I closed my eyes and relished in each tingle, each wave of hot pleasure as he stroked my silky pussy.

  The car seemed to be slowing, but as we slowed down, Cooper’s fingers sped up, circling tighter and faster. I moaned out, willing myself closer to breaking, unable to handle to pressure anymore. I figured we were getting close to the restaurant, and knowing we had a limited window of time made me even more desperate.

  Cooper’s thumb took over and rubbed my clit, and he thrust two fingers inside of me. I screamed out, unable to hold it back, as my whole body jerked with the sudden intensity. My eyes flew to Cooper’s and I felt myself getting even wetter at the intense look in his dark eyes as he watched me writhe and rock back and forth as his fingers pulsed in and out of me.

  “Cooper, I’m so…” Before I could finish my sentence, I came. His fingers were buried deep inside of me and my pussy contracted and convulsed as each wave of relief hit me. I shuddered and twitched as the orgasm rocked my whole body and then sagged against Cooper as it ended. I struggled to catch my breath as I leaned against his solid chest. He removed his fingers and sucked them into his mouth. A flash of pure lust swept across his face. I instantly missed him. He moved away from me and I blinked my eyes again to see what he was doing. He quickly unzipped his pants and pulled out his rock hard cock. I stared at it, my pussy tightening in anticipation.

  “Allison,” he said. He watched as my eyes traveled up and down the long, hard shaft. He placed my hand where he wanted it and I started to stroke his soft skin. “Take me in your mouth.”

  My eyes went wide, a rush of excitement bolting through me at his command. I lowered to my knees on the floor of the car and hovered over him. He handled himself and teased my waiting lips with the tip, dragging it back and forth. I held back a whimper as he parted my lips and slipped the head of his cock into my hungry mouth. Without warning, he thrust forward and I bobbed my head back to accommodate his length. He let me take as much as I could and I bobbed my head back and forth as I applied a light suction. I used my hand to stroke the rest of his length, timing it to my sucking. He groaned and his grip on my shoulder let me know I was doing it right. His reaction gave me the confidence to relax and I was able to get more of him in my mouth, smiling at his sharp inhale as I ran my lips and tongue nearly to the root of him.

  “Allison,” he said, his voice a hoarse whisper.

  My heart raced and I continued, my cheeks hollowing with the force of the pull. His cock started to throb and I knew he was close. I hesitated for a second, wondering if he would stop me, but he didn’t. He pulled on my hair so he could control my speed and suddenly he groaned out louder than before as he came in my mouth.

  “We’re here,” he whispered, barely audible over my sucking. He pulled out of my mouth and I licked away the last traces of come from my lips. “Take off your panties,” he said, turning his attention from the window, back to me.

  “My panties?”

  “Yes. I want them.”

  My mind flooded with a hundred reasons to say no, but the idea of walking into the fancy restaurant and dining alone with Cooper with no panties excited me. I pushed aside my arguments and did as he instructed. I shimmied out of the lacy panties and pressed them into Cooper’s hand. I was slightly embarrassed by how soaking wet they were, but Cooper ran his fingers over them and smiled at me.

  “Very good,” he said before pocketing them. “Let’s go.”

  The door opened at his words and he extended a hand to me as we exited the car.

  Chapter Fourteen

  The restaurant was breathtaking. It took up the entire top floor of a very fancy hotel downtown and boasted a five-star celebrity chef. We had to take a very long elevator ride to the top, but it was more than worth it—the walls were all windows that allowed a 360-degree view of the city, as it sparkled in the night. I couldn’t seem to get enough and Cooper caught me staring. “Fantastic, isn’t it?”

  All I could do was nod in agreement. Somewhere between exiting the limo and stepping into the gorgeous restaurant, my champagne cloud had lifted and my mind was at odds with itself again. It was like being back at square one with Cooper and unsure how to proceed. He was so
damned sexy and it seemed anytime he poured on the charm, I fell for it—hook, line, and sinker.

  “This is one of my favorite places. It’s amazing.” He set his hand on my waist. “Come on, our table is ready.”

  I looked back to see a hostess was waiting for us. I set aside my mixed feelings and let him lead me to the table, his hand gently on my low back until he went to pull out my chair and help me get seated.

  “Thank you,” I said as I sat down. He didn’t say anything, but the smile he offered was devastating. I was very aware of my every move. Even with my shapewear on, I felt exposed without my panties, and knowing that they were wet and sitting inside the pocket of Cooper’s undoubtedly expensive pants was making me insane. I fidgeted in my seat to get comfortable and watched him across the table, wondering if he could read my unease.

  Cooper didn’t seem to notice. He kept his eyes trained on me as I got situated and then immediately ordered a bottle of—I’m assuming—very expensive wine and put in an order for some appetizers to get us started.

  “I want you to try one of everything,” he said once the waiter had left the table.

  “Not a good plan, if I ever want to fit in this dress again,” I said, desperate to break the spell he had somehow managed to cast on me.

  He laughed. “Then take it off...”

  I instantly felt my cheeks blush. “Cooper!” I hissed as the waiter approached to drop off the wine.

  He shrugged and kept laughing.

  “Someone is going to hear you,” I added.

  “I can’t help it. You bring out this side of me,” he replied.

  “Apparently, a lot of women do.”

  He groaned. “Back to that again?”

  “Did we ever really leave it?” I asked. Shot fired, I took a sip of my wine and waited for his response.

  “I thought so—or at least I was hoping so. Allison, what is it going to take to convince you that I’m not the womanizing dirt bag that you make me out to me?”

  Frustration bubbled up inside of me. I felt like this whole debate might as well be recorded and then we could save ourselves the words, and just hit play. It was the same thing over and over again. “It doesn’t really matter.”

  “Obviously it does, since you keep throwing it in my face every other day. It’s like this automatic defense for you. You just throw up a wall because you’re afraid of actually feeling something.”

  “I’m not afraid. But you know, even if I was, even if your little shrink speech was right, at least I’m afraid because I actually let myself care, you know, once upon a time, and…” I stopped, letting my words fade into the background chatter of the busy restaurant. If I said one more thing, I was going to break down and Cooper had already seen me way too vulnerable.

  “So that’s it, huh? One guy treats you like shit and you think the rest of us are all the same as him?” Cooper’s voice was harsh, but not raised.

  I looked away, staring into the distance, praying the tears in my eyes wouldn’t slip past my lashes.

  “Not just one guy,” I whispered. “Every, single, one.”

  “Shit, I’m sorry, Allison.”

  “It’s fine.” I dabbed my napkin at my eyes and then dropped it back into my lap and finally met his gaze again. They were deep and I could see little concerned lines creeping in at the corners as he stared at me. “I’m tough. I’ll be just fine.”

  Neither of us seemed to know what to say. The waiter came by and dropped off several plates of the appetizers. Cooper thanked him and automatically dished up a plate and set it in front of me. I grabbed my fork and picked at the food, not able to bring myself to actually take a bite. A few minutes of silence passed, the low buzz of the restaurant filling up the background, but not a word or sound exchanged between the two of us. I wracked my brain, trying to find some smooth segue that would get us back to where we were but everything I turned over in my head would sound stupid or hollow if I were to let myself speak it out loud. The fact that I didn’t even know what I wanted was only complicating things further. Did I want to explain myself, unpack all the horrible things that had happened to me in my past life? But what would be the point of that? I didn’t want him to pity me and I wasn’t dating him, so he really didn’t need to know. But it felt like a bottle of wine that already had the cork popped. It felt weird to just leave it like that. I wracked my brain, trying to find a bridge back to a safer topic of conversation, but couldn’t find anything to get me started.

  So I sat, playing with the food presented in front of me, not saying anything.

  “I was engaged,” Cooper confessed out of the silence that had settled between us.

  “What?” My eyes flew up to his.

  “Yeah, her name was Kayla. We were college sweethearts, back before all this.” He cast a gaze around the restaurant. “Anyway, we got engaged when I was still in grad school. But we never got married.”

  “Why not?” I asked, my eyes glued to him.

  “She got into an accident a month before the wedding. The doctors kept her on life support for a while, but there wasn’t anything...There wasn’t anything I—uhm—could do to bring her back.” He stopped to clear his throat. “That was four years ago.”

  “I’m so sorry. God, that’s awful.” I placed my hand over the top of him, holding back my tears.

  “After Kayla died--I don’t know, I got lost for a while. About a year later, my father passed and I didn’t have time to grieve anymore, for either of them, because I had to take over the company. I couldn’t let it fall apart, so that meant I had to keep it all together.”

  “Cooper, I had no idea,” I whispered.

  He smiled at me, but it was a sad smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “You mean in all you’re stalking, you didn’t bother to Google me? I’m sure all this is right there on my Wiki page.”

  I appreciated his attempt to lighten the mood but my heart was in a twisted ball and I couldn’t even force a smile.

  He waved off his own comment. “I’m not telling you this to make you feel bad for me— I just wanted you to know. I don’t let those tragedies define me, but they are a part of who I am, for better or worse.”

  “Wow. Thank you. It really does mean a lot that you would share your life with me.” My heart warmed with sympathy and something deeper as I thought about what he’d just shared with me. I had never seen him so vulnerable and soft. I squeezed his hand and brushed the back with my fingertips as I withdrew my hand from his.

  “In the years since their deaths, I’ve done a lot of good, but I will admit that I’ve also done some things I’m not proud of, as well” He dropped his eyes to the tabletop, as if embarrassed by his confession. “But I never mean for anyone to get hurt and I’m sorry if my behavior has hurt you in any way.”

  I was speechless. I wanted to rush forward with some all-encompassing blanket statement that forgave him for everything and that I would open my heart and give him another chance. But I couldn’t untangle my thoughts from my emotions and didn’t trust myself to speak. Cooper’s eyes searched mine, sweeping back and forth from his place across the table. I couldn’t stop the racing pace of my heart as it thumped against my chest or the tremble of my legs as they bobbed anxiously under the table, and I couldn’t help the swept-up, overwhelming desire to let myself fall.

  Suddenly, a bolt of anxiety swept over me, and snapped me back. “Sooo…let me ask you this. What was your intention the other day when you kicked me out of your house and stopped answering my calls? That was a pretty douchey thing to do. How do you expect me to trust you, when you pull shit like that on me?”

  To his credit, he didn’t back away from the conversation. His eyes darkened and, at first, I expected him to lash back with anger. “I had a meeting. It was non-negotiable for me to be there. As for your calls, Allison, I’m a very busy man. My phone rings from sun up to sun down, and most days, well into the night. I wasn’t avoiding you.”

  I wanted to ask about the late night visit to the
actress, but realized that if I opened that box, it would require a lot of explaining. Not to mention that the way I had found his location was unethical—and, quite possibly, illegal.

  I nodded, choosing to accept his explanation. “So, I guess we’re both a couple of hopeless basket cases, huh?” I asked, desperate to lighten the mood. I dropped my eyes, and started to pick casually at my meal. I couldn’t handle the feelings that he was stirring in me.

  He laughed. “Well, I try not to use the word hopeless, but yes. Safe to say, we’re both pretty fucked up.”

  I laughed and it came out like a snort as I had just taken a sip of my wine. I dabbed my smile with the cloth napkin before raising my eyes back to Cooper, wanting to share in the amusement.

  “In the name of full disclosure, I have to admit I did have ulterior motives when I asked you to come to dinner with me tonight.”

  My eyes widened and my heart started to race, wondering what bomb he was about to drop on me now.

  “I want you to come and work for me. For Brighton Enterprises.”

  “What?” I set my fork down. “Work for you?”

  “Don’t act so surprised. I’ve offered you the job before, you just weren’t willing to take it.”

  “And what makes you think I’ll take it now?”

  “Because you’re a smart girl. You need a respectable job, with benefits and good pay.”

  “Speaking of benefits…what’s up with paying my rent? Why would you do that? I can take care of myself.”

  “Yes,” He laughed and took a sip of his wine. “You proved that to me when I pulled you kicking and screaming from the strip club.”

  He was right, but I hesitated. “What’s in it for you?”

  “I get you.” His voice was low and his words soaked into me, sending a rush of excitement and anxiety down my back.

  “What does that mean? You get me? Do I have to walk around your office in my bra and panties all day?”

  He laughed. “Would that be so bad?”

  I cocked a skeptical eyebrow in his direction, waiting for a real answer.