“I’m sorry to hear that. But I definitely understand where you’re coming from,” I tell her honestly. “My parents . . . they’re not together either .”
She peers at me closely, looking at me with real concern. “What happened ?”
Before I can reply, the waiter returns with my drink. I look over the menu quickly and decide. “I’d like the lamb kebabs with couscous and grilled vegetables. Mindy ?”
“That sounds . . . actually, I’ll have the same,” Mindy says, giving me a little smile. “What? You were right on the wine, so I figure I’ll trust you on the food too. So . . . you were saying ?”
“My father doesn’t speak to me,” I say when the waiter is gone. “We had a disagreement back at the company .”
Mindy fingers her wine glass. “You know, there’s a lot I don’t know about you, Oliver. Hell, I didn’t even have time to Google you. What was the disagreement over ?”
I hesitate. This conversation isn’t going in the direction I want it to go. I’m supposed to be turning up the heat, not turning up the mush. “I’d rather not talk about it. At least right now .”
Mindy frowns. “That bad ?”
“It was.” There’s silence for a few moments as I fidget, trying to think of anything to steer conversation away from me, but thankfully, Mindy doesn’t push things any further. Finally, I glance around the balcony at her family. “So how do you think it’s going ?”
Mindy looks around, thinking deeply before replying. “I think everyone is pretty much fooled, if that’s what you’re talking about. Well, except for Grandma, but she’s always wary. But you need to stop with the tricks .”
I hide my grin behind the glass. “I’m done with those. Nothing but complete obedience from me from here on .”
“Why do I think you're mocking me?” she asks suspiciously. “And why is it that almost everything you say seems to have a double meaning ?”
“It’s a talent of mine, one of many, I might add,” I say with a grin. “When I was in school, they always told us never to talk yourself into a corner. Always give yourself another possible explanation in case things go wrong. So . . . well, I’m having fun—aren’t you ?”
“I most certainly am not,” Mindy says, blushing and tucking a lock of her rich brown hair behind her ear. “I mean . . .”
“You’re playing the game as much as I am,” I finish for her. “And that’s fine. It’s no fun playing a game without a good partner to play it with .”
“Why did you do this?” she says suddenly, trying to duck out of the way the conversation is going. “What is it that Gavin has on you ?”
The ability to hide pocket sevens and the devil’s own luck on the flop, I think, but I don’t tell her that. “Well, he and I have known each other since soon after I got back to town. And he did something big for me, so I owed him one. I’ll be honest, I thought he was insane when he first proposed it, but then . . .”
The waiter interrupts us, bringing our plates. He sets them down before leaving, and I give Mindy a nod. “Bon Appétit .”
“Salud ,” Mindy says, reaching for her wine. As she does, her hand hits the bottle of sauce that the waiter had brought for our kebabs, and it tips over. “Shit !”
Before I can react, sauce has splashed all over my plate, and I’m pretty sure I have some of it on my shirt. Mindy blushes, reaching for her napkin, but I wave her off. “It’s okay, really .”
“Really?” she asks nervously, and I look at my right hand, which got covered in sauce all over my index finger .
“Really. Here, try some for me,” I say, holding out my finger to her. “Tell me if it’s too spicy, or else I might end up with hiccups all afternoon .”
“No way,” Mindy says, stopping when I put my finger against her lips .
“Do it,” I say, lowering my voice. “Open your mouth .”
Her eyes darken as she opens her lips, and I slide my finger into her mouth, my heart quickening and my cock jumping to rock hardness in a split second as she licks my finger. Her lips are velvety soft, and her tongue . . . it’s beyond words. It’s devilish, erotic, and as she sucks my finger in deeper, I can tell she likes it as much as I do .
“Hey, get a room over there!” Roxy yells from her table .
Mindy freezes, pulling her head back and her face blushing furiously. Not saying a word, she gets up and runs into the house. I’m on her heels in half a second, ignoring the fact that my cock is tenting my pants or the impending argument between Roxy and her mother as I follow Mindy inside .
She’s quick, her shame and my hard-on giving her an advantage until I catch her just outside our bedroom. I grab her arm and pull her to a stop, where she spins against the wall, her eyes wide and desperate. “You said you were done with that !”
“I didn’t say you could leave,” I say, moving close to her. I step even closer, putting my arm out and trapping her against the wall. “Who gives a shit what Roxy says? Everyone ignores her antics most of the time, it seems. You were enjoying it as much as I was .”
I reach out and stroke my finger down her cheek, and she’s practically trembling beneath my touch. “Stop,” she half moans, half whispers. “Just stop !”
“Why?” I ask, leaning in closer. We’re less than two inches apart, and I can feel the heat and the tremble of her breath on my skin, and I want her so badly I could take her right here in the hallway. “You’re running from what we both want. What we both need .”
A soft sigh escapes her lips. “We’re not supposed to be doing this .”
“There’s nothing wrong with it,” I whisper, leaning in closer. “There’s nothing wrong with having a little bit of fun .”
I move in closer, and our lips touch again. Our kiss is soft at first before growing hot, and I trail my lips down her neck, licking and feasting on her skin. She’s delicious, and she melts into my touch, her hands pulling me closer as I close my hand around her left breast, feeling her hard nipple under my fingers and pulling on it .
“Oh, sweet God,” Mindy moans, her thighs parting as I slip a knee between them, and she starts grinding against me. “What the hell are we doing ?”
“What you need, Princess,” I moan, moving my hand from her breast and down her belly to unbutton her jeans. I slide my hand inside and run my hand over the slick satin of her panties. She’s soaked, nearly dripping wet as I slide them to the side and slip two fingers inside her while the heel of my hand rubs against her clit .
I know I shouldn't be doing this here in a hallway. Someone could walk by and see us. But I’m filled with so much desire I don’t want to fucking move. And the danger of someone seeing adds to the excitement .
“Oh, fuck,” Mindy moans, her fingernails digging into my shoulders as I nibble on her ear .
“You know you want this as much as I do,” I whisper in her ear, rubbing the secret spot inside her quickly as I rub my thumb over her clit. “Say it. Say you want it .”
“No,” Mindy moans, trying to fight it and losing. “I can’t . . .”
“You can. Say it. Say you want to feel my cock pumping into you and making you scream. You know how good it’ll feel stretching you open and making you — ”
“Coming,” Mindy moans as her pussy tightens around my fingers. She clamps her lips on my neck, stifling her cries against my neck as she bites down, and I hiss, the pain adding to my strokes as I keep her coming, melting against my hard body and clinging to me, needing me . . . wanting me .
When she sags against the wall, spent, I pull my fingers out and run them under my nose, relishing the scent before I lick them clean. “So fucking delicious .”
“Fucker,” Mindy half gasps, half curses me, even as a satisfied grin crosses her beautiful face. “That was totally against the rules .”
“I told you, I don’t like rules,” I say, stepping back. Mindy doesn’t move. Her legs are still shaking from the intensity of her orgasm. I turn and start walking down the hallway before I stop and look back. “And
Princess ?”
She can’t even speak, but her eyes find me .
“Next time,” I say, giving her my best intense look, “it’s not going to be my fingers. You’re going to be coming on my cock .”
Chapter 13
Mindy
I lean back against the wall, buttoning up before someone sees and trying to catch my breath. My legs are trembling from the aftershocks of the orgasm Oliver gave me, and my heart is still hammering in my chest. And the intensity of his promise as he walked away . . . I can’t help but wish he would’ve dragged me into our room and fucked me senseless .
I suck in a trembling breath, rubbing at my throat where I can still feel the burning kisses he left on my skin. My panties are soaked. I need to change them. His eyes held sweet promise the whole time, his fingers ripping a climax from me that was otherworldly .
This is getting out of hand. I wasn’t supposed to feel this way. I want him to take me. To possess me. And I don't care about any of my fucking rules anymore. I want him to break them all .
“Are you okay, darling?” a soft voice says behind me .
I nearly jump out of my skin when I look to my right to see Grandma looking at me with concern .
What the hell? How the hell did she sneak up on me? She can barely move .
I swallow and flash a cheery smile. “I'm fine .”
“You sure?” She persists. “You ran away from your table like a bat out of hell. The dessert wasn't even served yet .”
“I just needed to clean up what spilled on me. I didn’t want it to stain .”
She's quiet for a moment, letting me squirm in my obvious lie. We can both see my shirt is unchanged. Finally, she looks at me. “Is everything all right between you and Oliver ?”
“Of course,” I say. “Why wouldn't it be ?”
Grandma waves her hand lightly. “Oh, I don't know. It just seems that you're not happy when asked about him. To me, that's a sign that there is trouble .”
“There's nothing wrong between me and Oliver. If anything, I'm just a little high-strung about Mother getting married. After what happened to Dad, I never thought I'd see the day.” While the last part’s true, I’m just trying to deflect her curiosity. The truth is . . . there might be trouble, but not what she’s thinking. There might actually be something building between us .
Grandma shakes her head. She loved Dad like a son. “I never thought so either, but you know people have to move on with their lives. It wouldn't have been fair if she sat there and lived in the memory of your father and never started living her life again. Look at me. I never remarried, and a part of me regrets it .”
This is news to me, and I feel compelled to take her hand in mine. “Oh, Grandma, I had no clue that you were lonely. You always seem so strong and independent .”
“That was just the shell that I put around myself. Every morning I wake up alone is terrible. It gets to you after a while,” she says .
I shake my head, tears forming in my eyes. “Grandpa would’ve wanted you to be happy .”
“You know, Mindy, for the longest time, I thought the opposite. But then I realized that I was projecting my fears onto my deceased husband. I felt guilty because of my own feelings. By the time I realized my truth, it was too late. Now I would be happy and just settle for a great-grandbaby .”
Damn, that again. Why, oh, why am I to be saddled with these expectations? It’s not fair to Grandma, but it’s also not fair to me, and it makes me feel even more like a liar .
I do a nervous chuckle, trying to buy for time. “Well, maybe we’ll surprise you .”
It makes me sick to my stomach saying it, but I don’t know what to say. “Babies do tend to sort of just . . . well, happen .”
“Well, as much as I would love that,” Grandma says, “I wouldn’t dare ask you to do it to make me happy. If it happens, it happens. The most important thing is to live your truth. Because when you do that, the universe will make all the things you want happen .”
Live your truth. When I’m living a damn lie. I can't believe I allowed myself to get into this! What was I thinking? I’m too used to joking about things and brushing things aside. I didn’t stop to consider the feelings of others who would be caught up in my web of deceit because I didn’t think it was that serious .
It’s hard, but I manage to plaster a grateful look on my face. “Thank you so much for your words of wisdom, Grandma. Don’t know what I’d do without you.” I pull her into an embrace, holding her frail body tight. “What can I do to ever show you how much you mean to me ?”
“How about visiting me more often? You don’t want to wait around. The next time you see me, they might be carrying me out in a cardboard box .”
“Oh, stop it. I’ll do better. I promise .”
“That’s what I want to hear,” Grandma says. Standing on her tiptoes, she gives me a kiss. “Now come back out here and get your dessert. The others will be wondering where you went .”
“Okay, I will,” I tell her, turning toward my room. “After I go to the bathroom to tinkle .”
She nods at me and totters off. I sigh in relief as soon as she’s gone. This is turning out to be harder than I imagined. I thought it would be easy to come back, crack jokes, and hide behind all the bluster. Oliver isn’t making it easy by being so irresistible .
Just a few days, I tell myself. This will all be over. I’ll tell them Oliver and I are done. And this will just be one bad memory .
I go to the bathroom and clean up, changing my panties. He’s so going to pay for that .
Back outside, there’s a commotion going on. Grandma is waving her arms, yelling at Mom, while Bertha is going off like she’s on crack, and it takes a moment for me to figure out what’s happening .
“I told you about keeping this dog on a leash!” Grandma is snapping, pointing at Bertha, who is circling her and barking at her like she’s intruder. I look, and my breath catches in my throat as I see that Grandma’s slacks have been ripped, although I don’t see any blood. “That heffa doesn’t like me !”
“I got it,” Oliver says, rising to his feet and letting out a piercing whistle. Bertha stops in her tracks, sitting on her haunches. Slowly, Oliver approaches her. When he gets close, he bends down and picks her up with ease .
“There, there, girl,” he says, stroking her gently. “Time to put you in time out .”
“Wow,” Roxy says, shocked by how easy Oliver handled the problem. “You’re a dog whisperer too ?”
“Glad someone could tame that little heathen,” Grandma mutters, retaking her seat. “If I’d known Mary Jo was going to let that ball of fur run wild, I would have brought my cat, Giselda, to put her in her place .”
I ignore Grandma for the most part, my heart fluttering as I watch Oliver hold and stroke Bertha. I don’t even know why. I’m okay with pets, but the way he’s holding the dog in his arms, almost like it’s a baby, is doing weird things to my ovaries .
I walk over and sit back down at the table. Oliver follows me over, still holding Bertha .
“That was something else,” I say to him as he sits down in his seat. The dog looks like it’s silly putty in his hands, nuzzled against his chest. It’s hard to act like nothing happened after he just finger-banged me in the hallway, but I have to pretend like nothing did, both because it’s my family and because I need to maintain my sanity .
“I have a way with dogs,” Oliver says with a smile, looking up at me. His eyes seem to say to me, and with women .
A flush comes to my cheeks and I look away. I can still feel his fingers inside me, and I want more. So much more .
Oliver gives me a questioning look. “Are you okay ?”
“Yeah,” I lie through my teeth, giving him a sickly, weak grin. “I just . . . I could use a little bit of that Panna cotta .”
“Here,” Oliver says, taking a bite of his before sliding it over to me. “Take mine. I think Roxy has devoured the rest .”
“Thank you,” I say
automatically. Oh, God, I’m thanking him now ?
The Italian custard is delicious, and as I eat, I watch Oliver. I’m afraid. I came into this week thinking this would all be easy. That Mom would be so much the center of attention that I wouldn’t have to keep building lies on top of lies. And if I got lucky, maybe even get a little play cock .
Now, my defenses are crumbling, and I’m constantly thinking about babies and the idea of Oliver’s thick, juicy . . .
I’m hanging on by my fingernails at the edge of a bottomless pit, and I don’t know how much longer I can keep it up .
Chapter 14
Oliver
“A blob!” Roxy guesses excitedly as Layla spreads her arms out, wiggling them around before making big circles with her hands. I have no idea how Roxy’s getting blob out of it, but then again, I have no damn clue what Layla’s trying to say either .
We’re sitting in the living room playing Charades after dinner. It was nice, too. There was no gaming between us, just a good time. Mindy seemed to enjoy herself. She smiled, and as we talked, I felt myself being drawn to her more and more .
Not that I’m going soft. I can't stop thinking about the feel of her tight, slick pussy on my fingers or the way her teeth bit into my skin when she came. Now, playing Charades and having her next to me, I’m . . . torn. Good guy, bad guy, or just be the guy for Mindy? I can’t decide anymore, except that I fucking want her .
“Fat ass!” Roxy yells, pulling me back to the game. “Mindy has a fat ass !”
Layla drops her act, throwing her hands in the air. “I meant to say Mindy has a big brain. That she’s smart !”
“You’re horrible!” Mindy says with a huge laugh. “You couldn’t wait to do that. I’ve seen you trying to get it in for three rounds now .”
Roxy laughs. “You know I was just playing. If anything, you could gain some back there .”
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