by Alexx Andria
"My daddy died last year. He was the only family I had left." She drew a deep breath, admitting, "It kills me that he died knowing I failed. He'd worked so hard to get me out of Tennessee and into a good college."
The sadness coating her words hit a chord deep inside him, not because he'd ever had anyone who had put their blind faith in him and he'd let them down but somehow he'd had the exact opposite and it'd still left a deep void inside of him. For a long time he'd been driven by his own need to succeed simply to prove all those fuckers wrong but they'd all since died or disappeared from his life and he was still left with that black hole of need that never seemed to have a bottom.
Lars sucked back the bitterness, not interested in his own angst. "Plenty of excellent universities in the south. Why Las Vegas?"
Kennedy chuckled ruefully. "Well, I had my sights on a performing arts major and honestly, I thought Vegas would get me further than Tennessee. I mean, it's not that far from Los Angeles and I figured, eventually, I'd make the leap to LA to pursue an acting career." Kennedy rolled her eyes at her own explanation. "Trust me, I know how stupid that sounds. I was young and my dad was always willing to help me chase my dreams, even if they were ridiculous. Honestly, I should've just stayed in Tennessee. At least I would've been able to be with my dad when he died."
"Cancer?" Lars guessed. At her short nod, he said, "Cancer is a bitch. I'm sorry."
She wiped at her eyes. "I didn't mean to turn into a giant buzzkill. Talking about my dad always brings on the waterworks. I've considered going back to Tennessee, even though there's nothing left for me there except memories. Maybe I'm just ready for something that feels like home." She drew a shuddering breath to add, "Which is why I called you back. I want out of Las Vegas and at this rate, I'll never make it home again. If agreeing to your 'terms' gets me home, I'm willing to do it."
She made it sound like she was a lamb going to slaughter. If he were less of a prick, he'd just write her a check and send her on her way but his selfish streak was deeper than his altruistic and he wasn't ready to turn her loose. The time would come fast enough, he wasn't going to rush it.
He wanted to savor Kennedy.
Scratching the surface of who Kennedy Shae was only intensified his hunger to know more.
"Come here," he said, his tone soft but firm. Her eyes widened and her breath caught. After a short indecisive moment, she scooted toward him. Lars cradled her neck with one hand and drew her to his lips. She tasted like strawberry lip balm and smelled of coconuts. He couldn't imagine a more delicious combination. His tongue gently teased her mouth open.
"Wait," she murmured, resisting even as her lips softened and her tongue darted to tease mine. "We haven't talked about the terms..."
He didn't want to talk, he wanted to touch. "Whatever you ask for, I'll give," he said, impatient to have her in his bed. He rose and held his hand out. "Come, Kennedy."
"But how do I know that?" she insisted, pulling back, her eyes wide. "This is Vegas. If there's one thing I've learned, everyone lies to get what they want."
Lars sighed, seeing her logic and respecting her for it. "Point taken," he said, rising to grab his cell phone and wallet. He pulled a wad of cash, probably a few thousand judging by the bundle and tucked it into her hand even as she stared, her jaw dropping. "Here's some spending cash," he told her but he wasn't done yet. "How much do you need to make your big jump from Vegas?"
Kennedy's mouth gaped and she was at a loss for words. He took her stunned silence as an opportunity to kiss her again. His tongue teased hers, lightly dancing and he could feel her trembling. He pulled away slowly. "How much, beautiful?"
"Are you serious right now?" she asked, her voice a whisper. "I don't know what to say."
"Money is nothing if you can't spend it on things that bring you joy. Right now, helping you feels good so it's not entirely selfless. How much, baby girl?"
"T-ten thousand, would that be okay? I mean, I sold my car when I needed to make rent before I got on with the LBD so I'd need to buy something cheap..."
"Let's call it fifty thousand and be done with it. That should be enough to get a good car, not some junker that's going to leave you stranded on the road at some point and give you some breathing room to make the move without stressing."
Her eyes welled and she lost her ability to form words. It'd been a long time since he'd felt this good about throwing his wealth around. Truth be told, he'd gotten jaded about it all. He'd forgotten how gratifying it could be to do something for someone else.
"Fifty-thousand?" Her eyes bugged as she shook her head in protest. "That's too much!"
"I can afford it," he assured her. Lars could afford that and much more but he felt good about his offer.
He dialed his accountant, holding up a finger when she opened her mouth. "George? I need fifty-thousand wired to the bank account of Kennedy Shae. I'm going to put her on the line and she's going to give you her personal information."
"No problem, Mr. James."
Lars' accountant George Epstein never blinked at his requests because he was paid well to simply do as he was told.
He handed the phone to Kennedy. "My feelings won't be hurt if you need privacy," he said.
Kennedy accepted the phone, her expression one of shocked surprise before she hopped from the sofa and retreated to the bathroom to complete the transaction.
She returned moments later, still in shock. "I can't believe you just gave me fifty-thousand dollars. I mean, that's way beyond what I was expecting honestly."
"You're worth it."
"How do you know?"
"I just do." Lars rose to meet her, reaching for her. He'd never wanted anything more than he wanted Kennedy right now. Take my hand, beautiful girl...
The moment stretched between them, heavy with building tension.
As her palm connected with his, his fingers closing around her hand, he knew something between them was changing — and it had nothing to do with the money.
But he knew nothing was going to stop him from exploring everything Kennedy had to offer.
Kennedy was shaking but it wasn't from fear. There was something about Lars that made her feel reckless in a way that she'd never been before. She may have a smart mouth but she'd always been a relatively good girl. The bad boy had never been her thing but she'd never met anyone like Lars.
Maybe she was still reeling from the fact that Lars had just made all of her problems disappear with a single phone call or maybe she was overwhelmed by the frantic beat of her heart and about to pass out but she felt as if she'd stepped into a modern fairy tale.
Except this prince was sinfully sexy and throwing such heat she thought she might catch fire if she got too close.
"You're so fucking beautiful," he murmured, his gaze traveling her face and dipping to her body. The way he looked at her — like he wanted to eat her alive — made her feel alive everywhere at once, something she'd never experienced in her life. At that moment, she would've followed him to the moon much less the expansive, opulent bedroom where a giant bed dominated the room.
Butterflies erupted in her belly as their gazes met. He released her hand long enough to strip his shirt in one fluid motion, revealing a hard, muscled chest with a smattering of hair leading down his stomach to disappear behind the waistband of his linen pants. She could see the outline of his growing cock behind the soft cloth and it was apparent he went commando.
She wasn't a virgin by any means but suddenly she felt as innocent as a girl who'd never felt a man between her legs. Kennedy swallowed as Lars went straight for the buttons on her blouse, slowly releasing each pearled nub to reveal her lacy bra beneath. "Beautiful," he murmured, cupping each breast as the hunger blazed in his eyes. He thumbed her hardened nipple from behind the lace, sending ribbons of excitement swirling down her nerve endings. He gently pushed her blouse free from her shoulders and it fell in a silent puddle at her feet.
Kennedy bit her lip, minutely tensing as Lars' gaze tra
veled down her belly to pluck at the buttons on her skirt. She'd always been curvy, never the girl who sported a bikini at the beach, though she'd since learned that men loved the soft hills and valleys of a woman's body. She wasn't the insecure girl any longer but for a split second every flaw she'd ever imagined existed on her body jumped to the forefront of her mind.
But she needn't have worried. The glaze in Lars' eyes was proof enough that he was really into what she was putting out there. As in, seriously into what he saw.
And she was rapidly becoming drunk on the sexual energy between them.
"Jesus woman, you're exquisite," he said, his tone a strained whisper. "Fuck, your skin is like perfection."
Within seconds her skirt dropped to the floor and she was standing in her bra and panties, her chest heaving as her heart hammered like a wild thing.
With trembling fingers, she reached for the drawstring on his pants but he stayed her hand. She glanced up at him in question and the hungry curve of his lips matched the desire in his eyes.
"I want to taste you first," he said, sending a shiver down her skin that nearly caused her knees to buckle. She swallowed as Lars gently pulled her panties down to feast his gaze on her most private place.
"Mmm...just as I imagined," he murmured as he swept her into his arms as if she weighed nothing. She gasped and clung to him as he carried her to the bed.
Good God, was this what it was like to feel like a dainty flower? She'd never been one who got picked up and tossed around like those tiny girls who barely cleared a man's belly button. Sudden ribbons of pleasure twisted through her nerves as Lars parted her legs and slowly lowered his mouth to her slit.
The inner prude that she never knew existed urged her to close her legs but she was too stunned by how exquisite it felt to have Lars' tongue dipping between her pussy lips, lapping at her flesh as if it were fucking dessert and he suffered from a raging sweet tooth.
A moan escaped as she sucked in a strangled breath. God, it felt so good. Lars locked his arms around her hips, drawing her closer so he could feast on her clit and it was all she could do to keep from panting like a cat in heat. Her belly trembled and her cheeks flushed with heat as her heart rate climbed with each clever swipe of his tongue and she was teetering on the edge of an orgasm before she knew it.
Her thighs began to tremble and she felt herself slipping down that slope but Lars wasn't done with her yet. He slowed his pace and her orgasm danced out of reach. She groaned with frustration and his chuckle was everything sexy she'd never known existed.
He rose and kissed her hard, his solid cock held back only by thin cotton between them. Lars ground himself against her and she moaned with need, lifting her hips to encourage that much-needed friction. "So close," she begged. "Please Lars..."
"When I'm ready to let you," he said with a devilish smile that stole her ability to think straight. "Until then...you're mine to play with."
Kennedy smiled and reached for his cock, rubbing him through the barrier of his pants and this time, it was Lars sucking air. He was hard, thick and long — a fucking unicorn among men. Her mouth watered to taste his length, to feel his cock bumping against the back of her throat. She shocked him by rolling on top, straddling him before stripping her bra and tossing it to the floor. The moment her breasts bounced into view, Lars lost his composure. His hands were immediately filled with her, squeezing the soft flesh as his thumbs teased the quickly hardening nipples.
"Like what you see?" she asked, knowing full well from his glazed eyeballs that he was gorging on the view. A heated smile curved his luscious lips and she had her answer. She matched his smile and said, "Show me."
Lars didn't hesitate. Rising, he tucked her legs around his torso as he lifted her breasts to his greedy mouth, sucking the pebbled nipples as she groaned. Her head fell back, arching as he held her to his lips and he surged against her, his cock just as eager to experience all she had to offer.
A fire unlike any she'd ever known licked at her insides, pushing her toward the edge of something wonderful and exciting.
Sex was fun but nothing she'd ever had before this moment compared to the energy flowing between she and Lars. It was almost surreal — like an acid trip on ecstasy.
There wasn't the option to pull back. Not that she wanted to. The heat between them was the stuff that musicians wrote rock ballads about and it was intoxicating as fuck.
Lars took control again, rolling her to her back and he spent all of two seconds ripping his linen pants off, the sound of tearing linen secondary to the groan that followed when Lars lifted her hips to his mouth and began feasting on her clit once more.
Everything pulsed with life as pleasure roared through her veins, her fingers clutching spasmodically at the bedding as Lars drove her mercilessly toward the promised land. Crooked fingers thrummed her G-spot while he kept her dancing on the knife's edge of cumming with his wicked tongue and mouth.
"Lars!" she gasped, unable to stop from rambling his name as the first tell-tale sign of her orgasm came knocking on her walls. Her womb clenched as pleasure soaked her nerve endings and sizzled down her body, knocking her senseless for a long moment as waves crashed down around her, everything going black as her vision dimmed.
Good God...had she passed out? Was her orgasm so powerful it'd knocked her lights out? But she didn't have time to wonder long because Lars was ready to split her in two with that monster cock of his. She barely managed a weak gasp before he tossed one leg over his shoulder and positioned himself at her drenched entrance, shoving himself deep inside. His cock, big and wide, was a thrill in of itself. She'd never felt so stretched, so filled completely that it took her breath away. Lars gripped the headrail and used it for leverage as he worked himself deep inside her.
Kennedy moaned, her eyes rolling up in her head at the sheer overwhelming pleasure swamping her ability to think straight. Never had she ever been so thoroughly impaled on a cock with such exquisite perfection. They fit together in ways that she thought only existed on paper and she didn't know whether that scared her because she knew this was temporary or made her sad for the same reason.
But it didn't matter because there wasn't time to spend on anything that didn't involve total pleasure melt-down, which was exactly what was happening between them.
And she knew by the expression on Lars' face as he went to the hilt inside her, his balls slapping against her ass, she wasn't alone in her total shock of how good it was.
"Jesus, baby girl," he groaned, nearly splintering the wood from his grip as he pounded into her with a savagery that thrilled her. He groaned, slowing to plant himself so deep inside her she wasn't sure where he ended and she began.
"Lars..." she gasped his name, her toes curling as another orgasm, rang her bell so hard she couldn't even draw breath in her lungs for a full second until she'd crested the large wave.
And Lars was right behind her. Hot damn, cumming together? Like something out of the movies? Was this for real?
Was he for real?
Now, she understood why good dick made women stupid because right about now, she was feeling as if she'd just given up a few brain cells after that ride.
Happily, she might add. Hell yes, ashamedly so.
Right now, she'd made him a sandwich, cook a pot roast, slip on heels and make him a martini if he asked.
And that was downright scary.
Because she was no Betty Crocker...but feeling the way she did...a bitch could learn.
Chapter Four
Lars drowsed for a moment, Kennedy tucked into his arm, exhausted. There was something to be said for bone-melting, soul-searing sex as a stress reliever or at the very least, an effective sedative.
The morning was gone, afternoon was nearly upon them and he woke starved. He rose quietly, placed an order with room service and then returned to the bed where Kennedy remained knocked out.
Her hair spread like darkness across the pillow, seductive and wild, her bare hip encouraging a cares
s. She was unlike any woman he'd ever known and he was both intrigued and wary. He wasn't in the market for a complication but he didn't want to send her on her way, either.
Usually after having his fill, he sent the woman packing with a nice gift and moved on with his day, rarely spending more than two minutes thinking of their interaction after she'd left.
But his mind was consumed with Kennedy. She smelled like heaven and tasted like ambrosia.
Hell, he wasn't one to wax like a poet about a woman's body but he suddenly found the urge to start.
Lars shifted in discomfort at his own thoughts. Maybe he ought to sever whatever this was between them before it got out of hand.
That seemed like the smart thing to do.
Except he didn't want to be smart with Kennedy. He wanted to be reckless and passionate, wild and untamed.
Was this what a mid-life crisis felt like?
Point of fact, he never saw himself being with a woman younger than himself for more than a sexual exchange but he wanted to know everything about Kennedy and that included what went beyond her sexual quirks and desires.
Was she allergic to anything? Did she have any phobias? What was her favorite movie? How did she lean politically?
All things he shouldn't care about if this were just about sex.
He didn't believe in love at first sight — fools who subscribed to this ideology were bound to get ripped off financially or emotionally and he wasn't down for either.
So why was he completely absorbed by everything she said and did?
Time to think with some logic, he told himself. Likely, he just needed to let this play out so it no longer held any sway with him. Denying himself would only make the craving worse. So for now, he'd let whatever happen, happen.
A discreet knock at the door signaled their food had arrived. A slow smile curved his lips.
What was happening right now...was food!
He opened the door and the food was wheeled in on elegant carts, the savory scent filling the room. Tucking a nice tip into the man's palm, he closed the door behind him and went to wake up the hottie sleeping in his bed.
