The Player Gets Coached

by Janet Nissenson

  Desiree eyed Finn warily, and gave his hand a perfunctory shake. “The only one who really calls me Desi is my sister,” she informed him frostily. “Just like I’m the only one who ever calls her Della. And the cycling section for the majority of triathlons is done on the road, not on trails.”

  Finn gingerly withdrew his hand, almost as though Desiree’s touch had given him frostbite. Which, thought Delilah tiredly, probably wasn’t too far from reality considering how cool and snooty her sister was acting. She could only hope that Finn’s natural charm would start to thaw Desiree out sooner than later. And that Finn wouldn’t dig himself into too deep of a hole in the process.

  They ordered a round of mimosas to start off with, and Delilah had to resist the temptation to bolt half of hers down in one gulp. She had a bad feeling that she was going to need way more alcohol to get through this morning, especially if her sister kept giving Finn the evil eye as she was doing now.

  But as their meal progressed, Delilah was relieved to notice her sister gradually beginning to thaw out, largely due to Finn’s effortless charm that could apparently melt even the coldest of hearts. Without sounding condescending or patronizing, Finn asked Desiree questions about her business, her triathlon training, and even what Delilah had been like as a little girl.

  Desiree had smiled fondly at that question. “Even as a child she had to be fashionably dressed. She didn’t like wearing pants or shorts very much, as I recall, and would pitch a fit if a particular dress happened to be in the laundry when she wanted to wear it. She had an entire army of Barbie dolls, and so many clothes and accessories for them that they were kept in their own separate little armoire. Dad had it custom built for you, Della. Remember?”

  Delilah nodded. “Of course I do. I still have that armoire, you know. And it’s still filled with doll clothes, along with several dolls. It’s one of a number of things from the old house that I keep stored at the studio.”

  Finn grinned, giving her hand a little squeeze. “And do you take it out to play with every so often? Or is that where you get inspiration for your designs - from your doll’s wardrobe?”

  Both sisters laughed at his teasing questions, with Delilah shaking her head.

  “No, I do not play with my Barbie dolls,” she retorted. “As for fashion inspiration, all of that stuff is over twenty years old now, so it would be horribly out of style. Not to mention the fact that Barbie was always tall and long-legged and looked great in anything. She didn’t have the fashion challenges that Desi and I always had to deal with.”

  Desiree polished off the rest of her mimosa, a faraway look on her face now. “God, I hadn’t thought about that armoire in years, Della. I guess because it feels like a lifetime ago since Dad ever did anything that thoughtful for us.” She gave Finn an assessing look. “I assume Della’s told you about what happened with our parents.”

  Finn nodded. “No offense, but your father’s an idiot,” he replied calmly. “Actually, I could think of a much stronger term to apply to a man who acted so callously towards his wife and children, and who continues to neglect his daughters. But I promised Delilah I’d watch my language this morning.”

  Desiree emitted a reluctant chuckle. “No need to hold back on my account. I’ve called that bastard every rotten name in the book, and often to his face. I think one of the reasons he doesn’t keep in touch with us is because he’s scared shitless of me. Sort of the way you looked when Della introduced us earlier.”

  Finn’s cheeks turned red, and he stammered uncertainly, “Uh, um, well, maybe just a little. I mean, you are kind of scary, Desiree. And, well, I know what you must think of me, given all of those tabloid stories that you used to email to Delilah.”

  Desiree studied him with a narrowed gaze. “Can you blame me for believing the worst of you, Finn?” she asked sharply. “Especially if most of those stories can be believed. And especially considering how closely your lifestyle parallels our father’s.”

  “The difference being,” retorted Finn, “that I’m not a married man with two young children. And I’ve never, ever cheated on a woman in my life before. Yeah, I can’t very well deny that I’ve dated. A lot. And while not all of those stories you read were true, quite a few of them are, unfortunately. But ever since I met Delilah all of that’s changed. In fact, she was just ribbing me about that when we walked in here earlier - how I’ve managed to keep my name out of the gossip rags for months now. And I intend to keep it that way. Your sister means way too much to me to voluntarily screw things up. She’s too special, too extraordinary, to risk losing. Especially over something stupid like getting drunk or flirting with some bimbo. Besides, now that I’ve met you, I’d be scared to death that you’d put out a hit on me. Or worse, do the job yourself.”

  Desiree grinned, something she seldom did nowadays. “Well, you’re right about that last part. As well as what you said about Della being special. And while I know she keeps insisting she doesn’t need me to look out for her, much less fight her battles, old habits die hard, Finn. I’ve been part big sister, part surrogate mother to her for a long time now, and I suppose it’s just hard for me to let go of that. Especially when it comes to dating. Della hasn’t always made the wisest choices when it comes to the men in her life.”

  Delilah glared at her sister. “Oh, for God’s sake, Desi! Will you let that one drop already? I was sixteen and not the best judge of character when it came to men and their not so nice intentions. And, yes, I’ve already told Finn about stupid old Jeremy Haggert and how he took the school skank to the prom in my place because she’d put out and I wouldn’t.”

  “And I’ve offered multiple times to find this Jeremy character and pound the crap out of him,” chimed in Finn. “But Delilah insists he isn’t worth the effort.”

  “He’s not,” agreed Desiree. “Though she was pretty upset at the time, given that it was barely a year after our mother died and our father bailed on us. But of course Della was so pretty and popular that just about every guy in her high school was after her. She didn’t have any trouble at all getting another date to the prom, as I recall. Or dates in general, for that matter.”

  Delilah gave an exasperated shake of her head. “Okay, enough reminiscing about my teenaged years. And I’ve certainly gotten a lot older and wiser since then, Desi. Which means you really don’t have to worry about the choices I make any longer. And that includes Finn. So, I’m going to say this as nicely as possible but - back off, okay? I know exactly what I’m doing, and if it’s the last thing I do I’m going to convince you that he’s just not the same person all those nasty gossip magazines make him out to me. At least, he’s not that person when he’s with me, and that’s all that should matter. Agree?”

  “Fine,” retorted Desiree rather huffily. She narrowed her gaze at Finn. “But you’d better believe that I’ll be keeping a close watch on how things develop, and if you know what’s good for you, you’ll treat my baby sister like a queen. Got that, McManus?”

  Finn gave her a mock salute. “Loud and clear, Sergeant Major. Whatever you say, ma’am.”

  Desiree smiled reluctantly. “You’re not the first person to tell me I would have made a great career officer. And now, since you offered to pay for brunch, I think you should order us another round of mimosas. Plus a big slab of that coffee cake Della loves so we can all share it.” She studied Finn for a few seconds before giving a brief nod. “And I guess maybe you’re not as big of an asshole as I figured you were going to be. If nothing else, you seem to be crazy about my sister and haven’t been able to take your eyes off of her all morning.”

  Finn nodded in assent as he beckoned their server over. “I am crazy about her, Desiree. I practically worship the ground she walks on, in fact. So, tell me - does this mean I’ve passed your test?”

  “Hmm.” Desiree tapped a finger against her chin as she pretended to consider his question carefully. “I suppose you could say that. At least, the first part of the test anywa
y. We’ll see how you progress with the next couple of parts before I make a final judgment.”

  Finn didn’t bother to hide the instant anxiety he felt at her rather ominous words. “What - what do the next parts of the test involve?”

  Desiree gave him a smile that could only be described as pure evil. “I’ll let you know when - and if - you manage to ace them.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  June

  “If that’s what you’re wearing to the party, I guarantee that you’ll be the most popular person in attendance. And that your picture will definitely make the front page of every single tabloid in the country.”

  Delilah glanced up at the sound of Finn’s seductive drawl, arching a brow in his direction as she continued applying her makeup. “Correction,” she replied calmly, doing her best to ignore the unmistakable flare of passion she’d spied in his green eyes. “If I walked inside the ballroom dressed like this, I’d be arrested on the spot for indecent exposure.”

  Finn’s heated gaze inspected her body in slow, thorough detail, and she couldn’t suppress a little shiver at just how intimately he was checking her out. She hadn’t put her dress on yet, not wanting to get it wrinkled or take the chance that it might get stained with makeup, so she only wore her lingerie at the moment. And judging from the way Finn’s tongue was practically hanging out of his mouth right now, she smugly deduced that he really, really liked the way she looked in the strapless black lace bra and matching pair of barely there panties.

  He shook his head, making a little clucking noise. “Babe, trust me. There is nothing the least bit indecent about you right now. In fact, I’d say you were the most decent looking thing I’ve ever seen. But you’re right. There’s no way I’d actually let you leave this suite dressed in just those two little bits of fabric. Or ever let anyone else see you looking this way. For my eyes only, baby. My eyes only.”

  She eyed him suspiciously as he approached, recognizing that lustful gleam in his eyes all too well, and waved her blusher brush at him. “Don’t you dare get any ideas, Finn McManus,” she warned ominously. “We have to leave in just over an hour, and I’m barely halfway through my makeup as it is.”

  He grinned at her lasciviously, pressing his chest against her mostly naked backside as his hands skimmed over her hips. “Good thing you’ll only have to re-do half of it then, hmm? And I’ve told you more than once how gorgeous you are without a lick of makeup on.”

  Delilah shivered delicately as he dropped a kiss on her bare shoulder, his hands squeezing her half-bared buttocks. “You told me that there’ll be a lot of press there tonight,” she reminded him shakily, biting down on her lip to stifle a moan. “So if you think for one minute that I’m going to have my picture taken without having full makeup on, you’re in La La Land, buster.”

  Finn slid his arms around her waist, pulling her flush against his now very aroused body. “Actually,” he chuckled, “we’re both in La La Land at the moment, since that’s a well known nickname for Los Angeles. And given how hard I am right now, this isn’t going to take very long - which means you’ll have plenty of time to touch up your makeup.”

  “Finn,” she protested, but her objection was faint at best, and she offered up little to no resistance as his hands began to roam over her nearly nude body.

  Her makeup brush clattered to the granite top of the spacious bathroom sink, her hands gripping the counter as his lips trailed down from the nape of her neck to the back hook of her bra. He unfastened it with a deftness that could only come from years of practice, but that was the very last thing she wanted to think about right now. She sighed in pure bliss when his hands claimed her breasts, his thumbs and forefingers tweaking her nipples.

  “Damn you and your talented hands,” she scolded breathlessly, her head lolling back onto his shoulder.

  Finn nuzzled the side of her neck, his tongue tracing a circle teasingly around her ear before giving the lobe a teasing nip. “I thought it was my tongue that was the most talented part of my body,” he murmured, sucking her tender skin between his teeth.

  Delilah wrenched her head away and glared at him ominously. “Hey, if you even think of giving me a hickey, I’ll give you a black eye so that we’ll have matching bruises. The last time you left a mark on me I had to wear scarves to work for a week since even half a pound of makeup wouldn’t cover it.”

  He kissed the side of her neck instead. “Okay, no hickeys tonight, I promise. Now, where was I? Ah, that’s right.”

  She bit her lip to stifle a cry of pleasure as his big hands reclaimed her full, swollen breasts. She liked to tease him at times that he had an obsession with her breasts, an accusation that Finn didn’t even try to deny. But Delilah also couldn’t deny how much pleasure it gave her when he touched her this way, or when he licked her nipples, arousing her to the point where she had very nearly climaxed more than once simply from the stimulation.

  With his arms still wrapped around her waist from behind, Finn ground his fully engorged cock against the cleft of her buttocks, while at the same time he contorted his body in such a way that he could take one of her nipples between his lips, pulling at it hard. He slid one palm down her belly inside the low-cut waistband of her panties, then lower still to where she was already soaking wet and so ready for him that she almost came on the spot.

  “Mmm, nice and juicy,” he crooned against her ear, pumping his fingers inside of her before withdrawing them to spread her feminine moisture around her clit. “For someone who didn’t want to fuck a few minutes ago, it sure feels like all systems are go right now.”

  Delilah was panting by now, so turned on by his seductive words and his oh-so-clever fingers that she was grinding her ass against his erection frantically. “You have no idea,” she hissed. “So what say you put that big cock of yours to use? Like, any second now would be nice.”

  He laughed softly but made no move to give her what she demanded. “What’s the rush, babe? We’ve still got almost an hour before we have to leave. And I don’t really care if we’re a few minutes late, do you?”

  She cried out uncontrollably as his fingers began thrusting in and out of her with a slow, steady rhythm. “Not in the least,” she whispered unevenly.

  “That’s my girl,” he murmured encouragingly. “Look up now, hmm? At the mirror. Ah, that’s it, just like that.”

  Delilah forced her eyes open and glanced up as instructed, staring at herself in the mirror as though she was looking at a stranger. Because, she thought faintly, that couldn’t possibly be her - not that wanton, wild creature who looked like she’d go mad with lust if her lover didn’t shove his dick inside of her right this very second and fuck her brainless. She didn’t recognize this woman, the one who gazed back at her with flushed cheeks and parted lips, and who was practically whimpering with need.

  “Watch,” commanded Finn as his hands palmed her breasts. He kept one eye on their reflections in the mirror while trailing a series of kisses along her cheek and brow and throat at the same time.

  “Please,” she begged, her voice cracking on that single word.

  “Not yet,” he replied maddeningly. “You’re not quite ready. At least, not for the way I’m going to take you this time. Now, keep watching the mirror, baby. If you don’t I’m going to spank this pretty little butt of yours. Got it?”

  She made some incoherent sound as he suddenly dropped to his knees behind her, tugging off her lacy black panties at the same time. She quivered as he began to run his tongue along the backs of her knees all the way up her legs until he paused at her buttocks.

  Delilah made a choking sound as he traced a finger down the cleft of her ass, then teased the tiny puckered opening at the bottom. “Finn!” she cried, frantically wiggling her bottom in an attempt dislodge his finger.

  He placed a soothing kiss to one round butt cheek instead. “Not to worry, babe. Going in through the back door isn’t what I was referring to. You’re way too small for me to
ever seriously consider that move, and the last thing I would ever do is cause you even a tiny bit of pain. Which is why I need to get you a little wetter. Like this.”

  She shrieked at the first lick of his tongue along her labia, her hands clamping down fiercely on the granite counter for support. She was already so aroused, all of her senses so overstimulated, that she climaxed easily, noisily, watching herself in the mirror as she did so, as if mesmerized by the sight of her own face.

  Behind her she could see Finn hurriedly tossing off his own clothes until he was as naked as she was, watching as he rolled on a condom. Then, before she could guess his next move, he was turning her to face him before lifting her up high enough to sit on the counter. Delilah gave a little shriek at the feel of the cool granite beneath her bare skin, but quickly forgot about any discomfort as Finn placed his hands on her knees, spreading her thighs wide.

  She gulped to notice how big he looked from this position, not just the breadth of his shoulders or his finely sculpted chest and abs, or the fact that he was more than a foot taller than she was. What her eyes were glued to instead was the long, thick, throbbing length of his penis, and how it somehow seemed even bigger and harder than usual. Delilah gripped the edge of the counter tightly, as though holding on for dear life in anticipation of what was to happen next.

  His fingers slipped inside of her wetness easily, spreading the inner lips of her pussy wider, stroking the tender flesh there experimentally. “This is why I needed you wetter,” he murmured hoarsely. “So I could have you this way, right in front of this mirror, so that we can both watch while I fuck you nice and slow.”

  The mirror encompassed the entire wall behind the double sinks, and also extended onto the walls on either side. Delilah could easily glance to her right or left and see both of their bodies, and watch as he slid inside of her.