by V. F. Mason
“I hope it’s a happy sigh.” I felt a rumble and vibration from under me and snapped my eyes open.
Suddenly, I remembered what I did last night.
Nathaniel.
Nate and me in the shower.
The best sex of my life.
You never forget such things.
I raised my head and tried to get off him, but he didn’t let me. When my eyes met his, I saw softness in them, but at the same time, steel.
I remembered the other look there, the look of desire when he was on his knees and—
God, I felt myself blush from all the things we’d done, and it wasn’t like it was anything new. I was no stranger to sex or orgasms, but no one had ever taken so much time to give me pleasure the way he had, or ever made me come as hard as I did last night. He smiled and propped me a little bit higher on his body, angling his head up to give me a kiss, but I pushed back and he frowned.
Covering my mouth with my hand, I tried to escape but all my attempts were failing. I made a frustrated sound as I sat on top of him, holding the sheet tightly to my body because I discovered I was very much naked underneath it.
“Morning breath,” I muttered, and he had the nerve to laugh. Finally, he quieted and sat up so that I was straddling him. He put one hand on my nape and with the other, he wriggled the sheets away from our bodies. That was the moment when I discovered he was as naked as I was underneath it too.
“You have to be shitting me, babe, if you think I care about that.” He kissed me deeply, his mouth taking making a mockery of my excuses. He dominated me, and everything about the kiss.
Although I was on top, so to speak, he was the one who controlled the show here. His erection brushed against my belly and I raised my eyes to his.
“Someone needs attention?” I questioned playfully.
He grinned, and delivered slow kisses to my neck and collarbone while his hands teased and toyed with my nipples. I felt the familiar ache inside me as my head fell back, bringing my breasts closer to his mouth level. He didn’t wait; he sucked them firmly. Unconsciously, I moved against him to get friction on my pussy when he growled.
“My baby is wet, isn’t she?” He moved his hand down, cupping my crotch, and one of his fingers found its way in me. I couldn’t have kept the moan in even if I tried.
“Your baby?” I was barely able to speak through the desire I was feeling. Each word seemed like such a chore, and I just wanted to continue to rub against him and reach the peak that my body desperately needed.
“Yes, mine. You are mine right now, which means all this belongs to me.” With those words, he rubbed his finger against my clit harder. It felt so good that I was close to coming, until he abruptly pulled his finger out and raised it to his mouth. He smeared my essence on his lips before licking his finger clean. “Taste,” he ordered, and I could do nothing but lean forward and kiss him on the mouth… I whimpered because, for some reason, I found it delicious. Usually, I never wanted to have anything to do with my girly stuff, but I discovered, with him, I was learning new levels of sexual desire and arousal.
“See how tasty you are?” He spoke against my mouth and then moved to the cupboard near the bed, and grabbed a condom. “Want to put it on?” I nodded, eager for the chance to lavish attention on his hard, considerable length. It was slightly bigger than average, red with deep veins, and was painfully erect. Pre-cum leaked from the tip, and I so badly wanted to taste it, which was something new because I’d never given head to a guy before. Just the idea made me nauseous. But during this insane moment, it made me hotter, if it were possible.
I opened the foil packet and swiped the leaking pre-cum with my thumb, and before I could think about it, I licked my thumb to taste it. His eyes darkened with desire as he grabbed me by my neck.
“Put the rubber on, sweetheart.” I shifted a little and finally slid it on. It wasn’t easy because my body was shaking with need. Finally, he eased himself inside me with one thrust, forcing a groan from my lips.
I felt so full from this angle, not to mention it was my favorite position. I loved how powerful it made me feel, when the man’s body was underneath me and I set the pace.
“Like that, sweetheart, don’t you?” He started to move. “Ride me, honey. Do what you want.” That sent a bigger thrill through my body, and I leaned back on my hands and started to slowly rise up and down while his hands cupped my breasts, tugging on my nipples. He seemed to have an obsession with them. My breasts weren’t big, but I had very sensitive nipples, which he probably knew by now. Every time he touched or licked them, I felt fire running through my body. The tingling sensation fueled the desire and ache inside me.
I was so close when I felt his firm hands on my hips, controlling my thrust, pulling me a bit harder on him. The pleasure became unbearable and before I knew it, I was coming hard on top of him. Then he froze. I squeezed my core as he was coming inside of me while I cried out in pleasure.
With my face laying on his shoulder, I hugged him close while we both struggled to catch our breath.
He took great sex to the next level. I had no idea it could be like this.
Slowly running his fingers on my back, he sent goose bumps to my skin.
I wanted nothing more than to stay there forever. My body was aching from the gym and last night’s exploits, and now this. I wasn’t sure I would be able to walk.
“Hell of a way to wake up, honey.” I smiled against his shoulder and maneuvered my head to give him a gentle kiss before pulling myself back. I held his ice-blue eyes with mine as I took his head in my hands and placed my palms on each of his cheeks---I loved those dimples.
I was becoming obsessed with him and his body parts.
“What are we doing?” My voice sounded so lost and raspy that I barely recognized it. His eyes narrowed and something flashed through them, but I couldn’t figure out this emotion. And then it was gone. He didn’t want me to see it.
“Regrets?”
“No.” I shook my head, and I meant it. I would have been stupid to regret this, and us. I had no idea if there was an us, but we were definitely something.
As I shifted, I couldn’t keep in the moan of pain. My legs and the inside of my thighs were killing me. Shit, the whole exercise was probably overdoing it. I heard him curse, and the next thing I knew, he was in the bathroom and I heard the water running. He came out and picked me up. Once we were in there, I understood he’d started a bath, and even put some bubbles inside. That made me giggle.
“Wow, look at you!” With a smile, he put me inside the steaming water, which smelled like lavender, and the bubbles tickled my skin. The hot water felt heavenly to my sore muscles, relaxing every bone in my body. I expected him to join me, but he stood there, doing nothing. Frowning, I raised my eyes to meet his.
“Come here.” I patted the bath, causing the water to ripple. He shook his head as he leaned down to give me a gentle kiss on my forehead before moving back.
“I need to go change, sweetheart. I have a conference call in about thirty minutes, and it will take about an hour. You can enjoy the bath and I’ll meet you for breakfast. We need to talk about something.”
“You do know that no one likes to hear those words, right?” I responded.
He chuckled. “Yes, I know, but don’t worry. It has nothing to do with us, as in us.”
I raised my brow in question. “There is an us?”
He folded his arms across his chest and leaned against the doorjamb. “You still need to ask after last night and this morning?”
I shrugged, trying to act casual when I felt anything but. “People have sex all the time. It doesn’t mean there is an us for them.”
His eyes narrowed and again, he had a look in them that he didn’t allow me to read. For some reason, it bothered me, but I had no idea how to ask him about it. Maybe it was just my imagination?
“We are not ‘people,’ and it meant something to us.” He briefly paused before asking, “Or was it just m
e?” Silence stretched between us. I knew if I denied what happened here, he would never, ever make a move on me again.
And I wasn’t ready to let him go; not now, maybe not ever.
It was crazy and I knew it, but I didn’t care.
“No, it wasn’t just you,” I finally said, expecting him to come closer and give me a kiss, but he just nodded and left the bathroom.
Well, okay then.
Maybe he needed time to process it, too.
I leaned back on the bathtub pillow and closed my eyes, inhaling the sweet smell of the bubble bath, which calmed me down. The happiness I had experienced yesterday on the gym floor was nothing compared to how satisfied I was in that moment.
“I’m sorry, Nicky,” I whispered as I tried to let go, but knew deep in my heart I still couldn’t do that.
In order for me to do that, I had to admit he was dead and gone for good.
But no matter how good I had felt in the last two days, I wasn’t ready to do that just yet.
And for some reason, that made me want to cry more than anything else.
Ryan
If it wasn’t for my work ethic and the fact that I had promised my dad I would take care of the business for him, I would have spent the whole morning with Bella in the bathtub. She looked so good. Her skin was getting its color back and her sparkly violet eyes, which I loved, were starting to shine.
But I loved every single part of her, so it wasn’t exactly a surprise, either. Instead, I had to take a quick shower, then put on a pair of jeans, a black t-shirt, and some loafers. My hair was still damp when I sat down at the computer.
After I’d finally finished the conference call, which had taken a little bit longer than I’d expected, I felt good about the results. I had fired a few people, but it wasn’t like it wasn’t well-deserved. I couldn’t stand cheaters or liars. Because of my young age, they thought it would be easy to make me look stupid; well, I had just proven them wrong.
It wasn’t like I was thrilled about being an asshole, but I knew my job, and I always moved forward.
For some reason, no matter what I did, it always turned out successful and brought me more money than I knew what to do with. I refused to touch the hotel money; I’d had arguments with my parents about it all the time, but I wouldn’t budge. If they wanted to leave the legacy, they had to figure out how to do it. I could be CEO, but no way did I want to be an heir. I’d proposed Drake many times. It wasn’t like he was making a lot being a psychologist, but he had refused, too. We drove our dad crazy, but oddly enough, he didn’t insist on us to taking the money. There was a hint of pride in his eyes, or maybe I just imagined that. The old man never said one good word about it to either of us, so I doubted he would start anytime soon. There was no doubt he loved us and my mom, so it wasn’t a problem for me.
Grabbing my cell, I was about to go join my girl for the breakfast I promised, when I felt my phone vibrate and looked at the display.
“I seriously considered changing my number because of you.”
“Funny shit, Nate. You have my girl there and you think I won’t call every day to ask how she is?” If it was coming from any other man’s mouth, I would have probably punched him in the face and staked my claim, but I knew what Jeremy meant by “my girl.”
“She is doing well. Yesterday, the doctor gave her the all-clear for physical exercise, and based on the talk we had with him, he thinks she is good to go health-wise, as long as she doesn’t overdo it.” I heard the exhale of relief from the other end of the line. “Drake is still working with her. She still won’t admit it.” I didn’t have to explain anything to him; we both knew what I meant. As much as it bothered us, we knew there was nothing that could push the process forward; we had to wait.
“Did you tell her?”
“Not yet. I was about to do it just before you called me.”
“Well, tell her faster. We’re hopping on a plane soon. She needs to be ready for us.” Like I fucking didn’t know this. “Are you sure it’s a good idea?” I rubbed my nose and mechanically tried to push up glasses that were no longer there. Sometimes I forgot I’d had laser surgery a few years ago.
“She sings, she is in good health, and has been with you almost three months. She needs to slowly come back to her world. You know it, I know it, and even she knows it.”
We’d practiced her singing, and she knew she could do it. As much as I wanted to be there for her, she needed her band to be truly whole once and for all.
“We’ll be there by tonight.” Without waiting on my reply, he hung up the phone.
Making my way to the kitchen, I stopped dead in the doorway.
Bella was standing next to the coffee pot, one hand on her mug and the other on the pot, and she was laughing at something Marie said. She was wearing jean shorts that hugged her ass, which was slowly filling back out, atop her fit, long legs. She wore a purple shirt, one that drew attention to her small but firm breasts and flat stomach. I was sure the color made her eyes stand out. Her raven-black hair, which had regained its shine, was done in some kind of complicated braid that looked as though she put it up quickly. I had no idea what girls called the hairdo.
All in all, she was a beautiful angel.
She suddenly froze and turned around, as though she could feel my presence, and her violet eyes ended up on me.
Well, damn it, she was even more beautiful now when I could see all of her, not just her profile. She gave me a shy smile and seemed hesitant to move forward. I understood she had no idea how we were supposed to act when people were around.
As though I would treat her like a dirty little secret.
Like she did you all those years ago.
I pushed aside those memories, because everything was different now. There was no need to live in the past.
I opened my arms wide and raised my brows. She made a step forward, bit that full lip of hers that I loved so much, and stopped. Then, in quick moves, she ended up in my arms, her hands circling my waist. I inhaled her sweet scent of lavender and something else that I wasn’t able to catch. I could have drowned in her scent, but at the same time, I wanted her to smell like me, too.
Those primitive and caveman tendencies were fucking new, and I’d better take a hold of them. No way in hell would she let me control her, as I wanted to.
“Well, I see you finally made it official?” Marie’s amused voice snapped us from our moment, and I chuckled while Bella groaned into my chest. “No need to be ashamed, child. It’s a beautiful thing.”
I loved this woman. She was like a second mom to me and had agreed to follow me wherever I lived. She was always there, cooking and making sure the house had everything. She never judged, and she supported me in everything. She was a strong woman, who wasn’t afraid of challenges.
I thought her husband, Mark’s, death would break her and for a moment, it did, but then she put all the pieces back together and tried to find the good in life.
I admired her for that even more.
But as much as I trusted her and thought she was irreplaceable, even she didn’t know the whole truth about me and Bella and our past.
“Kind of,” I replied, and then looked down and raised Bella’s face with my fingers. As she gave me an annoyed look, I asked, “Did we make it official or not, babe?”
“Does it matter?”
“No.” And because she knew what I meant, she smiled and turned around to face Marie with my hands still wrapped around her waist from behind, pulling her back to my chest.
“I guess we can call it official then.” Marie just laughed and put two full plates on the table, motioning for us to sit. “Well then, it’s coffee for you.” Bella squealed and quickly grabbed the cup, inhaling the smell and taking a sip while moaning in pleasure.
Fuck, the sound sent shivers to my cock. My voice was gruff and held warning.
“Don’t enjoy it that much.” She frowned before smirking in my direction and moaning again. She had mischief in her eyes;
the little minx did it on purpose. “If you’re not afraid of the consequences it may bring.”
Shaking her head, she innocently stated, “I’m just enjoying my coffee here, and may I say, Marie, you make one of the best coffees out there.”
“Flattery won’t work, girl. You still get tea tomorrow.”
“Damn it,” she murmured, but then shrugged and kept drinking. “So what did you want to talk to me about?” She grabbed her fork and started to eat, making me realize how starved I was. I hadn’t had food since lunch yesterday and my stomach growled. Chuckling, she pointed at my plate. “Eat, and then we’ll talk.”
We finished our food quickly as Marie shared anecdotes about her kids with us and how they enjoyed college.
I hadn’t liked college much. I was an awkward, geeky kid, who everyone made fun of, and not to mention I was younger than everyone else. But I was glad she was happy about her kids.
We finished our food, thanked Marie, and I grabbed Bella’s hand, taking her down to the studio. I knew no one would bother us there, and maybe she might need to focus on music once the panic struck.
“So tell me. I really want to know.” She was holding another coffee mug; somehow she had convinced Marie that her generosity should extend for one more cup. Bella was full of energy and smiling. Part of me hated what I was about to do, but it needed to be done. Looking at me expectantly, she hopped on the chair near the mic.
I took the seat opposite her near the piano, basically the same position we were in the last time, and took a deep breath.
“I spoke with Jeremy yesterday.” She tensed, squeezing her mug tighter. “You guys have a music tour across the United States and Canada coming up.” She was still silent, so I decided to continue. “The press doesn’t know about your drug addiction.” She winced, but again said nothing. “They think you couldn’t handle the grief and hid somewhere to get better.” Which wasn’t exactly a lie, but she wasn’t ready to open up about her pain. “The band announced this tour one year ago. The tickets were sold and arrangements have been made. You worked your ass off on the album and were there for most of the songs.”
