by Lora Ann
I watched as her pulse quickened. Couldn’t blame her for that, Alex always caused such a reaction in women. His puss was movie star quality. Asshole was too damn pretty for his own good, but he always remained humble. He embodied the “golden boy” term to a T. And I loved him fiercely. Where Nik and I had completely fucked up too many times to count, Alex had remained on the straight and narrow. Lacey shook her head as if to clear it and reached for me. I came up behind her and placed my hands on her waist, pulling her tightly against me. I began to stiffen, and she hadn’t missed it. Naughty girl actually wiggled her ass against my cock. I leaned in and nipped her earlobe in warning. Instead of a yelp she tilted her head to the side, giving me better access to her neck. The urge to mark her hit me like a damn tidal wave. There wasn’t a place on her delectable body that I didn’t want to claim as mine. Yet I wanted more than just the physical, I needed her heart, mind, and soul like never before. I didn’t do hearts and flowers. I was a fuck ‘em hard and move on kind of man. But Lacey calmed the beast in me; she brought light into my darkness. I didn’t just desire her—I needed her like air to breathe, water to drink, food to eat. Sounded corny as hell, but there it was.
Alex cleared his throat, “Erghm. I should be going.” He set his glass down as he clapped my back. “I’ll be in touch.” Then he focused his attention on Lacey. “I’m doing all I can to find your sister. Please try not to worry,” he said with a reassuring smile.
Her lip trembled as she replied, “Thank you for everything you’re doing, Alex,” swallowing before she continued, “There aren’t words for how much I appreciate it.”
He nodded his head and then turned to make his exit.
Once we were alone, I turned her and held her firmly against me, letting her cry. I had learned long ago (thanks to my mom) that sometimes a woman just needed to release all the worries and frustrations through tears. She didn’t need me to speak; she just wanted my embrace. I was more than happy to oblige, though I would be a liar if I didn’t admit to wanting to give her a different kind of comfort. But I accepted that wasn’t in her best interest at the moment. I rubbed her back and acknowledged, “You should eat, smukka.”
I felt her shake her head. “Not hungry.”
I grabbed her shoulders and eased her away from my body. Then I ran my hands up the sides of her neck and cupped her face, tilting upwards so she had to make eye contact. “Food is essential. I won’t take ‘no’ for an answer.”
She sighed heavily. “Are you always this commanding?”
“Ah, sweetness,” I half-smiled, “You haven’t seen anything—yet.”
She wrapped her hands around my wrists and pulled them away from her face. “Alright, I’ll try to eat something.”
“Atta girl.” I tugged her forward towards the kitchen.
“I’m not promising anything.”
“You’ll eat,” I stated confidently, “Even if I have to force you.”
Under her breath she mumbled, “I’d like to see you try.”
I bit back a retort. She was upset. I knew she didn’t feel hungry, but I’d be damned if I was going to let her pass out due to lack of sustenance. Not on my watch. I would take care of her every need. Unlike the mess with Keeley, this was something I could control. The sooner she realized she was mine to care for, the better off she was going to be.
As we entered the kitchen I barked out, “Sit,” which came out harsher than I meant. Quickly I back peddled, “Hey.” She looked up at me with a wounded expression. Ah, dammit! I reached over and stroked her cheek. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be a dick.”
She did her best to smile. “I know.”
I gently brushed her lips with mine and then pivoted towards the fridge. I pulled out the ingredients to make a Denver omelet and began preparing.
I felt her eyes on me as I poured the egg mixture into the pan. “Why is it so sexy when a man cooks?”
I peeked over my shoulder at her. “I wouldn’t know.” I deadpanned, “I don’t find men sexy.”
She burst out laughing. God, I wanted to hear that as often as possible. She regained her composure and shot back, “I should hope not.”
I plated her food and took it over to her. “However,” I grinned. “I too find it sexy as hell when I watch a woman cooking.”
“Mmm,” she murmured around a bite.
“You like?”
“It’s delish.”
I nodded once as I went back to make myself one. “Someday we should cook together.”
“I’d like that.”
As I sat down to eat, she was wiping her mouth. I had just taken a bite when she nonchalantly stated, “Sex in the kitchen would be fun.”
I damned near choked. She smacked me between my shoulder blades. “Are you okay?”
After I was able to swallow the food, I looked over at her and noticed the concern in hers. “I’m fine.”
She graced me with an impish grin. “Well, thank goodness for that. Otherwise, I was going to have to find someone else to fulfill my fantasy.”
On a growl, I reached for her and yanked her forward. “Tease,” I rasped out before taking her mouth with mine. I pulled away from her sultry lips and mapped along her neck. “Do you know what I do to those who mock me?”
She panted, “No.”
In a fluid motion, I swept the dishes out of the way and locked my hands around her waist. I lifted her up onto the breakfast bar and traced my hands over her hips while tugging on her yoga pants. She lifted up so I could pull the material off her body. I bent down and licked the inside of her thigh. She put her arms behind her to brace herself on her hands and mewled at the tickling sensation I was causing. I gazed up from between her legs. “Look at me, Lacey.”
Her hooded eyes met mine as I slid my tongue up her slit. She moaned, “More,” while her eyes closed. I eased back a little. “If you want me to eat your sweet pussy, you have to watch.”
She bit her lip as her eyes lit on me. “Yeah, just like that,” I praised as I lightly stroked her wet seam. “I want you to see my tongue fucking you before I put my dick inside this beauty.”
She purred in response. Her reaction to my dirty talk did things to me I never imagined possible. I leaned back in and circled her clit with my tongue. She opened wider for me, all the while watching. I tracked down to her opening but didn’t enter until I had thoroughly licked around it. Then I thrust my tongue into the gate of heaven and proceeded to make love to her with my mouth until she came apart all over my face. I rubbed my chin and cheeks back and forth across her mound as I worked to get my jeans off. I eased my hands under her thighs and pulled her towards me. “Wrap your legs around my waist, søta.”
She did as I instructed. I moved my hands to her firm ass and lifted her slightly before I brought her down over my engorged cock. We both groaned at the pleasure of our bodies connecting. I pumped a few times and then moved her against the wall; where I proceeded to bury myself balls deep over and over again. She bit my earlobe before purring, “You feel incredible. I love how your big cock is buried so deep inside me this way.” She might have been a novice but she caught on quickly. I thrust harder and faster at her words. “Yes,” she squeaked out. “Oh my God, E…I’m going to come.”
I roared, “So am I,” and then exploded inside her tight canal.
Our breathing was still regulating as I eased out of her. I actually mourned the loss of our connection. Fuck, who am I kidding? This woman owned me. I went to grab a towel, wet it, and walked back towards her. Her gaze was locked on mine as she watched me cleanse between her legs.
“I like it when you take care of me,” she whispered before grabbing the towel and wiping off my dick.
“Get used to it. You’re not getting rid of me.”
She gently kissed the side of my mouth. “I figured as much.”
I pulled her tightly against me and ardently kissed her back. I was already hardening again. She pulled back and looked down at my erection. “Oh my,” she gaspe
d. “Let’s take care of that.” She laced her fingers with mine and towed me behind her as she made her way to the bedroom, where we proceeded to make love slow and easy.
****
The morning light filtered in through the tall pines outside the windows. I laid there and watched how it played across Lacey’s nude body. Her fair skin came alive as the sun glistened along her hips and shoulders. Her hair was a deep, dark auburn with the rays shining on it instead of the black with red highlights. In that moment I knew, I never wanted to wake up again without her next to me. She was beyond radiant, yet it was so much more than her beauty that had beguiled me. Her loving nature, her trust, and her magnificent innocence held me captive, in which being set free was not an option. If marriage is what this ‘good girl’ required, then I would happily be her husband. Hell, I didn’t think it were possible to fall in love, much less want to take a wife. Yet, here I was considering our future together. Marriage had never been a blip on my radar, but somehow I knew, Lacey wouldn’t continue our relationship this way without it for very long. And I needed her with me—forever.
She began to stir as her eyes met mine. “Morning,” she greeted gravely. Her voice caught the attention of my cock and he saluted her accordingly. She glanced down and then back up to my face. “Someone’s happy to see me,” she teased.
“Always,” I rasped before I brushed my lips against hers, tugging her hips tightly into mine.
She placed her hand on my chest. “Hold that thought.” Then she rolled over and got out of bed, padding towards the bathroom.
When she came back into the bedroom after finishing her business, I was waiting for her in the Jacuzzi. I held out my hand for her to join me. She eased down into the bubbling water, and I pulled her astride my lap. Running my fingers through her hair, I acknowledged, “We didn’t make it to the water yesterday.”
“Mmm, that feels good. Actually, I did soak when you went to talk to Alex,” she confessed. “But I didn’t stay very long.”
I cradled her tightly against me and dragged my lips along her neck. “Time to remedy that.”
She mewled as I nipped her earlobe and slowly began to grind against my throbbing dick. Her fingers twined in my hair as she gently pulled. I groaned along her jaw before reaching her mouth. Our tongues began to twist and tangle as the kiss built up into a raging storm. I couldn’t get enough of her. So when she lifted slightly and positioned my cock to her opening, I comprehended she couldn’t get enough of me either. She eased down and took me inside of her, then began a slow and gentle ride to ecstasy.
Afterwards, we sat with her between my legs. Her back was against my chest as we enjoyed a few moments of peace. She leaned against my shoulder and tilted her head so she could look up at me. “Can I ask you something?”
“I’ll tell you anything you want to know.”
“Promise not to get angry with me?”
I kissed the tip of her nose. “I’ll do my best,” I vowed.
“Well,” she took a fortifying breath, “I was wondering…how many women have you been with?”
“Only one that matters.”
She cocked an eyebrow. “I’m being serious.”
“So am I.” On a heavy sigh I continued, “Fine. I honestly don’t have an exact figure to give you, because I’ve never really cared to keep track.”
“Oh,” she gasped with not a little horror.
God, I didn’t want to share my darkness with her. I watched her bring her emotions under control, and what I saw in her eyes was grace, not condemnation. In turn for her gift, I gave her what she requested. “I was a lost kid, Lacey. When my dad died, the bubble I had once lived in burst.”
“Wait,” she interrupted. “How did your dad die?”
I exhaled loudly out of frustration. A.) I hated discussing bad memories. B.) I already didn’t want to talk about any of this. C.) I couldn’t stand it when someone interrupted me. Quite frankly, I was ready to turn her over my knee and show her how much that irritated me. She must have sensed the anger twisting in my gut. She reached up and caressed my jaw, effectively bringing the beast to heel. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I shouldn’t have stopped you.”
That, right there, was why I was falling in love with her so deeply. I gave her a crooked grin before I acknowledged, “You’re forgiven. But please, let me get through this without interruptions. It’s hard enough to talk about.”
Her eyes narrowed with a ‘why?’ lighting her face. With a tender kiss I admitted, “I don’t want you to know the demons within me.”
She turned her body so that she was sitting on my lap and cupped my face in her soft hands. “Nothing you tell me will change how I see you. Promise,” she declared.
Her affirmation gave me the courage to spill my guts, for better or for worse. “Dad was a zoologist. He was trampled to death by an elephant that was startled by a veterinarian when he entered unannounced. I was eleven when it happened.”
“How horrible! I’m so sorry.” She twined her fingers with mine.
I continued, “Mom decided we should relocate from San Diego to Lake Tahoe. The first year was an adjustment, but I was doing all right until the crash with Nik and Rachel.”
Again she shot me and inquisitive look, so I answered, “Rachel was Nik’s high school sweetheart. After graduation, they married and she got pregnant on their wedding night. Somewhere around her fifth month she was killed in a car wreck.” A tear escaped as I thought back to that awful night where I watched the brother I hero-worshipped break. I hadn’t just lost a beloved sister-in-law that night—I lost my brother as well. Thanks to Aimee I have him back, but it took many years for that to happen.
Lacey tenderly wiped the moisture off my cheek with her forefinger while I watched her eyes glisten from her own unshed tears. There wasn’t pity I saw in them, only compassion. Dammit all to hell, I really don’t deserve a woman like her. I went on, “Nik was convicted of involuntary vehicular manslaughter.”
“What?!”
I rubbed her back, appreciating her outrage at the system that had failed my brother. I explained, “According to the police report, he was driving too fast for conditions. See, they were traveling during a snow storm.”
I glanced into her eyes and noticed the exact moment she comprehended what had happened. I proceeded, “With my oldest brother in jail, I began to act out. Alex was too busy with school, plus he was living in Sacramento at the time. So I went looking for validation in all the wrong places.”
I took a deep breath before confessing, “I was fourteen when a friend’s twenty-year-old sister spread her legs for me.”
Lacey’s hand clamped over her mouth as I heard her mumble, “That’s too young. And she was old enough to know better,” she bit out in outrage.
“You’re right.”
She went wide-eyed when she realized I had overheard her. “Sorry,” she breathed.
“No worries.” I caressed her cheekbone with my thumb as I carried on, “Having sex was the least of it. I had gotten in thick with a local drug dealer. Wasn’t long before I was slinging blow.” At this little tidbit, I bowed my head in shame.
She wouldn’t allow me to harbor guilt. Gently kissing the side of my mouth, she said, “We all make mistakes.”
I swallowed the lump in my throat. Just when I thought I couldn’t love her more, she did something like that. Fuck! I felt I owed her a little bit more insight into my past. “Before you ask me, no, I didn’t use. However, I won’t lie and say I hadn’t tried it a time or two, but honestly, the high wasn’t worth the aftermath.” Her head bowed. Reaching forward, I cupped her chin and raised her face up so our eyes would meet. The tears she had held back were now streaming down her beautiful cheeks. “What did I say?” I ask with more emotion than I intended.
She hiccupped, “I…j-j-just wish Keeley—”
I vehemently interrupted, “Stop! From what you’ve shared about Keeley she didn’t choose to try any of that shit. Unbeknownst to her, it had been
hidden in her drinks.” She blew out an exaggerated breath. “Listen to me, Lacey. That crap is highly addictive. Only one time and you can get hooked, chasing after a better high until eventually you’re consumed.”
A sob broke before she queried, “Then why not you? How did it not take you over?”
“First off, heroin is completely different than cocaine. Plus, you cannot go around comparing people—we all have our vices.”
“Everyone has something that tempts them.”
“Yes, we all do.” I really wasn’t religious, but I understood that she had grown up in and around church. So her verbiage hadn’t disturbed me as much as it would’ve coming from another source. Even Aimee didn’t bug me when she referenced things every once and awhile from the Bible. That was saying something right there, because normally, I wouldn’t tolerate people on their high horse using faith and God as their excuse to come across like they were better than others. In my point of view, that made them the worst kind of person. Last time I checked none of us could ever be good enough, which was why a savior was necessary. Great, I sounded like one of those “come to Jesus” freaks. Now that was laughable! I began to snicker.
Lacey cocked her head to one side. “What’s so funny?”
“Nothing,” I snorted out, “Just me being ridiculous.” I reached up and tucked a stray tendril behind her ear and added, “All I’m sayin’ is that there are things that everyone struggles with.”
She nodded her head. “I know you’re right.”
Before we could get more off track, I knew I needed to finish this part of my story. “Like I was saying, the coke hadn’t sunk its claws into me, but sex had. The guy I was slinging for ran a string of drycleaners. To be more accurate, his dad owned the businesses but he oversaw them all. Big responsibility for a twenty-one year old, but when my fifteen-year-old ass was caught fucking his mom, that was the only way to keep him from beating the shit out of me. So I struck a deal. If he kept his mouth shut, I would make him a boat load of money. And I did, more so than I thought possible. Which shouldn’t have surprised me, considering, I was dealing with those in the casino industry as well as the high school. Talk about win-win for me and him. We never became friends, but we sure were allies till the end.”
