HIGHER (The Indigo Lounge Series)

by Cox, Zara

  Swimming and water were part of Zach’s private life. She was shameless enough to wish to be a part of that life. Flexing her toes in the cool water, she sipped the tequila-based cocktail Zach had fixed for her.

  She was finishing her drink twenty minutes later when he walked in.

  Sharp eyes darted from her immersed feet to her face and a smile broke out on his face.

  She returned the smile, a spurt of pride welling up in her chest.

  “Hey Peaches,” he said as he came to crouch behind her. His hand slid round her nape and up into her hair.

  “Hey,” she responded, tilting her head up to watch his face. His incredibly handsome profile knocked the breath from her lungs.

  “Think I’ll be able to convince you into the water anytime soon?”

  She swallowed before she could speak. “I’m willing to give it my very best shot.”

  His smile widened. “That’s my girl.”

  He rose, went to the shelves holding the towels and brought one back with him. After drying her feet, he picked up her shoes and tugged her after him.

  “You told me your high school crush was swimming. So you were a swim jockey?”

  He looked back at her and nodded. She noted his smile was a little strained. “Swimming was my whole life back then. I competed all the way to nationals.”

  “Why was it your whole life?” she asked, half holding her breath in case he shut her down.

  But he merely tugged her to his side and hurried along the hallway toward his bedroom. “Because it was my means of escape from home and from my mother.”

  Her breath caught. He kissed her mouth and pushed her into the bedroom.

  “Don’t look so surprised, Bethany. I’m a fast learner. And I’m learning very quickly that opening up a little with you gains me serious brownie points. You can ask me another question later and I’ll answer. But right now I need to pay you back for my ten days of suffering. After that I’ll see about building up more brownie points.”

  “But…we’ve made up since then!”

  He laughed, a pure predatory sound that jerked her heart to her belly and flipped it back up.

  He hooked his fingers under her dress straps and started lowering them. Her strapless bra quickly joined the heap at her feet.

  The moment he spotted her indigo thong, the ruthless anticipatory gleam in his eyes that had been sparked since they left her place grew. Every time he turned those grey eyes on her, a fresh tingle of hot anticipation slammed her sideways.

  “You think that was making up? You tying me up and having your way with me?” He kicked his shoes away and reefed his shirt over his head. His chiseled chest rippled as he moved and her mouth watered shamelessly.

  “My poor, poor Peaches. I haven’t even been anywhere near your ass throughout this so-called making up period. So tell me, you think I’m anywhere near appeased?”

  She swallowed. “No. I’m thinking this is where you fuck me until I break in half?”

  He laughed again. “Oh baby, I love the way you blush when you say that. But yeah, I’m fresh out of mercy tonight.”

  He picked her up and threw her over his shoulder. His rough stubble grazed one ass cheek as he strode purposefully for the toy room.

  Even hanging upside down she guessed which gadget Zach was heading for. When he stopped beside the rocking horse, she whimpered.

  “Is that a moan of anticipation I hear?” he mocked.

  “No, it’s a put me down before I pass out groan.”

  The hard slap of his hand against her ass was unexpected and stung hard enough to make her eyes water.

  “Zach!”

  The next thing she felt was his fingers digging beneath her thong before the sound of ripping satin tore through the air. Before she could protest, her twin globe received an equally sharp smack.

  Three more smacks per cheek followed that left her gasping and extremely turned on.

  “Are you ready to behave, Peaches?”

  She bit her lip and nearly answered in the negative. But the need to have him inside her trumped any other desire ripping through her. “Yes,” she answered hoarsely.

  “Then you think you can dig out your nails from my ass so I can put you down?”

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  She stared down and realized her fingers were gripping his hard ass cheeks through his jeans. Face flaming, she released him slowly, letting her fingers linger over his tight glutes.

  He set her down, and smoothed back her hair, his eyes filled with humor and hunger. Her vision swam with the headiness of being close to Zach and knowing she could soon have him again.

  Eyes on her face, he slowly cupped her breasts and played with her nipples. Then he lowered his head and sucked one tight bud into his mouth.

  Head falling back, she grabbed his arms to keep from buckling. He suckled and teased until she groaned from the pleasure rocketing through her. When he was satisfied he had her on the knife-edge of delirium, he pulled back.

  “You ready for me to show you how the horse works?”

  She gave a jerky nod. He turned her to face the smooth, faceless gadget.

  It was chest high and made of expensive, highly polished wood set on an inch-thick black granite platform. The horse’s neck was wider than normal, she guessed because it could offer the rider a chance to ride backward while lying against its neck.

  The saddle was equally as wide with twin curved seats. With one hand bracing her stomach, Zach leaned forward and slid his hand underneath the front saddle.

  A smooth whine followed a click and a small crack opened in the saddle. The finger-like gadget that rose brought another blush to her cheek.

  “Touch it,” Zach crooned in her ear.

  Lifting her hand, she brushed her finger against the pale finger and felt its vibration. He pressed another button and two more openings three inches long appeared on either side of the finger. Soft rubber tubes rotated outwards in a slow rhythm.

  “Those two are called pussy-spreaders,” he whispered in her ear. “They hold you nice and open while the finger goes to work on your clit. Normally, I’d object to anything touching you, but I have a feeling I’ll have my hands full behind you.”

  Without giving her warning, he picked her up and placed her on the back saddle. He waited until she had a leg on either side and was grasping the saddle before he let go.

  Eyes fixed firmly on her, he unbuttoned his jeans and kicked them off.

  Naked and rampantly aroused, he was so breath-taking, she felt dizzy just looking at him. He caught her staring and smiled. One hand grasped his thick cock and he lazily stroked himself. With the other, he smoothed her hair over her shoulders so the long chocolate-colored strands drifted down her back.

  “You look so fucking gorgeous up there, Peaches,” he muttered gruffly. He stroked himself again and a drop of pre-cum glistened at his wide head.

  She didn’t realize she was licking her lips until he gave a hard groan. “As much as I want that mouth on me, I want inside you more. Slip your feet into the stirrups and slide into the front saddle. Then slowly lower yourself down for me,” he instructed.

  Bracing her hands on the wide saddle, she did as he asked. Wild sensation shot through her body as the gadgets went to work. The spreaders parted her wet folds and kept her parted as the fat finger vibrated against her sensitive clit. “Oh…oh, God!”

  Zach’s face darkened as need and rough envy tightened his features. “Having fun without me, baby?”

  She shook her head quickly. “It just feels…different.” Nothing would ever beat the touch of Zach’s hands and mouth on her but the gadget had been created for a reason and that reason was making her core scream with even more hunger for Zach. “I want you.”

  His nostrils flared wide. “You’ll have me. Cross your hands behind you, baby.”

  Breath fracturing out of her lungs, she complied. Releasing his cock, he circled her waist with his hands, pressed her down harder onto the gadget as
he flicked the tip of his tongue against her nipples.

  The twin sensation at her breast and between her legs ripped sharp cries from her lips. Wet heat oozed between her legs and her whole body trembled as pleasure slammed into her.

  After a full minute of the studied assault, he trailed his mouth up to her neck and gently nipped on her earlobe. “Did you like that?”

  “Yes,” she gasped shamelessly.

  “Good.” He placed one foot into his stirrup and swung himself into his saddle.

  His strong thighs bracketed hers and heat from his body immediately engulfed her. One hand slid around her waist and his thick cock brushed against the crease in her ass.

  “Perfect,” he crooned, anticipation thickening his voice even further. Somewhere behind her, she heard another electric whine and the horse tilted forward slightly, exposing her more from behind. Zach caressed her ass, squeezing her smarting rump before parting her from behind. She turned and watched his face as he stared down at her ass.

  His tongue rested against his bottom lip and his eyes, when they reconnected with her, raged with lust. “Are you holding on, Peaches? This will get a lot rough.”

  She gripped the saddle in front of her and tried to breathe.

  Hard hands gripped her waist and tilted her even further forward. Her clit pressed harder into the vibrating finger and she felt the head of his cock nudge her entrance

  “God, baby, you have no idea how fucking incredible you look right now.”

  “Fuck me, Zach. Please.” She felt as if she’d been waiting for an eternity for this. As if the other times these past two days had meant nothing because she’d been in charge and not him.

  She’d never believed herself submissive, but feeling his total power over her body, obeying his every instruction, sent her excitement shooting up another few hundred notches.

  His fingers slid along her crack, fingered her hole before plunging a finger inside her. She squeezed around him and his breath hitched.

  “Christ, you’re so ready for me, aren’t you?”

  “Please…” She angled her ass closer, desperate for him to take her.

  After several long seconds of lazily finger-fucking her, he withdrew. She bit her lip and waited.

  The first thrust lifted her off her seat. Zach buried himself deep, not taking the time to let her accommodate him. She screamed as ecstasy ripped through her core. He filled her so completely her vision blurred.

  “Do you feel me, baby? Do you feel how hard I am for you? This is what you’ve done to me. Are you pleased with yourself?”

  “Y…yes,” she gasped.

  “Good. Because I fucking adore you for it. I live for this, Bethany. To be with you like this.” He lifted her and plunged her back down on his rigid length. Another grunt ripped from his throat. “Every day. Every night. This!”

  Stupid tears rose in her eyes, crashing against the pleasure, the pain and the fear of what the future held for them. “Oh, Zach,” her voice broke as emotions shook her body.

  She wanted to blurt out the words slamming through her brain but she bit her tongue. She would only tell him when she knew it meant something to him, not because he demanded it. They both knew it was there. For now, she would hold it in her heart and express it another way that didn’t need the words.

  His grip tightened and he fucked her hard, relentlessly. As ever, sharply in tune with her body, he lifted her off the saddle every time she hovered on the brink of orgasm. Without the clitoral stimulus, her headlong rush into bliss was curbed. He slowed down long enough for her excitement to abate before he set the raw, blistering pace again.

  He fucked her without mercy, until her hair grew damp and sweat poured down their bodies. At one point, he banded an arm around her waist and twined her hair in a tight hold, using it to control his thrusts.

  When he started to lift her again, she shook her head, her need wild and uncontrollable. “Please, Zach, I want…God, I need to come.”

  “And I need to make you understand how I felt this past week, baby,” he said hoarsely. “You keeping us apart may have seemed like the right thing to do for you, but it shredded me. So I’m taking this. Because I fucking need it!”

  The pain in his voice sent a shaft of echoing anguish through her heart. Weirdly, and as much as she wanted the release that clawed through her, she understood his need to conquer her.

  They dealt with their issues differently, she realized that. She was the retreat-and-lick-her wounds type and he was the stick-together-no-matter-what type. By withholding herself from him, she’d wounded him.

  “Zach?” her voice was barely above an audible croak.

  “Yes, baby?” he rasped back.

  “I understand.”

  His breath punched out. He leaned into her and his stubbled jaw brushed hers. Banding both arms around her body, he brought her down hard onto his cock with a rough growl. “Thank you.”

  From then on, all she could do was hold on tight as he ravaged her. He eventually allowed her an orgasm; followed by several more in quick succession once he was satisfied her surrender was complete.

  When she became too boneless to move somewhere in the early hours, he arranged himself on a leather recliner and settled her on top of him, her body on the opposite side to his. Spreading her thighs wide, he lazily licked her throbbing pussy.

  The soothing movement made her melt even more. But beneath her cheek, his cock was beginning to grow again.

  “No obligation at all, Peaches, but you can suck me off if you want,” he said in between licks.

  His superhuman recuperation skills had long ceased to amaze her. Feeling drowsy and languid, she grasped his cock and stroked him. Holding him was a treat she didn’t think twice about foregoing.

  “How about a hand job?”

  She felt a smile against her inner thigh. “That works for me too.”

  She stroked him until the need to taste him grew too strong to deny. Then she ended up giving him exactly what he’d asked for. As he drew closer to losing control, his antics between her legs altered, grew more urgent. He sucked, licked, bit and ravaged her as if he hadn’t already spent hours feasting on her.

  Renewed hunger tore through her, sending a shuddering climax pounding through her seconds before he filled her mouth with his hot, gushing seed.

  After they caught their breaths, he picked her up and headed for the bedroom. As they passed the horse, heat stormed into her cheeks.

  “You know I’ll never be able to ride a horse with a straight face ever again, don’t you?”

  His laughter was deep and supremely satisfied. “I hope you won’t. From now on I want everything meaningful in your life to remind you of me.”

  The dark possessiveness in his voice sent a pulse of pleasure through her body. Zach may be irrational in his demands, but it turned her on that he made them anyway.

  Walking her to the bathroom, he washed her from head to toe, then washed himself as she dried her body. They fell into bed and he pulled her close. Just as she was about to fall asleep, a thought brought her wide awake.

  “What happened with your attorneys?”

  Zach’s jaw tightened and a hard light entered his eyes. “Karim didn’t turn up for the conference call.”

  Her heart lurched. “You think it’s because of the photo?”

  His jaw clenched and released. “Yes.”

  “What are you going to do?”

  “Find a different route to make him play ball.” He tilted her face and looked into her eyes. “I promise you, Bethany, one way or the other, this will be resolved.”

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  “Morning, Peaches. Time to wake up.” Warm lips kissed along her shoulders and down her spine.

  She groaned and buried her head deeper into the pillow. “Why? It’s Saturday. And it’s stupidly early,” she protested.

  “I want to hit the pool.” He trailed his lips from one dimple above her ass to the other.

  “And you want m
e to leave my warm bed and come and watch you swim. What’s in it for me?”

  He worked his way back up and nuzzled her earlobe. “A newly energized lover who may give you a poolside fuck if you come keep him company.”

  She groaned again. “You just spent half the night fucking me, Zach.”

  He paused at her neck. “Is that a complaint?”

  She knew better by now, so she shook her head. “Throw in a coffee and I’ll consider your offer.” Even as she said it, the smell of freshly ground coffee hit her nostrils.

  He pulled away. She turned over to see him smiling and holding out a steamy mug. “I know how grouchy you get without your caffeine fix.”

  Accepting the cup, she took a grateful sip. He got out of bed, naked and unashamedly magnificent. At the door, he paused and stared back at her. “You coming?”

  She stared down at her naked state. “I need to throw on some clothes first.”

  His mouth compressed. “You don’t need to but if you insist, you can grab a T-shirt from in there.” He pointed to the dressing room and walked out.

  She took another sip and set her cup down. Zach might have no compunction walking around butt naked but she’d never felt comfortable walking around in the buff. She didn’t think she ever would.

  Walking into his dressing room was like walking into a shadow of Zach’s lingering aura. His smell and potency permeated the room and she had to force herself to focus on finding a T-shirt instead of sniffing in the air like an eager puppy.

  By the time she got to the pool, his huge body was cleaving rapidly through the water. Watching him swim, much like watching him do anything, was a heady experience. The man was a fucking god amongst other men, with a stamina that defied reason.

  He’d set a timer by the poolside and it read fifteen laps done already.

  She made her way slowly to the side of the pool where he’d found her last night, took two steps into the water and perched on the edge. The water lapped her legs as she finished her coffee.

  Setting the cup aside, she leaned back on her hands and continued to watch Zach.