“That’s dumb, Mom. I work a lot because I have to work.” She took a deep breath and wondered if she should out Javi’s absenteeism and general assholery over the past few months. She just couldn’t do it. She still had hope for him. “I like to work a lot. I fully expect to work more when Daddy retires.”
“But life isn’t about work. You’ve got to mix up a little play in there. You have to admit Manuel would be fun to play with. He has money, too.”
“I don’t care about his money. I make my own money.” Her mother didn’t work outside the home, but she’d been just as much a part of her father’s success as he was. But her mother didn’t get that Alana was more like her father than her. She wanted to be in the driver’s seat. She needed it.
“But why do you want to work so hard when you don’t have to? Javi is going to take over for your father.” That burned in her chest. Her mother looked at her like she was some sort of alien who’d rather be neck-deep in spreadsheets than being squired around town by a stunted, adolescent reality star who probably couldn’t give her an orgasm if she gave him a map to the right spots.
“You know, I do have fun.” Her cheeks heated. She’d had fun several hours earlier, in fact.
“When was the last time?” Her mother poured them both a glass of wine.
Alana took several gulps before answering. She was tempted to tell her that it was last night with Cole, but she said, “I read books, I went to the Mariners game earlier this week. All fun.”
“I still think you should consider going out with Manuel. You really could use a boyfriend. That’s the kind of fun I want you to have.”
Her mother wanted her to get laid? Now, she’d heard everything. She wanted to tell her mother about how she had been getting laid. But it wasn’t time yet. Not until she and Cole figured out what they were and if they were going to continue. But she had to give her mother something so she would stay off her back.
Alana snagged another canapé. “Listen—this is really good—I am seeing someone, but we’re not ready to talk about it.”
“Are you seeing a woman? Listen, you’re father’s old-fashioned, but you can’t think that matters to us—”
“That’s great, but it’s a guy. I just don’t want to bring him around until I know it’s going to last.”
Her mother topped up both of their wineglasses. As she walked towards the door to the dining room, her mother squeezed her hand and said, “Well, if it doesn’t work out, I’m making you keep that date with Manuel.”
* * * *
Cole seethed while he ate his prime rib. She was going to date that fucking guy. Give him ten minutes, Cole would come up with ten ways to kill him without weapons and without leaving any evidence. Recounting those methods in his head was the only reason he hadn’t walked over to Alana as soon as she and Mrs. Hernandez came out of the kitchen to claim her in front of her whole family.
But she didn’t want that; the looks that her sister was throwing told him that Carla would gut him. And he was painfully aware that Javi would skin him alive. He had no idea how to smooth that road or even if he could.
When Alana laughed at something her father said, he knew that it wouldn’t be easy. Even if she would accept him working with her, even if he found something else in Miami, her family would never be okay with him as her boyfriend. That slimy fucker Rivera, sure. But the country bumpkin who didn’t have family connections or huge amounts of money, never.
It was just like Beth all over again. Humiliation stabbed him in the gut.
The money thing, he could fix by taking the job offer from Javi. But if he did that, Alana would freak out and break up with him. He didn’t know if he could convince her that working together would be okay. Hell, he didn’t know if they could make it work. Trying to be in a relationship would be hard enough. Add work to that, and it could blow up. He’d be out of a job in a city where he didn’t know anyone, all without the girl he’d moved there for.
Javier grabbed the back of his arm so hard that Cole almost choked on his beef. Javier had been hitting the bourbon a lot harder than Cole had.
“Man, I feel like I’ve barely seen you since you’ve been to town.” Javi pointed at Cole’s decimated steak. “You seem to be over the stomach bug; we should go out tonight.” Cole knew he couldn’t put it off any longer, though the thought of spending the evening without Alana made more than his dick hurt. “Nah, I have to see about a girl tonight.”
Chapter 12
Alana woke up with Cole’s fingers playing between her legs. Ordinarily, the best way to wake her up was to leave coffee on the nightstand and back away. Petting her clit while growling dirty things in her ear was much better.
“Mmmmhhh. That would be a lot better if you’d already made coffee.” Even though she couldn’t care less about caffeine with his hands on her, she didn’t want to be too easy.
Apparently, he didn’t appreciate her sassy comment because he stopped thrumming her pussy like a guitar. She gasped with pleasure as he settled his weight into her body and fixed his mouth to hers in a long kiss that consumed her. She stopped playing at resisting the lure of him and melted into her mattress.
“You’re better than coffee,” he said between kisses. “You taste better.” He bussed his mouth over her jaw. “And you sure wake me up better.”
His erection lengthened against her stomach. She could stand to wake up like this every day. But she couldn’t—not even today—because she would have a pile of work to do and about a thousand client calls to return.
“I can’t wake you up that way today.” He grabbed both of her wrists and levered them so that they were pinned next to her head.
“Why not? I won’t take that long.”
“You’re not enticing me.” She returned his grin when he swiveled his hips so that his cock brushed against her clit. “That part is, but I have to go to work.”
“No, you don’t. Call in sick. Everything can wait a day.”
She’d never skipped work. Never taken a personal day for anything other than a family vacation, scheduled months in advance. But, then again, she’d never had a really good reason to play hooky. Especially since her father didn’t seem to believe she was keeping the whole thing afloat.
Her dad might use it as an example for why Javi would take over the reins when he retired. Javi would for sure throw it back in her face the next time she told him to handle his own mess and get his head back in the game. Why did she care so much? She could go work for any number of firms. Her father would prefer it if she quit and focused on finding a husband.
She didn’t want to think about getting married right now. Not with Mr. Noncommittal between her legs, driving her crazy with the least amount of movement possible. This morning was perfect. Things she never noticed like the breeze wafting through the white drapes, the birds chirping came into focus because of the heated press of his flesh against hers.
She dug her fingers into the close-cropped hair at the base of his scalp before she reached her head up and kissed him again. She wasn’t ready to give up the power and control that the cracking lust between them gave her. His mouth answered with an invitation to sin.
“If I call in sick, my mother will show up with soup,” she said when she finally stopped kissing him.
“Where can we go where your family won’t hunt us down?”
Alana stopped to think, which was hard when Cole drew away and made a show of putting on a condom. There was no way she was going to pass up a whole day with this man. Naked. In a bed or on any other surface.
And if she was going to play hooky, she might as well go all the way in being irresponsible. As soon as they were done here, she had a couple of calls to make.
* * * *
Cole gripped the wheel of his truck tighter every time Alana’s phone buzzed on the way over to the condo. By the time they got into the elevator that would take them to her family’s beach condo, he was ready to take her damn cell
phone out of her hands and toss it from the balcony. She’d promised him that they could be alone for a few days.
She was so chained to them, to what they wanted for her, what they wanted her life to look like—they wanted her to be just like them. They couldn’t see that she was keeping the whole thing afloat.
But he wouldn’t have to destroy her phone if she put it down long enough for him to tie her to the bed and make her forget that she had a family. The way her ass looked in that white dress when she bent to put the groceries they’d picked up in the fridge, made him want to flip up the skirt and push his cock inside without prelude. Hell, she could even stay on the damn phone.
When they’d walked into the condo, he was again stunned by her family’s wealth. It was perfect, and he was afraid to sit on the furniture or touch anything. No matter what he did next in his life, he could never give her this. Even if he joined HH, he would just be a cog in the machine. Under the best circumstances, she would be his boss. Under the worst, her dad and brother would push her out of the company and whatever they had together would be done for. He hadn’t realized it until the night before, but they were raging sexists.
If he became part of that, he would lose her. The hopes he was starting to have for their future, would never become real. The fact that she didn’t seem to notice it as she puttered around and chatted with someone drew their differences into a sharp contrast.
He needed to bind her to him, to make sure that she felt the same way before making any big steps towards staying. And she was wasting that time on the phone. He grabbed her hips as she straightened and brought her body flush with his. She blew out a breath in a huff and her voice lost its cadence, but she didn’t stiffen up or try to draw away.
Cole closed the refrigerator door and turned her toward him; he didn’t leave much space. She liked it when he took charge; he could tell by the way her body softened and her breath quickened. He’d had his way with her last night, and he couldn’t get enough of fulfilling her fantasies.
His bone-deep desire was for her to answer his phone call with a familiar, loving smile in her voice. He didn’t know if he’d ever have the right to be where she was all the time, but he had to try. And the way she let him get to her during sex was the way in. He didn’t know why it bothered him that she might only want him for the sex. But, for the first time since his ex, it did.
“Who’s on the phone?” He kept his voice quiet.
“Carla,” she mouthed.
“Hang it up.”
Her lips turned up at the edges. “I’ve got to go.”
* * * *
“But I thought you were sick.”
Cole tightened his hands on her waist and pulled her closer. She felt the growl that he bit back radiating from the base of his throat. She needed him, and if Carla didn’t let her get off the phone, she’d just hang up. Or put it on mute and let him at her.
His hands roamed up and down her back and up and down her thigh. She pressed herself against him; the way he took control of her body made her sort of desperate for him. She’d never stop thinking about the way he touched her, the way he looked at her.
But she couldn’t think about that for long. Cole’s hands were under her sundress, which fluttered to the floor, leaving her in lace panties and a bra.
Alana could feel her nipples pressing against the lace and structure of the bra, which made her restless and wanton. As Cole looked her over with a heated gaze, she squeezed her thighs together.
“I don’t think I like you wearing underwear.”
She moaned, and then she hung up on her sister. Hopefully, she hadn’t heard that last thing.
She couldn’t breathe and felt boneless when he stepped back and took off his shirt in one motion. Part of her still couldn’t believe that she had access to all that beautiful male flesh.
“When I said I didn’t like you in underwear, I meant for you to take them off. Now,” Cole said. God help her, she loved it when he ordered her around. Deciding to tease him a little, hoping for a bit of the same kind of punishment she had received last night, she very slowly reached back and unclasped her bra. She didn’t let it slip from her shoulders until she turned and bent slightly to remove her panties. Even though it was huge, Cole seemed to really like her ass. And if she was going to do a strip tease, she might as well aim to please.
As she straightened, she felt him behind her. He had taken off all of his clothes because she felt nothing but his hot skin and the brush of his body hair against her. His erection brushed her lower back. He moved her hair off her neck and kissed the nape. She squirmed, loving the fact that he knew that caressing and kissing that spot would drive her crazy.
He herded her into the bedroom, edged her over to the bed, and urged her to crawl on with a nudge of his powerful thighs. She did, and he left her for a moment. She felt vulnerable and exposed and knelt up on the bed. He returned with a silk scarf from her bag—she’d seen him grin when she’d packed that. Then, he tied it around her head to cover her eyes.
The darkness was an adjustment after the light, airy room. Not being able to see heightened her senses. He’d opened the sliding glass doors while she’d been putting away groceries. Losing her sight made the smell of the ocean more pronounced and the humidity in the air feel vivid across her heated skin. She could hear and feel Cole moving behind her. She was startled when he put his hands on her breasts.
“Shhh.” She moaned when he kissed her shoulder, his lips dry and light. He tied another scarf around her wrists and gently placed her torso on what must have been a pillow on the middle of the bed. She turned her head to the side and shivered when he ran his hand down her back and over her bottom, which was raised in the air.
She was completely exposed, but she felt safe not being able to see him. Not being able to move, with her arms bound at the small of her back. She didn’t have to do anything but let go and let him love her with his body. She was a trembling, shaking mess.
He kissed the curve of her backside and moved her legs farther apart with his big hands on her inner thighs.
She yelped when he licked her core from behind. It was the raunchiest thing that she had ever experienced. She had never even fantasized about something so dirty, but she loved it. Lonely, sexless, and workaholic no more. He sucked on her clit, but she was desperate for more. He needed to fill her up with his fingers, or his cock. She strained backward to capture him inside of her and he chuckled into her.
He moved his mouth away from her, moved to her side and pressed one large hand into her belly. He brushed her clit with his thumb and pressed two fingers from the opposite hand inside of her. He pressed them toward the front of her body and fucked her with his hand, rubbing a spot inside her that ratcheted her desire up to eleven and made her bite down into the pillow to contain her moans.
She loved being with him because when it was just them together, she couldn’t think about anything else. She wasn’t running numbers in her head, and the nagging weight of family responsibility that she felt all the time eased away into nothing but pure pleasure. And she had a feeling that he knew that he did that for her; he wanted her to let go. That’s why he tied her up and pushed her past her boundaries. Obliterated them all.
This was how he took care of her.
“We’re all alone here. You can scream. In fact, I’d like it if you did. Fuck, I want everyone on the beach down there to hear what I do to you.” His gravelly voice took her higher as he continued to drive her crazy with his hands. Her body tensed before she exploded. She was sure she had turned into fairy dust and was spread all over the room. She felt boneless.
Cole withdrew his fingers from her. And, before she even stopped coming, he was inside her. He didn’t start slow or tease her this time. He was clearly almost at his edge because he was breathing hard even though he wasn’t the one in pieces strewn all over the bedroom.
He grasped her hips and fucked into her hard.
“I’
m not going to last,” he said. “I almost came before I got inside you that was so damn pretty. But you’re going to come again for me.”
Alana whimpered into the pillow. He felt so good, and she felt another orgasm begin. She almost went over the edge when she felt his thumb brush her back entrance.
“You like that, don’t you?” Cole asked. “You’ve never had anyone there, have you?”
Alana couldn’t respond with words. She whimpered again, taut with anticipation of what he would do to her next, how far he would push her.
She wanted to do everything with him. Anything.
“Not right now, beautiful,” Cole responded. “I’m going to come in your hot little cunt, but not until you go again for me.”
He reached around and squeezed her clit with his fingers. She fell over the edge, screaming again. Soon his erratic movements belied his lack of control, and he went over then, collapsing over her body. Her hands, still bound, flexed against his belly, clutched at the sweat-dampened skin.
After Cole untied her, Alana snuggled into the crook of his arm. She nuzzled his damp chest hair with the tip of her nose. She stopped suddenly when he said, “Why did you come home with me the other night?”
“I told you that I was sick of being the perfect girl that my family thought I was. You were my one chance to be bad.” She paused. “I also guess I couldn’t believe that anyone quite as delicious as you would be interested in me.”
“You think I’m delicious, eh?”
“Yeah, I do.” She moved down his body, brushing his abs with her long, soft hair. She took the tip of him in her mouth, licked the ridge underneath the head, and groaned. He was fully hard then. She licked him up and down, palmed his balls, and wrapped her other hands around the base of his dick.
* * * *
She drove him insane by taking her time to explore him, as if he were as delicious as she’d claimed. He brushed her hair away from her face so that he could see her suck on him. She looked up at him, and he knew that she knew that she was driving him nuts.
Stroke of Midnight Page 11
