A Limited Engagement

by Bethany Michaels

  She shoved at his shirt, as eager as he was for skin-on-skin contact. He obliged and pulled the polo off over his head, but when she reached for his belt, he stopped her.

  “Wait.”

  She broke away, breathing heavily, her eyes dark, pupils dilated.

  “What?”

  “Slow down a little. We have all night.”

  “Yeah, but—”

  “We’ve waited for this for a long time,” he said, setting her away from him.

  “Your fault, not mine.”

  “Come on.” He led her across the living room to the sliding glass door that led to the back deck and the hot tub, and he grabbed a half bottle of wine and a couple of glasses off the dining room table on the way.

  “You’re not losing your nerve, are you? I mean after all the promises—no, the guarantee you made in the kitchen…”

  He stopped and pulled her against him. “Oh, the guarantee is still in full effect.” He pushed her disheveled hair off her forehead. “I just thought you might want a warm-up lap.”

  The truth was, he needed a warm-up lap. This wasn’t some hot grope in the back of the hauler, sex that was fast and loud and completely meaningless. This was Lilly. He wanted it to be different with her. If they were going to do this, he wanted to take his time, seduce her, let her know what a goddess she was. She deserved no less.

  “No, I’m pretty much good to go right now.” She unbuttoned the top of her blouse and whipped it off over her head. The sight of her lacy pink bra against her flushed skin was almost enough to make him throw his slow seduction plan out the window. Almost.

  “You don’t have much patience, do you?”

  “Not when I know what I want.” She unhooked her bra then shimmied out of her skirt. All the blood in his brain flowed straight to his dick.

  Her breasts were as beautiful as he remembered. They were full and round with jutting pink nipples that practically begged to be kissed. He tore his gaze away.

  “You don’t play fair, Lilly.”

  “I never claimed to.”

  Okay, maybe just one taste. He placed the wine and glasses down and dropped to his knees in front of her. He gripped her hips and pressed hot kisses to her belly. Her skin was soft and smooth and smelled like some kind of girlie bubble bath. He loved it.

  Moving lower, he came across the waistband of her pink cotton panties. He’d seen some sexy lingerie in his time. But something about the simplicity of these panties made them sexier than anything Victoria’s Secret could produce. Maybe because they were on Lilly’s body, concealing her secrets.

  Her scent was sweet and musky, proving that she was as hot and ready as she claimed. He put his face between her thighs, inhaling her scent through the thin layer of cotton. He could never get enough of her.

  Her fingers tangled in his hair, urging him wordlessly to touch her. Daring him. Begging. He traced her cleft through the damp cotton with his thumb, loving the way she shuddered in response, swaying slightly on her feet. All he had to do was peel off her panties and he’d be in paradise. So would she. He pressed his mouth against the cotton, letting his warm breath caress her sex.

  “Derek,” she said, her fingers tightening in his hair. “I need you. Right now.”

  He smiled against her and got to his feet.

  “Not yet.” He retrieved the wine and glasses and continued toward the back deck. She gave a little grunt of frustration, but followed.

  Derek removed the hot tub’s cover and turned on the jets. The night was cool, but he knew that would make the hot, steamy water all the more inviting.

  He poured wine into two glasses and set them on the side of the tub. Then he grabbed the remote to the outdoor sound system and took a couple minutes to put on some soft jazzy music, just like the fantasy she’d spun in the restaurant. Too bad he didn’t have any candles. She was right, that would have been the perfect touch. He’d never taken the time to really seduce a woman. He was kind of getting into it.

  He glanced over at her, expecting her to be all doe-eyed and knocked off her bare feet by his romantic gestures. Instead, she had her arms crossed over her chest and looked like she wanted to hurt someone. Derek, specifically.

  “Are you done yet or did you want to toss some rose petals in the water? Maybe light some candles? Recite some sappy love poetry?”

  “I considered the candles, but I don’t have any.” She always surprised him. “I hadn’t thought about poetry. That might be nice.”

  “This isn’t about ‘nice.’ This is about sex. Hot, hard, and dirty.” She peeled off her panties, and the remote to the sound system slipped out of Derek’s grip. The cover flew off and batteries went rolling across the deck. “I want you, Derek. I want to feel you on me and over me and inside me.”

  He was frozen to the spot and all he could do was stare at her. She was so beautiful she took his breath away.

  She reached for his belt, and this time he didn’t have the will to stop her. “And I want it all right now. You’ve got thirty seconds to get naked.”

  She fumbled with his belt and he pushed her hands away to do it himself. “I can do it in five flat.”

  …

  Lilly had never been the take-charge type in bed. But with Derek, she somehow wasn’t afraid to ask for what she wanted, to demand it in fact. Maybe it came from having wanted him for so long. Or maybe he just made her so hot that she didn’t stop to fuss or worry about how her words might be taken. There were no barriers between them, no inhibitions. All the worrying she’d done at the dinner table had disappeared like the steam rising from the hot tub behind Derek.

  He scrambled to obey, unbuckling his belt and shoving his jeans and boxer briefs down in one motion, while at the same time kicking off his shoes.

  And then he was naked. Completely, gloriously naked.

  “God,” she breathed.

  “Amen,” he returned, his gaze roaming from her hair to her toes and back up again. “In the house. Now.”

  “No outdoor sex?” she asked, teasing him.

  “Later. Right now all I want to do is get inside you, and I don’t want to worry about drowning in the hot tub while I do it.”

  “Please tell me you have a condom.”

  “Brand-new box. Economy size.”

  “Works for me,” she said as he grabbed her hand and tugged her inside.

  The dishes were still on the dining room table. He shoved a few aside, then lifted her to sit on the edge.

  “Derek, the bedroom is—”

  “Too far away,” he said and immediately sank into a chair, pressing her back to lie flat with her legs splayed on either side of him. “I was thinking about this all during supper, which was a little uncomfortable, sitting next to your daddy.”

  He ran his hands up the inside of her thighs, leaving fire in his wake. “If you won’t let me seduce you, I’m at least going to taste you first.”

  Warmth blossomed low in her belly at his words. His promise. “Nobody’s arguing here.”

  The table’s surface was cold against her heated flesh, and the scent of fried chicken lingered in the air, but it might as well have been the most exotic perfume and a bed made out of angel wings. She’d never been more wet and ready.

  He scooted his chair up to the table as if he were about to dig into a Thanksgiving feast, then spread her thighs, holding them open, completely exposing her. “You’re so wet,” he said in a husky whisper. And then his mouth was on her, hot and perfect. She let out a groan as his tongue found her swollen clit, swirling around the tender spot with smooth wet heat. The muscles in her thighs bunched, and she clenched a handful of his grandmother’s linen tablecloth.

  Using lips and tongue and gentle suction, Derek pushed her to the edge of sanity. She clenched her teeth, teetering on the edge of pleasure/pain when he suddenly pulled away.

  “I can’t wait any more, Lil. I’m about to explode just looking at your beautiful body. I have to be inside you. Right now.”

  She heard
the rip of foil as he donned a condom, but she had no idea when he’d had the clarity of thought to retrieve it. And she didn’t really care.

  He pressed into her, and her flesh welcomed him.

  “You are so slick and tight,” he ground out in her ear. He captured her lips in a searing kiss, and she could taste the essence of herself there. She wrapped her arms around him and arched up, wanting more. He pushed forward in agonizing slowness until he was fully seated. He raised himself on his hands and gazed down at her.

  “You’re perfect. You know that, right? You were right here all this time and we never did this,” he said as he withdrew slightly. “Or this,” he said, thrusting back inside her.

  “Why was that again?”

  “Because I’m an idiot?”

  “True.” She raked her nails across his back, unable to help herself. Gripping his hips with her knees, she wordlessly begged for more.

  “Why didn’t you sneak into my room all those nights you were spying on me when we were teens?”

  “Your bed would probably have been already occupied.”

  He chuckled. “It will be tonight. Because if you think I’m letting go of you an instant before the sun comes up, you’re out of your mind.” He gritted his teeth, beads of perspiration forming on his forehead. “I’m not gonna last long, Lil.”

  “Good,” she said, knowing it wasn’t going to take more than a few strokes to bring her right over the edge, either. “Fuck me, Derek. Hard. Now.”

  With a low growl, he did just that, pounding into her with a force that sent them across the table a few inches each time. A plate crashed to the floor, shattering into a million pieces. A tea glass went next, followed by silverware, and if she wasn’t mistaken, the bowl of leftover salad.

  The sound of chaos erupting all around them only added to the roar in Lilly’s ears as something broke free and wave after wave of pleasure washed over her. She felt Derek stiffen above her, pulsing deep inside, and he growled out her name amid the shattering china.

  She closed her eyes and concentrated on bringing in enough oxygen to remain conscious. He collapsed on top of her, and she loved the weight of him, the solid mass of him inside her and on top of her.

  “I think I’m gonna have to buy new dishes,” he said after a moment, still breathless. His hair was damp with sweat, and his cheeks had taken on a ruddy appearance. He actually looked a lot like he did when he climbed out of his race car in the victory lane at the end of a good race—flushed and sweating and over-the-moon happy. And he was smiling. At her.

  She couldn’t help it. She giggled. “I hope none of those were expensive. Or old.”

  He shrugged. “I have no idea. Don’t really care, either.” He leaned in for a lingering kiss. “Am I crushing you?”

  “Yes. You weigh like five hundred pounds. How many cheeseburgers did you eat while you were away?” she teased.

  He poked a finger in her rib, tickling her. “Not so many that I can’t make you squeal my name.”

  “Oh really?” She tickled him back. He rolled them both over so that he was on the bottom and holding her hands in his large palms. A stack of dessert plates crashed to the floor.

  “Now this is better,” he said, staring at her naked breasts. “Why didn’t I think of this to start with?”

  They were still attached, and she shifted her hips a bit. “Yeah. Not bad.”

  He gasped, and she felt him start to harden again. “So not fair.”

  “All is fair in love and war,” she said, then froze. Love. Where had that come from? “And sex.”

  “I’ll have to keep that in mind later.” He tugged her down for a slow, gentle kiss that took her breath away as much as the playful tussle had.

  “How about that soak in the hot tub now?” she asked when he came up for air.

  “Later,” he replied, wiggling his hips a little. “Much later.”

  …

  Derek had never enjoyed himself so much in bed. With other women, there was flirtation, then sex, and then it was all about extracting himself from the situation. They weren’t in it for anything more. Most of the time, they didn’t even spend the night. Deed done, cab called, and he was alone again.

  But Lilly was different. He liked having her in his bed. When she finally fell asleep in his arms, curled around his torso, the soft rhythm of her breathing eased all the tension over the team, the media, the sponsors, and of course the big fat lie they had told their families. Her bare legs entangled with his under the sheets, and her soft hair spilled across his chest. It felt natural to wrap his arms around her and drop off to sleep, too. Unlike the other women who’d checkered his past, he didn’t want her to leave him.

  Now, in the soft light of early morning, he wondered what would happen when the hot rush of pure lust wasn’t pounding at his temples. And what about the next few weeks? Now that he’d finally tasted her, he sure didn’t want this to be a onetime thing. He wanted to enjoy her as much as possible before their “breakup” forced them into becoming strangers again, only seeing each other a few times a year at holidays and family events. He was pretty sure the friends-with-benefits thing was not an option.

  Knowing Lilly, she’d want to plan everything out and assign rules to their affair, if they did continue it. He smiled, pulling her closer. He could live with that.

  The jangle of his cell phone startled him just as he was getting ready to drift off again. He hurried to grab it before it woke Lilly. He’d worn her out last night. He’d planned to surprise her with breakfast in bed and then, who knew? Maybe she’d be up for some morning sex. He definitely was.

  He looked at the screen and frowned. Why was his dad calling so early? Derek climbed out of bed and went into the hallway where he wouldn’t disturb Lilly.

  “Early start?” he asked, as he shut the bedroom door behind him.

  “Wanted to see if you were available for a round of golf this morning. I have some things I need to discuss with you.”

  Derek looked at the door longingly. “Sure. I guess.”

  “See you at the club at nine.”

  He hung up.

  Huh. Golf. How long had it been since he’d played a round with the old man? Not in years. Actually, not ever. When he was a kid, before the divorce, it was his biggest thrill to get to go to the club with Dad, ride in the cart, watch his dad perfect his golf swing, and have his father’s undivided attention—at least between holes. But as Robert’s business grew, those times got further between, until he barely saw his dad at all. And then the divorce happened, and he hadn’t wanted to see him.

  Now? Well, he wasn’t dreading this as much as he would have a few weeks ago. He was actually curious about what he wanted. It would be good to find out how much he suspected about Derek’s buying out his share of the team, too. He’d managed to bring several new sponsors on board during his trip. He was almost ready to hit his dad with the ultimatum—sell the team to Derek or he signed with another team, taking all the sponsors with him.

  Derek grabbed a golf shirt, khakis, and his golf spikes out of his dressing room, then went to the hall bathroom to grab a shower, where he wouldn’t disturb Lilly. He tossed his clubs in the trunk of the Porsche he only used on rare occasions, and headed to the club, the next town over.

  When he pulled into the lot, he saw his father was already there, waiting.

  He nodded at Derek as he climbed out of the car. “Thanks for meeting me.”

  Derek shouldered his bag and walked toward the clubhouse. “Sure.” Best to play it cool until he figured out what he wanted.

  “You play much these days?”

  “When I can. I played a round at Morfontaine when I was in Paris last year for that commercial shoot with a sponsor.”

  Robert nodded. “Nice course. How’d you do on three?”

  “I shot an eight. You?”

  “Five.”

  “Par. Not bad.” Obviously Robert had cultivated an interest other than making money…it just hadn’t been his fa
mily. Playing at the world’s most exclusive golf courses, and getting good, took time.

  “That was my third try. Lost about a dozen balls to the pine trees the first time.” Robert loaded his clubs in the cart. “I’m planning to play Gleneagles and Loch Lomond in June, but that depends on the date you and Lilly pick for your wedding.”

  “Right.” They never had settled on a date at the dinner party…or at least he hadn’t been aware of it if they had. He’d been just a little distracted by thoughts of getting Lilly naked as quickly as possible.

  “Everything okay?” Robert asked as they drove the cart toward the first tee.

  “Sure. Business is good. We signed several new sponsors this week.”

  “I wasn’t talking about business. Not really.”

  He wasn’t sure where his dad was going with this. “I know you’re concerned about my ability to balance both a personal life and a professional one.”

  “You’ve got that under control. I can see that,” Robert said, stopping at the first tee. He pulled on his gloves and chose a driver from his bag.

  Derek watched his father set his ball on the tee and take a few practice swings. Was that a compliment? Always before, all he’d gotten was unwanted advice about how to do everything better—the way Robert would have done it.

  “I also know you’re planning to make a bid to buy the team out from under me.” Robert swung his club, and his perfect form sent the ball flying 230 yards toward the green.

  The men were silent as they watched the ball land in the rough right on the edge of a sand trap, but Derek’s thoughts were racing. What game was his father playing? How had he found out about Derek’s plan? And most importantly, what was Derek’s next move?

  “Damn. Should have used the three wood,” Robert said, returning the club to his bag.

  “How did you know?”

  “The Thomas Oil deal. All the secret meetings with new sponsors. I’ve been in business a long time and have taught you everything I know. It’s obvious you’re trying to secure your own financing. And you’ve resented my involvement since you took your first green flag with the team. I had hoped that would change over time, but if anything you’re even more angry with me now than when I divorced your mother.”