Conference Cupid

by Eden Elgabri

  “My pleasure.” He wrapped the towel around her ankle and the cold made her foot jump. “Too cold?”

  “A little but I’ll get used to it.” She’d suffer through it because her foot needed it, but she hated feeling cold.

  “So, what’s it like to be a writer?”

  She blinked and realized he didn’t know she was unpublished. “I’m fairly new at it. Fiction writing that is. By day, I’m a technical writer. Directions for use. Contracts, that sort of thing. I’d love to be able to write full time. I’ve just finished my first full-length novel.”

  He managed to still look impressed and Keary continued. “I was introduced to a woman who’d published a few novels and we became friends. She encouraged me and had me join her writers group. I’d just gone to my first meeting when they talked me into this conference.”

  “Is that a bad thing?” He placed the cloth on the coffee table and started to massage her ankle.

  His warm fingers felt like heaven compared to the ice, and were much more effective. “No, it’s a good thing. I’m just nervous.”

  And getting more nervous with every stroke of his fingers.

  He raised one eyebrow in question.

  “I have to pitch tomorrow.”

  “Pitch? You have a softball game?”

  Keary laughed. “Editors and agents are here at the conference. We get to make two appointments and have about five minutes with each to pitch the concept of a completed manuscript. If the person is interested, you get a request which gets read ahead of the slush pile. It’s a guaranteed read. So the pitch has to be good. A few minutes is all you get to hook them.”

  “Don’t be nervous. You’ll do great.” He looked at her like he believed it.

  Keary tipped back the champagne, not caring at the moment about her appointment at all.

  Devin stood and took the glass from her. “One more glass to ease your mind and take your worries away.” He filled the flute before she could protest.

  She stood and placed weight on the ankle. A small twinge but nothing significant. He handed her the champagne and she took a long drink.

  “I’m curious. I might have heard wrong, but a group of people downstairs were having a discussion about plotters and I think the word they used was pantsers. What is that anyway?”

  “Plotters are writers who make very detailed plot outlines before they begin to write a story. Pantsers have the name because they fly by the seat of their pants. They don’t always know where the story is going. They might start with a character or a scene.”

  “Which one are you?” he asked, stepping closer to Keary.

  His eyes lingered on her mouth and Keary couldn’t focus on the question.

  Something about pants?

  “Right now I’m not wearing any.”

  Chapter Six

  His mind snapped.

  Devin leaned in and took possession of the mouth he’d yearned for since he first had the desire to kiss. He pulled her into his arms and took a firm hold on her back. Champagne had never tasted this sweet before. He deepened the kiss, fighting to steal her breath and her inhibitions.

  Her hands slid from his chest to his back and clung, anchoring her body to his. When they slipped down and cupped his ass, Devin groaned and rocked his aching cock into the fluffy robe.

  In one swift movement, he tugged the robe with the insignia of his hotel from her body. His hands clamped on her ass as he ravaged her mouth with his. He slipped one hand in between her legs and stuck his finger inside her. Slick and hot.

  Keary groaned and attempted to move back. The wet sticky fluid oozed around his finger. Any fantasy he’d ever had didn’t compare to the reality of Keary, wet and ready for him. “I want you so much I can’t stand it.”

  He nipped at her mouth again so she wouldn’t protest and picked her up in his arms. The few short strides to the bed in the other room seemed to take a lifetime. Depositing her on the bed he tore the shirt from his body without a care for the buttons or how he’d look when he left the room. His cock clawed at his pants for escape, but he feared the seconds it would take to remove them would give her the opportunity to change her mind.

  Lying next to her, his mouth took possession of hers once again so he could silence her doubts with his kisses. His mouth roamed to her breast and he sucked one and then the other. He worshipped her with his tongue, basked in the glory that this time it was more than just a fantasy.

  His fingers found her center once again. This time he stroked her clit and plunged into her repeatedly while tantalizing her nipples.

  Keary’s breathing turned into short quick pants. The closer she came to climax, the more he felt like a stud. Her body arched and her inner core tightened. Devin’s heart beat faster in anticipation of this great feat. Keary moaned and shattered around his fingers. His heart soared. Puffed with pride, he practically crowed.

  Devin softly kissed her neck and jaw line. Unwilling to move his hand away from the prize, his hand remained dormant over her mound. He’d wait as long as it took for her to regroup. Minutes passed but Devin didn’t mind waiting. Until she was ready, he’d enjoy the reward of closeness.

  Keary sat up and fear formed a knot in his stomach. It couldn’t end this way.

  Relief flooded his senses when she pushed him down on his back and made light work of his pants. His erection surged upward. Her mouth encased his cock and Devin almost jumped off the bed. He forced his eyes open, forced them to focus on his adolescent fantasy.

  No longer a dream.

  So good. So good.

  He needed to be inside her and couldn’t let that fantasy go.

  A battle raged in his head: enjoy and come versus stop and hope to get submerged in her heated core.

  “Wait.”

  Keary pulled her mouth away. For the first time since he was a kid, Devin wanted to cry. “I can’t last long and I’ll die if I don’t get inside you.”

  She smiled. “Don’t worry. I’ll give you time to recuperate.” With that she brought her mouth back down and licked from the top of the head down to the root. Devin shivered. Her hot mouth surrounded his cock once again. The heat alone made his entire body stiffen. Keary sucked and stroked until his hips pumped upward without a conscious effort to do so. His heart pounded and as he spiraled out of control.

  Keary sucked and licked and swallowed his life force. He’d known the first time he set eyes on that pert rosebud mouth that it was meant to do great things. In all his years, in all his women, he’d never enjoyed oral sex more. With Keary it was more like a religious experience. He’d seen the light and never wanted to be in the dark again.

  Her body slithered along his. She tucked her head against his neck. Devin’s heart still pounded and he ran his hand along the length of her and closed his eyes.

  The consequences wouldn’t matter. Having Keary in bed with him meant more than anything else. If his heart gave out this minute, at least he’d die a happy man.

  Bending his head down, he planted soft kisses around the edges of her mouth and the side of her face. Turning and leaning on his side he kissed her in earnest. His cock responded and jumped to attention. He grinned and settled himself between her legs.

  “Devin, I don’t have any condoms. If you don’t have any with you we’ll have to stick to other methods.”

  “Never fear,” he said and reached for his pants pocket. He opened his wallet and took out one of a few condoms fattening the bulge in his wallet.

  “My cousin was busting my balls because I didn’t have a condom in there, so he put in three. It’s his theory that if you’re lucky enough to use one, you should always have a few more so the evening doesn’t have to end early. For once, I’m glad my cousin is a pain in the ass.”

  “Was he the one in the picture with us?

  “Yeah, I know we look alike. He’s just younger and more buff.”

  “You look buff enough to me.” She rocked her hips forward along his cock.

  The sound of the
foil ripping had his cock spring loaded with anticipation. Her soft outer folds enticed him. His hand shook as he placed the condom on and he ran the head of his penis across her clit to bring her up to speed.

  Devin slid into Keary and her pussy enveloped him in a tight hold while another sensation enveloped his heart. He was where he’d belonged all along. It hadn’t been just pubescent lust in his teen-aged years. His body had recognized his mate. He belonged with her. He thought it then. He knew it now.

  Keary moaned and he pushed into her again then pulled out slowly. He kissed her. Soft, sweet, courting kisses paralleled the measured deliberate movements of his cock. Each time the head of his penis reached her cervix while the end of his root hit her clit, their moans would entangle like their tongues. The leisurely tantalizing journey increased in pace until the friction had them both on the brink.

  The second Keary’s spasms began, he bucked wildly and gave in to his own release. Their moans of pleasure echoed like the last notes of a symphony, until pounding occurred from the other side of the wall.

  Devin had complaints about noise in the hotel on rare occasions, but he’d never thought he would be the cause of one of the complaints. He looked down at Keary and the two of them burst into laughter.

  Chapter Seven

  “I was getting worried about you. I knocked on your door this morning and there was no answer. Then no one, and I mean no one, saw you in any of the morning sessions. Where have you been?”

  Keary couldn’t help the grin or the giggle. “Research. I’ve been doing research for my next book.”

  Susan’s mouth hung open for a second. “You’ve been on the Internet chasing down the idea for a book? Did you get any writing done?”

  “Nope.” Hard as she tried, the grin wouldn’t go away.

  Susan stopped and her eyes narrowed. “You haven’t been on the Internet at all, have you?”

  Keary grinned at her. “Nope. I haven’t written a word.”

  The corners of Susan’s mouth turned upward in a knowing smile and her eyes brightened. “Oh my God, you’ve met a man. Here? At the hotel? How? What happened? I mean, that’s fantastic, but you don’t want to miss the workshops. This is an expensive conference.”

  “But you gave him to me. He was your gift.”

  This present was fantasy in the flesh. His long muscular legs, chiseled ass firm as marble, and that perfectly trained cock, tantalizing, tormenting. Such stamina. She sighed and dampness formed between her legs at the thought of him.

  Susan stared at Keary blankly as if trying to figure out her friend’s mental state. “What are you talking about?”

  “I don’t think anyone has lower than number five,” Keary mimicked.

  “The model? You were playing around with the hunky piece of beefcake that came to the table?”

  “No. Not him. The one in the picture with him. They look alike though. I like mine better. More my age,” she shrugged. “His cousin is younger.”

  Backing up a few inches, Susan eyed Keary from head to toe. “You’re glowing. Holy shit, you actually slept with him. Didn’t you?”

  Slept with him? Hardly. Balled his brains out was more like it.

  “Guilty,” Keary said with the full understanding of why naughty girls always looked happier. “And don’t get mad, but I’m meeting him for dinner so I’ll miss the group dinner tonight. Make excuses for me. Say I’m meeting family or something. I don’t want everyone to know. I’ve never done anything this crazy before. We’re only here this week. I want to make the most of it.”

  “You’re using protection?”

  “Of course. What are you, my mother? No, I forgot, you’re my fairy godmother.”

  “That good, huh? I can tell by your face. You’re going to have to try to hide it better.”

  “Incredible. He’s a great guy. We talked too. But it was the way he looked at me, like he’s loved me for years. I’ve never felt so special, so, so...” Keary shrugged, unable to fully explain what happened between her and Devin. She wouldn’t let go of that feeling until she absolutely had to.

  “Okay, we’ll say you you’re excited about your first conference and you received a request from the editor today.”

  “But what if it isn’t requested?”

  “It will be. First, the premise is different so it’ll catch attention. And of course that shit-eating grin on your face. Your enthusiasm will come through.”

  And it did.

  An hour later Keary had more to grin about. In most pitch sessions an editor would only ask for the first three chapters. The editor she’d met with requested the entire manuscript.

  The request, however, wasn’t what was giving her that inner glow. Being well sexed did that and no one but Suz knew the truth.

  The next few days whirled by in a blur of fantastic workshops, rich food and mind-blowing sex. Keary always excused herself after the workshops or after dinner and spent as much time with Devin as she possibly could.

  * * * *

  Peter towel dried his hair and looked in the mirror. “So she still doesn’t know who you are?”

  Devin shook his head and frowned.

  “Sweet.”

  “There’s nothing sweet about it. I wish I’d been upfront about this. I don’t know why I lied in the first place.”

  “You lied for the same reason all men lie. To get laid. Although hotel owner should work. Babes love bucks.”

  “You’re not helping, Peter.”

  After ten minutes’ grooming, he seemed content with his appearance and glanced away from the mirror. “Dev, their conference is over in two days. Then she’s gone and you’re back to business as usual. She’s not a local. It’s not like you can keep seeing her, and if you did you’d have to come clean. Let me give you a hint. Women hate being lied to.”

  “I haven’t lied since.”

  Peter laughed. “What do you tell her you do all day?”

  “The first time she asked about my job I said I didn’t want to talk about my work day, that I left work at work. We focused on other topics, just about everything. I want to tell her, but I don’t know how.”

  “No. Trust me. You don’t want to tell her. Let it end as it should, as one wild ride. You both enjoyed it. Don’t spoil it for her and for yourself because the second you tell, it’s over.”

  Devin scowled and tried to figure out what Keary would do. Would she hate him? And what was he thinking? Even if she forgave him for lying she lived two hours away. They couldn’t exactly keep up the romance once she left the conference.

  Peter looked at him. “Don’t do it, man. You’ll regret it.”

  “Thanks for the advice. And thanks for being more conservative this time. I was afraid you’d trash the place. What’s the matter, you didn’t score?”

  “I found someone to occupy my time.” Peter pulled the polo over his head and adjusted the collar.

  “Just one?”

  “Yeah, one fascinating lady. She’s been on the bestseller list. Since she’s a speaker here and on the planning committee, she has her own room. I’ve spent some time there. When she’s been available, that is.”

  Peter frowned and Devin wondered if he’d matured or just met his match. “What’s wrong? There’s a lady out there that’s less into you than you’re into her? Impossible.”

  Peter’s dark brown eyes appeared black and Devin saw what his own eyes must look like when pissed off. Pitch black thunder. “I was kidding.”

  “Maggie hasn’t had much time for me. She’s five years older than me and you’d think it was a century. Turned thirty last month and thinks she’s ancient. Thinks I’m some baby boy toy.”

  “I thought you were the one who perpetuated that image?” Devin gulped down the last of his coffee and threw the container in the trash.

  “Funny. You should do stand up. Do open mike night at the bar. Why don’t you go practice in your office?” Peter placed his hand on Devin’s shoulder and turned him to face the door.

 
“Booting me out of my own place?”

  “Yeah, pretty much. I wanted to impress her so I gave her the room number. She’ll be here soon. Little afternoon delight.”

  “So much for you changing. Try not to break anything.” The last time Peter was allowed access to Devin’s apartment had been prior to him owning the hotel and the place had been left in a shambles. Probably because Peter had been trying to service two women at the same time.

  Devin liked easy tail as well as the next guy, but couldn’t join in on a group scene. He cursed himself for wanting more, for needing to care about a woman he bedded.

  Peter eyed the couch and grinned. “Don’t worry; I take them one at a time now.”

  Devin shook his head and left the suite. Halfway down the hall a leggy brunette did a double take, smiled at him, then knocked on the door of his suite.

  One thing he could say about his cousin Peter, he had exquisite taste.

  * * * *

  Keary lifted the single red rose to her nose and inhaled. The sweet scent and Devin’s thoughtfulness seduced her. She placed it down on the table and gazed into the eyes of the giver. The dark eyes glowed—but not with lust. She’d witnessed his deep brown eyes, like melting chocolate, covet her body. His hunger had been impossible to mask.

  His yearning empowered her. For too long Keary had lived a non-sexual, non-sensual life. In the presence of Devin, she was a goddess. He looked at her the way one would a masterpiece, amazed and appreciative. Somehow it was more than that tonight. If she didn’t know any better she’d swear love shone from his eyes.

  Stop those crazy thoughts. It’s the candlelight. A romantic restaurant can play with your head.

  “So do you like steak? This place is noted for their steak but the entire menu is good if you’d prefer seafood or poultry. I’ve heard the Cornish Hens are good.”

  The menu boasted a smorgasbord of delectable meals. The toughest part for Keary would be making a choice. “Have you eaten here before?”