“And what if I don’t?” he decided unwisely. “Who are you to her anyway?”
“It doesn’t matter who I am to her. It’s what I’m going to do to you if you don’t stay away from her that you need to worry about.” I took a purposeful step toward him. I might have made a threatening sound low in my throat. “I thought I made this clear to you already.”
“I guess I’m a slow learner.” He lifted his chin. I wanted to plow my fist through the defiant look on his face. “Duly noted.” I realized before he said anything else that he and I were headed toward a confrontation that I was going to be forced to finish definitively sooner rather than later.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
* * *
Karen
Stop fidgeting, I told myself. Pressing my sweaty palms tightly together, I managed not to tug on the short hem of the strapless sundress that barely covered my ass. Simone had talked me into wearing it, telling me that she had noticed Ramon had a thing for my legs. I didn’t have the same impression. He had never given me the idea that he had a fondness for any particular part of me. And he was late. I had been pacing between the living room where my parents were parked in front of the television, and the kitchen where I was downing my third glass of water. Sweaty palms, dry mouth, I had it all. I was a regular wreck.
Because of Ramon.
I paced the length of the house again, frowning at my strappy but flat sandals. The white complimented my tanned skin but maybe heels would’ve been sexier. Stomach sloshing with trepidation and twenty-four ounces of liquid, I detoured to the downstairs half-bath, used the facilities, washed my hands and was drying them on the towel when I heard the doorbell ring. My heart started knocking faster against my ribs. I felt a little lightheaded as I emerged from the bathroom. My dad beat me to the front door. I was regretting not eating anything all day until I got my first glimpse of Ramon.
I froze.
Swayed.
My heart stopped.
Then restarted.
Beating insanely fast.
The crisp white t-shirt he wore clung to the contours of his chest. Black Volcom emblazed board shorts revealed his toned legs and if he turned around I knew they would accentuate his fine ass. He hadn’t dressed up, not that he needed to. He was gorgeous whatever he wore. But that he hadn’t done anything different than usual gave me pause because I had gone all out. I had waxed. My skin gleamed with gallons of coconut scented lotion. The dress and sandals were brand new. My hair loose and curled. Hopefully if he noticed the care I had taken with my appearance he would presume I had done so because of the party.
The way he stood in the front doorway, filling the narrow frame with his broad shoulders and larger than life presence, exchanging pleasantries with my dad, he made every part of me tingle with anticipation. That head-to-toe tingling intensified a thousand-fold when my dad stepped aside and Ramon focused his attention solely on me.
“Hey, surfer girl.” He held out his hand, sweeping his dark, enticing gaze over me. “You ready?”
I bobbed my head, not trusting that I could speak over the tight feeling in my chest but ridiculously proud that I was able to cross the distance between us without tripping on my own legs.
I slid my hand into his much larger one. It engulfed my own, warm, steady and sure. I floated alongside him, the light breeze making the full skirt of my dress flutter around my upper thighs the way my heart was doing inside my chest.
He opened my door, his fingers brushing over the bare skin of my shoulder as I folded my body inside. Had that been a purposeful touch? A warm shiver rolled through me as I looked into his glistening eyes that seemed to say it was. “Your seat belt,” he prompted, and I managed to tear my gaze from his to find the mechanism and fasten it. I tried to pull myself together in the too few moments it took him to round the hood and take his seat behind the wheel. But I knew it was a pointless endeavor. My hastily reassembled pieces fell apart as soon as his sandalwood and oak moss scent washed over me.
He said something to me as he started up the engine.
“Huh,” I replied inanely, tracing the line of his freshly shaven jaw with my eyes.
“I asked if you were cold.” He gave me a sidelong look that lingered in certain areas, one that seemed to be half approval half amusement.
“No.” I was the opposite of chilly actually. “Why?”
At the stop sign, he reached over and stroked the back of his knuckles down the length of my arm. “You look phenomenal in that dress. But you’re covered in goosebumps.”
“Oh.” Another inane reply. My mind tripped on the compliment. Before I could manage a more lengthy response, he stretched his arm across the back of my seat rest.
“Too late to go back for a sweater. We’ll miss Linc’s proposal if I can’t get us there in the next ten minutes.” His brow lifted. “Guess it will be up to me to keep you warm.”
• • •
Ramon
I had been worried she would back out. But she hadn’t backed out. She had gone all out. She looked incredibly sexy in a dress that hugged her curves and showcased her tan. Every inch of her skin shone and her hair framed her breathtakingly beautiful face. But the biggest enticement wasn’t her outfit. It was the way she responded to me. The hope that shimmered in her eyes. The way the pulse point in her neck speeded up when I leaned in. The way she shivered when I touched her.
This was real.
This was happening.
Our first date if I didn’t count the dinner and dancing at the Deck Bar.
Fucking finally.
“Hey, surfer girl. We’re here.” I cut the engine and she stopped gnawing her plump bottom lip turning her head to focus on me. The ends of her hair kissed her shoulders the way I hoped to do with my lips later, if I got lucky.
“Sorry I got tangled up in my thoughts. I’m a little nervous. I don’t mean to be bad company.” She gave me a soft smile. “You look nice. I should have said so earlier.”
“Thanks,” I replied, appreciating the compliment and hoping her nerves had more to do with me and less to do with the reasons she no longer visited the pier. “But not nearly as great as you do. I’m gonna have to keep my arm around you to keep the other guys from getting any ideas.” I gestured at the beach down from the spot where we had parked. “It’s packed tonight. I think the word’s gotten out. Apparently there are a lot of romantics who want to see this proposal.”
“Or eat the free food.”
“Yeah there’s that.” I grinned at her quip, popped open my door and came around to let her out. I took her hand, my gaze dipping to her legs as she stepped out onto the pavement. I was imagining running my hands along the silken length of her thighs. When I closed her door and clicked the locks, I caught her smile.
“Why the secretive grin?
“Nothing. I was just thinking about something Simone said about you.”
“What’s that?” I pressed.
Her cheeks blushed. She shook her head.
“Tell me,” I demanded playfully, walking her backward and caging her against the vehicle with my arms. “Not letting you go till you do.” She put her hands on my forearms. I peered into her eyes waiting for an answer. I was in no hurry. This was good. I loved having her touching me.
She tried to wiggle away, but I just pressed closer. Her hands went to my chest, palms flattening. This kept getting better and better. I could feel the heat of her skin through my shirt. My cock came to attention as I imagined her hands drifting lower. Her eyes darkening, she licked her lips. I was through imagining things. No time like the present to make new memories. I was going to kiss her.
“Karen.” I breathed her name softly. “Eres muy bella.” I lowered my head. She tipped hers up toward me.
“Hey you two.” We both jumped apart each wearing expressions as guilty as if we had been caught in something criminal. Ash came to a halt in front of us. He bent over at the waist, hands on his thighs, gassed from the uphill sprint. When he caught hi
s breath, he straightened and grinned wide. “Linc’s almost ready. He saw you pull in and sent me up to fetch you both. C’mon.”
We followed the drummer as he loped downhill toward the pier. Placing my hand in the hollow of her back, I steered Karen after him. We stepped off one curb then up onto another, crossing a blocked off intersection. We ducked in and around people headed the same direction on the sidewalk, murmuring excuses. When we reached the beach, there was a little more room. Through a break in the line of spectators along the wall, I spotted Linc. He waited with Simone on the sand below. The dude looked a little green around the gills, like his cousin did before performing. But his blue eyes sparkled as brightly as the moonbeams glistening on the water.
“Simone Bianchi.” Linc dropped to one knee in the sand. She clasped her hands together over her heart. They both knew what was going to happen, as did everyone they had invited, yet there was a palpable element of anticipation. Obviously, the set up was as important as the surprise. “I love you. I loved you pretty much from the moment I met you. I have loved you ever since, and I plan to love you straight on through forever if you’ll have me. Will you marry me?”
“Yes,” she said, her voice was as clear as the Southern California night. She dropped down to her knees with him, holding out her hand so that he could slide on an impressive diamond solitaire that I’d already previewed. A sudden feeling of unease at odds with the rightness of the moment crept up my spine. I turned to the side realizing the reason for my unease. Karen wasn’t beside me anymore. The spot where she had been only a moment before was occupied by someone else. I slipped backward and scanned the crowd for her. My eyes narrowed in concern as I searched for the one who was perfect for me.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
* * *
Karen
I had never seen Simone look happier, but I shouldn’t have come. Watching her and Linc catapulted me backward. I remembered Dominic’s proposal and our wedding on that exact same stretch of sand. Guilt had sliced me through the middle as I recalled everything I had lost.
I couldn’t stay. I couldn’t do this. Not here. Not now.
I followed the sidewalk under the pier, passed Outside where the catered spread awaited the partygoers and had just rounded the darkened corner of the cliff when he caught me. His grip on my upper arm firm, Ramon whirled me around to face him. I realized even in the shadows that he was irritated, but I also knew a deeper truth. He didn’t have to catch me. He’d had me for a long time now, in all the ways that mattered.
“What’s going on? Where the hell are you going?”
“Home.” I dropped my gaze. “I’m sorry I left without saying anything. It was just too much.” Tears drowned my voice and flooded my eyes. I suddenly found myself crushed inside his comforting embrace. My wet face smashed to his solid chest, I clung to his strong arms, and I wept. I let it all go because he was there to hold me. I wept for my husband, my baby and my marriage like I had never wept before. He stroked my hair while my shoulders shook, and I soaked his shirt with my tears. The angle of the towering cliff provided a private shelter. The roar of the waves crashing into the sandstone separated my grief from the celebration on the other side.
When I finally managed to pull myself together, I lifted my cheek from his chest and offered an apology about ruining his shirt and his evening. He shushed me, framed my face with both his hands and swiped the remaining tears aside with his thumbs. “I’m not a pretty crier,” I mumbled feeling self-conscious and exposed as he stared into my eyes.
“It’s ok, Karen. I hate to see you so unhappy. If I could take the hurt away I would. I wish I had that power. I wish I could give you what you most desire.”
“I wanted her so badly,” I admitted.
“I know you did.”
“I didn’t mean to lose her.”
“Of course you didn’t.”
I thought I had said my goodbye in my room. I really had, but here I was doing it again. I knew that hollow place inside of me could never be filled. Unless…I went completely still. My fingers flexed on his forearms. Ramon could never care for me the way I cared for him, but he was attracted to me. Maybe not in the way I wanted, but I’d felt his erection when he had pressed me against the Explorer earlier. He’d been about to kiss me. He didn’t find me repugnant. My heart began to hammer furiously with an idea.
“What is it?” he pressed. “What’s going on inside that pretty head of yours? Tell me.”
“No. It’s crazy.” Like I was. Certifiable. “It’s impossible,” I stalled.
He searched my eyes. Something meaningful surfaced from within the depths of his gaze. “Maybe it’s not as crazy as you think. Why don’t you try me?”
“Would you…can we…” I trailed off, swallowed and drew in a composing breath.
“Yes,” he said as if I had been clear and everything was decided.
“You don’t even know what I’m going to say.”
“After all this time.” He traced my trembling bottom lip with his thumb. My body quickened to his touch. “Say it already.” His voice had grown husky.
“Have sex with me,” I begged.
“I thought you would never ask.” He captured my lips with his own. No soft testing like the other time. This time his lips melded to mine. Hard. Assured. Certain. His hands slid to my lower back bringing my hips into firmer contact with his.
“So the answer is yes, then?” I was out of breath when he lifted his head a moment later.
“Hell yes, Karen.” He changed the angle of his head returning his mouth to mine. I felt so many things when his lips were on mine, but the one that couldn’t be ignored was a desperation that made my scalp tingle and my toes curl.
“Thank you,” I managed when he skimmed kisses along my jaw and moved down my neck. “And we don’t have to use a condom. I’m clean. If you…”
“I am, too. I’ve been completely checked out.” His lips suctioned the sensitive spot between my neck and shoulder. I shuddered. “I go for a checkup every year since my dad’s heart attack scare.” He lifted his head staring deeply into my eyes and tucked a curl behind my ear. His lips curved. “So now that those details are out of the way, can I finally proceed?”
“Yes, only just one more thing. I want you to know that I’ll take full responsibility for the baby.”
“What baby?” His brows drew together in confusion.
“Ours. I mean, mine. The one we make together, of course.”
“Of course,” he repeated after a long beat, his features no longer confused but twisted together tightly. “You want to have sex with me because you want to get pregnant.” He spoke each word slowly and succinctly.
“Yes.”
“And that’s it?”
I glanced away, watching a large wave crash into the slab of rock beside us, feeling the cold spray on my skin. “Yes. Of course that’s it,” I lied. He wouldn’t say yes if he had to worry about me forming an attachment to him. What he didn’t know was that I already had one. It hadn’t lessened over the years. I knew now that it would never go away.
“Alright,” he agreed, but he sounded angry. His hands on my lower back slid to my ass. He yanked me into him hard enough to make me gasp. “But I’ve got some rules. After you hear them feel free to change your mind, chica bonita. Then we’ll just pretend this conversation never happened, like we’ve done with so many other things between you and me over the years. Yeah?”
Chapter Thirty-Nine
* * *
Ramon
“Yes, I guess that’s ok.” She searched my face trying to see me better but the moon had fled behind a cloud. I was all shadow. The inside of my chest had gone dark as well.
“Turn around,” I growled, trying to keep a lid on my temper.
“What?”
“Rule number one. You do what I say the first time. Hands above your head.” I turned her and showed her what I meant, grabbing her arms, covering her hands with my own and smacking her palms flat into t
he sandstone wall above her head. Then I flipped up her skirt and slapped her ass.
She inhaled sharply and twisted her neck to regard me over her shoulder. I ripped her panties down her legs. I was so pissed at her my hands shook. I don’t remember ever being angrier. I had mistakenly believed tonight would be the beginning of something real for us, but I knew now that she was never going to see me the way I wanted her to. She wanted a fuck? Well, she would get it.
“Is there a problem, mami?” I met her gaze, my own flashing with challenge. “Are you having second thoughts?”
“I’m not sure.” She glanced in the direction of the party and wet her lips. “Anyone can see us if…”
“That’s part of the excitement. Haven’t you ever had sex in a public place before?” I leaned in, letting her feel the edge of my teeth first before I pressed my lips into the curve between her neck and shoulder.
“It’s so cold outside.” She shivered. “How can your lips be so warm?” She sounded dazed as if her body ran ahead of her reason like mine did. She turned her head as if seeking my mouth. I pulled my head back out of reach.
“No kissing.”
“But you just did and…”
“None from you to me.”
“Oh.” I could hear the hurt in her voice and see it on her face.
Good, I thought, telling my heart to shut up when it shouted at me to give into her. “I do all the touching, mamacita. All the kissing. No initiating by you. I’m in control. Got it?”
“No. I mean yes. But I want to touch you. Don’t you want me to?” The clouds cleared from the moon giving me an unimpeded view of the glassy sheen in her eyes. Fuck. I couldn’t look into them.
“Not this time. Turn back around.” I lifted her skirt higher and ran my palms all over her perfectly shaped ass, grabbing and squeezing it before running my hand between her legs and just skimming along the heat of her. “You’re wet. You want this. You want me. Then we do it my way. You do what I say. If I say spread…” I shoved my knee between her legs to demonstrate. “You spread. If I say kneel, you drop to your knees, and we do it doggy style.” I could hear her heavy breathing or maybe it was my own. I wanted her. I always wanted her. No other woman smelled the way she did. No other woman had skin so creamy soft. And knowing she was aroused by me drove me to the edge of insanity. “Yes, or no, Karen? Tell me right now.”
(Complete Rock Stars, Surf and Second Chances #1-5) Page 48
