Demise of a Self-Centered Playboy
Page 15
“We’re going to land here for the first night.” His voice soothes me like honey down a sore throat.
I see cabins in the distance and a blue lake below us. “That’s where we’re staying?”
“Yeah, I figured we’ll see the ice cave then grab dinner.”
“Perfect.”
He lands, and we taxi over to where the other planes are parked and check-in. Our cabin is small but quaint. If he isn’t going to sleep on the bed with me, the bathtub is his only other option because there’s hardly any room on either side of the bed.
“It’s small,” I say.
“Yeah, I don’t quite remember it being this small.” He laughs, putting his bags in the closet and flopping onto the bed. “So lay out the rules for me.”
My heart and my girly parts contract at seeing his large body sprawled across the bed. “Um.”
“Are you as tired as me?” He changes the subject right when I was going to go for broke. His shirt rests a couple of inches above the waistband of his jeans with his hands behind his head like that.
“Not really, but I didn’t fly. I got to enjoy the ride.” I open my suitcase and grab my toiletry bag to take to the bathroom in order to distract myself from the view of his happy trail.
“Let’s take a nap,” he murmurs, and I figure he’s already half asleep.
Come on, Cleo. You’ve literally thought about every way this can go. You’re prepared for whatever happens. Just talk to him.
“I was thinking about something…” I walk back into the room.
His eyes pop open, and he smiles. “You’re always thinking about something.”
“Yeah, probably.”
He pats the bed and I sit down. “What’s up? You want me to sleep in the plane?”
I shake my head. “I’m not sure I want to live with the rules anymore.”
He sits up, and if I thought he was tired, I was wrong. His eyes are alert and focused solely on me. “Meaning?”
“Well, I’m not going to just sleep with you without it meaning anything.”
He nods.
“Oh, forget it. This is so stupid. What are we, thirteen and I’m asking you to go steady with me?” I stand, but he leans over the bed and grabs my hand, pulling me back down.
“Don’t do that,” he says.
“Do what?”
“Don’t discount your feelings and what you want.”
His hand hasn’t left mine. My stomach feels is a pinball machine right now, the silver ball bouncing all over the place and never landing. “I just—”
He puts his finger over my lips. “Don’t water it down. Tell me what you want.”
I say nothing and he removes his finger, waiting. It’s now or never. “I want you. But not just for tonight. I know we own this company together and it’s stupid to get involved, but at this point, it feels more stupid that we’ve been dodging this… thing between us.”
“And by this thing, you mean…?”
I bite my lip. “Are you really going to make me do this?”
“Let me hear it.” He grins.
I huff. “I want to date you.” I fall forward so my face hits the bed. He’s so going to pay for this.
He pushes me onto my back so he’s half lying on top of me. “Is that a question?”
He laughs as I push him off me. “I can’t believe you just made me do that!”
“Don’t you want to hear my answer?” He rolls onto his back and pulls me in to lie on top of him. It’s difficult not to be distracted by the feel of his hard body under mine.
“I don’t think I do.” I wiggle, but he grips me tighter.
Eventually I give up the fight and his hands land on either side of my face. “Yes, Cleo Dawson, I’d love to date you.”
I’m shaking my head at the complete ridiculousness this situation has come to. I feel like a moron. But then he rolls us back over and his fingers brush my hair away from my face. He stares into my eyes with so much pent-up desire that I forget all about my embarrassment.
“I really like you,” he says before dipping his lips to meet mine. He brushes them lightly along mine, barely touching. His teasing makes my body respond like a wildfire spreading through me from barely a kiss. “I’ve wanted you for a long time.” He places his lips on mine, a little harder this time. “And not just your body.” His fingers slide down my ribcage. “You. I want you. I want you to be mine.”
Where did this side of him come from? I shouldn’t care or think twice about it, just enjoy it, but he wasn’t a steady relationship guy when we met. But I can see, feel, and hear the sincerity in his words, so I allow myself to sink into our kiss. He drags his lips off of mine before it becomes a full-on make-out session.
“I’m not going to have sex with you right now,” he whispers in my ear and his lips continue to venture, his tongue teasing. “No matter how much I’m kicking my brain right now.”
“Why not?” I choke out. I’m in flames and he’s decided not to use the hose? What the hell?
I want to scream that I gave him the green light. All the flirting. All the sexual innuendos. All the touching. All the heartfelt conversations. And he’s putting on the brakes?
He sits up on his knees and straightens my shirt so it lands at the top of my jeans. “Because I’m taking you on a date.”
“A date?” I groan.
He laughs. “Yes, ice cave, dinner, then we’ll come back here for dessert.”
I sit up. “You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?”
He crawls on his knees to reach me and again tucks a strand of hair behind my ear before kissing my lips briefly. “I’ve withheld doing what I want to do to you for months. I want a night with you that doesn’t include rules. And I’ll show you what it’ll be like dating me.”
How can a girl say no to that? Denver Bailey is a romantic? Not even Buzz Wheel had the scoop on that one.
Twenty-Four
Cleo
Denver has taken this date thing so far that he dressed then waited outside our cabin for me to get ready. Of course, we’re going into an ice cave, so it’s not like I’m wearing a dress and heels. I’ll be completely covered up.
But I put on my tightest pair of jeans and the short sweater I’m pretty sure he’s fond of, with a cami underneath. I top it with my parka and the boots Denver bought me. I grab my hat, scarf, and gloves to take with me. I triple-check my reflection in the mirror before I go outside. I managed to put on a little extra makeup, heavy on the eyeliner and mascara.
When I step out of our cabin, Denver’s talking with a tall man who’s years older than him. He spots me and waves as though I would’ve missed him. Then he shakes the man’s hand and heads my way.
When he reaches me, he kisses my cheek. “You should’ve planned your coming-out party at a better time. Although I will have fun stripping those layers off later.”
A rapid spread of heat hits me from head to toe. If this is what I have to look forward to when it comes to dating Denver, I’m kicking myself for waiting so long.
I cock my hip out to the side. “You could’ve stripped them off already.”
He takes my hat and puts it on my head, wraps my scarf around my neck, and holds out my gloves for me to push my hands into.
“This is so romantic,” I say sarcastically, but it kind of is because I never would’ve imagined he’d be so attentive.
“Wait until I kiss you in an ice cave.” He waggles his eyebrows.
“Promises, promises,” I tease, and he offers me his arm. I slide my hand through the crook of his elbow. “You’re too much.”
“You do tend to fall a lot in my presence.”
I roll my eyes but allow him to guide me wherever he wants.
Turns out the cabin rental place owns a shuttle that takes us to the ice cave. So a half hour later, we’re outside of it. I have to admit, the cave is slightly terrifying. The blue ice is a feast for the eyes, but I’m walking into an abyss of ice to earn that kiss Denver promised.
I really hope I’m not one of many girls he’s kissed here. I’m annoyed by that thought.
Denver tucks me into a spot where there aren’t many witnesses and unties my scarf from around my mouth. “It’s beautiful, right?” His voice is low, and his hands are on my hips, but there’re too many layers to really feel him.
“It is,” I say.
“Not nearly as beautiful as you though.” He lowers his head.
I raise mine while my heartbeat skyrockets. His lips touch mine like a soft embrace, his knuckles trailing down my cheek. How is he this perfect? I admit I want to date him, he agrees, holds off on sex, and gives me a kiss in an ice cave that I’ll remember the rest of my life.
His tongue slides into my mouth, and all my limbs relax. With all the men I’ve kissed—and it’s not as though there have been a ton—I’ve never felt my legs get heavy and want to give out. But with Denver, my entire body melts and tingles. His hands cup my face as if I’m the most precious thing in the world. A low groan sounds from his throat right before we pull apart, and I’m a goner. He’s ruined me for any man who comes after him.
As he rests his forehead on mine, our eyes lock and a small smile lights up his entire face.
“Am I the first?” I blurt. Damn it. How stupid am I to ask that?
Denver steps back, the smile wiped off his face so well it looks as though it was never there in the first place. “I can’t change my past. You understand that, right?”
I’m so stupid. Why am I allowed to talk during moments like this? “I do, and I’d never want your past not to exist. You are who you are from all those experiences. It was a stupid thing to ask, I’m sorry.”
Denver nods.
But then a new bravado hits me. I owe it to myself to ask, and I’m not going to imagine this great, special kiss only to find out later that he brings everyone here. I need to know what this is.
“You know what? I do have to know. I’m sorry if that upsets you, but what I know of you, I like a lot. Fact is, you have a reputation. I need to know why you’re being so different with me and so easily accepting of this dating thing. Maybe it’s because it’s not a big deal and you’ve brought a million girls here?”
He blows out a breath and takes off his hat, scratching the back of his neck. “Maybe I moved us too fast.”
“Too fast? Are you crazy? I threw myself at you and you screeched us to a halt.”
Denver looks around because my voice got a little loud for a moment. He moves us farther away from the group. “What can I say? I have enjoyed women with no strings. They all knew the score, though some acted like they didn’t. I’ve never told a woman I wanted to date her. I’ve never brought a woman to an ice cave because the majority of the time, I only brought them to my bed. But Cleo… I didn’t want to have sex with you right after you told me you were into me because you’re different. You deserve to have a date where I kiss you in an ice cave and get to know you over dinner. Where I take you back to a bed without drinking too much. You deserve the sweet kisses, the gentle touches, the tease of fabric falling from your skin. You deserve all of it, and I want to give it to you.” He takes a breath, and I push back tears. “You deserve everything I have and probably a helluva a lot more. But I’m giving you my all, and I can only hope it’s enough for you.”
I suck in a breath because at some point during his speech, I forgot to breathe. “I’m sorry.”
He shakes his head, looks at our feet, then back up at me. “Don’t ever be sorry for sticking up for yourself. I should’ve told you all that this afternoon when you were so open with me. But words are one thing, and I was trying to prove with my actions that I’m not the guy you think I am.”
I giggle, and his eyes meet mine. “You have no idea.”
“What?” Annoyance grates in his tone.
“I think you’re wonderful just the way you are. The way you’ve navigated my issues with my dad? You’ve been my rock the entire time. All while my issues are reminding you of losing your parents. What you’ve done with Lifetime Adventures… for a guy who didn’t want all the added responsibility in the beginning, you’re the first one there in the morning. I see you researching at night. And now you want to date me. Denver, whatever happened to change you, I see it and I love it.”
He steps closer to me and his hands cover my cheeks. “It’s you. You’re what’s changed me.”
“Denver?”
He presses his lips to mine. “Yeah?”
“Can you romance me tomorrow?” I murmur against his lips and feel his smile.
“Why do you ask that?”
I pull away and look him straight in the eyes so he can see how much I mean it. “Because I need you. Just me and you with nothing between us.”
“As always, princess, you get what you want.”
We rush to the shuttle and can’t keep our lips off one another the entire ride back.
Denver puts the key into the lock, and we fumble into the small cabin. We each take off our hats, scarves, gloves.
I unzip my jacket, but he stops my hands. “Let me undress you.”
He sits on the bed, slowing our pace. He stares at me as his fingers slide the zipper of my coat down until it opens.
“My favorite outfit,” he says when he sees my sweater and pushes my coat to the floor.
“You were extra flirty with me when I wore this.”
He presses his head to my stomach and wraps his arms around me. After unbuttoning my pants and pushing them down my legs, he signals for me to lift my leg. He unties and takes off each of my boots.
“I think you need to catch up,” I say, looking at him still fully dressed and sitting on the bed. I undress him the same way he did me.
Once we’re both nude, we each take the other in. I couldn’t have dreamed up a more perfect body than the one Denver’s rocking. Long corded muscles, six-pack abs with the V that make up the perfect groin cleavage, and a treasure trail of hair that leads to his large and erect manhood straining toward his belly button.
Oddly enough, I don’t feel self-conscious standing in front of him. The way he’s looking at me makes me feel like the most desirable woman in the world. His brown eyes are darker than usual, and the heat pouring from them is scorching.
Denver flips me onto the bed on my back, pressing his lips to mine. And it’s then I discover that Denver messes around the same way he banters. He teases, ramping up the sexual tension with each movement. He’s definitely a breast man, because though he might not stay in one place long, he visits my chest over and over. Licking, biting, and tugging on my nipples until I’m desperate for more of his attention. My fingers thread through his hair and my body strains upward under his expert tongue and hands.
He’s vocal, as I assumed he’d be. Dictating, seeking guidance, and needing confirmation that what he’s doing is sending me toward the edge. For some reason, our bodies resting along one another’s feels familiar even though I know nothing about his body.
What I love the most is the push and pull between fast and slow. Two extremes with no middle ground, but that’s true of Denver in all things. It’s groping and tugging or grazing and gliding. There’s a struggle inside him, and the fact he’s having a hard time controlling himself only turns me on more.
“I have to get a condom.” He lifts off my body.
It already feels foreign not to have him there. I watch him dig through his suitcase. “Did you think we were going to sleep together?”
He arms himself with the condom and slides back over me. “Hoped. I hoped. Things between us have been more intense, and I wasn’t going to be the jackass who wasn’t prepared.”
I kiss his neck, the small amount of stubble tickling my skin.
“Thank God you’re a survivalist,” I say as the tip of him pierces my opening. “Always prepared.”
“You can thank me later.” He slowly pushes inside me, inch by inch until he’s fully seated.
I wrap my limbs around him. I feel fuller than I’ve ever been, and I want to commit this feeling to memory.
Earlier, Denver treated me like a precious jewel, but there’s nothing slow and gentle about him now. His head is buried in my neck, whispering praises about me and my body while he surges in and out of me. My legs tighten around his waist as I’m barely able to hold my orgasm at bay. It all happens so fast—sweat coating our bodies, my hands gripping his shoulders, and him anchoring me to his body as if we’re one.
He rears back when a strangled sound comes out of me. He must see that I’m nearly there, because he thrusts harder and changes his angle a bit, hitting my G-spot. My body clenches and tenses until the relief mixed with ecstasy comes. I explode into a million particles, like stardust floating through space, and I cry out.
He watches me come apart underneath him. “So fucking beautiful.”
He gets up on his elbows and kisses me as he picks up the pace and follows me with his own release, my name slipping from his lips. The weight of him over me after he’s come is something that will stay with me forever, because it feels as though this is how it was always supposed to be. He kisses me until he has no choice but to get rid of the condom.
Denver Bailey owns me now, and I should be more scared than I am, but I’ve never felt like I belonged to someone before and I can’t help but wonder what it’s like.
Twenty-Five
Denver
Cleo is everything I imagined when I fisted my dick late at night when the ache of not having her was too strong.
“I should probably admit that I broke the rule about not masturbating to you.” I slide closer to her under the sheets, and she forks a piece of steak and places it in front of my mouth.