Hard Pass: An Enemies to Lovers Romance

by K. G. Reuss

  “Come here, Mrs. Owens,” he whispered, his lips brushing against mine. A rocket of tingles soared through my body at his kiss. “I’m going to rock your world.”

  His mouth met mine again, his tongue delving deep and sweeping against my own. I twisted my fingers through his hair, pulling him closer. His hands fumbled with the zipper on my sleeping bag as he tugged it down, snatching me out and bringing our bodies together, me on top of him, his lips never breaking away from mine.

  “I want you,” he groaned between fevered kisses.

  “We can’t,” I answered back, biting his bottom lip.

  “We can.” He nipped me back, his dick hard as I rubbed myself against him shamelessly.

  “Alex is only one tent over.”

  “Then try not to scream my name, Mrs. Owens.”

  “Like you could make me,” I moaned softly against his lips.

  He chuckled, his hands tightening on my waist before he rolled us over, leveling his body over mine.

  “Trust me, making you is a challenge I won’t back down from.” He kissed my neck, his fingers twining through mine as he pinned them over my head. His lips moved south, brushing over my collarbone before he released my hands. He moved my tank top strap aside, his hand sliding beneath the material to cup a breast.

  I arched my back as his lips wrapped around my nipple, lavishing it in his wet heat. My fingers went straight to his hair. I raked my nails against his scalp, making him let out a hiss before he descended farther south, pushing my shirt up and kissing across my abdomen.

  I swallowed hard as he looked up, making eye contact with me. My breath caught in my throat as his hands traversed up my thighs and beneath my shorts.

  “I want to taste you, Alexis,” he murmured, skimming the edge of my panties. My name on his lips was a deep growl, filled with so many promises. “Tell me.”

  “Tell you what?” I rasped, the ache of want coursing through me.

  “Tell me you want it.”

  “I want it. Please.”

  He let out a soft laugh, pulling my shorts and panties off and tossing them aside.

  “Fuck,” he hissed, gazing down at me. Heat flooded my cheeks at his assessment before I tried to cover myself, embarrassed at being on display for him.

  “No,” he growled, pushing my hands away as he positioned himself between my legs.

  “Travis,” I called out softly.

  “Lexy.” His hot breath blew across the apex of my thighs.

  “I-I’m nervous.”

  He moved back over me, his body on top of mine, and kissed me gently. Sweetly. His lips trailed across my jaw until he was whispering in my ear. “I’ll take care of you. I promise.”

  I nodded, my breathing coming in soft gasps.

  He moved south again and placed a kiss just over my public bone. “Relax. Let me make you feel good.”

  I tensed as he ran his tongue up my wet slit, his hands gripping my thighs. He did it again. My fingers twined through his hair. He let out a grunt of approval as his tongue lavished my hot button, sending sparks of electricity through my body with each flick of his tongue.

  I tugged him closer as he inserted a finger inside me, sliding it in and out.

  “Oh god,” I gasped, bringing my hips up as both my hands tugged his face forward.

  He ate at me, licking, flicking, sucking. Tingles built low before reaching a crescendo that had me crashing in waves of euphoria beneath him. He lapped at me until I was a writhing mass on the sleeping bag.

  Slowly, he pulled his finger from me and placed a kiss over my slit, taking the last of my pleasure with him. He wiped his mouth before grabbing my shorts and panties and sliding them back up my legs and into position.

  “What about you?” I whispered, still trembling from his tongue.

  He lay beside me and brushed my hair from my face before planting a tender kiss to the corner of my mouth. “I just wanted to make you feel good. We can do me later.”

  “Are you sure? I-I can try—”

  “Shh.” He pressed a kiss to my lips. “We have plenty of time. It’s a marathon, not a sprint, honey pot. When I fuck you, I want you to be able to call my name.”

  “OK,” I answered, sated and tired. I didn’t even have it in me to tease him.

  He pulled me into his arms and adjusted an extra blanket over us.

  “What about Alex? What if he sees you leaving or comes in?”

  “He won’t,” Travis assured me, giving me a gentle squeeze. “I locked the zipper, and I’ll leave before sunrise.”

  “How romantic,” I chuckled sleepily.

  He laughed softly. “I’ll make it up to you. Promise. Now sleep.”

  I nodded and closed my eyes, falling asleep in his arms.

  It didn’t feel strange. In fact, if I wasn’t careful, I could get used to it.

  Forty-Four

  Travis

  “What are you doing?” Alex asked as I crept out of Lexy’s tent the next morning. I’d overslept, opting to silence my phone alarm when it went off. Needless to say, measures needed to be taken for this very event.

  “Oh, uh, I was trying to get her to slap herself in the face.”

  “What?” Alex looked past me to the tent.

  I pulled the tube of toothpaste out of my pocket I’d used to brush my teeth with the night before and showed it to him. “You know. I didn’t have shaving cream, so I used toothpaste. Tickled her nose a little.”

  Alex laughed. “Did it work?”

  I loosened the tension in my shoulders. “Of course it did.”

  A moment later, Lexy’s shriek could be heard in the tent. “Travis, you asshole! I’m going to kill you.”

  I grinned as she tumbled out of the tent, toothpaste all over her face and stuck in her hair.

  Mason popped his head out of his tent, all sleepy-eyed, and let out a burst of laughter as Lexy came at me, hands swinging like some kind of deranged toothpaste monster.

  I laughed, gripping her small wrists as she tried to knee me in the groin.

  “Play nice,” I warned through my laughter as she made another attempt.

  “Screw you, Owens.”

  I pinned her arms to her side as Alex walked away, chuckling and shaking his head. Mason returned to his tent.

  Leaning into her struggling body, I whispered, “I had to, honey pot. I overslept and knew Alex would be up. It was the only way to explain why I was in your tent.”

  She stopped her bid for freedom. “I still hate you.”

  “Good. You can show me how much tonight,” I murmured in her ear. She shivered against me, and I let out a soft laugh, my cock hardening in my pants at the prospect.

  I released her and quickly brushed a kiss across her lips while no one was looking. She bit her bottom lip and twisted a loose strand of her hair around her manicured finger.

  “Tease,” I growled at her.

  She smirked. “Do you like all the toothpaste on my face?”

  “There’s something else I’d like to see all over your face,” I answered back. Her cheeks reddened, but before I could elaborate on it, Ava came out of her tent, yawning.

  “Mason, are you going to make breakfast?” she whined, rubbing her stomach. Lexy giggled and shook her head. She grabbed a bottle of water and splashed her face with it. I watched in awe as she washed, her white tank dampening with each splash.

  “Nice view,” Mason grunted, coming up beside me.

  I nodded silently as she pulled the rubber band from her hair, letting the waves cascade around her. It took me a moment to snap out of it, and when I did, I noticed the guys at the campsite next to us were nudging each other around their morning fire and gawking at her.

  Immediately, I was at her side.

  “What are you doing?” she protested, trying to snag the second bottle of water from me.

  “You have an audience, and your shirt is soaked.”

  She looked down at her chest and then raised an eyebrow at me. “Oh, you don’t
want me wet?”

  I ground my teeth. “Baby, you don’t know how wet I want you, but I don’t want anyone else getting a free show of my wife.”

  “Well…” She pouted up at me. “If that’s what Travis wants, that’s what he’ll get.”

  I relaxed, letting her have the bottle of water back.

  She let out a laugh, her blue eyes glinting at me. “Sucker!”

  She poured the bottle all over herself, the water cascading like a river over her body. The guys whooped at the neighboring campsite.

  “What the hell are you doing?” Alex asked, looking at Lexy’s wet body in horror. He chucked his hoodie at her. “Christ, Lex, we can see everything.”

  “Good.” She winked at me. “That was the point.”

  I shook my head at her, the defiant little minx.

  “Don’t tell me what to do,” she said, pressing herself to my chest. “I do what I want.”

  “Clearly,” I answered dryly.

  She winked and trapped her bottom lip between her teeth before sashaying away, leaving me practically panting in my spot.

  One moment she was my shy sweetheart, the next she was pushing my buttons.

  I’d be lying if I said I didn’t like this game.

  By the time we returned home, it was nearing six o’clock. I parked in front of the girls’ apartment. Mason opened the door and got out. Lexy hesitated for a moment, her eye catching mine.

  Doing this was going to be hard, considering she lived with Ava and I lived with Alex. The part where I wanted to move in wouldn’t work. Not without Ava becoming more suspicious and Alex demanding to know why I wasn’t home. Secret meetings and hanging out under the guise of the project would have to do.

  “We should go get some food,” Ava called out from the backseat. “I’m thinking pizza.”

  “I’m down,” Alex answered.

  “And beer,” Ava added.

  Alex laughed as Mason cast me a quick glance.

  “Yeah, I’d be down for that.”

  “Uh, I can’t,” I said.

  “Why not? It’s ninety-nine cent pitchers on Sundays.” Alex leaned forward in his seat.

  “Sorry, guys, I’ve been trying to hook up with this chick for a while,” I answered, keeping a straight face. “She texted me earlier. I’m not backing down.”

  “You and Lex agreed to this?” Alex asked, glancing between us from his seat in the back.

  “Uh, just this once. She knows how much I want this. It’s my hall pass,” I lied.

  “Ugh. Weirdos,” Ava muttered. “So food? Beer?”

  “I’m not going either.” Lexy slid out of the truck. “I have homework. Travis, it was fun, but not real fun. I hate you tried to kill us. But thanks for the memories.”

  “Only the best for you, Lexicon.”

  “So, you’re really not coming, Lex?” Ava called out.

  “No. I need to make sure I’m caught up on everything. Work’s been keeping me away from things. Go eat pizza and think of me.”

  “Fine,” Ava huffed, settling back in her seat. “Are you really not going either, Travis?”

  “Nope. I’ll drop you guys off. I’ve gotta get to my booty call.”

  “You’re gross.” Ava laughed. “I hope you kiss her at least before you fuck her over.”

  “Of course.” I laughed as Mason climbed back into the passenger seat. Lexy had already grabbed her small bag and headed into the building. I pulled out my phone and shot off a quick message to her.

  Travis: I’ll see you in a few. Wear something sexy, wife.

  I darkened the screen before putting the truck into gear and pulling away from the curb.

  “Is that your booty call?” Mason asked, suppressing a knowing smile.

  “Hell yeah, it is.”

  And I couldn’t wait to get back to her. Whatever the hell that meant.

  Forty-Five

  Lexy

  Travis: I’ll see you in a few. Wear something sexy, wife.

  After reading his text, I tossed my bag on the floor of my room and took a hurried shower. Remnants of the toothpaste fiasco were still in my hair despite my best efforts to wash it out all while trying to make Travis jealous.

  I wasn’t sure why I’d wanted to do that. Couldn’t get someone jealous when you promised no feelings.

  It was a challenge I’d given myself. Probably far too dangerous, but that was me, always playing dangerous games I had no experience with.

  My shower lasted longer than I intended. The water felt way too good to escape, so I relished in it, letting it soothe my sore muscles from sleeping on the ground. When the water was nearly cold, I climbed out and wrapped myself in a towel, anticipation threading through me.

  Sex.

  That’s what Travis wanted.

  Having him nearly kill me had made me temporarily insane. That was all this was. That was why I rushed into his arms and agreed to being fake married for real. It was nuts. I was nuts. Hell, so was he.

  Sure, I wanted to remember every feeling from the one night we spent together. But this? I wasn’t entirely sure I could keep up with him. The idea I might be disappointing in the sack hung heavy in my mind.

  I wasn’t experienced like the other girls he’d been with. Not even close.

  In front of the mirror, I dragged the brush through my hair. My mood deteriorated the longer I stood trapped in my thoughts.

  A knock on the front door had me frowning. I went to it, still in my towel and peeked through the crack to find a freshly showered Travis wearing different clothes and staring back at me.

  I stepped aside as I tugged the door open, letting him in. He stepped into the room, his green eyes sweeping over me.

  “Nice. Perfect,” he appraised, reaching out for me.

  I backed away and swallowed hard.

  His brows crinkled. “What’s wrong?”

  “Let me get dressed real quick—”

  “No point in it. I’m just going to peel the clothes off you anyway.”

  “Travis, we do need to work on the project—”

  “Trust me, we will be,” he growled, advancing on me as I stumbled back. He caught me before I could get too far.

  “It’s the chase I enjoy the most,” he murmured in my ear, his hands on my waist over my towel. “Keep running, honey pot.”

  “Ava could walk in,” I choked back.

  He lifted me into his arms and strode easily back to my bedroom where he kicked the door closed and placed me on my bed.

  “What’s your excuse now?”

  I let out a sigh and bit my bottom lip. “Travis, can we talk for a minute?”

  He groaned and moved to lie on my bed. “Fine. What’s wrong?”

  “It’s just, we had sex, and I don’t have a solid memory of it.”

  “We’ll make new memories of it,” he interrupted.

  “I know. I get that’s what married couples do. It’s just… I don’t know. I-I lost it to you.”

  “What?” he sat up and gave me a confused look.

  “I envisioned my first time being flowers and romance. A guy who’d sweep me off my feet, not lead my drunk ass to a rental house, and then we fuck. I never imagined it being a drunken night in Vegas wi-with you.”

  “I see.” He stilled beside me.

  “I-I just wanted my first time to be memorable in a good way, like what I’d envisioned for myself.”

  “Lexy, I’m sorry, but I can’t go back in time. This is what we have now. The curtain’s been lifted. I took your virginity. I can’t change that.”

  “Would you though?” I asked softly.

  He stared down at his hands. “Why are you asking me this? Is this what we’re going to do now? Argue? I don't know about you, but I don’t want that kind of marriage straight out the gate.”

  “No. We’re not. Sorry I brought my feelings up to you.” I got up and stomped to my small walk-in closet and let my towel fall. I angrily dug through my hangers, looking for my long nightshirt.

&n
bsp; “Lexy.” Travis stood outside the small space, his eyes wide as he took me in.

  My face heated as his gaze raked over me, his pupils dilated. I immediately moved to cover myself beneath his stare.

  “No,” he growled, coming inside the closet and pushing my hands away from my body. “Stop hiding from me.”

  “Just because you got to fuck me once, doesn’t entitle you to see me whenever you want,” I shot back, my voice cracking as he rested his hands on my hips.

  “That’s right. I fucked you. I’m your first. And for now, I’m your only. Everything beneath your clothes belongs to me. Stop hiding it from me.”

  I stared up at him, my heart slamming against my chest at his words. “And do I own you as well, Travis?”

  “You fucking know you do, Lexy. I’m yours until the end of this project. I promised I was. If you just want to sit around and stare at my pretty face, then I’ll stare right back at yours. If you want to ride my dick, we can do that too. But for the love of god, decide.”

  “I’m scared, Travis.”

  “Why?” He gave my naked hips a squeeze.

  “What if—”

  “There are no what ifs, Lex. I’m not going to hurt you. We can’t stand each other. We aren’t going to develop feelings. We aren’t going to fall in love, right?” His words spilled out in rush, his lips turned down into a frown. Something about his statements made me ache. “We’re doing this to help each other out. For better or for worse, right?”

  “I-I guess.”

  “It’s practice for you. For us. You’ll learn what you like and how to please a man. I’ll make you feel good. You’ll make me feel good. I’ll learn how to be a good husband. I’ll get to spend some time with the enigmatic Alexis Hale. There’s no downside. We divorce in less than two months. We’ll be free of one another and move on,” his voice shook. He hauled in a deep breath and closed his eyes for a moment. “We’ll go slow. You want romance, Lexicon? I’ll try.”

  “I-I do want that, but it’s not natural if you’re only doing it because I want it.”

  He leaned in and pressed a kiss to my cheek. “Get dressed. I’ll be in your room.”