Maria flicked her tongue across her overly plumped lips, “Mmm, you’re a big boy.”
Knotting his fingers in her hair extensions, Nolan tilted her head back. “I’m sure you can handle it.”
She grinned back at him and leaned forward, taking him into her mouth.
Good Lord! He wasn’t wrong. This woman could win an Olympic medal for sucking dick! In just a few minutes, she had Nolan teetering on the edge of a climax. The suction she created as she swallowed him down so deep was unbelievable.
“Fuck, take it easy, baby.” He reckoned he was in danger of suffocating her.
But Maria was unperturbed and greedily sucked on him, adding to her repertoire by squeezing his balls until he couldn’t take it anymore. Unable to hold back any longer, he gripped her hair tightly and lost control, pumping his hot cum down her throat.
Once she’d sucked Nolan dry, he staggered back. Maria remained on her knees, her bleach-blonde hair teased into knots by his fingers. She looked so damn proud of herself—and she should be! It wasn’t normal for a woman to swallow so much of his dick without gagging.
“Fuck, come here, baby.” He tugged her to her feet and slid her lacy black panties down her legs, tossing them to the floor.
As he backed her up to the sofa, her hands wandered to his shaft, stroking him back to life. When he was hard again, Nolan took matters into his own hands. He spun her around and bent her forward, forcing her to grip the back of the couch so she didn’t fall over. “Hold on tight, baby.”
Despite coming less than ten minutes ago, Nolan was as horny as ever. He pulled a condom from his jeans pocket and hurriedly slid it in place. “I hope you like it hard because that’s what you’re gonna get.” A moment later, he was buried inside her, his balls pressed against her ass.
“Fuck, yes!” Maria was hot and wet and she screamed out wildly as he withdrew and pounded into her again. Her fingers gripped tighter around the couch and she steadied herself against his thrusts. “Oh my God, Nolan…”
He held her hips still as she writhed; by now lust had taken over and he didn’t really care whether she was with him or not but as he climaxed hard, she begged for more.
“Mmm, that was good.” Nolan kissed her neck as he tried to get his breathing under control and he wondered if she finished with him.
A muffled mewl and soft whimper from Maria confirmed she had.
As the red mist of lust faded, so did his tolerance for the woman. Nolan pulled out, removed the condom, and zipped himself back into his fly. When he looked up, her glazed eyes were on him.
Maria smiled and reached out, dragging her nails across his half buttoned up dress shirt. She pouted. “Damn, I didn’t get to see you naked. How about we do a re-run without your clothes.” Her hand slipped under his shirt, her fingernails scratching his abs.
But with his urges satisfied, Nolan had lost interest; the last thing on his mind was prolonging their encounter. “I don’t strip until the second date.” He picked up her dress from the floor and tossed it to her. “You want me to call you a cab?”
She frowned back at him and a for about a Nano-second, Nolan felt a twinge of guilt. Yet, almost as fast as the uneasy feeling came on, it disappeared. “Look, I’m not great at pillow talk, it’s one of my flaws. Sorry, honey, I have a really early start in the morning.”
Nolan scooped up her bra and handed it to her. He watched, fascinated as she repacked those enormous boobs back into the thing. It was a small miracle when she was able to close the clasp and contain them. Maria snatched her dress out of his hand and tugged it over her head. “Um, will I see you again?”
As soon as the hem of the dress fell into place, he placed his hand on the small of her back and maneuvered her to the door. “Sure.”
Maria planted her feet and narrowed her eyes at him. Folding her arms in front of her ample chest she tried to pin him down. “When?”
“What? Oh, a couple days. Actually, make that a couple of weeks. I have a lot of late shifts coming up.”
“Late shifts?”
“Yeah, work, you know. I have clients most evenings so it’s hard to make plans.”
“Clients?”
Nolan was getting pretty tired of this conversation. The heady lust-filled rush had seeped away and the only thing he felt now was exhaustion. He just wanted his bed. “I’ll message you when I check my schedule, yeah? Let me get you a ride.”
Sensing defeat, Maria snatched up her purse from the table by the door and as Nolan pulled out his phone and brought up the Uber app, she muttered, “Don’t fucking bother.”
The woman yanked open the door to his apartment and stomped down the corridor. Nolan shrugged his shoulders and closed the door. After switching off all the lights in the apartment, he padded into the bedroom and flopped onto his bed. He discarded his shoes and socks, then yanked off his shirt and tossed it towards the overflowing laundry basket. Wearily, he collapsed back into the pillows and closed his eyes. A sinking feeling arrived in his stomach as the high from sex disappeared.
This has to stop.
Maria was the fourth Tinder date he’d brought home this month and, frankly, he was disgusted with himself. For whatever reason, he just couldn’t make a connection with any of them. Sure, they were all beautiful and they turned him the fuck on, but once he found that release, his skin turned cold at the thought of yet another meaningless fuck.
This is becoming a pattern.
Nolan used to at least let these women stay over but now, he didn’t even have enough decency to pretend. As soon as his sexual urges were quieted, that overwhelming need to get rid of them had him ushering them to the door.
With a sigh, Nolan rolled over and his eyes fell on the silver picture frame next to his bed—the photograph was of Lenny, Olivia, and himself in Bali, taken the night before his friend was tragically swept away. They were crowded around an enormous colorful cocktail in a huge fish bowl glass. Three straws stuck out from it and they were all sucking on the lethal mix, their eyes bugged out, Nolan’s cheeks red from too much sun. He snatched up the picture and traced a finger over Len’s face. Why was it him that died? He swept his finger over the surface of the glass to Olivia. Poor, lovely Livi. She didn’t deserve to lose her husband so soon, they’d only been married just over a year. God what a fucking waste.
Placing the frame back on the bedside table, Nolan covered his eyes with his arm to stop the tears from flowing. The second anniversary of Len’s death was tomorrow. It was the reason Nolan felt so numb. Is this what it felt like last year? Is it any better the second time around, or just the same? It was hard to tell. Last year, he was off his face for the entire week. At least this time, he was sober—well, almost—so, perhaps that was an improvement.
With a sudden need to talk to the one person that would understand how he felt, Nolan reached for his phone. He scrolled through his contacts to Olivia’s number and was just about to call when he realized it was almost two in the morning. Come on, Nolan. You need to get your shit together. Livi’s gonna need you tomorrow.
He forced himself to take a deep breath. This really can’t go on. As another year dawned without Lenny in their lives, he really needed to get his with it. Nolan slowly exhaled; this had to be the year he got the fuck over his friend’s death. Body or no body, the guy was gone and, for whatever reason, Nolan was still here and he was tired of this limbo-like state. It was about time Nolan started being present in his own life again and it was time he stopped engaging in meaningless fucks!
His phone pinged and three notifications from Tinder popped up on his phone in quick succession. Yeah, and he needed to delete this app—it was an enabler. It pinged again. Nolan grinned and swiped the screen—or perhaps he could just cut down… maybe not give it up completely, just limit it a little, cut back… not go cold turkey. Yeah, that wouldn’t be so bad. Hmm, Heather, twenty-three, loves yoga… fuck, yeah! Perhaps he’d start that resolution next week.
Chapter 2
Olivi
a
Olivia rang Nolan’s doorbell before seven a.m. and wondered if she would be waking him this early. Maybe it was only her that tossed and turned all night. By the time five a.m. had clicked around, she’d grown tired of staring at the damn ceiling and needed a distraction from her thoughts about Lenny. She’d tried a run on the treadmill at her apartment block’s gym first, but it hadn’t helped to clear her head in the slightest. Resigned to it being an emotionally long day, she waited for the first rays of daylight to appear in the sky and drove around to Nolan’s.
But Olivia shouldn’t have worried. Nolan answered the door wearing pajama bottoms that hung from his narrow hips, his hair a tousled mess and all his delicious abs on show, looking just as sleep-deprived as her. She tried to ignore the muscular torso and bulging biceps as he stepped aside, taking a swig from his mug of coffee. Nolan ran a trendy gym three blocks away and he definitely practiced what he preached to his clients.
Olivia cocked her head sideways and held up a to-go bag from their favorite breakfast place. “Is it too early?”
Nolan beckoned her forward and kissed the top of her head as she stepped into his arms. “Course not. Mi casa es su casa, you know that.”
“God, I love it when you butcher my native tongue. Mmm, you have any more of that coffee?”
“Yeah, let me pour you some.” While Nolan hunted out a clean mug, Olivia peeled off her coat and removed her hat. Long glossy brown waves tumbled out over her shoulders and she glanced in the mirror as she tried to tame them with her fingers. Gone were the rainbow colors she used to dye her hair with—although she blamed that on her teaching job, it had more to do with losing Lenny. When her husband vanished in Bali, her zest for life went with him, along with the colored locks.
She sighed at her reflection. Did her olive skin always look so sallow? Now she regretted not bothering to apply any makeup. Perhaps she should start wearing it again—at least just a bit of mascara—because her hazel eyes could definitely do with something.
Olivia wandered to the sofa and stopped to puzzle over a lacy piece of black fabric scrunched up at her feet. She wrinkled her nose as she realized it was a pair of panties. “Last night’s conquest?” Olivia pointed at the black underwear as Nolan handed her a steaming mug.
“Sorry.” He scooped them up and dropped them in a basket in the coat closet.
“You must have more ladies’ underwear than me! Can’t your women ever remember to take them home?”
He closed the closet door and joined her on the sofa, not even trying to keep the smirk off his face. “Well, I did kind of rush her out.”
Was it wrong of her to secretly be glad that Nolan’s date from last night hadn’t worked out? “You are bad,” She scolded, shaking her head at him, her loose curls bouncing around her. “What was this one like?”
“Huh, huge fake tits, but the way she sucked my…”
“Nolan! Jesus, that was a rhetorical question. I do not need the details. Christ, you could have generalized. Said nice… or blonde… or something.” Now she had the most unholy image in her head!
Nolan ruffled her hair but the gesture turned from jokey to something that felt too intimate, reminding her of the way Lenny used to do that and call her Titch. She shifted in her chair and sipped on her coffee, trying to banish the memory Nolan’s touch evoked and prevent the tears from flowing again. Jeez, heaven knew there would be plenty of those later.
“She was blonde, and… okay.”
“Will you see her again?”
“Nah. She wasn’t my type.”
This was Nolan’s M.O. and Olivia wondered if he deliberately didn’t date anyone that was his type in order to avoid getting involved. For as long as she could remember, Nolan was always shy of commitment—though she worried since Lenny was gone, it seemed like Nolan had become worse.
The guy was straight up gorgeous. With those intense blue eyes, close trimmed beard, hair shaved so short there was no chance of any woman ever running her fingers through it, Nolan had no trouble attracting the fairer sex. There was a never-ending supply of female hopefuls only too eager to fill his bed, hoping to be the one that finally tamed him.
Back when she first dated Lenny, Nolan’s relationships were always short-lived. Girls lasted a few weeks, if they were lucky a month or two, before they stopped being part of their foursome and a new one was initiated into the group. But now, she couldn’t even remember the last time a girl made it past the first date let alone one that had joined Nolan on a night out with her. Hmm, perhaps he thought she might feel uncomfortable if he brought one of his girlfriends when he met her. Maybe she should reassure him that it would be okay, or lead by example and invite Michael.
“You are such a cad, Nolan. How can you have sex with them and never call them back?”
“Hey, she had fun, Miss Judgmental. Talking of sex, have you and Michael done it yet?”
“No, and I wouldn’t tell you about it if we had.”
“Spoil sport. Jesus, woman, it’s been two months. The guy must have blue balls.”
Livi looked away. “I-I just can’t.”
Nolan tucked his finger under her chin and turned her back to face him. “Len?”
She nodded. “He’s the only man I’ve ever been with, Nolan. I was freaking eighteen when we met. Seven years we were together.”
Oh God. Olivia had only been there five minutes and already the tears were welling up in her eyes. This was going to be a long day!
He swiped away a stray tear as it trickled down her face. “I know, sweetheart. I was there every minute of those seven years. I watched you guy’s fall in love.”
She rested her head on his shoulder and he continued to sift through her hair. It was comforting having someone understand just how much of a wrench losing her husband was. Nolan and Lenny had been as close as brothers and he’d loved the guy as much as Olivia had.
“Perhaps you should cut Michael loose. If he was right for you, you’d be able to…”
Okay she did not need dating advice from a man whose idea of a relationship was something that lasted less than six hours! Though, annoyingly, he had a point. She could never see herself sleeping with Michael and she knew she was being unfair to the man. Jeez, was she as bad as Nolan, toying with Michael’s emotions?
“I know, and I will. I just couldn’t do it so close to the anniversary. My head is all over the place and I don’t want to hurt him. He’s a nice guy.”
“There are plenty of nice guys out there, Livi, but what you need is a spectacular one. A good-looking stud with a big—”
She sat up and glared at him. “Do not say it! Honestly, Nolan, all you think about is sex!”
“No, I don’t. I think about sex and food.” He leaned forward and grabbed the to-go bag she brought with her. “Mmm, now what did you pick us up?” His stomach growled as he inhaled the aroma of breakfast tacos.
“All your favorites.” Livi’s sadness lightened and she was grateful for Nolan’s uncanny knack of being able to change her mood. Jumping up, she headed to the open plan kitchen. “Any chance of me finding a clean dish in here?” She glanced warily at his messy countertops.
“I have paper in the cabinet.” As she hunted for the paper plates, he called over his shoulder to her. “I heard they found another body.”
Olivia sighed. She’d seen the same report on the Internet. For two years, they’d both been glued to a local Bali website that carried English reports. In the first months after Hurricane Nina, bodies washed up fairly frequently. But this year there had only been two more, the latest one just a couple of days ago. “I saw. A woman, wasn’t it?”
“Yeah, I don’t know whether to be relieved or not. At least we know it can’t possibly be Len.”
Olivia thought she detected a slight quaver in Nolan’s voice. She knew exactly what he meant, though. Even though they both knew Lenny was dead and neither of them harbored a notion the guy would still turn up breathing one day, they both held their breath when n
ew finds were made.
“Here.” Livi passed him a plate and sat down. As she leaned forward, a gold chain slipped out of her blouse and dangled in the open. Attached to it was a locket that contained Len’s picture in a silver heart and alongside it, her wedding ring. It had taken Olivia a whole year before she could remove it from her finger. On last year’s anniversary, Nolan sat with his arm wrapped around her shoulder while she slipped it off and threaded it onto the chain. Not a large step, but it was all she could manage.
Nolan took hold of the wedding band and turned it over in his fingers before he let it go. His peridot blue eyes clouded over. “You ready to put that away?”
She shook her head and her hand covered the ring protectively. It was probably her imagination but the surface seemed to heat, warming her palm. Slowly, she slid it back and forth along the chain. “I thought I would be, but… it still feels too soon, you know?” She suspected the time would never be right.
Nolan squeezed her hand. “Len would want you to move on.”
“I know. And I will… eventually.” The tears came faster now and they dripped off her chin and pooled in large wet splotches before soaking into her tight black jeans. “If we weren’t still waiting, if they found his body… maybe it would be easier.” She sniffed loudly and rubbed her wet face with her sleeve. Her words sounded hollow, as there was nothing that could ease this ache inside her. “Besides, Shona asks me every damn time I see her if I’m still wearing it.”
Olivia immediately felt awful bad-mouthing Lenny’s sister, especially to Nolan. For whatever reason, her friend’s hackles rose every time Olivia mentioned the girl. She suspected Shona and Nolan might have had a thing once, as Lenny’s sister had a similar reaction if Olivia ever brought up Nolan’s name in conversation.
“Well, Shona has no right guilting you like that.”
After Hurricane Nina, Nolan's Resolution (Hot Hunks-Steamy Romance Collection Book 2) Page 2
