by Piper James
“Challenge accepted,” I replied, the words clear and succinct.
I rolled off her, the motion taking me right off the bed to land on my feet. I needed to get rid of the rest of my clothes and grab a condom, but my hands stilled at my waistband as I caught her eyes roving over me. She was biting her lip again as her gaze locked onto my erection straining against the material of my athletic shorts.
I cocked my head as my arms dropped to my sides, leaving my shorts right where they were. “What do you want to do to me, Jessa?”
Her gaze shot to mine, her eyes widening. She sat up and swung her legs over the edge of the bed. Reaching forward, she hooked a finger into the waistband of my shorts and pulled me closer. Her eyes studied me for a moment before her pink tongue darted out to wet her lips. Then, she put her hands on me.
It took every bit of my willpower to remain still as she let her palms glide over my chest and down my sides. My breath hissed through my clenched teeth as her hands slipped around me to grip my ass and she leaned forward to kiss my abdomen.
Her brown gaze met mine, a small smile pulling up her lips as her hands tugged my shorts and underwear down in one slow, deliberate movement. She inhaled sharply as my erection popped free of the material, leaving me to shimmy my clothes the rest of the way down while she wrapped a hand around my cock.
My head fell back, my fingers delving into her hair as she leaned forward and swirled her tongue around the tip. Then I was inside her mouth, the wet heat and motion of her tongue destroying every brain cell I possessed. I couldn’t put two coherent thoughts together as she hummed her own satisfaction. The sound let me know the act was giving her pleasure, and that was…incredible. She was incredible.
And I needed her to stop.
“Jessa,” I whispered, giving her hair a gentle tug. “If you don’t stop, I’m going to finish before we even get started. And I need to be inside you.”
She licked me from base to tip one last time before pulling away. Scooting back, she stretched out on my bed, watching me with fire in her eyes. I pulled a condom from the nightstand drawer and ripped it open with my teeth, never taking my eyes off of her for a second. She watched my hands as I rolled it on, tugging that bottom lip in between her teeth again.
Bracing my knees on the mattress, I ran my tongue over her slit, flicking her clit with the tip before kissing my way up her stomach. I settled my hips between her thighs and dipped my head, sucking one pert nipple into my mouth. She cried out as I worshipped it with my tongue, then moved to give the same homage to the other.
She was practically vibrating beneath me as her nails clawed my back and her legs wrapped around my ass, nudging me forward. Holding firm, I ran my tongue over her collarbone before sucking at her neck. Jessa groaned, the sound somewhere between pleasure and pain, before whispering two little words.
“Please, Rafe.”
As if it had a mind of its own, my whole body bucked forward, my mouth landing on hers as my cock slid into her tight, wet sheath in one smooth movement. Something that sounded like a growl erupted from Jessa’s mouth into mine, and I gave it right back to her with a rumble of my own.
I held still for several seconds, letting her adjust to the feel of me inside her, but the need to move quickly overpowered any coherent thought. She hissed as I slid out slowly, then moaned as I pushed back in. A drop of sweat ran down my temple as I struggled to keep control, moving with precision and intention until Jessa was writhing with need beneath me.
I arched my back, dipping my head to latch onto her breast as I pumped into her harder and faster. She chanted unintelligible words as I moved, her tone alone encouraging me to keep going. To never stop.
I felt her body tense beneath mine as her inner walls clenched tighter around me. She was close and just needed a little shove over the edge. Reaching one hand behind me, I unhooked her ankles and unwrapped her legs from my waist. Pushing her knees apart, I lifted myself slightly to drive into her from a higher angle.
Within seconds, she was screaming as her inner walls rippled around me. The tight, squeezing sensation set off my own orgasm, and I roared with the release before collapsing on top of her.
The pounding of our hearts and our harsh breaths created a symphony around me, the sweetest music in existence. I enjoyed it for a few seconds before pushing up on my arms, lifting my weight before rolling off her. Mumbling a few words about being right back, I stumbled to the bathroom, disposed of the condom, and quickly swished some mouthwash before rushing back into my bedroom.
Jessa was sitting up, undoubtedly searching for her panties. Did she think she was leaving?
“Oh, no you don’t,” I said, rushing forward and tackling her back to the mattress. I kissed her until her limbs went slack, then rolled over onto my back while pulling her on top of me. “Where do you think you’re going?”
“I thought…” she said, trailing off as I shook my head at her.
“We’re not done here, Ms. Maddox.”
“We’re not?” she asked, her eyes widening as I guided her knees to either side of my hips before running my fingertips up her thighs.
“Not unless you want to be done,” I said, raising my eyebrows in question.
“Yes. I mean, no. I mean…I’m not ready to be done,” she stuttered before giving me the sweetest smile I’d ever seen.
“Good,” I said. “Because I’m nowhere near done with you yet.”
“Why are you smiling so much? I noticed it last time we were here, but now it’s…different.”
I snapped out of my memories to look at my sister, who was staring at me with one black eyebrow arched. I cleared my throat and tried to force my mouth to turn down, but I failed miserably. I couldn’t stop thinking about my night with Jessa—which meant I couldn’t stop smiling.
“Can’t I be happy for no reason?” I shot back.
“No,” she said firmly, then looked across the table at Nate, who sat beside me. “Back me up here.”
“She’s not wrong,” Nate said, stuffing a few French fries into his mouth. “You do seem different.”
I was beginning to regret not cancelling our standard weekly dinner. Nate and Lola had shown up, greasy fast-food bags in hand, and I’d ushered them in with the grin that hadn’t left my face all day.
Last night was…amazing. Unforgettable. Damn near apocalyptic.
Jessa didn’t leave until sunrise this morning, after we’d thoroughly explored every inch of each other’s bodies. It was, hands down, the best sex of my life, made only sweeter by the fact that I knew it was the best of hers. I’d made her come, multiple times, when no other man had been able to.
I felt like a god. Powerful. Strong. Invincible.
“Rafe,” Lola said, snapping her fingers in front of my face. “What is going on with you?”
“Isn’t it obvious, Lola?” Nate said, pointing at me with his cheeseburger. “Our big brother got laid. Finally.”
My hand shot out and slapped my brother on the back of his head, and he shouted in protest. Lola laughed as he flipped me off, then turned those big brown eyes back on me.
“Did you meet someone?” she asked softly, hope shining on her face.
“It’s nothing like that,” I said, shrugging as I remembered the agreement Jessa and I made as we pawed at each other last night. “It’s casual. Temporary.”
“Was that her idea, or yours?” Nate asked.
“It was mutual,” I said, “but she brought it up first.”
“Is she married, or something?”
“No, Nathaniel, she is not married,” I said firmly. “Why would you think that?”
He shrugged. “Most women would consider a good looking, kind, respectful doctor to be husband material. If she’s not already married, maybe her demand to keep it casual is a trap—like reverse psychology or something.”
“Jessa’s not like that,” I said quickly, and before I could fully regret my word choice, Lola jumped in.
“Jessa? Jessa who
?”
“You don’t know her. She’s visiting family from out of town.”
“Well, if her family lives here, that means she grew up here, right?” she shot back.
“Stop,” Nate said, slapping a palm against my chest. “Don’t tell me it’s Jessa Maddox?”
The way he said her name made my hackles rise, like it was completely unbelievable that I’d be interested in Jessa Maddox. Or that she’d be interested in me. When I didn’t respond, he barked out a laugh and slapped his hand on the table.
“She was my lab partner one year in high school. She used to chase me all over the building, trying to make me participate and do my fair share of the work. So annoying.”
“Maybe you should’ve done your part to begin with,” I grumbled, suddenly feeling annoyed, myself.
“You know school wasn’t my thing, Rafael,” he responded, waving my words off.
“What does she look like?” Lola asked.
“Frizzy hair, braces, terrible acne,” Nate offered, and I slapped him on the back of the head again.
“She means now, not in high school, jackass.”
“Do you have a picture?” she asked, ignoring Nate completely.
I didn’t have one that I’d taken, but I pulled out my phone and showed her the picture I’d found of her behind the bar at her old job. Lola took the phone from my hand, letting out a low whistle before handing it over to Nate.
“You’re in big trouble, hermano.”
“What do you mean?” I asked, lowering my eyebrows at her.
“She means,” Nate cut in, turning the screen to face me so I could see the picture, “you’re going to fall for this girl, hard.”
“No, I’m not,” I said, snatching the device from him and shoving it back into my pocket. “We’re just having some fun before she goes back to Atlanta. Now, can we please drop this? I’m not exactly comfortable talking about it in front of my little sister.”
I shot Lola an apologetic look, but she waved it off. “I’m not so little anymore, big brother. And judging by the goofy grin you’ve had on your face since we got here, I’m also not wrong. Be careful with your heart, Rafe. Don’t let her take it with her when she leaves.”
20
Jessa
“You’re glowing. Why are you glowing? She’s glowing, right Felicia?”
Karly’s red hair swung around her shoulders as she looked back and forth between us. I could feel a blush trying to form at her words, but I quickly pushed away the embarrassment. I had nothing to be ashamed of.
And I really, really wanted to talk to someone about Rafe.
It had been a couple days since our night together, and I couldn’t get it out of my head. I could still feel his hands on my body. His mouth. I shivered at the memory, and Felicia’s dark eyes narrowed on me.
“Holy shit. You got some.”
She said it without a hint of question or doubt in her voice. This time, my face really did heat up, and my two new friends leaned over the table, bringing their faces closer to mine.
“Tell us everything,” Karly demanded. “Do not leave out a single detail.”
My eyes darted around the diner, but just like when we walked in, we were the only customers in the place. It was ten in the morning on a Thursday, so I wasn’t entirely surprised. Nevertheless, I motioned for Karly to keep her voice down.
“You saw what happened in the bar the other night?”
“When Rafe Walton charged in like a knight in shining armor to protect your honor?” Felicia asked, fanning herself. “Yeah, we saw.”
I chuckled before saying, “Well, after we went to the back, I kissed him.”
“Yes,” Karly cheered, pumping a fist in the air. “How was it?”
“Toe-curling,” I admitted. “He asked me to go home with him, but I refused.”
“You what now?” Felicia barked, and my eyes darted around the diner again.
“If you want me to finish, you need to keep it down,” I said, shushing her. She mimed zipping her lips, so I took a deep breath and continued. “I knew I needed to check in with Dad after Janice told him what happened, so I went home. Rafe texted me to make sure I made it home okay, and I tried to get a sexting conversation going.”
Karly burst into giggles and held out her hand. “Give me your phone. I’ve got to see this for myself.”
“No,” I said, shaking my head. “It never got off the ground, anyway. He said something about discussing where we both wanted this—whatever it is—to go, and I told him I’d come over. We didn’t get much talking done before we were ripping each other’s clothes off, but we did establish that what we were doing was only temporary. A casual fling.”
Felicia rolled her eyes, saying, “Yeah, we’ll discuss failed “keeping it casual” pacts later. How was it?”
My vision blurred as I got lost in the memory of Rafe’s hands on my body. His hot, talented mouth. The way it felt when he—
“Jessa!” Felicia barked. “Spill.”
“Sorry,” I laughed. “It was…memorable.”
“In what way?” Karly asked.
“It was a night of firsts for me.”
“Oh, Jesus, Jessa. Why are you making this so hard?”
“That’s what he said,” Karly interjected with a giggle.
Felicia gave her a withering look meant to fry her on the spot. Karly held up her palms in surrender before wiping the smirk off her face. Then Felicia turned back to me and nodded.
I glanced around us again, like people might have somehow materialized in the surrounding booths while I wasn’t looking. Finding the place still mostly empty with no customers or servers near us, I leaned low over the table and waved for them to do the same.
“It was the first time I’d ever come during sex.”
“What?!” Felicia shouted, her voice echoing off the walls of the diner. “Who the fuck have you been sleeping with? Frat boys and douchebags?”
“Shut up, Felicia,” I hissed, my face heating as the waitress popped out of the back to make sure everything was okay.
“Sorry, girl, but that is bullshit. Selfish assholes.”
“Can we get back to Rafe, please,” Karly asked. “We can talk about Jessa’s past lovers later. I want to hear about the present.”
“Fine. But we will get back to this,” Felicia said, pointing her finger at me. “Shit like that can damage you.”
“I thought I was broken, or something,” I admitted, staring at the cold scrambled eggs on my plate.
“See? This is what I was talking about.”
“But she obviously realizes she’s not broken now, right Jessa?” Karly asked, looking from Felicia to me.
“Right,” I said, smiling at her not so subtle hint to get on with the details.
Having girlfriends was…nice.
“So I went over to his place and almost didn’t go inside. When I finally decided to stop being such a wuss and go to the door, he opened it before I even knocked, pulled me inside, slammed me against the door, and kissed the shit out of me.”
“That’s hot,” Karly said, fanning herself.
I was slowly figuring these two out. Karly was the funny, bubbly, romantic one, and Felicia was the hard-ass, cynical one who’d never admit she wanted romance just as much as her friend. I wondered where I fit in this trio. Maybe one day, I’d figure that out.
“Then he pulled me over to the couch to talk, and I climbed into his lap and practically dry-humped him.”
Laughter burst out of both of them, like they never expected those actions from me. I hadn’t expected them, either. Especially considering that I’d never had a happy ending during my previous sexual encounters. Maybe something inside me knew it would be different with Rafe.
“Me-ow,” Karly said, curling her fingers into claws, and I laughed.
“So, we said maybe two sentences about keeping it casual and short term, then he carried me into the bedroom and proceeded to give me the best night of my life.”
“Are we talking multiple?” Felicia asked, and I held up my hand and wiggled all five fingers. “Holy shit. That’s impressive.”
I felt my face heat at my next words, but I said them anyway. “The first time was with his mouth, and I was literally crying tears of joy afterward. Then, I told him I’d never had an orgasm during sex so he wouldn’t feel bad, like it was his fault or something.”
“Douche canoe frat boys,” Felicia mumbled.
“What did he say to that?” Karly asked.
My mouth turned up into what I was sure was a blinding smile. “He said, challenge accepted.”
“Oh my God, I think my panties just melted,” Karly squealed.
“Can I get you girls anything else?”
All three of us shrieked as the server seemed to appear out of thin air. We waved her off, and as she walked away, we burst into giggles like a bunch of middle-schoolers.
Once we giggled ourselves out, Felicia’s expression turned serious. “So, you had a marathon all-nighter of mind-blowing sex, then what?”
I shrugged. “I left in the morning. That was two days ago.”
“Have you talked to him since?” Karly asked.
“A couple of text messages,” I replied. “We’re keeping it casual, remember?”
Felicia tilted her head, her dark eyes piercing, like she could probe my heart and mind with that single glance. “Are you sure that’s what you want?” she asked.
“Yes, of course,” I said, my voice sounding defensive even to me. “I mean, I’ll be heading back to Atlanta in a couple of weeks, anyway. This can’t be anything more.”
“I don’t want you to leave,” Karly pouted, her red curls bouncing as she shook her head. “We just got you, and I want to keep you.”
I laughed awkwardly, pretty sure she was half-joking. I’d never had friends to leave behind, and I wasn’t sure how I’d feel about it when the time came to head back home.
Home. Was my apartment in Atlanta really home? Or was home here, where I grew up? Where my father lived? Where my new friends were?
And there was Rafe—
