by Kali Hart
“Too bad we’re not busting down a wall,” Sadie says with a flirtatious wink that promises trouble. “I’d show you sweetheart.”
I’m totally screwed when it comes to keeping my hands off this woman. Totally screwed.
3
SADIE
I’ve never been afraid to roll up my sleeves. What I don’t know how to do, I’m willing to learn. My dad might have a lot of money, but he’d be the first to tell you I earned every dime I’ve received from him. That very quality has rubbed a lot of men the wrong way. Like I’ve somehow violated their masculinity. But Duke doesn’t seem bothered by it at all.
Duke walks up behind me, inspecting my work. “You’re not so bad at this.” The approval in his tone sends a thrill straight to my core. I’ve been contemplating ways to kiss him all afternoon.
“You hiring?” I tease.
We share a heated look. Duke starts to say something then seems to reconsider. He takes a stride back, much to my dismay. “Next step is to sand down all the filler so it’s flush with the wall. Once we paint over it, you won’t even be able to tell we did anything.”
“Amazing.”
“I have to be honest,” Duke says as he digs through his bucket of supplies, “I wasn’t thrilled that you wanted to help me earlier. I thought it would cause a lot of extra work.”
I make sure he sees my frown.
“But,” he continues, “you’ve really impressed me.”
“You sound surprised.”
Duke takes a dangerous step closer, towering over me. Leaving hardly a foot between us now. “In my defense, you drunk-painted the walls red. I wasn’t really sure what to expect.”
The laughter chokes in my throat because too many heated thoughts are swirling in my head to separate humor from lust. I want to kiss him. Badly. His perfect lips are inches above mine. If I took one small step forward, snaked my hand around the back of his neck, and pulled him down …
“Sadie, we can’t—”
The doorbell chime causes both of us to jump back from each other, as if lightning struck right down the middle between us. I stumble over a small bucket, hardly righting myself before I hear my dad’s booming voice. “How’s it going in here?”
“Hey, Dad.” I give him my best smile as I catch myself on the doorjamb, hoping like hell that my reddened cheeks blend in with the walls. “You didn’t tell me you hired someone.” It still seems odd to me, considering my dad never gives away anything for free. Yet, he’s not usually the type to act first and reveal the cost later.
“Are you helping?” he asks, evading my question. Which is also equally suspicious. But perhaps he doesn’t want to say why in front of Duke.
I give a small shrug. “Figured it was the least I could do since I created this disaster.”
“She’s been a great help,” Duke pipes up. “Quick learner, too.”
Disapproval lingers in that assessing gaze. If my dad knew of the naughty thoughts bouncing around in my head since I met Duke earlier today, he’d lose his shit. Somehow, the whole off-limits bit of this arrangement makes me want Duke even more. Makes me a little more determined to get him out of those coveralls.
“I’m sorry I tried to paint without telling you,” I say to my dad. “That’s why I asked Duke to teach me how to do it the right way.”
“What were you thinking, honey?” Dad asks, his stern expression softening the slightest.
I really don’t want to get into breakup details in front of Duke, so I lie. “I was missing Kate,” I say. “Had too much wine. One thing led to another … I can pay for this,” I say to him, internally cringing at how deep I’ll have to dig into my future home down payment fund to cover this.
“No, that won’t be necessary.”
Dad is definitely hiding something. “Dad, are you—”
“I have to run downtown to the office for a board meeting,” he says, evading my question. My raised eyebrow goes ignored. “Duke, remember our agreement?”
“Yes, sir.”
My gaze hungrily sweeps over Duke’s perfect body as my dad leaves. It all makes a little more sense now. Dad has specifically put me off limits. We’re cut from the same cloth. You think my dad would realize forbidding me to do something only makes me want to do it more.
DUKE
Nothing like a personal visit from Ben Michaels himself to remind me to keep my hands off Sadie. But the hungry look in her eyes promises that’s going to be very difficult to do. Being told I can’t have her makes me want her more.
Something tells me she feels the same.
I fight the urge to look at her, because my traitorous eyes can’t stop taking in every beautiful inch of that perfectly curvy body. I want to see her naked. Now more than ever. But jeopardizing the relationship with the Ryan Brothers’ best client isn’t worth giving into the temptation, no matter how badly I want to bury my cock inside her sweet pussy. “Today we’ll just finish getting cleaned up. Tomorrow, we’ll do the primer.”
“I need to change out of my jeans,” Sadie says, licking her lips. “Be just a sec.”
It might very well be an invitation I can’t entertain. No matter how badly I want to. “I’ll get everything set up.”
She sashays down a short hallway. My cock is half hard watching her walk away. Images of me bending her over and taking her from behind are hard to push away. When the door closes, I take the few moments to adjust myself. Trying like hell to focus on the actual job I was hired to do so I don’t pitch a full tent.
“Duke?” she calls.
“Yeah?”
“Can you help me move this loveseat? It’s blocking my closet.”
She might need help. My first thought. It’s a trap. My second.
She might be luring me to my death, and I’m helpless to stop my feet from moving forward. Ben has been gone hardly two full minutes. What if he forgets something and comes back?
When I reach the open doorway, I freeze. Sadie is bent over, pushing on a loveseat. But she’s missing her pants. Black lace panties call out to me. Fuck, I’m so screwed. My words are strangled in my throat but manage to find their way out. “You need help?”
She looks over her shoulder. “I need to get to the closet.”
“Okay.” I’m stuck in the doorway, afraid that one step into the room will change everything.
“I think together we can slide this out of the way.” The sultry purr of her words is most definitely an invitation. But even if that were in question, her next move confirms it. She reaches both hands on her hips and slides her panties down, her ass still pushed out at me.
“Help me, Duke?”
“Sadie, we can’t.” But fuck me, I want to.
“Sure we can.”
“But your dad—”
“Doesn’t ever have to know.”
Even though I know I shouldn’t do this, I take a step into the room. I consider closing the door, but leaving it open will at least alert us if someone comes back. It might also give us away. But my hard cock doesn’t give two shits about being caught right now. It aches for her pussy.
I slip the coverall straps off my shoulders and let them drop down to my ankles. “You’re sure about this, Sadie?”
She widens her stance and lifts her ass. “If you can’t tell by the gawdy red walls, I’ve had a shitty week. Fuck me, Duke. Give me something to smile about.”
“I don’t have a condom—”
“I’m on the pill. Clean.”
“Me too.”
“Good. Now get that cock inside me before I scream.”
I don’t have to be told twice. I line myself up at her entrance, nudging inside her tight channel. Fuck me, I think I’m seeing stars. I grab onto her hips and slide in deeper.
“Fuck me hard,” she orders.
I slam into her all the way, letting our bodies slap together. We both moan at how fucking good it feels. I’ve been attracted to her since the moment she ran into me. Attraction no doubt turned up a notch at her being o
ff limits. Fucking her now is hotter even knowing we might get caught. But there’s something more. A connection between us I can’t explain. My cock feels … at home.
I lean down and reach one hand around her waist until I find her clit. I rub her swollen nub in fast circles as our bodies join over and over. Fuck me, I could come already. I do my best to hold back wanting to prolong prologue the pleasure every extra second I can manage.
Still pleasuring her clit, I slide my other hand up her tank top, shoving fingers under her bra. I squeeze her tit and pinch her nipple. Still pounding into her, over and over. “Fuck me, Duke. Fuck you feel so good.”
“Come for me, sweetheart,” I plead. My cock wants to explode inside her. Lay claim to this sweet pussy. “I want us to come together.”
Seconds later, she cries out. Her pussy convulses around my cock. I can no longer hold back. I let myself go, planting my seed inside her. Later, I’ll have to confront the horrible decision I just made. But right now, I’m pretty damn happy.
4
SADIE
“You fucked the painter?” Kate squeals with delight on the other end of the phone the next morning while I get ready in the bathroom. I won’t lie, I’m definitely going through a little more trouble on my appearance.
“Maybe.”
“How was it?”
I’m not sure there are words in the English language to describe the experience, but I give it my best shot. “Mind blowing. Earth shattering. Amazing.”
“You like this guy,” Kate accuses.
“What? No. He’s only here two more days. Then I’ll never see him again. This is rebound sex, Kate. Nothing more.” I’ve learned not to talk about my self-doubt to my best friend. If I told her how certain I was that a man like Duke would never date a woman like me, Kate would give me an hour-long lecture.
It’s not that I don’t love my body or have a semi-trailer full of self-confidence—I do. It’s that I have eyes. Sinfully hot, sculpted men like Duke don’t end up with the filled-out chicks like me. Plus, I’m in far too good a mood for a lecture.
“I don’t believe you,” Kate says.
I cap my mascara wand and push back from the counter assessing the final product. I’ve tried really hard to look like I didn’t try hard at all. Maybe sex with Duke was a one-time thing. But if he’s game, there’s no reason we can’t have a little more adult fun on our breaks for the next couple of days. “Believe what you want. I’m just having some fun.”
“I don’t doubt that. But Sadie, don’t rule out a good thing too soon.”
“He works for my dad,” I counter. “He’s already forbidden to touch me. Add to that he’s in his mid-thirties … Dad will never approve of me dating him anyway. Might as well enjoy some hot sex while it’s available.”
A pounding on the door saves me any further interrogation. “Call me tomorrow. Tell me everything,” Kate says before her face disappears from my phone screen.
I’m nervous to see Duke again. Afraid that there’s some truth to what Kate said about me liking Duke. Of course I like him. He’s a nice guy, and he fucks like a dream. But no matter how much I try to convince myself that there’s nothing more to it, that feels like a lie.
“Hey,” Duke says from my living room, pouring white primer into two trays. “Ready to prime?”
“Teach me all your secrets.”
Duke finally turns his head over his shoulder and looks at me. Such rawness in that gaze. My entire body tingles from the desire that lingers between us. It’s not just me. “First lesson of the day,” Duke says, handing me a clean paint roller, “is how you apply the paint.”
“And how is that?”
He struts to the wall, pulling me there by the wrist. The touch ignites the simmering fire that never quite died from yesterday. “Roll the paint on in an m or w pattern.”
“Come again?” I blame his close proximity for my inability to process his instructions.
“Like this.” Duke stands behind me, placing his hand over my wrist and lifting the paint roller to the wall. His body is a feather’s distance from being molded perfectly against mine. I feel his hardness brushing against my back. “Like the letter m.” He moves my hand and the paint roller in the pattern he just described. “This helps hide any roller lines later on.”
I can hardly concentrate with him pressed up against me like this. A few more inches and I’d be shoved up against the wall. I lightly wriggle my ass against his crotch.
“Sadie,” he says in warning.
I spin around and face him. “What?” I tug on the strap of her coveralls, yanking him down.
“We can’t keep doing this.”
“Why not?”
“You know why.” His eyes stay fixated on my lips as he leans lower. I never got to kiss him yesterday. I thought it was better to leave that out of the mix. Less strings. But now I very much need to taste his lips.
“Kiss me, Duke.”
He covers my lips with his own, devouring my mouth. I moan against him as he props one hand on the wall. The other squeezes my breast through the thin fabric. Our tongues tango, hungry and demanding. If I wasn’t expecting my dad to stop by with a promised box of donuts, I’d undress him right now and take that cock into my mouth.
Duke rubs a hand between my legs as his lips move down my neck.
It’s only by a miracle that I drop my head to the side and catch a glimpse of someone approaching through the window. “My dad,” I hiss.
With impressive speed, Duke dashes away from me and toward the tray of primer he already prepared. He manages to cover a large section of wall in white priming paint before the doorbell chimes.
I’m still struggling to catch my breath when my dad enters. “I brought you both some donuts,” he announces, managing to sound both cheerful and suspicious at the same time. This whole ordeal has made me feel more like a teenager than ever, sneaking around with the upperclassmen. Never mind that I’m twenty-three and a college graduate.
“Thank you, Ben,” Duke says because words apparently have failed me.
“Thanks, Dad. I’m starved.”
I hesitate a beat before reaching into the donut box, a bad memory flashing through my mind. My most recent ex made me feel so damn guilty about eating a donut in front of him that I never did it again.
“Something wrong, honey?” Dad asks.
“Nope.” I take the frosted ring donut with the sprinkles and bite in. I have a sweet tooth the size of a small country, and I don’t give a damn. I work out three days a week, I never shy away from manual labor, and I do eat the damn salad at least twice a week. I shouldn’t feel an ounce of guilt for enjoying a donut on occasion.
I eat my donut as Duke and my dad discuss a few things. A crazy fantasy plays out in my mind of Duke and me fixing up a house together, and my dad stopping by to see the progress. Maybe even a baby on the way. Shit, Kate’s right. I think I like Duke.
“Well, I have to get to the office. Couple of big meetings today,” my dad says, bringing me back to reality. “One more day you think, Duke?”
“Yeah, one more day should do it.”
I’m thrilled he didn’t promise to wrap things up early, but sad that our time together will be over so soon.
“I’ll have some lunch ordered for you two,” Dad adds as he slips out the front door with a wave, leaving us alone again.
Duke moves across the room in purposeful strides, lifting the lid of the donut box. “You took the one with sprinkles, didn’t you?” He’s teasing, but that intensity in his darkened eyes warns me other things are on his mind.
“How do you know?”
He backs me up against the wall again, swoops his mouth down, and kisses the corner of my mouth. “Because you left evidence, sweetheart.”
The way he says sweetheart, like a hungry animal charming its prey, makes me wet in a flash. It’s possible my dad hasn’t even made it to his car yet, but I can’t help it. I pull Duke down by the neck and fuse our lips together. His han
d dives back between my legs, rubbing harder this time.
“Fuck, Sadie,” he growls against my mouth. “It’s never going to be enough for me.”
“What’s that?”
“Fucking you.” He shoves his hand down the front of my leggings, diving right for my pussy. He strokes three fingers hard against my wet folds. I’m helpless to do anything but push my back against the wall and lift my hips in rhythm with his hand.
I gasp when he slips a finger inside me, then two.
My eyes roll shut as my moans grow louder. I really suck at this sneaking around thing. If my dad comes back for any reason, he’ll hear me fifty yards away.
“Open your eyes,” Duke orders, increasing his pace. I feel the pleasure building. “I want you to watch me as you come.”
I stare at Duke, thrilled and afraid of what I see in his eyes. I swear I can see my future. It’s foolish. A notion I shouldn’t entertain. But as he drives me over the edge with his maddeningly perfect hand movements, I can’t help but want it.
If I’m not careful, I’m going to fall in love with Duke Ryan.
DUKE
“Tell me you didn’t fuck her again,” Easton, the oldest of the Ryan brothers, asks me.
“I didn’t fuck her again.” It’s the truth. I kept my dick inside my coveralls today. I don’t tell him that I fucked her with my hand while she was pressed up against the wall, or that while we were waiting for the first coat of primer to finish drying that I ate her sweet pussy until she cried out my name.
“If Ben finds out—”
“He won’t.” Mostly, I say it to stop the lecture. Easton means well, and it’s his job to watch the numbers for Ryan Brothers Renovations. He knows exactly the damage losing Ben Michaels as a client would do to our company’s bottom line.
