When he straightened, he bit down on his lip, giving me a look that made my knees feel weak.
“Trust me, Alyson – what I’m about to do to you doesn’t have shit to do with pity.”
The tiniest bit of panic crept up my spine as he eased me backward, toward the bed. “What are you about to do?”
He smiled.
“Sit down.”
My knees bent on their own.
From my seated position I watched, riveted, as Maddox undressed. He was just as beautiful as I expected, all lean muscle and tattoos and magnificent dark skin.
Fear kept my gaze above the waistline, trying to avoid the unavoidable. I couldn’t help it though – my eyes landed there as he ambled toward me after he’d put his clothes in a little pile, hard and swaying in front of him like it was guiding him.
Maybe it was.
He pushed me backward and climbed on top, kissing me again. And again, and again, before he made his way to my neck, sucking, biting, licking. I pushed up onto my elbows to watch, enthralled, as he made his way to my breasts. My mouth was open, barely breathing as he circled my nipples with his tongue, teasing them into hard, sensitive peaks.
And then his mouth was on me.
Sucking, hard, creating a pull I felt all the way down to my toes. My stomach clenched, and my fingers did too, snatching up handfuls of the sheet as he did the same thing on the other side. He kept on like that, back and forth, using his fingers to tug and pinch and tease when his tongue and teeth were otherwise occupied.
And then lower.
I was panting as his lips moved over my stomach, the soft rasp of his facial hair tickling my skin as he went. So badly, I wanted to close my eyes – the visual and the physical sensation were too much. But I couldn’t look away – I didn’t dare look away, not even when Maddox glanced up with a smirk that made another tremble run down my spine.
And then his mouth was on me again.
It felt like his tongue was everywhere, licking and slurping and moaning into me, as if I’d been prepared just for him. He hiked my thighs up over his shoulders, spreading me open wide as he buried his face in me, lapping and licking and closing his mouth over my clit and sucking and licking more, and…
Shit.
It was everything.
Not enough, and just right, and too much, but with his arms locked around my thighs I couldn’t get away from it. I snatched my pillow from up near the headboard, biting down and pressing it into my face to keep from screaming as I orgasmed. Maddox kept going, and going, and going, until the tension left my body and I couldn’t do anything but lay there, pillow still covering my face, wondering what in the world I’d gotten myself into.
I didn’t have long to think about it.
Maddox snatched the pillow away as he made his way back up my body. He wiped his face with the back of his hand, grinning as he lowered himself on top of me to press his lips to mine.
“Are you sure you want to do this?” he asked, as if I weren’t soaking wet, as if he weren’t hard against my stomach, as if his face wasn’t coated with me. Still, it was a valid question, among others I was trying hard to suppress.
I said yes anyway.
And then he sank inside me.
Tried to sink inside me.
Shit.
Shit.
Shit.
“Relax,” he urged, trying to push, though my pussy didn’t seem to have gotten the memo about what we were doing here.
I tried to relax, I did.
But the more I tried, the more I couldn’t, and the more frustrated I became.
“Hey.” Maddox caught my face between his hands. “Don’t get upset.”
“How?” I pushed out a sigh, then let my mouth fall into a pout. “This is so…”
“Don’t say embarrassing,” he laughed, knowing it was exactly what I was reaching for. But instead of letting me grasp it, he kissed me. And kissed me again, and again, and so good that all I could focus on was keeping up, until very, very suddenly, he was inside me.
All the way.
Filling me up.
I shuddered as a wave of pain spiked through me, but it was gone just as quickly as it came. Maddox didn’t move – he kept kissing me, distracting me, as my body stretched to accommodate him. And then, he moved his mouth to my ear, chuckling in a low, warm rumble.
“You’re definitely not a virgin now.”
Any other time, I would’ve laughed – it was a perfect thing to say, in what I felt was a perfect moment, but Maddox moved, and the friction took my breath away.
It was so, so good.
He was careful with me, I could tell. Slow, measured strokes as we molded to each other, kissing and caressing and squeezing whatever we could touch. The wetter I got, the faster, deeper, he went, until we’d built up a rhythm, and I was taking all of him.
Then, he went harder.
My feet pressed to his chest, or spread out wide, or hiked up over his shoulders. Idyllic pressure built and built and built in my core. I closed my eyes as he wrapped my thighs around his waist, moving in closer to devour my mouth once more. His arms locked around my body, holding me tight as he slammed again, and again, filling me up as a familiar tension built in my limbs until…another round of bliss.
He growled into my neck as he pushed into me one final time, his hips pumping as his body worked through his orgasm. I didn’t open my eyes until he collapsed on top of me, his weight feeling like the only thing keeping me connected to the bed.
Otherwise, I was sure I’d be somewhere near the ceiling, floating.
I was high.
After a few minutes, he rolled off, onto his back, grinning at me. When I returned his smile, he reached over, pulling me on top of him.
“Come on, Not-a-Virgin-Aly. Show me what else you’ve got.”
Twelve
I’d never been a “stay the night” kinda dude.
Even at the height of when I was really out there, I did what I came to do and moved on.
Maybe that was the difference.
I didn’t come here for this.
Hell, I wouldn’t be that convinced the shit had happened if it weren’t for the fact that Aly’s nude body was draped against mine while she slept, oblivious to the fact that I was staring at her. Probably unaware I was there at all – a state I hated to interrupt to bring her back into the reality of what had happened between us last night.
There was no scenario where she wasn’t embarrassed.
By her own doing, of course.
As far as I was concerned, there was nothing embarrassing about her – that awkward greenness she was so ashamed of was a positive quality to me, taken together with everything else. I couldn’t do anything about how she saw herself though. Metamorphosis of thought was something you had to embrace on your own – well, by choice or by force, and I for damn sure wasn’t about to force.
Not when I had shit of my own to figure out.
“Hey,” I murmured, giving her a gentle nudge. She felt good against my side, soft, and warm, but I had to get out of here before the sun came up or I’d be stuck in the Mids until night fell again. It took a little urging, but Aly finally awoke.
Her lids were still shut as she sat up and stretched, baring the perfect handfuls of her breasts. The lamp beside the bed was still on – albeit dim – bathing her in a soft golden light as she swept her braids behind her shoulders.
It was quite a picture.
Like something that belonged on display in one of the Apex museums.
Especially once her eyelashes cracked open. With sleepy eyes, she stared at me in the dim light, as if she were deciding if she was still dreaming or not.
Suddenly, she snatched fistfuls of the covers, pulling them around her to hide her nudity.
I smiled.
“I’ve seen it all already anyway, Not-A-Virgin-Aly,” I teased her, enjoying the way my words made her eyes go wide. “You don’t have to hide it. See?”
I climbed out of the
bed, further scandalizing her with my nudity as I ambled over to where I’d left my clothes. I picked up the whole bundle, dropping it all on the desk to sort through it. When my gaze went back to Aly, she was staring.
At one area in particular.
“It’s like that every morning,” I explained, prompting her to avert her eyes as I pulled my boxers back on.
“Do you have to be like this?” she asked, keeping her gaze planted on the ceiling.
“Hard?”
She scowled. “No.”
“Oh. Blunt then.”
“No. Crude.”
My smile came back as I finished with my jeans and tugged my shirt over my head. “You telling me you don’t like it?” She didn’t answer. Didn’t have to. “Yeah, I thought so.”
She still said nothing.
Just rolled her eyes as she climbed out of the bed too, not releasing the covers until she had to, if she wanted them to stay on the bed. Her movements were stiff as she went to her drawers – she was forcing herself to do this, feigning comfort she didn’t feel, to prove a point I assumed.
Probably not the one she thought she was proving, but admirable either way.
“You’re going to have to dress a little warmer than that if you’re coming with me,” I told her, when she came to stand near me in nothing but a tee shirt and shorts.
“You know I’m not going with you.”
I did.
She’d refused already, in the wee hours of the morning, after she’d told me everything that was going on. The only thing holding her and Nadiah here was their grandmother, which I understood – and respected – but still.
Things were changing in the Mids, and not for the better.
“Then why did you get out of bed, other than to show off?”
She bit down on her lip, trying not to smile. “To walk you out. To be polite.”
“Oh okay, gracious host, I got it.” I pulled my jacket on, then raised an eyebrow at her. “Lead the way.”
Back in the kitchen, I picked up my backpack from where I’d left it on her counter. As soon as I did, the weight of it reminded of something.
“Hey – this is for you,” I told her, pulling the bundled package from the bag, and putting it in her hands. “Open it,” I urged, when I realized she intended to just stare at it.
She gave me nervous eyes before she put it down on the counter to undo the packaging. When she got it open, the gasp she let out told me my information had been correct.
“How did you know?” she asked, breathlessly, as she held the bag of coffee up to her nose. I grinned as she inhaled deep.
“Mos, actually,” I admitted. “He talked my ear off about Nadiah, and I guess she must’ve mentioned to him that you were a big fan. I meant to give it to you last night, but then we got sidetracked. There're instructions there for the coffee press thing, but all you need is hot water. And I hope the powdered creamer is okay, I couldn’t travel with the real stuff.”
“It’s perfect,” she gushed. “A luxury, honestly. I don’t know what to say.”
“You ain’t gotta say shit,” I told her. “But now you don’t have to worry about Lori down your neck about coffee rations, or agree to do hair for another tyrant to get a little extra. You’ve got your own.”
She laughed.
A sound I hadn’t heard often enough in the time I’d known her, because there was always something fucked up going on. I’d seen the fear, the despair, the anger, the confusion, the uncertainty. But the things I’d seen now – ecstasy, peace, happiness – I filed in my mind, resolving to see more of that, less of the other stuff.
“Thank you,” she said, her eyes glossy as she put the coffee down on the counter. A second later, there was no space between us, and my face was in her hands, and she was up on her toes in her bare feet, pressing a kiss against my lips.
I wasted no time taking over – an arm around her waist to haul her against me, to get her closer, and my tongue in her mouth. She didn’t shrink away either – she kissed me right back, moaning and practically fucking purring, making it impossible to end it.
So I didn’t.
I put her little ass up on the counter, stepping between her legs to deepen the kiss. I wasn’t sure when I’d see her again, so I had every intention of making an impression – a sentiment she must’ve shared. This time when she went for my belt, I didn’t stop her.
I tugged those shorts off her.
A moment later, I was inside her.
Pants around my ankles, one arm draped under her knee to keep her open for me, the other hand clamped over her mouth to keep her from waking her sister up. Her teeth sank into my fingers as I stroked her, and my teeth sank into her exposed neck before I sucked her there, hard.
Leaving something to remember me by.
It took next to no time for her to melt around me, in a gush of wetness that brought me right along with her. I planted myself as deep as I could go, gratified by her muffled cries of pleasure and her fingernails digging into my hips as I emptied into her, with my face buried in her neck.
When I caught my breath and looked up, she was smiling.
Already, she knew how damn good she was.
I couldn’t do shit but grin back.
By the time we got cleaned up again, it was really time to go, and I was cutting it close. Still, just before I left, I stopped to pull the backup pager I carried from my pocket, making sure my main number was programmed into it before I put it in Aly’s hand.
“I don’t have time to explain, but I’m sure Nadiah can show you how to use this, okay? If anything happens – if you feel even a little unsafe – you use it. I’ve got you, okay?”
Her eyebrow lifted. “All the way from the Burrows?”
“Doesn’t matter where I am – if I say I’ve got your back, I’ve got it. Okay?”
“Okay.”
One more kiss.
We shared that, and then I had to move along, before I ended up with an APF bullet in my head. Couldn’t help anybody like that.
“Soooo… how did it go?!”
I did a double-take as I walked into my place to find Dee and Dem posted up in front of my window, smoking my weed… and in my business. I made a big point of looking around, making sure they understood I was trying to figure out what the fuck they were doing in here.
Even though I knew what the fuck they were doing in here.
“Cut the drama, Mad,” Dee told me, passing the rolled cigarette to her sister. The usual double-down from Dem never came – the marijuana mellowed them into normal speech patterns.
“Did you de-flower sweet Alyson, or no?” Dem asked, eyes low, scanning me as I passed her.
“He did,” Dee called to her, following me past one of the partitions that separated my studio apartment into designated areas. “He smells like pussy.”
“Ooooh, is she like, your girlfriend now?” Dem peeked around the wall too as I stripped out of the clothes I’d traveled back in.
“Relax, goddamn,” I groaned, talking to both as I headed to the bathroom with them still following me.
“We’ve been worried about you – couldn’t get dressed this morning, and all you’ve got to say is relax?”
“You should be – you helped yourselves to my stash, I see.” I glanced back to find them both hanging in the bathroom doorway. They were way more dressed down than usual – matching leggings and hoodies, no makeup, just the same oversized hoops.
“Perks of having a key,” Dee grinned. “You make us worry, you supply the relaxation.”
Dem giggled. “Those are the facts. And since we know your dick is reserved now…”
“Who said that?”
I asked, and they both laughed at me.
Right in my damn face.
Dee came closer, into the bathroom, sniffing at me again. “Yuuup. Nigga, your face smells like pussy, which means you were allll up in there.”
“And we know you don’t do that on the regular, even though you love it,�
� Dem chimed in. “Only when it’s special,” she teased, and then she and her sister broke out in giggles.
“Can I take a fucking shower in peace?” I asked, flipping the water on.
“It’s your place, do what you want,” Dee laughed. “We’ll be out here finishing up, and when you’re done, you can tell us about Aly.”
“I’m not telling y’all shit,” I countered, but they were already gone, their laughter traveling down the hall.
I shook my head as I climbed in the shower, washing away stress, sweat, and… sex. Wondered if Aly was doing the same thing, miles away, getting ready for work.
My cue that yeah, this shit was very different.
I forced my mind to something else as I cleaned myself up – business. I’d pulled strings and call in favors to get Ches her spice delivery, but she would not like anything else I had to report.
But… most people didn’t like hearing about their fuckups.
Between divisions, your power lived in different layers – money, which was tangible, and the easiest to increase, which made it less valuable than the intangibles. Fear, respect, reputation. Ruby, as an example, had it all, albeit inherited from her husband, who’d held the throne before she did. In some situations, that would’ve left her power diminished, but it was a known secret that Ruby had been the one to send him to his maker, after years of bullshit. She’d done it bloody too – no poisoned drink, nothing like that, and she did that shit to send a message.
She was done being fucked with.
Ches was different.
She and Ruby were built from the same blueprint – deadly and fine. For all her faults though (if you considered them that) Ruby had a reputation for fairness. She kept her word, held up her end of deals – now, you might get used, or end up with the short end of the stick, but it would never be because she was getting over on you on some slick shit. It was your bad for not asking questions or reading the fine print, but terms were terms, and Ruby respected them.
Ches could be on some other shit.
She too was done being fucked with, but she’d picked up the role of being the fucker. Literally, sometimes.
Wonder Page 14
