Red (A Brett MacLean Duet)

“Would you like that?”

  “Yes.”

  I kissed the corner of her lips. “I can’t wait to wrap you around me, making you tremble beneath me as I take you hard.”

  “Oh…God…”

  I kissed her forehead. “Let’s go.”

  “Brett.” She gently touched my arm.

  “You need to eat.” As much I wanted to fuck her in the back seat of my car, she needed food.

  “I’m not hungry.”

  I smirked, pinching her chin, and placed a hard kiss on her lips. “I need you to have energy for the things I want to do to you.”

  Her eyes widened.

  She was innocent whereas I knew what I wanted and did everything I could to get it. Evvie Neal was different than the others. She saw me. She touched me. She pushed back and tested me. I knew without a fucking doubt that this woman could be my undoing and have me on my knees. As much as it terrified me to submit to anyone and anything, something nudged at me about her. She could be what I had been looking for my whole adult life.

  I DECIDED TO take Evvie to a small French restaurant. I loved the culture and the food was delicious. It also helped that I could speak the language. After getting bored one day, I took what I learned in high school and challenged myself to learn it fluently.

  The French atmosphere, with tables being spread out and paintings of Paris itself on the walls, was a little piece of France I enjoyed.

  The host greeted us, leading us to our table at the back of the restaurant. I shook his hand, handing him a hundred-dollar bill and spoke low enough only for him to hear, asking him to give Evvie the full dining experience, and also that I wanted to impress her.

  He winked, giving me a nod and approached his best waiter. I was a frequent guest, having gone several times because the food was excellent, but I had never brought a woman with me. Evvie seemed to be bringing out many firsts in me.

  With my hand at the small of her back, I guided her along beside me until we approached the booth. She slid onto the seat and I followed, cupping her knee in the process. I had come to realize quickly that touching her soft skin, calmed me. Not completely. But it did enough where I didn’t feel like lashing out over the smallest thing.

  Evvie placed her hand on top of mine, rubbing her thumb back and forth over my tanned skin.

  “Here you go, monsieur .” The waiter handed me a wine menu and smiled at Evvie.

  “We would like your best bottle of red wine,” I told him, the fluent French rolling off my tongue.

  The waiter’s eyes widened. “Ah. You speak French.”

  I smiled. “Just a little bit.”

  “Enough for you to understand?”

  I nodded. “Yes.”

  The waiter glanced at Evvie. “She is very beautiful.”

  I squeezed her thigh, winking. “Yes. She is.”

  “What did he say?” Evvie asked, leaning into me.

  “He said that you’re beautiful and I agreed.” I pinched her chin, running my thumb along her bottom lip.

  “This is your first date?” the waiter asked, continuing the language that seemed to impress Evvie.

  “Yes.”

  “I’ll get your bottle of wine, sir.”

  “Thank you.” I placed the menu in his hand.

  “Okay.” Evvie shook her head. “Really?”

  “What?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

  “You speak French?”

  I caressed my fingers down her cheek before pinching her chin. “I speak enough to get by.”

  She rolled he eyes.

  “Did you like that, lover?”

  “It was sexy as hell,” she blurted, her cheeks reddening.

  My heart stuttered. That deep part of myself, somewhere within that had never been touched before, was beating. It came to life the more time I spent with this woman sitting beside me.

  Clearing my throat, I looked away and pushed those feelings aside. I didn’t need this right now and I didn’t deserve her. This would be sex. That was it. But as the waiter approached with a grin on his face and the bottle of wine in his hand, I realized that I wasn’t fooling anyone.

  He poured a small amount of wine into a glass and handed it to me. “Your wine, sir,” he said in French.

  I took a sip, the light fruity liquid coating my tongue. “Perfect.” I ordered our meals, helping Evvie pick hers when she confessed to not being able to understand French.

  Once the waiter left, we sat in a comfortable silence which was not something I was used to. Most women demanded things of me: to take them to bed, to control and dominate over them. But with Evvie, it was almost as though she wanted to also be my friend.

  I glanced down at the woman beside me, itching to know everything there was about her. What made her tick? What made her purr? What made her angry and sad or happy and elated? I wanted to know every single thing.

  She chewed her bottom lip, her gaze taking on a faraway look.

  “Thinking about me?” I purred, pouring wine into both my glass and hers.

  She cleared her throat, giving her shoulders a slight shrug. She brought the glass up to her lips when I took it from her and took a sip instead.

  She raised an eyebrow, probably wondering what in the hell I was doing.

  Lowering my mouth to hers, I gently parted her lips, the wine flowing into her mouth.

  She moaned, swallowing the liquid, and pushed her tongue against mine.

  Our breathing picked up, all sense of control lost and forgotten the longer we kissed.

  Evvie grabbed onto my suit jacket, pulling me closer.

  I released her, brushing my thumb over her swollen lips and leaned down to her neck. Licking up the length of her throat, I let out a low growl. “If you fuck as good as you kiss, lover…” I covered her mouth again, igniting a groan from us both.

  My hand on her thigh tightened. My body vibrated. It took everything in me not to throw her back on the bench and fuck her senseless. But a woman like Evvie deserved to be pampered and dined, ravished and fucked until there was nothing left. I wanted her to experience me but even I knew she wouldn’t get all of me. It was too soon. Too damn soon to show her the true error of my ways. The darkness inside of me threatened to dominate and control but I pushed it back. No. This woman deserved more. Not the monster within. It wasn’t her fault. None of it was. And I refused to take out my past on her like I did every other woman.

  ***

  “I’m probably boring you with my talk about my family.” Evvie stared up at me with heat in her eyes and a rosy glow to her cheeks. “Aren’t I?”

  As much as I wanted to tell her how I felt or that I enjoyed hearing her speak about her family, all I could do was shake my head. Words weren’t my forte it seemed where this woman was involved.

  She gave me a small smile, pushing a loose curl behind her ear.

  “You could never bore me, Evvie,” I finally said, brushing my finger over the soft skin beneath her earlobe.

  She shivered, a tinge of red creeping up her chest beneath the fabric of her dress. She was absolutely breathtaking. Her teeth grazed over her full bottom lip, her breath catching in her throat.

  My dick stirred, jumping against the fly of my pants. Clearing my throat, I pulled away and cupped her inner thigh. Every time my hand came into contact with her soft skin, a sense of relief washed over me. For whatever reason that I couldn’t quite explain, Evvie Neal calmed me.

  Finishing off the rest of my glass of wine, I signaled for the waiter. I needed to get out of here before I started humping her leg like a dog.

  I paid the check and slid out of the booth before holding out my hand.

  Evvie tentatively looked up at me, sliding her hand in mine.

  Brushing my fingers down her cheek, I kissed her forehead. “Are you enjoying yourself so far?” I asked, leading her out of the restaurant.

  “Yes.” She linked her fingers between mine. “I am, thank you.”

  “Good.” I brought our joined hands up to my
mouth and kissed her knuckles. “I’m glad.”

  Under normal circumstances, I wouldn’t care if a woman enjoyed herself or not while being with me. I was selfish and as soon as I had them begging at my feet, I took what I wanted from them. But with Evvie, I knew it wouldn’t be like that. As much as it pained me to say so, tonight would not be the only night I would fuck her.

  WHEN MY BUILDING came into view, I felt Evvie stir beside me. She was nervous but little did she know, so was I. I had never brought a woman home before that I actually had some sort of feelings for. Although these feelings were new, they were feelings just the same and they didn’t sit well with me.

  I lived in the richer part of the city after The Red Love had become a booming success, but it still didn’t help this craving I had for more. I wasn’t overly greedy, but I enjoyed building up the businesses that had been run-down and make them bigger and better.

  Evvie gripped my hand, running her thumb back and forth over my palm. It was a small touch, but it still sent shivers down my spine. The fact that she affected me this way without even knowing it, made me want her that much more.

  We drove the rest of the way to my apartment in silence. It was unnerving, but I had no idea what to fucking say. She was able to carry on the conversation by herself while we were at the restaurant but now that we were alone, she closed up. My stomach twisted. I wanted her words. I wanted Evvie to speak to me until her throat went dry. I wanted to know every single thing there was to know about this woman sitting beside me.

  She shivered, wrapping my jacket tighter around her small frame.

  I squeezed her thigh.

  Her eyes burned into the side of my head. I knew she wanted to know why I had kept my hand on her thigh for the whole evening but even I wasn’t sure. She calmed me. It was all I knew at that moment.

  Once we reached my building, I drove into the underground parking lot and placed my car into park before turning to Evvie.

  Her gaze had taken on a faraway look, her teeth grazing over her full bottom lip. Something was wrong, and it tugged at my cold heart.

  Stepping out of the vehicle, I leaned against the side and took a deep breath, and then another. As soon as I felt her wrapped around me, I would be done. There would be no going back. No more women. No more fucking random strangers to gain back that control I never had as a boy. No more self-abuse. Evvie would be my undoing.

  When she stepped out of the vehicle and came around the car toward me, it took everything in me not to push her up against the side and fuck her. Although I knew it was coming, I needed her now. I needed her fast. And I needed her hard .

  Maybe I should have kept her at the restaurant longer. Maybe I should have begged and demanded that she tell me more about her life. But instead, I brought her home and watched her like a fucking hawk. There was a driving force that kept me from giving her my all. I didn’t want to scare her, but I didn’t want her to think I was some pussy either.

  Taking a deep breath, I closed the distance between us. Her breath caught, her eyes wide when they landed on me.

  Cupping her nape, I brushed my lips along hers. “After tonight, Evvie, you will beg me for more.”

  Her tongue peaked through her lips. “You think so, do you?”

  I grinned, my cock jumping against the fly of my pants at her sass. I wondered how many men have been inside her beautiful body. “What’s your number?”

  She frowned. “My number?”

  I kissed the soft spot under her ear. “How many men have you had sex with?”

  “Why do you want to know?” she asked, her voice leaving her on a breathless whisper.

  I lifted my head, a slow smirk spreading on my face. “Everything you think you know about sex, forget it.”

  “Okay…”

  A part of me loved the fact that she didn’t believe me. It would be a challenge, but I would make this woman mine. “I’m going to show you how a real man pleases his woman.”

  “I’m not yours,” she mumbled.

  No, she wasn’t. Not yet anyway.

  In a quick move, I wrapped my hand around her neck and pushed her up against the car before leaning my face into hers. As much as I tried arguing with myself that this would be a onetime thing, I couldn’t help but be annoyed over her second-guessing me. “Tonight, you are.”

  She cleared her throat, glared at me, and stepped out of my embrace. Putting some distance between us, she rubbed her hands down her arms.

  I couldn’t help but watch her. Her nerves excited me. Her confusion as to what tonight would bring made me wonder if she was actually up for this or not.

  Evvie headed to the elevator with me right behind her. My suit jacket hung below her ass and as much as I wanted to see the curves of her body, I enjoyed seeing her wearing something that belonged to me.

  She stepped into the elevator, leaning against the wall and waited like a good little girl.

  I bit back a grin and punched the button leading to the top floor of the building. Turning toward her, I leaned against the opposite side of the elevator and mirrored her pose. “How did you like the wine?” I asked with a smirk.

  She blushed, her tongue peeking out to lick along her bottom lip.

  I followed the movement, my dick twitching in my pants.

  While we rode the elevator in silence, our eyes bored into each other. Knowing this was it, that tonight would finally be the moment where I got to fuck the shit out of this woman, I couldn’t help but watch her and make her squirm where she stood.

  The doors dinged a moment later, opening out into a large foyer. I grabbed her hand and kissed her knuckles before throwing an arm around her shoulders.

  Evvie wrapped the jacket tighter around her as we walked down the hall to my apartment.

  Once we reached the end of the hall, I unlocked the door and moved behind her. “After you, lover,” I whispered in her ear.

  Evvie let out a breath as she stepped into the open space of my apartment.

  I lived at the top of one of the most prestigious high-rises in the city. The living space was modern, but it wasn’t overly homey. I didn’t spend a lot of time there and drowned myself in my work instead.

  Flicking on the light, I watched her take in my apartment.

  Her heels clicked as she walked into the foyer, her footsteps being the only sound. She looked at me over her shoulder before glancing back at the open space in front of her.

  I wanted to ask her what she thought. What could make it better and more inviting. I actually cared about her opinion which was not something I was used to.

  Evvie pulled off her shoes, a soft sigh escaping her mouth when she stepped onto the cool, tiled floor and made her way into the living room. The large patio windows revealed the twinkling lights from the city below.

  Locking the door, I watched her jump. She thought I didn’t notice but I did. I noticed every single thing there was about this woman in front of me. This woman in my home. This woman I had only kissed, and finger fucked. But tonight, she would be mine. She was mine. She didn’t know it, but I would never let her go.

  Evvie tugged off my jacket and placed it on a black high-backed chair before walking up to the window.

  Closing the distance between us, I couldn’t wait anymore and needed her in my arms. Enveloping myself around her, I pushed my hips into the seat of her heart-shaped ass.

  Brushing the hair off her nape, I kissed her neck, easing the strap of her dress off her shoulder. “I’ve wanted you since the first day I saw you.”

  “I thought you were an asshole.”

  I chuckled. I was an asshole. I earned that right too.

  Moving my hands lower, I ran them over the full mounds of her beautiful pale tits and pushed the second strap off her other shoulder. “You’re so damn beautiful.”

  Evvie leaned into me, igniting a growl to escape my throat.

  Running my hands down her arms, I kissed the side of her neck again before sinking my teeth into the soft skin.

/>   She whimpered, arching against me. Before I knew what was happening, she stepped out of my grasp and turned toward me.

  I raised an eyebrow, unable to take my eyes off of her.

  She blushed, took a breath and much to my surprise, pushed the dress down her body and kicked the fabric to the side.

  My nostrils flared, taking in the sight before me. My mouth watered, my dick lengthened, and pointed right toward what it wanted.

  Evvie’s dark nipples peaked, hardening in the cool air.

  Before I could process what I was doing, I was on her.

  Our mouths crashed. Hands massaged and kneaded. I pressed Evvie up against the cool glass window with my hips grinding into hers. I could feel every inch of her. Her soft curves to my hard edges. She fit perfectly in my hands.

  Lifting her in my arms, I wrapped her legs around my hips and circled my pelvis against the heat of her core.

  Our tongues danced, dueled, fighting for control as she gripped my shirt. With a tug, she pulled it open, the buttons flying everywhere and pinging off the window before hitting the floor at our feet.

  Never in my life had a woman felt so damn perfect in my arms. I growled and pushed into her.

  A delicious gasp fell from her mouth, the scent of her arousal permeating through the air around us. Her naked skin became heated and I knew that if I kept pushing, she would be shattering around me before I even had a chance to fuck her.

  I squeezed her ass and released her mouth. “I intended to go slow.”

  Evvie shook her head, her curls bouncing at the movement and started unbuckling my belt. “I need you fast.”

  A snarl escaped me. I wrapped my hand around her neck, licking into her mouth and took control of the kiss when a notable shiver raced down the length of her. “I’m gonna fuck you so good.”

  She moaned, struggling to get my pants undone.

  I reached between us and pried open my fly. Pulling a condom out of my back pocket, I quickly ripped it open and sheathed myself.

  This was it. I would be inside her in a matter of seconds. A part of me wished I could feel her without that added barrier. To feel the ridges of her pussy gliding over my cock. To smell like her. Taste like her.