“Of course. Besides, I told Shannon what happened, and she’s coming over. Just to talk, but with you gone, who knows. Maybe we’ll both get lucky tonight.”
“Damn, I hope you’re right.”
“Go make your woman happy. Really happy.”
I kissed her on the cheek. “You’re amazing.”
Before I closed the door behind me, I heard her say, “It’s been a couple years, Hayden. So make sure you think about baseball because I don’t want to see you until tomorrow.” And then she laughed.
Baseball. Right. I really hoped that worked.
31
Andi
I stood in the middle of my living room, glancing around to check for anything with my name on it, kind of hoping there was. Maybe if Hayden just happened to find something incriminating, then I could come clean. As many times as I’d wanted to tell him, I hadn’t. Because I was terrified of what came after. The name itself wasn’t a big deal—why I used it was.
And now, in the smartest/dumbest move I’d ever made, I’d basically promised him sex if he hurried over. A horny man wasn’t something to be trifled with. His ability to converse would be at half-capacity. Max. And, with the idea of us sleeping together bouncing around my head, there went the other half.
I blew out a breath. Obviously, I had to tell him. It didn’t matter that it hadn’t already happened—that was in the past. If we had any chance of a future, I needed to be honest.
I jumped when I heard the knock on the door. Did he pay the cabbie extra to drive at light-speed? Crap, I wasn’t ready. I hadn’t decided what to say yet, and I was still in my pajamas—boxer shorts and a tank top. Maybe my incredibly un-seductive clothing would temper the mood enough so we could talk before anything else happened. Right.
I needed another few breaths, another few days, and another few brain cells before opening that door. Hopefully, he’d brought some of that booze with him.
Hayden stood there—no smile, no booze, but so incredible I wondered if I’d actually fallen back asleep and was just dreaming again. I opened my mouth to say hello, but the next thing I knew his lips were on mine, blocking any speech or thought. His grip was firm on the nape of my neck, his tongue like silk on mine. He bent slightly and slipped his arm under my knees, scooping me up and kicking the door shut behind him. Mumbling what I thought was the word “control,” he carried me to the couch and sat down, setting me beside him and pulling his mouth from mine.
“Were you going to say something?” he asked, running his thumb across my lower lip.
Do it. Say it. I adjusted myself to face him straight on, sitting on my heels. “Hayden, I need to tell you something.”
“Okay, but before you do…” He held up a finger. “I really want to hear whatever you’re going to say, but, a big part of my focus is on your mouth, and it’s…um…” He leaned toward me then shied back, clenching his teeth together. “Your mouth is…damn, your mouth is…very distracting.” He blinked. “I’m having a really hard time focusing on words right now—yours and mine. This is something I’ve been fantasizing about since what seems like forever ago, and now that it’s even remotely possible, I’m…um…” He shut his eyes completely. “I want to know what you were going to say, so I think it would be better if you slid over to the other end of the couch.”
I smiled, feeling incredibly powerful. I’d brought Hayden Bennett to the edge of logical behavior. “Should I cover myself up with a blanket, too?”
“That’d be great. Thanks.”
Instead of moving away like he’d asked, I threw my leg over his and straddled his lap, enjoying his rapid inhalation. “How’s this?”
His hands moved to my waist, feeling their way, bunching up my tank top as he caressed up my side and then halfway up my back. When they came back down, they made it all the way to my ass. He lifted me slightly and slid down on the couch a bit so his cock rubbed against me. We both groaned.
“I thought you wanted to talk,” he said, his eyes clenching even tighter.
Did I? “What about?” There was something I was going to say.
“I’m not sure,” he said, opening his eyes only to go right back to staring at my lips. “But you’d better remember quick because your mouth is about to be busy.”
“With what?” I teased, licking my bottom lip and looking down at his cock.
“Stop making it so much harder—”
“I don’t think it can get any harder.”
“—for me to be a gentleman.”
“I don’t want you to be a gentleman, Hayden.” I laughed and ground against him, daring him, wanting him.
“Good. Because I’m tired of pretending to care what you have to say.” His smile only lasted a moment before his lips crashed into mine. He took hold of my jaw and forced my mouth open for his, tilting my head at the same time so his tongue could reach deeper into me.
I’m not sure how long we kissed and pulled at each other’s clothing before I realized I needed this man naked.
Now.
I unbuttoned his shirt, pulled it open, and slipped it over his shoulders. His body was a very pleasant surprise, not that I’d thought it wouldn’t be great, but I mean, come on. “When the hell do you have time to work out?”
“Exercise is a great form of stress relief. I have a stressful job and need an outlet. But you’ve made me think I may take up other activities from now on.” He looked up, and a flash of color hit his cheeks. “It’s been a long time since I’ve…”
“Since you’ve what?”
“Been with someone.”
Huh? “But you’re—” I didn’t want to say the word, as if not saying it would help us forget.
“Married to a wonderful woman who’s been in love with someone else the entire time.”
“Oh.” Well, that put a few things into place.
His hands slid off me. “I ruined the mood, didn’t I?”
“Yes.” I took his hands and put them on my ass. “So you’re going to have to work extra hard to get it back.”
“Extra hard. Got it.” Smiling, he pulled me closer, rubbing his cock against my core. “But if I…”
“It’s like riding a bike, Hayden. Plus, if you do anything really wrong, I’ll let you know. Consider yourself in training.”
His smile grew until it hit his eyes. “Like riding a bike, huh?” When he moved his hand up my ribcage to my breast, he sighed contentedly.
“Is that all it takes to make you happy?” I asked, my smile just as big.
“I’m an easy man to please. But I’d like to stick around to see what else is going to happen.”
“You’re lucky then, because I’d like to show you.” I rocked my hips against his.
Closing his eyes, he groaned. “I hope you don’t have any plans tomorrow.”
“Hmm…tomorrow is Monday, right?” I tapped my chin. “Actually, since I’m no longer working for an impatient jerk, my schedule’s pretty open.”
“I’m still impatient,” he said with a grin.
“Bring it, Hayden.”
He slipped his hand around me again and yanked me into him, our mouths landing together, hard. I pulled away long enough to stand and drag him with me toward the bedroom, our feet tripping over each other’s, teeth bumping and hands clawing at clothing.
As soon as we got to my bedroom, I shoved him backwards and spun around to my nightstand. I knew I had some condoms in there at one point, I just hoped they wouldn’t be expired.
“What are you—?”
“Condom.” I glanced at him. “I know I had a couple.”
Relief filled his face. “I can’t believe I forgot about that. Thank you.”
“Anytime. Really.” I started tossing things onto the floor—a magazine, iPod, vibrator. Doh! I kicked it under the bed so he wouldn’t see it. Where the hell were the condoms? I flung a book over my shoulder, hearing him grunt.
“Sorry!” I said without turning. Yesterday I was desperate. This was way beyond that.
>
“Keep looking.” He caught me from behind and slid his hands into the waistband of my boxer shorts, pushing them down my legs. My underwear went along with them. I froze, bent over, completely exposed, my arms barely holding me up.
“I said keep looking,” he growled.
Easier said than done.
When he kissed the back of my thigh, I gasped. When he ran his lips across my skin, I moaned. Then, as the heat of his mouth inched closer and closer to my core, I made a sound only dogs could hear. I let my head fall, smacking my forehead on the nightstand. But it didn’t hurt—all my nerve endings were too preoccupied with what Hayden was doing to me. I’d always known he was talented, but never imagined he’d be this talented.
“Hallelujah.” I finally felt the edges of a small cardboard box at the very back of the drawer and pulled it out, holding it up for him to see. He grunted his approval, his mouth too busy for speech.
Without being able to see what he was doing, every touch of his tongue and his fingers came as a surprise. A damn good surprise. If I died right now, they’d have to shove me in a closed casket, because they’d never be able to get this look off my face.
Before I’d realized my legs had given out, he caught me and lifted me into his arms.
He smiled and licked his lips. “I wasn’t done yet.”
“Neither was I,” I teased. “But I was pretty close.”
“Patience is definitely something we both need to work on.” He smirked. “Starting tomorrow.”
I could taste myself when he kissed me, while we explored each other’s mouths. I wrapped my arms around his neck, forcing him to follow me as he set me on the bed.
I squeezed my hands in between our bodies and fought with his belt buckle for a few seconds until I gave up and pushed him away a little. Thankfully, he took over pants duty so I could focus on the rest of him. His chest and abs and neck and—
Damn, was there nothing imperfect about this man? Oh, wait.
“You have an outie,” I said happily, poking his bellybutton.
“Disappointed?” he asked, yanking his pants down and wiggling out of them with my help.
“Complet—” The word died halfway out of my mouth because at that very moment, I saw his cock. No disappointment there. None whatsoever. “Nope.”
Swallowing, I tried to stop staring, stop drooling. He helped by kissing me again, using my mouth for something other than gaping. He pressed his body against me, grinding into me, his erection caught between us. I pushed myself up higher on the bed until I felt his length between my thighs. Both of us moaned.
When he released me, I took a deep breath, making up for the last few I’d missed. I ripped open the box, quickly checking the expiration date—thank the heavens these things had a long shelf life—and slipped the condom on him.
I shouldn’t be doing this. I should stop him until we’d had “the talk.” And if I were smart, that’s what I would’ve done. But lust and logic rarely happen concurrently. Speech and thought were impossible, as if my brain had taken a siesta in everything but its response to pleasure.
“I’ve been waiting so long for this,” he said quietly, brushing my hair off my face. “I’m having a hard time believing it’s real.” He looked at me with such softness, such care, I didn’t know how to react. This was more than just two people wanting a physical connection. This was two people who’d already connected mentally, emotionally, and who were about to express it physically.
Honestly, it was a little terrifying.
“This is real, isn’t it?” I asked, running my hand down the side of his face to his shoulder. “What we have?”
“It’s the most real thing I’ve ever experienced.”
I let out a breath, grabbed his ass, and then smiled. “Good. Then I think we should do more experiencing, don’t you?”
“I love it when you get bossy.” He sighed. “But we have all night, so if I… Like riding a bike, right?”
“Right.”
He eased himself into me so slowly, it was frustrating as hell and still completely perfect. My eyes closed as he filled me, pressing all the way in. Neither of us moved, allowing our breaths a chance to synchronize. Each exhalation drew him in, each inhalation forced him back. Tiny movements that felt endless.
“You are as perfect as I knew you’d be,” he whispered. “So warm. So beautiful.”
When he started moving his hips, I focused on holding back, not to give in to the pleasure because I never wanted it to end. As soon as he reached under one of my legs and pulled it up so he could get closer, deeper, with every thrust, I knew I would fail epically.
I shouldn’t have been surprised at Hayden’s ability to multi-task. He was still fully capable of speech—in the dirtiest sense of the word. Damn, this man was impressive. For the life of me, I couldn’t figure out why he’d been worried—if he actually had forgotten how to do it, and this was his version of a refresher course, no way would I have been able to take him when he was at his peak.
“Holy hell, do you know how to ride a bike, Hayden!”
The vibration of his laugh bounced around my entire body until all the sensations merged into one bolt of energy so strong I think I blacked out for a second. When I came to, I was still moaning, the orgasm still pulsing through me.
Through the haze, I realized he was speaking. At first, I could only pick out a few words. Then I caught a full sentence.
“If you squeeze me again like that, I’m…aah…going to…” Almost a full sentence. Because the second I contracted my muscles, he lost the ability to do anything other than lose it. I guess those boot camping and spin classes were useful after all.
Power could make a woman do awfully good things.
32
Hayden
There was nothing left of the old me in the morning. I woke up revived, reborn, with her naked body tucked against me, my arm curled around her, her leg on top of mine. I’d been to four out of the seven wonders of the world, piloted a helicopter over the Grand Canyon, but I’d never seen anything more beautiful than she was. Last night had been unbelievable, the perfect way to begin a new life—nothing to weigh me down and everything to look forward to.
She’d come into my life so unexpectedly, so innocently. And thankfully, despite my countless mistakes, it had worked out even more perfectly than I had a right to. Thanks to lots of thinking about baseball, every muscle in my body ached from hours of lovemaking, almost as much as the muscles in my cheeks from smiling. Incredible, inexplicable fortune.
Without opening her eyes, Sira ran her hand across my chest then patted me in various locations as if she were trying to feel for something.
“What are you looking for?” I asked.
“I’m just making sure you’re really here before I open my eyes. Because if I opened my eyes and you were gone, I’d know it was just a dream.”
I smiled and kissed the top of her head. “Do you have a lot of those kinds of dreams?”
“Far more than you could imagine.” She smiled, her eyes still closed. “And before you ask—yes, they are all about you.”
“I wasn’t going to ask that.” But it was nice to know. I rolled on top of her, supporting myself with my forearms next to her shoulders.
“I know you weren’t, but you were thinking it.”
“Open your eyes.” I wanted to see them—my way of knowing we were both living the same thing.
“No, I’m trying to sleep.”
“With me on top of you?”
She threw one hand over her face and pushed my chest with her other. “Do you think I can’t?”
“I think you can do whatever you set your mind to. But then, so can I.” I rolled my hips against hers, pressing my erection farther into the thin space between her thighs. Moaning, she opened up for me, spreading her legs and wrapping them around me. “I win.”
She laughed. “You cheated.”
“Open your eyes, Sira.” When her face tensed for a moment, I thought
I may have hurt her. I pushed up onto my hands, and swung off her. “Whatever I did wrong, I’m sorry.”
She opened her eyes slowly, looking at me with a sadness I didn’t understand. “You didn’t do anything wrong.” Her smile stayed tight as it grew until she finally shook her head slightly as if releasing whatever she was thinking of. “In fact, you did many, many things right. With a little training, you might be worth keeping around.”
I laughed at my own words being thrown back at me. “I get an hour for lunch and every fourth Sunday off. But otherwise, I’m available at your convenience.”
“Well then, you’d better get to work. We only have four hours until lunchtime.”
I reached over to her nightstand, making a mental note to pick up more condoms the first chance I got. Because I intended to spend every waking moment with a part of me inside a part of her—my fingers, my tongue, or my cock.
I couldn’t get enough of her taste, her warmth, the jerk of her body whenever I reached a particularly sensitive spot. The right side of her ribcage was more ticklish than the left, and every time I ran my lips below her bellybutton, her toes curled and she whimpered. When I settled myself between her thighs, she tensed, then went limp and groaned as soon as my tongue touched her core. A moment later, she tightened again, running her fingers through my hair and pulling it.
It had been a long time since I’d touched a woman’s body, but I don’t remember them being so much fun.
She swatted at me, laughing. “Stop, Hayden. You have to stop.”
“Can’t hear you,” I mumbled against her, pointing to her thighs that were squeezing my head and covering my ears. When she released me, I didn’t stop. After all, I had two years of no sex and a lifetime of mediocre sex to make up for.
After we’d flipped over and repositioned ourselves, I watched her as she slowly slid down my body, her lips dragging across my abs and hip. Feeling the heat of her mouth around my cock was something else entirely. I lost the ability to express my gratitude with anything but a moan. This was perfection. She was perfection.