Authors: Kim Linwood
I appreciate his warning, but if I’m going to do this, I’m doing it right. So instead of pulling off, I tighten my lips and swirl my tongue against him. Closing my eyes, I wait for it, not knowing exactly what to expect.
He lets out a deep groan and his thighs flex as he stiffens and swells. He comes hard, filling my mouth thickly before I swallow it down.
The shower wall rattles as he steadies himself, breathing heavily. I look up, and for the first time in the light of day, I see him without his mask on, his eyes closed and his face slack and vulnerable. When we had sex on our wedding night, it was too dark and I was too caught up in the moment to notice. I like it. It’s like seeing into parts of him that he normally hides away.
I’m not sure when the right point is to stop, so I keep sucking. He twitches and laughs softly, obviously sensitive and maybe a little ticklish. As he softens, I discover I can take more of him in, and I do, exploring him with my tongue and lips.
Eventually, he pulls away. “Fuck, too sensitive.”
I let him out with a soft pop before I look up, unable to keep the grin off my face. I did pretty well, I think, especially for my first time.
He laughs. “Feeling pretty proud of yourself, aren’t you.” Crouching, he gets right up close. “You suck great cock, babe.”
“Don’t call me—”
He kisses me, deeply, putting a hand on the back of my head so I can’t get away. Doesn’t he care about... well, apparently not. I wrap my arms around his neck, and return his kiss for all I’m worth.
W
ell, fuck, that was unexpected. Far be it from me to not enjoy a spontaneous BJ, but I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop. Pretty sure I’m not out of the shithouse yet. I can’t deny that our chemistry is real, but aside from my cock, what else is she after?
Even still, somehow I’ve ended up in bed with her head on my chest and my arm around her like we actually belong in the fucking bridal suite, and for once, I have no idea what to say. She sure feels good in my arms though.
She even smells good. I resist the urge to lean in and kiss the top of her head. Jesus. I never thought I’d end up like my father, but here I am pushing aside my pride because her mouth felt good around my cock and her hair smells nice. I blame the shower on adrenaline, but the cuddling?
Shit, now what?
“Nothing’s changed, has it?” Angie’s soft voice breaks the silence with a question that sounds more like a statement. Her soft breath brushes over my midsection while she traces the tattoo on my side with her finger. One of the first ones I got. A bunch of feathers wrapped in barbed wire. It seemed really fucking symbolic of... I can’t even remember.
I sigh and look up at the ceiling, wondering about the shitty paint job. “No.”
“I can’t stop thinking about you.” Her finger trails higher, up towards my chest, following black ink while she talks.
Cold settles in my gut. She’s betting on my ego to get me back. Typical.
“And I hate it. I hate that you were a total asshole to me when I was scared and I still can’t stop.”
With a quick grab and roll, I put her under me. Angie squeaks in protest at the sudden movement, but I don’t miss how her legs slide open automatically so I land between them. Her tits jiggle enticingly when she lands on her back, and I’m already hard just looking at her.
“Like hell you hate it.” I grind my cock against her and she whimpers. “And scared? Scared of what? Being set for life? Oh yeah, poor you.” I try to sound pissed, but man, it’s hard when I can feel her heat soaking into me. I don’t even believe me.
She frowns and tries weakly to buck me off, but she’s breathing heavy and it’s not from the effort. “Set for life? Are you serious? Yeah, I’d just looove to be pregnant for pre-med. Raising a baby on my own in medical school sounds like so much fun! And I’d be stuck with YOU which would basically be hell. I’ve been trying to get away from you since we met!”
I laugh. “Of course you have. That’s why we keep ending up in bed together. You have to rest from all that
running
.” I don’t believe for a minute that she doesn’t want to be exactly where she is. The rest of it? I don’t know, but doubt creeps in. “I still don’t know what to do with you.”
“Really?” She traces her fingernails along my chest, sending tingles racing straight down to my cock. “The great and mighty playboy is out of ideas? How disappointing. I can think of a couple of things.”
“Yeah?” Is this really the same girl?
“Yeah, like you get the fuck off me and we finish this trip and then never see each other again,” she snaps.
“That’ll be a little hard,
Sis
.”
Angie laughs. “Didn’t you hear? The marriage is off. Your dad pulled the plug.”
The feel of her under me is so distracting that her words take a moment to register. “What? What do you mean?” I grab her hands and pin them to the pillow behind her head. From the way she chews her lip and her eyes light up, she doesn’t look like she minds. “Spill.”
“Mom told me.” She raises an eyebrow. “Your dad hasn’t called?”
“Apparently we don’t talk as often as you guys do.” As in, hardly ever if we don’t have to. This would’ve been nice to know, though. “Tell me what happened.”
“Why do you care? According to you we’re just a bunch of gold diggers anyway. I can see it in your eyes whenever you look at me like that.” She wriggles against my grip.
“Like what?” I ease up and sit back. The sexual tension between us just up and evaporated.
“Like I stop being a person and I start being a threat. Like you did yesterday, right before you called me names and stormed out on me. Are you going to do that again?” Pulling the sheets up, she covers herself. “Because if you are, can you just skip to the part where you leave?”
If it wasn’t obvious already, playtime’s over. How did we go from soft and sexy to being at each other’s throats again in under a minute? I sigh. “Just tell me what fucking happened.”
She blows her hair out of her eyes. “Someone from your dad’s company invested in Mom’s store. She thought it was him, being all super-secret philanthropist in love.”
Shit.
“Well he wasn’t, and when he found out about the money, he was pissed. He thinks she tried to scam him, to use him to save her business. Wouldn’t listen to a word Mom said.” She looks right at me, her brown eyes darkening. “Sound like someone you know?”
Fuck. My mind’s racing. No good deed goes unpunished. Boom, right back in my face. Angie’s going to be furious.
Double fuck.
“It was me.”
She’s looking out the window, but her eyes snap to me at my words. “Excuse me?”
“I sent the money. Nobody was supposed to know.”
Her eyes go huge before they narrow, her brows furrowing angrily. “You set up my mom?”
“No! I knew her stupid flower shop was in trouble, so I had one of dad’s companies invest. I have a bit of clout in the company, even if most of the time he thinks my office is a waste of space. It wasn’t a lot. Just enough to keep her afloat for a bit. I didn’t want money to be an issue.” I shrug. “For what it’s worth, I’m impressed she figured out the connection.”
“You are...” Angie sits up on the bed and clutches the sheets, not out of modesty but anger. “...the most paranoid, egotistical...” Kneeling up on the bed, she points at the door, an image of beautiful, stark naked fury. “...manipulative prick I know.” Her heavy breathing makes her tits heave in a way that’s ridiculously distracting.
I tear my eyes away to meet her icy gaze. I’ve done a lot of things I’m not proud of, but this was supposed to be one of the good things. “I was trying to help, for Christ’s sake.”
“Giving money as a freaking test isn’t helping, dimwit. What, it wasn’t enough to screw up what we had before we even had a chance? You had to go ruin it for our parents too?” She picks up a pillow and flings it at me which I only barely bat out of the way. Arguing while naked isn’t playing fair. Not when you look like Angie.
Alright, I’m done with this. I can’t win. “You know what? Fuck this. I’m leaving. I’ll ask for another cabin for the rest of the cruise. You win. Happy?” I talk while I pull dry clothes out of my suitcase. She huffs, still naked and in full view, watching me pick up my stuff.
Does that make me hard? Of course it does, but I ignore it. I’ll get my own cabin, jerk off and I won’t even have to worry about her walking in on me. Fucking magnificent. I tug the zippers shut on my suitcase and open the door. With a last glance back, I meet her steely gaze with one of my own. “Have a nice fucking cruise.” Then I step out, closing the door behind me.
Done.
I
shift on the deck chair, finding a better angle for reading. A sip of sangria, then back to rippling chests and heaving bosoms. Funny how the reality of muscle bound alpha males never seems to match up with the fantasy. It’d be nice if every time I picture the hero in this story, he didn’t look like Gavin.
I haven’t talked to him in three days. The storm raged on for most of the day we fought, and then blew out overnight. Since then I’ve been living in paradise, and hating every second of it. I got what I wanted, so I should be happy. Pleased. Thrilled. I have an amazing suite to myself, a magnificent view, a huge bed, and best of all, I don’t have a hotshot asshole of a stepbrother running around cracking jokes and trying to get in my panties.
Whoopde-freakin-do.
It’s given me plenty of time to work on my tan, and while I’ll never make a serious dent in my to-be-read pile, I’ve made the best progress in months. Just me, my e-reader, the blazing sun and sangrias. Perfect.
And lonely. I spend my days in imaginary worlds and my nights ignoring how empty my bed feels. If the storm hadn’t knocked out the cell antenna it might not be so bad, but I can’t even get in touch with Cassie or Mom. It’s enough to make me miss Gavin’s paranoia and asshattery. Not really. But I do miss his smile, and the way he sometimes looked at me before it all fell apart.
With a sigh, I put the reader down and roll onto my back, closing my eyes to the bright sun on my face. I’ve seen him around, of course. The ship isn’t
that
big. Usually he’s just wearing a pair of board shorts and a smile, showing off his bronzed chest and tattoos. Either a lot of the passengers didn’t catch the whole wedding thing, or he’s really going out of his way to show that it’s not a problem, because every time I see him he has a new girl on his arm. Or arms. I bet it took him all of an hour to replace me.
Fuck him. I’m sure those girls are.
I hate that I’m weak enough to be jealous, and that I’m still thinking about him.
Even with my eyes shut, I sense the shadow passing in front of me, blocking the sun for a moment. I open them immediately, expecting Gavin. I’m not sure why I thought it’d be him, but it turns out to be Joyce, leading Mabel to one of the deck chairs.
“Right over here, Mabel. Here are two chairs for us.” She might be a little batty, but the love she has for her friend is plain in her voice. I wonder if Cassie and I will be like that when we’re old. Looking at them, I smile a little. I could do a lot worse than cruising around and speaking my mind.
Joyce settles Mabel on the chair, giving her a hand when she sits down. “There you go. I’ll go get drinks.” She gives me a wave and a smile before heading to the snack bar. I peek over at Mabel, who looks after her with a sweet smile. Maybe they’re more than friends? I grin at the thought. Never too old for love, I guess. Maybe there’s hope for me yet.
I lean back, close my eyes and soak up the sun.
“You seem to be taking it well.” Joyce is back, and I’m assuming she’s talking to me. Opening one eye half-way, I peer in her direction to find her examining me, her eyes crinkled tightly at the corners. “I’ve had some short affairs, but I’m pretty sure I never had a marriage that didn’t last a day.” Her face is full of sympathy.
How much do I tell her? “It’s complicated.”
“It always is, dearie, otherwise it wouldn’t hurt so much.” She looks at me expectantly, her open eyes and slight curves at the corners of her lips saying, “Of course you’re going to tell me everything.”
Then it all just pours out of me, and I mean ALL. The night at the club, Paul, our parents’ marriage, the cruise, our marriage, our fights, everything. Once I start, I can’t stop until I’ve unloaded, and through it all she listens silently. If her sparkling blue eyes didn’t look so alert, I’d think she’d lost me long ago.
“So now, I guess he’s got his own room somewhere. I’ve seen him here and there, but we haven’t spoken since he left our suite.” I study the deck intently after finishing my story, afraid to look up at her. It’s pretty wild, and I’m just waiting for her condemnation. Stealing, lies, sort of cheating, sleeping with my stepbrother. Putting it all out there, it sounds like a soap opera.
“That is quite a tale,” she chuckles.
“You don’t think I’m horrible?” I dare to look, expecting the worst. “He might end up being my stepbrother!”
Joyce doesn’t look horrified. She looks amused. “Stepbrother? That’s nothing.” She gathers herself. “I grew up in a small town in the middle of nowhere. I very nearly married my second cousin for my first husband, and some of the other girls weren’t nearly that picky, if you know what I mean.” Then she does laugh, bubbly peals of laughter tumbling out of her. “Trust me, dearie, it’s nothing. You two aren’t even related.”
I laugh at myself. Getting everything out into the open makes me feel a little better. “I suppose you’re right. Compared to how much of an assho— jerk he is, the step thing is nothing.”
“All men are assholes sometimes.” She laughs at the shock on my face. “And all women can be bitches given the chance. Or are you an angel sent down from heaven?” Joyce raises a perfectly lined eyebrow.
Be the bulldog, not the bitch.
I blush. “I don’t know how to fix it. I don’t even know if I
should
fix it. What do I do?” I guess it’d be too much to hope that the old woman has the answer.
“Does he still make you tingle, even when you’re seeing red and ready to hang his walnuts up for the squirrels?”