“So it adds nothing to the experience? There is no difference in this?” She let the robe go and ran her hands up and down the pink fluff. “And this?” She threw off the robe and spread her arms wide.
The groan came long and low. He saw red. He wanted her so damn bad he was about to rip the wooden arms off the chair. “Caelen, come here.”
“I would be happy to, when you admit this outfit made you want me a million times more.”
Damn, it was those few words that stopped him. Didn’t she know he would take her anywhere, anytime? It didn’t matter what she wore. He wanted
her
, so bad, he couldn’t see straight.
“Caelen—” He looked down, trying to gather his thoughts, to distance himself from the lush beauty in front of him.
“Dare, I need you to look up for a minute.”
Dare’s eyes snapped up and what little blood he had circulating in his brain dropped south. Thoughts fled. Caelen stood with her back to him, giving him his first unimpeded view of her deliciously rounded ass. The teddy was cut into a G-string, the lacy material lost between porcelain mounds on full display. Dear God, he loved her ass! Not a flaw in sight, luscious, rounded, defying gravity in its heart-shaped perfection—
His body launched forward. All reason gone.
*
D
AMN STUBBORN MAN.
This was the last ace she had up her nonexistent sleeve. Dare had always had a thing for her ass. And she had to admit, in this outfit, it was pretty spectacular. If this didn’t work, she didn’t know what she’d do.
Come on, tushy, don’t fail me now
. “Tell me what I want to hear.” So she could finally win the argument with Brynn and oh so subtly throw it in her face the next time she saw her sister.
There was no way that showing the real her, with rollers and slippers, was more attractive than the red teddy and thigh high boots. Other parts of her sister’s argument skittered through her mind.
You use your outfits to hide the real you
.
Was the robe just another outfit? Did it really represent the real her? Now she was overthinking the whole thing and confusing herself.
No.
She needed her outfits, not to hide, but to
accentuate
the positives, her assets. Literally. Like the asset she was trying to lure Dare with, so he would see her point of view.
Caelen took a quick peek over her shoulder, hopeful that this last ditch effort had worked. What greeted her instead made her suck in her breath and spin around.
Dare was on his knees. But instead of looking weak, as if he were begging, his eyes were on fire. His gaze shot through her, making her legs shaky. Desire and need bled through her at the promise that lived in those eyes. “Love your ass.”
Her voice was shaky with emotion as she asked, “Enough to say what I want to hear?”
Not one part of his coiled muscular body moved as he said, “I want my kiss.”
“Now?”
Damn it.
“Right now. Get down here.”
“I don’t want to go down there! I’m creating a mood and you’re ruining it.”
“If I move, I won’t keep my hands off you.” Dare looked like a statue, yet his eyes were alive, jumping in flames, roaming her body, setting off a matching response.
His eyes set fires.
And she burned.
His words had moved her. He was struggling with his desire, trying to adhere to the stipulations. He knew, and she knew, if he kissed her she would melt and she might forget to win this argument. She might forget what they were fighting about.
“Don’t piss me off, Betty. A deal’s a deal.”
She huffed, but went down on her knees. For a second, Dare just stared, passion a livewire connecting them, making her want to scoot forward. Only inches separated them, and all of a sudden she realized how difficult this might be for Dare. Yet here he was, on his knees for her. A take-charge, dominant guy. What would Victor have done if she’d put him to this test?
Victor would have caved in seconds, just to get what he wanted. A blowjob
du jour.
“Come closer.” Dare’s chest pumped up and down, the warmth of his tanned muscles beckoning to her. His chest was broad and toned. At first, it seemed he had no chest hair but then she realized that fine, light brown hair coated his pecs and abs.
Soon, she’d be lost to the feel of him and she’d never win her argument. “Why can’t you just admit you want me like this?” her whispered words, stated so close to Dare, lifted the front of his hair slightly.
He winced, but didn’t budge. “Even you’re soft breath feels good on my body. Put your hands on me.”
“Wh-what?” He’d caught her off guard.
“This is my kiss.” Dare’s voice was rough, like a scrape against her skin. And his demanding tone was different than any she’d heard before.
“But…”
“The rules are that I can’t touch you, not that you can’t touch me. Do it, Betty.”
Teasing and insults were the norm, but it was an easy banter between them. This was intensity times one thousand. And dear God, it was one more thing she was learning to lust about him. The statement was jumbled but she couldn’t insert any other verb besides lust in her sentence. Like was too tepid; love was too powerful to even consider. She was falling under the force of his intensity and it gave her such a
rush.
“We never agreed to that.”
He clenched his hands and rested them on his thighs. “I’m on the razor’s edge. Do it now, or I
will
kiss you over and over and over… I won’t stop.”
“You will if I tell you to stop.”
His eyes narrowed and seared her with their intensity. “You won’t want me to.”
Her vision went hazy, but she complied, walking on her knees toward him, placing her small hands on his roughened cheeks. The five o’clock shadow tickled the sensitive skin on her palm.
“Lean forward. Kiss me.”
She’d already moved between his spread thighs, her lips tingling in anticipation. She should have gone in hard and fast, gotten it over with. Instead, she played with him, dotting soft kisses on his top then bottom lip. His mouth parted, but she wouldn’t go in. Instead, she tugged at the sensitive skin with her teeth. Only when she heard his deep moan, did she enter. Her tongue pushed against his, bypassing teeth, their chests now flush with one another.
And the kiss went on and on and on ’til her lungs almost exploded. Reluctantly, she pulled back, both of them sucking in great gasps of air.
“Damn,”
he whispered, his eyes at half-mast. “Kiss me again.”
His gruff words made her stomach flip and seared her even more than the kiss. “No.”
He growled his frustration. “You ready to tell me what the hell is going on? You’re driving me crazy, woman.”
“Fine. I was conducting a little experiment. And I failed. Only because you’re stubborn; although, technically, I still think I won.”
“Why? What experiment?”
“I wanted to prove a point. That the way I dressed added to the experience. And I did! The real me, all covered up in a robe, only made you want to
chat
. But when I put on one of my beautiful outfits that accentuated the positives—then bam!—you were ready to go.” She gathered the robe closer, suddenly self-conscious.
“You think this crazy getup is the real you?” He sat back on his heels and studied her, looking as frustrated as a gambler kissing his last chip, goodbye. “I haven’t gotten anywhere near seeing the real you. Not even close.”
Caelen really had no response. For once.
Dare sighed and leaned forward, taking her face in his hands. “The minute you walked in, I wanted you so bad I couldn’t see straight. I would kill to have your lips on me. It was all I could think about all day.”
“Really?”
“I would take you any way I could get you. You always turn me on.
Always
. No matter what you wear. I want you. Not the clothes. Just you. That’s why I said I wanted to keep drinking. I didn’t want you to think I was a total asshole.”
“Why would now be any different than any other day? You always act like an asshole,” she said with a soft smile and total sincerity. Dare
was
an asshole, well, sometimes, but she could handle that. In fact, his “asshole-y” behavior was an important constant between them, a constant she relied on to keep things from getting too personal.
He hung his head and shook it back and forth. “You’re killing me,” he said on a deep laugh. “It’s just, I want this to be better. I don’t ever want you to doubt that I want you. I would never disrespect you while we’re together. Okay?”
His words held weight, pressing in slowly, taking root in her chest, creating warmth but making her feel heavy. Heavy with anticipation
and panic.
His words had the ring of permanence. “Dare…”
“Get that look off your face, Betty. I’m not down on bended knee.”
“You literally are. On two bended knees.”
He scowled and continued, “You know what I mean. I just want you to know that when we’re together. We’re
together.
Got it? And you should always feel good when we hook up.
Always.”
Caelen just continued to stare at Dare, her mouth agape in wonder, blown away by his words and unable to respond.
He growled low in his throat and started mumbling, “I swear to God, I hate talking. I suck at this.”
The pressure started to ease, replaced by a tingling warmth. His gruff words were almost enough to make her forget that he’d just proven her sister’s point. Scarily enough, she understood exactly what he was trying to say.
“But hell, baby. I love your outfits. I love every sexy inch of skin that teddy showed off.”
Joy sang in her heart.
Yes!
“So, I was right! It totally made it better.”
“Of course it did.”
“I knew it.”
Then he ruined her smug triumph by saying, “’Cuz you’re practically naked!”
She paused, ready to blast him for bringing up the naked thing, again, but then, just when she was ready to punch him, she lost it. She started to giggle. Soon, the giggle turned into a snort and Dare lost it, too. Within seconds, they were both laid out on their sides, laughing hysterically. “You are
obsessed.”
She finally did punch him, but it was a halfhearted effort.
With typical exuberance, Dare rolled over and caged her in, his arms on either side of her body, his smiling face only inches from hers. The smile started to fade. “One day—I want to see you naked. I-I would—
God, the things I would do…”
His brain must have short circuited.
What would you do?
She held back the greedy words. Dare’s oath, stuttered through gritted teeth, was one of the nicest compliments she’d ever received.
Time to get this party started right
. “Dare, would you like to see what other lubricants I brought for you?”
Chapter 21
‡
D
ARE SAT UP,
his body taut, ready. Slamming to attention, he focused on her words, especially “lubricant.”
Who knows what that means?
He’d learned to expect the unexpected from Caelen, and damn! The anticipation burned. “Where do you want me?”
“The go-to question. Funny what a good boy you are when you’re about to receive a blowjob.”
When she made a move to stand, he was on his feet in seconds, gently grasping her small hand and lifting her up. Every part of her seemed so dainty and delicate, but not fragile. Nope. His girl had rods of steel running through her. She could handle anything he threw her way. “You have no idea.”
“I want you standing this time.”
Yes
. He watched as she sashayed away toward the table and her backpack. The view of her ass gently rocking back and forth as she strode away on those highs heels ratcheted up his desire. The intensity started to burn, and the idea of turning Caelen on for a change was becoming an obsession. He had to touch her. Soon.
Rifling through the back, she pulled out a rubber band and some sort of plastic tube.
What?
She stuffed the band down the front of her teddy with one hand and applied dark, red lipstick to her mouth with the other. The color made him zero in on her mouth, like an oversexed bull. Lust coursed through his body. Her shiny, ruby lips would be engulfing him soon. He took a step forward and then back. “Caelen…”
“Almost ready. I don’t even need my notes this time,” she said with a wink.
He groaned long and low. Desperate to do something, he hooked his thumbs around the waistband of the jeans he’d thrown on after the shower. They were pulled off and across the room in one tug.
Caelen applied the last of her lipstick, double-checking her reflection in the microwave door, and her mouth dropped when she saw him in full glory. With a strangled laugh, she said, “You don’t waste any time, do you?”
“I’m ready.”
Caelen stared at his cock with an intensity that made him want to grab her by the hair and kiss the life out of her. “Damn, Dare. You really do have a pretty dick,” she breathed.
He laughed and then groaned, both amused and turned on. “I know. And you doubted him.” Needing an outlet, he cracked his knuckles, suddenly self-conscious about where to put his hands.
Caelen walked over, her eyes still trained firmly on his dick. Her unique scent tickled his nose, making him
want.
It was an earthy smell, dark and sensual, not flowery and light like so many other women’s perfume. It wasn’t overpowering, but it was uniquely her. It seemed to take forever before she made it back to him; she came so close that the lace of her teddy scraped against his chest, abrading his nipples. “So I wanted to start a little slower this time. The last time was too rushed, don’t you think?”
He gritted his teeth, looking down, enjoying his bird’s eye view of voluptuous breasts that promised to be more than a hand full.
“Can I touch you? Here?” She pointed to his torso, her voice breathy.
“Anywhere.” He watched as her small palm rested softly on his pec. The slight touch seared like a brand. “More.”