But that’s just the sex talking, surely.
It’s just the fantastic, mind-bending sex.
Because fucking Teagan is incredible.
It’s everything I thought it would be and more.
Because she gives.
She’s so free with her body, so at ease with her pleasure, that it unleashes a new wave of desire in me, over me, under me.
I want her more and more with every thrust, every snap of my hips. As I go deeper, she hooks her legs tighter around my back, digs her nails in harder. As I move, she responds, and we moan and groan together.
I don’t know if it’s the rhythm or the position, or if it’s because this is our first time together.
But we’re in sync every second, wanting each other with the same ferocity.
And that flips the switch.
In her, it seems, as she arches her back, her mouth parting.
And in me too, as I follow her to the other side, chasing her second orgasm with my first, a powerful, agonizingly blissful release that blurs the world.
When I collapse next to her, she strokes my hair, and I breathe out hard.
Words seem hard.
Nearly impossible.
But when they come, I say, “Stay the night.”
And she says yes.
8
Ransom
So.
That happened.
I should regret it, but I don’t.
And I don’t regret it when it happens again.
Because why screw once when you can go twice?
This time the redhead rides me, and what a view.
Her tits bounce, and her hair spills down her back, all that gorgeous flesh on display. I run my hands up and down her stomach as she goes to town on my cock.
And all I can think is fuck the mantra.
The mantra is in time-out for tonight.
When we come together, she collapses on top of me, hot, sweaty, and perfectly fucked. I brush a kiss against her silky hair, and yeah, this feels like a one-night vacation. It’s twenty-four hours in the land of bliss with the woman I’ve wanted.
After I get rid of the condom, she slides up against me, and I stroke her hair.
“Thanks for bidding on me,” I say.
“Thanks for asking me to.” She turns and props her head in her hand. “So, you beat all your friends tonight. You went for the most, hottie pants.”
I nod, laughing. “I sure did, thanks to you.”
“Does that feel good? To have won?”
I laugh, running a hand along her hip. “Not as good as fucking you.”
She rolls her eyes and shoves my shoulder. “Thanks, North. Appreciate the props.”
North.
That’s good, right? Sliding right back into the familiar friend zone where I’m North and she’s King.
“No problem, King. Happy to give it to you anytime.”
She smirks. “That’s what she said.”
I crack up, sliding my hand down my face. Then I flip to my side and poke her. “I thought you weren’t saying that. You broke your resolution.”
She shrugs. “It’s not the only one I broke tonight.”
That makes me curious. “Did you have a resolution not to sleep with me?”
“Well, yeah. One, I didn’t think you wanted to. But we also have a gazillion friends in common, and us getting involved is one helluva bumpy ride.”
“That’s what she said,” I mutter.
She nudges my side with her elbow. “You’re just as bad as me.”
“Some things are too hard to resist.”
She rolls her eyes. “You are just giving me low-hanging fruit tonight, aren’t you, North?”
I lift the covers, checking out my junk. “I dunno. Is it low-hanging?”
She laughs again, and it’s such a great sound. Warm and welcoming. Buoyant too. “You are the worst.”
I hold up a finger. “Okay, that’s not what she said. That’s definitely not what she said.”
She buries her face in my neck, chuckling. “You are not allowed to make puns anymore. You’re forbidden.”
“Says the queen of puns and jokes. Which is awesome, because it’s the opposite of . . .”
Shit. I didn’t mean to say that.
She arches a brow, curious. “Opposite of what?”
I gulp and can’t hide a wince. “My ex. She was very serious. Sorry. I’m an ass for mentioning her.”
“Oh.” It comes out heavily, and maybe I’ve ruined the mood.
Actually, there’s no maybe about it. Mentioning an ex is a 100 percent guaranteed mood-destroyer.
“Sorry I mentioned her, King.”
She quickly rearranges her features into a small smile. “It’s okay. I’m not upset. Just surprised. You never mention her. So I was kind of taken aback.”
“And I shouldn’t have mentioned her when we’re in bed. That was dumb.”
“Um, hello. We’re not banging. It’s okay to talk. Was it a bad breakup?”
I sigh. “On a scale of one to nuclear, it was the atom bomb.”
She frowns, running a hand down my arm. “I’m sorry. That sucks.”
I shake my head. “Listen, we don’t have to talk about exes in bed.”
“I know we don’t. But it doesn’t bother me either. My last relationship went nuclear too.”
Oh? “It did?”
She swallows, then speaks. “We’d been together for a few years. We were pretty serious—lived together and all. I was with him when my dad died. And I was pretty devastated.”
