Page 72 of Big Stick Energy
My body was smolderingbeforeshe made that sound. Now it’s an open blaze. The way she says my name practically undoes me. I remove one of her sandals and then toss her smooth leg over my shoulder. She hurries to kick off the other shoe and match me on the other side.
With a happy hum, I kiss her inner thigh and run my nose along the lace again, right where it counts. Her fingers thread through my hair, urging me on. But I kiss her body slowly,reining myself in a little longer. I’m eager to unleash myself like a beast, but I make us both wait.
She lifts her hips and lets out an impatient huff, and I slip my thumb beneath the gusset of her panties and pass it over her slicked skin.
“Oh God,” she whispers, her fingers tightening in my hair.
I lower my smile to her pussy and push the panties out of the way, tasting her for the first time.
We both moan. And honestly, if I weren’t so focused on making her scream, I might feel a little stupid right now. We’ve known each other foryears. She’s been right in front of me this whole time. We’ve traveled the continent together, rolling our luggage politely beside one another in every airport terminal and five-star hotel along the way.
When we could have been doingthis.
How stupid am I?
I lift my startled gaze to find her propped up on her elbows, staring back down at me with wonder in her pale eyes. Like she can’t believe this is real, either.
Focus, Tremaine.I grip the panties in both hands and tug them off her body, tossing them aside. “Lose the bra,” I rasp, scrambling to my feet and undoing my belt, too. I shove my shorts and boxers off my body in one quick motion.
The low sound of thunder rumbles outside the building as I face her again, wearing nothing but a very ambitious erection. It might as well wear a billboard advertising how desperate I am for her.
But I’m not ashamed. Not tonight. I’ve already spent too much energy trying to stay in control of my life. Tonight will be different. Raw and real. No strategy, no game plan, just pure instinct.
“Eric,” she whispers, staring up at me. “Come here.”
As if I could resist. I sit on the ottoman and lift her onto my lap, so she can straddle me. Then we’re enmeshed again, our kisses as deep as a midnight dream. Skin to skin, both of us with questing hands. The only sounds are our heavy breathing, the occasional click of teeth, and the first raindrops hitting the windows.
With my tongue in her mouth, I slide a hand down her ass and between her legs, and we both moan at how wet she is. “Need you,” I rumble into her mouth, knowing this is all happening very fast.
Darcy’s energy matches mine, though, beat for beat. There’s a crack of thunder, and our kiss deepens again. Like we both know we shouldn’t slow down and think this through. It’s rare and perfect just like this.
“I need…” I say, but then I kiss her again before I can speak the wordcondom, even as it dawns on me that I didn’t pack any. And now we have a problem. A big, hard problem.
“The basket,” she pants.
We break apart. “What?”
She dives off my lap and pounces on the stupid gift basket we ransacked earlier. She shakes it upside down and then sifts through the tchotchkes and souvenirs before her hand closes on something small and round. “I knew it. Condoms inside a fancy gold… thing.”
Holy hell. “I take back every negative thing I ever said about the Wedding Experience.”
Chapter 25
File That Away
Darcy
My heart is practically pounding out of my chest as I hand Eric the package.
He pops the top and extracts a packet. Then he flings the box onto the rug, where it lands with a thud, much like my heart will do tomorrow. Probably. Whatever.
Eric bites one corner of the packet with the casual ease of someone who knows exactly what he’s doing. One second later he’s rolling it down over his beautiful cock, and I tremble at the sight of it.
I hope he doesn’t notice. I hope he can’t tell how completely undone I am. How impossibly vulnerable. My skin is still tingling everywhere he’s touched me. There’s a delicious ache between my legs that won’t stop until we see this through.
This wasn’t supposed to happen. We work together. There will be consequences. But God help me, I want it. I want this wild, unscripted thing that’s happening between us.
Then he looks up at me, and I almost gasp. Because he’s wearingthe same expression he uses when he’s bearing down on the puck. Locked and loaded, and dangerous. He reaches for me with hands that aren’t exactly gentle. As if he’s been holding back.
