Текст книги "Savor"

Автор книги: Monica Murphy

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Текущая страница: 8 (всего у книги 10 страниц)

“We should’ve ditched the conference altogether today and explored the city,” Bryn suggests. “I know we’re here to work, but I’ve never been to New York City before.”

“It’s kind of crazy, isn’t it?”

She nods. “I feel like a total hick coming here. Like I want to stop in the middle of the sidewalk and just stare at everything. All the people, the noise, the lights, the smells—I’ve truly never seen anything like it. Cactus has nothing on this place.”

I like it when she talks about her past, which isn’t often enough for my liking. It offers a glimpse into her world that I don’t get to see. She’s a private person, and I can’t blame her but I’m still curious.

The waiter approaches and we order drinks—water for Bryn and a beer for me—plus a crab cake appetizer that I offer to share but she passes on it.

“I don’t really do seafood,” she says, wrinkling her nose.

Damn, she’s cute. I notice when she gets tired or feels comfortable, the southern accent makes a faint appearance.

“Really? I love it.”

“We don’t get much seafood in Cactus if you know what I mean. It’s terribly dry and flat and not an ocean in sight.”

We grew up in completely different worlds. I’d spent my entire life in the Bay Area, bouncing around as my dad moved us from place to place, but never really straying. Growing up by the ocean in such a huge city, I never realized what an effect it had on me. How it made me view the world. For Bryn, growing up in such a small town in the middle of nowhere had profound effects on her too. “What made you leave your hometown?”

“There was nothing there for me.” Her expression shutters, and I wonder why. It always feels like there’s more behind her reasoning, and she’s just not telling me. “It’s a small town that’s going nowhere. I would’ve gone nowhere.” She tears her gaze from mine, staring off into space. “But sometimes if you have no other choice, you have to settle for nowhere, you know?”

No, I didn’t know, but I’d never been one to settle. If there was something I wanted, I went after it until it was mine. I liked a challenge. “Settling for nowhere sounds like a last resort.”

“What if you’ve tried all the resorts and none of them worked out?” she asked, her voice dropping to a low murmur as her gaze meets mine once again, her eyes wide, her expression . . . forlorn.

I immediately want to comfort her. Wrap her in my arms and reassure her everything’s going to be all right. I don’t even know what I’d be referring to, but I don’t care. She brings out a protectiveness in me I didn’t even realize I had.

“What are you talking about Bryn?” There’s definitely more going on here than what she’s saying, and I want to know what it is.

“I left home because I had a bad experience at a job.” A funny little smile crosses her lips, and I wonder what sort of bad experience she’s talking about. “Then I moved to Los Angeles because I decided to become a model. I’m tall, I have a decent face, and I decided I was going to use my natural assets to get a job. But that was a disaster.”

I can only imagine. I’ve heard plenty of firsthand stories of how Hollywood chews up these pretty, naive girls and spits them out.

Bryn was gorgeous enough that I wouldn’t doubt she had a lot of interest. Probably all of it overtly sexual though, since so many of the sleazy photographers and directors that line the Hollywood streets won’t do anything for a girl unless she sleeps with them first.

“So the job at the winery was a last ditch effort before I had to go back home for good. I found the job on Craigslist. I loaded up my old Saturn with my few boxes of stuff and drove north to the land of new opportunities. Only to discover the winery was hanging by a thread and eventually we weren’t even getting paid properly. Until you walked in and saved us all.”

The waiter chooses this moment to show up with our drinks and my appetizer, interrupting Bryn’s story. I wait impatiently as he places everything in front of us and takes our dinner orders—well my dinner order since Bryn chose salted caramel cake for her dessert. He even tries to make conversation, and I finally glare at him until he gets the hint and takes off.

“Matt, that was kind of rude,” Bryn chastises the moment the waiter’s gone. “He was just trying to do his job and be nice.”

“He interrupted you.” I grab my silverware and place my napkin in my lap before I dig into the crab cake. It smells amazing, the sauce that comes with it is delicious and my starving stomach is applauding my choice even as I begin eating. “Go on,” I prompt her after I swallow.

“I was pretty much done. You were my savior and now here we sit, in New York City. You showing the country bumpkin how the big city folk live.” She props her elbow on the edge of the table and rests her chin on her fist. “You’ve taught me a lot in a short amount of time, Matt, and for that I’m eternally grateful.”

She’s speaking with a finality that makes me uneasy. “I’ll show you more if you let me,” I say, going with the double meaning behind my words. Why pretend any longer? I’m sick of it. I don’t know if she is too, considering she’s been running pretty hot and cold lately, but I am one who goes after something—or someone—once I realize I want it.

And I want her. Bryn. I’m tired of fighting my attraction for her.

Her arm drops from the table as she leans back in her chair. “What do you mean by that?”

I shrug. “Take from it whatever you want.”

She studies me for a long, quiet moment, her gaze roving over my face before she finally reaches for her water glass and drains half of it. “I won’t sleep with you, Matt,” she says after she sets the glass on the table.

I’m shocked yet pleased at her boldness. “What I’m suggesting won’t involve any sleeping, Bryn.”

Her lips part as her eyes widen the slightest bit. “We shouldn’t.”

“Why not?”

“I work for you.”

“I know. That little fact does make my attraction for you rather—awkward.” There. I said it. And I’m not taking it back either.

“I’ve tried resisting you.” She drops her head, studies her lap, and I want to reach for her. Pull her into my arms and offer her reassurance, let her know she’s not alone in this confusing sea of emotions and wants and needs.

I’m right there with her, drowning in the swirling sea, hoping she’ll be the one who finally throws me an anchor and tows me in.

“I’ve tried resisting you too,” I confess in a low murmur. “Clearly it’s not working since I still want you.”

“Is it a case of wanting what you can’t have?” Her head is still bent, her voice so soft I can hardly hear it.

My appetite has fled. I set my fork on the edge of the plate and push it away. All I can think about, all I can want is this woman sitting across from me. “No. It’s a case of wanting what I’ve had a taste of, and needing more of it. More of you.”

She slowly lifts her head, her gaze meeting mine. “I got in trouble for doing this before.”

I frown, confused by her change of subject. “For doing what?”

“Fooling around with my boss. I was nineteen. It was my first real job. My boss flirted with me and really turned on the charm until he finally wore me down, and I fell under his spell.” She pauses, licking her lips. “He literally chased me around his desk all the time. It turned into this . . . game, and I actually liked the chase. Finally I let him catch me.”

“What happened?” Dread fills me. I don’t think I want to hear her answer.

“I . . . let him kiss me. A lot. And . . . and more. We had sex, right there in his office. He made all of these promises to me, and I believed him. Oh, how I believed him. I thought I’d met the perfect man for me. Older, experienced, and sophisticated. I thought he would take me out and show me the world.” She makes this funny little face, rolling her eyes, and smirking like she can’t believe how silly she was. “Then I found out he was married and had a child. His wife called me and yelled at me. Told me she found text messages he’d sent me, and I couldn’t believe he kept them on his phone. She called me a whore and a slut and a home wrecker.”

“You were young,” I say in her defense. “And he tricked you.”

“I was dumb. And a home wrecker just like she said. How could I not know he was married? Cactus is a tiny town. I should’ve known.” She presses her lips together, looking ready to cry.

I reach across the table and grab her arm, lifting it up so I can interlace our fingers, giving her hand a squeeze. “Hey, stop. Don’t beat yourself up. You didn’t know.”

“I was an idiot,” she sniffs.

“No you weren’t.” Her boss was a jackass of the worst kind. Taking advantage of a young, naive girl. Getting her to fall for him all while he was married.

“I had sex with my married boss.”

“I’m not that guy. And I’m definitely not married.” I reach for her with my other hand, slipping my fingers beneath her chin and lifting her face up. “And I don’t have any kids either. You can kiss this boss all you want.”’

She smiles in spite of it all, a beautiful, bright, and toothy smile unlike any I think I’ve ever seen her display. “I like you, Matthew DeLuca. A lot.”

“Enough to kiss me again?” I ask, my heart starting to pick up speed.

“We shouldn’t.”

“There are lots of things we shouldn’t do.” Leaning in, I hover just above her lips, feel her breath feathering across my own. “Sometimes we just have to do it anyway.”

Chapter Eleven

Bryn

HE KISSES ME after he says that. His mouth touches mine gently before he lifts away from me to flash a quick smile. He dips down and kisses me again, for real this time, with heat and tongue and little moans and rough groans. I lose myself in his taste, in the way he squeezes my fingers in his, how his fingers hold my chin and softly caress my skin.

Right here in a booth in the middle of a restaurant in the middle of Times Square, Matt kisses me like he means it. After he hears bits and pieces of my sordid story, it’s like it didn’t even affect him. Oh, he showed sympathy in all the right places—shock and horror and disgust—but never at me. It was like he understood what happened.

And kissed me anyway.

Someone clears their throat, and I spring away from Matt to find the waiter standing before our table, holding a tray with our plates on it and a smug smile on his face. Matt scoots away from me reluctantly, letting go of my hand as the waiter scoops up his appetizer, which he’d hardly eaten.

The salted caramel cake is set before me, and my mouth waters at the sight. It’s white cake with caramel sauce and berries sprinkled on top, the sticky sweet smell making me breathe deep, a little smile on my face. I glance over in Matt’s direction to see he’s watching me, his expression hungry, his massive steak sitting in front of him forgotten as he continues to watch me.

“Enjoy your meal,” the waiter says before he vacates, and I can’t help but think yes, indeed we’re going to enjoy our meal.

But what I’m really looking forward to is what we’re going to do after the meal.

I know Matt feels the same way.

“HAVE YOU SEEN my room?” Matt asks the moment he pulls me into the empty elevator, my hand clasped in his.

I slowly shake my head, loving how close I’m standing next to him. I can see the dark stubble dotting his cheeks, the scar just on the underside of his chin. He glances down at me, smudges of darkness just below his eyes show that he hasn’t been sleeping very well. Considering how busy he’s been lately, this doesn’t surprise me.

“I’m pretty sure we have identical rooms,” I say, hoping he realizes I’m teasing.

“Ah, mine is better. I can almost guarantee it.” He squeezes my hand and tugs me close, so I’m standing in front of him, my back to his front. Releasing his grip on my hand, he settles his big, warm palms on my shoulders and starts rubbing. “You’re tense.”

I don’t have the heart to tell him he’s the one making me tense. All the sexual tension that’s swirled between us for the last few weeks and months—it’s overwhelmed me.

The elevator doors slide open and Matt gives me a push so I exit with him right behind me. We go to his room, and I wait with jumpy anticipation as he slides the keycard into the slot, the little light above the handle turning green. He opens the door, and I trail behind him inside, a shocked gasp escaping me when he turns and presses me against the door.

His hands rest at my waist as he pins me in place, his head dipping toward mine. Our mouths meet. I exhale against his lips, feel him smile before he takes the kiss deeper and then there’s no time for breathing or thinking or saying a word.

All I can do is savor. Savor the sensation of his mouth on mine, his fingers digging into the fabric of my dress, my skin. The cool metal of the door is shocking against my backside, paired with the pure heat radiating from Matt’s big body as he steps in so close to me, he’s all I can see and feel and smell. His tongue thrusts, his hands tug at the fabric of my dress, lifting, lifting, until I feel cool air on my thighs and realize he’s pulling my skirt up.

I tear my lips from his, desperate for us to slow down. My brain needs to catch up with my body before I do something really crazy and stupid. “I thought you were going to show me your room.”

Matt drifts his mouth down the length of my neck, covering it in hot, wet little kisses. I grow slick between my legs with just his mouth pressed against my neck, and I clutch at him for fear I might fall. “I thought you said your room is exactly like mine,” he whispers against my skin.

“I’d still like to see it.” I press at his shoulders, trying to get him to back off just a little without having to say it. I need the space. I like having him in my space but still . . .

I’m not real good at this sort of thing. As in, I don’t have a lot of experience. Especially with a man surely as experienced as Matthew DeLuca—in his previous life as a ballplayer, he must’ve had beautiful women constantly throwing themselves at him.

He lifts his head, his dark gaze meeting mine, and then he drops his hands from my waist as he steps away. “Come on, then. I’ll show you around.”

I pull my skirt back into place as I follow him deeper inside the room, my legs still shaking from the potency of his kiss, his touch. The effect he has on me is so powerful, so unbelievably overwhelming, I’m not sure what to think, or how to think.

“So? Is it just like yours?” he asks as we approach the window that overlooks the city.

I glance around, notice the orchids, the bright pink throw across the foot of his bed, the sleek, glass furniture. “Definitely. It’s almost identical.”

“You must have a really great boss then,” he says, a smile playing at the corners of his mouth. God, he’s sexy. “Putting you up in a fancy hotel like this.”

“He’s pretty great,” I say, my voice soft. “He’s smart, successful, extremely wealthy, but he never throws it around. In fact, I tend to forget he’s so well off.”

His smile fades and his expression goes serious. “Do you prefer that, Bryn? Does my—financial status intimidate you?”

I shrug, trying to push down my small-town-hick worries so they don’t rise to the surface like they always try and do when I talk money and status and wealth. “A little bit,” I admit.

It’s something I never even realized before. Matt can have anything he wants. Can go out and buy whatever he wants, he has so much money. He’s a billionaire for the love of God, yet I know he doesn’t live in a giant mansion, I’ve never seen him drive an outrageously fancy car beyond his sensible—but gorgeous—Range Rover. He’s not flashy, not outrageous, like I can only assume his father can be.

And I find that extremely attractive, how simply he lives. If he’d been such a blatant, wealthy man, like Archer Bancroft, who intimidates the shit out of me every time I’m around him, I don’t think I would’ve been able to handle Matt.

But he’s not like that at all. He’s gentle and kind and sweet and hardworking and sexy as all get out.

“Don’t let it.” He comes to me and presses his mouth to mine in a lingering, drugging kiss. “You did forget to mention one thing about me though.”

I frown up at him and give in to what I’ve wanted to do all night. I touch his face, span my fingers across his cheek, so I can feel the slightly rough prickle of his stubble against my palm. “What?”

“My charismatic good looks.” He grins, and I laugh, but he muffles my laughter in seconds with his mouth, kissing me so deliciously deep my head is spinning, my legs grow weak and I slump against him, lost in his taste and the way his arms grip me around my waist.

I pull out of his embrace without a word, and he lets me. I go to the window, desperate to gather my racing thoughts while I stare at the city spread out before me. Pressing my fingers against the cool glass, I gaze down and watch the bright lights of Times Square flash, the seemingly millions of people that fill the sidewalks, the cars, the streets.

“Your view is familiar,” I tell him from over my shoulder, smiling when I feel him stop just behind me, just like he did when we were in the elevator. But this time he doesn’t touch my shoulders.

He settles his big hands at my hips, giving them a firm squeeze before he lets them wander down across my backside. “Nervous?”

I close my eyes, losing myself in his assured touch, the way he squeezes and massages my skin. Everything inside me melts when he slowly tugs my skirt up, until the fabric is bunched just below my butt, my legs, my thighs completely exposed. “Yes,” I admit on a whisper.

“Don’t be. I’ll go slow,” he promises, and I believe him. “Christ, you’ve got the sexiest legs I’ve ever seen.” He grips my hips and pulls me toward him slightly, so I’m bent at the waist, my butt thrust out.

It’s overtly sexual, the way he has me positioned. And when he steps closer, my backside brushing against the front of his jeans, I bite my lip to keep a moan from spilling out.

“Move closer to the window,” he commands, and I do so keeping in position as best I can. His hands slip beneath the bunched fabric, touching my hips, and his fingers curl around the skimpy waistband of my panties. He pulls them down, over my butt, down my thighs and then I’m helping him, kicking them off while they get tangled around my shoes. I go to pull those off as well but his dark command stops me.

“Keep the shoes on.”

Oh. My.

Matt

HER PANTIES ARE solid white lace, a scrap of fabric that probably barely covered her, not that I’ll ever know now, since we tugged them off and they’re now lying discarded on the floor nearby.

Not that I’m protesting.

She’s a contradiction. Innocent yet sexy, with the face of an angel and a body made for sin. One minute she’s shy and acts inexperienced, the next she’s a laughing, sultry mistress who looks like she wants to devour me in one swallow.

I like it. I fucking love it and want to discover more about her, everything that she holds within, everything that makes her who she is. But she holds out on me. She told me bits and pieces of her past earlier at dinner. She’s a woman who’s run from her problems. She acts like she might run from me.

But I won’t let her. After tonight, she’ll know who she belongs to.

Me.

I’ve waited for this moment for far too long to prolong it further, so I grip her by her hips and grind against her, let her feel my hard cock against her lush ass. She hangs her head down and moans, the agonized sound going straight to my dick and hell, I want to thrust in her now. Just fill her with my cock and know what it’s like to finally be a part of her.

That’s what I seek. That connection—the union of our bodies and minds and souls. I want it, I fucking need it, and I grasp hold of the ends of her thick, dark hair, pulling gently until she lifts up, turns her head so I can kiss her with everything I have inside of me.

She gasps against my mouth, her arm curving around my head, keeping me close as our tongues thrust against one another, our bodies doing the same. I want to take her just like this. I know it’s not the most romantic position in the world, but at the moment, I’m not feeling very romantic.

I feel possessive. Like I want to mark her and let her know she’s mine. I break our kiss, help her tear off her dress and then she’s standing before me in a matching white lace bra, those sexy black heels and nothing else.

Damn, she’s gorgeous. I can see her pink nipples, hard and thrusting against the innocent white lace, her breasts so full they threaten to spill out over her bra. “Take it off,” I say gruffly, pointing at her chest.

She does so without hesitation, her hands going behind her to undo the clasp and then the bra is gone, fluttering to the floor to join her panties. She’s standing before me completely naked save for the shoes while I’m still fully dressed.

Fuck me, that it. I’m done for.

The million dollar bet be damned. I could give a shit if Archer or Gage find out I’ve been with Bryn. What’s done is done.

I have to have her.

Reaching behind me, I grab my wallet and flip it open, pulling out the single condom I keep nestled inside. I haven’t been with a woman in months. I’m fucking afraid I’ll come the moment I slide inside Bryn’s body but I close my eyes, breathe deep to try and keep my libido in check.

But it’s going to be so fucking hard.

“I want to fuck you right here,” I whisper as I step into her space, her naked body pressed against the cool glass, my body pressed close to hers. “From behind, with you looking down at the view. Wondering if anyone can see us.”

She releases a trembling breath. “A-all right.”

“Does that bother you? Us having sex like this for the first time?” I kiss the top of her ear, the spot just behind it. Push her heavy hair aside so I can brush my mouth against her nape, along her shoulder. Her skin is soft, fragrant with the unique scent that drives me fucking wild, and I lean into her for a long, lingering moment, overwhelmed at what she does to me, how she makes me feel.

“No,” she says softly as she circles her hips, her ass brushing against my denim-covered erection. “I-I think I like it.”

I close my eyes, relieved that she’s given her permission. I don’t want to push, she’s fragile, I can tell, and no way am I going to screw up tonight.

I grasp her face with one hand and she turns toward me, our mouths colliding, tongues sliding against each other. With my other hand I fumble with my belt buckle, desperate to get it undone so I can unsnap my jeans and pull my cock out. Roll the condom on and thrust inside her nice and slow, watching as I enter her body for the first time.

A full shiver moves through me and I break the kiss, trying to gain some control. “Brace your hands on the window,” I tell her and she does, spreading her legs, and I step back checking out the view of her pretty pink depths.

Groaning, I touch her there, sliding two fingers between her legs. She’s drenched, soaking wet, and I finish undoing my belt buckle, then tear open the button fly of my jeans. She’s thrusting against my fingers, subtle lifts of her hips, and I brush against her clit, hear her gasp and moan.

My quest to get out of my jeans momentarily forgotten, I stroke her deeper, thrusting my fingers inside her velvety hot channel, driving us both crazy with lust. I want to get her off with my fingers, want to watch her fall apart by my hand, and I start whispering dirty words in her ear. How much I want to fuck her, how wet she is, how good she feels. She tilts her head back, her eyes closed, her mouth open as she pants frantic little breaths and then she’s coming all over my fingers, her inner walls trembling, her entire body wracked with shudders.

I have to get inside her. Now.

Within seconds I have the condom on, and I slowly enter her still-trembling body, sliding deep, groaning as I fill her completely. She relaxes into me as I hold myself still, letting her get used to me being inside her, around her, holding her. Her back is covered in a light sheen of sweat, her fragrance even stronger as it fills my senses, and I slowly start to move.

In and out, my movements are shallow, teasing as I draw the moment out. Her hips start to move with my every thrust, and soon I’m increasing my pace, Bryn keeping up with me as she pushes back every time I push forward, taking me deep, deeper, until I can go no farther. I’m completely embedded in her.

I am hers. And she is mine.

“Harder,” she gasps when I slow down, that familiar tingling sensation at the base of my spine telling me I’m about to come and it’s going to be a big one.

“Baby, I go any harder, and I’m coming right now,” I confess through clenched teeth.

“That’s okay,” she whispers, turning her head to glance at me over her shoulder. Her expression is one of wonder and pure, unadulterated pleasure. “Please, Matt.”

She doesn’t need to beg. I grip her hips and begin to move within her in earnest. Again and again, harder and harder until I’m coming, her name falling from my lips as I erupt again and again, my orgasm strong as I go still above her, unable to move, only able to revel in the exquisite sensation of coming inside Bryn for the first time.