Текст книги "Be My Temptation"

Автор книги: Rachel Brookes

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Текущая страница: 10 (всего у книги 24 страниц)

Ky paced the kitchen, swigging his whiskey as a shadow covered his face. He was pissed off. Actually, that was an understatement, but I would not apologize for anything when it came to Ashlyn Hart.

Something grabbed my attention out of the corner of my eye, and I swung around to find Ashlyn standing just outside the kitchen. Her face was completely unreadable, but by her rigid body language I knew she had been standing there for a while. She pulled her bottom lip between her teeth and, when she averted her gaze from mine to Ky, I knew my time here was done.

“Well, I’ll leave you two to chat. I need some fresh air.”

“Josh.” Ashlyn’s soft voice halted my escape. I dropped my head and looked at the ground before turning to face her. She moved into the kitchen and stood before me, then offered me the slightest of smiles. “Thank you for tonight.”

“You never have to thank me for fighting for you, Ash,” I said so softly that only she and I would hear. Her eyes darted from mine and I took that as my cue to leave.

I WILL ALWAYS FIGHT for you, Ash.

Josh’s words were on repeat in my head, and I felt like I was floating in a daze. His ability to surprise me seemed to have gone up a notch, and I wasn’t sure how much more I could take. As I watched him leave the kitchen, all I wanted to do was grab onto him and tell him how much I needed him to help me endure the conversation I was about to have with Ky. But I let him go. Knowing that Josh had to defend himself for something that wasn’t his fault pained me, and I hated myself for putting him in that position. It was my decision not to speak with Ky, and I was the only one that should deal with the consequences.

“You need to get back out there and enjoy your party,” I said, breaking the silence and offering Ky a half-assed smile. I stepped across the kitchen and grabbed his hands, squeezing them tightly in silent plea. “We can talk about this tomorrow. Not tonight. Not on your special night.”

His gaze dropped and took in our joined hands before looking back at me. “Just tell me why you felt like you couldn’t discuss this with me.”

I sucked in a breath. “I couldn’t have you looking at me like I’d made the worst decision of my life, like I had disappointed you . . . like you are looking at me now. I needed to handle it myself. If Lachlan hadn’t contacted Josh, no one would have known. Not until I was ready.”

Time stood still as his eyes bounced over my face, then his hands tightened their grip. Ky was showing all the signs that he was going to accept my response, that this, that we, were going to be okay.

“I don’t want you to think you ever have to hide anything from me again. It fucks with my head that you had to go through this on your own.”

“I wasn’t on my own; I had Josh.”

The sound of the backdoor opening halted our conversation, and a timid Eden appeared. “Sorry to interrupt, but Aunt Carole is leaving and wants to say goodbye.”

Ky kissed my cheek and let go of my hands. “No matter what, don’t feel you have to hide anything from me.”

I took a moment after Ky and Eden left the kitchen to compose myself. My hands were still shaking, and I felt like a rubber band ready to snap. Seeing Lachlan had affected me more than I wanted to admit. I didn’t like the girl I became when all my insecurities came to the surface. That Ashlyn was timid, untrusting, and lacked self-confidence. It immediately pushed me back to a place I chose to ignore and didn’t want to believe existed. Nobody deserved to have that control; not my parents, and definitely not Lachlan.

With a deep breath, I put a smile on my face and stepped out of the house to rejoin the party. The Lachlan fiasco seemed to have been forgotten, and now guests were dancing, chatting, and enjoying all things Ky and Eden. Maybe the night wasn’t completely wrecked.

“How are you, sweetheart?”

I jumped at the sound of Sue’s concerned voice and turned in her direction. Her face held comfort and sincerity, and it caused my heart to swell. All I needed was a motherly hug and a promise that everything would be okay, and I knew Sue would provide me exactly that. I moved closer, and she engulfed me in the tightest hug I’d ever experienced.

“You know I already consider you a daughter, Ash, so if you ever need to talk, you call me or come over. I am so proud of my boy, and I always thought you two would be perfect together. Tonight proved that,” she revealed wistfully.

“I’m not sure what you mean.”

She moved until she was standing in front of me, and her eyes glistened with something that I adored seeing from her: love.

“You and Josh. You two are meant to be together, and you are and will continue to be the best thing to ever happen to him.”

“There is nothing between Josh and me,” I whispered as the ability to breathe fled my body.

“Keep telling yourself that, sweetheart,” she offered with a knowing smile that I recognized, and her resemblance to Josh was two-fold. “I’ve set up Josh’s room for the two of you. You don’t mind sharing with him, do you?”

“Um, that should be fine. I don’t know where he has gone, so he might not be back.”

“He’ll be back.”

Two hours later, I was lying in Josh’s childhood bed, wide awake, while the rest of the house slept. There had been no sign of Josh since he left, and he wasn’t responding to calls or texts. I had officially stepped into worried territory.

Footsteps in the hall grabbed my attention. I waited with baited breath for the next move, then a shadow appeared from under the door.

“Josh?” I whispered into the still air as the room was momentarily flooded with light from the hall.

“Yeah, it’s me, Ashy.”

I pulled myself up onto my elbows and watched him step into the room. “Where have you been? I’ve been calling and texting you.”

“I just needed to go for a walk and sort my head out.”

I dropped back to the bed in defeat. “Oh, okay.”

He walked around the room in silence, and my eyes followed his every move. He opened the bag that was sitting on the chair, then pulled out a pair of sweatpants and placed them on the edge of the bed. The moment he turned around, his eyes found mine and I couldn’t stop myself from staring in fascination as he began to loosen his tie.

“I’m about to crawl into bed beside you.”

Warning sirens started screaming in my head. “You do realize we are at your parents’ house?”

“Right at this moment, I don’t give a fuck where we are. I need you any way I can have you tonight, so I’m climbing in beside you and taking whatever I can get.”

My body hummed at the thought of being wrapped up in his warmth. I swear he started moving in slow motion as he unbuttoned his shirt and slid it over his shoulders. I’d always admired his body in secret, but in the dark bedroom, with only the shadow of the moon, I could admire it openly. All the running and trips to the gym had given him a body that I wanted to admire and explore with my hands and mouth. A firm chest led into ridges of muscles, which covered his stomach and led to a prominent V on his hips. Heat spiraled out of control within me, and I suddenly had the urge to giggle into my pillow like a school girl perving on the hottest guy in class. But somehow I resisted.

“What are you wearing?” he whispered as he began unbuckling his belt.

I swallowed hard. “Panties and one of your old shirts that I found.”

“Take off your panties.”

“You cannot be serious,” I shot in an unusually high pitch.

The sound of his belt falling to the floor shattered the air. “Do you honestly think I’d joke about that?”

“My panties are staying on, thank you very much.” I crossed my arms and tried to ignore the feelings of rebellion that started to appear. Taking my panties off would lead to guaranteed orgasms, but it would also mean that I was breaking a promise to myself of not going there with Josh again.

“Do you like the panties you’re wearing?” He leaned on the edge of the bed and moved in close to my face.

I felt his breath bouncing off my lips as the air around us spiraled out of control. “Of course I do. They cost me a lot of money,” I rushed out in response.

“Well, you either take them off or they’ll be ripped off. Those are you choices.”

Holy shit, I was in trouble, and trouble never felt so good.

Josh lifted the comforter, then slid in bed beside me and didn’t take his time in prowling toward me until his body covered mine. The close proximity of our bodies and the immediate warmth that immersed me, felt incredible.

“Are you good?” he whispered.

“I was worried about you,” I admitted freely.

“I just needed to get away from everything and be on my own for a bit. I went to the beach.”

“Oh, okay.”

“Not you, Ashy. Everything else.”

“Tonight was crazy,” I said softly as my memories shot to life and the night was replayed. “I still can’t get my head around what happened. How could someone change so much? There is absolutely no way I would even consider going back to Lachlan, but I’m not sure he understands that.”

“I’ll make sure he understands it,” he stated firmly.

I smiled. “Thank you again for what you said and did tonight.”

He shifted his body slightly on top of me, and my legs opened willingly to compensate him. “I meant what I said, and you never have to thank me for that. I’d do it again in a heartbeat. He doesn’t deserve another thought, especially right now.”

He was right. The more I thought about Lachlan, the more I felt myself slipping back into dark thoughts that revolved entirely around not being good enough. Tonight was meant to be a celebration of love for my best friends, not a reminder of fucked-up heartbreak and insecurities.

“Forget him.”

Josh’s idea of making me forget was in the form of distraction. His hands ran up my side and disappeared under the cotton shirt. All thoughts of Lachlan disappeared, and I jumped at the soft touch of his fingertips running over my ribs. My eyes slammed shut as his lips hit my jaw and peppered my skin with delicate kisses.

“You and me,” he whispered hotly into my ear. “Me and you.”

Fuck, I hadn’t realized how on edge I was until he started talking in his low, gravelly tone that told me he meant business. I couldn’t stop myself from shifting my body underneath him in hopes of getting some form of relief. I just needed something small to give me a tiny fix. All my thoughts of never letting him touch me again ran for the hills, because right then I just wanted his hands on me. His lips played havoc on my neck, and I bit my lip in an attempt at stifling the moan that was teetering on the edge of release.

“Get on your hands and knees.”

His ragged voice echoed in my ear, and a shiver ran down my spine at the intensity and determination in those six words. My eyes shot open as he pulled his mouth away from my ear, and I met his heated stare. That moment offered me everything I didn’t know I needed: desire, need, and protection. The knowledge that we were in a house full of people faded to nothingness, and I was thrust into a world where only we existed. I gasped as his finger traced my lips, and it was the most sensual form of seduction.

“Tonight was meant to be about us. He doesn’t get to distract you again, and I refuse to let him take away any more of the time I have with you. I’m making the rest of the night about you and me, so Ashlyn, get on your hands and knees.”

His I-am-going-to-make-you-come voice caused a shiver of anticipation to run down my spine. Nothing could have stopped me from doing what he asked. I was tightly strung, and the offer of relief was too hard to resist. He was too hard to resist. There was no chance in hell that I wasn’t already wet, because I was practically panting in eagerness. His voice alone did things to me, not to mention his dominating presence. Once again, my body won the battle, my thoughts fled, and all warnings dissipated. I crawled down the bed until my ass was in the air, then I sucked in a breath as the unknown awaited me.

“So fucking sexy,” Josh growled as he traced the back of my thighs with his fingertip, then slipped his hand inside the back of my panties. “I’ve been waiting all night for this. Fuck, I’ve been waiting since you ran off to Lilac Cove. I’m going to make you come with my fingers, and then my mouth is going to devour your sweet pussy.”

Holy shit!

I whimpered as he ran the tip of his finger through my slickness. My forehead dropped to the pillow below, and my eyes slammed shut under the tightness of pleasure that appeared. The electricity in my room was off the charts. The firmer he stroked, the louder my breathing soared, and the limper my body became.

“Your greedy pussy is so wet. Do you want it, Ashy? Do you need me to make you come?”

My hips shot up, needing his fingers to be inside of me, because I knew the pleasure those fingers were capable of delivering. Yes. I, Ashlyn Hart, had a greedy pussy, and of course I wanted what he could give me.

“Make me come. Make me forget,” I murmured.

My gasp rang through the room as he plunged two fingers deep inside of me and frantically pumped in and out. I squeezed my eyes shut when he teasingly grazed his thumb against my clit. Damn it, and his magical fingers. My body was on the verge of collapse under the intensity of pleasure switched on within me. Thankfully, his arm weaved around my stomach and held me up as my body quickly became useless. I wished I could see his eyes, his face, his expression as he made me completely fall apart. I was a woman on edge. My body was screaming at me, telling me that I wasn’t far from exploding around his beautifully-crafted fingers and taking a journey of a thousand fireworks. Fuck me, Josh didn’t mess around. Whenever he got me, he knew exactly what he wanted, and it was like he could sense exactly what I needed. The shirt I was wearing had bunched up under my arms, as I remained on my knees with my ass in the air and panties pushed to the side. As he thrust into me repeatedly with his fingers, his lips danced on my heated skin, leaving kisses down my spine. The combination of his sweet kisses and the ferocity of his fingers was overwhelming.

“Josh, I’m going to come.” My stomach muscles gave me the signal that I was about to erupt in a low moan of his name.

As my body rose to the brink of orgasm, Josh lifted me with the arm around my waist and turned me onto my back. Not once did his fingers slip from deep within me, and with precision he made sure he kept driving into me with enthusiasm. I swear he was the god of finger fucking. My eyes shot open, and immediately they found his dark, lust-filled pits of desire staring back at me, as I was dangerously close to losing all control. That was exactly what I wanted to find. I loved that look. I craved that look. It was the look that had tempted me and utterly destroyed me from day one.

“Are you ready for orgasm number one?” Josh growled and removed his fingers.

I pouted at the loss of fullness, and the sexiest, most devious, smile hit his lips. His strong hands lifted my hips as he slid my panties down my thighs, before flinging the expensive lace to the other side of the room. I had completely forgotten that I was even still wearing them. Yep, he was officially the god of finger fucking, because he made me forget about everything.

“Someone is over-eager,” I teased, allowing my thighs to fall open and immediately feeling sexier than ever.

He sucked one of the fingers that had just been inside me into his mouth before removing it with a loud pop. “If you tasted your sweet candy, you’d understand.”

A wicked glint flashed in his eyes as he, once again, ran his finger through my wetness. Every time he touched me, I shivered with delight. He pulled it out and I couldn’t stop myself from focusing on the glisten of my arousal as he slowly lifted his finger. My breathing faltered as he leaned over, wrapped his free arm around my middle, and pulled me up until I was in a sitting position.

“It’s time for you to taste my favorite candy, Ashy.”

He placed a finger to my mouth and traced my bottom lip with wetness. The thought of my own arousal being painted on my lips was like nothing I had experienced before. I’d never felt this turned on in my life. My tongue darted out, and his eyes blazed at the sight of me zealously tasting myself. The lioness within me roared to life. I moved closer, and Josh didn’t budge an inch. Any inhibitions ceased to exist, and I didn’t consider anything other than right now. My gaze locked onto the finger that had traced my bottom lip and, with a smirk, I took his finger into my mouth, then slid my tongue up and down, swirling and caressing the tip and consuming my taste like I was starved. The groan that echoed from deep within his chest encouraged me to take it a step further.

“Fuck,” he stammered, as I sucked his finger deep into my mouth and devoured it with wild abandon. I shifted forward, closing the distance between us. I went to take his other finger into my mouth, but he pulled back.

“We share this one,” he mumbled and moved his mouth to mine. Josh’s tongue touched mine as he ran the length of his finger before our tongues tangled. If I wasn’t soaked already, this would have been the moment. He pulled his finger away, but our mouths never parted. It was only when I felt his fingers slid back inside of me that I gasped and pulled away. I shifted my hips and rode his fingers as the pressure to explode shot through me. My head fell to his bare shoulder and I felt myself begin to come undone. My teeth dug into his flesh as I shattered around his fingers and soared to one of the best and most intense orgasms of my life. While I came down, he gently laid me on the bed and removed his fingers. My eyes fluttered shut as the feeling of being completely spent washed over me.

I felt the bed move, and then his mouth was on me. Holy fucking shit. I couldn’t handle another orgasm, not yet, but boy was I going to try. It took all of four strokes of his tongue to send me soaring sky high again. That had to be a record. My whimpers were like silent pleas, begging for him to take me to that magical place again. One of my hands gripped the sheets, while the other ran through his hair as he had his feast. Yes, men had gone down on me before, but this was completely different. He wasn’t lapping at me like a dog the way other men had; no, Josh was feasting like I was his favorite food and he wanted to savor every single taste. After giving me my second orgasm of the night, he crawled up the bed and pulled me into his arms. My ragged breathing filled the air, while my mind went crazy. I’d succumbed once again. I had fallen for the charms and promise of distraction that he offered. So much for telling him that he wouldn’t touch me again; that was clearly a dismal failure. I felt myself crashing into much needed sleep, but I wanted to give him the relief his body clearly needed.

My hand ran down his stomach and made it to the top of his sweatpants, before his hand came down on top of mine. I looked up at him with confusion. He had just given me two orgasms, so I would definitely be repaying the favor, because I knew he was rock hard. Indecision flashed in his eyes as he reluctantly entwined our fingers and lifted my hand from his stomach.

“If you go anywhere near my cock I’m going to want to fuck you, and I can’t fuck you at my parents place, because, Ashy, when I have you again, you’re going to be screaming my name.”

Holy shit, I had completely forgotten about his parents.

“I forgot we were here,” I whispered in disbelief.

“That means I did a good job.”

“It was okay, I guess,” I said, teasing, and rolled to my side to face him. In the moonlight I saw him smile, and my heart fluttered.

“The bite marks gracing my shoulder tell me it was more than okay.” He matched my movements until he was on his side facing me, and his arm rested over my waist allowing his hand to fall to the small of my back. “We should get some sleep.”

“Thank you for whisking me away to my favorite place,” I whispered as exhaustion slayed into me.

His arms tugged me closer, until our bodies were flush and our legs tangled together. “Where’s your favorite place, Ashy?”

“Right here. Right where I am now. I like to call it Josh Land. The most enjoyable place in all of the lands, where incredible highs are guaranteed and orgasms are provided without question.”

His soft chuckle sounded like sweet music to my ears. “Well, Josh Land is open all year round to you, for whatever you need.”

“Even if it’s just cuddles on the couch and not anything that could lead to my panties ending up on the floor? Although, what we just shared was hands down the hottest moment of my life,” I said with a satisfied sigh.

“Even cuddles. Whatever you want,” he said softly.

He was going to ruin me for all other men at the rate he was going. I dropped my face to his chest and burrowed in as sleep was pulling me in. With my eyes shut and calm sweeping through me from the vibrations of his heart against my cheek, I whispered, “You truly are a girl’s favorite kind of friend.”

That night, I slept the best I had in a very long time, and it would seem it was all because of the guy that wrapped me in his arms all night.

My beautiful confusion.

My secret temptation.