Authors: Lorelei James
A different type of heat, a melting sensation, filled her chest. Bennett knew her so well. Knew when her confidence needed bolstering. Knew when to force her to stop thinking and just feel. Just obey.
He put her vibrator in her hand. “Get yourself off with this. See how beautiful you are when you let go.”
One good thing about this scene—the vibrator would get her off quickly. Ainsley braced her left palm against the wall and turned the silver bullet on high.
As she placed the vibrator tip above her clit, Bennett’s hands cupped her breasts. His fingers toyed with her nipples. Then his mouth connected with the curve of her waist.
Oh. That felt fantastic. The string of openmouthed kisses down to her lower back. The sharp bite of his teeth and the sweet, soothing kisses he pressed over the skin he’d nipped.
When goose bumps danced across her body, he chuckled and tweaked her nipples hard.
She gasped. Then she realized she was supposed to be using the vibrator and set it directly on her clit.
“Huh-uh. Not yet. Fuck yourself with it. I wanna see it disappearing into that tight pussy.”
She rested the length against her slit before she inserted the buzzing object, allowing her head to fall back as she lost herself in pleasure.
A hard whack on her ass returned her focus to the mirror.
He bestowed such delicious agony on her back with that wicked mouth of his. She watched in the mirror as she shoved the vibrator into her hole, realizing what a turn on it was to see her swollen, glistening sex swallowing it.
“Come for me, angel. Show me again.”
She pulled the bullet out and held the tip directly on her clit. The sights, sounds and vibrations were overwhelming. She moaned when the blood-plumped tissues pulsed and moaned louder when Bennett pinched her nipples.
“Watch,” he demanded.
And she did. She didn’t hate the reflection of herself; she reveled in it. She was unapologetically wanton, a sensual woman riding the wave of ecstasy brought about by her lover’s command.
“That’s it, beautiful. See yourself as I see you.”
Those sweet words had more impact than back-to-back orgasms.
Bennett kissed a path up her left side, pausing to nuzzle the bottom of her breast. “Give me the vibrator.”
Ainsley held out it. Keeping their gazes locked in the mirror, he sucked the bullet into his mouth. Then he licked it clean with long strokes of his tongue, making happy growls before releasing it.
Okay. That was hot. Talk about stirring her juices again.
Bennett helped her down from the counter, making sure she was steady on her high-heeled shoes before letting go of her. He whipped off his shirt. Shucked his jeans. Rolled on a condom.
His eyes were wild with lust. All that masculine impatience was for her. She raised her chin and smirked.
“Ooh. Girl is getting cocky. I’d take that as a personal challenge if my cock wasn’t about to burst. Bend over. Hands on the floor. Spread your legs wide.”
That commanding Dom voice did it for her in a bad way. Once again her blood raced fast. As soon as her fingertips touched the cold tile, Bennett was behind her, canting her hips to his liking. His fingers pulled her pussy open and he plunged his cock inside to the root.
Her wet sex closed around his shaft in an intimate kiss.
He rammed into her, his pelvis pistoning faster with each deep stroke. Taking her how he wanted. Full throttle. No holding back, just hard, quick fucking that left her breathless in its ferocity.
He went beyond coherent speech. Grunts, groans and ragged breathing were his communication. And Ainsley understood him perfectly.
His pace slowed and his fingertips dug for purchase on her ass cheeks. She felt his cock lengthen, felt the violent pulsation against her channel. He came in a drawn-out, full-body shudder that she felt down to the tips of her toes.
Bennett drooped over her, his hand braced against the bathroom door. “Goddamn, woman,” he rasped in her ear. “You…I…” He laughed. “Hell, I can’t think straight. Hang on.” He pushed up and withdrew. He curled his fingers over her shoulders and slowly brought her upright. “Stay there.”
From the corner of her eye she saw him ditch the condom. Then he spun her around and kissed her. Not gently. Not playfully. His kisses were ravenous.
He opened the door without missing a beat. He herded her backward into her bedroom and didn’t break the seal of their mouths until the backs of her calves hit the mattress. Then he gently sat her down and dropped to his knees. “Now I know why these are called fuck-me shoes. When I saw them today all I could think about was fucking you.”
“And now I see that they were worth the money.”
“Definitely.” He unhooked the buckle and slipped off the right shoe, taking a moment to massage her arch. Then he did the same with the left shoe.
She couldn’t hold back the moan of delight when he massaged her left foot. She flopped back on her puffy quilt with a sigh. “A great event, two orgasms, fab sex and a foot massage? I could die happy right now.”
He chuckled and kissed her cheek, settling next to her, letting his calves dangle off the bed beside hers.
In that moment she knew Ben was back. She reached for his hand. “Are you staying with me tonight? Or do you need to get back to your truck?”
“Not yet. I wouldn’t mind getting under the covers, though.”
After they slipped between the sheets, Ben ended up spooned behind her, tucking her against his body, almost completely immobilizing her.
“Thanks for inviting me to your folks’ party.”
“You’re welcome. You deserved to be there. You fit right in.”
“Which is odd, given I’m never around my family, and rarely around so many kids.”
“The McKays were out in full force today.”
“You were…scarce.”
His rough-tipped fingers trailed up and down her arm. “That’s the way it goes. I’m considered one of the quiet ones, a man of few words, and usually none of importance, so no one pays much attention to me.”
“But that gives you the opportunity to pay attention to them.” She paused. “Is that why you’re so in tune with…people? Because you’ve spent a lifetime observing?”
“Probably. And without goin’ all psychobabble, I’ve been the middle boy. Even now that Gavin is around I’m still in the middle. Quinn…well, Dad thinks the sun rises and sets with Quinn. And Chase is the superstar golden child. Kinda hard to stand out. So I’ve always figured it’s better to blend.”
Ainsley tried to roll over to look into his eyes, but he held her in place. “Blend? Hate to break it to you, but you don’t blend. You are…” Maybe he wouldn’t appreciate her insight so she held back.
“I’m what?”
“Forceful. You’re easily the most forceful man in the room. In any room. Whether at the club or amidst your relatives.”
“Oh yeah?”
“Yeah. We kept our distance today. But I knew where you were at all times. Your body was the moon, I was the tide and you had a pull on me. Which I had to resist, you jerk.” She lightly elbowed him in the gut.
Ben chuckled.
“I will say you were sporting a pretty serious
back off
aura today. I didn’t see many of your relatives approach you besides Chase. And the two younger guys, but they didn’t stick around long.”
“That’d be Tell and Dalton. There’s a family dynamic that’d take me the rest of the damn night and part of tomorrow to explain.” He traced the backs of her knuckles. “I guess I wasn’t aware I had that vibe today.”
“I’m glad to hear it’s just today and not every day.” She fell silent again.
“I hate when you do that, angel. ’Cause I know them wheels are churning. Tell me what’s on your mind.”
“I just wondered how much of that standoffishness happened after you accepted your dominant nature. Like if you let the people closest to you see that part of you, you were afraid they wouldn’t accept it.”
He muttered, “They won’t accept it.” He stroked her skin. “You came up with all of these observations just today?”
“I’m a pretty good judge of people, Ben. My ex-husband notwithstanding. I worried about that same kind of stuff with him. He didn’t accept that sexual part of me. And I never asked him to do half the things to me that you’ve done to me. So I understand your need to keep that part of your life secret. Dean…actually threatened to tell our friends, my boss, our coworkers, and our parents about my kinky sex requests. For months, every time I saw our coworkers snickering, I worried he’d over-shared at the water cooler.”
Ben rolled and brought her on top of him, clamping one hand on her ass to keep her from squirming away. The other hand held her jaw. “One—I don’t do things
to
you, I do things
for
you. Big difference. Two—I’m proud of you for realizing his hang-ups are not yours and for takin’ a chance to live the life you want. Three—if I ever meet that self-serving motherfucker, I will beat his ass bloody. There’s no bigger sin than breaking a confidence. He was your husband for Christsake. He was supposed to be a safe haven for you, not lead the charge in ridiculing you.”
This man, who’d known her three weeks, had a better grasp on her, on who she was at the most basic level, and yet embraced her complexities and understood her insecurities, better than any man ever had. No one in her past—man or woman—had ever stood up for her like Ben. No one had ever built her up by knocking down the walls she’d been hiding behind. That knowledge both buoyed her and brought despair, because this thing between her and Ben had an end date.
Didn’t it?
She closed her eyes, feeling those stupid, unwelcome tears trying to break free. She jerked from his hold. And he let her go.
But Ben didn’t release her. He merely returned her to her previous position and held her while she composed herself. He let the brush of his hands on her skin soothe her in ways words couldn’t. Sometimes being a man a few words had its benefits.
She whispered, “Thank you.”
“Anytime.”
“I’m tired.”
Ben kissed her temple. “Go to sleep.”
“Are you staying?”
“For a little while.”
She punched her pillow. “I know we haven’t spent the night together much, but I’m glad you’re here.”
“Why is that?” He bumped his pelvis into her backside. “’Cause I’m likin’ this a whole bunch.”
How could she tell him sharing the same bed seemed more intimate than sex? Sleeping she felt even more vulnerable. Had Layla been right? Being in his bed surrounded by his warm body was a gateway drug to wanting more? More of what she couldn’t have?
“Ainsley?”
“Sorry. I started to doze off.” She kissed his biceps.
“Liar,” he whispered in her ear. “And just so you know, you’re welcome in my bed any night. I’ll even kick the dogs out for you.”
She laughed. “Well, I doubt my cats will be so accommodating.”
Chapter Nineteen
Before he got busy filling his day cutting logs and boards for a furniture order, Ben loaded up his dogs and headed to Rielle’s.
Unlike Chase, he didn’t consider it strange Gavin had chosen to stay at Rielle’s bed and breakfast. It was neutral territory and he wasn’t beholden to anyone’s schedule. He hadn’t talked to Gavin much yesterday, and he realized he’d never had a one-on-one, face-to-face conversation alone with his oldest brother and it was past time.
Plus, he had to approach Rielle about her financial situation, as Tell and Dalton had reminded him last night, regardless of what kind of mood she was in, regardless if he was uncertain about where his portion would come from.
The dogs jumped out of the truck bed and raced off into the trees with Rielle’s three mutts.
Rielle met him at the front door and held open the screen. “Hey, stranger.”
“Mornin’, Rielle. Something smells good.”
“There’s fresh coffee and warm muffins inside.”
She was in a good mood, which boded well for him. “I didn’t stop over here expecting to be fed, but I ain’t gonna say no now that you offered.” He followed her into the kitchen.
“I don’t imagine you stopped over to talk to me anyway.” She pointed to the mugs. “Help yourself.”
“Is Gavin up?”
“He hopped into the shower as you pulled in.”
Ben sat at the counter, poured himself a cup of coffee and set two blueberry muffins on a plate. “I did want to talk to you about something.”
“Sounds serious.”
“It is. I wanted to bring it up in private.”
“Now you’re really scaring me.”
Ben looked Rielle in the eyes. “I won’t beat around the bush. How much financial trouble are you in?”
Rielle’s cheeks turned bright red and her hands squeezed her coffee mug. “I told you I’d pay you for the furniture. Are you here to repossess it?”
“God no. That’s pretty inconsequential, considering everything else you owe on, doncha think?”
She nodded.
“So tell me, Ree, how bad is it?”