Everything But (12 page)

“Actually, we’ve
been
talking, and it’s been nice.”

“
Ya
think?”  He was happy no matter what, but knowing she’d had no expectations about their afternoon together took
more
pressure off.  “Well, I know so
mething last night freaked you
out, and whatever that was…well, I’d like to make sure I don’t do it again.”

She frowned a little.  “Riley, it wasn’t you.
  It’s me.”

He couldn’t help but sigh.  “If
I had a dime for every time I
heard that line…”

“
You’ve
heard that line?”

“Not used on me…not in a long time.  But every guy has heard it used against him more than I’d like to admit.”

“Well, you didn’t let me finish.”

He nodded. 
“Fair enough.”

She inhaled a deep breath.  “I really worked myself up. 
A lot.
  And…can I be totally honest with you?”

He swallowed.  “Please.”

“You’re famous.  You can sleep with whatever girl you want.  I bet you could walk outside and snap your fingers and have at least ten women begging to be first.”

He shrugged.  “So?  Trust me—that’s not all it’s cracked up to be.”

“But don’t you get it?  It makes me a cheap commodity.”

His eyes narrowed.  “Oh,
no,
Erin, you’re not cheap.  Not by a long shot.  You’re
so
different from those women who throw themselves at guys like me.  Not only are you intelligent and sweet and a million other things the typical woman who throws herself at me is not, you’re hot as hell.”  He ventured forward, sliding his
fingers just onto her hair
, cupping her cheeks in his palms.  “If you think you’re not
somethin
’ special, you’re dead wrong.”

Riley had managed to say the right things and he knew
he had,
because she initiated the first kiss that afternoon.

Chapter Twelve

SO ERIN
WAS
going to engage in a one-
night stand (or one
afternoon, as it turned out) with a rock star, but she felt better about it
now that she’d analyzed it
. 
But s
he couldn’t understand how Riley could alternate between
sometimes
being the consummate bad boy / part-time asshole and being the perfect gentleman and really sweet guy the rest of the time. 
R
ight now, he was being super sweet and had managed to fully seduce her
…even if every word out of his mouth
turned out to
be a lie.

It didn’t hurt that he had a hot fucking
tattoo-
licious
body that wouldn’
t stop, and he’d been parading it around her apartment long enough to get her way too hot and bothered to
even try to
say
no
, no matter how well she
was able to hide
what she was really thinking
.

And undressing for him?  Well, that had just upped the ante.  Feeling his eyes on her as she’d worked her shorts off had been a turn on too.  She saw the look in his eyes when she’d finished peeling them off.
  So she’d called his bluff.  Were they just going to play adult Monopoly all afternoon or
what
?

And then his little assurance that she was not just some chick.  Truth or not, he was smooth and convincing and she was
gonna
go
for it.  So when he’d taken her face in his
hands, her lips found his and, she hoped, told him she was ready for wherever he wanted to go.

No, she hadn’t built his kiss up to be better than she’d remembered.  He was a pro.  And just one kiss made her body go from being a little excited to ready for lots more.  His tongue was warm and smooth and danced with hers as she felt her nipples grow hard.  Her hands had been drawing slow unconscious swirls on his chest as she greedily felt his definition.  His
pecs
were as smooth and hard as marble but, unlike marble, warm and bordering on hot.
  And he smelled so
good,
wearing that same spicy scent she’d caught
a whiff of
last night.

When his lips left hers and moved to her neck, she didn’t stop him this time.  Instead, she heard a
heavy sigh escape her lips as sh
e tilted her neck to the side
.  He took the invitation and his ravenous lips nibbled and licked, working their way down.  He moved his hands to her back without missing a beat.  She leaned back against the arm of the couch and his lips continued their journey down until he kissed the swell of her breast just above the scalloped edge of her bra.
 
She
arched her back in anticipation of his further attention but he stopped and
brought
his face
up
to hers again.  She fluttered her eyes.

“How about we move to your bedroom and I’ll tell you about our trust game?”

She felt her eyes widen, but she supposed she was
ready
…
maybe
.  She’d never played with handcuffs before and didn’t know how comfortable she felt about it, but she
really
wanted to fuck Riley.  Maybe after all the sex he’d had over the years (something she really shouldn’t think about
if she wanted to stay in the mood
), he needed a little kink to get off.  She took a deep breath and nodded, then stood up.  He grabbed the handcuffs off the coffee table and
joined her
.  She figured her guess was right when she saw he wasn’t even hard.

Maybe just a one-time fling was a good idea.

She walked down the hall to
her room, her fingers laced in
his, and she opened the door.  Her bedroom in this apartment had only seen two other men, both guys that had ruined her opinion of
males
, probably for good.  She had some nice memories of the sex, but the relationships, especially near the end, soured any good feelings she had about those men.  Maybe Riley could change all that, particularly if she loved him and left him.  And that was the plan.

Her bedroom was light and airy.  The walls and furniture were white, while the comforter and drapes were white with tiny flowers, just a slight accent of color.  The carpet was a beige color that matched the door.  The window was open, blowing in a soft breeze, ruffling the drapes.  And
the room
smelled sweet, like the remnants of her papaya lotion
and the pomegranate-scented candle on the nightstand
.

She stood at the foot of the bed
to give an unnecessary introduction
.  “Well, here it is.”  Riley threw the cuffs on the bed and pulled he
r close up against his body, his hands around her waist.  He
was acting
a little more aggressive as he
submerged
her in another fiery kiss that left her wanting so much more.

Then he said,
“So…the handcuffs.  Have you ever done anything involving bondage before?”  She shook her head. 
“Never?”

“Never.”

He glanced over her head.  “You have a headboard.  Perfect.”  He looked down at her again. 
If any guy she’d ever met had what women referred to as
bedroom eyes
, it was Riley.  His eyes were heavy and sleepy-looking, and it made him look sexier. 
“If you don’t want to do it,
I’m
cool
with
that
.”  He moved his lips to just below her ear and whispered so she could barely hear.  “B
ut here’s my plan.
”  He kissed her neck,
then
breathed in her ear, and she felt her nipples turn rock hard again.
 
“
I cuff your arms
, and then
I ravish your body.
”  His hands, hot, were gliding over her back, achingly slow.
 
“
If you’ve never done it before, I
gotta
tell you…
”—he moved so he could see her again, his nose touching hers—“
being restrained does something for your orgasm that,
shit
, I can’t describe.” 
His dark eyes
that
bore into hers
as he touched her forehead with his flooded her vision and she nearly drowned in his worshipping gaze.
 
“I promise I’ll make you feel better than you have in a long time
…maybe
ever
.
”

Should she trust him? 
Probably not.
  But his eyes were beckoning to her and
he’d titillated her to the point of no return.  S
he wanted him, and she wanted to
give him the chance to fulfill his promise
.
  She guessed, though, that sex with him would be fucking awesome anyway.
  Her eyes explored his, and she felt in that moment like she
could
trust him. 
She nodded. 
“Okay.”

  His voice was deep when he said,
“I promise
you won’t regret it
.”
  One thing Erin
did
know…none of his groupies would have received
this
kind of attention.  And with that thought, she felt herself grow wet, ready to be touched by him.
  He kissed her again and pressed her into his body.  She could feel the stirrings of his hard on against her and that made her want him even more.

As his lips moved to her neck again, she said, “Uh…just…uh, use
a condom
, okay?”
  It was probably the last coherent thought she’d have.

“Oh, yeah.”

She hadn’t seen him bring any, but she supposed that was part of the trust thing too.  She was going to.  She was going to trust
him fully and completely, and if
he fucked that up, well…she’d make damn sure he regretted it.  In the meantime, she was going to let go of all worries, all inhibitions, and let him get on with fulfilling his promise.

He looked in her eyes again. 
“Do you know what a
safeword
is?”

“
I’ve heard of it, but no.
”

“It’s…uh…common in BDSM. 
Stop
just doesn’t mean shit, so you have a
safeword
that communicates you really do want someone to stop.”

“So…you mean, like, if I said
security
, that
would mean to stop?”

“Yeah…you got it.”  She nodded. 
What the fuck was he going to do if she’d have to ask him to stop?
  He didn’t plan on hurting her, did he?
  The thought dissipated as Riley
cupped both
of her ass cheeks in his hand and pushed her up against him while he kissed her again. 
Her breathing was already ragged
and she felt desperate.  She wrapped her right leg around his calf and slid her hands up his chest, relishing the feel of his smooth skin and taut muscles. 
He
moved
his hand down the thigh of her leg, and his fingers tantalized the tender skin on the underside.  He continued a slow but steady barrage of kisses that removed all thought from her head and left only burning desire and pure instinct
in their wake
.

Then he slid his hands up her back causing her to gasp with the deliberate slow motion.  When his fingers got to her bra strap, he fiddled with it until the clasps released.  But rather than take immediate advantage of
her breasts’
independence, he slid his hands back down to her thighs while bending a little, then he lifted her up as though she weighed no more than a pillow.  He walked over to the side of the bed and then
leaned forward
and she adjusted so he could si
t her on the bed.

Erin knew she was already so close that he could probably just touch her with his cock and send her into spasms.
  H
e hovered over her, holding himself up on his knee and arms, one leg still on the floor.  His lips touched hers but he balanced himself on his knee and eased her bra off her shoulders.  The breeze in the room made her nipples harden even further and they were aching now.  He set the bra aside with one hand while the other arm reached around her back just under her arms and pulled her up on the bed the rest of the way, and he followed.  She lay back, aware of how ragged her breath had become
.  He kissed her again, but she felt his chest brush up against her nipples, stimulating them, heating them up, and he moved his lips down her neck and his tongue traced a trail to between her breasts.
  He was resting on his side now, and he brushed his hand back and forth between her breasts, touching the sides but teasing, barely touching, making her arch her back and moan, and then he leaned forward to take a nipple in his mouth.  Her moan grew louder and she twisted her fingers into his hair as though she could guide him.  But he was hell bent on taking his time.