When my back is clean to his satisfaction he turns me around and starts with my stomach, massaging little circles around my belly button, then sweeping down between my legs, just enough to remind me that I'm ready.
He drops the sponge in the bucket, swishes his hand around a little in the solution, then removes the paint from my breasts with his fingertips.
When all the paint has been cleaned, he repeats every single motion with the soap and by the time he's rinsing me with the detachable shower head, I'm about to explode all over him.
It's only then, when the paint is all gone and my body is soft and sweet-smelling, that he presses himself up against me. He's been hard the entire time but when he grinds against my hips, his hands on my ass to guide me along with his motions, he is more than hard. He is solid and thick.
"I love you."
My eyes search his as I take this all in. "I'm not sure what I feel, Ronin, but I really want to say that back to you."
He slides his hand behind my neck and laces his fingers into my wet hair. "So say it."
"I love you, too."
His kiss is immediate, almost before I'm finished uttering the words he was looking for. His mouth opens and I flick my tongue against his. He devours my mouth and for a few minutes we are breathless, moaning, and grasping for one another's most sensual parts. Then he draws back and leads me out of the shower, punching buttons on the control panel to turn it off as we walk by.
I'm still dripping wet when Ronin sweeps me off my feet and sets me down on the bed. He gently lifts my legs up and pushes my thighs apart, then delves down and devours me again.
I'm writhing in seconds, my back arching, my hands fisting the sheets. He pushes my thighs higher, exposing me further, and then sucks gently.
My moans are louder now and I squirm as the feeling becomes too intense.
He slips a finger inside me, sliding back and forth gently at first, then pumping harder as his thumb and tongue swirl against my nub.
I lose it.
I come hard against his mouth, my hands fisting his hair. He waits, his tongue dipping down as I continue to pulsate from the explosion of sensations. When I'm done he scoots up towards me, his thick erection in his hand, ready to enter.
But I push him back. "Not this time, Larue. My turn. Lie back."
He laughs. "It's not a
quid pro quo
, Gidget."
"I know." I've resisted giving him oral, I have bad memories of it from my ex. But I push that thought away and concentrate on the beautiful, caring man in front of me. He is a gentle lover. So, so gentle. "I want to, Ronin."
Chapter Nineteen - RONIN
I didn't think it was possible to be any more turned on right now, but I am. Her words have turned me up a thousand decibels.
Rook watches me. "I want to, Ronin."
Her eyes are still half-mast from coming hard, her taste still on my tongue. I swallow because this girl—this girl makes me feel more than good. It's like every touch, every look, every sound that comes from her mouth is something sensual and perfect.
"Lie back," she says again.
My crooked grin makes her smile as I lie down next to her. She twists her body, pressing her breasts against my chest, then stretches up and kisses me, just little kisses at first, as if she's deciding if she likes the taste of herself. Then she straddles me and opens her mouth, her tongue done probing, ready for more.
Just as fast, she stops, her body sliding down, her chin rubbing against my stomach muscles as she descends. She plays with my hard-on for a second, then her tongue slides along the slit in my head and dips in for a taste.
Before I can even process how fucking good that feels, her mouth is desperate to wrap me up. She pumps again and again, sucking slightly, tonguing me as she pulls back, then massaging me with her lips as she descends down my shaft.
I give up.
The breath comes out of me in a soft rush as I relax back into the pillows and enjoy her. Fully enjoy her and everything she's doing right now. My whole body is on fire for this girl, my arms ache to flip her over and take her from behind, make her scream my name over and over again.
But I calm myself and suck in a breath between my teeth as I try to maintain control. I moan as the hot air of her laugh tickles the tip of my cock.
"Gidge," I say in a throaty whisper. My hands go to her head, pushing her slightly, compounding her rhythm as she evokes so much more in me than just a desire to come.
"Gidge," I repeat. "Climb on, baby."
She continues with her pumping and sucking but I'm not about to come this way. I sit up and toss her over on the bed next to me, then crawl up between her legs.
She's laughing at me.
"What's funny, Gidget?"
"You love me."
I laugh back. "I do, and I'm going to show you just how much every chance I get." I push her thighs open wider and flick my cock against her swollen clit a few times, back and forth, making her moan. She likes that.
I slide inside when she's in mid-gasp. She's so wet, so ready for me again. I ease in and out, slowly, then harder. Slow pumps become short thrusts, and then deep, penetrating, plunging assaults. Her back arches and her fingernails dig into my shoulders.
This is her signal. Her signal that she's gonna come and there's no way to avoid it.
At least that's what I think it says to her. But to me it says,
Do something spectacular right fucking now, Ronin, and I will make the most amazing noises for you
.
I reach down and play with her, slip between her folds and then sweep up to her clit and twirl my thumb, pushing it around gently in little circles.
She screams this time.
And I can't help it, this girl just does it for me. I lean down and growl into her neck as I come with her.
We fall asleep like this, me clutching her around the waist, her legs twined around mine in a way that makes me feel both wanted and whole. I wake once when she gets up to use the bathroom. But as soon as she returns to my bed I tug her ass up against me and fondle her breasts until we drift off again.
When we wake it's late afternoon. "Hey," I say, squeezing her breast a little. "Wake up, let's not waste the day."
She moans and turns away and I just have to smile. I've never met a girl who sleeps so soundly. She's not a naturally early riser and she's not easy to wake. Ever.
"Rook." I try again. This time I breathe into her ear and her shoulder draws up against my face.
She growls at me.
"Come on, I have plans for us."
"What plans?" she moans.
"Bike ride to the mountains."
"I don't wanna go to Black Hawk, I can't even gamble or drink. It's boring."
"Not gambling, Rook. A ride up to Lookout Mountain. Come on, it's romantic. Besides, it's good practice for the road trip to Sturgis."
She turns. "I thought we were taking an RV up there?"
"We are, but you can't ride into Sturgis in an RV, Gidge." I laugh as I picture Spence RV'ing into Sturgis. "Spencer would be laughed out of town. He said he's working on your bike too, says it's real nice."
"When you'd talk about that? He never said anything to me."
I shrug. "I talked to him last night after you hung up on me."
She reaches out and pokes me in the arm with her fingernail. "You were checking up on me."
"Of course I was. That's my job."
She tilts her head and gives me a dirty look.
"It's not weird, Rook. It's normal. That's what boyfriends do for their girlfriends. This fear you have is unreasonable, ya know."
"I know," she pouts. "But I can't help it. When you say stuff like that it scares me. It feels invasive."
I lie back down and pull her close. The bike ride can wait. "It's not, though. It's normal."
"I don't like people talking about me, it bugs me." She stops and turns her head to look me in the eye. "It really bugs me."
"Well, you're not gonna be able to avoid it, Rook. Your face and body will be all over the world soon. You're in a reality show, you're on book covers in Japan, and a half a million people are gonna be talking all about you at the rally."
She wrinkles her nose at this.
"So I think it's OK if I ask Spencer what's going on. I'm still not sure what to think about what you said last night, about being turned on. I mean, I get it. I've been there. I get turned on too. But I've never had to talk about it with a girlfriend because the only other model I dated who was working with us at the time was Mardee. And I already told you, I was not all that nice to her. I never got jealous over her jobs."
Rook leans over and kisses me softly on the lips. "Sorry," she whispers into my mouth. "I just wanted to be honest. I just wanted you to tell me what it means. I want
you
, Ronin. Not Spencer. Not Billy. You."
"Yeah, well, I hate to disappoint you, but I'm not sure what it means."
"See, that's why Billy was so helpful. He told me it means nothing." She throws her hands out a little to illustrate her point. "He said he's always turned on, that's what Antoine wants and expects. But that it's meaningless. Even when he sleeps with the girl after, he says. It's meaningless."
"Huh." Billy's a fucking whore. The absolute last guy I want giving my girlfriend advice on what is and isn't normal in an erotic photo shoot. "You wanna do the bike ride?"
"Yeah, it sounds fun. Besides, I think I need to get out of this place for a while. I never go anywhere. I might need to buy a car."
"Why?"
She shoots me a dirty look.
"No, I mean, why
buy
one? I have two cars I never use. Just take one when you need it." Her silence tells me she's got a problem with this. "Rook, I swear, if you say something stupid like
I need my own car so you can't control me,
I'll handcuff you to the bed and show you what domination really looks like."
Her whole face screws up in disgust. "Don't joke. You know that's never gonna happen, right?"
"Yeah, I figured. But that doesn't mean I can't picture you like that. Your bottom bright pink from being spanked." She blushes and I am immediately hard. "Sounds fun, doesn't it?"
She doesn't answer that either way.
Progress.
Chapter Twenty - ROOK
The evening with Ronin passes much too quickly. And he was right, as usual. Lookout Mountain has an amazing view of Denver. It's not even that far away, it barely took us thirty minutes to get to the freeway exit, but the winding road that climbs up the side of the mountain
—
foothill, Ronin corrects me, he scoffs at me when I call these rolling hills mountains
—
takes a whole lot longer. But I don't mind. I enjoy the vibrations of the bike beneath me. I press my helmet up against Ronin's leather jacket and gaze out at my new hometown as dusk takes over.
By the time we get to a little pull-out along the road, it's almost dark and the city lights down below are twinkling.
Ronin and I both look the part tonight. Matching leather jackets, courtesy of the Chaput closet, faded jeans, and black biker boots. My hair is in braids to keep it under control, and Ronin has one of those WWII helmet knock-offs for protection, but I'm wearing a proper one with the full face guard.
When I'm no longer pressed hard against Ronin's heat, I notice the chill. It's almost always pleasant down in Denver at night, but we're a couple thousand feet higher now, so the temperature dips as soon as the sun disappears over the peaks.
We don't stay long. I know enough about bikes to understand what a ride is and what it isn't. It's not a way to get somewhere, it's about enjoying the journey.
It's fitting for me, really. The journey is the only thing that counts because once you reach your destination, there's always somewhere else to go. Another journey to take.
Life is like that too.
I took a journey when I left Chicago. I struggled with homelessness and hunger. I feared for my safety and eventually, that journey ended with Antoine, Elise, and Ronin.
And now I'm on a new journey. I'm not sure where I'm going just yet. Maybe college. Maybe somewhere else.
Maybe a family with Ronin—someday.
I know that's what Ronin wants, he's not kept it a secret about how much he wants a family. And I'm starting to think about what that means for me and what I might have to do to get it. I'm not on board yet, so I don't ponder it too seriously. But I watched Antoine and Elise when we were up at Granby Lake and it's nice what they have. They know each other so well and they're still very much in love.
I'd like that, too.
Someday.
But I'm only nineteen. It's just way too soon to think about forever, and all thoughts of marriage make me feel a little sick. I like Ronin. Might even love him. I think he might be the one for me. But my life just started. I just got here and my past is still very fresh. It's not far away and simple—it's nearby and complicated. Very, very complicated. I'm not ready for the things he wants and I'm definitely not ready to face the issues that still need to be resolved in order to move forward in a serious relationship. Maybe I'll never be ready for kids. I'm not even sure about that.