More Than Meets the Ink (12 page)

She checked the sentence she’d typed once more and sent it. In her mind’s eye, she could already see James chuckling.

She lifted her gaze to Violet and smiled brightly. The pies were all packed except for a small piece.

“That’s for you, dear. Go on, try it.”

“Oh, thanks,” she said, bringing the piece up to her mouth. It was delicious, sweet and warm. “Tastes fantastic.”

Beep. Beep
. Another message.

Damn right I am. Been there 4 quite a while now. Will u have pity on a dying man here? I need 2 fuck u.

She read it, slowly shaking her head and smirking. “James again, fooling around.”

Violet was quiet, and when Tate looked at her, she realized she was frowning slightly, her lips pursed into a tight, disapproving line.

“James is a great boy. I’ve never seen him fool around, as you call it, with anyone else here. And God knows I’ve tried to throw Tessa at him. He’s always kept his distance from every girl. I don’t want him hurt.”

Hurt? Tate didn’t know what to say. It was hard to think of James in those terms, as if he were a tenderhearted fifteen-year-old boy in danger of getting his sensibilities crushed.

She smiled at the old lady. “Don’t worry, Violet, your boy is safe. I won’t hurt him.” She was in no position to do so; she was leaving tomorrow night. All they had time for was a quick tumble in the hay. Hopefully not so quick.

“All I’m saying is you be careful with him.”

So this was how it felt to be grilled, to get the father talk when you went to pick up a girl from her home for the first time.

She nodded, resisting the urge to laugh. Oh man, did anyone around here ever take a good look at James? He was an imposing man. Huge, intimidating, even with his wicked smiles. He was definitely able to handle himself. She was no match for him.

* * *

The bitch had been gone for several days now. She’d taken off to Florida for a week, which meant his last two e-mails were still waiting to be read; she wasn’t big on computers on the best of days, so there was no way she’d carry one on vacation.

He glanced around the restaurant; it was almost empty. Good, maybe he wouldn’t have to finish off this place by himself; maybe it would die by its own lonely self instead. Two months more of this and it’d be over. She’d give in. He could hardly wait, because really, this place had cost him, and still did, so much on so many levels, it could never burn down enough for his satisfaction. Or maybe it could, he thought with a smile.

Chapter Five

She sucked at gin, no two ways about it, but poker was her kind of game. Not because she could lie worth a damn, but because her sweet smile made her look so fucking nonthreatening no one would believe she was bluffing. And bluff she did, constantly and shamelessly.

“I win again,” she said with a smirk, splaying her cards on the table. “Pity we’re betting pennies here; otherwise I’d have made a fortune off you by now.” She offered James a big, smug smile and then addressed the others. “Do we raise the stakes, gentlemen, or are you scared?”

James hugged her tighter. “Careful, princess, this crowd is fearless. I’ve seen them betting their medication. You don’t want to challenge them.”

She turned to him, stupefied, then looked at an assenting Mr. Honbacker and burst out laughing.

She was breathtaking. Those roguish silver-blue eyes full of mystery lighting her whole face, that pretty bowed mouth, pink and soft and tempting, assuring him he was a swipe of her tongue away from heaven. Her long, wavy hair floating around her. She was a knockout, and every time she smiled at him, his dick twitched so badly he had to grit his teeth not to spill on the spot. By now he wasn’t even trying to keep his hands to himself; it was a physical impossibility. Tate’s mom was frowning at him as much as she did at his dad, but whatever. James couldn’t help himself; he was a goner.

“Let’s get out of here,” he whispered into her ear. Playing cards was now the last thing in the world he wanted to do.

She laughed that earthy laugh that had tortured him for so many days now, encircled his neck with her slender arms, and kissed him on the cheek. She was having fun at his expense. And why on earth did those tiny pecks on his cheek feel even more intimate than a blowjob?

“Wait a sec, let me win enough to pay for supper. You’re putting up for the room, after all,” she said morosely.

“Forget supper, baby; we’ll raid the minibar.” Tomorrow she was going back home; they were running out of time.

“It feels like prom night all over again,” she stated as they walked toward his car.

“You ended up in a hotel room? Boy, your prom date must have been happy.”

“Hardly. He actually never got me into the hotel room.”

“Poor bastard. I know how he felt.”

She clicked her tongue in clear disapproval. “His fault. Tony Masero shouldn’t have been groping high school homecoming queen Big Boobs Cynthia the day before at the mall. In front of my friends, I might add. Dirty sneak. Besides, he’d been nuts to think I’d lose my virginity to him to begin with. On prom night, in a sleazy hotel room, with a half-drunk teenage imbecile going prematurely senile from testosterone poisoning. This is a step up—you aren’t drunk, and you haven’t been groping Big Boobs Cynthia Smith, have you?”

He barked out a laugh. Jesus, she was hilarious. “I swear on my grandmother’s grave, I haven’t laid a finger on Big Boobs Cynthia. That I know of.” He’d always been a die-hard fan of big boobs, but he couldn’t honestly recall any Cynthia Smith. And now it was a moot point anyway; his preferences had recently shifted, and he was finding out perky, smaller tits did it for him big-time.

She wrinkled her nose, assessing him. “Well, okay then. I think I’ll let you take me to that hotel room. Better not be a sleazy one, mister.” He shook his head, and her lips turned up. “Good. Although I can’t offer you my virginity, buddy; that’s long gone.”

“Perfect. What I have in mind would scare a virgin.” Besides, virgins were not for him—too draining.

She averted her gaze, color creeping up her cheeks. Such contradictions; one moment she was being raunchy, the next blushing like a shy teenager.

He’d planned to take his time with her, savor the moment, build up the heat, make her wait and beg for it, but the second they entered the room, he pinned her to the door, bracketed her with his arms, and lost it. He fell upon her like a starving man, kissing her savagely, his tongue ruthlessly taking over and exploring every inch of that sweet, hot mouth.

A choked moan escaped from her throat, and he greedily swallowed it while he gripped her hips with urgency and ground himself into her. He felt feverish, out of control, famished, like he’d been waiting for this for ages. There weren’t going to be any fancy moves from him. Just stark-naked hunger. He’d endured four days of maddening foreplay, and by now he had her scent so deep inside him it was all he could smell day and night. It had finally driven him insane. Total mental leave of absence. That was the only way to describe his current behavior. Talk about testosterone poisoning. Hah, Tony Masero had nothing on him; he hadn’t drunk a damn thing, but he was as good as fully loaded.

He yanked her skirt up, using his thigh to part her legs wider and press against her pussy, forcing her to ride it. He greedily licked her throat, then went down to her collarbone. He closed his lips around one of her hard nipples and tugged, getting her to ride him harder, her juices seeping through her panties.

“I’m too far gone to last this time, or to go slow, but I promise I’ll make it up to you,” he managed to say between kisses. Hopefully she was okay with it, because he was unable to even stop to check for her reaction. Lifting her leg to his hip, he ground his denim-clad erection against her folds, and she gasped, clutching his shoulders with her short nails, holding him tight. Man, this was madness; no matter how desperate he was to be inside her, he had to slow down. But apparently there had been a coup d'état in his brain, and there was no one up there enforcing his commands. He was drunk on her scent, and his dick was calling the shots.

He urgently gripped her ass, lifting her, keeping her locked between him and the wall. She was hot and wet. And panting loudly against his mouth. He needed to fuck her right now, hard and fast, or he was going to die. He reached for her panties, and with a swift movement, he ripped them off her.

He had about a couple of seconds before losing it completely, if not less. He unzipped his fly, took himself in hand, and barely remembered to sheath himself with a rubber before plunging inside her. She cried out, her pussy clamping on him, her legs trembling as he seated himself root-deep, and without giving her time to adjust, he began pounding into her. Thank God she was wet, because he’d been hijacked by his dick and couldn’t stop. No sense of dignity and decorum or timing. Or technique. He just needed to get deep inside her—deeper than anybody had ever been before. Stake a claim on her he didn’t even understand himself.

She reached for him, sinking her fingers into his scalp. Panting even louder. Trembling and shaking.

“Oh God…” She breathed into his mouth while he hammered her into the door.

He had the fleeting thought he was being too rough; she was small and tight and delicate, and he needed to get her off now, before he came completely undone, which was a handful of thrusts anyway. Making her climax might later be the only redeeming point of this whole wham-bam fiasco. The only thing keeping her from kicking him to the curb.

Changing the angle a bit, he dragged himself over her clit, slamming his pelvis into her with every plunge, nudging at her swollen clit and rubbing at the ring. He gripped her ass, opening her cheeks wide and forcing her to take all of him while she kept panting, her breath choppy and loud. He couldn’t take the pressure anymore; the mounting vortex of need inside him was fast swallowing him. He was about to move his fingers to her clit to throw her over the edge when suddenly Tate’s body tensed, and she screamed against his lips, immersed in a powerful orgasm that instantly milked the rest of his sanity out of him. Her pussy convulsed around him, demanding his seed. Holding her tight in his arms, he pounded inside her and came like a wild man.

When he regained his senses, his throat felt raw, his mind foggy, and he wasn’t sure if his legs would work again—ever. What the fuck had happened? Had she killed him? Whatever it’d been, it was so out of his sexual experience he wasn’t sure whether he’d come or had a massive stroke. They were both breathing fast, no one saying a damn word. Man, he’d fucked it up nice this time. Talk about sexual technique. He should be ashamed of himself. Shot on sight. Fuck.

He struggled to find his voice. “Are you…okay?” He didn’t know what to say. “Did I…um…hurt you?” What a moronic question; of course he had. Going at her like a madman, without any foreplay. She’d been wet, and she’d come, but still. That had been rough. She would be within her rights to chew his head off.

She shook her head. “It just surprised me,” she whispered, her sexy eyes turned up to him. “Your Conan the Barbarian act caught me off guard. I came, of course. I always do when you touch me, no matter how rough. You just do it for me.”

“I ah… Sorry, princess,” he mumbled, feeling like a fucking jerk. “I lost it. All that pent-up lust fogged my mind. Let me get rid of the condom, and I promise I’ll make it right for you. No more three-minute fiascos.” He stared at her, her face all soft and rosy from her release. She smiled at him. Thank God she wasn’t kicking him out on his ass. Yet.

While he disentangled himself from her and got rid of the rubber, she stood still, leaning against the door, the spiked heels making her body sway dangerously. She looked dazzled and fucking beautiful. Like a manga character, huge hair and huge eyes wrapped up in a sexy, petite body that was all his. For the time being, at least.

He’d been so beside himself he hadn’t even watched her orgasm. Damn pity, for he loved seeing her fly apart in his arms. If he’d learned anything during the past days, it was that Tate climaxing was a treat. This time though, it’d been a little difficult to see anything with his eyes rolled all the way to the back of his head. He’d been immersed in a maelstrom of fire and desire so strong it’d blocked out everything, even what he wanted to see the most.

He lifted her into his arms and placed her on the bed.

“Lose the top.”

“Don’t you prefer to rip it off me with your teeth?” she said jokingly.

Yeah, no sense trying to play it cool and civilized now. Too late for that; she’d already seen the caveman.

He lunged for her. “Now that you mention it…” Besides, that knuckle-dragging, Neanderthal part of him didn’t seem satisfied yet. Maybe after he’d fucked her three or four times more, he’d be able to calm down and take it easy. In fact, his dick was already hardening at the prospect of nailing her again.

“Oh no no. Stop right there.” She giggled while scrambling away. “I can ruin my own clothes without any help whatsoever, thank you very much.” She pulled her top up and over her shoulders, leaving her naked to his eyes, except for the bra and the stockings and the skirt rolled at her waist, entangled in the garter belt. His eyes surveyed her body, memorizing every curve and hollow. He was going to taste all of them. Lick her clean and then make her sweaty and dirty again.

“Take the skirt off too,” he ordered and watched her shimmy out of it, her tits jiggling with the movement. Shit, she wore a demibra. The devilish little thing barely covered squat and offered her tits on a platter—nipples peeking out, in plain view. They were tight and red, begging to be licked. “Lose the bra.”

She went to her knees on the bed, got rid of the garment, and moved to unclasp the garter belt. “No, leave that on. The shoes and the stockings too. For now.” Dying to touch her, he strode toward her, his hand held out, but she surprised him by grabbing his cock. Her hands were cool and soft, and they began working their magic while she kissed and nuzzled his chest.

He let out a ragged groan at the sight of his gorgeous, wicked princess nibbling at his nipples. A jolt of pure lust jerked his body. Her mouth was dangerously trailing down, until it landed on his dick, and James felt his mind exploding.