Authors: Laura Jardine
Her hair. He had to touch her hair.
There was an empty stool at the bar. He stepped toward it and set her down, then shifted his arms up to her shoulders so he could slide his hands through her hair, her beautiful hair. So soft.
Her mouth moved to his neck, and he tilted his chin up slightly as she licked and kissed him there. He shut his eyes and reveled in how wonderful it felt. Later he’d take her to bed. She’d let him, beg him perhaps; he was sure of it. He captured her mouth in his again and kissed her fiercely, needing to taste her again.
If only they were alone now, he’d push her back on the bar and—
They were in public. They were surrounded by people, and he was kissing her like it was only the two of them.
He reluctantly stepped back, and she leaned against the bar, mouth agape.
Someone clapped. Someone shouted, “Whoa.” But otherwise, the place was strangely quiet. Grant didn’t turn his head, didn’t want to see people looking at him. He wanted to sink into the floor. With Kristy. Who still looked shocked.
It didn’t take long for the background noise of the pub to start up again, and as it did, his confidence faded. He was no longer certain of what she wanted.
“So what do you think?” he said softly. Nervously.
She didn’t reply but looked over his shoulder to their table. He turned to scowl at Brady.
My woman
. It had the desired effect—Brady scurried away.
“Kristy.” Grant held out his hand. “Come here.” But she stayed on the stool, elbows resting on the bar behind her, hair slightly mussed from his enthusiasm. And now she was frowning.
This was all wrong. She’d kissed him back like she wanted him as much as he wanted her. Hadn’t she? Brady was just to make him jealous. Right?
She stood up and walked back to the table. Didn’t meet his eyes.
No
.
Someone clapped him on the back. “Sorry, dude.”
Sympathy from a stranger, a stranger who’d seen him kiss Kristy. He didn’t want that. So he fled.
*
The kiss had been, well, incredible. So incredible it rendered Kristy speechless. Truly an amazing feat. But as she sat on the stool recovering—it was the kind of kiss that required time for recovery—she realized he’d behaved horribly to Maya. So as much as she wished to tell him how thrilling the kiss had been and could they do it again, in private this time, she couldn’t because she was outraged on her friend’s behalf.
She returned to the table. “I can’t believe he did that to you.”
“But—” Maya began.
“He was on a date with you, and he kissed
me
. In front of you, in front of everyone. Like you didn’t exist, like he hadn’t asked you out, bought you a drink—”
“Kristy, you—”
“What’s wrong with him? And here I thought he was well mannered.” Hell, and shy. But what he’d done, that hadn’t been shy. Kristy wished they’d been alone, because then…
Focus
.
“I’m so sorry,” she continued. “I’m so sorry. After Justin, I wanted you to date a nice, decent man. But then Grant made out with
me
.” She wouldn’t blush. No, she wouldn’t.
“So this has nothing to do with Brady?”
“Of course not.”
“And everything to do with you thinking he wronged me.”
“He
did
wrong you.”
Maya was…grinning. That couldn’t be right.
“Grant never lied to me,” Maya said. “It’s no problem if you like him. And I think you do. You’re blushing, you know.”
“Am not!”
“Just listen to me for a minute. No interrupting. I’ll put my hand over your mouth if I need to. You know I will. I’ve done it before.”
Kristy ran a finger across her lips to zip them shut.
“When Grant called, he said he couldn’t go on a date with me because he liked you. Which, quite honestly, was a bit of a relief and not at all a surprise. But you were completely convinced he should go out with me. So our plan was to pretend we had a date tonight, and afterward I’d call you to say it wasn’t going to work. Then he’d be free to ask you out, and you wouldn’t feel guilty. But when you insisted on playing third wheel, we had to actually go on a fake date.”
That was…
Wow
. “Can I talk?”
“Not yet. I thought you might be encouraging Brady just to make Grant jealous, but—”
“I don’t care. I’m talking now. You can’t shut me up.”
“Are you sure about that?” Maya started to reach across the table, and Kristy swatted her hand away.
“I wasn’t trying to make Grant jealous. I was feeling down because I was sure he didn’t want me, and there Brady was, so…” She shrugged. Where
was
Brady? “Are you saying that when Grant put his hand on your shoulder, he was just trying to make me jealous?”
“Yes.”
So he’d been perfectly honest with Maya. Kristy ran a hand through her tangled hair. Tangled because of Grant, whom she’d run after in just a moment. She got up.
“When did you realize you wanted him for yourself?” Maya asked.
“Yesterday, I guess.” That’s when Kristy had finally been able to admit it. But she’d been in denial for a while. “He came over to help me change a lightbulb.”
Maya snickered. “I knew he went to your apartment yesterday, but I didn’t know why. What an excuse.”
“I…The fixture. It was complicated.”
“I’m sure it was.” Maya’s lips twitched. “How many—”
“Shut it.” Kristy would never live this down. There would be lightbulb jokes for years to come.
“So he came all that way to help you with a lightbulb.”
“The cover on the light fixture.”
“Whatever. All the way to your apartment. Yet it didn’t occur to you last night that he—”
“It did, briefly,” Kristy said. “He didn’t try to stop me when I almost kissed him.”
“You’re a dunce.”
“But I knew he had a date with you, so I figured it was just my imagination. You’re right, though. I’m a dunce. A dunce who is going to desert you now. Apologies.”
Maya waved her hand away from her body. “Go. He took transit here, so maybe you can catch him at the station. I can always talk to Brady if I need to. I think he’s cowering in the corner on the other side of the room. I’ll make up a movie called
Poisonous Brick
, and it’ll drive him nuts that he’s never heard of it. Good luck.”
Kristy hurried out of the pub and ran as fast as she could to Queen Station—well, as fast as she could run in her new black heels. She looked up and down the platform, but he wasn’t there.
Damn
. She didn’t want to wait another minute to be with him after all this. The trip to his place would seem like forever. But it would be totally worth it.
Grant had received a bottle of expensive whiskey for his birthday back in January. This seemed like a good time to open it. He poured himself a double shot of whiskey on the rocks, sat in his recliner, and picked up the novel he was reading.
One of the books he’d bought the day he met Kristy.
He tossed it onto the couch and gulped some of his whiskey. What an evening. He’d had to watch an irritating, poison-obsessed, beret-wearing, look-at-me-I’m-talking-about-existentialism sociology student try to pick up Kristy. Which made Grant so jealous that he’d kissed her. In public. Yeah, he’d done that, and he’d enjoyed it immensely, the way she responded, the promise of more. Until he realized everyone in the pub was looking at them. Worse, she’d been pissed afterward, which still confused him. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d gone through such a rapid seesaw of emotions.
If that kiss hadn’t been so exquisite, so perfect, then maybe he’d be able to think of something else, but—
His phone rang, and he shot up. Because maybe it was Kristy, though she hadn’t even spoken to him afterward.
But it
was
Kristy. In the lobby of his building. She said she was sorry and asked him to buzz her up.
He abandoned his drink and waited for her outside the door to his suite. Kristy. Here. His imagination went into overdrive—he couldn’t help it.
He could set her on the kitchen counter—there would be no bar patrons staring at them around
this
counter—and kiss her again and again while he got to work on her clothing. He’d touch her bare shoulders, wiggle off her jeans, kiss her breasts.
He ran to his bedroom, where he stuffed a condom in his back pocket. He’d bought a box of condoms a couple weeks ago. Just in case.
But perhaps he was getting ahead of himself with his counter fantasies—all she’d said was “sorry.” He paced the hall in front of his unit, and tried to calm himself.
One Mississippi…Two Mississippi…
There she was. Practically flying toward him.
And now she was
here
, inches from him, throwing her hands around his neck, and he knew he hadn’t been getting carried away. She wanted to be with him.
“I thought you’d lied to Maya,” she said. “Then she told me—”
He cut her off with a kiss, and they continued kissing as he lifted her up. He kept one hand under her, opened the door with the other, and carried her inside. “I’m taking you to bed.”
“I’d be disappointed if you didn’t.”
He started toward the kitchen counter. “Bed can wait. I need you here first.” As soon as he put her down, he reached for the bottom of her pretty brown shirt and pulled it over her head. “As lovely as it looks on you, it has to go.” He unhooked her bra and dropped it on the ground beside her shirt.
“I was expecting you to fold my clothes and place them in a neat pile on a chair.” She cupped her breasts in her hands and arched her back as she pinched her nipples. “It was all for you. I wanted to look nice for you tonight. What do you think?”
He was unable to speak. He pulled one of her hands away from her breast and replaced it with his mouth. She shook as he circled her nipple with his tongue. He needed the rest of her. Needed to see and feel and taste all of her. Needed to feel her shudder when he was buried deep inside her body.
*
Kristy was naked and lying along the length of the counter, her legs dangling over the end. Grant had wasted no time in getting her in this position. He was still fully clothed, and she started to sit up to fix that problem, but he said, “No.” He parted her legs and slid a finger inside her; she collapsed back. “Feel how much you want me.” His voice was low. “You were thinking about this last weekend in the car. I know you were.” He rotated his finger as he moved it in and out of her. “I nearly drove off the road.”
A moment later, she couldn’t see him anymore from her position—perhaps he’d dropped to his knees. His tongue joined his finger, and in response, she grabbed the sides of the counter. If he kept doing this, it wouldn’t take very long. Then he put another finger inside her and circled his tongue around her clit…and that was it. She started shaking, her head thudding against the counter as she came.
“I’m going to do that to you again and again.” He stood up and walked around the counter. “Feel what you do to
me
.” The sound of a zipper. Then he placed a hand on hers and slid their hands together into his jeans. She curled her hand around his cock. Thick. Hard. For her. She pushed it through the slit in his boxers, then shifted her head to the edge of the counter and took him in her mouth.
“Later.” He pulled away from her suddenly. “You know that control you think I have? I don’t have it at all right now.”
She groaned. “Let’s go to the bed—”
“Here.” He produced a condom from his back pocket, and she was relieved she didn’t have to wait until they got to the bedroom.
The crinkle of a wrapper. A moment later, the head of his cock was at her entrance. She started to prop herself up on her elbows so she could see him penetrate her. But then he was inside her, all the way inside her, and she fell back and shut her eyes. The feeling of Grant filling her was overwhelming, almost too intense. And she loved it.
He thrust slowly, deliberately, nearly coming out with each stroke, but not quite. Her eyes were closed, but she swore she saw lights; her hands were clutching the edges of the counter, but still they were tingling. His pace was slow, but she kept gasping and so did he.
Grant was deep inside her body when he slid his hands behind her upper back. He lifted her up, pulled her chest to his, and started walking. She could kiss him now. She had to kiss him now. Pressed her mouth against his, tried to get as much of him as she could. He was fucking her, and still she wanted to be closer.
He carried her to the bedroom and set her down on the bed without coming out. His body pressing down on hers and his tongue flicking over her lips and his cock filling her and his hips thrusting and his hand caressing her hair…
She came. And with several deep grunts, he did too, and it filled her with pure elation. She wished she could hold onto this moment.
“I wanted this so badly, Kristy,” he whispered. “And it was even better than I thought it would be. You’re amazing.”
The rush she felt after an orgasm got even more intense. Good God.
He pulled out, rolled onto his side, and draped his arm over her. Her breathing—and his—slowly returned to normal.
“We should do that again,” she said a few minutes later.
“So it met your approval?” He winked.
“Except for one thing.” She started unbuttoning his shirt. “You didn’t remove any clothing, but you got me naked right away. Not fair.” She’d done half of the buttons when he trapped her wrists in his hand.
“I’ll tell you what’s not fair,” he said. “I was at the bookstore a few weeks ago—”
“I think I know this story.”
“Not from my point of view, you don’t.” He touched the index finger of his other hand to her mouth. “So I was in the bookstore, and there was a very pretty woman in the romance section. I kept stealing glances at her, and she was looking at me, too. But I was too chicken to approach her. So I walked away. And you know what? She followed me.”
Kristy tried to move her hands, but his grasp was too strong.
“I was finally about to say something when she spoke to me first. Very exciting, right? I was feeling confident, sure that she’d say yes if I asked her out. Then she said she wanted to set me up with her friend.” He closed his eyes and shook his head solemnly.