Authors: Angie Daniels
Mackenzie
was laughing and screaming again and
Kaelyn
was glad her nearest neighbor was several hundred feet away.
“I
t’s about time you got some!
”
“
Yes,
it is
.
”
U
nfortunately on
e
afternoon
just wasn’t enough. She wanted more.
An
d that was a problem.
She vowed never to allow herself to become emotionally involved with another man
,
especially not after her last heartbreak.
She
’d
met Tip at a photo shoot
and thought he was her
soul mate
.
He
was an artist, specializing in oil paints
. She could shoot photographs and print them on canvas and Tip would finish them off
,
giving the look of an oil painting. T
ogether they rented space
and
opened a studio
.
They
were a couple with a booming photography business. She had invested four years in
a man who she thought wanted a future with her. Oh, he wanted a future
all right
, but with someone else. He ended their relationship a week before their wedding and married the slut next door.
Tip was just a reminder of yet another failed relationship. So
many times
Kaelyn
mentally replayed their life together trying to figure out where she had gone wrong,
until
she finally concluded that men, just like her father, never stuck around for long. And after she had picked her dignity off the floor,
Kaelyn made
herself a promise. S
h
e would never
allow herself to be played again.
“
A
re you planning to see him again?
”
Mackenzie
asked, breaking into her thoughts.
An image of
Ashton
’
s
piercing dark eyes and luscious lips filled Kaelyn’s mind
again
.
“
I sure hope so.
”
“
I
mean
more than just sex
,
”
Mackenzie
said with a rude snort.
Kaelyn tossed her dark hair away from her face and
frowned.
“
What else is there?
”
With an i
m
patient scowl, he
r friend
leaned forward on the chair.
“
U
m hello…
How about a relationship? I think
A
shton
’s just what you need in your life.
”
Kaelyn
held up a hand, hoping to put an end to the discussion
. There was no way she was going to allow herself to think of a possible future
with
Ashton
. Getting ahead of herself was something she had a bad habit o
f doing way too often, which was why she had
bought a car that was wrong for her
. She didn’t take enough time to think her actions through
, instead she had reacted on impulse. Well… not this time
.
“
I don
’t think so
,
”
Kaelyn
said with little conviction.
Wh
ile sipping her margarita she allowed her mind to wander back to the day before.
If she had a chance to have something more
,
she
w
ould jump at the chance.
Ashton
was funny, sexy and good with his hands. Her stomach quivered as she thought about just how sk
illful those
fingers
were. But she knew better. There was no happily ever after. Relationships ran their course and eventually ended. She just wasn't prepared to go through that again.
Anxious to change the subject
, she turned to
Mackenzie
and said,
“
You
’
re
all up in my business
.
What
about you? When are you going to get over Blake and find yourself a man?
”
Pain darkened her
gaze
and Kaelyn immediately regretted bringing him up.
Mackenzie
rolled her eyes and tried to act like
Blake
was a distant memory
, bu
t Kaelyn knew better. He had
hurt
her badly.
“
For your information, I’m over him
,
”
she countered defensively
.
“
And don’t change the subject. We’re talking about you, not me.
”
“Whatever,” she muttered under her breath.
With her foot she pushed out the chai
r beside her
,
the
n
raised her
slender
legs, propping
her
feet on the seat.
“
What’s up with your car?
”
Kaelyn
threw her
head back against her chair and groaned
.
“
I
tried again to
call that prick at the dealership
,
but
the receptionis
t
is still
screening hi
s calls.
”
Mackenzie
arched an inquisitive brow.
“
Did you, uh, mention your car to
Ashton
?
”
She nodded in dismay.
“
Yes, and I’m not sure if he believe
d
me.
”
With a frown, she shook her head.
“
T
he way you
local folks
stick together is unbelievable.
”
Kaelyn was in her office editing photographs. Now that the Sensual Designs project was complete, she was back to a project she had been working on since her arrival to town. Clicking her mouse, she stared at the photographs she had taken in and around the city of Sheraton Beach.
Thanks to Mackenzie, the Chamber of Commerce had contracted her to take pictures for a welcome brochure that was mailed to new residents. She had shot over one hundred photographs both in black and white and color, and was quite proud of the end results. She had been in the room almost three hours when she heard the doorbell ringing. Kaelyn rose, stretched, and then trotted down the hall to the front door.
Her heart gave an involuntary thump at the sight of Ashton, holding a toolbox in one hand and some snaky-looking device in the other, those dark penetrating eyes, staring down at her. He was so sexy, there was no way on earth he couldn’t know it, and yet he was so humble and kind. For a moment, Kaelyn’s mind went blank and she struggled to form her words.
“Hey, babe,” he said huskily and she shivered at the raw sexuality in his voice.
She took a deep breath. “What are you doing here?”
He looked all showered and fresh. “I came to fix your toilet.”
“My toilet?”
“Yes, remember? Your running toilet?”
Impulsively, he slid an arm around her waist and pulled her to him. He smelled delicious. Kaelyn tilted her head back and his lips skimmed over hers before kissing her hard on the mouth, heating up all of her girl parts.
“Good morning, sweetheart,” he murmured, then squeezed her ass and a quiver shot through her.
She stared up into bedroom eyes and grinned. “Good morning to you, handsome.” Once again, he lowered his head, pressing his lips to hers, then slipped his tongue inside. A moan slipped from Kaelyn’s lips and within seconds her nipples hardened, and Ashton was visibly hard, and aroused. Even through the layers of clothing, she could feel his cock and her pussy clenched with anticipation. By the time he ended the kiss, she was breathless.
“Okay, some of us have work to do,” he said on a ragged breath.
Laughing, she reached up on tiptoe and kissed him once more. With a wink, Ashton brushed past her and moved down the hall to the bathroom. The echo of his size thirteen sneakers down her hall quickened her breath. Damn, he was sexy!
Kaelyn went back to her office and answered a few emails. She could hear him in her bathroom making all kinds of noises. A smile curled her lips. She loved a man who worked with his hands.
Hey, babe.
The term of endearment made her nipples point.
Babe
. If only it was possible. But she knew better than that. Men lied and made promises they couldn’t keep. Although, Ashton
had
promised to look at her toilet and here he was. Something told her he was different, yet she just wasn’t ready to believe there was more going on between them than just friendship and sex. Instead, she had to remember that they weren’t in a relationship. Their status was strictly friends with benefits. No commitment. No strings attached.
Kaelyn left the room, retrieved two bottles of water from the new fridge and padded back down the hall. Ashton was straddling the toilet and it made her think of the way he had straddled her while he was sliding his cock between her breasts. His head sprang up when he spotted her out the corner of his eyes.
“How’s it going in here?” she asked, pushing away from the door.
Ashton rose from the toilet seat and smiled lazily. “I replaced the bulb. That should stop it from running.” He reached for the bottle, twisted the cap and brought it to his lips. “Mmmm, thanks, I needed that.” His smile nearly knocked her to her knees. Stepping back, he said, “Go ahead, try it.”
She walked over, brushing against him and a warm shiver of delight ran down her spine.
Gawd
, her body recognized him!
While she stood in front of the commode, Ashton’s arms went around her, resting lightly at her waist. There was no denying how perfect she fit in the cover of his body as he drew her close. She swallowed, trying to fight everything she was feeling as she pushed down on the handle. Within seconds the bowl filled with water and as soon as the bulb floated to the top everything was silent. “Thanks so much. How can I ever repay you?”
“I’m sure we can think of a few things,” he said and swung her around until she was facing him. His eyes met hers dark, dangerous and downright sexy. “Matter of fact… how about we start with dinner this evening?”
Raising onto her tiptoes, Kaelyn planted a kiss to his lips that deepened rapidly. Ashton growled and the way his eyes traveled over her face made her quiver. Ashton wanted a relationship. And despite how hard her heart was pounding, she had to keep it just about sex. “How about we start with an appetizer,” she purred suggestively and leaned in for a kiss. Ashton pressed his lips to hers, groaned, then drew back.
“Kaelyn, look… I really need to talk to you about something,” he said quietly watching her.
She swore under her breath. How was she supposed to maintain any sort of distance if Ashton kept wanting to talk about them? He was kind, sexy, a beast in bed. So far there wasn’t anything about the man she didn’t like, and if she didn’t put the brakes on their relationship she and her heart were headed for trouble.
Kaelyn took a deep breath. “I need to talk to you about something, too.” She dragged a hand across his face, loving the stubble feeling. She couldn’t resist touching him, smoothing the hard lines. “But we can save that for later.”
His dark brown eyes studied her, and for a moment Kaelyn thought he saw right through her scheme, but then his lips were crashing down on hers.
The kiss was hot and his tongue tasted of spearmint gum. He feasted on her mouth. Gone was the low comfortable kiss. Instead it was hot and demanding, sending sparks to her pussy that had her clit standing to attention. With a moan, she sank into it. It was a long, deep and arousing kiss. Exactly what she needed. This was
all
she needed. And as long as she kept reminding herself of that, she just might start believing it.
Without breaking the seal, Ashton backed Kaelyn over to the sink, sat down the bottle of water and then reached for hers and put it on the counter as well.
She leaned into him and wrapped her arms around his neck. His hands were all over her body, her arms, hips and then he drifted down to cup her ass, dragging her close to him. The hard bulge in his shorts cradled at her pussy.
“I want you,” he breathed close to her ear.
Mewing sounds came from deep inside. “Yes, and I want you.” Once again he had her aching for fulfillment as her body grinded against his. Ashton licked and nibbled at her neck and a growl echoed the room when he slid his tongue along her ear.
His mouth took possession again with fluid, confident strokes that had her craving for so much more.
“You miss me?” he asked and caught her bottom lip between his teeth and nipped lightly, exciting her.
“Yes, desperately,” she shivered as his tongue slipped into her mouth and danced along hers.
Things quickly heated between them. The kiss deepened, tongues tangling, twisting and his mouth sucking at her lips. She matched him stroke for erotic stroke sending the most intense sensations to the core of her.
Slipping her hands underneath his shirt, and up over his back, her breath came in short pants as every muscle flexed beneath her.
“Let’s take this to the bedroom,” she suggested.
Pressed close together, he backed her through the door, his mouth still against hers, tongues flicking, sucking. She sucked in a breath but it was never near enough.
Ashton drew back, his smile a wolfish flash of teeth. “You want this dick inside, don’t you?”
A quivery sensation shot up her arm and down her body. The masculine scent curled around her, the heat of his body sent her over the edge. “Oh yes!” She needed his cock, his beautiful thick cock inside her, pumping, stroking, making her come. As soon as they reached her room, she broke the kiss and dragged the yellow sundress up over her head.
Ashton sucked in a breath. “You’re not wearing anything underneath.”
“Too hot for that,” she breathed as his fingers skimmed along her curves, outlining her breasts and then her hips.
“Let me look at you,” he said and as his eyes raked her from head to toe she took a deep, shaky breath. She was aroused beyond reason. “I love the roundness of your breasts and the darkness of your nipples that grow hard every time I touch them,” he began as he traced her areola causing her to shudder. “And then there’s this small waist and the flare of your hips, the dark triangle of hair between your thighs.” His fingers followed the path along her apex and then down to graze her clit, setting her body on fire.
She whimpered. “Please, touch me there!”
“Here?” he asked as if he didn’t already know.
“Yes,” she panted and grinded against his hand. “Oooooh, yes, right there!” Her blood began to boil and flow low in her body.
He chuckled. “You’re naughty and wet.”
“Yes, I’m really naughty,” she cooed, anxious for him to make her come.
He continued to caress her clitoris as he whispered. “Last night I lay in bed, stroking with my dick, remembering how you taste…, the feel of your tight pussy around me…, the taste of your nipples inside my mouth.”
Her mouth dried and her throat tightened as she stared at him. With that he leaned forward and slipped her breasts between his lips, suckling hungrily, causing her back to arch and she seemed to explode.
Suddenly her hands were tearing at his t-shirt and his belt. Once her hand slipped inside, cupping his balls, Ashton shook. “You want some of that?” his voice was soft and intimate.
“Yes, Ashton. I want some,” came in a soft desperate cry.
She watched as Ashton stripped away the rest of his clothes. The way he looked in boxers should have been illegal. She was hot, aroused, and his body was perfect. The sight of his chest, all bronzed and muscled and those rounded pecs caused her throat to dry. But when he pulled off his shorts and briefs, baring his cock, she sucked in her breath.
Gawd
, that man was blessed!
“You miss this?” he asked, eyes dark with promise of something mind-boggling as he stroked his rigid length.
“Yes, now get over here,” Kaelyn muttered.
His expression was serious as he lowered beside her onto the cool sheet. She moved against him, desperate to feel the heat of his body again. He touched and caressed her body as if putting every curve to memory, making her a part of him.
Leaning forward, he kissed her lightly. “Do you trust me?” he asked.
Kaelyn trembled in anticipation and ached for him to take her. His lips prowled her ears, her temples, her cheeks and returned to her lips. “Yes.” She didn’t know why. She barely knew him, and trusting men was what had gotten her hurt in the past, but with Ashton there was just something she couldn’t put her finger on that made her want to believe he was honest and trustworthy. “Yes, I trust you.”
“Good.” His tone held arrogance and pleasure.
She lay there as he rose from the bed, disappeared in the bathroom and returned. What she saw in his hands made her body quiver.
He was holding a rope.
“Hold your arms over your head.”
Kaelyn did as he said and waited as Ashton wrapped the rope around her wrists, secured it around the wrought-iron headboard and tightened.