She got out of the car to stand on shaky legs, having decided that the walk would do her good. The excitement that thrummed through her was so intense it was almost unbearable, and she hoped that the fresh air and bit of extra time would help her calm herself.
••••
It didn’t and when she lifted her hand to knock on Cody’s door, it shook. She dropped it quickly and clenched her fist tight, using the heartbeat between the knock and Cody opening the door to school her features to the extent possible. Cody stood, his body filling the door frame, his hand on the knob. Her gaze immediately found his and her breath caught in her throat. No one had ever looked at her with such naked and unabashed desire. He tilted his head and moved slightly, inviting her in. With a deep breath, she crossed the threshold, thinking this night would change everything.
But that thought and all others fled, leaving only that aching desire, and the feeling only intensifying when he closed and locked the door. He stepped in front of her and pulled the keys she hadn’t remembered she was clenching out of her hands and placed them on the small table by the door. Then he slid her oversize handbag off her shoulder and set it next to the keys. As he moved, she watched, and when he turned to face her and their gazes again clashed, she swayed slightly, her body seeming to demand to be closer to him before her conscious mind could even form the thought.
Though she might have been in a bit of a haze, Cody most assuredly was not and with one sure stride, he closed the distance between them and captured her lips in a kiss. His first kiss had been gentle, soft, but this time he kissed her with a fierce passion that left her speechless, that made her, for the first time in her life, want to yield to him, to let go of the reins of her control and let him take her to the heights that she believed with every fiber of her being only he could.
That thought, one that left her light-headed, giddy with the possibility of doing so, spurred desire unlike any she’d ever felt, and almost unconsciously, she moved closer to him, the heat of his strong body bleeding into hers, and let her hand rest against the sculpted muscle of his chest. And when she opened her mouth on a sigh, he deepened their kiss. But unlike before, she didn’t press the issue, content, more than content, to let Cody set the pace.
And he did, kissing her deeply and thoroughly, the faint flavor of beer and a taste that she knew was uniquely him filling her mouth. As they kissed, he moved his hands up her sides, the lazy strokes completely at odds with the passion of his kiss. Without breaking their embrace, he worked at the buttons of her shirt—she gave a silent thank-you that she’d worn a button-down, the thought of breaking this touch for something as mundane as removing clothing almost unfathomable—and when he reached the final button, he pulled apart the material and slid it down her arms, the rasp of linen, now wrinkled from wear, against her skin leaving goose bumps in its wake. But that was no surprise; all of her senses were heightened, and the arousal that surged in her blood was more intense than she’d ever felt.
The shirt hit the floor with a soft wisp and though the material was light, a necessity given the late spring temperatures, a chill ran through her now that her skin was exposed. But it was quickly chased away by the heat of Cody’s hands as he reversed the path the shirt had just taken, lightly tracing up her arms, over her shoulders, and down her chest. He kept his hands there, thumbs stirring a tornado inside her as he rubbed them over the slope of her collarbones.
And then he broke the kiss, and she cried out at his absence. As she peeled open eyes that she hadn’t even realized she’d closed, she was met with the sight of Cody, standing strong, chest heaving with panted-out breaths that were as heavy as her own. He looked rugged, handsome, and so desirable that she had to squeeze her thighs tight to try to contain the need that filled her. He also looked like someone she had to touch if only to prove to herself that he was real, to prove that finally, after all of the teases, imaginings, and fever dreams, she was here with Cody in the flesh, about to fulfill a desire that had been with her for far too long.
She curled her fingers against his chest briefly before she stroked down the plane of his chest and then grasped at the hem of his shirt, pulling the soft cotton up. The play of passion in his eyes was riveting, but she needed to see him, so she broke his gaze and watched as he was revealed, first his tight six-pack lightly dusted with brown hair, then the perfection of his pectoral muscles, then his bunched shoulders that she couldn’t wait to grip as he pounded into her. He took over and quickly finished removing the shirt and then tossed it away in a smooth, fluid motion.
That ferocious hunger still in his eyes, he cupped a hand to her ass and rocked against her, the hard ridge of his cock pressing against her soft stomach. Finally, after what felt like an eternity of waiting, she’d soon have him inside her, and that awareness had her hands, moving with an eagerness she’d never had with other lovers, roving over his body, taking in the strong plane of his back, the firmness of his ass and then, finally, the warm thickness of his shaft. She squeezed lightly, and he blew out a breath against her neck.
When she did it again, he exhaled hard again and then trailed his hand down to rest between her thighs. It was her turn to breathe hard when he cupped her sex with his big hand, the pressure against her clit too faint to give any real satisfaction, something that the wicked smile on his face told her he well knew. He pressed the heel of his hand against her, slightly increasing the pressure against her clit, and her womb clenched, reminding her of how wet she was and how empty, something she would soon fix.
Brain fuzzy with the heady sexual energy flowing between them, she fumbled in his pockets, almost exhilarated enough to scream when she found a condom there. Maybe she should have been offended he’d been so certain about the outcome of this visit, but she definitely wasn’t. No, she was relieved that he’d saved the precious seconds it would take to find it, seconds that she planned to put to good use. That thought spurring her, she squeezed him one final time before she opened his fly and pushed his pants down, freeing his cock.
His cock bobbed in front of him, hard and strong, his long, thick shaft heavily veined and capped with a bulbous, mushroom-shaped head that was red and slick with his own arousal. Unable to stop herself, she gripped him, steel under satin skin, and he let out a strangled-sounding half moan at her touch. The feel of him in her hand, the fact that his desire for her had him in this state, was her undoing. She released him and began fumbling with her own pants, relieving herself of them.
Cody’s eyes widened when he saw her, and he smoothed his thumb across her mound.
“Bare,” he said on a husky whisper and then he gave her a wolfish smile before he cupped her again, using two fingers to stroke her outer lips and then slipping them inside to trace the inner.
“Ahh,” she moaned, the feel of his fingers and the muted sound of them swirling in her wetness making her cry out.
She bucked against him, his cock brushing her hip when he buried one finger inside her, a tantalizing glimpse of what was to come. He didn’t move the finger and she clenched around it, trying to suck him in deeper. And she was rewarded when he added a second and then a third, stretching her walls in the most delicious way.
He pumped his fingers inside her, sending concussions of pleasure through her body that had her flying closer and closer to climax. Her eyes flew open when he abruptly pulled his fingers out and with that cocky grin on his face, he grabbed her hand and pried the condom, which she held in a death grip, out of her fingers. She watched avidly as he opened the packet and rolled the thin material down his shaft, and all the while he stared at her, cocky and self-satisfied by what she knew was her lustful stare.
Well, two could play that game. She lowered herself to the couch and spread her legs as wide as she could, releasing her own self-satisfied smile when Cody’s dropped and was replaced with scorching desire. And then, moving with grace and restrained power, he sprang toward her, looping an arm around her back and lifting her.
When his cock brushed against her hole, she grasped his shoulders and tightened the hold as he pushed himself inside her. Inch by glorious inch, he brought them together, and she let her eyes drift shut and gritted her teeth, letting the maelstrom wash over her. And when he pulled back and then plunged in so hard that the couch shifted, she was gone.
“Cody!” she cried as he moved inside her, his arm tight around her, his shoulders strong under her hands.
His lips found hers, and all sound was lost as he kissed her feverishly, the stroke of his tongue in and out of her mouth mirroring the stroke of his cock in and out of her pussy. She pulsed around him, his shaft rubbing her clit on each thrust, until the sizzle of electricity that had been building bolted through her and she came apart in his arms, screaming her pleasure into his kiss.
Yet he continued, moving inside her at a furious pace. Given the precarious balance of the couch, she marveled at the strength and control of his body. She’d found the energy to open her eyes and she watched as he moved, biceps bulging as he braced himself against the couch with one arm and held her with the other, the outline of his thigh muscles stark as he pushed into her, his ass flexing against her calves with his exertion.
He broke their kiss and, with one final stroke, cried out and spilled himself into the condom, the throb of his cock inside her and the tremors that racked his body making her clamp her walls down tight around him. He bent his arm, and they went down, half on, half off the couch, bodies still intimately connected.
As he lay against her, she stroked him, arms, shoulders, back, loving the contented little sighs he released. And when he softened and slipped from her, she ignored the stab of loss that hit her, instead focusing on how good it had felt to have him inside her, how good it felt to touch him now.
His harsh breaths brushed her shoulder until he pulled back and smiled at her.
“Not bad for round one,” he said.
••••
He was awake when the first hints of morning sun broke over the horizon. And so was she. Cody didn’t think she’d slept at all, but then again, he hadn’t either. The frantic coupling on his couch had been an appetizer, and in the hours after, he’d taken his time, taking her over and over again. He was tempted to again, but as he reached for her, she stood and headed to the bathroom, Cody enjoying the view as she retreated.
He went to the other bathroom and then back to the living room. In the five minutes they’d been apart, Blakely had dressed, and if he hadn’t been a participant, he almost wouldn’t have believed that she’d just ridden his cock so expertly that they’d both reached screaming orgasm. She was entirely put together, her blouse neatly tucked, not a hair out of place. But her eyes gave her away, that soft, nearly dreamy look that was so different from her usual expression. And so did her lips, full before, but now ripe, swollen with his kisses.
Seeing her like that, so neat and put together but unable to hide the fact that she was a woman freshly fucked, just made him want to do it all over again. That thought in mind, he walked toward her, feeling a hum of satisfaction at the glint of anticipation that lit her eyes. She reached up, for what he didn’t know, for she stopped halfway, frowning as she caught sight of her fingers.
“It’s okay. Stop worrying about it,” he said when he reached her.
“You noticed? I should have gotten it fixed today, but I didn’t have time,” she said, her brow furrowing as she worriedly looked at the offending nail.
He grabbed her hand and swiped a finger over the polish, which was pristine as far as he could tell, save the tiny chip that Blakely fussed over.
“I only noticed because you haven’t stopped touching it all night. All during the party, you kept looking at it, smoothing it over. I thought you’d hurt your finger or something at first.”
When she turned her eyes from her finger to his face, he noted that the edge of worry had receded and was replaced with a combination of surprise and a faint tinge of embarrassment.
“Oh no. Did everyone notice?” she asked.
“Probably not. I was just paying special attention.”
He smiled, and after a beat, she returned the expression and then, in a move that surprised him, glided her lips over his. He returned the kiss, enjoying the leisurely caress. He silenced the protest that sprang up before it could come out.
“This was nice,” she said.
He nodded his response and then waited, not quite sure where she was headed.
“I’d like to do it again.”
“Me too,” he said.
She smiled faintly and then her eyes turned somber. “But this is fun, Cody. Casual. Nothing more,” she said, her voice firm, unwavering, making her dead seriousness on the subject undeniable.
Casual was exactly how he liked things but something, probably that stubborn streak that not even a decade in the military had managed to correct, made him object. Yeah, it was his stubborn streak, he reassured himself. Of course, that didn’t explain why the idea of Blakely shutting down the idea of something deeper rankled as much as it did. But he’d chalk that up to pride. After all, more than a few women had tried to get him to settle down, tried to convince him that he wanted something more than casual fun, so Blakely insisting on it before he even had a chance to was just a little role reversal, an unanticipated development, nothing more. Still, his nature compelled him to push the issue.