Best Friends With the Billionaire(22)

She dug her fingernails into his shoulder. He broke off the kiss and drew back slightly.

“What’s wrong? Want me to stop?”

“No.” She grinned up at him. “Just wondering if I could win an arm wrestle with you.”

“Kiss me, and I’ll let you win any kind of wrestle with me.”

She cupped her hands around his face and drew him to her. Fire rose in her. She kissed him long and deep, her tongue frisking with his, and when they broke for air, his eyes were sparking, and his hand was cupped around her breast.

“Cassie.” He hauled in a breath. “I have to ask you something.”

Her lips throbbed, her body roiled with unconsummated heat. “Go on.”

“Last night when we were making out, I stopped because I didn’t want to ruin anything between us. But all through today I couldn’t stop thinking about you.” He brushed the back of his fingers over her cheek, the tenderness unexpected and moving. “The thing is, you’ll be leaving soon, and I might not see you for a long while, and it’s driving me crazy that I might never get the chance to make love to you.”

Her heart bloomed and quivered. Of course Kirk was only using the term “make love” for her benefit when what he meant was more crude and basic. He wasn’t in love with her. He couldn’t be because he’d just confirmed he had no plans to stop her or chase after her when she left. Well, so what? She didn’t expect romantic love from him. Heck, the kissing was far more than she’d ever expected, anything beyond that was a bonus.

“So, something like friends with benefits?” she asked, keeping her tone light.

He massaged her breast gently, muddling up her thoughts. “Yeah.” He dipped his head to forage at her neck. “As your best friend, I can offer you some great benefits.”

“Mmm…” His hand was doing incredible things to her breast. “Talking yourself up there, buddy. Hope you can deliver.”

In reply, he slid his hand into the crossover top of her dress and pushed aside her lace bra. The heat of his palm engulfed her breast, his broad thumb rotating around her already upright nipple.

“Am I delivering some now?” He tugged the dress lower over one of her shoulders and nestled his head into her cleavage. When his mouth closed around her nipple, she arched her back, gasping, her core tightening with moist heat. The indigo sky above her darkened as he licked and sucked her breast. When he released her, the breeze felt cool against her damp, throbbing nipple. “You like those benefits?”

“A-amazing,” she panted, desperate for more. “Keep ’em coming.”

He gripped her knee then glided his hand slowly up the length of her thigh, all the while kissing her lightly. She rolled into him and lifted her leg over his, encouraging his hand to slide higher. He obliged, his fingers flitting over her lace panties. She’d gone to some effort with her underwear, figuring she didn’t want to be shown up in front of Lillian’s friends, and now she was glad she was wearing a matching black lace set. Not that Kirk seemed to care what her panties were made of. He skirted his hand around to her belly, pressing his palm against her abdomen before he moved southward under the lace, exploring the curls between her thighs.

Desire convulsed deep in her, rushed through her, a manic burst of energy. She shuddered then lifted herself half up, her momentum propelling Kirk to lie face up on the picnic blanket. Shifting her leg, she straddled him. He blinked in surprise but didn’t resist, curiosity plain in his expression as he gazed up at her.

She acted on instinct. She unbuttoned his shirt and ran her hands greedily over his chest, relishing the play of his muscles. Bending over him, she skated her mouth across his shoulders, licking and sucking. He tasted of salt and something warm, earthy, erogenous. His muscular beauty thrilled her as she explored him in detail. How incredible that she had the freedom to indulge herself. She kissed the hollow at the base of his throat, enchanted by the deep, quick beat of his pulse. She squeezed her thighs around his hips, pressing her panties against the growing bulge in his jeans. He groaned, his eyes flaring, hands clenching. She knew he could flip her onto her back anytime he wanted to, regardless of her weight, but it seemed he chose to let her tease him. How far could she go?

Gripping his waistband, she ground herself against him, rubbing back and forth over his erection. The friction of his denim aroused her as much as the blazing look in his eyes. He grasped her thighs and encouraged her movements, molding himself into the apex of her thighs until they were moving in unison.

Oh God, she was torturing herself as much as him. She didn’t know how much longer she could take this teasing.

Kirk sat up, holding her firmly in his lap. “Let’s go somewhere private.” His voice was thick, strained.

She could only nod before scrambling to her feet. She swayed, lightheaded with lust, and Kirk caught her round the waist. “Easy there, sweetheart.”

His endearment made her knees buckle, but Kirk’s arm circled her, strong and sturdy. The salty evening breeze momentarily cooled her flushed cheeks. She took several deep breaths to steady herself before they began to pack up the picnic blanket and the remains of their dinner.

“Where’re we going?” she asked once they were back in Kirk’s car and driving off.

He pressed his lips together, frowning slightly. “You know what, I’m an idiot. I didn’t book a hotel room before I came racing down here.”

And it was nine p.m. in Carmel on a balmy Saturday night. Their chances of finding a room were bupkus.

“It doesn’t matter.” Cassie squeezed her hands between her knees. “We—we don’t need a room when we’ve got a car.”

Kirk’s eyebrows shot up. “You sure about that?” he said, his eyes bright in the glow from his dashboard.

They were driving past some sort of forest. A sign up ahead indicated a turn off onto a scenic drive. “Let’s go there,” she murmured.

Kirk steered the car onto the dirt side road. He leaned forward in his seat, hands clutched around the steering wheel. She sensed the anticipation boiling in him, the same thrilling hope that hummed through her veins. She could barely sit still or keep her hands to herself.

Kirk shifted a hand from the wheel to her knee. Her heart started, her limbs trembled. Still steering the car down the winding road, he massaged her, his fingertips rotating over the soft inner part of her leg. She responded in kind, stroking the length of his thigh, her hand unsteady.

The car bounced over a rut before Kirk guided them into a small parking bay off the road. He braked hard, the car coming to a halt with its nose deep in a bank of bushes. He cut the engine and the lights and turned to her, arms already around her, pulling her in.

They kissed as if they were starved, lips and tongues desperate, hands groping under clothes. She couldn’t get enough of him, couldn’t get close enough to him. Kirk’s Aston Martin was the ultimate in luxury, but the central console was like the Great Wall of China keeping them apart.

“Wait.” Kirk pressed a button that made his seat shift back and slowly recline.

Cassie didn’t wait for an invitation. She was on top of him before he was fully horizontal. She fumbled with his shirt while Kirk efficiently unzipped her dress and pulled it off her. She was still getting rid of his shirt when he unclipped her bra and cupped her breasts. Then she lost focus as his mouth and fingers went to work on her nipples. Oh, she could let him do that all night if only she wasn’t desperate to have him inside her.

She was boneless with pleasure when Kirk pushed himself up. His hands gripped her panties. “Maybe you should get rid of these before I tear them off.”

With a few gymnastic maneuvers, she shucked off her underwear, while Kirk unbuckled his belt and pulled down his jeans. When she finally caught sight of his erection, rigid as a flagpole, she had to gulp to stop herself from gasping. She wrapped her fingers around his girth. He was hot, ribbed, rock hard, and velvety soft at the tip. She stroked him, astonished that she could touch him, that very soon she would feel all that moving inside her.

“Wait,” Kirk muttered again. He felt inside the storage bin of his door and pulled out a packet of condoms.

She sat back on his knees. “So you forgot the hotel room, but you remembered the condoms?”

“I have my priorities.” He rolled the condom onto himself then wrapped his hands around her waist. “We’re going to swap places, sweetheart, because as much as I love having you straddle me, this first time, I want to be on top.”

Cassie didn’t care who was on top as long as she didn’t have to wait too long. She didn’t know how he did it, but with remarkable dexterity, he had her on her back in three seconds flat. Bracing himself over her on one elbow, he slipped a hand between her thighs and found her seam of moisture. She thought he wouldn’t wait to bury himself in her, but it appeared he had other ideas. He explored her flesh, his fingers soft and caressing, unerringly discovering all the points of pleasure surrounding her opening. Heat flooded her as she shifted in time with his fingers, her core swelling and aching for release.

Finally, when she was almost at her peak, he rolled his body in between her legs, spread her wide apart, and sank deep into her with a husky grunt of satisfaction. She’d thought she was nearing her climax, but the wonder of Kirk filling her up sent her soaring to a new height. He slipped his hands around her thighs, supporting her as he began to move in and out of her. She lost herself in a whirlpool of sensations. Their bodies rocked together, slick with sweat, burning with torrid fire. One of her legs was draped over the center console, while her other foot was braced against the steering wheel. Kirk’s body crushed hers, but she reveled in his weight, biting his meaty shoulder as he thrust harder and harder into her.