He released her hair, and she grabbed both of his hands. She soaked in the look of surprise in his dark, hungry eyes as she captured his mouth. A torrent of excitement swept through her. Taking rather than giving was her second favorite thing. And take she did, claiming him in another scorching kiss, nipping at his scruffy jaw. Releasing his hands, she worked open the buttons on his shirt, and he watched, those deep-set eyes drinking her in as his hips created a perfect rhythm beneath her. God, she loved that.
She tore open his shirt, sending the last few buttons flying across the lawn and baring his glorious muscles, hidden only by a dusting of dark chest hair. Her eyes slid to the Superman tattoo on his left arm. She’d seen it before, and she was dying to know what it meant to him, but there was no way she was slowing down to ask. Not when there were lickable abs in reach. Another flick of her eyes to his intense stare brought a resurgence of desire. She lowered her mouth to his nipple and bit down.
“Fuck, Addy.” His hips bolted off the chair, sending her hands to his biceps to steady herself.
His arms were as hard as steel, just like in her fantasies, only a million times better.
“Again,” he growled.
Oh yeah, Jake definitely wasn’t all talk, no action. She repeated her assault on the other side, and he hissed out a curse. She laved her tongue over the bite, then sucked that tight peak. A long, low groan rumbled up his chest, vibrating against her mouth.
He clutched her hips, forcing his words through gritted teeth. “Why did we wait so long to do this?”
Her eyes snapped up to his, her heart stuttering at the answer she was trying not to think about. “Why do you have to talk?”
He flashed an arrogant grin.
Her mind reeled back to all the times he’d propositioned her, cornering her in bars when they were out with friends, whispering in her ear as they left clubs. One thing had been constant, and it had been enough to hold her back from accepting his offers. Gabriella had always been present, an important reminder that she shouldn’t have a one-night stand with someone who was soon to be—now was—her best friend’s family. But now that she’d tasted his kisses, felt his power, she was past the point of no return. She wanted him. All of him. And there was only one way she could get through this without guilt stopping her at every turn.
“No talking.”
He arched a brow. “Seriously?”
“Yes. Unless you’d rather I stopped.”
He swept a hand toward his body, offering himself up. She lowered her mouth to his chest again, but damn it, her mind was stuck on the reason she’d always held back.
She breathed him in, loving his potent musky scent, and closed her eyes, trying to get back into the moment. She concentrated on the feel of his hot skin, the way his heart beat hard and steady against her lips. But with every kiss, every touch, she worried about the ramifications of their hookup. She sat up again, needing guidelines, rules, expectations, and earning another arched brow from the incredibly sexy man beneath her.
“This isn’t going anywhere,” she said flatly.
“Seemed like we were on the right track.” He sat up straighter and placed a kiss to the exposed skin between her breasts.
She melted a little at the tenderness of the kiss, which further rattled her. Addy didn’t melt.
“I mean us, Jake. This is just one night to get it out of our systems. Nothing more.”
His jaw clenched for only a second. She might have imagined it.
“Works for me.” Gripping her hips harder, he lowered his mouth to her neck.
“Your brother is married to my best friend. We…” Good Lord, he knew just how hard to suck. “We can’t let this get awkward.” He continued his oral assault while he untied her halter from behind her neck. The royal-blue material slid down her breasts, and he grazed his teeth along the overly sensitive tip of the taut peak.
She clung to his head, holding him to her as she struggled to remain coherent enough to speak. “I mean it, Jake,” she panted out. “If we do this…” If?
His hand pushed up her thigh, and his thumb brushed over her panties. She was breathing too hard. Her mind flitted away with every stroke of his thumb, every slick of his tongue.
“They can’t know.” She closed her eyes as his thumb snuck beneath her panties. “Jake.” He continued teasing, moving to the other breast as he stroked her most sensitive nerves, thrusting his fingers deep inside her. She gasped at the exquisite intrusion, but lingering in the recesses of her mind was the need to know he’d heard her.
“Jake!” She grabbed his wrist and he leaned back, looking annoyed. “Do you even hear me?”
“I’m busy, not deaf,” he said sternly.
“This is important. I need to know you won’t let things get awkward, or brag about this.”
“I assure you,” he said, his fingers moving adeptly inside of her, stroking the spot that made her toes curl under, “there will be no awkward naked moments or bragging.”
She squeezed his wrist, a smile curving her lips despite herself. She couldn’t help it. She loved that he was as much of a smart-ass as she was. “I mean tomorrow.” She tried not to think too hard, because after the way the thought of tomorrow had stolen her concentration just now, she didn’t want to chance getting sidetracked again. She wanted this with Jake. Hell, she’d wanted it for so long she was surprised she had enough rational thought left to think about the consequences at all. She just needed this assurance. Then she could go back to having her way with Mr. Sinful Pleasures.
He withdrew his hand from between her legs and gripped her thighs again. “I thought we were both on the same page. That this is a hookup.”
Why did that sting? “We are. I was just making sure.”
“No second thoughts?” His expression turned serious.
“No. As long as you’re not going to get all weird and jealous, like you did with Niko.” She was not new to one-night stands, and she wasn’t worried about feeling regretful tomorrow, because this was her decision, and she was going in with her eyes wide open. Aren’t I? She hoped she really could keep this to a one-night stand. But one thing was certain. She couldn’t risk making things uncomfortable for Gabriella and her family.
JAKE CLENCHED HIS jaw. He’d been as shocked as she was over his jealousy. It had been a momentary lapse in judgment, that was all, but he had trouble making that feel true. Thinking fast to cover his tracks, he said, “That wasn’t jealousy. I was protecting you.”
She crossed her arms, looking hotter than hell with her breasts perched high and a scowl on her magnificent mouth. “Protecting me?”
“From making a mistake. A guy like Niko is looking for a wife, and you’ve made it clear that relationships aren’t your thing.”
She seemed to think about that, her expression serious. He hoped like hell she believed it, because it was partially true. Niko had said he hoped to find the right woman to marry soon, and she’d made no bones about the fact that she’d never been a relationship girl.
She huffed out a breath and her arms dropped to her sides. “How kind of you.” Each word dripped with sarcasm. “But I don’t need protecting.”
“Every woman needs protecting,” he said sharply.
“Jake! I’m not arguing this ridiculous point with you again. I have no idea what I’ll do ten minutes from now, much less tomorrow. I might meet a guy I’m interested in, and I don’t want to worry about you getting all weird about it.”
“I promise you, sexy girl. Once we do this, the only thing you’ll want tomorrow is a rerun of tonight. You’ll feel me with every move you make. And flirting with any other guy won’t even enter that bright mind of yours, because every single thought will bring you back to me.” Holy fuck, he wanted that. He wanted that so badly he vowed to make it happen.
She laughed. “You’re an ass, you know that?”
That laugh, that smile… “So I’ve been told.”
He eyed her breasts and realized she had absolutely no embarrassment sitting there half naked in front of him. He liked that a whole hell of a lot. Until he thought about it a little more, bringing all her sassy attitude into focus, and realized she must have been naked with a lot of other guys. Another unfamiliar wave of jealousy hit him, and it took all his focus to push past it.
“I will not think of you in that way after tonight,” she said firmly. “Just reassure me you won’t get weird.”
“No worries in that department, sexy girl.” Okay, so that was an outright lie. There was no way he could rein in his jealousy after this. He had no idea what was going on in his fucked-up head, but there was no way he was turning back when everything he wanted was right there in front of him.
“Okay,” she said, her voice a little less confident. “Because after tonight you’ll be safely in the friend-I’ve-done zone. No repeats. No weirdness.”
He nearly choked on the urge to ask her how many friends she’d done. But he wasn’t about to go there and screw up his one chance with her.
“Any other questions?” He moved lower and flicked his tongue over her nipple.
“No. Stop talking and get busy.” She closed her eyes as he chuckled, and he drew her nipple against the roof of his mouth.