Angel

This cannot be happening. I am not straddling the famous River Kelly in the back seat of a Mercedes after having a gourmet seafood dinner and two bottles of wine with him. I didn’t just have my picture taken by the paparazzi, and no way in hell did I meet and get an autograph from Ruby Bissette!

But it is happening. I’ve had enough to drink to toss my inhibitions aside, and for once in my life, I’m going with the flow.

I can’t believe River is trying to rein me in. He’s been pulling out every stop all night, and now that I’m willing to give in to everything, he’s decided to be a gentleman.

Over my dead body. I don’t know where we’re going, but wherever it is, there had better be a bed and a shower because this girl is about to break the longest dry spell in the history of mankind. A dry spell worthy of a river, and I just happen to have one underneath me right now, primed and ready to go.

“Where are we going?” I ask with our mouths still touching.

He pulls away to answer. “My sister’s house. She’s going out of town to meet up with her husband and kids. We will have the whole house to ourselves. She has an enormous hot tub and pool.”

He says it like he’s trying to convince me to go, and there’s no need. I’m more than willing to follow him anywhere.

“Is there a bed?”

“Yes, they’re pretty modern people. They don’t sleep on the floor.”

“Is it big?”

“The bed?”

“Yes, silly, what else?” I say.

He thrusts his hips upward, connecting his length with my core, and raises his brows high, and I laugh.

“Okay, okay, I surrender to the king’s sword!” I yell. I collapse against his chest and bury my face in his neck while fits of laughter rack my body.

“You’re out of control, but I think I like it.” He digs his long fingers into my ribs and tickles me silly until I can’t breathe. Why have I been avoiding this for so long? I love being carefree and silly. I’d almost forgotten how much.

The car turns, and I hold onto River’s shoulders so I don’t go rolling across the back seat.

“We’re here.”

The car stops in the circle drive of a house fit for a billionaire. River slides me off his lap and opens the door, reaching back to help me out. It feels good to stretch my legs after being cramped up in the back seat.

“Wow, Poppy’s must be doing well to afford this swanky house.”

“It is, but her husband is an investment banker and my sister-in-law is a very successful real estate agent. You can’t go wrong with that combination.”

He leans down and says something to the driver before closing the door. He takes my arm and leads me up a steep set of stairs to a set of wrought iron doors that a giant could comfortably fit through.

I watch him slide a key in the lock and swing one of the heavy doors open for me to pass. Inside, it’s dark, and the light scents of vanilla and spice hang in the air.

River closes the door and presses a series of numbers into a security system box. When he turns toward me, I can only see an outline of him in the dark, but he still makes me shiver. The alcohol is wearing off, and the significance of my decision to spend the night with a man I’ve only known for two days begins to settle in.

That is, until he takes my hand and leads me through the foyer to the back yard. His touch relieves my uneasiness, and I realize that my inhibitions are still absent even though my buzz is wearing off.

Outside, the Olympic-sized pool glows in the dark and the scent of chlorine invades my nose, taking me back to the summer days I spent lounging around my parents’ pool. Back when they still had hopes of me becoming a doctor.

Just beyond the pool is the enormous Hot Tub River spoke of.

“You weren’t kidding. That’s a huge hot tub. I’ve never seen one that size before.”

“That’s because originally, it was the pool until Allen had this monster put in. His daughter, Courtney, is an amazing diver and swimmer. They hope she’ll be in the Olympics someday.”

“You have some talented genes in your family, huh?”

“No more than you.”

We continue to walk around the giant pool toward the pool-sized hot tub.

“There are suits in the pool house if you want, or we could just . . .”

He nods his head toward the dimly lit water.

“Let’s just do it. Nobody's around, right?”

“No,” he says with a chuckle.

“No security cameras?”

“I’m pretty sure Allen wouldn’t have left the house on vacation without turning on the security cameras.”

I purse my lips together and fiddle with my bracelet while I consider the risks of being caught naked on camera.

“Maybe you could shield me while I slip in?”

“No problem. Come on.”

He leads me to a chair near the pool and gestures for me to sit. When I do, he kneels down in front of me, and I imagine him kneeling down to ask me to marry him.

It’s just a fantasy. I know it’ll never happen, but a girl can dream.

He takes my foot into his big hands and slips my shoe from my foot. I’m not crazy about people seeing my feet, let alone touching them, but I’ve been breaking rules all night. Why stop now?

With his eyes on my foot, he massages it, and I involuntarily flop back in the expensive lawn chair and moan.

“God, that feels so good. Sorry about the calluses.”

“Hush, you have beautiful feet. These feet are loaded with a talent that will make you famous someday soon.”

The other shoe slides off, and I close my eyes while he presses his thumb into the high arch of my overworked foot. If he keeps doing this, I may come before we ever get our clothes off—it feels that good.

Then I feel his warm lips on the top of my foot. He’s kissing my foot, and now, my calf and my knee. His hands glide up the outside of my thighs and inside my dress. He lays his head in my lap and inhales deeply.

“My God, you smell so fucking good.”

I move my hands to the arms of the chair and suck in a breath, causing his head to lower into my concave belly.

He lifts his head and fixes me with a hypnotizing stare.

“Are you sure?” he asks, and I nod my head fractionally.

His hands move from the outside of my thighs to the inside, and he spreads my legs as far as my dress will allow, but that’s not far enough.

“Lift,” he says, and I lift my hips while he slides the dress up around my waist, exposing my skin to the warm night air. He continues to hover over me, shielding me in case there are cameras pointed at the hot tub, and for that, I am grateful.

His gaze travels from my flat, quivering belly to my smooth, bare mound, and he closes his eyes on a moan that sets me on fire between my legs.

“Relax, baby, let go and relax.” He drags out that last relax, and his words trail off until I have loosened my death grip on the chair and threaded my fingers through his thick, wavy dark hair.

His hands explore my belly, and his lips dip down to kiss my navel. I gasp, and tension seizes my muscles until he begins to repeat the relax mantra. I slowly melt under his touch.

His kisses become more urgent as his hands slide down my thighs and hook behind my knees. I close my eyes and feel him spread my legs wide. The air hitting my exposed wet core is exhilarating, and the warm puffs of his breath tell me he is almost close enough to taste me.

He slides my legs over his shoulders and covers my wet mound with his mouth. Long, luxurious laps of his tongue cause me to shudder and squirm. I clutch his hair and greedily push him against me until he reaches around my legs and places my hands on the arms of the chair.

“Keep your hands here. I’ll lead, you follow, okay? Trust me. I’ll make you come over and over, Pretty Dancer, but you have to let me be the boss.”

I nod eagerly and hold onto the arms of the chair as he said. Nobody has ever promised me multiple orgasms, and nobody has ever told me they were the boss. It’s liberating to know he has all of the control. All I have to do is follow his lead and trust him, and he will reward me with a pleasure overload.

“Good girl. There’s just one more thing. Don’t close your eyes. I want you to remember every second of this night, understand?”

“Yes, eyes open, relax, and remember.”

“Perfect.”

He kisses the insides of my thighs and returns to pleasing me, but this time, I know the rules. With open eyes and Jell-O legs, I watch this man go to work at giving me my first mind blowing orgasm in I don’t even know how many years.

No matter how hard I try, I can’t keep from squirming, but he holds me securely in place as my orgasm builds and builds until I can’t hold on anymore. He traces figure-eights around and over my clit and explores places no man's mouth has ever explored before until my eyes roll back in my head.

A strangled gasp is the only sound coming from my mouth—no yelling or screaming his name, just breathless silence until my body starts to regain control of its muscles.

He rests his cheek against my thigh, and I look into his smiling eyes.

“See, it’s good to let go and have fun once in a while, isn’t it?”

“Oh my God, you have no idea how good.”

He winks and pats my legs. “Nope, not yet, but soon. I say we skip the hot tub and go mess up my sister’s bed.”

“Hot tub later?” I ask, and he nods his head up and down.

“Definitely. Your muscles are going to need those jets when I’m through with you.”

I don’t mention that my muscles can take a lot of abuse. I’m curious to find out just how hard he plans on working me. I may not need to practice tomorrow, after all. It sounds like I’m in for a pretty intense workout tonight.