CHAPTER 20

CHARMER

Brandon

By the time I left the shop, I was dying to talk to Charlie. It was almost nine o’clock when I finally climbed into my car, and I needed sleep. I had another booked day tomorrow before we left for our camping trip, and I was going to be spending over three hours working on a chest piece that I had started about six weeks ago.

But I wanted to see Charlie more. Sleep could wait. She wouldn’t.

I opened my phone and quickly pressed her name. The phone rang and rang before finally going to her voicemail.

I looked down at my phone then clicked on her name again. Same damn thing.

I started my car, and I didn’t think much about it before I realized that I was headed in the direction of her apartment.

She could have just not wanted to talk to me, but I didn’t care. I needed to see her. I was dying to touch her.

Her car was parked out front of her apartment building, and there was a soft glow of light coming from her apartment. I rapped my knuckles against her door.

When she didn’t answer the first time, I knocked again.

“Coming,” she called out, and I could hear rustling behind the door.

When the door finally opened, Charlie looked like I had just woken her up from the deepest sleep of her life. Her curls were a wild mess on her head, and there was a bit of mascara smeared under her eyes. But it was the tiny ass tank top and shorts she was wearing that really caught my attention. Her freckles that I had come to love were smattered all over her body from the top of her head to the tip of her toes, and in that moment, I wanted nothing more to trace the map of them with my tongue.

“What time is it?” She yawned and pushed her curls out of her face.

“About nine.”

She moved to the side and let me into her apartment. I took in her space as quickly as my eyes could. Her home was filled with as much color as her bakery, and I smiled at the bright blue couch that took up most of the space.

“I didn’t mean to fall asleep.”

“It’s alright.” I looked down at the pink throw blanket on her couch where she must have been sleeping. “I called, but when you didn’t answer, I thought I’d stop by. I hope that’s alright.”

“Of course.” She smiled at me, a sleepy smile, and I decided that I wanted to wake up to that smile. I had never wanted anything more in my life.

I pressed my lips against her forehead. “I’ll go. Let you get some sleep.”

“No.” She tugged on my hand as she shook her head. “Stay with me.”

Her eyes were pleading with me, and I knew that I couldn’t tell her no. So, I let her lead me into her bedroom, and I sat down on her bed that looked like it had close to a million pillows on it.

She moved around the room nervously picking things up and moving them around. I didn’t want her to be nervous with me.

“Come here.” I reached out for her, and she slowly brought her eyes to me before she dropped the sweater in her hands and made her way to me. She stood in front of me, and I gripped her hands in mine. They were shaking, and I felt that vibration all the way through me.

“You’re tired.” I tugged her closer to me. “I’m tired. Let’s get some sleep.”

Her gaze slid to the bed, but she didn’t immediately say anything.

“Just sleep.” I squeezed her hands in mine. “Just let me hold you.”

I didn’t want to rush her or what we had. Charlie wasn’t just any girl, and I sure as hell didn’t want to make her feel that way. No matter how badly I was dying to touch every inch of her.

“Okay.” She nodded her head then crawled into bed.

I stood and kicked off my shoes. She tracked my hands as they moved to my belt. I let my jeans drop to the floor and pulled the blanket back to crawl into bed beside her.

“Your shirt.” She was looking up at me with a pillow tucked between her arm and head. Her red curls surrounded her, and for a moment, all I could think about was what she would look like beneath me. I had thought about it so many damn times, but I knew that my imagination wouldn’t do it justice.

She looked up at me expectantly, but I had forgotten what she said.

“Huh?”

“Your shirt.” She motioned to my black t-shirt. “Take it off.”

I slowly pulled my t-shirt over my head, and I swear nothing in this world was sexier than watching the way she took me in. Her eyes flared as they moved over every inch of me. She took in my tattoos, my stomach, my arms, my nipple rings. Her eyes seem to linger there the longest. I was on display for her, but I didn’t care. I had never felt like I did with her eyes on me. I had never been so fucking turned on.

I crawled into her bed before she could see just how turned on I was, and I laid down directly facing her. I pushed some curls out of her face and traced the edge of her jaw with my finger.

“This feels weird, huh?” She laughed and adjusted her arms.

“How so?” I moved a tiny bit closer to her. I was surrounded by the smell of her. It filled the air, her sheets, everything.

“I don’t know.” She smiled. “This morning we were so far away from here.” She laughed but reached a hand out and gently touched the base of my neck. “Now here you are. In my bed.”

Her eyes widened dramatically.

“It feels right to me.” I gripped her hand in mine and pressed a kiss to her fingers.

“Who knew you could be such a charmer?”

I let her hand go, but she kept it there touching my lips.

“I’m always a charmer,” I whispered and moved closer to her to press my face into her neck.

“Not true,” she scoffed. “I think you just have an inflated ego about your abilities.”

I pulled back and looked at her in utter offense.

“You don’t like my abilities?” I pressed a kiss to the edge of her lips.

“I didn’t say that.” She moved, just slightly, but she was opening for me.

“I’m pretty sure that’s exactly what you said.” I peppered kisses along her cheek and down her jawline. Her body tightened against me when I nipped her earlobe with my teeth.

“I just said that you maybe think you are better at certain things than you are.” She laughed and gripped her hands in my hair when I started to pull away. “But not kissing.” She looked up at me, and I wasn’t sure if she was even aware of the way her tongue snuck out of her mouth and wetted her lips. “Kissing is your true talent.”

I tugged her closer to me, and she let out the tiniest little squeal.

“You haven’t seen anything yet, Freckles.”

She laughed, but I quickly shut her up with my mouth. Her hands tightened in my hair when my tongue touched hers, and it only seemed to drive me further. I gripped her hip in my hand and let my fingers press into her soft skin as I tried to regain control.

But Charlie had no interest in me remaining in control. She was trying to break it in every way possible.

Her breasts were barely contained in her tiny tank top, and I was finally free to feel them with my hands, with my mouth, when she pressed them into my chest. They chafed against my nipple rings, and my hand tightened on her hip.

She took that as an invitation to move her hips closer to mine. She pressed herself against my cock that was as hard as it had ever been in my life, and almost felt like Brandon in his teenage years. Just the feel of her, her warmth, her soft skin. It was almost enough to make me come.

She dragged my bottom lip between her teeth and rocked her pussy into me just a fraction. I knew if I didn’t stop this right now that there would be no stopping. I was already too far gone.

I gently gripped her shoulder in my hand and pushed her back from me. She gripped my hair harder to pull me closer, and I almost forgot exactly why I wasn’t planning on fucking her tonight. Every reason that I had used to convince myself that it was a bad idea flew out the window.

“Charlie,” I whispered her name as she pressed a kiss against my throat.

“Huh?” Her word was mumbled against my skin.

“We have to stop.” I groaned as she ran her tongue against my collarbone.

“Are you sure?” She pressed her hips against mine again, and I pinched my eyes closed and breathed through my nose.

“Freckles.” My voice sounded as frantic as I felt.

“Yeah?” She finally looked up at me.

I swallowed, trying to regain composure. “We’re not in a rush.” I pressed my fingers to her swollen lips.

She nodded her head then pushed her curls out of her face. She rolled to her side giving me a view of her ass that wasn’t helping my situation, and she clicked off the lamp.

The room blanketed in darkness as she settled her back against my chest. Her ass was pressed against my cock that hadn’t yet gotten the memo that this wasn’t happening tonight, and I prayed that I would be able to at least get a moment of sleep.

I wrapped my arm around Charlie as I tried to settle in behind her, and she sighed.

“I’m glad you’re here,” she whispered into the darkness.

“Me too.” I pressed a small kiss to her shoulder, but it was a mistake. Her hips jerked at the contact and I cursed at the feel of her against me.

She shifted, her head turning backward to face me, and she reached out behind her to grip my head in her hand and bring my mouth back to hers. I let her.

She kissed me, far gentler than it had been only moments before, and I knew I wasn’t going to survive her.

Her tongue was playing tricks on my head and her ass grinding against me assured that my hard-on wasn’t going away any time soon.

“Charlie,” I whispered again, this time against her mouth.

“Please.” The word was a plea, and I knew that I couldn’t deny her. Even if I was strong enough, I wouldn’t want to.

My hand eased up her stomach, and I loved the way her body tightened and rippled beneath my touch. I could feel her anxiety and her excitement at my fingertips.

I cupped her breast in my hand, and Charlie’s breathing stalled as I gently ran my fingers against it. Her skin was softer than I ever could have imagined. I caressed it, feeling every inch of that skin, before I finally let my fingers find her nipple. It pebbled so quickly under my touch, so responsive, and Charlie cried out as I rolled it between my fingertips.

Her ass jerked back against me, her head pressed back against my shoulder, and I kissed her neck that was fully exposed to me. Her body fit perfectly against mine, her breast perfect in my hand, and her moans the perfect sound as I ran my tongues, lips, and teeth against her neck and shoulder.

My other hand trailed down her body taking in every curve of her body until I reached the edge of her shorts. I dipped my pointer finger just below the rim and traced a small circle. Goosebumps broke out beneath my touch and Charlie’s chest began to rise and fall more rapidly beneath my hand on her breast.

“You sure?” I wasn’t going to move my finger an inch farther until I heard her say it.

“Yes,” she moaned and lifted her hips farther into my hand.

“Yes?” I asked again before sucking her earlobe into my mouth.

“Yes, Brandon. Please,” she begged, and I lost every bit of control.

I plunged my hand into her panties and groaned at the wetness that was waiting for me there. I traced my fingers down the outside of her pussy, and she eagerly tried to follow my hand with her body. I dipped my finger inside and easily found her clit. She was impatient, and she tried to move her body against my fingers. I pulled back.

“Brandon,” she growled my name in frustration.

I gently tapped my finger against her clit. “Yes?”

“Oh God.” She moaned, and her ass pressed harder against me.

I followed her body and pressed my hand harder into her as I started rubbing small circles.

There was the smallest sound, her breath faltering, getting caught in her throat. It fueled me. It drove me crazy.

I slid my finger inside her.

She moved, her body riding my hand, and I let her. The pad of my hand pressed against her clit as my fingers moved inside her, and I had never seen anything more beautiful.

This wasn’t the Charlie who tried to control every little thing in her life, the Charlie that was too nervous. This was Charlie when she had lost all control, all worry, and it was a side of her that I wanted all for myself.

Her hand gripped my wrist, and she squeezed it between her fingers as her body tightened. She arched her back and I tasted the skin there before she yelled my name and fell apart under my touch.

She sagged into the mattress as the last wrack of her body stopped, and I buried my face against her back as I tried to calm my racing heart. She took a deep breath and I knew she was trying to do the same.

She looked at me over her shoulder and I kissed her, a lazy, gentle kiss. When her hand reached out and touched my stomach, my abs tensed, and I gripped her hand in mine before it could go further.

“Sleep.” I brought her hand up to my lips.

“What about you?” she asked hesitantly.

“Tonight was about you.” I nuzzled into her neck, and she sighed, a sleepy little sound.

“Brandon.” My name was barely a whisper off her lips.

“Yeah?” I tucked her back into my side.

“Your ego isn’t inflated as much as I thought.”

Then I laughed, harder than I had laughed in a long time, before I fell asleep with Charlie in my arms.