Chapter 11

Aurora

I shouldn't have said it.

I should have ignored his comment and gone on with my day. I should have done anything other than feed into his game, since I knew it was a particularly dangerous one for me to play. I'd only just surgically removed the tumor of Nolan from my life, and it seemed crazy to me that my next move would be to hit on my boss immediately after he'd offered me a promotion.

Did that stop me? No.

Apparently, I was still actively living my new, sassier life that had me doing things I wouldn't normally do and saying things I wouldn't normally say.

Apparently, I was going out of my mind, too, because the fire that flashed in his eyes thrilled me.

"You're a mystery to me, you know that?" Brendon sidled closer, until our breath mingled in the small space between us. "I don't think I could ever figure you out."

"I hope that won't stop you from trying."

I was a mystery alright, even to myself. I almost didn't recognize this girl, but I liked her. She was the wild child I'd always wanted to be, the one that Amy had eventually grown into, leaving me in the dust.

"You're teasing me." It was halfway between an accusation and a revelation. He grinned and shoved his hands in the pockets of his slacks, giving our conversation an even more casual edge. "You like to do that, don't you?"

I nearly told him that the last thing I was known as in my hometown was a tease, but I liked the idea of him thinking it of me. The truth was that it'd been driving me crazy trying not to call him. It was literally keeping me up at night as hot lust curled in my belly and begged me to pick up the phone.

I kept thinking that sleeping with him again would be a backslide, would undermine the good work I'd done building a new life here, but I wasn't so sure. Wasn't the whole point of a new life supposed to be that it was new? Why was I still doing things the way the old Aurora would have done them?

The new Aurora was more fun. She was flirty. She had mind-blowing sex with hot strangers she met in the hallway of her hotel. More importantly, most importantly, she was fearless.

So, fuck it, I said to myself. Fuck it all. New Aurora was here to stay.

I grabbed Brendon by the tie, pulling him down to my level while I rose on my tiptoes. "I'm not that much of a tease," I whispered just before covering his mouth with mine.

It was crazy. It was reckless. It was really, really stupid. But hell, it was fun.

Who cared if I screwed up this job by screwing my boss? I'd only just begun rebuilding my life from nothing, and I could start over again if I really needed to. I wanted to be irresponsible for once and Brendon seemed like the best way.

Plus, it was getting downright impossible to resist him.

He pulled me hard against his chest the moment our lips touched, anchoring those large hands on my ass and biting on my lower lip with relish. I moaned and opened up for him, letting his tongue probe my mouth and stroke along my own. His kiss was every bit as explosive and amazing as I remembered it to be, and I soon found myself swaying as I grew drunk on it.

My core twisted, curling tight and hot in my belly as his hands roamed my back and curled into fists in my hair. He pulled my head back and stared deep down into my eyes, lips parted with lust.

He didn't say anything. I didn't say anything either. It was almost like he was searching for something in my eyes, something that he evidently found as a moment later his mouth crashed down again.

He pushed me back, back, back, until my shoulders met with the rough cement wall and his muscled torso crushed my breasts flat between us. The kiss grew in fervor, a dance of licking and sucking and biting that we both performed in perfect unison. I groaned and rolled my hips up against his, desperate for some form of release.

He pulled away, panting, and held my face in his hands. His thumbs stroked roughly over my cheeks.

"You're taking the rest of the day off." His voice was thick with lust.

"I am?"

He nodded, grabbing my hand and pulling me toward the exit.

I didn't argue. He was the boss, after all.

It settled in somewhere between Lock Knocks and wherever Brendon was taking me that this was probably a bad idea. Kissing him was one thing, but shirking work to leave with him to presumably go on an all-day screw fest was another thing entirely.

I couldn't help myself. He was so sexy that it made my heart pound mercilessly in my chest. I was enthralled in the same way I had been that first night we spent together. It was a bit like having an out of body experience, except I could feel every caress on my shoulder, on my arm, my thigh, as we cabbed for his place.

The ride passed in a whirlwind. We didn't speak. Not with our mouths, anyway. Our bodies were saying all sorts of things to each other, things that we probably shouldn't say out loud. Not in front of witnesses.

When we finally arrived at his apartment, I barely had time to register how beautiful his place was before he was on me again. He guided me through the front door, his chest pressed against my back and the hard band of his arm wrapped around my torso to hold me in place.

He was so big and tall, so strong and unyielding. When he held me, it felt like I was anchored down to the earth itself. I leaned into him, offering up my neck for him to suck as we shuffled toward the bedroom. At least, I figured we were heading for the bedroom. We could have been on our way to the balcony, to the kitchen, to the stars for all I cared. I just wanted to feel Brendon inside of me again and I'd do whatever it took to get me there.

"I forgot how good your skin tasted," he murmured, sending shivers coursing down my spine. "You're so fucking sweet, Aurora. Everything about you..." He bit at the sensitive flesh of my throat at the same time as he pushed me through the door into his bedroom. "So sweet..."

I was one big bundle of nerves and I barely knew which way was up. It dimly registered that I was in over my head with him, that whatever passion was unfolding would probably be way too much for me to handle, but I didn't care. I wasn't afraid.

If it had been anyone else I might have been. I might have recognized that these feelings churning in my core weren't usual to have for somebody I barely knew. If only I had the wherewithal to resist. I was diving headlong into a dark, cavernous lake and I had no idea if there were rocks at the bottom waiting to drown me. What's the use of breathing if drowning promises such sweet absolution?

Brendon's bed was neatly made with navy and white sheets that felt luxurious against my palm as he spun me and backed me into it. His hands found my face, thumbs brushing over my cheeks as he kissed me long and deep. There it was again—that sweetness that had first tempted me the night we met. He was so passionate and driven, but there was always a hint of something warm and gentle in everything he did. It was like watching a wolf gently care for a tiny kitten, except I was the kitten and I had to trust that I wasn't about to be devoured.

Even though part of me wanted to be devoured.

Brendon's hands slid down my neck, my breasts, guiding down my hips and over my ass. He worked his way back up with agonizing slowness, unbuttoning my pants and then moving up to pull off my Lock Knocks polo shirt. The second it was gone he lowered his face to the cleft of my breasts, kissing them gently as his fingers unclasped my bra and let it fall to the floor.

Brendon rose to his full height, looking down at me through lust-drenched eyes. I flushed under his inspection. Normally this would be the part where I'd long to cross my arms over my chest and get under the covers as quickly as possible, but I felt confident and sexy under his gaze.

He bit his lower lip and leaned down to kiss me again, pushing down on my khakis until they and my underwear hit the floor. I was completely naked in my boss' bedroom. My sexy boss. My incredibly sexy, magnetically attractive boss. It was scandalous. It was amazing. I couldn't wait to tell Amy, but more than anything I couldn't wait to get him naked too.

I'd been clutching his shirt this whole time like I needed it to keep me standing, and I released my grip now long enough to shakily unbutton it until it hung loose. He shrugged his shoulders to help as I guided it to the floor, exploring me with his hands all the while. It was like there was a current flowing between us, and if either lifted their hands from the other the current would short out and the moment would be lost forever. I couldn't let that happen.

My hand dipped lower, cupping him through the soft material of his pants. My core clenched at the memory of how he stretched me wide, and I squeezed his heavy bulge with pleasure while one hand unzipped and began to tug down.

Brendon groaned and pushed me back onto the bed, crawling up and losing his pants in the process. He pushed me further and further up the bed until I reached the pillows and he was nestled between my thighs, completely naked and completely eclipsing me.

His weight and heat felt right. He felt right. Everything about this felt so right.

Brendon traced a fiery path of kisses down my neck, over my breasts, and over the flat plane of my stomach. I inhaled sharply as he continued downward, taking his first lick of the bundle of nerves between my thighs and making my body shake.

Within a minute of pleasuring me with his mouth, he proved that his bedroom skills included more than just the ability to screw a woman within an inch of her life. He licked and sucked my clit like he could hear exactly what I wanted and anticipate exactly what I needed. I wrapped my legs around the back of his neck and held onto the sheets for dear life as his probing tongue took me to heights I'd never experienced. My body shook and my eyes rolled to the back of my head. I wouldn't be surprised if I opened my eyes and saw that I was glowing. I felt goddamn radiant.

"So sweet..."

It was the first time he'd spoken since we entered the room, and the vibrations hummed through my pussy and made my toes curl. I moaned loudly, and it sounded almost like it had come from somebody else. I was floating on a cloud above the bed and the only thing that could bring me back to earth was the god between my thighs.

I came crashing back, tumbling into fire that burned and sparked with embers of pure pleasure. My orgasm hit me hard. I swirled and danced in a pit of passion.

I felt barely conscious as Brendon's hot lips seared a trail back up to my lips, kissing me hard and deep so I could taste my essence on his tongue. His hard cock poised at my entrance, he paused.

I sensed his trepidation. I remembered all too well how we hadn't used a condom when we had sex before, but that experience had been almost like a fantasy. Now that we were back to real life, it was a discussion we needed to properly have.

“I haven’t been with anyone else since…”

He shook his head. “Me neither.”

I tilted my hips up, nudging the tip inside. Brendon’s eyes filled with fire and he hissed through his teeth, pleasure washing over his features. His hips sank down and soon we were joined.

I felt whole, and not just physically. It was unnerving to have such a strong emotional reaction to somebody I barely knew like this, but it was intoxicating all the same. He drove into me and made my body tingly and warm. My body responded to him like he was its master, and I was so drowned in the pure bliss of it all that I couldn’t find it in me to be disconcerted by this fact. I just rode the waves of pleasure, letting Brendon take me on a journey that I wouldn’t soon forget.

A journey that I hoped I would always remember.