The Westin Hotel, Denver Colorado—Two weeks later.
I climb out of the cab, offering the man a hefty tip. His impeccable speeding skills got us to the hotel seven minutes early. He helps me with my bag, and I head into the Westin hotel in downtown Denver. The hotel isn’t historical like Chicago’s, but more modern and chic.
Anxiousness floods through my body as I check in. Excitement. Nervousness. A vibration of all sorts of shit, knowing that in just minutes, I get to see Chase. In the flesh.
I lift my phone from my bag and send him a quick text that I’ve arrived. He replies instantly, telling me he’s coming for me. A layer of goose bumps flutter over my skin at the thought of his hands on me, in me. The flush in my cheeks has me looking around, making sure no one’s staring at me. I hurry and check in, and make my way to the elevator when I see him.
In all his manly glory. When our eyes meet, goose bumps cover my entire body just at the way he’s staring at me. Swallowing me with his gaze. My blushed smile spreads across my face and we both step forward into action, heading to one another—
“Oh my God! I didn’t think you were coming until tomorrow!” I stop suddenly when Kristen appears in front of me.
Shit! “Heeey!”
She comes in and hugs me while I look over her shoulder at Chase.
Sorry, I mouth and pull away.
“So, what happened? Did I mess up your days? Shit, I’m sorry, I would’ve picked you up from the airport.”
“No, no, it’s fine. I just thought to, um, surprise you. Be a good client and come early.”
“Oh! Okay.” She’s looking at me quizzically. “What’s up with you? You look funny.”
Probably because I’m trying to smile but resemble more of a constipated person. But I’m super nervous. I suck at playing it cool, and Chase is walking up behind us.
“Me? Pfft, nothing. I’m just glad to be here.” Oh God, don’t come up to us—
“Hello, ladies,” Chase speaks, startling Kristen. She whips to her side, taking him in.
Another look of confusion on her face.
“Mr. Bates. Hello… I… I wasn’t expecting you until tomorrow. Sorry, was your room all set up?” She lifts her hand, which is holding a bunch of papers, sifting through the bundle. “Yeah, I have you arriving tomorrow. Man, I’m off my game. First Katie, now…” She looks at him. And fuck. Turns to look at me. Don’t let it click. Don’t let it click—
Fuck.
It clicks.
“Hmmm… Interesting. Well, I hope the hotel was able to accommodate the two of you.”
I’m just nodding like an idiot, my head resembling a broken bobble head. Chase is standing there with his hands in his pockets and that damn sexy smile on his face.
Kristen turns her attention fully on me. “Well, since you’re here, wanna go catch some dinner? There’s a really good sushi place downtown.”
Chase doesn’t move his head, but his eyes are going back and forth.
“Yeah, um. I’m kinda tired. Gonna just order some pizza. Bring my bags up and what not.” Oh my God, I’m not even holding any bags, since I left them with the concierge.
“Hmmm…” Is all she says. She looks at Chase, back at me. “So, I assume then you’re just going to head up now?” This cannot be going any worse right now. Kristen is clearly trying to call me out. Not sure why. This all could be a very strange coincidence.
“Yeah, super tired. Traveling is exhausting.” Says the person whose flight was under two hours.
“Hmm… Mr. Bates, how about you? You hungry?” Now she’s just starting trouble.
I gape at Chase, wondering how he’s going to get out of it.
“Just ate, sorry. Thanks for the offer, though. I was just headed… to the gym… huge workout comin’ on.”
I’m going to kill him.
The look on Kristen’s face pretty much says, thanks for the TMI, and shakes her head. “Well, alright then. Why don’t you go take that nap. Drinks later then. No excuses.” She waves to Chase and turns, taking off down the long hotel corridor.
The moment the door shuts behind us, I’m up in Chase’s arms, my back slamming against the wall. My legs wrap around his lean waist and his lips are on mine.
“God, I’ve missed you,” he moans, devouring my mouth, delighting me with the sweet taste of mint on his tongue. His grip is lethal, squeezing my ass through my yoga pants as he presses his already hard cock into me. “Feel that? That guy’s been like that since the second I met you. You make me hard as hell all the damn time.” He prolongs our kiss, taking my lips fully, his tongue mingling with my own.
This feels like heaven and hell mixed in one. We can’t seem to get at each other fast enough. Chase increases the pressure of his grip, grinding himself into me. We both moan at the contact.
“You always taste so sweet.” He releases my mouth, working his way to my bottom lip.
“The red bull vodka I had on the flight should take credit for that. Why are our clothes still on?” I moan, going straight for his belt buckle. His phone vibrates in his front pocket, which is a nice add-on to our hot make-out session. I grab for it, pulling it out.
“Hmmm, not a bad add-on.” I turn the screen over. “Sterling Marketing wants to get in on this action,” I say, wiggling his phone between us.
Working his hands up my ribcage, he suddenly stops, reaching for the phone. “Give that to me.”
The call ends and starts ringing again. Same caller.
“Your marketing company sure is eager to talk to you. Want me to answer and tell them you’re busy?” I joke, pretending to answer the call.
Chase’s demeanor changes, grabbing for his phone. “Don’t.”
“Why, you’re not into threesomes?” Totally kidding since I’m definitely a one-on-one kinda girl.
“Katie, give me the phone.” Again, call missed and a third time, the phone vibrates. He catches me off guard, snatching the phone from my hands. Tossing the phone, his hands are back on me, cupping my breast through my thin T-shirt, squeezing. His thumb and index finger take latch of my nipple and pinch.
Phone quickly forgotten, my mouth is back on his. “Clothes, Chase, now.” I need nakedness, sex, lots and lots of orgasms.
His hands become ruthless, fondling my chest while he sucks on my lower lip, kisses my chin, my neckline, his hips pushing into mine.
“So eager, aren’t we?” He chuckles into my neck, his lips wet and inviting on my heated skin. Maneuvering his hands, he reaches for the hem of my pants and dives in. His fingers travel down in between my thighs, pushing my underwear to the side. He groans, discovering how wet I already am. Using two fingers, he smears my juices around my sex. “Damn, baby, you’re fucking soaking.” And he’s pushing two fingers inside.
I forget just how good it felt to have him touch me. Mimicking his fingers with my own does his fingers no justice.
“More, please,” I moan, dropping my head back against the wall. His warm mouth is back on me, kissing me feverishly. He maintains a slow but aggressive pace as he continues to finger fuck me. I’m quickly losing my grip on my orgasm. Chase can feel my insides gripping him, so he pulls out slowly. Taking a moment to grab my vision, he slides back in. Each time pushing deeper. It’s when I feel his knuckles at the opening of my sex that my body trembles with need.
“Fuck, yes, more.”
“Such a little beggar you are.” He laughs, but grants my wish. His fingers less calculated and greedier, he works me faster, harder, taking my mouth, his tongue colliding with mine. Each thrust of his fingers is matched with his groin rubbing into me. The feel of how hard he is makes me want him, crave him with an animalistic urge.
“Fuck, Chase, I’m gonna… Fuck, ahhh…” And with him slamming roughly into me I come all over his hand, my walls capturing his fingers in a death grip.
Chase eases up on our kiss, slowly pressing small wet pecks around my lips, down my chin, and across my collarbone. As I catch my breath, I pull my head up, my eyes on his.
“Holy shit, that was awesome.”
Chase busts out laughing.
“That was just a preview of what I have planned for you.” He pulls his fingers out of my pants, lifting them to his mouth. He’s not going to do that. Before I can swat his hand away, or die of embarrassment, he sticks his fingers, covered in my juices, into his mouth.
“Fucking perfect,” he says as he licks them clean, making a popping sound as he pulls them out. “It’s like getting dessert before dinner.”
I cover my face. “Ew, Green, you watch too much porn. That’s not really a thing.” I mean, I don’t think it’s a thing. My long résumé of sexual partners agrees.
He pulls us off the wall, walking us toward the bed. “Well, it’s a thing for me. You’ve been teasing me with that sweet little pink pussy of yours. And ever since that first night, I’ve been thinking about how sweet it is. And how you’ve been taunting me on FaceTime. I might just take some to go, for whenever you’re not around.”
Ew! How can you take juices to go?
“That was just an appetizer for me, though. It’s time for the main meal.” He tosses me on the bed.
“Clothes off, beautiful,” he requests as he does the same, lifting his shirt up and over his head. He doesn’t break eye contact as I sit up and pull my shirt off. He tosses his onto the floor. As I shimmy out of my pants, he unbuckles his. I pull my thong down with mine, leaving me bare, but still, he doesn’t take his eyes off me.
Damn, he’s good.
Reaching in his back pocket, he places a condom wrapper in between his teeth.
Then he drops his pants.
Don’t look. Don’t look. Don’t… shit.
I look.
His dick is fucking gorgeous. I’m not sure a dick is supposed to be beautiful. It’s a dick, but by golly his is fucking pretty. I want to pet it and brush its hair. I definitely want to suck on it a little bit.
What the fuck did I just say?
“You said you wanted to suck on it.”
What!
“Oh God, I said that out loud?”
“Sure did. You have your eye on the prize, I see,” he pokes fun, stepping out of his pants. Walking to me, he climbs on the bed and straddles me. His model cock in perfect view, he rips the foil package open and places it on the tip of his dick. I can’t help but watch him as he slides it down his shaft, wishing that were my hand stroking him. I can tell the way I’m ogling him is turning him on. Once fully in place, his hand slowly works its way back up and down again.
“Did you want me to leave you alone or am I gonna get to join in?” I tease, watching him gently stroke himself.
“Oh, you’re gonna join in, all right.” He chuckles, leaning forward, taking my mouth. His lips graze mine, as his knees inch my thighs open. “You’re the main attraction.” He releases my lips and whispers in my ear. Positioning himself perfectly, he pushes inside me.
I think both our eyes close, lost in the sensation of us. Our bodies suck each other whole. Our hands grip one another, wanting to be savages and wild, but our touch is unhurried, gentle. Chase’s slowness brings my hands into his hair, pressing for more closeness. Every time he pulls out, I urge him back in. I don’t want to acknowledge what’s happening, but this is not like the rest. This isn’t just sex. It has meaning. Emotion. Unspoken words.
He brings himself out and again slides back, the perfection of his cock triggering my eyelids to shut. With closed eyes I grab his hair, bringing his head down. His lips hit mine and it’s like perfection exploding. Our tongues connect and the electricity sparks, breaking whatever silent moment we were sharing to end. The temptation, the urge for one another breaks through, and we begin to tear at one another. His movements become more aggressive. His hands claim every part of my body, his tongue claiming me.
My groans of pleasure mingle with his as we fuck, make love, connect in a way that’s new for me. Who knows what it’s like for him, but I feel it. An unfamiliar territory we just entered. I last two more powerful thrusts before I lose control and clench, letting my orgasm rip through me. Chase isn’t far behind, because he thrusts roughly once, twice and on the third, he cums inside me.
We’re both breathing heavily, trying to catch our breath. We’re sweaty and naked. I try and conjure up something humorous to say, because I’m afraid this just got awkward. Before I have a chance to speak, Chance leans up, catching my eyes.
“I missed you.”
Three words.
Simple. But so much pow.
“I… I missed you too.”
He pulls his hands away from my waist and wraps them into my hair. “No, I really missed you. Not just this.” He brings his eyes to our still connected bodies. “I missed you.” His eyes back to mine, his look soft but with a thousand-pound weight of meaning to them. “Would you laugh at me if I confessed I was nervous to see you?”
“Pfft, I doubt that,” I reply.
“Swear it. I paced the hotel lobby for almost thirty minutes trying to think of something cool to say to you when I saw you.”
I stare up at him until I realize he’s not joking. Then I bust out laughing. “And what speech exactly did you come up with?” I ask.
He bends down, offering me a quick peck. “Well, I didn’t get very far. It started with, Hello, you look super-hot and I’m going to eat you raw. Can I help carry your bags?”
Oh my God!
I squeal in a fit of laughter.
“Why are you laughing? Would you have allowed me to carry your things if I said that?” he asks, starting to tickle my ribs.
“Stop!” I yelp, struggling to catch my breath between fits. “Seriously, yes, I would have not only let you carry my bags, but I would have let you feast on me all night long.”
He stops instantly.
I open my eyes, catching him intensely staring down at me.
“Now what?” I ask, trying to control my breathing.
“You just make me the kind of happy that I don’t know how to explain.” He’s looking me over, making sure his words sink in. “I know you think it’s because of your thunder cat ways in bed, but it’s more.”
At that I roll my eyes. He chuckles, pressing another kiss to my lips.
“You’re something I can’t explain, Katie. I know you’ll fight me and say how opposite we are. But to me, we’re the same.”
I’m not sure what similarities we carry, but the look in his eyes says he’s going to tell me.
“Anything that’s happening in my life, good or bad, the first thing I do is think about you. Because you’re the one I want to share it with.”
A small intake of breath has me surprised at his confession. I don’t have to think hard before realizing the same conclusion. I reach up, cupping his smooth-shaven cheek. “I would have to agree with you on that. You’re my go-to too, Green. I think you have been for a long time now.”
He crushes his mouth onto mine. Immediately, he’s parting my lips with his tongue.
“Tell me more,” he hums, pulling away and kissing down my chin.
“Tell you what?” I sigh, stretching my neck to give him better access.
“Tell me all the things you like about me. Besides my glorious cock. I’m feeling needy and need you to make me feel wanted.” I prepare to whack him in the head, but he licks down my neck, taking a small nip out of my skin. I drop my hand and moan, arching my body into him.
“You have great tongue skills,” I say, my eyes shut, lips slightly parted.
“This is an obvious statement. Doesn’t count. Try again.” He bends lower, wrapping his wet lips around my nipple. Using his skilled tongue, he begins a swirling motion around my flesh.
“I love your hands,” I reply and instantly yelp as he bites down on my nipple.
“Doesn’t count. I already know you’re obsessed with my physical attributes. Give me something from here.” He lifts his hand, placing it over my heart. He raises his head, catching the sudden nervousness in my eyes. “Tell me the first thing that comes to mind from here.”
I don’t know what he wants me to say. Confess all my wants, dreams, desires for this man? That would be opening myself up for disappointment and hurt, if this wasn’t really what this was. And if I’m not the protective bear over my own heart, who will be?
“Give me something. Let me know I’m not just a piece of meat to you.”
I laugh. This is silly. I’m being silly. There’s nothing wrong with a few friendly praises between lovers. “All right. Well…” I stall. Just spit it out, Katie. “I like the way you smile at me. It makes me feel… pretty.” Oh my God, that sounded so corny!
“Because you’re beautiful. And you make me happy. And I have never smiled with such intent the way I do with you.”
Okay his, comment was way deeper. There’s a tornado of butterflies forming in my stomach. He’s still staring down at me, his eyes filled with meaning. Intent.
“I also lied. I want more than just one.”
I slowly nod. My mind is racing with a million things I want to admit. How my life has been so much happier since he’s come into it. How his kindness has made me feel worth something. I want to admit that my heart feels like it’s beating for the first time since losing my parents. Maybe the bear in me is holding me back from giving my heart the full package. Maybe I need to step aside and let whatever this is fully in.
“You make me feel alive. And I haven’t felt that way in a very long time.” I feel his body go rigid the moment the words leave my lips.
Idiot.
I couldn’t have said something more basic like I enjoy your laugh or some shit?
“You don’t have to reply—”
Chase covers my mouth with his large hand. “Shut up, Katie. Don’t you dare take that back.” He slowly brings his hand away, dipping down to kiss me. Pulling away, he says, “I started living again the day I fell into your room. What I had before. It wasn’t happiness. It wasn’t real. I know this is crazy. Us, it’s all crazy. But I’ve known something for some time now, and I just need to get it off my chest.”
Oh, fuck.
“Katie, I’m…”
BANG! BANG! BANG!
What the…
BANG! BANG! BANG!
“Open up, Katie!”
Oh shit!
“Shit, it’s Kristen.”
Chase frowns, and I panic as I toss him off me. He catches himself just before falling off the bed, and we both start scrambling for our clothes.
“I can’t find my pants,” Chase says, looking around the room.
“Fuck! Well, just leave without ’em, hurry!” I throw my shirt over my head and snatch my pants off the floor.
“Seriously, Bates, get out.” I jump in front of the mirror to see how disheveled I look. “Fuck.” Yeah, I look like a guilty little hussy who was just getting it on.
“We have a problem.”
I whip around to face Chase, wondering why he’s even still in my room, when I notice him standing by the closed connecting door.
“No…” I breathe.
“We never went and unlocked it from the other side.”
“Oh my God.”
“Katie! Open up, man!”
Shit!
“Get in the closet.”
“What?”
“Get in the closet! Right now.”
“You have to be kidding—”
I don’t have time to argue. I’m already pushing him inside and shutting the door on his pretty little face. I swear if he makes a peep, I’m going to murder him.
“Katie—”
I whip the hotel door open and smile way too brightly. “Hey! What’s up?”
“Uhh, nothing. What took you so long?”
I allow her to enter my room, my heart about to beat out of my chest when she stops directly in front of the closet.
“Sorry, I was, trying to do a workout video.”
“A workout video? Yeah, right. Do you even know what working out is?” She stands there, her hands gripping her hips.
I give her my infamous Pffft face and start jogging in place. “Pfft. Yes, of course! See? Fitness is a new thing. Gotta stay fit and all.”
She glares at me, looking uncomfortable at my sweet workout move. “First off, you look like a monkey trying to climb an invisible tree. Please stop. Second, you do realize that your infamous I’m lying motto is Pfft.”
I gasp at her very accurate accusation.
“I’m insulted.”
“I’m sure. Your room smells weird…”
“My shoes. Old pair.”
“I was going to say more like—”
“Sweat! I’m sweating. I need to shower.”
I wish she’d stop giving me the crazy eye. “Great, sooo…”
Shaking her head, she says, “Whatever you say, workout time’s over. Let’s grab food. I barely ever get to see you, so you’re coming out with me. Then we’re going dancing.”
Dancing? I hate dancing. And my stomach is in knots right now with what Kristen just interrupted. The last thing I want to do right now is eat.
“Okay, so go get in the shower. I’ll wait for you.”
Fuck!
Why must my friend have the worst timing ever?
“You know what. I don’t need to shower. Let’s just go.” I walk toward the door, grabbing her arm and dragging her with me.
“But you just said you smell?”
“Yeah, well… For some people it’s a turn on. Going to play my cards right tonight. Now let’s go.”