Chapter Five
“What brings you to Houston?”
Her shoe caught on the sidewalk, and she came crashing down from her mental high. Rio reached out, setting her straight and providing support. She offered a weak smile. He’d chosen the one topic guaranteed to burst her erotic bubble and land her facedown on the sidewalk—almost literally. She needed to derail the conversation. Pronto. “I’m visiting family.”
“Parents?”
“Something like that,” she mumbled. “You?”
“Work.”
Silence stretched between them, increasing the echo of her footsteps on the damp sidewalk. Shoot. Trust her luck to meet the one guy who didn’t enjoy hearing himself talk. If she’d been in all her senses, she might have prepared a response and avoided this awkward situation. Well, she could give a little, or wonder what-if for the rest of her life. She chose to go with the truth. It would be off-putting enough. “My father and I aren’t close. At all.” Dread wandered along the edge of her conscience, waiting to overrun the banks. “He and my mother…didn’t work out.” To say the least. His hold tightened around her, and she found a sliver of comfort in his embrace. “What do you do?”
“I’m a staff coordinator and part time trainer.” Pulling open the hotel door, he ushered her in.
“Doesn’t surprise me.” Her pulse kicked up. Yeah, just what she needed, to spend the night imagining Rio in tiny gym shorts, doing squats with a loaded bar. Maybe a military press. All those muscles bulging and relaxing, bulging and relaxing. Mmmm.
“Ma’am?”
Blinking, she looked up at the desk clerk who stood watching her, waiting for some sort of answer. Focus. Someone’s speaking to you. “I-I’m sorry…” If you were wearing these pearls, you’d totally understand.
The woman grinned, her crow’s feet becoming more pronounced. “May I help you?”
Celeste ducked her head, blindly rummaging through her bag as her face heated. Yeah, she got it now. Idiot. “Um, w-we came by earlier.”
“Oh, yes.” She pulled over the credit card and ID, then turned serious. “I’ve got you covered. And let me apologize. I heard about your visit, and I’m so sorry. I didn’t expect anyone to show up in the middle of the day.” She continued typing. “My kid had an emergency at school, and you know how that goes.” Grabbing the pages off the printer, she turned them around for a signature. “Okay, you’re all set. Go down this hall, past the breakfast area, then you’ll see the elevators on the left.” The clerk handed back her ID and credit card along with two keycards.
“Thanks.” Celeste palmed the cards, her smile freezing on her face. It’s not like she would be sharing a key with Rio. Picking up her shopping bag, she moved over while she dropped the little stack in her wallet. How would this work? Was she supposed to assume he heard her room number and he’d come by later? Once again her lack of experience when it came to the opposite sex left her fumbling at the very moment she needed it most.
Rio stepped up to the counter, pulling out his wallet. “Thank you for making sure we had rooms.” He placed the cards in front of the clerk.
“I thhhhh-ought you were together.” The woman shut her mouth, looking from Rio to her and back with a cringe. “Ron only held one room.”
Shock. Relief. Anticipation. All of them rushed through her, tightening her hold on her bag. Ron inadvertently saved her from an awkward situation. She bit the inside of her bottom lip, trying to come up with something witty. Unfortunately, with the world’s biggest spotlight shining on her, her brain stalled all creativity. The memory of Vix straddling him on the plane flashed through her mind. That woman knew what she wanted and exactly what to do in a situation like this.
“I happen to have a room, you know.” She arched a brow, tilting her head in what she hoped was a suave and sophisticated move.
“Is that so?” Rio played along, tucking his wallet back into his pocket while the clerk did her best to hide her knowing smile.
“Mmhmm. It would be rude of me to leave you without a place to stay.”
With a devilish grin, he wrapped an arm around her waist, urging her down the hall. “And you’re entirely too well-bred to be rude.” He punched the call button while she fought the urge to fidget. Her breeding, as he called it, as well as her upbringing left her with no idea what to do with him. Well, after the sex part. Maybe even before. The during part was pretty clear, and if his reactions were any indication, she was sure she’d nailed that. At least she hoped so.
They stepped into the elevator, and Vix popped up beside her. With an eager grin, she wrapped her arms around Rio’s neck and went for his zipper. No. She bit off the word before she said it out loud. Vix pouted, unhappy with being held back. He pushed the button for their floor. Oh God, their floor. The doors closed, reverberating in her throat. If she’d ever imagined a moment like this with someone like Rio, she would have done a lot more crunches. Planks. Stairs. And damn it, she might have given up dessert…for a while. Or gone fat free.
Rio’s fingers tucked a hair strand behind her ear. “You all right?”
She rolled her lips, looking up through her lashes. Would it be a turnoff if she told him she was a bundle of anxiety at the thought of sleeping with him? Or as he put it, fucking. Well, someone with a body like his, all hard muscles and sex appeal, could pull off everything the single word implied.
The doors rumbled open. “Regretting the offer?” He shook his head. “You don’t—”
“I’ve never done this.” The words tumbled out of her mouth before he told her they didn’t have to do anything. “Spending the night, I mean.”
He ran the back of his fingers along her cheek. “Neither have I.”
Her eyes widened. “No?”
“Never wanted to.” His thumb caressed the edge of her jaw. “Until now.” Her breath caught. “I warn you. I’m a bed hog.” She chuckled. “So I’ll probably end up all over you.” Now that sounded heavenly. This time she recognized the purr he’d mentioned. “If things get bad, you can kick me off the bed.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.” He caught the elevator doors just as they were shutting and pulled them both through then down the hall to their room. Her toes curled. Their room. He wrapped his arms around her, nibbling behind her ear as she grabbed one of the cards from her wallet. Try as she might, she couldn’t pull the card from the sleeve, not while her insides were melting again.
“Need some help?” The full length of his forearm brushed the side of her breast as he plucked the card out of her hand. He held her against him with a palm to her tummy. The click echoed in her head, but she was too busy with the hard shaft pressed to her bottom. That thick length would be inside her. Her legs went weak just thinking about it.
Rio pushed the door open, taking her with him as he shuffled into the room. He latched the door while she set her bag on the dresser at the end of the narrow hallway and shucked off her coat. The room wasn’t the typical, nondescript hotel room. White walls with old rose accents, a shaded window seat complete with books and a nearby chaise lounge sofa, and an intricate, wrought iron headboard on the double bed.
Rio’s arm circled her waist, and he pressed his lips to the back of her head while he worked open the zipper on her dress. Feather-light kisses moved across her shoulder, and she melted, coming close to dropping right along with her discarded clothes. He kissed her neck, cheek, and finally her mouth as he drew her near, covering her bare breasts. His large hands discovered every inch of her sensitive skin, holding, kneading, plucking at her nipples until she was whimpering.
Urging her down to the sofa, he whipped her around to face him, spreading her legs to kneel between them. Their breaths mingled as he reached up, digging his fingers through her hair to pull the clip and toss it somewhere behind her.
She fisted his shirt, dragging it up his chest. Separating from her for a split second, he whipped off the shirt and sunglasses, sending them to the floor. If he’d been a vision before, he was simply mouthwatering bare-chested. She spread her fingers over hard muscles, eager to explore and experience everything to do with Rio. With this day.
Sensitive fingertips tested the warm, smooth skin as he stretched her out and settled against her, pressing his erection to the pearls that still lay between them. But the part of him she needed was still fully covered. “Rio?” She shifted her hips carefully, aware of where the beads were sitting.
“Not yet, little angel. Not when I finally have you under a tree.”
Blinking, she tilted her head back until she saw the branches cut to just beyond the window. Her inner muscles tightened. Oh God, he was going to—
His lips closed around her nipple, tearing a gasp from her throat and dragging her away from the image that had haunted her for hours. If it hadn’t felt so good she might have taken offense. But the man knew how to use his mouth. He had her floating on a cloud of pleasure, something she’d never experienced before.
He dragged her to the edge of the sofa, allowing her to move freely while he continued to lavish attention on her breasts. The new position allowed her to rock against him, adding a new element to their play. He must have sensed it, because he increased the pressure.
Every stroke of his tongue, every pull from his mouth reverberated at her core. She arched, cupping his head to keep from unsettling him. His hair was so short it was barely a whisper against her palms.
“I’ve got you, angel.” After one final lick, he moved down, dropping open-mouthed kisses across her tummy as his splayed fingers worked down her sides. Reaching her thighs, he cupped the outside of her legs, moving on with a caress. Wrapping his hands around her calves he brought them up to stretch across his torso as he straightened. The leather-encased bulge still at her apex, he pulled her damp panties past her knees… Oh my God, I’m still wearing shoes.
He kissed the inside of each ankle, sending a shiver through her. Who knew ankles could be sensitive. He held her legs just wide enough apart to bracket his cheeks, up until he folded them over his shoulders. Then he teased her inner thigh, running his lips all the way down to kiss her mons, before starting on the other side.
“Rio.” She could hear the pleading in her voice, but she didn’t care. Hot need wrapped around her, demanding release before it consumed her.
He led her thighs apart, hovering over her, his breath teasing every one of her senses.
“You’re beautiful, Celeste.”
His mouth covered her, and she believed him. Would have believed every word he said, as long as he kept up the attention. Deep strokes, gentle kisses. His thumbs playing along her thighs, keeping her completely open while his tongue entered her again, doing some fluttery thing at her entrance that bowed her back.
Two fingers took over, and he followed her folds with his tongue, his lips closing over her sensitive clit, starting a rhythmic suction she felt all the way to her chest. She reached out, needing to hold on to something. Her nails scraped the cushion as her hips rocked to his pace, sending her higher. She was uttering unintelligible sounds, tightening her muscles until her rushing blood echoed in her head and the world exploded around her.
…
He’d deceived her. Let her think what he did was for her, but no. Bastard that he was, he’d gone down on her, brought her to release, for his own selfish pleasure. And he’d do it again. Because once he got a taste of her, he wanted more. More of those little noises she made. More of the abandon she hadn’t shared with him earlier.
He shoved down his pants, cursing the leather for holding on. Then he pulled out a condom and sheathed himself despite the awkward position. All to be ready for that moment when she came. Because he wasn’t going to let her drop after her orgasm. Shifting, he pushed at her entrance, setting his jaw as the tight muscles allowed him past. He thought he knew what to expect, but she was dangerously close to blowing his mind. Incredible heat surrounded his sensitive head, her body clutching him as she had his fingers. She’d be strong as that vice he’d imagined, covering all of him. Just thinking about being inside her sent him closer to the edge.
Celeste moaned, her expression changing from mindless pleasure to awareness, then anticipation. The woman didn’t disappoint. Her body undulated with each added inch, as if she just couldn’t be still. All the while that long, low purr echoed in her throat. Perfect. She had a hell of a way to let him know how much she enjoyed taking his cock.
He went in, as deep as he could. Deeper than he’d thought to the first time, but her legs tightened, keeping him against her, inside her. Steady. Dragging in a ragged breath, he reined in the need clawing at him. It would be too easy to hurt her if her body wasn’t ready. Just a few seconds to let her adjust.
She lay before him, hair spread out, tumbling over the cushion. Pink-tipped breasts pointing skyward, the buds still wet from his attention. Her stomach flat, leading down to where their bodies met. His skin contrasted with her pale thighs. How would he look between them? His cock thick and rigid, buried deep in the delicate pink folds holding him so tight. Urgency dug its claws into his spine. Fuck. He needed to move. Start out slow while he could still hold a thought in his head.
“Angel,” he coaxed, following her calves around him, bringing her heels to sit at the edge of the cushion. “I need you here.” She nodded, her breasts rising and falling with her quickened breaths. He withdrew, tightening his jaw as her body fought to keep him in place. Celeste arched, her lips parted as she dragged in one breath after another. Shaking his head to clear the haze, he stopped, caressing her, murmuring his pleasure before he moved again.
This time he slid home, with less resistance. Her body softening, giving way under his advance, letting him set a pace. One he increased with each stroke until he was pounding into her. Keeping time with her moans. He leaned in, bracing his arm against the wall by her head so he could see her expression. The new angle sent her soaring, reaching out to hold him. Clinging to him like she never wanted to let go.
And damn if he didn’t like it. If he didn’t want to take her again and again, until they were too tired to move. Then he’d lie there learning every secret to her body so he could make her come again.
Her fingers curled into his back, and he may have heard his name. Something echoed in his head while he held her. Keeping her close, he thrust one last time and arched, his low growl matching her purr as he spilled into her.