Chapter Fourteen
Emma
Friday
I splashed some cool water on my face and looked at myself in the mirror. I had to calm down. I was trembling from head to foot. That kiss. Goddamn. I wanted to do it again, but I knew I needed to just get the hell out of here as soon as I could. Going to dinner had been a mistake. I knew better. I liked Pete, I really did, but he was my boss. This had to stop right now, before it permanently changed things between us.
I dried my face as I steeled myself. I’d just walk out to my car and leave for the weekend. We could go back to the way things were supposed to be on Monday morning. No more dates, no more alone time. As long as I got out of here right now, it wouldn’t be too late.
I turned away from the sink, determined, and opened the door.
Pete was standing in the hallway, his blue eyes wide and chest heaving with the strength of the desire I saw written all over his face.
I drew in a sharp breath, my plans leaving me in a rush of exhaled air, and went to him.
He took me in his arms and pressed his lips to mine. I opened my mouth to him, tilting my head as his tongue ventured deep into my mouth, toying with my own. I kissed him back, unable to deny the heat that moved through me and how badly I wanted him. My plan to escape this house and run out to my car disappeared in the intensity of that heat.
My entire body tingled as his soft, eager mouth dropped to kiss my neck, sucking lightly as I moaned with the need that was bubbling up from deep inside me. I hadn’t even let myself acknowledge how much I wanted him until this moment. But, now that I had, my entire body had unclenched, going soft in that heat. I wrapped my legs around him as he lifted me with two hands on my ass and carried me down the hallway. He kicked open the door to his bedroom, still kissing my neck, his hot breath igniting every inch of my skin.
He set me down next to the messy, unmade bed and tugged my shirt over my head. Thank God I’d thought to put on one of my better bras this morning. One with actual lace on it — not that he was paying it much attention.
He tore his own shirt off, nearly ripping it in the process. I bit my lip at the sight of his smooth, muscular chest, tanned from so much time in the sun. It was my first time seeing it so close up. He smelled like sunshine and hard work. I loved that musky odor. I pulled him down to me by the back of his neck, kissing hard, my tongue fishing into his mouth as his fingers unfastened my bra.
He brought his hands to my breasts, running his fingers over my nipples, and I moaned into his mouth. His fingers dropped to the waistband of my jeans, pulling them open as we continued to kiss almost desperately, that heat rising, stoked by my furious heartbeat and the pulsing between my legs, a furious itch I wanted him to scratch.
He pulled his lips away so he could focus on pushing my jeans down the curvy length of my legs. I sat down on the bed and lifted my feet so he could tug off my boots, socks, and then my jeans. Now I was just in my dangling bra and panties, breathing heavily, so hot for him I could barely sit still. I unbuckled his belt and tugged his jeans open. It took two hands to work the zipper, but, finally, I was able to pull his jeans down, revealing boxers, the hard shape of his cock at my eye level. I licked my lips, moaning again, and pulled hard onto his hips, lying back on the bed as he tumbled on top of me.
He fit neatly between my legs, his cock rubbing into that wet heat between my legs, only a few layers of cloth separating us. His mouth found one of my nipples, and he sucked hard while I writhed beneath him, moaning and lifting my hips to rub my pulsing hot sex against his cock. He moved to my other nipple, his lips tracing a wet trail on my skin. This time, I could feel his teeth. I whimpered and took hold of him by two handfuls of his soft dark hair. His masculine scent filled my nostrils, so dirty and sweaty from the day’s work. I loved it.
His lips found my neck again, sucking harder than before. My hands traveled down the length of his back until I reached his ass. I squeezed his cheeks hard, relishing the firmness. He was one long, lean, rock-hard slab of muscle. I turned my head and bit his shoulder, just wanting to taste the tanned sweetness of him.
“I’ve wanted you since the day I saw you,” Pete growled, his hot breath tickling my skin. He came after my mouth again, forcing his tongue past my lips as I moaned deep in my throat. His hand slid between my legs, his finger running over the crotch of my cotton panties. My hips lifted on their own. His fingers moved my panties to the side as I silently begged him not to stop. That itch was unbearable. I’d never felt heat like this before. I’d gone more than a year without having sex, but I needed him inside me right now more than I needed air.
His fingers rubbed lightly over my moist lips, and I made a breathless, desperate sound, my teeth closing on his bottom lip and nibbling lightly. The tip of one finger toyed with my clit, sending bolts of pleasure rocketing into the rest of my body. His lips found my neck again, kissing hard, as his thick finger slid inside me.
“Pete,” I whispered, breathless, and lifted my hips, inviting him deeper.
He raised met my gaze, his beautiful eyes so wide in the dark, the intensity in them stealing my already short breaths from me. Without breaking eye contact, our breaths mingling in the air between us, he slid my panties from my hips. I lifted my butt to make it easier for him.
“You’re so beautiful,” he said in a low, husky voice squeezed tight with need. Was he feeling that heat? That itch? If he didn’t start scratching it soon, I was going to scream.
He wiggled out of his boxers, kicking them off his feet. He kissed me again, running his hands from my erect nipples to my heaving chest to my stomach and down between my legs, stoking that heat into an inferno as he ran the tips of his fingers back and forth over my wetness.
“Do you want this?” he asked, his mouth very close to my ear.
I was still so breathless, but I had to let him know that I couldn’t bear the idea of him stopping now. “Yes,” I whispered adamantly.
He slid between my legs, the head of his cock pressing into my throbbing, wet sex. I squeezed his ass cheeks in my hands, pulling him into me. He thrust inside in a single motion, and I cried out, the pleasure tingling over every trembling inch of my skin as I opened completely to him.
My hands slid over his back as he started an even rhythm, plunging himself into me only to back out again, the sensation drawing a series of breathless whimpers from me. I was so close already and he’d only just started.
His lips met my neck, sucking hungrily, his heavy breaths so warm on my skin. I didn’t want him to stop. He stroked harder, the muscles of his back rippling under my hands. I arched my back, and he went deeper. The heat was reaching a pinnacle, every tingling nerve between my legs building up until I was ready to shriek with pleasure. Pete groaned, very close to my ear, as he thrust himself inside me up to the hilt, and I came hard, crying out behind clenched teeth. A second later, he growled low in his throat and a spasm moved through his body, jolting me beneath him so I cried out again, digging my fingernails into the muscly expanse of his back.
He collapsed against me, breathing hard, his weight pressing me into the mattress. The pleasurable sensations were still moving through my body. His heartbeat was beating into my chest, so it felt like I had two hearts. He rolled off of me, exposing my hot, slick body to the air. I lay there, catching my breath, naked and sweaty, our mingled juices dripping from between my legs. Pete reached to rest a warm hand on my flat stomach.
“That was incredible,” he panted.
And, it had been. But it had also been a mistake. Whatever energy had built up over the last few weeks, reaching an awful, delicious pinnacle over dinner, had been spent. Now I could think clearly again. I could see how bad I’d just made things for me at the ranch. Because I couldn’t keep doing this.
“I have to go,” I said, sitting up. I dropped from the bed onto my knees, gathering my clothes from the floor.
“You can stay,” he said, sitting up, too. He reached to brush my back with his fingertips, and I shied away. “I’ll cook breakfast in the morning. Or we can go to the Texan.”
I shook my head as I put on my shirt. I wasn’t going to trouble with my underclothes. I just needed to get the hell out of here.
“No, thank you,” I said, my cheeks reddening at how stupid that sounded. “It’s not a good idea.” I stood up and tugged my jeans on, buttoning them as I slid my bare feet back into my boots. I had my underclothes and socks balled in one fist. I didn’t want to look at Pete, not after what we’d done. I might not be able to leave if I met his eyes.
“Emma, don’t go,” he said.
But I was already at the door. “I’ll see you next week,” I said and rushed out into the darkened hallway.