Someone was knocking on the door. Insistently. Not getting the message that, hello, it had to be fucking late—or early, depending on your point of view—and he’d left the “Do Not Disturb” sign on the door for a reason.

Hard to brood in private if people refused to stay away.

Ryan rolled over and opened a bleary eye as he checked his phone. Past four. Jesus. Whomever was knocking must either have the wrong room or have a serious issue.

He kicked away the tangled sheet and climbed out of bed before padding to the door. He’d showered and put on boxers to sleep in. Even the AC couldn’t combat the damn heat.

At the next knock, he grunted and undid the locks. It was a fancy hotel, but no one could be too safe. Especially when they were becoming more well-known and groupies and paparazzi seemed eager to get a piece of them in whatever manner they could.

He checked the peephole and swallowed a groan.

Fuck, was he dreaming?

He swung the door open. Denver was standing in the hallway in just flip-flops and an oversized Raiders football jersey, her long dark hair pinned up away from her un-made-up face. Her brown eyes were so huge he could’ve drowned in them.

“Hi,” she said softly, and Christ, he was sunk.

He didn’t even think about what to do next. Normally, he was the guy with a plan. He’d been the one who had strategized how to position Warning Sign in the early days, because practicality was in his blood.

It had been until he’d been inside this woman and forgotten what it was like to breathe without her by his side.

Cupping her face between his palms, he feasted on her mouth until she went pliant. She swayed against him, fisting a hand in the waistband of his boxers, rising up on her tiptoes to chase his lips when he eased back for a second to haul in air.

No time for that. No time for anything but her slapping her hands on his chest and shoving him into his suite, then kicking the door closed before he fell backwards onto the bed.

She scrambled up his body, her greedy fingers already sneaking into his shorts, her mouth a fever on his throat. Teeth grazed his skin and he groaned, throwing back his head even as he coasted his hand under her top and up her spine, desperate for the satin of her flesh. Always desperate. Somehow he knew even if they did this a million ways over a million years, he’d always feel this endless frenzy just to get more.

But this wasn’t some random chick. This was his best friend, the woman who meant so much more to him than a hotel hookup.

“Colorado, wait,” he whispered, fisting a handful of her hair to drag her head back. She moaned, the sound as ripe as the warmth of her pussy daring him to take as she ground herself against his cock. The thin layers of fabric between them—her panties and his boxers—were no match for her liquid heat.

Holy fuck.

“Don’t want to.” She dropped kisses all over his face and down his neck. Over the slope of his shoulder and across his chest. Everywhere her silky lips could touch. “Don’t want to talk either. Just wanna fuck. Please.”

How was he supposed to say no to her? But he had to, because he couldn’t just be the guy she bounced on at four-thirty a.m. His dick might have no issue with that, but the rest of him was a different story.

He rolled her beneath him and lightly pulsed his cock between her legs. When she whimpered, he laid a finger over her lips. “If we’re going to do this again, we need some ground rules. Ones we set before, not after.”

Her lashes fluttered in the dim light from the lamp he’d left on in the other room. He hadn’t been able to deal with total darkness tonight. That hadn’t borne examining. Neither had the dreams of chasing a figure he could never quite catch.

Because she was here right now, and he couldn’t fuck this up. Not again.

“You were mad at me earlier and now you’re here and it’s late. Is this a booty call? You need some, so you put on some sexy clothes and came at me when I’m too weak to fight you off?”

Her lips twitched beneath his finger. “You don’t feel weak to me.” She bumped her pelvis against his and damn if he didn’t moan like he was in serious need. “And this is your idea of sexy clothes?”

“Oh, hell yeah. The Raiders logo stretched by your perfect tits?” He plucked one of her diamond-hard nipples and she shifted restlessly against the mattress. “Shit, I could come from looking at you this way, never mind anything else.” He lowered his mouth to her ear. “Though I don’t like the idea of you wandering these hallways dressed like this so anyone could see.” He reached around to fill his hand with her ass. “This is all fucking mine.”

Instead of laughing, she turned her face away, not so subtly putting distance between them. “I came from Elle’s room. So just a few feet up the hall. Anyway, who says I’m yours?”

“You did, by showing up here tonight with needs I’m the only one who can fulfill.” Slowly, he looped his fingers around her wrists and dragged her arms above her head, stretching her out until her stiff nipples tempted him by nearly poking through her jersey. “Just want to hear you say it. To finally acknowledge what’s between us.”

“Right now, what’s between us is a rock-hard cock.” She licked her lips. “One I want to ride.”

“What changed between you being pissed at me at The Velvet Vault and you coming here to screw at dawn?”

“It’s not quite dawn yet.” She huffed out a breath that ruffled the strand of hair clinging to her cheek. “Elle’s guy fucked a groupie in your bed. I thought it was you, and I got jealous.” While he stared at her, she lifted her head and narrowed her eyes at him. “Not saying I’m not still pissed at you for gambling, because I am. Setting up—”

“Den, I didn’t go. I heard some guys talking about a game, but I didn’t follow up. Even after we fought. It would’ve been easy to get in on a game tonight while I was annoyed at you for being annoyed with me, but I didn’t. Want to know why?”

“You were annoyed at me for being annoyed at you?”

“Yes, because I didn’t do anything. It’s honestly not all that serious. So what, I wanted to win back your money. I don’t like owing you. But I’m not jonesing for the high of gambling.” He dropped his forehead to hers. “I’d much rather get high from the thrill of sinking balls deep into your tight little cunt.”

Her lips rounded, and her eyes went bright. In his hold, her wrists flexed. “You have miles of dirty in you I so never guessed.”

“Ditto. You like me holding you down and pounding into you from behind. You like me holding your wrists. Bet you’d even like it if I handcuffed you to this bed and slipped something into your ass, something you could clench while I fill your pussy.”

Her chest rose and fell with her shallow breaths. “Not sure what kind of conversation you wanted to have, but if your intent was to make me soak this bed before you touch me, you’re halfway there.”

“You thought I was banging someone else in my bed and you got jealous. Is that right?”

It was getting harder and harder for him to speak through the tightness clamping down on his lungs. The primal beat in his head urged him to take her, own her, make her scream his name. But he couldn’t. He had to ensure she was with him, that something more than arousal had made her seek him out.

More than spent jealousy that craved an outlet.

“Yeah. And then I felt guilty. You’re not that guy. I mean, obviously there’s all kinds of sides and parts to you I never guessed.” She cocked a brow, and he couldn’t help grinning, though he tightened his grip on her wrists. “But you aren’t a cheater.”

“I thought we weren’t together. That what we did the other night meant nothing. Your words,” he said lightly as she pursed her lips. “Not exactly, but close enough.”

“If that’s what it sounded like I meant, I’m sorry.”

“It did, and I may never forgive you.” He kissed the tip of her nose. “Except I already did.”

She let out a long breath. “Good. That’s good. When it’s been a while for you, sometimes you attach a lot of feelings to really good sex. I didn’t want to do that.”

“Stupendous sex,” he corrected.

Her lips curved. “You get really good for night one. Stupendous is a word you earn, buddy.”

“Oh, I will.” Deliberately, he lifted his groin away from hers, though he maintained his lock on her wrists. “So you got jealous because you thought I was a complete dick and then you got guilty for thinking that I could ever want another woman after I’ve had the gold standard of women on this fucking planet, then you doused my bed in bleach, then what?”

“No bleaching. Not yet. I didn’t even get to strip the sheets. Sorry. It was an eventful couple of hours.”

Briefly, she ran through how Mal had kicked the guy’s ass, and how he just wouldn’t stop beating on him until she took “extreme measures” to subdue him. She glossed over those and continued on to telling Elle and comforting her and how she’d ended up coming back with her to the hotel so they could talk for a while before Elle went to sleep. But that had turned out to be awfully fast, so Denver had sneaked down the hall to his room for a quickie.

Which was all well and good, once they finished this talk. And discussed one other pertinent bit of information.

“Those extreme measures you employed on Mal? What were they, exactly?”

“And poor Elle, she’s just so upset. She was just devastated. Can you imagine a guy taking advantage of her generosity like that?”

Recognizing Denver’s evasion tactics, Ryan gripped her chin. “What. Did. You. Do?”

“I grabbed hold of his penis.”

“You what?”

“Yeah, yeah, I touched his dick. Big deal. It’s like an elephant trunk. Those are fine in theory, but I prefer a much more manageable—”

“Oh, woman, you are about to get fucked to within an inch of your life.” Without warning, he hauled her up the bed and brought her hands up to the headboard. “Hang on to that. Don’t let go.”

“Wait, are we done talking?”

“A situation has arisen, so we’re hitting pause until we clear some things up. But no, we’ll never be done talking. Just so long as you acknowledge this isn’t a one-and-done kind of deal.” He rolled off the bed to root through the bag of items he’d gotten at The Velvet Vault. Some of them would be coming in very handy.

“Well, no, technically now it’s a two-and—”

“Shut up.” He smacked her thigh and she laughed, the sound fading into a whimper when his next smack fell between her splayed thighs. He yanked off her serviceable white panties and shoved them between her lips, making her big eyes flare even wider before she fell silent. “If you want me to stop, you say yellow. Got it?”

He expected her to argue. To struggle more, as she had the other night. That was Denver’s way, and he loved her spirit. But she just circled her hips and nodded, her jaw working as she fought to keep the gag between her lips.

Interesting. They were well matched in some ways he’d never suspected. The first time they’d slept together had certainly made him think so, but tonight was underscoring his impressions.

He drew out the fur-lined handcuffs, the condoms, the lube, and the anal beads. Though it was difficult, he didn’t look her way to gauge her reaction. Drawing out the moment was part of the experience. He was too impatient to build too much anticipation, but he wanted her writhing.

Saying nothing, he dropped the items on the bed beside her hip. She swallowed audibly, but she didn’t spit out the gag.

“We haven’t laid out boundaries. The other night, I got a sense of what you were into, and I think you got the same. Nod if I’m right.”

She nodded.

“You like a little force. A little domination. A little bondage, if I earn it.”

She nodded again.

“You just don’t intend to submit easily. It’s probably hard for you to admit that you can give up control here, when you’re so adamant about having it outside the bedroom.” Her throat moved, but she didn’t nod. Didn’t even meet his gaze. “But one has nothing to do with the other. What we do when we’re in bed doesn’t have to have a bearing outside this room. I won’t try to hold you down anytime except when you’re on your back for me with your legs open.” He bent down to speak against her cheek. “Or on your front with your ass in the air.”

Her tremor sang through him like a held note, vibrating even after she went still. His body had gone tense, tuned to her every reaction. That was his role, to make sure that he never pushed her further than she wanted to go. To know when she was hesitant because she was nervous about her boundaries being nudged versus when she’d reached a hard limit.

That required brutal awareness and a firm grasp on his own desires. Right now, he was teetering when it came to both. She was a test for him in every damn way.

“But if you ever decide it’s too much, you say yellow and we stop and discuss it. I’m not saying not to fight me. I like it when you struggle.”

If that meant he was a little depraved, then so be it. From the faint tremble in her arms as she clasped the headboard, she didn’t mind. Not at all. If anything, he would’ve sworn his darker needs registered in her too.

“I want to cuff you and use these on you.” He held up the beads. “Just a couple to start. Not too much. I got the feeling last time that you’re not used to taking anything back there, are you?”

She shook her head, but her eyes stayed just as bright. Just as laser focused on his.

“We’ll build up nice and slow.” He cast a glance at the lightening sky outside the window. He’d left the heavy blackout curtains open, but he was about to close them to delay the morning—and the moment she left him—as long as possible. “We don’t have too much time before Elle will be looking for you, so we’ll just play a little tonight. I can’t wait long anyway. But next time will be different.”

After drawing the curtains, he came back to the bed and cupped her inner thigh, letting his thumb flirt with the outer lips of her pussy.

Her soaked pussy. Fuck.

Swallowing hard, he focused on keeping his touch light. “Next time, we’re going to take all the time in the world to do this properly.”

He could see the questions in her eyes. They traveled most of the time on a damn bus with a ton of other people. When exactly would they have the privacy for some DIY bondage and anal exploration? Maybe not right away, especially since he was pretty damn sure she still wanted to keep everything on the down-low.

Getting her to admit sex between them wasn’t going to be just a one-time event had been the first hurdle. Going public was another one entirely, and he wasn’t going to cross that particular bridge just yet.

One boundary at a time. For both of them.

First, he was going to earn his claim of stupendous sex. Hopefully, she’d say it on a scream.

He shed his boxers, keeping his attention on her eyes the whole time. Watching her eat him up with her gaze while she fought with her own urges not to touch had to be one of the hottest things he’d ever experienced. He didn’t know how long she’d let him take control without striking out. Whatever submissive tendencies she had were buried under a lot of resistance and fear, and maybe she didn’t quite trust him in that way yet.

They’d figure it out. There was no hurry, no matter what she believed.

He reached up and pulled her panties out of her mouth, throwing them aside. He didn’t want her voice hampered in any way, though he doubted she’d have trouble making herself heard regardless.

“One wrist tonight,” he said, holding up the cuffs. “Okay?”

“Is this when I’m supposed to struggle, to make it hotter for you?” The rasp in her voice had him grasping her ankle and tugging up her leg. The faint light from the other room left most of her body in shadows, including that sexy cleft between her legs. But her puffy pussy lips were slick, and he could smell how aroused she was.

“Nah. You don’t need to do anything to make it hotter for me. Just knowing I’m about to fuck you has me on fucking fire.”

She didn’t say anything, just let go of the headboard long enough to sit up. When he cocked his brow at her for moving, she cocked hers right back. “I presume you want me naked?”

Before he had a chance to answer, she tugged up her jersey and tossed it aside, baring her golden skin and upturned breasts to him and drying out his throat. Her gaze diverted to his cock, now standing stiffly at attention. “Not sure how long you’re going to last there. Maybe we should save your games for another night.”

Just the words “another night” made his balls tighten.

“Say it again,” he demanded, releasing her leg to crawl up the bed toward her.

“Not sure how long you’re going to last there,” she began, laughter in her eyes. “Maybe we should save your games—”

He covered her mouth with his and grasped the handcuffs, snapping one on her wrist before she could evade the move. She kicked out at him as he tugged her up the bed. Somehow he managed to hook them to the headboard before she did him serious harm with her legs, though she didn’t stop after her wrist was held in place. If anything, she went wilder. Scratching his back with her free hand, scissoring her legs, bringing her knee up awfully close to his groin.

Throughout, her eyes lit with a dark amusement that made him that much more determined to make her pay, using the most sensual torture he could devise.

Like clamping an arm over her belly and moving down her body to lap at her greedy pussy, knowing full well from her heaving hips that she was fully on board with everything they were doing. She still tried to buck him off her, switching her scratches to the back of his neck. Every swipe of her nails and tug on his hair made him harder and hungrier. He parted her pussy lips and licked his way inside, going straight for her swollen clit, sucking on it while she reared up against the cuff that barely seemed capable of keeping her tethered.

“You’re going to hurt yourself,” he said against her pussy, slipping his fingers inside her. Slow, easy strokes at first, then faster, more insistent ones as he felt her walls start to clench. “Do you want the band to see your wrist all bruised tomorrow?” He turned his head and bit the inside of her thigh while his fingers kept pace. “These bruises no one gets to see but me.”

She let out a frustrated moan and he returned his mouth to her slit, sliding his tongue up and down in a languid rhythm that was the exact opposite to the punishing thrusts of his fingers. Already he could tell she enjoyed a mixture of sensations. Rough and gentle, easy and wild.

Whatever got her off, he would do. He just wouldn’t be quick about it.

“Ry.” It wasn’t a plea, almost an admonition.

He pressed his hand to her belly and kissed his way up over her landing strip, continuing upward while she writhed. He captured her nipple between his teeth and pumped his fingers in and out, driving deep and yanking them back until just the tips remained inside to torment her.

“Ry,” she said again, annoyed now. “I want it.”

“Do you now?” He transferred his attention to her other breast, alternating between sucking and nipping the sensitive flesh. With his mouth full of her, he lifted his gaze to her flushed face. “So beg me.”