WE SHOWERED. WE dressed. We left.
No sex. No kissing. No touching.
A part of me wondered if maybe I had done something wrong. After I’d touched his back, Stone closed up almost instantly. He didn’t talk much after, and it made me curious to find out what darkness had eaten him up.
As promised, he drove me back to Asher and Meeka’s place.
I had been staying with our friends for a couple of weeks while the Organization, an entity that dealt with terrorism and human trafficking, were still not brought to justice. I loved Asher and Meeka, but I really missed my own bed.
When we pulled up to their home, I realized that neither Stone nor I had spoken once.
“Thank you for driving me.”
Stone parked and shut off the truck before unbuckling his belt.
“What are you doing?” I asked, my heart jumping to my throat.
“Meeka invited me over for lunch.” He raised an eyebrow. “Is that a problem?”
Not really wanting to do the walk of shame in front of the people I lived with, I tried thinking of a way we could go into the house separately. Maybe I could make Stone wait five minutes.
“They already know we’ve fucked, Creena.” Stone shrugged. “No big deal.” He stepped out of the vehicle and walked around to my side. He opened the door, leaning his arm against the roof, and peered into the truck at me. “Coming?” he asked, licking his lips.
I cleared my throat, slid out of the truck, and made sure to brush up against him in the process. Every nerve ending in my body came alive every time we touched. “Maybe later,” I purred. He wanted to tease me? Well, I could throw it right back.
“Fuck,” he whispered, his breath brushing over the side of my face.
I laughed, patting him on the chest. “You might want to take care of that.” I pointed down to the erection he was sporting.
“Damn, woman.” He shielded himself and grabbed onto my hip. “Stop teasing me,” he grumbled in my ear.
“You loved it earlier, remember?” I brushed my hand up his chest to his mouth. “You came hard for me.”
He shivered, giving the pad of my thumb a gentle nip.
A shot of pleasure coiled in my lower belly.
In a rough move, Stone wrapped a hand around my wrist, digging his fingers into the bones. “You’re playing a very dangerous game, Creena.”
“Yeah?” I licked my bottom lip. “I’m willing to bet it’s a game you won’t mind losing.”
His nostrils flared, the bright lust in his eyes shining even more. He kissed my cheek and pulled me away from the truck before slamming the door shut behind me. “You don’t know shit about me, Creena. Remember that.”
“Listen to me right now, asshole.” I tugged my hand from his grip, glaring up at him. “Just because we fucked doesn’t mean you get to treat me like one of your many whores. We were friends first. Remember that.” I stormed past him into the house, letting the door close in his face.
He grunted, shoving the door open until it smashed against the wall.
“Problem?” I asked, sweetness dripping from my voice.
He grinned. “Careful.”
I shivered at the underlining threat in his deep voice.
“Hey, guys,” Meeka came out of the kitchen, stopping suddenly. “Is there an issue?” she asked, a teasing lilt to her voice.
“All right,” I sighed, waving a hand in front of my face. “Get it out.”
She laughed. “I’m not saying shit.”
“But I will,” Asher boomed from the kitchen. “Have fun?”
I slumped onto the couch, scrubbing a hand up and down my face. Stone glanced at me before heading into the kitchen when Meeka sat beside me.
“Rough night?” she asked, curling her arm in mine.
“I don’t remember,” I mumbled.
And that only made Meeka laugh harder.
My cheeks heated. “How bad were we at the reception?”
“Uh …” Meeka grinned. “You were all over each other. It was intense and hot as hell. Asher pulled you two apart a couple of times. We didn’t want you fucking on the dance floor.”
“Oh, God.” I dropped my head in my hands.
“It happens.” She giggled. “Stone’s a good guy. It could have been worse.”
I grunted. “Yeah, I guess.”
“What do you mean?” she asked, frowning.
“He … he’s different. I can’t explain it, but it’s like as soon as we had sex, he became a different man.” I shook my head. “Never mind. I’m not making sense.”
“No” —she patted my hand— “I get it. He is different. Asher said he’s had a hard life. I’m not sure if something happened before he was assigned to Vice-One or after.” She shrugged. “Just have fun. Both of you deserve it.” She rose from the couch. “Oh. Your brother called.”
Shit.
***
(Stone)
Creena’s sass turned me the fuck on. Her fire, her energy, her damn smile made me hard as a rock. I pushed, she pulled and shoved it all back in my face.
After lunch, we helped Meeka clean up. Creena glanced my way, a hint of a smile tugging on her full mouth.
“I hope that smile is for me,” I whispered in her ear while reaching behind her to grab a dish off the dish rack.
“You’re very full of yourself, aren’t you?” She grinned, a rosy glow hitting her cheeks.
“I’m only just getting started.” Putting the dish away, I leaned against the counter and nodded toward Asher and Meeka. “When are the babies due?”
“Not soon enough,” Asher grumbled.
“No sex?” I teased.
“Meeka wants to be cautious,” he grunted, wrapping his arm around his girlfriend’s middle. Whispering something in her ear, his mouth turned up into a grin when she shivered.
I chuckled, taking a step closer toward Creena.
“Asher,” Meeka scolded, elbowing him in the stomach playfully.
He coughed, rubbing the spot she hit, and placed a hard kiss on her mouth. “You love me.”
She sighed. “Yeah. I do.” She turned to us. “Brogan’s running the meeting tomorrow. Both of you going to be there?”
“Yes.” Creena dried her hands and crossed her arms under chest, the subtle movement lifting her full tits.
I tried hard not to stare but, fuck me, my mouth watered at the sight.
I looked away before I started humping her leg and caught Asher staring back at me. A hint of amusement flashed in his gaze.
I rolled my eyes and used my middle finger to scratch my chin.
He chuckled, shaking his head.
“How’s Brogan doing with taking over the club?” Creena asked, ignoring us.
“You know her.” Meeka shrugged. “She just goes with the flow.”
“And she’ll maim some people while she’s at it if no one listens.” Creena laughed, leaning into my side.
I wasn’t sure if she noticed or not but the longer her and Meeka spoke, the closer to me she became. I could still feel every inch of her on my skin. The taste of her tingled on my tongue. Other than that, I didn’t remember shit from the night before. But I knew I would have her again, wrapped around my dick, moaning my name and begging for more. I had a feeling, though, it would be me who begged first. And I didn’t mind.
With her body less than an inch from mine, this was nice. It was comfortable. Creena had been the first woman I had been friends with before getting them in my bed. There was something different about her than the others. Than her. Than the whole damn situation.
My heart stuttered, skipping a beat.
Clearing my throat, I pinched the bridge of my nose, forcing those nightmares to stay hidden.
“Hey …” Creena gently touched my arm. “You okay?”
I peeked at her over my fingers, wondering just who the hell this woman was. “Yeah.” I pulled away from her like a pussy. “Thank you, Asher and Meeka, for lunch.” I left the kitchen, needing to get as far away from Creena as possible.
I didn’t deserve her. Not one damn thing about her. She was good. Innocent. Although she had a dirty mouth on her, she was light where I was dark. I needed to get far from her before I tainted her soul with the rust of my past.