Lifers (46 page)

Torrey had taken her iPod to work so I found an old CD in Mikey’s room,
Smashing Pumpkins
, and stuck that on. I’d heard Torrey play it so I hoped that would be a good start in setting the mood.

It didn’t work, of course.

She came crashing in through the door at a quarter before six, late enough to have me pacing up and down.

“Jordan Kane, you’re up to something!” she yelled as soon as she set a foot through the door.

How the hell did she know? Damn woman was psychic
.

“Hey, sweetheart,” I said, sweeping her into a tight hug. “How was your day?”

“Groovy. Now why don’t you tell me what the hell’s going on? Where are Paul and Gloria? Their cars are missing.”

“Out. We’ve got the whole place to ourselves. I’ve cooked for us. Come through and make yourself comfortable.”

She threw me a suspicious look.

“What did the doc say at your appointment? You were supposed to text me!”

“Sorry, sweetheart, I wanted to tell you in person. It’s all good. And I got a copy of my chart to take … well, wherever we go.”

She smiled and relaxed. “Aw, that’s great, honey. Come and get some sugar!”

She pouted her pretty lips at me, and I didn’t need a second invitation.

I dropped pecks across the corners of her mouth and then tugged at her lower lip with my teeth.

When she opened, I kissed her deeply, sliding my tongue against hers, utterly caught up in the way it felt: her sweet, coffee flavor; the sensation of being joined with her, tasting her.

We’d avoided doing this for a whole goddamn month because it was just impossible for us to keep from getting carried away.

“Jordan,” she murmured against my lips, “stop tempting me! We can’t!”

“Actually, sweetheart, we can. Got the all clear from the doc.”

She gave a little gasp and attacked my throat with her hot, wet mouth, making me groan loudly. But then she pushed away.

“Wait just a darn minute!” she snapped. “I’m not sure I believe you! Tell me
exactly
what he said.”

Busted.

I couldn’t lie to her. I just couldn’t do it.

“Okay, fine. He said we could go ahead so long as we didn’t do anythin’ ‘vigorous’. But I’m beggin’ you, sweetheart, I’ve missed this, us, so badly…”

She laughed and raised her eyebrows. “You can have sex but it can’t be ‘vigorous’? Is that even possible?”

Nope, I didn’t think so either.

She wrinkled her nose, suddenly distracted. “Are you cooking something?”

I smiled. “Yep, trout and baked potatoes.”

She grinned at me and let her fingers trail down my back, over my t-shirt.

“Are you trying to seduce me again, Jordan Kane?”

“God, yes! How am I doin’?”

She smirked at me. “Not bad, although did he really say that we can’t do anything ‘vigorous’?”

I nodded mutinously.

“Hmm, well, I guess we might just have to get creative.” She smiled. “Let’s eat first, I’m starving.”

Even though dinner had been part of the plan, I couldn’t help feeling frustrated that food was getting in the way of taking my woman to bed. That and the thought of trying to force food into my stomach when my cock was throbbing in my pants. Fuckin’ luck.

Distraction. Food.

I served up the fish onto warmed plates and slid a potato off of the skewer for her.

“And, um, there’s salad, too,” I said, pushing a bowl of leaves and green shit in front of her.

“Thanks, cowboy,” she smirked.

She knew I hated salad. I just didn’t see the point of it.

“And, um, there’s this,” I said, taking a bottle of champagne from the fridge.

Torrey clapped her hands together and watched as I popped the cork. I poured two glasses and handed one to her.

“To us, sweetheart.”

“To us.”

I sipped slowly, surprised by the way the bubbles felt on my tongue. It seemed strange to me. Truthfully, I’d forgotten what alcohol tasted like. I hadn’t even had a beer in the last month. Despite not being on parole any longer, Torrey had banned it on the grounds that I was taking way too many drugs to mix and match. It didn’t bother me.

I was nervous about drinking again, but I’d wanted tonight to be special.

The champagne was kind of sweet, kind of sharp, and the bubbles made my tongue tingle—all things that reminded me of Torrey.

“So,” she said, slowly. “I guess we really are free to take off now.”

“I guess we are.”

“Well, where do you want to go?”

I shook my head. “I don’t care, just so long as it’s with you.”

“No plans at all?”

“Sweetheart, I’ve had every minute of every day planned for me for the last eight years. So let’s travel, see stuff, go wherever. I spoke to Hulk and he wrote me a reference so I should be able to get a job. If you get one from Gus, we’ll be able to pick up casual work whenever we run out of money. If we find somewhere we like, I guess we just stop drivin’. How does that sound?”

She grinned. “I like that non-plan. What’s for dessert?”

“I was really hopin’ you’d ask that.”

“Were you now?”

“Dessert is upstairs.”

She curled her lips in a smile. “I thought it might be.”

We cleared the plates from the table and stacked everything into the dishwasher. Torrey picked up the champagne bottle, which was still half full, and I carried the glasses.

I swayed slightly. I was definitely getting a buzz from the booze. I decided not to drink anymore; I didn’t want to spoil tonight.

I let Torrey lead the way up the stairs, not just to appreciate the view of her ass, but to hear her gasp of surprise as she opened our bedroom door.

“Oh! You … you did all this?”

I nodded, watching the glow of happiness on her face as she looked around. The hurricane lamp threw a gauze of soft shadows around the room, and the two candles flickered in the breeze from the open window. I’d filled the room with flowers that I’d picked in the fields beyond the cottonwoods. I could name some of them. I used to pick them with Momma when I was a little kid. There were cowpen daisies, flame vines, Mexican heather, butterfly milkweed, and some pink things that I had no idea what they were called. I thought Torrey would like them. They were wild and natural, just like her.

“Jordan, it’s beautiful! You are definitely getting laid tonight, cowboy.”

“Thank fuck for that! My balls aren’t even blue anymore, they’re freakin’ purple after lyin’ next to you night after night and not bein’ able to do anythin’ about it.”

She laughed. “On the bed now! Oh wait, take your clothes off first!”

It was my turn to laugh. “Did you forget how this works?”

She raised an eyebrow. “Like you and I haven’t had sex with most of our clothes on before now because
you
were too impatient to get me naked!”

That was true.

I toed off my tennis shoes and lined them up under the chair. I knew that Torrey was trying not to laugh at me, but I couldn’t help being tidy. Besides, I knew she’d be messy enough for both of us.

I’d gotten out of the habit of wearing socks. Mostly because the first couple of weeks I’d been home from the hospital, I couldn’t bend down to put them on. And I didn’t want Torrey dressing me like I was a damned invalid.

She watched while I undid my shirt buttons one at a time, and licked her lips. Yeah, my woman liked to watch.

Soon I was standing there in just my jeans. I was so turned on, I knew I wouldn’t last as long as I wanted. It reminded me so much of the first time we’d been together, except now I knew how she felt about me.

I unbuckled my belt and pulled down the zipper.

“You want to do the rest, sweetheart? I’m all yours.”

“Oh, I want!” she said.

She yanked my jeans over my ass and palmed my dick as it leapt out toward her. I was seconds away from coming and she’d barely touched me.

She knelt down in front of me and ran her tongue over and around the head of my cock, and my whole body responded. I grabbed her shoulders to keep from falling.

“Torrey, I…”

“Shh,” she murmured.

“Please, sweetheart,” I begged her. “I’m gonna…”

But she was in charge. Oh boy, was she in charge.

I came so freakin’ hard, I saw stars. It was unbelievable pleasure after a month-long ban, and off the chart pain as my ribs protested at the way I was gasping for breath.

She smiled up at me, licking her lips, as I fought to control my body, trembling from eyeballs to toes.

“That was some dessert, cowboy,” she laughed. “You look like you need to lie down.”

She was still in charge. God, I loved that, but one thing I knew for sure, another few weeks from now and I was going to be the one calling the shots.

“Enjoy it while you can, sweetheart,” I gasped out. “Payback’s a bitch.”

She arched one eyebrow as she smiled at me, stripping her clothes from her beautiful, perfect body.

“I’m counting on it. But for now, I’m in charge. On the bed.”

I didn’t want to disrespect a lady, especially one who had me by the balls—literally—so I lay down.

I tried to run my hands along her body but she flicked them away.

“Uh-uh!” she smirked, wagging her finger at me. “And remember, nothing too vigorous.”

I rolled my eyes. She was
never
going to let me forget that.

“You know,” she said, thoughtfully, “the first day I saw you, I thought, now
that’s
a long, cold drink of water on a hot day.”

“You did?”

“Why do you think I followed you out with that darned coffee?”

I frowned in concentration, recalling every detail of that day.

“At first, I thought it was because you felt sorry for me, because … you know.”

“And later?”

“I was confused. I couldn’t work out why you’d done it if it wasn’t … charity. I guess I just thought you were being nice.”

She laughed out loud. “I was!”

“So, you’d have followed me out to the truck if I’d been toothless, bow-legged and with a gut that reached my knees?”

“Oh, especially then!” she smiled. “Honestly, Jordan, I think I would have taken a coffee to anyone just to make dismal Doreen pissed. But you…” and she licked her lips again, “you were definitely a special case. In fact, just looking at you makes me thirsty all over again.”

She reached over to the bedside cabinet and took a long drink from her champagne glass.

“You want some?”

“No, sweetheart. I reckon I’ve had enough for tonight.”

“Pity,” she said, a wicked look in her eye.

Then she dribbled champagne from her mouth onto my chest and down toward my belly button. It wasn’t cold, but it still made me jump. The movement drew a curse from me as my ribs protested.

“Oops, sorry!” she giggled. “Let me make it up to you.”

And she licked down my whole body. My
whole
body.

“It’s nice having you back in one piece,” she said, with the air of someone at an art gallery. “You’re so pretty.”

“Pretty?” I scoffed.

“Yep. Very pretty. I mean, for fuck’s sake! You’ve got better skin than me, longer eyelashes, and cheekbones that could slice cheese. I have acne once a month and blow up like a beach ball.”

I couldn’t help laughing.

“Crazy woman! Come here and kiss me. I’d come to you, but that might be too vigorous.”

Her lips were warm against mine and sweet with champagne. Just kissing her was the Fourth of July, Christmas and every birthday rolled into one. My hands roamed across her narrow shoulders and down her arms, then back up to toy with her pretty little tits and rose-crested nipples.

I circled them with my thumbs, inhaling her gasps of pleasure.

I slipped one hand down to tease her clit, working her around, sliding my index finger in and out.

“Sweetheart,” I whispered, “bring that perfect lil’ pussy up here so I can taste you.”

She opened one eye and squinted at me.

“You want that?”

“Hell, yeah! Climb on up.”

She crawled up my body, careful to avoid my ribs. They were much better, but I don’t think I could have taken her clamping her thighs down on me. We’d have to work up to that.

I gripped her hips and pulled her body down to my face, breathing in her musky scent deeply. I loved the way she smelled, most of all when she’d been working all day and hadn’t showered. She was less sure, but damn, the way she tasted, it made me crazy.

I flicked my tongue up, and I heard the palms of her hands slap against the wall above the headboard.

“Jordan,” she groaned.

God, hearing her say my name like that.

I circled her, around and around, feeling her body shiver and tremble, touching, teasing, tasting.

When I flicked my tongue again, two, three, four times, she shuddered and moaned, her volume increasing with every thrust of my tongue. Seven, eight, nine times…

Yup, girl was a screamer.

Panting and glowing, she shook her hair from her face and slowly moved back down the bed, until her sweet ass was level with my hips.

“Your turn,” she said. “And my turn again.”

I grabbed a condom from the bedside cabinet and passed it to her.

“I’m going to miss these,” she said, looking down at the small, foil packet. “I think it’s the anticipation.”

“Miss what, sweetheart?”

She tossed the condom back onto the table.

“We don’t need them anymore, baby.”

My heart skipped a beat.

“What are you tellin’ me?”

“While you were … off limits. I got tested and got the all-clear for everything. I’m on the pill so … no more condoms.”

Then she lowered herself onto me, smiling as I cried out softly.

I could feel so much more. I’d never,
never
gone bare before. There was so much sensation, and the heat around me nearly tipped me over the edge. I had to grit my teeth and concentrate. She felt so soft and tight and silky, and it was like every detail was more intense.

I could tell she was feeling it, and the increased friction was working for her, too.

She continued her sweet torture for another hour, taking her pleasure out of my body as she rode me again and again, until we were both satisfied. Every part of me hurt, and it was so fucking worth it.