Rock the Boat (24 page)

Noelle smiles, a devious grin on her face. “When did Easton become off limits?”

“Since I decided I really like him.”

Noelle tilts her head back with her hands steepled in front of her. “Thank you, Jesus,” she whispers to the heavens. “You finally saw the light.”

“It wasn’t too hard to realize Lincoln has about as much substance as a chewed piece of gum.”

“I can’t disagree with you there. I think I’m more surprised you were in the water.” She sits next to Lane, leaning her head against his shoulder. They’re awfully cozy for two people who just met. It makes me wonder what she’s been keeping from me all week. Maybe she wasn’t with Lincoln as much as I thought she was.

“It happened so fast, but had Easton not been watching me the whole time, I’m not sure what would have happened. I don’t want to even think about it, actually.”

Never again will I take my life for granted. Not when it can all be taken away from me in the blink of an eye. As awful as today was, maybe it’s what I needed to realize how ready I am to let go of all things Grant and focus on someone new.

“Well, I’m glad you’re okay. Remind me to thank Easton, too.”

“I’m sure he won’t take any of the credit, but I’ll be in the shower. Take care of my girl, Lane.” Neither of them say a word as I slip inside the bathroom. As I turn on the water in the shower, reality hits me. Just seeing the droplets slide down the wall of the shower reminds me how differently today could have ended. Had Easton not cared enough to come after me, I could be dead.

The last words I would have spoken to him would have been spiteful and angry. He would have the image of me leaving the room with another man forever engrained in his memory. A man I couldn’t even stand.

This could have been it.

The end.

I manage to wash my hair and my body, but as I’m watching the water swirl down the drain, it becomes hard to breathe. My head dips forward and my shoulders shake as I cry tears of relief and gratitude.

Noelle peeks her head inside the bathroom and sees me curled into a tight ball. Without having to be asked, she shuts off the water, slides a towel off the rack, and wraps it around me. “Come on, Lark.”

I clutch the towel around me before following her to the bed where I collapse. I’ve been surviving on adrenaline for hours, and now I’m exhausted.

“What do you need? What can I do for you?”

“I’ll be fine in a minute. The sun got to me today. I’m not used to the heat.”

She rubs my back through the towel, comforting me the way only a best friend can. “I’m the one you’re supposed to be able to say anything to, remember? You don’t have to lie to me.”

I nod my head as the tears continue to fall. Noelle doesn’t push me to talk, and I’m thankful. She simply pulls the blanket over me and turns off the light. “Thank you. I think I need a minute before I see Easton again.”

“Take all the time you need, Lark. He’ll understand. Nobody’s going anywhere.”

“Okay,” I whisper as my swollen eyes close. “By the way, I like Lane.”

“When you’re feeling better, we have a lot to talk about. I’ll be with Lane in the pub if you need anything, but call down. Try to stay off your leg for as long as you can.”

“I will. Have fun.”

I once read it takes the average person seven minutes to fall asleep. I’m pretty sure it took me thirty seconds. When I do finally open my eyes again, the room is only half as bright as it was before I fell asleep. The evening sun is slowly fading, and I worry I slept too long, throwing away time I could have been spending with Easton. But when I pull back the blankets, and gingerly slide my legs over the side of the mattress, I see the most beautiful flower arrangement sitting on the nightstand next to me.

After inhaling the sweet scent of daises and lilies, I open the envelope with The Perfect Match logo on the front, pulling out the folded card inside.

Lark,

In case you needed it in writing, you’re my perfect match, baby.

Easton

Just reading his words scrawled across the paper has my heart racing. The card falls on the bed, and I drop my towel to the floor. It’s nearing the end of the week, and I don’t have much to choose from, but with my leg still an angry shade of red, I reach to the end of the rack of clothes and grab the maxi dress I was saving for something special.
This
is definitely special.

I’m in such a hurry to get to Easton, I leave the room with my flip flops in hand as I hobble down the hallway toward the elevator. Once I’m there, I slide them on my feet and stab at the button until the doors open. It’s only when I catch my reflection on the wall that I realize I never put makeup on, and I didn’t even bother to brush my slightly damp hair.

Going back isn’t an option, so I run my fingers through it until most of the tangles are gone. When I’m finally in front of Easton’s door, I rap my knuckles against it. Slowly, the door opens, and he’s standing before me wearing only a torn, faded pair of jeans. His feet and chest are bare, his dark hair a perfect mess.

“Can I come in?” I choke out, the emotion inside of me about to erupt all over again. He rubs his squinting eyes, adorably. “I’m sorry if I woke you up.”

He leans against the open door, staring at me. I wait for him to tell me it’s okay to come in, but he can’t wait any longer than I can when he reaches for my hand and says, “Baby, get in here and stop apologizing.”

For a moment I think he forgot about my leg because it’s only once he sees me shuffle inside that he stops me. He turns me around, his thumbs reaching up to brush away my tears. “Don’t cry gorgeous.”

When I can’t wait any longer, I stand on my toes, pain and all, and find his lips. I hold onto him so tightly, he stumbles backward, his back hitting the closet door. “Sorry,” I mumble against his lips.

There’s so much more I want to say to him, so much I need to say. But before we get to any of the hard stuff, and before he has a chance to tell me how his meeting went, I just want to enjoy the feeling of his lips on mine—his body against mine.

He wants it just as much as I do because his hands slowly slide down my body until the fabric of my dress is gathered in his hands. When the hem is far enough up my thighs for him to reach, he pulls it up and over my head, leaving me completely bare in front of him. “Shit, Lark. I wasn’t—I wasn’t expecting this.”

He stares at my naked chest and his hooded eyes inch lower, taking in every bit of my body. Normally, I’d be self-conscious, but not today. Today, I’m his in every sense of the word. Today, he saved me from myself.

His fingers cup my jaw as his lips crash down on mine. There’s nothing careful about his movements. He’s all in, and though Easton’s anything but greedy in the bedroom, I let him take whatever he needs from me—because I owe him the world.

Inch by inch, his mouth sucks and licks its way down my neck until he has the backs of my knees against the edge of the mattress. I fall backwards toward the center of the bed, but he carefully grabs my ankles, pulling me closer until my hips are on the edge of the bed. I expect him to move over top of me, but he surprises me when hooks my legs over his shoulders and buries his face between my thighs.

His stubble that’s gotten longer, growing into more of a beard, creates the most erotic sensation against my sensitive skin. My hips buck against his mouth, pressing him as close to me as he’s ever been.

He teases me over and over with his tongue, bringing me so close to the edge that I’m desperate for him to finish. He doesn’t though. His head raises and with more revere than I’ve ever experienced, he says, “tell me this body is mine.”

I nod my head, my mind made up long before this moment. “It’s yours.”

A growl escapes him, as his teeth graze my skin, nipping at the most sensitive parts. His hands knead my ass to the point I’m about to explode beneath him. The second his tongue dips inside me, my back arches off the bed. His movements are so slow and so torturous, I can barely stand it.

But then he sucks my clit, and I’m gone. Like I’m careening off a cliff, my entire body shakes as more pleasure than I knew possible ricochets around my body, hitting all the right spots at the exact same time.

It takes a few long seconds for me to catch my breath, but the second I come down from the high, I sit up slowly, reaching for his waist band. He pushes my hands away, but I don’t take no for an answer. “Let me, Easton.”

“This is about you, Lark.”

I pull him by his shirt until his face is mere inches from mine. “No, this is about
us
.”

Our eyes stay locked, but this time when I reach for him, he doesn’t try to stop me. My shaky fingers work the button on his jeans before popping it open. I take my time, making sure to give him the same amount of torturous anticipation, as I slowly pull his zipper down. It’s so quiet you can hear the metal pieces separating.

The second his pants are undone, I reach my hands inside, sliding them over his ass and hooking my thumbs in his boxer briefs, pulling them down until they’re low enough to set him free. I could take him in my mouth just like this, but I only swipe my tongue over the head before dropping to my knees in front of him.

“Lark,” he warns. I love every second of his dwindling patience.

“I want to taste you.”

With his jaw clenched, he says, “You have about thirty seconds before I throw you on this bed.”

“I don’t think that’s enough time for what I have in mind. But maybe,” I pause, my tongue circling the tip of him again, teasing him in circles. “Maybe I can make due.”

He growls as soon as I take him in my mouth, his tip hitting the back of my throat. That’s all he lets me have before he pulls out of my mouth, picks me up, and tosses me on the bed as promised. Instantly, he’s over top of me, his chest heaving with need. “Any other day, I would have let you have me for as long as you want, but I can’t wait another minute to be inside you, Lark. Not after today.”

For a second my need for him vanishes, replaced only with regrets. I turn my head away from him, ashamed at how insensitive I was to his feelings. “I’m sorry,” I tell him again, each time meaning it more than the last. I need him to realize I mean it, so I show him the only way I can think of. I wrap my legs around his waist, pulling him closer until his tip is barely brushing against my entrance. One tiny nudge, and he’s inside me, exactly where I need him.

Our physical connection has never been lacking. For the first time, it’s clear we’re capable of more. What we’re doing is more than sex. It’s more than a hook-up. And it’s more than I ever thought possible.

“Fuck, Lark. I can’t get enough of you,” he says, as he rocks his hips slowly, in and out of me.

I stare at him, watching as the muscles in his neck and chest flex with each thrust. I stare at his abs and the ink on his arms. I feel every inch of him, but like the story designed all over his body, I have no idea who Easton Beck really is. It scares me that one man can make me feel so incredible, yet be so elusive. I’m giving him all of myself, but I still need more. I need an emotional connection that matches the physical. And I have no idea how to get it.

“Are you okay?”

I nod my head. “I’m fine.”

“Touch yourself,” he whispers. “Let me see you.”

He watches as I run my hands over my chest, pinching my nipples before rolling the tightened buds between my fingertips. “Like this?”

“Just like that.”

When he’s had his fill, he grabs my wrists in his right hand and pins them above my head. Gone is the punishing rhythm he started with and in its place is a more sensual Easton. He rocks slower, in and out with a purpose, but without haste.

Our eyes meet as his hands drift between our bodies. He takes my breath away from a single look, and I lose it completely as he rubs tiny circles around my clit. I can’t move, yet I’m completely free. I’m at Easton’s mercy and there’s no place I’d rather be than right where I am.

Within seconds, I come unraveled for the second time. As I clench around him, his pace increases again. With his palms flat on either side of my head, he thrusts into me one last time, his teeth grinding together so loudly I can hear them scrape over one another.

“You’re still okay?”

“I’m fine.”

“That’s not how I wanted to do that.”

I smirk, understanding what he meant. He had planned on treating me like an injured, breakable girl—taking his time, being cautious and extra careful with me. “Any other way would have been awful,” I joke.

“Yeah?”

“The worst.”

This time he finally believes me and smiles, his baby blue’s sparkling again. “I didn’t expect you to show up with nothing under your dress.”

“I wanted to surprise you.” His arm snakes around my waist, and he pulls me closer until we’re face to face on the same pillow. “I’m sorry,” I whisper again. I’ve already said it more than once, but he needs to believe me this time.

He runs his finger down my cheek and over my swollen lips. “You have nothing to be sorry for.”

“No, I do. I almost killed myself because I have this insane desire to have everything perfectly organized. When I read the letter and saw you weren’t my match, I wasn’t disappointed. I was devastated. I panicked.” I glance into his eyes, but I still don’t see an ounce of anger in them—only pain. “This is where you tell me I’m an idiot for being so careless.”

Surprising me again, he smiles. “You’re not an idiot, Lark. You came here to find your match, and as much as it killed me to see you walk away with Lincoln, I get why you did it.”

“I get it, too, but I didn’t want to be with him. I wanted to be with you.”

“But you were still jealous because you had just watched me carry another girl in my arms, and you wanted to show me you were in control.”

“I’ve never been so jealous in my life. Even when I saw Grant’s tramp I didn’t want to hurt her. All my anger was directed toward Grant even though she was just as responsible as he was. I was mad at you, too, but I wanted to do really bad things to Gina. Things I’m ashamed to admit even crossed my mind.”

“It’s in the past. You’re right where you belong. It doesn’t matter how you got here.”