The Romance Challenge, Complete Series Box Set: BBW Hot Alpha Billionaire Romance (10 page)

 Sleep finally came after I read five
chapters of my book, letting me escape to another world.

CHAPTER SEVEN

I stood in the kitchen of my condo and
shot down a whiskey, trying to burn the vision of Chris and Juan from my brain.
It was no use. I kept picturing their naked bodies, heard that soft moan of
pleasure from Chris. Who looked a lot like Amber. Or how I imagined Amber would
look nude. Oh yeah, that's really what I needed to think about, how Amber
looked without her clothes.

Fuck me. I wanted her so bad, and damned
if she didn't suggest we hook-up while she was here. Nothing would make me
happier, but I told her no. No way could I have sex with that woman and not get
totally into her. I already knew she was smart, funny, and we got along great.
In virtual space, that is. In person, every time I touched her, or even got too
close, this magnetic pull made me want to grab her and run my hands over her
body. Then my tongue.

Even though I'd showered earlier, I jumped
in again, hoping to cool off. Didn't work. I lay in bed for fifteen minutes,
tossing and turning.

She said she wasn't innocent, that she'd had
lovers, and that she was okay with a causal relationship. Other people did
that. They had more than one person they dated and they knew nothing permanent was
expected. The way I did it in L. A. But this wasn't Los Angeles and Amber
wasn't just anyone. She was different than the women I hung with. What did she
say, she didn't just fall off the corn truck? Funny.

My cock voted "hell yes" on
taking Amber's offer of sex. My gut, the place I listen to when making
multi-million dollar business decisions, surprisingly agreed. After hearing her
story about her sister, damn, she was tougher than I thought. She had to be some
kind of strong to deal with that situation. And working a part-time job with
her full-time one? She never complained or told me she was too busy to take on
a project. She handled everything I threw at her on the job.

Maybe she could handle this as well, a
long-distance, non-exclusive relationship. Maybe I could too, could push back
my feelings for her, let it be just about sex. Because, damn it, I wanted her.
Now.

I stood up, caught a glimpse of myself in
the mirror, and studied my reflection. Trust. My therapist said I should learn
to trust. The ultimate challenge. Was I up to it? To taking a chance and seeing
where this romantic encounter might lead? I grabbed my phone. She answered on
the third ring, the sound of sleep in her voice.

"Did you mean what you said? About
us, together, down here?"

"Yes."

"Can I come over? Now?"

"Yes. Please."

Before I could think anymore, I threw on
jeans and a shirt, and rifled through my bathroom traveling bag. There. Three
condoms. I couldn't remember when I'd thrown them in. Expiration date, still
good. I'd take that as an omen, that I was meant to do this.

+++

I turned on the stove light in the
kitchen, then off, then on again. Too much light? Not enough? 
Okay, stop.
I had to quit fussing around. Nathan would be here any minute. I found two
votive candles and matches in one of the kitchen drawers and put them on a
plate, then placed it right next to the bed. To create a mood. To calm my
nerves. I brushed my teeth, swiped on a little mascara and finger-combed out my
hair.

No sexy clothing made it into my suitcase
since I didn't intend to entertain a man. The long t-shirt I slept in would
have to do. Really, I wanted to put on the black dress I'd brought in case a
formal occasion came up, and do my full make-up and hair routine. But that would
look ridiculously obvious and overdone. We were having a quickie, that's all.

Nathan knocked lightly, and I exhaled a
deep breath. No going back now. I opened the door. He stepped in and closed it
behind him. How long had it been since I invited a man into my room, purely for
sex? Ever? I had no idea what to do. And Nathan wasn't just any man. He was my
boss, and a guy I respected and admired. What if I did something stupid?

"Do you want a drink? I have a little
red wine."

"A bottle of water, if you've got
it."

I turned, glad to escape his gaze for a
minute. I initiated this, I know, but my heart pounded out a fast, nervous
rhythm. Bad enough I got hot and wet merely looking at him. Now, we would be
touching. A lot. While naked.

Oh Lord. He'd see me totally nude. I got
two bottles of water from the fridge and turned off the stove light.

"It's, uh, been a while. For me.
Since I've been with a man." I didn't add that I was nowhere near as
experienced in bed as he was. Probably, he could tell.

He smiled, a slow, sexy smile that made my
hand tremble as I handed him the bottle. He took the water, then took my hand
and kissed the back. Then, he turned it over, ran his thumb along the front,
and brought my palm to his mouth and licked. Now my whole body vibrated, from
my head to my toes. The heat that started earlier this evening burned hotter
and I couldn't suppress a moan.

"Don't worry, we'll go slowly. As
slow as you like."

But suddenly, I didn't want to go slow. I
wanted Nathan, now. Wanted to make love to this guy who watched me with raw
desire.

"You don't have to. Go slow, I mean.
I'm ready."

He had other ideas. He traced his finger
along my neck, to my collar bone, then down the V-neck of my shirt. When he
cupped one of my breasts through the fabric and stroked his thumb across my
nipple, my legs turned to water. I stepped back, to catch my breath.

He wanted me, and gazing into those beautiful
eyes that made my mind melt, I saw he intended this to be special, to be a deeply
intimate experience. Passion drowned out the fear clutching my heart, and a
wave of lust crashed over me. I could enjoy him, could delight in this evening,
and allow my feelings to show.

"One of has too many clothes on."
Surprised at my boldness, I reached for his shirt and for a moment, thought he would
push me away, would tell me this was all a joke.

But he didn't. He stood there, with his
hands at his side, and allowed me to remove his shirt, to unfasten his jeans
and pull them down. He'd already kicked off his sandals, so when he stepped out
of his pants he was naked.

I pulled in a breath and just looked at
him. He worked out, I could tell that from when he had clothes on. Now I got to
view his well-toned chest muscles, slim waist, and long, muscular legs. And
hard cock. Oh Lord. Before I could stop myself, I knelt and took it into my
mouth.

Too fast. I had moved too fast.

An instant of worry stopped me, but then
his hands fisted into my hair and he groaned.

"Oh hell, that's good. More."

Gladly. I inhaled his scent, that
intoxicating spicy aroma I loved, now mixed with sweat and male musk. My pussy
throbbed in response, surprising me with the force of my need. I slid my lips
up and down his shaft, taking time at the end to flick my tongue over the head,
then to tug with my lips. Was I too rough? I wanted to taste him, all of him. Judging
by his ragged breathing, I was doing fine.

"Shit, stop." He pulled my head
away. "I don't want to come yet. Stand up."

I did, and he grabbed my shirt and ripped
it off.

"Nathan!" But I smiled. Looking
into his eyes gone black with lust, I
wanted
him to tear my clothes off,
to totally lose control.

"I'll buy you another one. Lie down,
on the bed. Damn, I want you."

I was barely flat on the mattress and he
was on top of me, kneeling between my legs. I reached over to dim the bedside
lamp but he grabbed my hand.

"No, leave it on. I want to look at
you."

"Please, I want it off. I'm shy, about
my body."

"You shouldn't be. It's beautiful."

But he released my hand and let me turn
the switch. Now, we were engulfed in the glow of the flickering candles. I
stole a glance at our shadows on the wall. We looked like statues, molded
together as one.

He put his hands on either side of my
shoulders, then lowered his head to my breasts. Taking my nipple into his mouth
he sucked, pulled, and lightly scraped it with his teeth, driving me
out-of-my-mind crazy. While his mouth stayed busy on one breast, his hand
fondled the other, squeezing and rolling my hardened peak.

Finally, just as I was about to beg him to
touch me where I desperately needed it, he reached a hand between my thighs and
stroked one finger up my lips, coming to rest on my clit. I squirmed, willing
him to continue, yearning for release.

"Open your eyes and look at me."

I'd had them closed, I realized, so I did
as he asked. Lord, I could get lost in his eyes. Dark pools of onyx, shining
with desire.

"I want to make you come, I want to watch
it. Keep looking at me."

I always shut my eyes when I climaxed. No
one had ever asked to see me, in this most private moment. It felt so strange,
so intimate. But I'd try. For Nathan, I'd try.

As he moved his finger on my clit, gently,
then with more pressure, I squirmed beneath him. When he slid two fingers into
my channel, I thrust my hips, silently begging for more. I wanted to feel him,
his cock, inside me. But he wanted me to come first and damned if I wasn't
going to. As his fingers thrust and his thumb stroked my clit, the first waves
of orgasm built and the next moment I went over the edge, crying out my
release.

He kept his hand in place but eased off,
now stroking and sliding, slow and easy. I was wet, dripping. Oh shit. I sat
up.

"Condoms."

"Got it covered. Just a minute."

He bent and kissed my mouth lightly, then
moved his lips down my throat, to nip at my hardened tips again, down my belly
to my pussy. He flicked my clit once with his tongue, making me jump, and him
laugh, low in his throat.

"Stay there."

Like I'd move, even if I could talk my
legs into walking. He grabbed his pants and pulled out several foil wrappers
and put them on the table. Did his hands shake as he opened one? I spread my
legs and pulled my knees up, not at all embarrassed to expose myself to him,
like I usually was with a man. 

As he knelt between my thighs again, my
breath hitched in my throat. Damn, I could look at him there forever. I did a
quick postcard picture, then lost all ability to think as he slid his cock
inside me and rested his torso over mine. A perfect fit. I knew it would be.
Like we were made to join together. He stayed for a moment, not moving,
savoring the sensation, like I was. Then he rose slightly, rested both of his
forearms on mine and held my wrists.

When he pulled out and thrust back into
me, my hips rose to meet him. Over and over, the rhythm gradually increasing. I
instinctively wrapped my legs around him, digging my heels into his ass, urging
him on. We moved wildly together until with a strangled cry, he threw his head
back and came. His whole body shuddered and he ended with a moan of pure
satisfaction. He lowered down on top of me, his breath fast and hot on my
throat, our hearts beating hard.

I didn't want to move. I wanted to lay like
this, savoring the closeness, the connection. My skin hummed and every nerve in
my body danced with joy. How in the world could sex make me feel so alive? I'd
never buzzed like this before, with anyone.

"Too quick. That was too quick,"
he said, after a few moments. He raised his head to look at me, a delicious
smile curving his lips, a sensual flame in his eyes. "I want more."

Fine with me. I smiled back as he ran a
finger between my breasts, then over one nipple, sending a shiver from my scalp
to my toes.

A blast of music about knocked me off the
bed. My phone. Shit. I forgot to turn it off. I looked at the clock. Calls at
two in the morning were seldom good, but I had to check. I rolled partially,
dislodging Nathan, grabbed the damn phone and looked at the name. Chuck Taylor.

"I'm sorry, I have to get this."
I swiped my finger to answer. "Hello Chuck."

"Sorry to call so late. Or early.
Whatever. I'm at the Pawn Castle and I think I might have found your
statue."

"A pawn shop? At this time of night?
Or day?"

"Pawn Castle is open twenty-four
hours."

"The statue is there? It's not worth anything."
My mind, still full of happy endorphins, struggled to grasp what the detective
said.

 "This place is kind of a combination
pawn and knick-knack store. Real bright idea, somebody had. Your statue thing
is on the knick-knack side. Anyway, I'll snap a picture and send it to you.
Take a look, see if it's yours, call me back."

"Okay." The statue. Chuck found it. 

I hung up and turned to Nathan, who had
rolled over to the other side of the bed. "This call is about my sister.
I'm so sorry, but I need to talk to this guy."

He raised an eyebrow. "Can I
help?"

I sighed. Damn, that warm, fuzzy
love-making glow was fading. Should I tell Nathan the whole story? How could I
not? At least more of the story.