Chapter 14 #2
Unlocking my apartment door, I slip inside, leaving the door open for Collin.
I set the container on the counter and finally open the lid, practically drooling over the delicious smelling food.
I grab the bottle of ketchup from the fridge and move to the small kitchenette table.
Squirting a blob of ketchup onto the lid, I dive into the fries as the back door opens, closes, and footfalls echo up the stairs as Collin heads this way.
“Oh my God, where did you get this?” I ask, taking a huge bite of the juicy cheeseburger.
“The diner. They were closing, so I had to kinda take whatever I could talk them into.”
After swallowing, I state, “I should feel bad for them having to make food at closing, but this is amazing.”
“Yeah, I get their smashburger anytime it’s on the menu. I wasn’t sure your thoughts on grilled onions and pickles, but I figured they’d be easy enough to pick off if you don’t like them.”
“Pickles? The more the merrier, and I don’t mind onions,” I tell him between bites.
Collin washes his hands, then retrieves two bottles of water and joins me at the table, setting one in front of me.
“Is that where you guys ate?” I ask, coating a fry in ketchup and popping it into my mouth.
“Naw, we went to the Mexican restaurant. Charli has a love affair going with their queso.”
I nod. “Anytime you can eat cheese, especially in dip form, is a good day.”
He chuckles. “You sound just like her.”
After a few minutes of sitting in comfortable silence while I eat, I wipe my mouth off and ask the question I’ve been wondering. “So, the save…the person is gonna be okay?” Even though Charli told me what she heard, I want to hear it from him, if he’s willing to talk about it.
“He will be. He would have been if he would have had to jump, but he would have been in a lot worse shape.” He holds my gaze and asks, “I assume you heard about it from Charli?”
I nod and take another bite. “She explained why Camden and your friends came into the bar and did what they did. I was about ready to run over there with my broom and start whacking them.”
He barks out a laugh. “You were going to rescue me…with a broom?”
“Well, there were a bunch of them, and they were bigger than me. I’m not going to show up empty-handed. I’ve worked in this industry long enough to know words aren’t a very powerful weapon when you’re talking to drunks in a bar.”
He cracks a smile. “They weren’t drunk.”
“Not this time, but still. It didn’t happen too often at Burgers and Brew because it’s built a reputation of not dealing with bullshit.
They have a no tolerance policy. You act up, you get thrown out.
No exceptions. My uncle Tank has been in charge of security since they opened, and no one fucks with him. ”
“I can see why,” he replies, just sitting there, watching me.
“Anyway, it did happen on occasion, but I never had to actually get between two guys about to come to blows. Women, however, were a different story.”
“Really?” he asks, so I tell him all about the chick fights that would occasionally break out, always over a man.
By the time my food is almost gone, I’m stuffed. “Want the rest?”
“No thank you,” he replies, his penetrating gaze locked on me. “You good?” he asks, grabbing my container and tossing it in the trash. “Get enough to eat?”
“Too much,” I confirm, realizing it wasn’t very ladylike to devour a burger and fries the way I did, yet not really caring. I was hungry, and I’m not about to starve just so I don’t eat in front of a guy.
Turning, he leans against the fridge and asks, “Tired?”
I shake my head.
“What would you like to do?” he asks, pushing off the fridge and stalking toward me. Yes, stalking. That’s the only way to describe it. It’s like a lion watching the gazelle, moving slowly and quietly to get in the perfect position to pounce.
“We could watch a movie,” I suggest with no real desire to do that.
“We could.”
“Or we could play Uno.”
When he reaches my side, the corner of his mouth ticks upward. “Uno?”
I shrug. “I grew up with family game nights. There’s no friends in Uno though. I’ll throw a Draw Four at my mom and laugh the whole time she’s picking cards.”
He chuckles, extending his hand. “Good to know.”
When I stand, I wrap my arms around his shoulders and slide my fingers along the column of his neck. “Or we could do…other things.”
“Other things besides movies and Uno? Keep talking…”
I’m not the most direct person out there, but I don’t shy away from being bold. Leaning forward and pressing my chest to his, I move to my tiptoes and kiss just below his jaw. “What I have in mind involves a lot less clothes and zero sleep.”
I feel his already hard cock jerk in his pants, and he hums and swallows. “Not exactly the taking things slow we talked about last night, Lizzie.”
“No, but I’m not going to ignore the fact I want you. Bad.”
His gaze is pure fire as he peers at me. “You’re sure? Because we really can play Uno or watch a movie.”
I snort and shake my head. “We’ll call that Plan B.”
“So, this Plan A…what exactly does it entail?” he asks.
“Orgasms, Collin. Lots and lots of them.”
A pained groan erupts from his mouth moments before it slams into mine.
This kiss turns feral in less than a second, and I find myself climbing him like a tree.
My legs are wrapped around his waist, my arms around his neck, and I still don’t feel close enough.
The need I feel for him explodes like a bomb, incinerating every part of my soul and leaving me raw and yearning for more.
We’re moving moments later, his long legs eating up the space between us and my bedroom. Just as we cross the threshold, he rips his mouth from mine and says, “You can stop this at any point.”
“I don’t want to stop,” I insist, rolling my hips against his erection.
“Fuck, do that again and this might be over before it really begins,” he mutters, closing his eyes.
“What, this?” I ask coyly, rocking once more and grinding myself along his cock.
“Christ, woman,” he mumbles, spinning us around and gently depositing me on top of my bed. His eyes burn like fire, those blue orbs a navy ring of desire. “Strip.”
“You’re awfully bossy,” I start, standing up and toeing my athletic shoes off my feet.
When he doesn’t say a word, I look up and find him watching me. Suddenly, I realize what he meant. He wants me to strip so he can watch.
A fresh wave of desire races through me. I’ve taken off my clothes in front of men before, but I’ve never felt this…seen. Raw. Aroused.
Slowly, I grab the hem of my T-shirt and lift it over my head. Taking a quick mental inventory, I’m so grateful to have slipped on a prettier set of undergarments. The light blue satin set isn’t super sexy, but at least it’s not made just for comfort.
When I drop the shirt onto the floor, I glance up and watch as he devours me with his eyes. He scans my chest and licks his lips, resulting in goosebumps peppering my entire body.
Dropping my hands to the fly of my jeans, his eyes follow, watching, waiting.
I flick the button open and slide down the zipper before starting to shimmy out of my blue jeans.
I feel the burn of his eyes on me every moment I step out of my jeans and kick them to the side.
After adjusting the waistband, I slip my socks off and finally stand up.
Our eyes meet in a flurry of reckless need.
“On the bed,” he states, reaching down and pulling his T-shirt over his head.
I do as instructed, breathing harder than I should be as anticipation races through my blood. He takes off his boots and socks before releasing the button and zipper on his jeans. I’m sad, however, when he doesn’t remove those too. Instead, he climbs onto the bed, still wearing his jeans.
“Aren’t you going to take those off?” I ask as he positions his body between my spread legs, lying between them.
He looks up and shakes his head. “If I take them off, I’m liable to rush this, and I’m not going to do that.” He sets his sights at the wet satin between my legs. “You hold all the cards, Lizzie. You say stop, I stop.”
“While I understand and appreciate the sentiment, if you don’t hurry up, I might die.”
He chuckles, moving his fingers and lazily dragging them across my wet panties. “That seems a little extreme, Lizzie. Die of ecstasy, maybe,” he states with a little smirk.
“Well, that has yet to be proven.”
His eyes flare as my challenge is laid out.
One I can already tell he accepts, and if he has anything to say about it, will succeed over and over again.
Collin’s intensity is evident, and something tells me he’s not a quick hit it and quit it kind of guy.
Not by a long shot. I have a feeling I’m in for quite a ride. “Reach up and grab the headboard.”
I look over my head, taking note of the wood slats of my headboard. When I hesitate, he removes his finger from my panties and demands, “Headboard. Now.”
The firmness laced with arousal has my body responding. My nipples are so hard they ache, and a fresh wave of wetness floods my core as I quickly wrap my hands around the slats and look down. I don’t even realize I’m holding my breath until he gently instructs me to breathe.
“Sorry,” I murmur, taking a few deep, calming breaths. Once I do, I feel his finger return to the apex of my legs.
Collin slides his thick index finger across my folds before gently slipping it beneath the satin. “I’ve been thinking about this. A lot. More than I should admit.”
“Me too,” I reply, his touch fueling the flames.
“What have you been thinking about?”
“You want a detailed list?” I tease.
“That would be great, thanks,” he says, lazily dragging his finger through my wetness and creating even more.
I lift my head and meet his gaze, instantly realizing he’s not joking. He’s waiting on me to list out all the things I’ve been daydreaming about him doing to me. “Well, let’s see. Since we’ve already stripped—well, mostly—I suppose I can skip that. I thought about your mouth between my legs.”
“What is my mouth doing?”
My heart is hammering a million beats per second as I close my eyes and let the sensations wash over me. Just the simplest touch feels so fucking good, so fucking right.
His finger stops moving. “Tell me, Lizzie.”
I open my eyes, trying to figure out what it was I am supposed to be telling him. Then it hits me, and I feel my cheeks flush even warmer. “Licking me.”
“Like this?” He bends down and slides his tongue from the bottom of my clit to the top.
“Umm, yeah, just like that,” I reply through a gasp. Reaching down, I thread my fingers into his hair, causing him to stop.
“Hands on the headboard.”
I immediately do as instructed, even though I’d much rather be touching him.
I feel his warm breath against my core as he whispers, “Good girl. Now hang on tight.”