Chapter 9
SCARLETT
Kiss me.
My heart raced as he stood, frozen. Would he walk away? Would he do the responsible thing and put twelve stairs and a landing between us?
Kiss me, Luke.
Just one kiss. Just to see what it would feel like to taste and feel him.
Oh my God. What am I doing? This wasn’t me. This brazen, daring woman who’d all but ordered a man to kiss her wasn’t me.
But it was too late to take it back now. And if he didn’t kiss me, I’d have to disappear to my room and no amount of begging would ever coax me out.
I’d gone too far. He probably thought I was a hussy.
Luke stood, unmoving, in nothing but that towel as the doubts crept into my mind like an ugly fog on a stormy night. I opened my mouth to mutter a good night, but before I could make a sound, Luke pounced.
Sure and bold, his lips crushed mine and his hands dove into my hair, pulling the strands free from its tie.
He swallowed my gasp. He conjured a moan with a sweep of his tongue.
Luke kissed me.
Luke kissed me.
And I melted.
My God, this man. He was sexy. Strong. Gorgeous. Kind. And wow, he was talented with his tongue.
He fluttered it against my own, the movement startling another gasp out of me. I’d only kissed one man. Jeremiah. He’d been my first and last. If Luke’s tongue flutter was any indication, I was most definitely not prepared for what was to come.
He licked. I shuddered.
He devoured. I trembled.
I stood at his mercy as he explored, claiming me with a nip on my bottom lip.
Luke’s hands were so big that with his palms cupping my cheeks, his fingertips could stretch into the locks of my hair. He held me captive, his willing prisoner, as his tongue plundered.
I reached for him but I wasn’t sure where to touch so my hands just dangled in the air, frozen and stiff. His arms, maybe? His hips? Why had I encouraged him to kiss me? I didn’t know what the hell I was doing.
All I knew was that I wanted him. More than anything, I wanted Luke.
He pulled his lips away from my mouth and peppered a trail of kisses along my jaw toward my ear. A shiver rolled down my spine. My legs wobbled.
“Scarlett,” he moaned.
God, I loved the sound of my name in his voice. And I loved how he said it so often, like he wanted to make sure he had my attention. I concentrated on that, replaying it in my mind. Scarlett. Scarlett. But the insecurities wouldn’t go away.
Luke brought his hands to my wrists, tugging them to his hips. When my fingertips brushed his skin, I jumped. His heat singed me straight to my core.
Then, with my arms no longer between us, he wrapped his own around me. Two strong ropes, pulling me into his chest as his lips returned to mine.
The space between us vanished. Another wave of searing heat spread through my clothes and the urge to strip them away stole my breath. Luke was only in a towel but that sheet did nothing to conceal the massive bulge between his legs.
Oh, God. He was nearly naked. He felt huge pressed against my belly.
The image of a penis, red and swollen and angry, filled my mind. It was a penis I’d seen at the Warrior clubhouse.
Before then, I’d only ever seen Jeremiah’s penis. Then I’d come to Ashton and they’d been everywhere. The men in the club hadn’t been shy about whipping themselves out at a party to publicly fuck the willing skanks.
There’d been one guy in particular, Ghost. Jeremiah told me he got off on sex in public and as I squeezed my eyes shut, all I could see was his penis. Penis. Penis. Penis.
Go away, Penis!
But no matter how much I willed the images away, all I could picture were those naked men. And whatever they’d been packing, or unpacking, in their dirty jeans seemed like dill pickles compared to Luke’s . . . cucumber. Prize zucchini. Eggplant?
Great, I was thinking of his penis like a vegetable. I couldn’t do this. Why had I instigated this? He was kissing me and my lips were moving against his but my mind . . . Shut off. Shut off. Please, shut off.
Luke tore his mouth away and leaned back, standing straight. “Scar—”
“How tall are you?” I blurted.
His eyebrows came together.
Shit. Thanks, brain.
If I’d hoped to give Luke the impression that I was a confident, sexy woman, that bubble had just burst. There was no hiding that I was just a pretender.
What was wrong with me? I slid a hand free from his warm skin and used it to cover my eyes. “I’m nervous.”
Luke took my wrist, gently pulling it aside. “It’s just me.”
“Which is the reason I’m nervous. Sorry.”
“Look at me.” He hooked a finger under my chin. “I’m six two.”
Twelve inches. He stood twelve inches taller. And judging by the tent in the towel, he had twelve inches in another place too.
Gah! Why couldn’t I stop picturing penises?
My face flamed and this time, I buried my face in both hands. So much for our first kiss. Might as well call it the last. I swallowed a groan, repeating my apology. “Sorry.”
“Don’t say sorry.”
“But . . . I am.” I’d let my doubts steal something I’d wanted. Because I’d wanted Luke to kiss me. And then my mind had gotten involved and ruined the moment.
This was the reason sex had never been fun. Why I hadn’t had an orgasm in bed, unless you counted the ones I gave myself as a test to make sure my body wasn’t broken.
I dropped my hands and bent to pick up my backpack but then the world turned upside down.
“Ah!” I cried as Luke tossed me over a very bare, very broad shoulder. A smile split across my face as he carried me to the stairs. “You’re hauling me around again.”
“Yep.”
It was exhilarating. Sexy as hell. My heart swelled and a giggle escaped my lips as he walked, step by step, until we crossed the threshold to his room.
It smelled like Luke, rich and smooth, with a hint of sandalwood mixed with the soap from his shower.
“How did you know?”
Luke tossed me on his bed, then planted his hands beside my hips, leaning in close. “Know what?”
“That I was leaving.”
“Had a feeling.”
“A feeling?”
He nodded, inching closer, crowding me until I was flat beneath him. “I always trust my feelings.”
I gulped.
Luke was ravenous. For me. Screwed-up head and all, he wanted me.
Why? He could have any available woman. He was the ultimate catch. So why me?
“Scarlett.”
“Yeah?” I breathed. My hair fanned around me, bright against the dark quilt on his mattress.
He bent to whisper in my ear. “Stop thinking.”
“How?”
“Like this.” He moved, lithe and sure, lifting me deeper into the bed. Then his mouth was on me again, tasting the skin of my neck.
His body pressed into mine and I spread my legs, making room to cradle his hips and that ever-present bulge. He rolled his hips, his thickness rubbing against the throb blooming in my center. Even through my jeans, the pleasure was mind-numbing. The thoughts in my head began to fade.
Yes.
He wrapped around me, holding me close, and it felt so good to have Luke’s weight on me, the heavy strength of muscle and bone.
Jeremiah had stopped holding me. It had become very mechanical. Two minutes, our bodies touching in that one place, then it was over. Had he been like that with Presley too?
Was it strange that my sister and I had lost our virginity to the same man? Incestuous? Maybe he’d been a better lover to her than he had been to me. And here I was, repeating the cycle with Luke.
“Scarlett.”
My eyes popped open.
Luke had stopped kissing me and he’d lifted up, staring down at me.
Ugh. Not again. “Sorry.”
He blew out a long breath, then shifted away, rolling to lay on his side. His finger grazed my temple. “What’s going on in here?”
I really, really didn’t want to have this conversation but, as Luke propped his head on an elbow, I knew he wouldn’t let it go. “I don’t know. This happens to me.”
“What happens to you?”
“I get . . . stuck.” I tapped the bridge of my nose. “In here. During sex.”
“Tell me what’s on your mind.”
“No way. Just . . . kiss me.” I barked out a laugh. He’d think I was crazy. Maybe I am.
I reached for the fold on the towel that had somehow not fallen loose, but before I could give it a good tug, he caught my wrist.
“Tell me. Then I’ll kiss you.”
I frowned. “Bribery?”
“I’m not above it.” He grinned. “Maybe I need to sweeten the deal. Tell me what’s going on in your head and I’ll kiss you here.”
His hand released mine to trail over the sliver of skin above the waistband of my jeans.
My sweatshirt had ridden up, exposing my flesh.
The featherlight touch of his finger stole my breath and I stared at him in wonder as his hand moved lower.
Lower. Until he’d followed the length of my zipper and his hand disappeared between my legs.
He stroked, gently at first, then gave me more. I closed my eyes, enjoying the delicious friction, as Luke leaned in close. His breath was a whisper across my cheek. “Tell me.”
I shook my head.
A low rumble came from deep inside his chest as he quickly flipped open the button on my jeans, then slid his talented fingers inside the denim, stroking me through my panties.
“Yes,” I hissed, arching into his fingers.
“Tell me.”
I shook my head again.
“Tell me.” His finger swirled around my clit, then it was gone. He moved away, looking down at me while he waited for an answer.
“No fair. Tell me that’s not an interrogation tactic.”
He chuckled. “Only for you.”
I sighed. “You’re not going to let this go.”
“Nope.”
“Fine. I was thinking about Jeremiah and Presley. That it’s strange we were both with him. And now here I am with you.”
“It’s strange if we make it strange,” he said.
“I don’t want it to be strange.”
“Then it’s not.”
Simple as that.
And somehow, it was.
The past didn’t need to influence the future.
“Did that earn me a kiss?” I whispered.
Luke was on me in an instant, his lips capturing mine.