CHAPTER SIX
S TEFANIE
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I SWEAR IT WAS THE tequila talking, not me. It was the tequila moving, not me. The tequila forced me to slide my tongue across my lips. It was the tequila that made me come up on my tiptoes and whisper the most scandalous words I’d probably ever uttered in Julian’s ear.
“Take me home so I can sit this pussy on your chin.”
His eyes darkened, expression morphing into something almost animalistic. The tequila in me cheered. Julian’s hand dropped from my waist, sliding down until his fingers curled around mine.
Holding my hand, he guided me through the crowd toward the exit. I should’ve pulled away. Should’ve at least pretended I had second thoughts. I should’ve been less easy. Played hard to get or something.
Yet, my pulse was pounding too hard. My body was still warm from his touch. The tequila was humming through my veins, making me feel reckless, sexy as hell, and horny. Horny as hell.
It had been months since I’d set my pussy on anything other than my fingers and my dildo. I needed a night of wild abandonment. A night to let loose. I was not about to overthink this. I was grown. He was grown.
We’d both given consent. This was happening. A small smile tugged at my lips just as the same bald guy from earlier, the one who’d snatched away my dance partners, stepped right into Julian’s path.
Unh-Unh, big guy. You’re not taking this one. We’ve made travel plans. I’m going to ride his tongue, and then he’s going to ride me.
I was about to step to the guy and ask him what his problem was, but I held back because of Julian’s actions. Julian didn’t look surprised to see the guy. He didn’t tense up or try to avoid the man.
His steps slowed as if he’d been expecting this interruption. The two men exchanged a few words that were uttered too low for me to catch over the music. The bald guy pulled out his phone, tapped something in, then slipped it back into his pocket.
A second later, he nodded once to Julian, then to me before stepping aside. I frowned. What the hell was that? Julian didn’t acknowledge my confusion. He just kept walking, leading me through the crowd straight to the exit.
Glancing over my shoulder, I caught the bald guy watching me, his expression stoic. I nodded at him out of politeness, out of curiosity, out of some strange attempt to say, Yeah, I saw that. And I have questions.
He gave a slight nod in return before turning away. I should’ve asked Julian about it. I should’ve stopped and demanded to know who the hell that was and why that guy had been following me around all night, keeping men from dancing with me.
But the moment we stepped outside, the cool night air hit my skin, and I realized just how hot I’d been inside that club. I exhaled slowly, my skin still slick with sweat. The night air cooled my body and made a shiver run through me.
Julian leaned in, his breath warm against my ear. “The car is on the way.”
I nodded, pressing my lips together. I should say something. Anything. Maybe ask where the hell we were going. But my brain was still scrambled from that dance, and my body still remembered the way his hands had felt all over me. Then, a realization hit me like a slap to the face.
Ronnie.
My phone.
Shit.
I’d slipped my phone into Ronnie’s pocket because, though this dress was sexy, it was also impractical. It had no pockets. And now I had no phone to call Ronnie and let him know I was leaving and who I was leaving with.
I turned to Julian, hesitating for only a second before asking, “Can I borrow your phone to text my friend? I need to let him know I’m leaving so he won’t worry.”
“Friend?” His tone was casual, but there was an edge to it now. His gaze stayed locked on mine, indecipherable. “Is your friend going to be that worried about you?”
I narrowed my eyes. “Yes.”
“Why?”
What did he mean why ? “Because that’s what friends do. They worry about each other.”
Julian didn’t reply right away. He just stared at me, his jaw tightening for a split second. Something flickered in his eyes. It was quick, but I caught it. A hint of annoyance mixed with a tinge of jealousy. Julian was jealous of Ronnie.
He truly had nothing to worry about in that department. Ronnie was like a brother to me, and we both liked cock. Still, jealousy looked cute on Julian. And for some reason, seeing him in jealous mode made me want to fuck his brains out even more.
His lips parted like he was going to say something else. But he didn’t. Without another word, he reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. He held it for a moment, thumb hovering over the screen before finally passing it to me.
“The code is 0122.”
“Are you really trusting me with your passcode?” I asked, half-joking, half-curious.
He shrugged. “I don’t have anything to hide.”
Hmmm . I didn’t really know how to take that, so I just ignored it. I tapped the code into the phone, then I froze before pressing OKAY . My eyes widened. 0122 . That was my birthday. What the actual fuck?
I stared at the numbers on the screen, my heart rate kicking up a notch. The date of my birth was his security code. That had to be a coincidence, right? It had to be. Slowly, I glanced up at Julian.
He was already watching me, his head tilted slightly. The phone screen glowed between us, waiting for me to unlock it and send the damn text. My fingers didn’t move. This had to be a coincidence, right?
“Stefanie!” a deep voice called out, pulling me from my haze of confusion.
I turned toward the club entrance and spotted Ronnie strolling my way, cheesing from ear to ear.
"Does your friend always look that happy to see you?" Julian asked, sounding annoyed.
"Yes. He’s been my best friend since I was a child." That admission only seemed to make him more annoyed as I handed him back his phone.
Ronnie stopped in front of us, beaming down at me. "Bestie! You forgot your phone and your keys." He handed them over, then leaned in, his voice dropping to a whisper. “Heffa, I know your crazy ass wasn’t about to run off with a stranger while having no phone and no keys. Are you writing your own True Crimes episode?”
“I was just about to call you and tell you to bring them to me,” I whispered back. “By the way, his name is Julian Cattaneo, and his sister is India’s roommate. Keep that bit of info in mind in case I really do go missing.”
“Biiitch,” Ronnie drawled. “Tomorrow, I am coming to your house so you can spill all the tea. And don’t you dare act like you don’t have any tea because I can hear the kettle whistling. Now, take this handsome Cattaneo back to your rental, where there are cameras outside. If anything happens, the police can use the footage to see what time he came and left. I’ll also be tracking your location in case he tries to kidnap you."
"Aren’t you going to try to stop me from running off with a stranger?"
“You just told me his name and the name of his closest relative. He’s not a stranger. He’s a snack. Go gobble him up.”
“But...”
“Why are you still talking to me? Run off. Ride off. Fly off. Just be off, boo." He paused and looked left. "Oh, I think that’s his car. Nice. Be safe. Don’t overthink things. And call me as soon as he leaves in the morning. Bye.”
I exhaled, watching him step back.
“Take care of my bestie,” Ronnie told Julian while staring the younger man up and down. “I may look like a R&B boy band member, but I fight like Tyson. Okay, Mr. Cattaneo?”
"Stefanie is safe with me. Always," Julian replied as the valet handed him his keys.
“Good,” Ronnie strode off toward the club’s entrance.
Julian approached the car and opened the passenger door for me. I smoothed down the back of my dress and slid into the vehicle as demurely as I could to keep my dress from riding up and revealing my butt cheeks. He closed the door behind me.
As he circled the car, I caught Ronnie’s eye. He grinned, then made an exaggerated thrusting motion with his hips. I let out a short laugh, shaking my head, but the humor faded as soon as Julian slipped into the driver’s seat.
Suddenly, the car felt too cramped despite its sleek design and spaciousness. Julian’s presence seemed to fill his seat in a way that my thick thighs couldn’t. He looked like a king on a throne as he pulled his door shut.
Not wanting to be caught staring, I reached for my seatbelt. Julian beat me to it. I quickly lowered my hand as the space between us vanished. He leaned in, his chest inches from mine, and grabbed the seat belt.
The warmth of his body seeped into my skin, setting off a chain reaction of awareness. His scent wrapped around me: clean, rich, masculine . With each inhale, I breathed him in. He was so close that I knew he could feel my exhales against his neck.
I watched his jaw tighten, his shoulder tense. His grip tightened around the seatbelt as he gave it a tug. I squirmed a little in my seat, trying to get my pussy better situated. Men weren’t the only ones who had to adjust themselves when aroused.
Moving slowly, he pulled the seat belt across me. The act shouldn’t have been arousing as hell. But Julian Cattaneo had a way of turning everything into a sexual innuendo, even this. He pulled the belt over my chest, his knuckles skimming the curve of my breasts.
I nearly gasped as a spark of arousal sizzled straight to my core. He was moving so slowly, his knuckles teasing me so subtly until they actually roamed over my nipple. I inhaled sharply as Julian paused for a moment, hand frozen in place.
His eyes, which had been glued to the belt, moved to my face. Our gazes connected, and I had to remind myself to breathe before I passed out. Eyes on mine, he let the belt retract a little, then tugged it again, his knuckles rubbing over my nipple again.
I swallowed, refusing to look away from him as he repeated that same action again. My pussy purred, wanting that type of attention lavished on her. Too bad seatbelts didn’t buckle up at the crotch area.
Julian retracted the belt and tugged it again. I clenched my thighs. If he did that shit one more time, I feared I’d embarrass myself by coming right then and there.
“Sorry,” he whispered. “It got stuck.”
“Oh,” was all my scrambled brain could come up with.
Still watching me, he continued pulling the belt across me, his knuckles moving over my abdomen and around me until the buckle finally clicked in place. His fingers lingered for a beat longer than necessary, resting against my hip before he finally pulled back.
I swallowed hard and forced my eyes forward, ignoring the slow, simmering ache he’d left in his wake. I heard him pulling his seat belt into place. It only took him two seconds to do it, while mine had taken him forever. He put the key in the ignition and started the car. I felt his gaze on me before he spoke.
“Are you comfortable going to my place?” he asked.
The fact that he asked and didn’t just assume won him brownie points with me. I faced him. Damn, this man was too attractive to be real. Staring at him was like staring at your wildest fantasy.
“Stefanie?”
Oh, right. Mr. Fantasy had asked me a question.
“I’d rather go to my rental,” I told him.
“Sounds good to me. Just know, I’ll pay for anything we may tear up.”
My mouth damn near dropped open at his words and how casually he’d uttered them. What are you planning on tearing up, sir? Other than this pussy. I nearly chuckled at my own line of thinking. Damn, tequila, I didn’t know you were this funny.
“What’s the address?” he asked.
Oh, right . The address. I rattled off the address for him, and he input it into his car’s navigation system.
“I’ll set it to avoid highways. Backroads will get us there faster,” he told me.
And then we were off, pulling away from the club, leaving any doubt and reservations behind with the blaring music. I wouldn’t allow myself to rethink or overthink this. I wanted this. I needed this.
One night of pleasure. That’s all. After one night with him, I’d get this craving out of my system. I’d fuck him so good that whatever spell he had on me would break. I’d be free of him, and he’d no longer be living rent-free in my head.
By the time the sun rose, he’d be just another handsome guy. But that was tomorrow’s Julian. Tonight’s Julian was all mine. And I couldn’t wait to get my hands on him to see if he was all talk or if he could actually back up what he’d been saying.
I felt his eyes on me even before I turned his way. Sure enough, he was staring at me. He wasn’t just sneaking a glance. He was watching me openly, unapologetically. His eyes were dark and heated like he was committing every inch of me to memory.
Memorizing the shape of my body, the way my dress hugged me, the way my thighs pressed together. A slow thrill rolled through me. This man really could not keep his damn eyes off me.
That was dangerous, considering he was supposed to be watching the road. And yet, I loved it. The way he watched me like a panther ready to pounce. My pussy clenched from just thinking about what would happen once we made it to my place.
His fingers flexed against the steering wheel, his grip tightening slightly every time I shifted in my seat as if he was physically holding himself back. He shifted in his seat. My gaze dropped before I could stop myself.
Oh . My mouth watered instantly at the thick outline tenting his pants. Fuck, he was big! And he was hard for me. I was affecting him just as much as he was affecting me. I couldn’t tear my gaze away from it.
The tequila was still humming in my veins, making me reckless, brazen, making me want to lean over and taste him. What would he say if I started unbuttoning his pants right now? What would he do if I freed that huge cock and trailed my tongue over the tip of him?
I bet he would grip my hair and pump into my mouth. I bet he’d let out that same low groan he had on the dance floor when I’d uttered those scandalous words to him. Let’s find out. I crossed my legs, causing my already short dress to rise even higher.
“I know we haven’t seen many cars on this back road,” I started. “But you should still keep your eyes forward. A deer or something could run out in front of the car. We don’t want things to end before they even begin.”
His gaze darted to my thighs, and his fingers flexed around the wheel again. “It’s hard to focus with you sitting beside me.”
The words came out low, tight, strained. His voice was filled with need. He was struggling, holding on to the last thread of restraint he had. And something about knowing that I was the reason for it made me want to push him over the edge.
My gaze flickered back to his lap. My tongue darted out, wetting my lips. I wanted a taste. Just one. To see if he tasted as good as he looked. The taste of my favorite coffee creamer came to mind: Italian Sweet Crème.
“What do you need me to do to help you focus better?” I asked, my voice softer now, lower, dripping with the same need he had.
Julian didn’t answer right away. His grip on the wheel tightened further. His jaw ticked. His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed. He was thinking. I was pretty sure we were thinking the same thing. It was time for his cock to meet my tongue.
“If I tell you,” he finally said, voice rough. “Will you do it?”
I didn’t hesitate. “Yes.”
That was all he needed to hear. Julian pulled the car over so suddenly that I gasped. The tires crunched against the gravel as he brought us to a stop on the side of the road. A thrill ran through me.
Honestly, I’d planned on doing it while he drove. But this... this was better. Before I could reach for his seat belt, he was already moving, unbuckling it. Then he opened the car door. Wait ... Where was he going?
I frowned as he climbed out of the car, confusion flickering through me. What was he up to? My frown remained in place as he walked behind the vehicle and approached my side of the car. A second later, my door opened, and he was standing there, staring down at me.
Oh, I knew what he was doing!
He wanted me to give him head while he stood in front of me. The tequila and I were down with that. Plus, his standing in front of me had me at eye level with the tent in his pants. It was time for us to properly introduce ourselves.
Before I could lift my hand to reach for his buckle, he leaned into the car. I barely had time to register what he was doing before his hands were on my seatbelt, unbuckling me. Our eyes met. There was that wicked smirk I loved.
“Get in the backseat,” he murmured.
Hold on... what?