Chapter 25 Reese
Reese
The door clicks shut behind me as I kick off my heels, the house dark except for the glow of the security panel by the door. My feet are fucking killing me after six hours in these torture devices, but Oakley insisted we "dress to impress" for our girls' night at Armand's.
That's when I notice the silhouette on the couch, perfectly still in the darkness.
"Jesus Christ!" I yelp, nearly jumping out of my skin. "What the fuck, Ramsey?"
He reaches over and flicks on the lamp beside him, his face appearing in the warm glow.
He's sitting there in sweatpants and a muscle shirt that clings to every ridge of muscle, one arm stretched across the back of the couch.
His hair is messy, like he's been running his hands through it, and his jaw is tight with. ..something.
"You're out awfully late," he says, his voice low and controlled.
I snort, dropping my purse on the counter. "It's eleven, not three in the morning. What are you, my dad?"
His eyes darken at that, and I immediately regret the comparison.
"Were you worried about me?" I ask with a teasing lilt in my voice as I saunter closer. "About who I was with?"
The corner of his mouth twitches. "No, I know you were with the girls. I hacked the cameras at Armand's to make sure."
I freeze mid-step. "You're fucking crazy, you know that?" I shake my head, but there's no real heat in my voice. "I also wouldn't have been with anyone else but who I said I was with. You don't need to hack security systems to check up on me."
Ramsey leans forward, elbows on his knees, and the movement pulls his t-shirt taut across his shoulders. "Oh, I wasn't worried about that."
There's something in his tone that makes my skin prickle with heat. "Then what were you worried about?"
"I wasn't worried," he clarifies, those blue eyes burning into mine. "I was making sure you weren't in any trouble."
I roll my eyes, continuing toward the kitchen. "At Armand's? The place with the twelve-dollar martinis and security at the door? Yeah, real dangerous."
"You'd be surprised," he mutters, watching me as I grab a glass from the cabinet.
"You want some water?" I ask, filling my glass from the tap.
"No."
I take a long drink, suddenly aware of how my dress clings to my curves after a night of dancing.
I notice Ramsey's eyes tracking my every move, lingering on the way my dress rides up my thighs as I lean against the counter.
"Go upstairs," he says suddenly, his voice dropping to that commanding tone that makes my stomach flip. "There's something on your bed. Change into it."
I nearly choke on my water. "What? Now? It's almost midnight."
"We're leaving." He stands up in one fluid motion, all six-foot-something of pure muscle and intensity.
"Leaving where? I just got home, Rams. I'm tired and—"
He closes the distance between us in three long strides. Before I can finish my sentence, his hand connects with my ass in a light tap that somehow manages to be both playful and possessive.
"Be a good girl and just go change, star." His voice is a mixture of honey and gravel, and the way he says 'good girl' makes heat pool between my legs instantly.
I try to look annoyed, but my body's already responding to his command. "Ugh, fine. This better be good."
I trudge up the stairs, curiosity mingling with the familiar ache his proximity always brings. When I push open my bedroom door, I spot the items laid out neatly on my comforter.
"What the actual fuck?" I mutter, picking up what appears to be a dark blue bikini covered in tiny silver stars. Next to it is my favorite blue crop top sweater, a pair of black leggings, and my comfiest sneakers.
It's like he's packed for me, but for what?
Omg, swimming at midnight! I almost forgot about the bucket list. I’ve been on the moon since I felt his tongue inside me.
I strip off my dress; the fabric clinging to my sweaty skin from hours of dancing. My lace thong and push-up bra follow, and I slide into the bikini, adjusting the top around my tits. It fits perfectly—of course it does. Ramsey knows my size in everything.
The crop top settles comfortably over the bikini, falling just above my navel, and the leggings hug my ass in a way that makes me do a little turn in front of the mirror. I look cute but comfortable as I grab a makeup wipe and scrub my face and get rid of the last of my eyeliner and mascara.
As soon as I hit the last stair, he’s wrangling me out towards the truck. He opens the passenger door for me, his hand resting briefly on my lower back as I climb in.
We drive for a good twenty minutes before I see a house looming in the distance.
"What are we doing at your dad's place?" I ask, eyeing the massive house with a bit of wariness. I’ve only been here twice before.
Ramsey kills the engine and turns to me with that half-smirk that never fails to make my stomach flip.
"He's not here. Trip to Costa Rica." His eyes drag over me, lingering on where my crop top meets the waistband of my leggings. "You want to swim under the stars. I don't need to worry about security as much here, and the pool's heated."
Before I can respond, he's out of the truck and opening my door. I slide out, but instead of letting me walk, he bends down and throws me over his shoulder like I weigh nothing.
"Rams!" I squeal, laughing as blood rushes to my head. "I can fucking walk!"
"Where's the fun in that?" he growls, one large hand anchored firmly on my ass as he carries me toward the house.
I'm eye-level with his back, watching the muscles shift under his t-shirt as he punches in the security code. His hand squeezes my ass playfully as the door beeps open, and I can't help but squirm against him, feeling the hard ridge of his shoulder digging into my stomach.
He carries me through the darkened house like he owns the place—which, technically, he kind of does.
"This place always gives me the creeps," I mutter, still dangling upside down. "It's like a fucking museum."
"That's because it is," Ramsey replies, his voice vibrating through his body against mine. "Nothing here is meant to be touched or enjoyed. Just looked at."
There's something in his tone—a bitterness that makes me wish I could see his face. But before I can think too deeply about it, we're through a set of glass doors and outside.
The night air hits my skin as Ramsey finally sets me down beside the massive infinity pool. It's lit from within, casting an ethereal blue glow across the stone deck. Beyond the water, the city lights twinkle below us like fallen stars.
"Holy shit," I breathe, turning in a slow circle. "This view is incredible."
"Yeah," Ramsey agrees, but when I glance over, he's not looking at the view—he's looking at me.
He reaches for the hem of his t-shirt and pulls it over his head in one smooth motion, revealing the carved perfection of his torso.
My heart nearly stops as I take him in. I've seen his tattoos before, but never like this—the galaxy across his chest seems to move in the blue glow of the pool, stars and planets and cosmic dust swirling over his heart.
The ink covers most of his upper body, trailing down his ribs and wrapping around his biceps.
He hooks his thumbs into the waistband of his joggers, sliding them down his hips to reveal black swim trunks that hang low on his narrow hips. The V-cut of his abs disappears beneath the waistband, and I have to physically restrain myself from reaching out to trace that line with my fingers.
He reaches for the hem of my crop top, his knuckles brushing against my bare skin. "Arms up."
I comply without thinking, lifting my arms above my head as he slowly peels the sweater up and off.
The night air kisses my skin, raising goosebumps across my exposed stomach and shoulders.
I'm acutely aware of how the bikini barely contains my tits, the tiny stars catching the blue light from the pool.
Ramsey's eyes darken as they rake over me, lingering on my chest before dropping to my leggings. Without a word, he kneels in front of me—fucking kneels—and starts unlacing my sneakers.
"I can do that," I protest weakly, my voice embarrassingly breathless.
"I know you can," he murmurs, looking up at me through his lashes. "But I want to."
My throat goes dry at the sight of him on his knees before me, his large hands cradling my foot as he slips off one sneaker, then the other. His fingers trail up my calves to the waistband of my leggings, hooking into the elastic.
I place my hands on his broad shoulders for balance as I lift one foot, then the other, letting him slide the leggings down my legs. His hands linger on my thighs, his thumbs tracing small circles on my skin.
"Fuck," he whispers, his eyes traveling up my body. "You're so beautiful it fucking hurts to look at you."
The raw honesty in his voice makes my chest tight. This is the most exposed I've been in front of him—at least while standing up and fully conscious. The memory of his face buried between my thighs flashes through my mind, making heat pool low in my belly.
He stands slowly, his body close enough that I can feel the heat radiating off his skin. His hands find mine, fingers interlacing as he starts walking backward, leading me to the edge of the pool.
We step into the pool together, the heated water rising around our ankles, our calves, our thighs. It's the perfect temperature—warm enough to be comfortable in the night air but cool enough to be refreshing against my heated skin.
"This is fucking amazing," I sigh as the water reaches my waist. The city lights twinkle below us, and above, the stars are scattered across the night sky like diamonds.
Ramsey doesn't let go of my hands as we wade deeper. "One more thing off your bucket list," he says, his voice soft.
Ramsey lets go of my hands, drifting backward through the water.
I push off, feeling weightless as I glide through the water. The sensation is incredible—warm water against my skin, the night air cool on my face, city lights sparkling below us. I dive under, letting my hair get wet, and come up laughing.
"This is fucking incredible!" I call out, swimming a lazy circle in the middle of the pool.
Ramsey's leaning against the edge now, his arms spread wide along the pool's rim, watching me with this soft smile I rarely see. His hair's getting wet at the ends, and water droplets cling to his shoulders, catching the blue light from below.
I swim a few more laps, feeling free and alive, before circling back toward him. He doesn't move, just tracks me with those intense eyes as I swim closer.
"I can't believe I've never done this before," I say, treading water a few feet from him. "I could swim like this every night."
"Oh yeah?" His voice is low, amused, his eyes never leaving mine.
"Yeah." I swim another circle, just to feel the water sliding over my skin. "Maybe I can convince Reagan and Penn to get an outdoor pool."
Ramsey pushes off the wall, gliding toward me with the grace of a predator. His hands find my waist underwater, and he pulls me to him with one smooth motion. I wrap my legs around his hips instinctively, my arms circling his neck.
"Too bad you weren't a girl," I tease, my fingers playing with the wet hair at the nape of his neck. "I'd ask you to recreate the pool scene in Wild Things with me."
Something dark and hungry flashes in his eyes. "I don't need to be a girl to do that," he growls, his hands tightening on my waist.
Before I can process what's happening, his mouth crashes into mine. This isn't like our previous kisses—this is raw and demanding, his tongue pushing past my lips to claim my mouth. I moan against him, tightening my legs around his waist.
His hands slide down to grip my ass, fingers digging into the flesh as he presses me harder against his growing erection. I can feel him through our swimsuits, thick and hard between my legs.
"Fuck," I gasp when he breaks the kiss to trail his mouth down my neck.
"That's the idea," he mutters against my skin, teeth scraping my pulse point.
He walks us backward until I feel the cool edge of the pool against my back. One of his hands leaves my ass to grab the edge, steadying us, while the other slides up my side to cup my breast through the thin bikini top.
"You have any idea how fucking sexy you look in this?" he growls, tugging at the star-covered fabric.
Something in Ramsey snaps, and suddenly he's untying my bikini top with deft fingers. The fabric falls away, leaving my tits exposed to the night air. His eyes darken as he takes me in, water droplets sliding down my skin.
"So fucking perfect," he growls, lowering his head to take one nipple into his mouth.
The sensation of his hot tongue against my cold, wet skin makes me cry out.
I arch into him, grinding my hips against his erection as he sucks and bites at my sensitive flesh.
His hand comes up to pinch my other nipple, rolling it between his fingers just hard enough to walk that perfect line between pleasure and pain.
His mouth releases my nipple with an obscene pop. "Turn around," he commands, his voice leaving no room for argument.
I untangle my legs from around his waist, turning to face the edge of the pool. My hands grip the stone rim as Ramsey presses his body against my back, his cock nestled against my ass. His hands slide up my sides, then around to cup my tits from behind, kneading the flesh roughly.
"You know what happens in that scene?" he murmurs in my ear, his teeth grazing my earlobe. "They fuck in the pool. Hard and dirty. We won’t be doing that in here, so I hope this is good enough, baby girl."
This was better than I could have imagined, and all I can do is moan as he kisses and sucks my neck. If all he does is this, I’m pretty sure I can orgasm and then die happy.