Chapter Eight
Get to Work
Livia
My heart was racing as I took back the reins and shoved Carter onto his couch. It was only a moment that I’d lost control, but it was enough to have me shaken.
How the hell could this man tell that something was off with me within minutes of me walking into his home?
It was difficult for Maven to figure out when I was in a mood. It usually took her at least an hour to see through my mask.
But Carter had picked up on it immediately.
And even more surprising, I’d told him what was wrong.
I could have easily said nothing when he asked. I could have told him he was crazy, he was seeing things, and he didn’t have a fucking clue about me the way he thought he did.
But the fact that he’d seen me so clearly, so quickly, had completely fucking thrown me.
It’s your eyes.
I guess it shouldn’t have surprised me that my eyes were giving me away, considering how my sister’s phone call had plagued me the last few days.
I hadn’t seen her in years, mostly because I always had an excuse — work is too crazy, I don’t have enough vacation time, I’m out of town when you want to visit, you know I can’t come to Christmas.
The truth rested in the fact that it was too painful to be with my sister, and so I just avoided it at all costs. We texted and talked on the phone every now and then, but even those interactions typically sent me into a spiral of sorts.
Now, my baby sister was getting married.
And I had to decide what to do with her invitation.
It would be one of the biggest days of her life, one I always imagined I’d be a part of. I wanted to be there for her. I wanted to celebrate her union.
But I couldn’t stomach the thought of being back in Long Island, or even in the same state as my parents.
I didn’t want to think about it — especially not right now.
I took a breath that would have seemed normal to anyone on the outside, but for me, it was all I could do to calm myself down and get back to focusing on the task at hand.
“Now that we’ve gone over what not to say when she shows up at your door,” I said to Carter, asserting my dominance over him as I stood and stared down at him on the couch. “Let’s talk about what to do once she’s inside.”
I sat down next to him then, crossing my legs, the heel of my boot sliding up his shin. The way he reacted to me with a little shiver already had my mind clearing.
“The wine and music and lights are a great start,” I said. “But it’s body language from here. You can’t be tripping all over yourself. Relax. Let her know she can relax.”
I waited until he took the cue, leaning back on the couch and tossing one arm around the back of it so it was draped around me, too. He leaned in a little closer, shifting his weight so he was angled toward me. Then, he crossed one ankle over the opposite knee.
“Good,” I said. I felt the tension in my shoulders release now that I was back in control. “Now touch me.”
“With pleasure,” he muttered, hand shooting out for the tie of the sheer dress I wore. It rested just between my breasts, but before he could tug on it, I swatted his hand away.
“Pacing, Rook.” I smirked, and just like that, I was the teacher, and he was the student, and my family drama didn’t exist — at least for the moment.
“Touch my hair, my neck. Toy with the straps of my top. Run your knuckles down my arm. And when you can’t stand it anymore, when I’m leaning in and giving you all the signs that I’m with you… ” I shrugged. “Kiss me.”
His eyes shot wide at that.
“What?” I asked. “Don’t tell me I have to teach you how to kiss. For fuck’s sake, Rookie.”
“No, no,” he said hurriedly, shaking his head. “I just… I didn’t expect you to let me kiss you.”
“It’s only for educational purposes,” I clipped. “Don’t think this is an open invitation for you to kiss me any time you want.”
“I’ll take whatever you give me, Mommy.”
Again, he won himself an unbidden laugh with that, and I turned it into a growl before flicking his nose like a dog.
“Focus,” I said. “Or I’m walking right back out that door.”
“Okay, okay.” Carter threw his hands up in surrender before settling back into his relaxed, cocky, laid-back posture. He hit me with a lazy smirk, and the hand he had draped around the couch, and therefore me, began to gently rub my neck.
He wore his nerves like an article of clothing, his brows pinching together a bit like he was thinking really hard about his next move. He winced before taking his next breath, his eyes fluttering shut as a long inhale and exhale left him.
When he opened his eyes again, it was with a sense of calm.
He was quiet for a moment, his eyes watching where he touched me before they started to hike the rest of me like I was a trail in the Appalachian Forest. His touch grew softer, fingertips swirling in soft circles that made goosebumps erupt over my arms.
“I like this,” he muttered, fingertips sliding under the thin strap of my dress.
He ran it slowly beneath the fabric, toying with it suggestively.
Then, his hand trailed down, knuckles grazing my arm, rib cage, and oblique before he followed the line of my belt to the buckle that sat squarely between my hips. “I really like this.”
He slid his hand under the belt and tugged with the words.
And white-hot electricity shot between my thighs.
I arched a brow and smiled, amused by how well that had worked. “Oh yeah?” I teased, still letting him lead.
He nodded, his hand finding its way back up to curl around my neck. He played with my hair at the back of it, making me close my eyes and let out a sigh at the way it felt.
“You’re so beautiful.”
I nearly gagged, eyes rolling open so I could pinpoint him with an unimpressed glare.
He chuckled. “Wow. You’d have thought I said you have warts.”
“That line is tired,” I said. “Try again.”
He frowned. “But you are beautiful.”
Why did it feel like he poured a bucket of roaches on me when he said that?
Maybe it was because those words made me flash back to the most horrid night of my life, to the time a man older than me, a man I trusted, said the same two words before completely destroying me.
“You’re beautiful.”
Panic was playing at the edges of my calm facade, but I must have still had a look of disgust on my face, because Carter full-on laughed and shook his head. “Alright, alright, no comments about beauty. Hmm…”
He wiggled his shoulders, sitting up taller as his brows folded together in concentration. I let that action bring me back to the present, shutting the door on the past and leaving it right where it belonged.
Carter continued playing with my hair, careful not to toy with it too much, just enough to give me the sensation. Then, he leaned in closer, taking my hat off and trailing the rim of it down my arm before he sat it behind me. His other hand came up to frame my jaw, and he tilted my head toward him.
“You are fucking remarkable, Liv. You know that?”
He slid his fingers to curl around the back of my neck, thumbs framing my jaw, grip strong as he guided me into him.
“Ever since you walked through that door, all I’ve been able to think about is touching you… tasting you.” His nostrils flared, his eyes on my lips. He shook his head like restraining himself was torture. “Please don’t make me wait any longer.”
That worked.
My mind was clear again, that hint of panic replaced by another jolt between my legs, another parting of my lips as I leaned into those words, into the heat that swept over me from the power of them.
And just like I’d given him permission to, Carter read the signs — and he kissed me.
He was tentative for only second, just a beat of insecurity when our lips first touched. I almost pulled back to scold him, but as if he sensed it, his grip on my neck tightened and he deepened the kiss.
After that, it was like he was pulling out all the stops to impress me.
His lips were warm and firm, seeking as he inhaled a deep breath like just kissing me was enough to give him all the pleasure he’d ever need in life.
I loved the way his large hands spanned my jaw and neck as he held me to him, as he tilted me just slightly so he could fit our lips together perfectly.
He opened his mouth, and I followed, both of us moaning when he slid his tongue inside and met mine.
“Fuck,” he groaned, and then he was pulling me into his lap.
One hand slid between us and tugged on my belt buckle so hard he lifted me, and I followed the cue, slinging one leg up and over until I was straddling him like a saddle. He wrapped me up then, large arms fully encompassing my frame as he kissed me harder, deeper, with more longing.
And I almost lost myself.
I almost forgot it was all a lesson as his hands slid down to cup my ass and squeeze.
I almost gave into the temptation to rock against him when he slid his hands into the back pockets of my shorts and flexed his hips up to meet mine.
I almost let out the whimper I was fighting to hold back when he nipped at my bottom lip with his teeth before capturing me in another hot, bruising kiss.
Carter Fabri.
A damn good kisser.
Who would have thought?
“Oho, so he does have a little game hiding up his sleeve,” I teased, pulling back from the kiss with a press of my nails into his chest. I smiled when he opened his eyes as if he were drugged, his lids heavy, lips swelling. “That wasn’t so bad, Rookie.”
“Give me another five minutes and I think I can earn an A plus.”
He breathed the words before he was hooking me behind the neck and pulling me into him again, his mouth capturing mine as he rocked his hips up against me.
“Did I say you could kiss me again?” I asked, still teasing, but with more of an edge to my voice as I bit down hard on his bottom lip.
Carter winced and groaned, but I knew the pain turned him on more than it warned him to stop. His hands gripped my hips hard, holding me in place like he wanted to fuck me right through all the layers of clothes still between us.