Chapter 32
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
Ryder
I’m exhausted.
Another day at The Garland Rose, and it’s been an uphill battle the entire time. Between dealing with Elaine’s reality show madness and the never-ending stream of hotel issues, I’m ready to crawl into my office chair and bury my head in paperwork for a solid hour.
If I even make it that far without something else going wrong.
But hey, at least she didn’t bring the crew back today. Small victories, I guess. Still, I’m not fool enough to believe this whole thing will go away.
“You done for the day?”
Sunny’s smile brightens up my mood. She always has that effect on me.
“Yeah, just about.” I lean back against the counter, taking a long breath. “I’ve got a few more things to wrap up, but I’m close enough to calling it.”
She tilts her head slightly, that curiosity she always wears creeping into her expression. “You sure? You look like you’ve been through the wringer.”
I give a tired half-smile. “That’s an understatement.”
“Want to talk about it?”
“Nah, I’m good. Just looking forward to being done.”
She studies me for a moment, and I can tell she’s not buying it. But then her smile shifts, softening into something more understanding. She doesn’t press.
“You got time for dinner?” she asks, shifting the subject. She’s always so good at doing that. “I was just about to ask Andre to send something up to my room.”
I blink at her, surprised. “Oh, really?”
“Of course.”
“Actually, that sounds good. Thanks, Sunny.”
She heads toward the elevator, and I follow, the sound of our footsteps the only noise between us. I can feel the tension from the day slowly draining as we talk about anything but work.
“So,” she says, as the elevator doors slide shut, “today with your mom… interesting.”
I chuckle, shaking my head. “Honestly, it would be funny if it wasn’t so insane all the time.”
“Do you ever get used to it? Or is it just a permanent chaos machine you’re stuck in? Because while she’s here, I’m stuck in it as well…”
“Oh, like Claire said, she’ll get bored and move on.”
“I really like Claire, you know? She’s nice.”
I grin. “Well, from what she’s told me, she likes you too.”
I’m not surprised. They both have the same fire. Claire’s just a little more used to using it. She has to be, with our mother.
As we reach her floor, I reach for her hand without thinking.
The contact feels natural, comforting. It’s the most normal thing in the world. Her fingers slip into mine, and I think it might be the most perfect fit I’ve ever felt.
The second we step off the elevator, I pull her close to me.
There’s no hesitation, just a raw, primal urge to close the space between us. I slam her back against the wall, the breath catching in her throat as she gasps, but she doesn’t pull away.
In fact, her body shivers, and her eyes widen with something I don’t need to ask about.
Her lips part slightly, and before I can stop myself, I’m crowding her space, pressing my chest against hers, my body so close I can feel her heat, her pulse. She’s trapped between me and the cold, unforgiving wall, and she doesn’t try to escape.
Not even an inch.
I’m drowning in her scent, the warm vanilla and gingerbread mixed with the heady rush of her breath. I grip her waist, pulling her tighter into me, pushing her back harder against the wall.
Every curve of her body, every inch of her feels so damn good, so right, pressed up against me.
She meets my eyes, a challenge, an invitation. Then she’s pulling me down, her lips crashing into mine.
The kiss is hungry, desperate, and everything I’ve been holding back is crashing to the surface. She doesn’t wait for permission; she takes control.
And I let her, before I growl low in my throat and pull her closer.
I kiss her harder, my hands running up her body, pressing her deeper into the wall until I can’t tell where she ends and I begin. The heat between us is explosive, raw.
I can taste her need on my tongue, feel it in the way her body arches into mine, the soft gasp that slips from her lips when my hands slide to the back of her thighs, lifting her just enough to feel the length of her against me.
She moans softly, and it sends a jolt through me, a pulse that I feel in every part of my body.
Her breath is coming in quick, shallow gasps, matching the rapid thump of my heart as I pull away just enough to look at her. Really look at her.
The flush of her cheeks, the way her lips are swollen from our kiss, the wild, unspoken want in her eyes. She’s never looked more beautiful.
And she’s mine.
For this moment, she’s mine.
Without a word, I grab her hand again, pulling her down the hallway, barely able to keep my grip steady as the need to touch her, kiss her, claim her intensifies. The hallway stretches in front of us, an eternity, but all I can think about is getting to her room.
Getting to her.
She stumbles slightly, and I catch her, my hands instinctively sliding to her waist, pulling her into me again.
“Easy there,” I whisper, but I can’t help myself as I press a quick kiss to her lips.
Her hands move up my chest, grasping at my shirt. She’s trembling, the tension between us so thick I can barely breathe.
We reach her door, and before she can even get her key out, I’m kissing her again. Harder this time, my hands tangled in her hair as I slam my body against hers, feeling the sharp edges of the door behind her.
She gasps into my mouth, but it’s a sound of pure need, not resistance.
With a soft rustle of fabric, her fingers finally find the keycard in her pocket. Her hand trembles only slightly as she slides the card into the reader, the soft click of the door unlocking sending a shiver through me.
I push the door open with my foot, never breaking the kiss, my hands already working to shed us of the layers that stand between us.
Her jacket hits the floor first, followed by mine, and I don’t stop until the cold air hits our skin. The hotel room is silent, save for the sound of our breaths and the frantic beat of our hearts.
She breaks the kiss, but only to tug at my shirt, her fingers sliding under the fabric to feel the heat of my skin.
“Ryder,” she breathes. “I want you.”
That’s all it takes.
I lift her, my hands on the back of her thighs, and she wraps her legs around my waist instinctively, locking herself against me, her body flush with mine.
We stagger toward the bed, and I can’t make it there fast enough. I want her now, want her so badly I’m burning from the inside out.
She’s pulling at my belt as I lay her down on the bed, her eyes blazing with hunger. “Ryder, please…”
Her plea rips through me as I edge up the bed, closer to her. That gorgeous mouth of hers is crying out to me.
Her lips wrap around me, and the sight nearly makes me lose it right there. I’ve got one hand tangled in her hair, guiding her head, setting the pace.
She takes me deeper with every thrust, her throat tightening around me as she gags, but she doesn’t stop. Her eyes are glassy, locked on mine, daring me to push harder.
“Fuck, Sunny,” I growl, tightening my grip, holding her still as I bury myself in her mouth. “You look so perfect like this.”
She moans around me, the vibration shooting straight through me. I thrust deeper, relentless, until her lashes flutter and spit slicks her lips, dripping down her chin.
Her nails claw at my thighs, but she doesn’t push me away. She wants this, wants me to use her.
When she finally gasps for breath, I pull her head back just enough to let her inhale. She’s a mess, red lips swollen, cheeks wet with spit and tears, and it’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.
“You like being on your back for me, don’t you?” I rasp.
She nods, breathless, licking her lips. “Yes.”
That one word almost undoes me. But I want more.
She barely has time to catch her breath before I’m over her, pinning her wrists above her head with one hand, sliding my other hand down her body to the slick heat between her thighs.
“You took my cock so well in your mouth,” I whisper against her ear. “Now you’re going to take it everywhere else.”
Her body arches into me, a whimper escaping her lips as my fingers slide inside her, thrusting deep, curling just right. She’s already soaked, ready, begging with every ragged gasp.
“Please…” she pants.
I pull my fingers free and press them against her lips. “Taste yourself.”
She sucks them greedily, her eyes rolling back, and the desire damn near consumes me whole.
That’s when I flip her onto her stomach, yanking her hips up so she’s on her knees. I slam into her in one rough thrust, and her scream fills the room.
Her cries echo off the walls as I slam into her from behind, the sound ricocheting through me—like gasoline on fire.
I don’t give her time to adjust. I pound into her, relentless, holding her hips steady as she claws at the sheets.
Every thrust pushes another cry from her throat, and I fucking revel in it.
I reach down, grabbing a fistful of her curls, yanking her head back until her spine arches. “You’re mine, Sunny. Say it.”
“I’m yours,” she gasps.
I release her hair only to bring my palm down hard across her ass.
The sharp crack fills the room, and she jolts, moaning into the mattress. Her body clenches tight around me, and I groan.
“You like that?” I spank her again, harder this time.
Her ass bounces beneath my hand, turning hot under my palm.
“Yes!” she cries, burying her face in the sheets, muffled but desperate.
I grip her ass with one hand, squeezing the sting into her skin, then spank her again, sharp and punishing. “That’s what I thought. You like it when I make you my good girl. Don’t you?”
“Yes, Ryder,” she whimpers, every word dripping with need.
“Good.”
I spank her again, watching her squirm under me. Then I slam back into her, driving harder, deeper, every thrust a claim.
Her whole body shudders, caught between the pain of my palm and the overwhelming pleasure I’m giving her.
I lean down, my mouth at her ear. “You’re going to come for me like this. Face down, ass red, cock buried in you so deep you’ll feel me tomorrow.”
She sobs my name, and I know she’s close, her body tightening, trembling. I spank her one last time, my handprint blooming across her skin, and that’s what pushes her over.
She shatters, screaming into the sheets, her body milking me so hard I cry out her name.
She’s still trembling, her body milking me with every aftershock, when I pull out at the very last second. The loss makes her whimper, but then I fist my cock, stroking hard and fast as I hover over her.
“Stay right there,” I growl, smacking her ass once more so she arches her back for me, cheeks red and glistening. “I want to see you like this when I finish.”
Her breath is ragged, her curls wild against her flushed face, her body sprawled and wrecked. Mine.
The sight unravels me. Heat builds fast and brutal, and with one last rough stroke, I explode. Hot, thick ropes of come striping across her ass, her lower back, dripping over the handprints I’ve left on her skin.
“Fuck, Sunny…” I groan, still pumping myself through it, watching every drop mark her.
She gasps, her fingers digging into the sheets. She can feel the heat of me even without my cock inside her.
When I finally collapse beside her, I drag her close, kissing her damp temple. My hand rests over her hip, possessive even now.
“Look at you. Messy, perfect, and mine.”
She tilts her head, giving me the smallest, wickedest grin. “Yours.”