12. Chapter Eleven Laurent
Chapter Eleven: Laurent
Savannah lets out a husky cry, her hips surging up as I sink into her hot core.
She’s tight and slick, and the way she’s squeezing around my cock is making me lose my damn mind.
Gritting my teeth, I try to keep things slow, intent on drawing the experience out, but it’s a losing battle.
Especially when she grabs my ass and tries to pull me deeper.
“Harder,” she grits out.
Yeah, I can do that. If Savvy wants hard and fast, you better believe I’m going to deliver.
Grabbing behind her knee, I bring her leg up to rest against my waist, tilting her hips just right. My other hand slips between our bodies and I strum her clit until she’s crying out my name.
And she’s saying Rhys.
I’m not sure what possessed me to tell her my first name—a name no one has used in decades—but I needed to hear her say it as she’s coming. For the first time in forever, I’m taking off the debonair mask and exposing my true self. It’s both terrifying and exhilarating. But it’s all for her.
“Get there, Savvy,” I rub faster, urging her to her release. “Look at me. I want to watch as you come on my cock.”
Her sage eyes lock onto mine and then she shatters. And it’s fucking beautiful. I slam my mouth against hers, kissing her deeply, drinking in her cries. My own orgasm is right there, and I let go, giving her everything I’ve got. A shudder tears through my body and I explode.
Unleashing a harsh sound—one I’ve never heard come out of my mouth before—I roll onto my back, drop a hand on my heaving chest and stare at the ceiling as I try to get my breathing under control.
That was wild and fast, and a part of me wonders if I should’ve slowed things down.
Took my time and savored her more. Drawn the pleasure out for us both.
Turning my head, I look over and she appears just as fuck-struck as me.
“I needed that,” she whispers. “God, did I need that.”
Sliding closer, I turn her face toward me. “Did you?”
“It’s…been awhile.” She tries to pull away, shy all of a sudden, but I don’t let her.
“I should’ve taken my time with you.” My thumb traces over her jawline. “I’m sorry.”
“Sorry? For what? Giving me the best sex of my life?” She lets out a low laugh.
“The best sex of your life, huh? Hold that thought.”
Slipping out of bed, I pad into the bathroom and take care of the condom. Pausing, I look at my naked reflection in the mirror, particularly my expression. I’ve never looked so relaxed…so content. For the first time in a very long time, I’m just looking at me. At Rhys.
Somehow, Savannah brings out the best in me.
The old me, who nobody paid any attention to and who didn’t have a euro to his name.
An innocent kid who used to find joy in the simple things.
My mom and I never had much money, but we were always happy.
Because we had each other. Could Savvy bring that kind of joy back to my life?
Fuck, that’s a loaded question. Raking a hand through my hair, I wander back into the bedroom and slide beneath the sheet, covering her soft, warm body with mine. Then I start dropping kisses all over her beautiful face. Particularly on those adorable freckles.
“Back to how I’m the best sex of your life,” I murmur.
“Don’t let it go to your already big head,” she says, giggling after I boop her nose with three kisses in a row.
“Too late.” I abandon her numerous freckles and make my way down, dragging my mouth along her throat, over her collarbone and then latching onto a taut, rosy nipple. Sucking, worshipping. She moans, arching beneath me. “You taste so sweet.”
Her fingers thread through my hair, nails lightly scratching. “Can I ask you a question?”
I lift my head. “Yes, I’ll fuck you again…and again…and then again.”
She bats at my shoulder. “That’s not what I was going to ask. I mean, that too, but I was just curious…”
“About?”
“Well, several things.”
I roll off her, getting comfortable on the pile of pillows as she turns to face me. Reaching out, she trails a finger over my chest, circling my flat nipple and raking her nails through the light dusting of hair. “How old are you?” she asks.
“Thirty-seven.” Her eyebrows lift in surprise. “You thought I was younger? Good. Then the time I abhor spending in the gym twice a week isn’t all for nothing.”
“Aren’t you going to ask me how old I am?”
“How old are you, chérie?”
“I’ll be thirty in a few months.”
“Un bébé,” I purr.
When her fingers move up to trace my lower lip, I give them a playful nip.
With a laugh, she pulls them away and, instead, glides them over the stubble growing in on my face.
I shave every day, rarely sporting any type of facial hair.
But the last few days have been anything but normal, and I’ve slacked on my regular maintenance.
However, if she likes it, I’m willing to change things up a bit.
“Hardly.” She sighs softly. “Tell me more about this sapphire you want so badly.”
I wasn’t expecting her to turn the subject to the gem so soon, but there’s no harm in sharing a little about it.
“The Heart of Azure is legendary and full of mystique. It was discovered in Sri Lanka and is 392.52 carats of untreated cushion-cut Ceylon blue sapphire. The gem is suspended on a diamond tassel pendant.”
“Oh, it’s on a necklace?”
“The most stunning necklace ever created. It would look amazing on you.” I touch her collarbone, imagining how the sapphire would look against her flawless skin.
“Tell me more.”
“Records show a gem dealer sold it to Lord Nuffield of England. From there, the history gets a little murky. Rumors say Nuffield intended to gift it to Queen Elizabeth at her coronation, but that never happened. Instead, it continued to change hands, surfacing for a bit in the 1970s, but disappearing again before coming up for sale at auction. A man who kept his identity secret bought it from a Saudi collector’s estate sale for almost $17.
5 million. He loaned it to museums to display, and that’s how I first saw it. ”
“Oh, wow. How does the book play into all this?” she asks, tilting her head.
“The unidentified private collector was rumored to be quite eccentric—a man who appreciated a good treasure hunt. Apparently, after finding out he was terminally ill, he hid the necklace and placed the clues to its whereabouts in his favorite story—”
“Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland,” she finishes excitedly, and I nod. “It’s my favorite. I’d always beg for just one more page when my dad would read it to me at night as a little girl.”
“I can’t say I’ve ever read it.”
“You’re missing out.”
“Maybe you can read it to me,” I suggest, sliding my hand down her side, along her hip and straight between her legs. She inhales sharply, and my fingers begin to stroke her slit until she’s dripping. “Unless you can think of something else we can do.”
“I might have an idea.”
Her voice comes out so breathy. So damn sexy. I dip a finger inside her heat, curling it, while my thumb rubs small circles around her clit.
“Laurent—”
“Rhys,” I correct her. “Call me Rhys when I’m giving you an orgasm.”
“Rhysss…” She whispers my name like a prayer intention. And while I may not be God, you better believe I’m going to deliver exactly what she wants. An absolutely divine experience.
The night passes in a tangle of sweaty limbs and endless orgasms. We wreck the bed, the shower, the couch and the table—that last one literally.
When I had Savvy spread beneath me on the table, we managed to break one of the legs.
Zero regrets. I caught her before she fell and we had a good laugh before I was bending her over the back of the couch and finishing up what we’d started.
I can’t remember ever having such a good time with a woman. Probably because I haven’t. Between our romps, we refueled by consuming the bulk of the overpriced snacks and drinks provided in the room. A ten dollar bag of chips never tasted so good.
Lounging on the couch as we finish a huge breakfast spread from room service, I flip through the copy of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. The one that holds clues to the location of The Heart of Azure.
Yet, I see nothing out of the ordinary. Nothing that strikes me as strange or unusual.
If we’re being honest, the whole damn story is strange and unusual, so I’m at a loss.
As far as I can tell, it’s just a regular copy of the damn classic by Lewis Carroll.
Sure, it’s old and could fetch a halfway decent price at auction, but that’s not why I’ve been searching for it for so long.
With a frustrated sigh, I slam it shut and toss it on the coffee table.
“Nothing?” Savannah asks. I glance over where she’s curled up in a fluffy hotel robe munching on a strawberry.
“Nothing. But the exasperating part is I know something’s in there.” There has to be. Otherwise this has all been a gigantic waste of time and energy.
She lays a hand on my thigh, squeezing. Okay, not a total waste. Spending last night with Savannah was the best night of my life.
“How long have you been searching?” she asks, voice low as she continues to caress my leg.
“I’ve wanted that sapphire since I was twelve years old,” I admit, harsher than I intend.
“Why? Because it’s shiny? Or is there more to it?”
God, she’s intuitive. But I’m not about to share my past and put a damper on the mood. “Because it’s really fucking shiny,” I say, covering her hand with mine and slowly sliding it up.
“I feel a little like Alice, tumbling down the rabbit hole.” She palms my dick through the robe, and I groan as she slips her hand past the fabric and wraps her fingers around me. I’m already hard as steel as she slides off the edge of the couch and drops to her knees between my spread legs.
Leaning back, I watch her with hooded eyes. Absolutely mesmerized. “If you’re Alice, who am I?” Her hands twist up and down, and I can’t look away as she works my dick.
“Oh, you’re the Cheshire Cat. No doubt about it. Calm, enigmatic, mischievous.” She kisses my engorged tip, and my fingers dig into the couch cushions. “Guiding me through a topsy-turvy world.”
I’m trying to listen to what she’s saying, but it’s getting harder and harder. Just like me. The moment she wraps her lips around me, I’m a goner. My hips jerk up, giving her a mouthful. And she takes every fucking inch, sucking me deep.
“Fuck!” I’m not going to last long, but I have the feeling she’s enjoying her power over me tremendously. I don’t miss the sexy fire sparking in her sage eyes because she’s staring straight into mine as she sucks harder. “Jesus! Savvy!”
I slide a hand through her dirty blonde hair, enjoying the bob of her head up and down my cock.
Then she tightens her hold, fingers squeezing around my base, and I’m done.
Lost in a haze of pleasure, I drop my head against the back of the couch and erupt, spurting my release down the back of her throat with a guttural growl.
My heart is thundering like a race horse and I take a moment to catch my breath.
“Get up here.” I drag her up off the floor and settle her in my lap. She cups my face and we kiss each other senseless.
Holding her close to my chest, twining my fingers through her long, wild hair, I feel her lips press to the place right over my heart in the softest of kisses. “In the story,” she whispers, “the Cheshire Cat is known to vanish, leaving only his smile floating in the air.”
I suppose this is the moment I’m supposed to say I’ll never leave or let her go. But the words are stuck in my throat. The silence between us seems to grow louder and, as much as I hate it, I refuse to make promises I don’t intend to keep.