22. Parker
22
PARKER
“ I ’m starving,” I announced sometime later.
Hope and I had both gotten out of bed and cleaned up and then returned to hold each other again. We didn’t talk about much, just let the silence in the room soothe us into a semiconscious state, where we were constantly touching, stroking arms, stomachs, backs, sides, whatever we could reach.
I wasn’t anywhere near ready to stop, but then my stomach growled, reminding me I hadn’t eaten supper.
I’d been heading out to my truck to go for a drive-through burger when I’d idly checked the location of my Lucid Air on my phone, something I did habitually now, just to see where she was and what she was doing.
When I’d seen the car’s GPS claim it was at Chateau Cove, all thought of food fled my brain, and I had headed this way instead to see why she was at our meeting location a day early.
And thank God I’d been snoopy. Tonight would’ve sucked ass with me pacing in anticipation for tomorrow. I hated waiting.
But this… Yeah, this I could handle.
“I have some granola bars in my sacks out in the foyer,” Hope spoke up. I glanced over to see her shrug. “I’d been planning on eating them while I was getting ready tomorrow. But since that fell through, you can have them if you want.”
“You sure?”
When my stomach growled again, she laughed. “Knock yourself out.”
“Sweet.” I leaned over to slap a quick, appreciative kiss to her cheek and then dove off the bed to hurry toward the door. I was halfway across the room before the startled expression she’d sent me afterward finally registered in my head.
But had I really just kissed her goodbye? Like some kind of…boyfriend?
“ What the fuck , Ohrley ?” I mouthed to myself as I entered the foyer.
That had just been weird.
Shaking my head past it, I jogged to the grocery sacks and hit pay dirt in the first one I looked inside. Finding four granola bars wedged under a bottle of lotion and hairspray, I pulled the first one free before peeling off half the wrapper and wolfing down the first bite.
My mouth was still full when Hope called, “Find them?”
“Mmph, yep,” I called back. “You want any?”
“No. I’m good. Thank you.”
I shrugged and polished off the first bar before opening the second. As I started on that one, I snooped through all the bags, frowning at all the different makeup and hair products, wondering what they even did.
When I came to the third sack, I noticed another bag inside with a notable lingerie store logo on it.
“The fuck?” I asked curiously as I pulled it free and opened the top before I stopped cold.
My fingers trembled slightly as I reached inside and pulled out the light blue teddy.
Holding up the silk and lace with one finger, I arched a brow and glanced toward the doorway to the bedroom.
Nothing for me, my ass. She’d bought a piece of lingerie in my favorite color. No way in hell had this been for her to enjoy.
Still holding it up with one finger because I really liked looking at it, I started a slow, mocking grin and strode back toward the doorway.
Once there, I leaned against the doorframe and cleared my throat. “You failed to mention this was in the sacks of goodies.”
Hope glanced up from her phone. “That’s not edible.”
“What’s going to be under it sure as hell will be,” I countered, pushing away from the door to approach. “As soon as you fucking put it on.” I flung it onto the bed so that it landed on the calf of her leg. “Like now.”
With a snort, Hope kicked the teddy onto the floor. “Too late. You didn’t let me prepare like I wanted to, so now you don’t get to see me in it.”
“It’s never too late for lingerie,” I countered, bending to pick it up again. Holding it up with both hands, I sucked in a breath and shook my head. “I’m serious, Trouble. If you don’t let me see you in this thing, I might lose my fucking mind.”
She sent me a dry glance, clearly not concerned about my mental health.
“Fine,” I ground out with reluctance. “You can fancy yourself however you wanted to in the beginning. The shower, the makeup, the hair. The works.” Reaching the bed, I climbed onto the mattress and started toward her on my knees, in a slightly begging stance. “Just as long as you put this on for the next round.”
Hope glanced down mildly at my hand when I wrapped my fingers around her ankle. “Maybe,” she allowed, but the look she sent me said I had more convincing to do.
Sending her a husky chuckle, I slid my hand up her calf toward her knee. “What if I promise to make you come harder than you ever have before?” I coaxed. Her skin was so soft and smooth that my fingers kept going. Forgetting the lingerie, I dropped my attention between her legs. “Hell, I’ll make you come right now.”
Flinging the teddy off to the side, I used both of my palms to smooth my way up the outsides of her thighs while I wedged my shoulders between the insides of them. Grinning up at her, I lowered my face and then waggled my brows before pressing my mouth between her legs and burying my nose right into her panties.
As she shuddered and lifted her hips, seeking more, I groaned. “Fuck. You smell like strawberries. Like strawberry fucking shortcake.”
Another one of my favorites.
When I glanced up at her in question, she smiled smugly.
“Well, now I know what I’m having for dessert,” I said and gripped the waistband of her underwear.
Hope didn’t try to stop me. But she did say, “I thought you said I could primp and prepare before the next round.”
“Right,” I agreed, tugging the silky cloth down her thighs. “The next round. After this one.”
An hour later, I was chilling on the balcony in the suite’s hot tub, arms draped over the edges with a drink I’d poured from the minibar dangling from one hand as I waited for Hope to finish her primping .
Night had fallen.
As I tipped my head back to look up, I could make out the moon above and a host of stars decorating the sky. I’d kept off the main light to the balcony, so only the hot tub itself plus some strings of LED lights around the bar and pool provided illumination, giving the place a romantic bent.
I thought I should feel more ashamed than I did.
I’d stressed about this.
Right up until the moment that Hope had laughed like Alec and flashed me his smile.
But then I’d pushed inside her, and now the only thought in my mind was wondering when the hell she was going to finish beautifying herself so I could get my hands on her again.
“Come on, Langston,” I muttered under my breath as I twisted my wrist and glanced over to check the time. Nearly twelve. “We don’t have all night.”
Actually, we did. But tonight was all we had, so I really wanted to make the best of every minute.
I wouldn’t have guessed that she’d be so…accommodating. She battled for control over everything else. I’d been sure she was going to contradict me the whole time. I’d even been up for the challenge of going head-to-head with her and fighting for dominance. But then she’d submitted to basically everything I wanted to do, and the clash of salty Hope in the streets with sweet, giving Hope in the sheets had kind of just made me want more.
After cracking open her hard, resilient outer shell, I wanted to wallow right there and lap up that delicious, gooey center all for myself.
Taking another sip of my drink in growing anticipation, I tipped my head back again when I swallowed, focusing on the waxing gibbous shining back down at me.
I swear, my entire body jolted with need when I heard her voice call, “Parker?” from deeper inside the suite.
“Out here,” I called back.
“Where?”
“Hot tub.”
She cried out aghast. “You got into the hot tub without me?”
“Well, if you hadn’t been taking your sweet time painting your toenails or whatever the hell you were doing, then—fuck me,” I breathed when she appeared in the doorway where I’d left the sliding door open. Her figure was outlined perfectly in the glow of the lights inside the suite.
Pausing there, she lifted her hand to the doorframe, giving me time to appreciate the whole view.
“You were saying?” she asked smugly.
She wore nothing but three triangles of blue silk all tied together to make a full one-piece.Her hair was trussed up, with her curls looking even bigger and richer than usual. And she’d fixed her face as if she were about to walk a red carpet. But her high heels…
I’d missed seeing those in her bags after I’d found the teddy.
She was trying to kill me, I decided.
“I was saying,” I said from a thick voice. “You’re worth the wait.”
When she smiled, I was done. I had to have her. Now.
I started to stand, but she heard the slosh of water and lifted her hand. “No. Don’t get out. I’ll just join you.”
I paused, waffling. “You sure? After taking so long to prepare? You’ll get all wet.”
Her chuckle made my cock thicken. And the sway of her hips as she started forward had me salivating. “That’s the idea, Ohrley. Get me as wet as you possibly can.”
“Fuck me,” I repeated.
“Also the idea,” she added lightly as she reached the hot tub.
Gah, she was magnificent.
Pausing at the edge, she glanced in, only for a frown line to crease the center of her brows. “You’re wearing shorts.”
“Jockeys,” I corrected.
Her gaze lifted to mine. “I was looking forward to seeing you naked.”
I lifted one eyebrow. “Feel free to seduce me out of them.” Keeping eye contact, I took a long drink.
Hope silently took the glass from my hand and set it out of my reach, then she climbed into the water, heels and all. I watched her, successfully diverted from my alcohol, and every muscle tightened inside me as she sank in across from me, moaning the whole way down.
“Oh God, that feels good.”
I huffed. “Couldn’t have said that two hours ago, huh?”
She only smiled. “I thought I did.” Mimicking my pose, she stretched her legs out in front of her, threw her arms over the sides, and looked up at the stars. “I definitely thought it.”
The Hope I knew never would’ve admitted something like that aloud. She’d claim it was too flattering to my ego, which was already overinflated enough as it was. But this Hope didn’t mind complimenting me, and the difference was confusing and intriguing as hell.
“What’re you doing all the way over there?” I asked, discreetly searching for her foot under the water.
She sent me a seductive glance, merely saying, “It’s foreplay.”
“You can play over here,” I told her, finally finding what I’d been seeking. Latching my hand around her ankle, I tugged her toward me.
She yelped in surprise and floundered through the water as I towed her in.
“The heels can stay,” I said as I pulled her directly into my lap and down onto my erection.
“Oh, can they?”
“Mm-hmm,” I murmured, gathering handfuls of her hair and moving it to the side so I could kiss my way along her jaw. “You can too.”
The chuckle that went through her vibrated into me. “Generous of you.”
“I’m a generous guy,” I answered, peppering kisses down her throat and along the top of her shoulder.
With a scoff, she wondered, “Since when?”
“Since someone’s already given me five of her orgasms tonight, all within three rounds of sex, and is about to hand over a sixth.”
“Keeping track, are you?” When she shuddered and shifted against my erection, I started to peel the strap of her teddy down.
“Hell yes,” I said, then kissed the bare shoulder I exposed. “Seriously, Trouble. I thought you said getting you to come was gonna be difficult or something.”
“Or something,” she agreed on a groan as she rolled against me harder, then clutched my cheeks in her hands and drew my face up for a kiss.
I met her lips eagerly and wrapped my arms around the base of her spine to pull her snuggly against me.
We kissed slowly, tongues stroking, hands clutching.
She still had my head caged between her fingers when she pulled away to breathlessly demand, “Lose the shorts, Ohrley.”
“Jockeys,” I countered with a grin, even as I lifted my hips under her and pushed them down.
Once gone, I left the black cloth floating in the water and returned my hands to her hips. Then I smoothed my fingers around to grip her ass and grind her down on me before I moved along to play with her from behind.
She sucked in a breath and leaned her face forward to rest it against my shoulder. I shifted her hair out of the way with my nose in order to kiss her neck, while below, I slipped the crotch of her teddy aside and pressed the head of my cock against her opening.
Murmuring a sound of approval, she tried to slide down on me, but the water had washed away our natural lubricant, leaving the task more difficult than expected. Hope whimpered in frustration and rocked her hips, but she barely got another inch of me in.
“Easy,” I rasped, stroking her hip soothingly. “We’ll get there.” When she looked up into my eyes, I smoothed a hand over her curls. “We’ve got all night.”
But my reassurance distressed her more than it reassured her. “No,” she told me, her eyes wide with worry. “We only have tonight.”
My lips parted, and I didn’t care for the doom that settled into my gut. But she was right. Time was slipping by too fast.
Growling out my refusal to lose her just yet, I smashed my mouth to hers and picked her up as I stood, turning about as soon as I was out of the water so I could sit her on the ledge, and then I drove into her deeply.
“Oh God!” she shouted, arching her neck and wrapping her legs around me until the heels of her shoes dug into the small of my back.
Spurred into action—literally—I bucked into her repeatedly, only going faster when her breathing picked up and anxious cries began to tumble from her lips.
Just when I couldn’t take it a moment longer, she scored my back with her fingernails and started to tighten around me, climaxing hard.
With a relieved groan, I followed her into the high, burying my face in her hair and letting her hold me through the storm.