Chapter 6 Smoke
six
Smoke
Without my bike, I have to rely on Ace giving us a ride to Bunny's place in his car. Makes me wonder if I should get a car of my own in case I need a backup.
Then again, he'd only gotten it because of Penny's daughter.
To think my brother got a kid before me. The guy who never gave off any hints of settling down in his life, one moment, to meeting the woman of his dreams...
I'm still jealous just thinking about it.
But with Bunny hugging my arm the entire drive, I can't help but let myself feel a little hopeful. As if there is a chance I could have a family of my own despite the path I've picked in life.
I've got the entire drive to torture myself with those thoughts, and by the time we're pulling in front of her unit, I realize that I should've spent the time preparing to say goodbye to her.
Before I can start kicking myself too hard, I realize she isn't in any rush to separate either. In fact, she squeezes my arm and the look in her eyes shifts. She'd been so comfortable at my side, but now, the cracks are starting to show, and I can see the worry seeping into them.
"Would you..." Hesitating, she clears her throat. "Would you like to come in? I don't think I want to be alone right now. I get it if you're busy, though."
She wants me to follow her? Sure, she may think it's the safest option, but to me, it sounds the most dangerous.
"Uh..." Not sure I can trust my words to come out right, I'm nodding and already pulling the door open. I don't miss the chuckle rumbling from the front of the vehicle. It's enough to warm my skin.
"Don't do anything I wouldn't do." Ace winks at me and makes Bunny's cheeks grow a surprising shade of pink.
I want to tell him to fuck off, but he's got a point. There's plenty that I want to do.
Thanking him for the ride, I help her out before taking her heels so she can let us in. I'm curious to learn more about this woman by getting a good look at what no one else gets to see.
One foot into the door, and I can already see enough plant life to make the air smell like damp soil. She's got one with far too many thin, long leaves that brush against my arm in passing.
"Don't mind the mess. I never really expect any company." Turning away from me, she wastes no time kicking off her sneakers and taking her heels from me, only to toss them with her other shoes. Hell, she's got so many pairs, it's not hard for them to get lost in each other.
By the time I've got my boots off, she's already stretching and making her way deeper into her home. I hurry along to catch up with her.
My heart does a funny little thing when I watch her delicately take off my jacket as if it's something precious. She hangs it on a chair at her table and then spins on her heel to look at me.
There's something about seeing the flirtatious seductress I'm always seeing on the casino floor standing here with her fingers twisting together like she's nervous.
Do I make her nervous?
"Are you hungry or thirsty? I can make something. Or..." She looks around her home like she's searching for some kind of activity to keep us busy. Something that'll keep me here.
Now that I'm standing in her home, after what we spoke about, the first thing she thinks I want to do is eat or drink something? I'm starving, sure, but not for food.
As I approach her, I remind myself to stay a few feet back to give her space. Damn, if that distance I’ve kept since we met hasn't already driven me crazy. It makes me wonder if all that space is why I couldn't truly protect her as her real boyfriend instead of just holding a fake title.
The thought has me taking another step, one after another.
I keep moving until she's stepping back, bumping into the table behind her. Her breath hitches—I hear it. She lifts her gaze, lips parting, and I stare down at her like I'm seeing her for the first time.
"You're very pretty, you know that?" The truth rumbles out of me before I can choke it back.
And hell, it actually helps—like someone cracked a window in a room that's been suffocating me for months.
All those feelings I've been squashing down?
They've been pressing against my lungs like a ton of bricks.
Bunny sputters at my compliment. Her eyes tear away from mine as if I've burned her, and she fans her face with her hand. "Why does it feel so different when you tell me that?"
I don't know. I don't know anything right now except that my palms are sweating and my heart is doing something weird in my chest.
She shakes her head, then plants a palm flat against my chest. Not pushing. Not pulling. Just… touching. Her fingers curl slightly against my shirt, and I secretly hope she’ll pull me toward her. Sadly, she doesn’t.
"As much as I enjoy you saying that," she says, voice going a little breathy, "we both know I look like a walking disaster. I need to clean up. My makeup is a mess, and I constantly smell like booze after my shifts. I should—"
She doesn't smell like booze. I breathe in without meaning to, and all I get is her. Something warm and sweet underneath whatever the casino left behind. Something that makes my mouth water.
She squeaks when I grab her hand. I wrap my fingers around her wrist instead, and there—her pulse. Thudding hard and fast against my fingertips.
That's good, right? Fast is good?
Painfully slowly, I lift her hand and watch her face the whole time. Despite being hesitant on following what feels natural, that option feels the best to avoid fucking this moment up.
I want her to take my feelings seriously.
Her eyes raise to mine, and her breathing shifts. Her chest rises and falls like she just ran a sprint.
It’s impossible to wrap my mind around what I do to this woman.
"Where's your shower?" I keep my voice even for her, but my body's already gone rough.
There's a stirring low in my chest that's shifted downward, and the plan playing out in my head has already done its damage.
One brief thought of cleaning up, too. Specifically with her.
Just like that, the blood in my body rushes straight to my cock.
Can she tell?
Bunny blinks at me, her lips parted, but no sounds coming out. Her cheeks are flushed now—really flushed, spreading down her neck—and I notice for the first time that her nipples are hard beneath her shirt. Two small points that have suddenly sucked me in.
Oh. Fuck. Maybe she’s as bad as I am, letting her mind run wild. Is that what’s happening? Have I turned her on? To the point of making her speechless, by the looks of it.
I’m going to need to bring her back down to the present to get my answer.
Releasing her wrist and picking her up does the trick. She's light as a feather and easy to get my hands beneath her. Her legs wrap around my waist without me having to ask, and the second they lock behind my back, I realize I never want to put her down.
I've got Bunny in my arms. Is this real?
"Smoke!" She gasps my name, clings to me like she thinks I'd drop her. Not a chance. I'd break my own arms before I let her fall. Then she laughs, and that's the moment it hits me.
No matter what has to happen, this woman needs to be mine.
"Shower?" I try again, my voice growing more hoarse by the second.
I adjust my grip on her. When she shifts against me, damn, I try to angle my hips back without making it obvious. Shifting any lower, and she'll discover what she does to me.
Bunny bites her bottom lip. Just chews on it, looking at me like she's trying to solve a puzzle. She has no idea what she's doing to me. No idea. Finally, she leans in and brushes her mouth against mine so soft it's almost not there.
"That little hallway," she whispers against my lips. "Door on the left."
Sounds simple enough.
Then she sighs against my mouth and takes charge of the kiss, and it's a miracle I don't walk us into every wall between here and there. I don't know her home. I don't care. I'm more focused on discovering more of her mouth instead.
Her small sighs are delicious enough to make my head spin, and when she lifts her hands from my shoulders and buries her fingers in my hair—fuck, I want her to touch me everywhere. This is barely the start, and I'm already gone.
We take a detour against one of the walls along the way. The way she arches into me, the way her fingers tighten in my hair, the way she makes this tiny sound in the back of her throat when my hips press her against the surface…
I’m starting to understand the appeal of pleasure with another person now. God, whatever happens tonight can’t be a one-and-done deal.
I pull back before I lose what's left of my control.
Her bathroom is tiny. I feel like I only take a few steps inside before I'm taking up all the space. When I set her down, it feels even smaller. Her back is to the sink, and there's barely a foot between us.
"I'll have to show you my apartment," I say, mostly because I’m already imagining plopping her on the counter I have in my bathroom, compared to the missing one in hers.
I busy my hands by shoving off my vest. Then I grab the hem of my shirt and tug it over my head. The air hits my skin, and I hear her gasp before I even drop the shirt. Then her hands are on me, touching as she pleases.
Fingers brushing the ink on my chest and exploring every different line, her brows lift in amazement.
Dragging down my ribs toward the scars I've got scattered across my skin, I see the worry behind her eyes, too.
She touches me like she's reading me—like she's trying to learn every line of who I am.
Any lower, and she'll notice how hard my cock is. Barely touched, and here I am. Stiffer than I've ever been in my life.
My breath catches as she reaches the hair trailing below my belly button. I actually have to close my eyes for a second. I’m not going to embarrass myself here. I swear to God.
Whatever person this woman thinks I am, I'm not about to ruin it because I can't keep my body in check. I want to be someone who can keep up with her.
Before she can try to touch me lower, I'm pinching at her shirt, dying to know what she looks like beneath.
Silently thanking my fingers for not shaking, I'm pulling it over her head before my next breath is catching in my lungs.
Dropping her shirt mindlessly, I'm left gawking at a lacy bra cupping her breasts.
Fuck, does she wear it just in case anyone catches a glimpse beneath her dress?
"You look angry." She reaches up and pinches one of the straps. "You don't like it?"
She's right. I can feel the strain on my jaw from gritting my teeth as tightly as I am. Just thinking about other men catching a view of it is enough to make my blood boil.
Jealousy is another one of those things I need to learn to get in check. Otherwise, I'm going to end up turning her off. After all, why in the hell would she want me panting all over her while scaring off those around her?
Breathing in deep and shaking my head, I drink in that lace and imagine how it would feel beneath my thumb if I were to rub it against it. "It's not that. I'm just... thinking about others seeing it." Heat crawls up my throat from admitting the truth. "Getting in my head."
Her brows lift before a smile forms on her lips. As it stretches from ear to ear, I notice the amusement behind her gaze.
If she teases me when I'm this close to getting somewhere with her...
"Is that why you're always scowling whenever I catch you looking my way?" Leaning toward me, her hands move behind her. I don't realize she's undoing her bra before I watch as it falls from her shoulders and then down her arms.
Jesus Christ, what have I gotten myself into?
Her breasts are... Fuck. They're perfect. Round and supple and...
She's growing flushed everywhere, even more when silence fills the small space as her bra drops from her fingertips. "As much as I love your silent self, I think you should say something."
I'm not a man of words. Instead of turning out like Ace, a man whose words were all smooth and buttery, I've always struggled to speak my mind, really. And right now? It's even harder when the ability to think is impossible.
"You're out of my league, Bunny." Running a hand down my face, I shake my head. "You could have anyone, you know that, don't you? You really want some asshole who's done bad things in his lifetime? Hell, someone younger than you?"
Inexperienced and demanding, and hell, possessive?
The brief look of worry on her face is gone in a quick wave.
Reaching out for me, she nods as she cups my face.
"You're not an asshole. You're respectful.
" Stroking my cheeks, she lifts to kiss my mouth.
Not anything deep like before, but a simple brush that makes me dizzy.
"You know how nice it is to finally meet a man who doesn't take one look at me and immediately treat me as an object?
I knew you were special the moment I met you, booking it the moment you saw me coming. "
Just when I think she's teasing me again, I can hear the sincerity in her voice.
"You may need to adjust your bar, here." Leaning into her touch, I love how it feels when she strokes my beard. "Respectful, huh? That's a first."
I've been called many things, but most aren't compliments. It's a pleasant change, I can say that much.
"Smoke, I want you." Pecking my lips, she grabs my hand and then plants it on her breast. "Can't you tell?"
I can; it's just going to take some time to get used to, that's all.
My grunt has her giggling breathlessly. Pulling away before I can enjoy touching her too much, she twists around and reveals ink against her spine that I never knew was there.
She sinks her thumbs into her pants, teasing me even more as she starts shoving them down. "How about we move this to the shower?"
She won't need to ask twice. Once I have her in my grasp, I'll show her just how desperately I desire her, far beyond any mere words.