29. Riley
Cole breaks awayfrom our kiss. As he withdraws, he tucks a lock of my hair behind my ear, and I relish the feeling of his hand on my face.
He stands, reaching a hand down to help me up. As he pulls me to my feet, he says, “Come back inside with me.”
There’s nothing I would rather do, so I nod, following him back into the house. He leads me upstairs to my bedroom, and for a few moments, I think he’s about to take me to the bed—but instead, he brings me into the bathroom and flicks on the mirror lights.
He reaches for the hem of my shirt, glancing up at me with a question in his eyes. In response, I lift my hands above my head, letting him undress me. His touch is gentle, and he moves slowly, a departure from the usual fierceness.
He removes my shirt and my bra, then carefully undoes my high, messy bun—which has already almost fallen apart—letting my hair spill loosely around my shoulders.
“I’ve always found showers cleansing,” he says quietly, unbuttoning my jeans. He slides them down, and I step out of them. He takes his time removing my panties, turning me around a few times as if enjoying the view.
“Well, yeah,” I say with a chuckle. “That’s sort of the point of them, right?”
He grins, his eyes sparkling with amusement. “Not just physically cleansing,” he clarifies. “Mentally cleansing. Emotionally cleansing.”
“Ah,” I say, lightly teasing. “Of course.”
Cole slides my panties the rest of the way down, leaving me naked in front of him. I shiver in the cold air of the bathroom, and he opens the door to the standing shower, inviting me inside. He starts to remove his own clothes, unbuttoning his shirt.
“After my sister died, I took a lot of showers,” he says as he strips. As always, the sight of him is exciting, but there’s something intimate about the combination of this conversation and our nakedness. I feel more vulnerable than I’ve ever felt around him. “I would just get in and let the water wash everything away.”
He joins me in the shower, turning on the water and adjusting the temperature until it’s hot enough. It fogs up the glass immediately, making me feel as though there’s nothing in the world except for me and him, and the cascade of water over our bare bodies.
“It’s good to have somewhere to retreat to,” he continues softly. “Someplace to reset.”
He takes my bottle of shampoo from the ledge, squirting some into his hands and rubbing his palms together. The steamy air is suddenly full of the sweet scents of jojoba and coconut. Between that and the warmth, I can close my eyes and almost imagine we’re on our own island, somewhere tropical.
“Turn around,” he instructs, and I do it without question.
He begins to massage the shampoo into my hair, and I find myself leaning into his touch. All of the remaining tension in my muscles fades away, and I let myself be soothed by him. He takes his time with it, lathering the shampoo over every strand and massaging my scalp, and I moan softly at how good it feels.
Once he finishes washing my hair, he shifts our positions slightly, tilting my head back once I’m standing under the spray to rinse out the shampoo. His fingers are gentle as they slide through the wet strands, and I let out a sigh.
“That feels good,” I murmur. “I’ll admit it, you were right. Showers are great.”
“I’m glad it’s helping,” he replies. Even though I can’t see his face, I can hear the smile in his voice.
“It’s such a nice shower, too,” I add, craning my neck a little as I give him a mischievous glance out of the corner of my eye. “Way better than the one at my old apartment. Mostly because of that detachable shower head.”
I gesture to the stainless steel apparatus above us, and he chuckles. He finishes rinsing my hair, and then his hands start to wander lower, sliding over my slick skin as he drops his head and presses a kiss to my neck.
“You like that feature, do you?” he murmurs.
“Mm-hm.” I tilt my head to one side, my eyes fluttering closed. “It’s amazing.”
Cole palms my breast, squeezing my nipple as he moves in closer behind me. He’s hard, and the thick line of his cock presses against my lower back as he rolls my nipple between his thumb and finger.
“I’ve never considered myself a jealous man, but now you’ve got me envying a damn shower head. Have you gotten yourself off with it, angel? Used it on that sweet little pussy of yours?”
A flush of heat races through me, raising my internal temperature more than the shower ever did. “Yes.”
He squeezes my breast again, grinding his cock against my back. “Then show me.”
“What?”
We’re so close together that his chuckle vibrates against my back. “Show me how you use it. I want to know every way there is to make you come, so I want to see exactly what you do with it.”
He presses a kiss to the spot behind my ear, reaching up with his free hand to detach the shower head from where it’s hanging above us. Without the spray pouring down over us, my temperature drops a little, but it’s more than made up for by the warmth of Cole’s strong body behind mine.
My heart races as he gives me the shower head. Honestly, I’ve used it more than once, especially during those early days when I was living in a state of near constant sexual frustration. Touching myself was the only outlet I had before Cole and I finally broke down and started sleeping together. So I’m very familiar with all of the settings on the shower head, and I quickly adjust it to a lightly pulsating spray.
Cole makes a low noise of amusement. “Looks like someone read the user manual.”
“Nope. I’m just a quick study,” I shoot back, pressing my ass against him in retribution for his teasing.
I’m rewarded with a low groan, and the sound itself is so fucking sexy that I immediately feel an answering arousal start to build inside me. A little tentatively, I lower the shower head, bringing it down so that the spray hits my clit. It feels almost like a vibrator with the way the water pulses against me, and I hiss out a breath as a rush of sensations flood my body.
One of Cole’s large hands continues to tease my breast while the other wraps around my waist, and I grip his forearm to steady myself as I move the shower head around to find the perfect spot.
“Fuck, angel,” he mutters, anchoring me against his body. “God, I love watching you like this. That feel good?”
“Yes,” I whisper, adjusting the angle again as my head falls back against his shoulder. “So good.”
“Then keep going. I want to see you come just like this.”
I nod, tilting my head up and craning my neck a little as my lips seek out his. Cole doesn’t make me wait. He kisses me deeply, his tongue delving into my mouth as our slick bodies grind against each other. The feel of his kiss, combined with the pulsing pressure from the shower head, makes me moan, and he pinches my nipple.
My legs shake, and as our kiss breaks, I whimper, “Oh god.”
This is all so much more intense than any of the other times I used the shower head to take care of my pent-up sexual frustration. Because this time, I’m not just imagining Cole as I tease my clit—he’s right here with me, watching and feeling everything I’m doing to myself.
I was a bit hesitant at first, a little shy about letting him watch this intimate act, but my inhibitions are falling away by the second. No other guy I’ve slept with has ever made me feel as safe as Cole does, and I think that’s part of why the sex with him is so fucking amazing. I can let myself go completely.
And that’s what I do right now.
My hips start to undulate, my clit throbbing as pressure builds inside me. I release my death grip on Cole’s forearm and wrap my arm around his neck instead, holding myself up as little whimpers and moans pour from my lips.
“You’re getting close, aren’t you?” he asks, his voice a deep rumble against my back.
“Uh-huh,” I gasp out.
“Knew it.” His teeth scrape along the line of my jaw. “You make the sexiest fucking noises when you’re about to come. I could listen to those sounds all night.”
“Cole…” My fingers slide into his wet hair, my back arching as I lean against him. “Please.”
“Please what, angel? Use your words.”
“Touch me,” I breathe.
“I am touching you. Be more specific.”
God, I both love and hate how he always makes me ask for exactly what I want. But I love it more than I hate it, because every time I ask, he gives it to me.
“Fuck me with your fingers,” I whisper. “Please.”
He makes a noise in his throat as the hand around my waist slides lower, delving between my legs. He slips two fingers into me, and my inner walls immediately clench around him like my pussy has been waiting for this.
“You’re so wet,” he mutters, working his fingers in and out of me as I keep the shower head directed at my clit.
I’m about to joke that I’m spraying water on my pussy, so of course I’m wet—but before I can get the words out, he curls his fingers inside me, stroking my g-spot. Whatever I was about to say gets lost in the keening moan that fills the shower as pleasure shoots through me.
“Right there.” I nod frantically, clinging to his neck as I shift the angle of the shower head again. “Right there, Cole, oh fuck, please. Fuck.”
“Good girl. Let go, angel. Don’t hold anything back. Shit, you’re squeezing me so tight. Do you wish it was my cock inside you?”
“Yes,” I moan. “Always.”
He tilts his head to look down at me, something hot and possessive glinting in his eyes. “Good answer.”
His full lips claim mine in another searing kiss, and his fingers plunge deeper. I feel like I’m made of nothing but sensation, my entire body humming as all of my nerve endings seem to light up at once. The pleasure builds in a rush and then suddenly breaks, hurling me into an orgasm that nearly makes my knees buckle.
I hold on to Cole as it washes through me, kissing him like I’m trying to drown in him. His tongue slides against mine, mirroring the way his fingers curl against my inner walls, and he makes sure I’ve ridden out the last aftershocks of my climax before he finally stops.
He slips his fingers out of me and takes the shower head from my slackening grip, hanging it back up on the metal arm that protrudes from the wall. Then he turns me to face him, cupping my jaw as he tilts my head up. He kisses me as the water pours down on us, and I lean against him, wrapping my arms around his broad torso.
“Do you feel better?” he asks, resting his forehead against mine.
I can hear the note of concern in his voice, and it touches something deep inside me. He saw a part of me tonight that I haven’t shared with many people in the entire world, and instead of looking down on me, he took care of me. He made sure I don’t feel alone.
“Much better.”
I give him a little smile, my fingers sliding through the wet hair at the nape of his neck. Our faces are so close together that I can see the flecks of cobalt in his dark blue eyes, and he holds my gaze as if trying to read my thoughts.
After a long moment, he draws back, reaching behind him to turn off the water. Wrapping his arms around me, he carries me out of the shower and sets me down on the fluffy bath mat.
His fingers slide a lock of damp hair away from my face, something soft passing through his expression.
“Arms up,” he instructs.
I do as he says, and he starts to dry me off methodically, his touch gentle as he rubs the fluffy towel over my skin. He starts with my arms and shoulders, then does my chest, ribs, and back, massaging my breasts through the soft fabric of the towel.
He works his way lower, dropping to his knees on the bath mat, and I gaze down at him, a little overwhelmed by the sight of him like this. There’s something almost reverent about the way he touches me, and it spreads heat through my body even as it does dangerous things to my heart.
“Open.” Cole taps one of my ankles, and I spread my legs a little wider, giving him access as he slides the towel up one leg and then the other.
He brushes the towel between my legs, and I suck in a breath as my clit throbs.
A slow smile spreads across Cole’s face. He finishes with the towel and then tosses it aside, not seeming to care at all that he never got around to drying himself. Instead, he grabs my hips with his large hands, then leans closer and drags his tongue up my slit.
“Can never resist you,” he groans, circling my clit when he reaches the top. “You taste like heaven.”
I grin. No man has ever said anything like that to me before, but I love that Cole likes how I taste. He’s almost fiendish in the way he seems to enjoy eating me out, which makes it easy to lose myself in how fucking good it feels. I never have to worry if it’s taking too long for me to come or if he’s getting bored, because I’m pretty sure he’d happily spend all night between my legs.
As if to prove my unspoken thoughts true, Cole starts to devour me in earnest, gripping my hips harder as he delves his tongue inside me and sucks on my clit.
With the buzz of my first orgasm still echoing through my body, it doesn’t take long for him to push me to the edge again, and before I know it, I’m falling over the cliff.
“Fuck, Cole!”
My breathy cry is muffled as I bite my lip. My hands go to the top of his head, fingers clenching around the wet strands of his hair as I come on his face, shuddering and gasping.
Before the last aftershock has worked its way through me, Cole is on his feet again. He lifts me as if I’m lighter than a feather, wrapping my legs around his waist as my arms automatically go around his neck.
My clit presses against the hard muscles of his abs in this position, and I drop my head and whimper against his neck as another burst of pleasure shoots through me.
“Goddamn, I can feel how wet you are,” he mutters roughly. “You’re making a mess all over me.”
I nod, because I know it’s true. My arousal is smearing over his skin as I grind against him, and I don’t stop. I roll my hips, pressing kisses to his neck as he carries me to the bed. When we reach it, he lays me down and crawls up over me, settling himself between my thighs.
“Need to be inside you,” he murmurs, water droplets clinging to his hair as he gazes down at me, his face only inches away.
“Yes,” I breathe, pulling him down into a kiss.
His lips are hungry against mine as he reaches out to the side blindly, fumbling in the drawer in my nightstand for a condom. I hear the door slide shut as the head of Cole’s cock nudges at my entrance, and suddenly, I want nothing more than for him to press inside just like this.
“Wait,” I gasp, breaking the kiss.
Cole’s brows draw together. He’s got the condom in one hand, the other braced on the mattress by my head. “What? What do you need, angel?”
My pulse speeds up as my tongue darts out to trace my lips, tasting him on my skin.
“I—I’m on birth control,” I say quietly. “The pill. I’m clean, and I’m not sleeping with anyone else. So if you aren’t either, then we don’t have to…”
My voice trails off. I feel unaccountably nervous as silence fills the space between us. We laid down the ground rules when we first started sleeping together, making sure it wouldn’t interfere with my work taking care of Archie, but we never discussed whether the arrangement would be exclusive or not.
Maybe it shouldn’t bother me either way, since I have no real claim on Cole’s heart or anything. Since this isn’t a real relationship. But the thought of him with another woman makes something painful twist in my chest.
“Never mind.” I shake my head and glance away, cursing myself inwardly for even bringing this up. “We can just—”
“Riley.”
Cole’s voice is low and full of gravel, and something in his tone makes my gaze snap back to meet his.
“I’m not sleeping with anyone else.” He drops the condom on the bedspread, an expression I can’t quite identify crossing over his features as he trails his fingertips lightly along the side of my face. “Why would I want anyone else when I have you?”
I swallow hard, fighting to tame the rush of butterflies that take off in my stomach. It would be so easy—terrifyingly easy—to let myself read too much into those words, so instead, I just focus on what I need most right now.
Him.
“I want to feel you bare,” I whisper. “Nothing between us.”
He lets out a groan that seems to come from somewhere deep inside him, resting his forehead against mine for a moment before he draws back. Then he shakes his head, a smile playing at the edges of his lips.
“I hope you know what you’re asking for, angel. Do you know how long it’s been since I’ve fucked a woman without a condom? I can barely hold back with you already. With nothing between us, I’ll be lucky if I last a minute.”
I grin, tilting my hips so that his cock slips inside me just half an inch and relishing the way his body tenses in response. “I don’t care how long it lasts. I just want to feel you come inside me. I want to feel all of it.”
He nips at my bottom lip, pressing his hips forward so that he slides in another inch. “Yeah? You want me to make a mess of that sweet little pussy?”
“Yes.” The word is a breathy whimper as I wrap my legs around his waist, lifting my hips to meet his next shallow thrust. “Please.”
Cole’s nostrils flare with a harsh exhale, and I don’t know if it’s the plea in my voice or the feel of me clenching around him, but something in him seems to snap. His hips drive forward, burying his cock to the hilt so fast that I cry out softly at the sudden feeling of fullness.
It’s perfect.
It’s everything.
“Cole!” I gasp, my nails digging into his shoulders as I cling to him. I can’t seem to make myself form any more words than that, but he nods as if I said something bigger than just his name.
“I know,” he grits out. “Fuck, Riley.”
His lips find mine again, his tongue plunging into my mouth like he’s trying to lay claim to it as he draws almost all the way out and then slides in again. I shudder beneath him, overwhelmed by how good it feels, how different, with no barrier between us.
I can tell that despite Cole’s warning, he wants to make it last. His strokes are measured and long, drawing out almost completely each time and then slamming back in so hard that the bed rocks beneath us. His breathing is ragged, just like mine, and he reaches down to hook one of my legs under the knee, pressing it up toward my chest to make the angle even deeper and more intense.
My skin is damp, residual heat from the shower and the exertion of sex making a light sheen of sweat cover my body. Cole’s hair is still a bit wet, messy and unkempt in a way that I love, and I run my fingers through it as he leans down and kisses me again.
“You feel so fucking good,” he rasps as our kiss breaks. “Never felt anything as good as this. You’re so fucking tight. So wet for me. Gonna make you even wetter. Gonna fill your pussy up.”
He sounds almost drunk with arousal, and I nod. “Please. Please. Please.”
It’s almost a chant, like I’ve been reduced to single-syllable words only. My head tips back, my eyelids starting to flutter closed, but Cole shakes his head.
“Eyes on me,” he demands. “Look at me. Let me see you.”
He wraps his hand around my throat just under my jaw as he speaks, and I suck in a breath. It’s a loose grip, not tight enough to cut off my air, but the feel of him gripping my throat like this makes my clit throb. I feel owned by him, seen by him, like there’s not a single part of me that I could hide in this moment.
I can’t hide the desire in my eyes, or the emotions churning just below the surface.
I can’t hide the wild racing of my pulse as it throbs against his palm.
I can’t hide the gush of wetness that soaks his cock and slips down my thighs.
“Cole,” I whisper again, my mouth falling open a little. “I can’t—I’m so close. I need—”
“I know.”
He repeats the same words he said earlier, his gaze locked with mine. I’ve been naked since we got in the shower, but now I feel truly stripped bare. I feel like I’ve been reduced to my most basic state, the most pure part of myself, where nothing else exists but me and Cole.
Nothing outside this little bubble matters. Not the age difference between us, not the class difference, not all the reasons we shouldn’t work.
Right here, right now, it’s just the two of us, and the connection that burns so strongly between us that it almost scares me.
“Come for me,” Cole grunts, his hips slapping against mine as he fucks me harder. “Come with me.”
I can’t even speak at all anymore. I just nod as much as possible with his hand still gripping my throat. He throws his head back, the muscles of his neck straining as he buries himself inside me, and I sob out a sound of pleasure at the feel of his cum flooding my body.
“So good,” he grunts, fucking me through my climax as his cock swells and jerks. “So. Fucking. Good.”
He finally drives in one more time and goes still, releasing his hold on my leg and my throat. He collapses on top of me for a moment, then wraps his arms around me and rolls us over so that I’m on top of him. My head rests against his shoulder, and I can feel the heavy pounding of his heart against mine.
“That’s it. I’m throwing away every condom in this house,” he murmurs after a moment, a low laugh rumbling in his chest as his hands strokes idly over my hair. “Now that I know how incredible it feels to fuck you raw, there’s no way I’ll ever be able to go back.”
I grin, pressing a kiss to the base of his throat. “I like the sound of that.”
“Good. Because you’ve just created a fiend.”
I smile to myself, enjoying the way this man who seems to thrive on having tight control over every aspect of his life seems to let go of it around me. I like this side of him—the side that showers with me and banters with me and fucks me without a condom not because it’s part of a plan but just because he wants to.
“It’s funny,” I whisper, my eyelids drooping shut as I relax against him.
“What is?”
“Tonight started out being one of the worst I’d had in a long time, and it ended up being one of the best.”
The hand on my hair freezes for a moment, then resumes its steady motions.
“I’m glad I could do that for you, angel,” Cole murmurs quietly.