Chapter 21
Jordan
Stretching, I yawned and opened my eyes. The unfamiliar wall staring back at me brought back everything that’d happened last night. It made me aware of the heavy arm that was flung over my hips, and the furnace of muscle that was spooned up behind me.
I bit the insides of my lips, eyes closing again as I ran through everything I’d done and said last night. There was no fog of forgetfulness to help tame some of the words I’d used while I’d begged Ricochet to make me orgasm.
“Quit it.”
Jumping as his deep voice pierced the silence around us, I twisted and shot him a quick look. His hair was tousled and the heat in his eyes told me in no uncertain terms that he was ready for round two of what we did last night. Though for him it would still be round one.
“Quit what?”
“If you worry any more you’re going to break something.” There was amusement in his voice.
With a huff, I laid back down. “I’m so sorry.”
“For what?”
“For jerking you around like that. It wasn’t fair to ask you to wait and then…that.”
“I didn’t mind. Just in case you don’t remember, we didn’t have sex.”
Just oral. And it was the most amazing thing I’d ever felt. I’d never come so hard, or so many times before. And I’d begged him to fuck me. To get me off. “I know. And I’m not upset.” I’d been wondering what it would be like to be with him for a while now.
He shifted, rolling me until he was over top me again. It reminded me of our positions last night and heat swept through me. I’d like to claim it was only embarrassment, but my core throbbed to life between my thighs as he stared down at me.
“I agreed to give you time to get to know me, Jordan, but I’ve also told you that you’re mine. I mean that. The minute you give me the go ahead, when you’re sober, I’m going to fuck you until you’re writhing beneath me and coming all over my dick.”
My jaw dropped open. I’d never really heard anyone speak this way.
It was…sexy, for some reason, but a little overwhelming.
Mostly because now I knew he would keep that promise.
If the man could make my whole body combust like he had with just his mouth and fingers, I could only imagine what he’d do when he had free rein.
His eyes narrowed on my face. “You lived with Dan the Douche,” I laughed as he took up my nickname for my ex, “I assume that means you aren’t a virgin.”
“Oh! No, I’m not.” Now the blush was pure embarrassment. “But, I haven’t…um…”
“He’s the only man you’ve had sex with?” His eyes were a blazing blue.
I wasn’t sure if he was angry, or feeling possessive, or what the intense emotions were that were sparking there in his gaze. All I could do was nod.
“Good. And I’ll be the last man you’ll be with,” he declared. “That’s why I’m in no hurry. I’m not going anywhere, Sunshine.”
My hands went to his chest and I had to fight the urge to squeeze the bare muscle.
My brain stuttered as I realized he’d taken off everything but his boxer briefs sometime last night.
My eyes roved over tanned skin. He had ink from his shoulders down to his forearms and all down the left side of his ribs.
There was a set of dog tags inked there at the top of his ribs.
In the middle of his chest was a huge snake.
My fingers trailed over the dog tag tattoo.
His eyes fluttered closed, and he caught my wrist, but didn’t pull my hand away. He pressed my palm over the tattoo. “You aren’t the only one with a painful past,” he croaked out, voice oozing sadness. “I have a lot I need to tell you, as well.”
“I want to hear it, but Ricochet… I don’t know about all this,” I admitted. “It’s scary that you just somehow seem to know that you want to be with me.”
“You’re telling me you don’t feel the connection between us?”
Sighing, I shook my head. “No. I mean, yes, I feel the connection. Who could miss it? But that’s my point.
That isn’t enough for us to jump blindly into something together.
We need to make sure we’re compatible. That we want the same things.
We have very…different lifestyles. I still don’t know much about you, or the way you live. ”
“Are we that different?” He arched a brow. “I think I remember Gwen saying something about you spending time with your family every Sunday.”
“I do,” I hedged, unsure of where he was going with that.
“We spend time together as much as possible, too. My family just happens to be a bit larger. More extended. And not blood related.” He gave me a coaxing grin.
I couldn’t help but mirror his smile. “True. But we don’t throw wild parties that last until who knows when.”
“You might if you had multiple single brothers,” he countered.
Getting back on track, I pointed out, “We still don’t really know anything about each other.”
“Then we’ll start today. Now.”
His big, warm body rolled off me so quickly, I shivered as he let the morning air dance over my exposed skin. Gasping, I snatched the blankets up to my chin. How hadn’t I realized I was naked?
His laughter was low and bounced around the room. “I saw it all last night. Don’t hide from me. You’re fucking gorgeous.” His eyes swept over the blanket as though he could see through it.
“That was then, this is now,” I told him.
“Could you please hand me my clothes?” I watched as he bent at the waist. He’d only managed to tug his jeans on.
My mouth all but watered as I finally got a good look at him shirtless, up close and personal.
“Could you turn?” My words were shy, but I couldn’t hold them in.
His head snapped up as he picked up my panties.
He straightened up and turned. His entire back was covered in black ink, too.
I’d never seen so many tattoos on a guy before, but I was sure his brothers had just as many.
They seemed to be a way for these guys to express themselves.
I saw a military tattoo that said US Navy.
It covered his right shoulder. One image bled into another and my eyes roved over them all.
“They’re beautiful,” I breathed. “The one on your side-”
“Not now,” he said, interrupting me. “I’ll tell you about it, but not here. Not now.” He moved forward and grabbed my jeans and top, then handed them all to me.
I found my bra tangled in the sheets, so I started dressing while he finished getting his own clothes from a dresser.
He motioned for me to follow him into the bathroom and handed me a new toothbrush.
It was all so normal as we stood, side by side, brushing our teeth.
I almost smiled at how easy it was. If only I wasn’t who I was, then maybe it could be this simple.
But my trust had been broken and I didn’t give it out freely anymore.
Doing so ensured that those I loved would be hurt.
I couldn’t allow that to happen. Then there was the matter of protecting my own heart.
We headed downstairs, and even though it was ten o’clock in the morning we were being quiet. I’d been drunk, and tired enough, that the pounding music from last night hadn’t kept me awake, but Ricochet had mentioned it’d been a late one for his brothers.
I’d just stepped off the last stair when Ricochet cursed. Peering around him, I gasped and then tried to smother my laughter. My hands were pressed tightly to my lips and still the giggles spilled around my fingers.
One of his brothers was face down on the bar, snoring so loudly I was sure it could be heard outside.
That wasn’t the funny part. He was bare ass naked.
And that bare ass was sporting a tattoo on his left butt cheek.
It was a bright red heart with something written in the middle.
I couldn’t read it from here and I had a feeling that Ricochet wouldn’t appreciate me getting a closer look.
“Butcher!” he called out, casting me a smirk as I continued to laugh. He walked over and shook the man’s shoulder. A chorus of snorts and grunts escaped from his mouth.
“Yeah, I know,” Ricochet said as if the sounds had been some sort of words. “But you’re fucking rubbing your cock all over our bar top. Go to bed.”
More grunts.
“I don’t give a shit. Wait… What?” He leaned over the bar and looked down, then sighed loudly. “Goddamn it. We’re going to have to throw all that out, Toxic. It’s going to take a power washer to clean this,” he said, as though to himself more than anything.
Creeping closer forward, I peered over the bar and bit the insides of my lips.
These guys were something else, and it looked like they’d had more than their fair share of fun last night.
Toxic was lying on his back, as naked as Butcher, with three women curled around him on the tiled floor.
There were various liquids on the floor that I didn’t want to examine too closely, but it looked like most of it was coming from the bottles of liquor that were spread around them.
Some were upended, others on their sides, while more than a few were lying in glass shards in the corner.
What in the world had they done last night?
Toxic was older than we were, I’d guess somewhere in his late thirties, but he was in impressive shape.
Butcher was a bit younger, but just as fit, if his tight ass and back muscles were anything to go off of.
Thankfully, one of Toxic’s naked women had her thigh thrown over his hips, hiding his dick.
Not that it didn’t give me an entirely too intimate look at her parts.
I hadn’t been prepared to see so much nakedness this early in the morning.
“I swear to Christ if you don’t stop ogling my brothers I’m going to have to kill them, Sunshine,” Ricochet growled. He was busy hauling Butcher down off the bar.
Taking a step back, I cleared my throat. “I wasn’t. I just wanted to see what was going on.”
He gave me an unamused look as he tried to deal with the man leaning on him. He scowled at me when my jaw dropped and my eyes widened. “Out!”