SWNOVELS The Billionaire’s Big Bold Wonder: An Age Gap BBW Romance: Chapter 1
‘You have an admirer.’
I glance up from my notebook to see Guy Porter standing beside my booth with one hip cocked to the side. A glass dangles from his hand, his red polish dramatic against the white and brown alcohol.
‘One White Russian,’ he says with a grin, depositing the drink in front of me. ‘From the fine specimen of a man at the end of the bar.’ Guy nods subtly in his direction. ‘He’s been watching you all night. Not that you’ve noticed because you’ve been over here studying’—he flips closed the front of my book to read the title—’Corporate Social Responsibility in the Global Economy. Jesus, girl. On a Friday night?’
‘Bartenders aren’t supposed to judge,’ I mutter, locking eyes with the man who sent the White Russian. As soon as I do, my stomach flutters. He’s gorgeous. His lips kick up into a lazy grin when he sees me looking at him. Even from across the crowded bar, I feel his gaze heat with interest. I quickly avert my gaze, a blush climbing up my cheeks.
‘Pfft, I don’t know who sold you that bullshit,’ Guy says, giving me a look that says I’m crazy if I expect him to believe that. ‘As your bartender, it’s my God-given responsibility to judge your crazy ass. Especially when a man that fine has been eyeing you all night, and you haven’t noticed.’
‘Who is he?’
‘Uh, a one-way ticket to pound town?’
‘Guy!’ I hiss, praying the man in question can’t hear him across the bar. Between the loud country music and the two dozen conversations happening simultaneously, I think it’s loud enough to get me off the hook.
Guy laughs, completely unrepentant. He usually is. My favorite bartender is shameless. Unlike me, he has no problem hopping into and out of bed with whoever catches his eye. I’m not built the same. Casual sex isn’t for me. Actually, no sex is for me. Or at least it never has been. I’m a twenty-one-year-old virgin…probably the last left in Tennessee.
I spend my days in class, and my nights and weekends are split between work and studying. It doesn’t leave much time for dating. I’ve never met anyone who made me want to change that. Most men my age are like Guy—enjoying their youth and carving notches in their bedposts. I’m a hopeless romantic at heart. Though I’ll never admit it, I want the fairytale.
‘I’m just saying live a little, Piper,’ Guy says, nudging the drink toward me. ‘You’re allowed to take one night off. Your perfect GPA won’t come crashing down if you flirt a little.’
He’s probably right. But I’ve been a size eighteen since I was fourteen. While most girls were developing makeup skills and an affinity for flirting, I developed thick skin and a sassy attitude. It’s a defense mechanism that works extremely well against stupid teenage boys. They can dish it out. They’re not so good at taking it.
‘Guess you’re going to find out,’ Guy sing-sings, waving at me coquettishly as he sashays away. ‘He’s heading in this direction.’
Crap.
I jerk my head up …only to realize I’ve been set up. The gorgeous mystery man isn’t headed my way. He’s already three feet from my booth, closing the remaining distance rapidly. And he definitely isn’t a twenty-something sowing wild oats. This man is in his late thirties, at least.
Up close, he’s even more beautiful than he was from a distance. His dark hair is a little unruly on top but shorter on the sides, his blue eyes piercing. His scruffy jaw and full lips are captivating. He’s tall and broad, built like a linebacker. He isn’t ripped, though. He’s just…brawny. As if his bulk comes from manual labor more than time spent in the gym. He doesn’t look like a laborer, though. His suit is way too expensive for that.
‘The bartender told me the only way I’d get you to accept a drink was if it came with caffeine,’ he says, stopping beside my booth, ‘so I had him use cold brew instead of coffee liqueur. He took it easy on the vodka too.’
‘Good choice,’ I say, feeling like my heart might beat out of my chest. He sounds even better than he looks, which shouldn’t be possible. But his voice is like aged whiskey, somehow rough and smooth at the same time. It hits deep in my belly, striking chords that send pleasurable chills throughout my entire system. ‘I can’t drink.’ My cheeks heat. ‘I mean, I can drink. I do drink.’ I huff. This isn’t going well. ‘I drink sometimes, but I have an unhealthy obsession with coffee.’
His lips tip up into that lazy grin again, his eyes lighting up.
‘I’m studying,’ I say, flinging my hand out to indicate my books, nearly knocking over the drink in the process. Oh, good grief. I grab it before it manages to spill all over my notebook.
‘I see that,’ he drawls. ‘What are you studying, pretty baby?’
‘Business. Well, economics at the moment, but my major is business,’ I explain. I’m killing Guy. I can’t even speak coherent sentences to this man. How does he expect me to flirt with him?
‘You’re in luck.’
‘Oh, really?’
‘Mmhmm.’
‘And why is that?’
He leans forward like he’s telling me a secret, so close his subtle, spicy scent tickles my senses. Another pleasurable chill dances through my system. ‘I happen to be in business,’ he says, his voice pitched low. ‘One of the best in the state.’
‘Bullshit is a business now?’ I whisper back, fighting the urge to shiver as his breath washes across my cheek.
He chuckles. ‘Bullshit is the only business, pretty baby.’
He’s not entirely wrong about that. ‘You any good at it?’
‘Business or bullshit?’ he asks, teasing me.
‘Business.’ I smile, instantly deciding I like him. Most businessmen take themselves too seriously. This one isn’t averse to poking fun at himself.
‘Damn good,’ he says. He isn’t bragging, just being honest, I think.
‘Oh, really?’
‘Scout’s Honor.’ He holds up three fingers in a solemn salute.
‘What company do you work for?’
‘I’ll tell you…for a price.’
I pick up my glass and take a sip, trying to give myself a moment to think. The drink is perfect, not that I’m surprised. Guy is an excellent bartender.
I look over the handsome stranger, curious what his price is. He doesn’t strike me as harmless—far from it, actually. But nothing about him screams creep either. He’s calm and collected, with an air of authority about him, as if he’s used to calling the shots. I want to know more about him.
‘What’s your price?’ I finally ask, proud when my voice doesn’t shake.
‘An evening seated across from you,’ he says, those blue eyes boring into mine. It should sound like a cheesy line, but coming from his lips, there is no bullshit in it. It’s forthright, honest.
‘What company?’ I ask.
‘I work for Blake Industries.’
Whoa. If he works for Blake Industries, he wasn’t bullshitting me when he said he was damn good. They’re one of the biggest farm supply companies in the United States, manufacturing and supplying everything from tractors to grain silos to animal feed. Ever since Dorian Blake moved their headquarters to Tennessee six months ago, they’ve been splashed across the business page of every newspaper in the state. Their executive team is unmatched.
This man could probably teach me things I’d never learn sitting in a classroom. I don’t want him to stay because of what I could learn from him, though. I want him to stay because, for the first time all night, I’m not thinking about the textbooks sprawled across my table or stressing about any of the things usually battling for my attention.
‘And if I want to know more than just the name of your company?’ I ask, certain he probably hears my heart beating.
‘That’ll cost you too, pretty baby.’
‘W-what will it cost me?’
‘Nothing you don’t want to give me,’ he murmurs.
‘Like what?’ I ask, tilting my head back to stare up at him.
‘Your name.’
‘Piper.’
‘Piper,’ he growls, leaning in closer. His eyes roam across my face like he’s eating up the sight of me. ‘Sweet little Piper.’
‘What’s your name?’
‘Cortez.’
Of course he has a sexy name too.
‘How old are you?’
‘Thirty-seven.’
‘Do you come here often?’
‘You haven’t paid the price for that answer yet, sweet Piper.’ He leans closer, one arm on the back of the booth behind my head.
‘Oh.’ I swallow hard, my entire body surging with heat. ‘What’s the price?’
‘An answer of my own,’ he says simply. ‘Do you belong to anyone, pretty baby?’
I shake my head.
It might be my imagination, but I think he growls thank God beneath his breath.
‘I’ve never been here before tonight,’ he says. ‘But that’s not really what you’re asking me, is it?’
‘I…’
‘What you really want to know is if I spend a lot of time in bars hitting on beautiful women,’ he murmurs, his lips inches from mine. ‘You’re dying to ask me if this is a habit or if you’re different, aren’t you?’
I am dying to ask that, but it seems like a rude question. It also seems like one I’m not so sure I’m prepared to have answered. If this is a habit, well, I’m pretty sure that’s going to burst my bubble. And if this isn’t a habit, well, that’s going to lead to more questions. Do I want to know those answers?
Yes, a little voice whispers.
‘This isn’t a habit,’ he says as if reading my mind. ‘A new business partner dragged me out here for a drink. I don’t bar hop or do casual. I’m not married or in a relationship either. But I couldn’t keep my eyes off you. Everyone in this bar is here for one reason, but not you. Why are you here?’
‘The noise,’ I blurt, my eyes locked on his lips and the way they shape every word he speaks. ‘The library puts me to sleep, so I always study where there’s noise.’
‘Why?’
‘I have six little brothers and sisters.’
‘Jesus,’ he whispers. ‘And I thought my two were a pain in the ass.’
I smile at that. ‘I wouldn’t trade mine for anything, but when you grow up surrounded by noise, silence is unnatural,’ I say quietly. ‘As soon as it gets too quiet, I pass out.’
‘That would make studying hard.’
‘So hard.’
The deep baritone of his chuckle rolls over me. ‘So you study in bars.’
‘Sometimes.’ I shrug. ‘Anywhere with noise, really.’
‘And you only drink alcohol sometimes. What else do you do, sweet Piper?’
‘I…’ I start to answer him, truly, I do. But his hand touches the back of my neck, and I realize I don’t want to talk at all. I want this man to kiss me. Now. Something about him…calls to me. I can’t explain it. All I know is the longer I go without feeling his lips on mine, the more I need to feel them. It’s almost a compulsion at this point. ‘Cortez? Can you stop talking and kiss me now?’ I plead, beyond caring if it’s too forward or fast.
‘Oh, fuck yeah,’ he growls, dipping his head. His lips land against mine, his kiss soft at first, as if he’s giving me time to change my mind or back away. I don’t want to change my mind, though. I want this man to kiss me like he can’t stop himself.
I tip my head back further, greedy for more.
Cortez takes the hint. A soft growl rumbles from his chest, his tongue flicking against my bottom lip. I gasp, parting my lips. He swoops then, licking inside my mouth. He tastes like beer and mint, an unusual—but not unpleasant—combination. Reality spirals away, the bar disappearing between one inhalation and the next.
His kiss is masterful, reducing me to ash in moments. I gasp as desire surges through me in a powerful wave unlike anything I’ve ever felt before now. It’s so strong, it’s almost frightening, so potent, it’s as if it’s alive. Every move he makes only makes me ache for more. His tongue against mine makes my clit throb. His hands in my hair turn my nipples to hard, painful points. My body trembles at the sound of his raspy growl.
‘Leave with me,’ he whispers, placing little pecks against my lips. ‘We don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do, but I want you all to myself for the night, pretty Piper.’
For the first time in my life, I throw caution to the wind.
‘Yes,’ I whisper.
Cortez takes me to his room in downtown Nashville, not even five minutes from the bar. The hotel is situated near the Legislative Plaza, overlooking the State Capitol. His suite is gorgeous, but I don’t see much of it. As soon as we cross the threshold, I drop my bag and launch myself at him.
He catches me, boosting me up into his arms.
I land with my back against the door, my legs wrapped around his waist.
‘Fuck,’ he growls, attacking my mouth with a scorching kiss. ‘You’re an eager little thing, aren’t you?’
‘Yes,’ I sob. He couldn’t keep his hands off me on the short drive over. The elevator ride up to his room nearly did me in. I’m a mess of competing desires and aching need, unsure where to begin or what I want most. He said we didn’t have to do anything I don’t want to do, but I think I’d hand him my soul to get him naked at this point.
I don’t even care what that says about me.
‘Poor baby,’ he croons. ‘Are you hurting for me?’
‘So bad,’ I cry, writhing against the door. I delve my fingers into his hair, pulling the short strands. ‘God, Cortez. I hurt everywhere.’
‘Yeah?’ He plants his hands on my ass, using them to grind me against his massive erection. ‘You want me to take care of you, Piper?’
‘Yes,’ I moan. ‘Please.’
He kisses me again, peeling me off the door. We stumble through the sitting room and into the bedroom suite. Downtown Nashville glitters through the windows, the city’s lights reflecting like stars in the glass. I barely have time to notice it before he’s laying me out in the middle of the big bed. I sink into it like I’m sinking into a cloud.
He follows me down, kissing me again and again. I get lost in his full lips and rich taste. He’s beer and mint and spice, everything strong and right in the world. I could get addicted to him and his kisses. Maybe I already am.
He kisses me like he’s starving for me, but he takes his time undressing me, slowly unveiling each inch of skin. It’s like I’m a gift he’s unwrapping, one he’s savoring. He touches me everywhere, his lips and hands trailing over my body until I feel drugged with pleasure, completely overwhelmed by him.
His eyes are on fire; his cheeks flushed with desire.
I groan low in my throat when he palms my breasts through my bra. He finds a hard nipple and pinches. My eyes fall closed on a quiet moan, my back arching from the bed.
‘You’re so fucking beautiful,’ he says, his voice a dark rasp of sound.
He makes me feel beautiful. I’m not curvy in all the right places like a lot of women. I don’t have an hourglass figure. I have boobs, sure. But I’m pear-shaped, carrying most of my weight in my belly and hips. He seems to love it, though.
‘Oh,’ I moan, arching again when he rolls my nipple between his fingers. I never knew that could feel so good. Until tonight, I never knew a lot of things. Like how amazing it feels to have his rough hands glide down my sides or how incredible he sounds when he’s panting in my ear. Or how sexy it is when he growls my name.
Dipping his head, he presses his mouth to my throat, planting kisses all over the side of it as he slides my bra down one arm and then the other. I tilt my head to the side, granting him access to the peaks and valleys of my collarbones. He nips me there, marking my skin.
‘Fuck,’ he groans. ‘You look good wearing my marks, Piper.’
‘Show me.’
He unhooks my bra and peels it from my body, tossing it off the side of the bed. As soon as it’s gone, he dips his head, pulling my nipple into his mouth. He sucks and bites until I’m panting beneath him, crying out in ecstasy and unable to stay still. A sharper bite sends a lightning bolt through me, striking hot against my clit.
‘Look,’ he says, placing his hand behind my head to lift it.
A dark red spot marks my breast beside my nipple. It’s no bigger than a quarter but seeing it there where no one has ever touched me, let alone kissed me, is oddly erotic. I like it, perhaps more than I should.
‘You look fucking perfect,’ he says, settling his hands around my waist and pulling me down the bed. ‘Like you belong to me.’
My stomach flutters. I like the sound of that.
He kisses a trail down my stomach, hooking his hands into the sides of my panties.
I lift my hips, eager for him to get them off. Eager for whatever he’s going to do next. Maybe I should feel shy and timid, but I don’t. With him, I feel safe. Powerful. Confident. He looks at me like I’m a queen, and I feel like one.
‘Are you sure?’ he asks.
I nod without hesitation.
He slips my lacy panties down my legs and then flings them away.
‘Jesus,’ he breathes, his eyes locked on my center. ‘Look at you, pretty baby. So fucking sweet and pink.’
I blush, fighting against the instinctive urge to squeeze my legs closed. No one has ever looked at me down there…but I can tell by his face that he likes what he sees. His piercing blue eyes blaze with desire, his pupils dilated. He licks his lips, staring like he can’t look away.
‘Has anyone ever eaten your cunt before, Piper?’
‘No,’ I whisper. ‘I’ve never…’
His gaze bounces to mine. ‘No one has ever touched you?’
I shake my head, my blush deepening. For a minute, I worry he’s going to change his mind.
‘Oh, pretty baby,’ he groans, quickly putting that worry to rest. ‘You saved this pretty little thing for me?’
I nod, unable to speak around the lump in my throat.
‘Fuck,’ he growls, leaning down to kiss me. His tongue sweeps inside to steal my breath. One hand trails down my body, his rough fingertips gliding across my skin almost as if he’s trying to memorize every inch of me.
My legs fall open as he crawls between them. He groans into my mouth, his hand against my inner thigh. I know he can feel how wet I am. My thighs are slippery with my juices. I’m not sure if it’s normal to be this wet, but judging by the way his kiss deepens, I don’t think he has any complaints.
His thumb ghosts across my slit, spreading me open.
I cry out into his mouth, jerking upward.
‘I’ve got you, sweet little Piper,’ he croons into my mouth. ‘Relax.’
That’s easy for him to say. He’s not on the verge of an orgasm already. But I am.
The feeling only grows when he rubs his thumb against my swollen clit, playing with me.
‘Please,’ I whisper, rocking against his hand.
‘Please, what? What do you need, pretty baby?’
‘I need you inside me.’
‘Oh, I will be,’ he promises, pressing his thumb against my opening. He pushes it inside me, making me cry out in bliss. ‘I’m going to fuck this little thing until we’re both satisfied. But not until I eat you first. I don’t want to hurt you.’
‘Yes, do that,’ I sob, not above begging. Whatever it takes.
He pumps his thumb in and out of me, slowly torturing me. It feels fantastic but isn’t nearly enough to satisfy me. It’s just enough to make me want—need—more. I ache for it. So badly. God, I didn’t know it was possible to need sex like this.
He kisses me again and then prowls down my body, exploring me with his mouth. By the time he’s between my legs, I’m a whimpering, sobbing, sweating mess. He slides between my legs, lifting me toward his mouth.
His breath washes across my center, pulling a groan from me. He growls at the same time, sounding for all the world like a starving lion guarding his dinner. It’s the sexiest sound I’ve ever heard. It ignites forest fires in my system, sending smoke billowing through my veins.
His hot breath touches my center, and reality spirals away.
The first swipe of his tongue sends me freewheeling into another plane of existence.
‘Goddamn,’ he growls, pulling me closer, holding me tighter. ‘This sweet, juicy little cunt…’ He grunts and licks me again. ‘Tastes like heaven, Piper.’ He hums against my center and presses the flat of his tongue against my clit before jiggling it quickly back and forth.
‘Oh my god,’ I cry out, burying my hands in his hair to hold him in place.
‘Grind your cunt against me,’ he demands. ‘Fuck my face, Piper.’
I have no idea how to do that, but I try anyway. I rock my hips into his mouth, using my grip on his hair for leverage. He attacks me with his tongue, grinding it against my clit, flicking it against my opening. I cry out again and again, delirious with the pleasure of it, with the joy of it. I don’t know if it’s always like this or if it’s just him, but holy crap. He’s good at this. Really good.
My body trembles, my muscles locking tight as an orgasm builds, growing fast.
‘Don’t stop,’ I cry. ‘Please, don’t stop!’
Cortez snarls against my center, pulling me even closer. He redoubles his efforts, lashing me with his tongue. It runs in circles around my clit, striking again and again. I cry out in ecstasy and then in shock when I feel him pry my cheeks apart and press his tongue right there.
He eats that hole too, snarling like he can’t get enough of it…like he loves it. And oh my god, so do I. I rock my hips against his face, sobbing his name.
My orgasm hits like a bomb blast, lifting my body from the bed as wave after wave of intense pleasure tears through me. He grabs me, holding me down to keep me still as I writhe and scream and moan. He doesn’t let me go. He doesn’t stop eating me either. He keeps on, fucking me with his tongue until I’m thrashing beneath him and wailing his name into the room, so sensitive I feel every lick everywhere.
‘Jesus, pretty baby,’ he growls, gently lowering me back to the bed. He places a kiss on my stomach and then rises. I watch through a haze as he undresses. His body is incredible. He’s thick and broad everywhere. I can imagine him loading equipment at one of the warehouses or working on one of the farms his company owns. He has the build for it. He’s sturdy, like a strong oak tree.
‘You’re beautiful,’ I whisper when he catches me staring at him.
‘Not nearly as beautiful as you,’ he says, crawling back onto the bed with me. He covers my body with his, his mouth descending on mine.
I taste myself on his lips and moan.
‘Are you sure?’ he asks, pulling back to search my face. Those piercing blue eyes see right through me; I know they do. Does he see how ungodly attracted I am to him? How much I want this? Does he know how connected I feel to him right now?
‘Positive,’ I whisper.
‘I’ll be gentle,’ he promises, smoothing the hair back out of my face.
I don’t doubt him, but my stomach quivers anyway. I’ve heard horror stories about how painful the first time can be for women. I’m a little afraid that’s what it’ll be like for me. I saw his cock. He is not small.
He drags me down the bed, spreading me out exactly where he wants me, and hooks my leg over his hip. His erection lands against my center. He rocks his hips, sliding through my folds.
‘Fuck, look how good that looks,’ he growls, his eyes locked on the sight.
I lift my head, moaning when I see his erection sliding through my folds, coated in my juices. He’s right. It’s hot as hell.
‘I’m going to breed you tonight, Piper,’ he says, meeting my gaze. ‘When you move tomorrow, you’ll feel me dripping between your legs and think of me claiming your womb, pretty baby.’
‘Cortez,’ I moan, my core clenching.
‘I’m fucking my kid into you, sweet little Piper. When I claim that cherry, I’m claiming that womb too.’
‘Cortez,’ I moan again.
‘Stop me now if you don’t want it, pretty baby,’ he says, and I know if I say no, he’ll get a condom. He won’t force me to do anything I don’t want to do. But I don’t say no. I don’t stop him. I want him to breed me. I want him to claim me.
‘Do it,’ I whisper.
‘Fuck,’ he growls, reaching between us to notch his cock at my entrance. He pushes forward half an inch and then runs his hand up to my clit, running circles around it. I melt beneath him as pleasure sweeps in, forcing out the anxiety. He plays with me, teasing me mercilessly.
‘Please,’ I moan, thrashing my head back and forth against the bed. ‘Please.’
He doesn’t move, though. Not until another orgasm begins to flood through my system. As soon as it does, he thrusts forward, impaling me on him in one powerful thrust. I cry out as my hymen tears, but the pain only lasts a split second before his thumb on my clit reignites my orgasm, and I forget all about it.
‘Goddamn, that feels good,’ he pants, watching me through slit lids as I tremble and shake, moaning his name.
‘You feel good,’ I sob in return, writhing beneath him in ecstasy. ‘I’m s-so f-full.’ I feel him everywhere, filling me, stretching me. He’s so hard, yet it doesn’t hurt at all. Nothing has ever felt this good before.
‘Fuck,’ he growls, rocking his hips.
I cry out, clinging to his shoulders as a bolt of pure bliss flows through my veins.
‘You like that?’
‘Yes, yes.’
He groans my name and eases almost entirely out of me before driving inside again. I wrap my legs around his waist, crying out into the room. We move together…at least I try to move with him. He’s like a force of nature above me, though—pounding, driving, relentless.
I urge him on with my nails on his back. Every deep thrust brings a cry of wonder from my lips. Every utterance from my lips makes him go deeper, harder. I savor every moment, lost in him and the pleasure.
‘Jesus, Piper,’ he groans, dipping his head to pull my nipple into his mouth. ‘You feel so fucking good wrapped around me. I may never let you leave this room.’ His hand slips between us, his thumb zeroing in on my clit. ‘I may just keep you on my cock forever.’
‘Yes,’ I sob, willing to agree to anything.
‘I’ll worship this perfect little body, and you’ll live and breathe for my cock, pretty baby.’
I’m already in danger of doing that.
‘Fuck me back, Piper,’ he orders. ‘Work those sexy hips and take this cock like a good little girl.’
I sob his name, rocking my hips with his, eager to obey. We move together, his balls slapping against my ass with each thrust. His grunts and curses ring out around us. So do my sobs. The room is full of our sounds, the smell of sex heavy in the air.
‘Fuck, you gotta come for me,’ he growls, pulling my leg higher to change the angle. ‘I want that womb nice and ready for my cum.’ He grinds his hips against mine, his erection dragging against my g-spot.
I shout his name, digging my nails into his shoulders.
‘Oh, I found your spot, didn’t I?’ he croons and then does it again. ‘Fuck, listen to how good you sound screaming my name. Scream it again, Piper. Let the whole hotel hear you when I’m breeding you.’
Oh my god. His mouth alone is going to send me over. The dirtier he talks, the more I like it. Especially when he talks about breeding me. It’s so…primal, so damn sexy. I never knew I had a kink, let alone a one like this. But oh my gosh. The more he says it, the more I want it.
His thumb rolls across my clit again as he pumps his hips.
‘Come on, pretty baby,’ he growls, nipping at my collarbone. ‘Cream on my cock so I can give you what you need.’
‘I…I…’ I try to tell him I’m going to come, but the words get lost when he grinds against my g-spot again. The orgasm erupts, pulling me under. Everything slows for a moment, the whole world falling still as the pleasure takes me over. I cry out, my muscles clamping down on him as I come in a rush that steals my breath.
‘Fuck!’ Cortez roars, pounding into me without rhythm as he follows me over the edge. He holds me tightly, groaning in my ear as I feel his seed spilling into me in hot spurts. It leaks out around him, splashing against my thighs. Feeling it sets me off all over again.
I cry out, clawing down his back as powerful aftershocks tear my world apart and leave me shaking. When they finally stop, my whole world looks different. It feels different. He’s at the center of it, blazing brighter than the sun.
‘Fuck, pretty baby,’ he groans, rolling us until I’m plastered across his chest in a sweaty, sated heap. His heart pounds like a drum beneath my ear, his arms tight around me. ‘You okay?’
‘Perfect,’ I promise.
‘I’m keeping you.’
‘Okay,’ I agree quickly enough, pretty sure I’m not capable of going anywhere at the moment.
‘I don’t mean tonight,’ he says. ‘I mean forever.’
I lift my head to look at him, only to find those blue eyes focused on me.
‘You’re mine,’ he growls. ‘I’m not letting you go, sweet little Piper. Not tonight or tomorrow or ever. I’m keeping you. Permanently.’
Holy crap, I think he means it.
‘I…’
‘I’m keeping you,’ he says again.
‘Okay,’ I whisper, more than willing to let him keep me.
My eyes flutter open, my entire body deliciously sore. I groan and stretch, smiling as memories of last night filter through my mind. Cortez and I made love over and over again. He was like a machine, reaching for me with an apology on his lips as soon as the sweat cooled on our bodies. I loved every minute of it.
I think I’m in love with him. Is that crazy? Probably so. I’m a walking, talking cliché. I gave my virginity to a handsome man I met at a bar and promptly fell in love with him. But he made it so easy to do! He’s incredible. There’s this insane connection between us that just grew stronger all night. Neither of us wanted to sleep. We didn’t want to miss a single moment.
We finally passed out around dawn, unable to hold our eyes open a moment longer.
I’m not sure what comes next. I live in Chattanooga and have four months until I graduate. It seems like a lifetime. But I don’t want whatever this is between us to end. If he wants to keep me, I’m not going to object.
I’m going to breed you tonight, Piper. When you move tomorrow, you’ll feel me dripping between your legs and think of me claiming your womb, pretty baby.
My stomach quivers at the memory of the wicked things he growled in my ear last night. Sleeping with him without a condom was reckless, dangerous, and stupid…but I don’t regret it. Something about Cortez just feels right. No, that’s not true. Everything about him feels right.
Where is he?
I sit upright in the bed, pulling the sheets up with me.
‘Cortez?’ I call out and then listen for his response. But I hear nothing. Frowning, I crawl from the bed to look for him. His clothes are gone from the floor, and he’s not in the bathroom. I quickly check the outer room, but he’s not there either.
My heart sinks.
Did he leave?
He wouldn’t, would he?
I stumble back into the bedroom and gather my clothes from the floor, quickly pulling them on. Once I’m dressed, I shuffle into the bathroom, grimacing at my reflection in the mirror. My hair is a hot mess; I’ve got his love bites all over my neck. I look exactly like I spent the night being ravished.
Spying a comb, I run it through the snarls in my hair, trying to tame it into submission, and then use the complimentary bottle of mouthwash to rinse out my mouth. Once that’s done, I scrub my face with cold water and relieve myself. By the time I’m done, fifteen minutes have passed, and Cortez still hasn’t returned to the room.
I exit the bathroom and then stop in the middle of the bedroom, unsure what to do with myself. Do I stay and wait for him? Do I leave? I don’t know. I’ve never done the morning after, and I didn’t expect it to go like this. It’s awkward and uncomfortable, and I’m way out of my depth here.
Maybe I read too much into last night. Isn’t that what girls do?
No, that’s not what happened. He told me that he wanted more than one night.
I’m not letting you go, sweet little Piper. Not tonight or tomorrow or ever. I’m keeping you. Permanently.
But did he mean it? Men say and do all the right things, and we think they mean it. In the heat of the moment, maybe they do. But then the moment ends, and reality sets in. Perhaps that’s what happened here. Reality set in, and he decided last night was just that—one night.
What am I thinking? Of course he meant it. I know he did.
I pace around the bedroom for twenty minutes and then thirty.
When the door finally opens forty minutes later, I’m ready to jump out of my skin. I rush into the sitting room, only to draw up short when I see that it’s not Cortez.
‘Oh,’ the middle-aged housekeeper says, blinking at me in surprise as she hauls her cleaning cart over the threshold. ‘I’m so sorry, ma’am. I was under the impression that Mr. Blake had checked out, and the room was empty.’
Mr. Blake? Cortez is a Blake? As in Dorian Blake’s son? I push that bomb away to deal with later, instead focusing on the more immediate, devastating issue.
Cortez checked out. He isn’t coming back.
I’m keeping you. Permanently.
Yeah, right.
Hot tears burn behind my eyes, and my stomach churns, but I refuse to cry now.
‘Should I come back later?’ the housekeeper asks, eyeing me hesitantly.
‘No. That’s okay.’ I shake my head rapidly. ‘I was just leaving.’
There’s no reason for me to stay. Cortez didn’t want forever. He just wanted a fling. And I fell for it. Hook. Line. And sinker. My heart rebels at the thought, unwilling to believe that Cortez just walked away. But a cold, hard look around quells the rebellion. It’s hard to deny what’s right in front of my face.
Cortez Blake is a liar…and I’m the idiot who fell in love with him.
I quickly scoop my bag up from the floor where I dropped it last night and then flee without looking back.