SWNOVELS Wicked Devil: Chapter 15
I wake to unfamiliar surroundings. Bright light filters in through the window. I close my eyes against the early morning rays as the scent of chorizo and eggs assails my senses. Mmmm. Stretching my arms above my head, my face still pressed against the mattress, I work out some of the lingering aches in my body.
Who’s cooking? Mom? I wonder with a frown, face still buried in my pillow.
That can’t be right. What day is it today … Saturday? She’d be working at …
Then I remember she wouldn’t be working anywhere because she’s gone.
I’m immediately hit with a crushing wave of sadness. I choke on a gasp but before my grief can consume me, I feel fingers skim lightly down my back. A roughened jaw scrapes against my skin. Memories of last night and who I shared them with come rushing to the forefront of my mind. And when Roman rolls me over to my back, splaying my legs wide and teasing my body with skilled fingers, I arch toward him, immersing myself in the sensations of his touch as I push away the ache in my chest.
He worships my body and I drown in him. His taste. His touch. Breathing in the scent of sun, coriander, and musk that is uniquely him, it’s as if I’ll die without him in my lungs.
When emotions threaten to bubble up inside of me, I urge him to go faster. Harder. And he’s all too happy to comply. Fucking me to the edge of orgasm again and again without letting me dive off that particular cliff as I cling to him, almost afraid for when I fall.
Each time I get close to the edge, he shuts it down until I’m a writhing ball of desire, unable to think beyond the need coursing inside of me.
He’s just as rough with me this morning as he’d been the night before only this time, he doesn’t mask his hunger. His bone-deep desire to consume me. It should scare me. But it doesn’t. I need this just as much as he does.
My orgasm is right there, so close yet so far away, when Roman slows down his thrusts.
I cry out in frustration, desperate for my release.
“You wanna come, vanilla?”
I nod, unable to form coherent words and I clench around him, chasing what I know waits just around the corner.
“Beg. Beg for it and maybe, just maybe, I’ll let you come.” His words are harsh, his tone mocking.
I bare my teeth at him, hating that he has this power over me. I shake my head, refusing to voice the words he’s asking for. I need to come but not like this. Not at his mercy.
His eyes narrow, a tick forming in his jaw as he slows his thrusts once again.
“Beg, baby girl.” He nuzzles my neck, nips my jaw. “Or I’ll leave you wanting.”
“No.”
Something deep inside makes me rebel against his command. To show him he isn’t the only one in control here. I know he wants me. This. Whatever it is. Just as much as I do. I can feel his need. He’s shaking with it.
With a snarl he slams his mouth to mine, our lips meeting in a furious kiss of tongue and teeth before he bites my bottom lip hard enough to make me gasp. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
I open my mouth to smart off but before I can speak a single word, he flips our position until I’m on top of him, forcing me to ride his cock. For a split second, I’m relieved. I can set the pace I want, and I do. I grind my hips against his pelvis and he thrusts up into me, driving himself deeper until, in three harsh strokes, he’s shuddering beneath me. I curse, knowing he came and not being able to do a damn thing to stop it. I grind up and down on his now softening dick and he folds his arms up behind his head to watch the show. But nothing is going to happen because his dick is getting soft and dammit, I still haven’t come. Fury thrums through me. I tighten my jaw and dig my fingernails into his chest as I push myself off of him.
He almost manages to hide his flinch. “Should have begged for it,” he says.
“You’re an ass.”
“Never pretended not to be,” he calls to my back as I gather my clothes to get dressed. Un-fucking-believable.
“Oh, and by the way, Henderson came looking for you this morning.” I pause but before I can ask what he said, he continues, “Don’t worry though. I told him I took real good care of you.”
Emilio offers me a breakfast burrito as I head out the door but I decline. Not the least bit hungry. I haven’t been eating much since Mom died, and after what just happened with Roman, I have absolutely zero appetite. I’m fuming over the fact he took his pleasure and then denied me mine. Who the hell does he think he is? Stupid devil.
I go searching for Aaron uncertain of what sort of reception I’ll get. I can’t believe Roman said that.
Asshole.
I march across the clearing in search of Aaron, pissed at myself for allowing Roman to get under my skin and determined to smooth things over with Aaron in person. I can’t afford to screw up one of the few friendships I have in this town.
I find him easy enough. He’s sitting on the back of someone’s tailgate, drinking a beer, and joking with a group of guys similarly dressed. They all look like they just walked out of a Zumiez so I figure they’re boarders like Aaron.
When he spots me walking toward him, he sets down his beer and leans back against the bed of the truck. I can’t see his eyes masked behind a pair of blue mirrored Ray Bans but I can tell by the downward curve of his lip that I’m not going to get a warm reception.
“Hey,” I say and offer a small wave. Really Allie? A wave? Because that wasn’t awkward.
“Hey.”
I stand there, shifting from one foot to the other. He doesn’t say anything else and the other three guys with him are now staring at me like I’ve grown three heads while wearing a tutu.
“Can we talk?” I ask.
He shrugs. “Sure. Talk.”
Okay then. I guess I should have expected that. I lick my lips wishing I could see his eyes, gauge just how mad he is with me right now.
“Aaron,” I drag out his name.
He huffs out an exasperated sigh. “Whatever. Fine.” Jumping down from the tailgate he walks toward his cabin and stops just in front of the porch to lean against the railing. “What can I do for you?” He waves his beer with an over exaggerated flourish.
“You don’t have to be a jerk,” I mutter, folding my arms across my chest.
He’s silent for a beat and I realize he’s not going to say anything. Awesome. Now it’s my turn to sigh. “Look, I just wanted to apologize for bailing on you last night. I saw that girl on your lap by the fire and figured you’d want the room to yourself.” I shrug and do my best to adopt an apologetic look. “I wasn’t trying to ghost you.”
Silence.
“If you don’t want me here anymore, I’ll grab my things and get a ride back to town.”
Nothing.
Wonderful.
“Whatever.” I turn to head inside his cabin to grab my stuff, praying I can catch an Uber out here in the middle of boom-freaking-nowhere when his hand on my elbow stops me.
I pause, but don’t turn back to him.
Gravel crunches beneath his feet as he steps closer, moving around me until we’re facing one another. He rubs the back of his neck in an almost nervous gesture, but I must be reading that wrong.
“I’m sorry. I was a dick.” The corner of his mouth curls up in an apologetic smile.
Really? “I’m sorry too. I really wasn’t trying to be a B and ghost you.” It’s true. Granted, I also wasn’t trying to steer clear so I wasn’t a cock-block either. But he doesn’t need to know that. He also doesn’t need to know I was swept away by good looks and hot tattoos. Wouldn’t be the first time I’d made poor decisions while intoxicated. First Ryker. Now Roman. Urgh. And if I’m being honest with myself, it probably wasn’t my last. And if I was really, really honest, booze had nothing to do with it. “Are we cool?” I ask, shoving away my inner monologue. I could berate myself and my poor decision-making skills later. “Because I like hanging out with you. I don’t have many friends here and it’d be nice not to lose that with you.”
He exhales sharply. “Yeah. I know I’m overreacting, it’s just,” he pauses. “I have bad history with the Devils, ya know?”
I quirk a brow in question because no, I don’t know. I have no idea what issues lie between them. Only that it appears to be mutual.
“They’re all assholes. Especially Roman. I don’t want to see you get hurt. Those three can be cruel to girls after they get what they want from them.” He gives me a knowing look.
I can’t stop the heat I know is spreading across my cheeks, so I look away. Is that what’s going to happen? Is Roman going to move on now that he’s had his fun? If he does, it’s not like I should be surprised.
But I’m not looking for a relationship. I have too much baggage for something like that right now. I wanted fun, and last night I got that. Sure, this morning sucked and Roman is a complete asshole, but it’s not the end of the world either.
Aaron reaches out and tucks a strand of hair that escaped my braid behind my ear.
I still can’t see his eyes and have no idea what he’s thinking, so I go with my gut. “You don’t have to worry. We came here to have fun, right? You got laid. I got laid. Neither of us needs to make a big deal of it. Is what’s-her-name you hooked up with the love of your life?”
He snorts.
“That’s what I thought. Let’s not make mountains out of molehills. How about we hang today? Just you and me and whatever friends you have here that you actually like? No Devils allowed.”
His smile widens, giving me a glimpse of dimples I hadn’t noticed before. “Yeah?”
“Yeah.”