Black Read online

  “I doubt it. Now, is that all you wanted to ask?”

  His eyes narrow. He takes another puff of his cigar before snuffing it out in an ashtray on the table. “What’s her name?”

  I roll my eyes. The fucker doesn’t give up. “Why do you care?”

  “She looks familiar.”

  I’m not sure when he’s had a chance to get a look at her. Although he does have cameras everywhere, so it’s really no surprise.

  “She’s new to the area. Trust me, you’ve never seen her before.” I don’t dare tell him Shae grew up here. That would be a sure-fire way to get him digging into her life.

  “You sure about that?” he challenges.

  “Positive.”

  “All right then.” Father drops back onto his chair and picks up his snifter from the table. “Just don’t knock her up. You know damn well my grandchildren need to come from a specific bloodline.”

  Him and the goddamn bloodline.

  If he had his way, Dante and I would be married off to his friends’ daughters—specifically Liza. Not that she wouldn’t make someone a damn good wife, because I’m sure someday she will, but I’m not that someone. I know for sure that I don’t want to marry a woman in my father’s circle. In fact, I want to end up with someone so far out of the goddamn circle she doesn’t even know it exists.

  My father’s comment doesn’t deserve a response, so I leave him with his friends and walk back to the dining room. Just being near my dad makes me angry, and now I just want to get Shae and get the fuck out of here. Had I known my dad had come back early, I never would’ve brought her here to begin with.

  Somewhere in the back of my mind, I’m reminded that if Shae and I were to ever make this work, I’d have to tell her about my family, but I push that thought to the side. No sense dwelling on it when she’s adamant about keeping things casual.

  When I walk back into the dining room, Shae is sitting quietly at the table, smiling at something on her phone.

  “What’s so funny?” I whisper, sitting down next to her.

  She glances up, her eyes bright and smile brighter. “JJ just send me a text.”

  Fucking JJ. I know she said they’re just friends, but the mention of his name makes the green monster inside me rear his ugly head.

  “What…what just happened here?” she asks, setting her phone down. “You were smiling when you sat down, and now you’re scowling.”

  “Nothing.” I shrug. “I’m not scowling.”

  “Yes, you are.”

  “Fine, I’m scowling.”

  “Are you jealous?”

  “No,” I scoff.

  “You were making fun of me earlier for being jealous, and now you’re the one who’s jealous.”

  “I’m not jealous.”

  She grins and shakes her head. “Good, because you have nothing to be jealous about. JJ is Shae gay.”

  “Shae gay?”

  “That’s what he calls it. He swears he knows me on such a personal level that he could never see at me as anything other than a friend. Hence, Shae gay.”

  Thank fucking God.

  “Does that make you feel better?”

  “Tremendously.”

  “Would you two like dessert?” Stella asks.

  Shae and I both answer at the same time, just not the same way.

  “Yes.”

  “No.”

  “No?” she asks. “Why not?”

  Leaning in close, I brush my lips against the outer rim of her ear and whisper, “You are dessert, remember?”

  She blinks once and her gorgeous lips form a perfect O before she looks up at Stella. “Check, please.”

  She’s so damn cute. “My father owns the place. We don’t have a bill.”

  She grins sheepishly. “Then what are we still doing here?”

  Anxious to get my hands on her delectable body, I all but drag her out of the restaurant.

  Once we’re out the front door she giggles, the sound shooting straight to my dick.

  “Slow down,” she says, laughing. “My legs are shorter than yours.”

  Turning around, I scoop her into my arms. “There. Now you don’t have to walk at all.”

  She wiggles in my arms, trying to get down, but no way in hell am I letting go. She feels too damn good.

  “You don’t have to carry me.”

  “I know I don’t. But I want to, and the faster I get you to my car, the quicker I can get you to my bed.”

  “Run,” she says, breaking out into laughter when I do just that.

  We pull up to Rex’s building, and he jogs to the passenger side of the car to open my door. He extends his hands and helps me out before tossing his keys to the doorman.

  “Welcome back, Mr. Ambrosi. Would you like me to leave your car out or have it parked for the evening?”

  “Park it,” he commands, looking down at me. “We won’t be needing it anytime soon.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “You have a doorman?” I ask. “Your building is much cooler than mine.”

  He laces our fingers together as the elevator doors slide open. “I do.” With his hand pressed to the small of my back, he ushers me into the small space, and once the doors are closed, he pins me up against the wall. “Is that really what you’re thinking about right now? My doorman?”

  Two large hands land on either side of my head, his hard body presses against mine, and it’s obvious from the erection digging into my belly that he most certainly isn’t thinking about the doorman. The silence stretches, causing our breath to echo in the tiny space, and I realize he’s waiting for me to respond.

  “No,” I answer, hating how breathless I sound.

  But damn it, I am breathless. This man creates a yearning inside me that makes it difficult to think, let alone breathe and speak.

  “There are so many things I want to do to you. All I can think about is sinking deep inside your body and losing myself for hours.” He presses his lips to the base of my neck. “I want to kiss every inch of your skin. I want to see your face when you fall apart in my arms, and when you think you’ve had about all you can stand, I want to fuck you again.”

  I sigh, dropping my head back against the elevator wall. “I want that too.”

  Rex’s mouth travels south over my collarbone and along the swell of my breasts, and all I can think is how grateful I am that we’re alone in this elevator.

  “I’ve wanted to fuck you since the moment I saw you standing on that sidewalk. I pictured your long, dark hair tumbling down your naked back, your legs spread wide, and then I saw this mouth.” His thumb runs a slow path along my lower lip. “I want these lips wrapped around my cock.”

  I reach for his pants, ready to give him what he wants, but he stops me, pinning my wrists at my sides.

  “And then when you showed up at my bar, I knew I had to have you.”

  This man is sex incarnate. He’s cocky and irresistible, and he knows that if he wanted, I’d let him take me right here in the elevator.

  He tugs a strap on my dress, pulling it down my arm until my left breast is exposed. “Tell me what you want from me,” he demands before wrapping his perfect lips around my nipple and sucking.

  I tunnel my fingers into his thick hair, holding him against my body.

  “Rex.” My neck arches back, my eyes struggling to stay open as I stare at the ceiling, and I cry out when he sucks, hard.

  The elevator slides to a stop. Rex releases my breast with a wet pop, lifts the strap of my dress back into place, and scoops me up. My body is buzzing. I’m drunk from his touch, and I would gladly spend days praying to the porcelain gods if it means I get to spend the night with him, letting him do everything he’s promised. It’s the best damn feeling.

  Thirty seconds later I hear the soft click of his door unlocking, followed by the sound of it shutting. Rex lowers me to my feet, wisely not letting go until he’s sure I won’t topple over.

  His condo is dark, bathed in nothing but the faint
glow of the moon through the window. I hear his keys hit what I assume is a coffee table, and then a warm hand slides around my waist. Closing my eyes, I take a breath, trying to calm my racing my heart.

  “You are so beautiful.” He peppers kisses down my neck. Goosebumps scatter across my skin, and I feel him smile against my back. “I love how you respond to my touch.” Skimming his fingertips over my shoulders, he snags each strap of my dress, tugging them down my arms at an achingly slow pace until the flimsy black material pools around my hips.

  Rex groans and drops to his knees behind me. “Fuck me,” he says. Hands around my hips, he turns me to face him.

  I smile, knowing he can see my tattoo. It runs along my side, starting at the base of the outside of my breast and ending at my hip. When I feel the first brush of his tongue against my skin, I pry my eyes open and watch as he worships the words that mean more to me than he’ll ever know. I whisper the words of my tattoo as he uses his finger and mouth to outline each letter.

  Never look back, but never forget. Always forgive, and never regret.

  “It’s beautiful,” he murmurs, looking up at me through thick black lashes.

  “Thank you,” I whisper.

  Raw, sexual energy pulses through the air. It isn’t the first time I’ve felt it in Rex’s presence, and it saddens me to think it might be the last. I’m desperate to lose myself in the moment, in him.

  “Touch me. Please,” I add, hoping he’ll understand how much I need him.

  Rex’s pupils dilate, and a rush of moisture settles between my thighs. Hooking his fingers in the sides of my dress, he tugs the material over my hips, letting it fall in a pile at my feet.

  I’m standing naked in the middle of a room with a fully clothed Rex kneeling between my legs, and for the first time in…ever, I feel sexy and completely uninhibited.

  Trailing his finger down my thigh, he wraps his hand around my ankle. “Lift.” Steadying myself with a hand on his shoulder, I lift my foot and Rex slips my sandal off, repeating the process on the other side.

  “I think you’re a little overdressed,” I say.

  “Patience, princess.” He tugs me forward until his lips hit the lower part of my belly. With slow strokes of his tongue, Rex worships every inch of my skin he can reach and when he runs out of room, he sinks lower until he’s at eye level with my most private part.

  “Open.” He nudges my legs until they’re a shoulder-width apart, and before I have time to brace myself, his mouth is on me. His tongue takes a slow path up my slit before diving inside. My body jerks, my hands grip his shoulders.

  “Oh, fuck,” I moan.

  Smiling mischievously, he brings his finger to my opening, dipping it inside as his mouth latches onto my clit. Each swipe of his tongue across the tight ball of nerves pushes me closer to the edge.

  The sight of his mouth on my pussy is almost too erotic, but I can’t look away. He’s eating me like a starved man, like he’s a prisoner on death row and I’m his last meal.

  Every nerve ending—some I didn’t even know existed—flares to life, and my hips move of their own accord.

  “That’s it, beautiful,” he coaxes. “Ride my face. Fuck my tongue.”

  His words push me over the edge. My eyes drift shut, my fingers tightening in his hair as I grind my hips against his face. Thank God Rex has a hand around my thigh because when my body convulses, I come long and loud, screaming out his name along with a series of unintelligible words before sagging against him.

  He lifts my naked body into his arms with ease. I close my eyes, nuzzling against his chest, and a few seconds later I’m being lowered onto a big, comfy bed.

  Sitting up, I reach for him, but he shakes his head. “I’m two seconds from exploding, and if you put your hands on me now, I’ll never last. And I have big plans for us tonight.”

  With deft fingers, he pops the buttons of his shirt and shrugs it off. I knew Rex was built—I could see it beneath the fit of his shirt—but I had no idea he looked like this. His chest is chiseled to the point of perfection, his abs cut into a six pack with enough dips and valleys to keep me occupied for days, and oh sweet baby Jesus he’s got one of those Vs I’ve read about, leading to—

  “Like what you see?” he asks, tugging off his pants. His cock springs free, hard and throbbing and glistening, begging for my mouth.

  I lick my lips. “Like is such a weak word.”

  It isn’t lost on me that I have no idea what to do with a guy like Rex. Sure, I’ve been with men, but it’s been the fumblings of young adults. Not one of them looked like this man, and suddenly I’m unsure of how well this is going to work.

  Rex takes a step forward, and his rough hand grasps my chin, lifting my face toward his. When our eyes meet, I know I have nothing to be afraid of. It’s written all over his face: he wants me just as bad as I want him.

  “What’s wrong?” he asks.

  A shiver of need rolls over me at the gravelly sound of his voice, and I shake my head. “Nothing.”

  Running his fingers along my jaw, he cups the back of my neck. “No lies. Tell me. What is it?”

  How does he do that? It must be one of his superpowers, and I’m convinced he has many.

  “You’re so perfect.” I swallow, trying to find my words. “And I’m…” I look down at his cock bobbing heavily between us. “What if I can’t…”

  My thoughts become a jumbled mess when Rex palms his cock, slowly working it from base to tip. A small dot of precum forms on the head.

  “See that, Shae?”

  I nod, my eyes locked on his hand.

  “That’s what you do to me. Being near you makes me so hard I can’t see straight. I’ve been walking around with a goddamn hard-on since you showed up at Vault. Walking away from you the other night was the most difficult thing I’ve had to do in years, but I did it because I want you to remember this. I want tonight to be burned into your memory. I want to consume every one of your senses, own every sigh. I want to ruin you, Shae, bring you pleasure you never thought possible. I’m going to make it impossible for any man to ever live up to what happens between us tonight.”

  His words pulse through me. I want what he’s offering more than anything. A year from now, I might regret it, regret letting him control my body the way he so desperately wants to, because where will that leave me? But I guess that’s a chance I’ll have to take, because right now I don’t have the strength, or willpower, to ask for anything less.

  His gaze sweeps over me. Purposely. Unapologetically. Placing a finger at the base of my neck, he drags it down my chest, over each breast and along my belly, not stopping until his hand is at my hip. Tucking it under my ass, he pulls me to the edge of the bed. He’s still standing, and the height of his bed is perfect, except that I can’t quite reach him.

  “I want to touch you,” I beg.

  “You will.” He steps forward until his thighs are pressed against the mattress. He grabs first my left leg and then my right, guiding them around his waist. “But right now, I need to fuck you. I’ve been waiting too damn long for this, and I need to feel you wrapped around me. Fast now, beautiful, and then we’ll go slow and you can touch me all you want.”

  Oh. Okay.

  I like the sound of that.

  In the back of my mind, I wonder if I’ll be able to do it more than once. Rex is a large man, much larger than the other men I’ve been with, and I haven’t had sex in years. Worst-case scenario, I won’t be able to walk tomorrow, which I’m surprisingly okay with.

  He must be able to read my mind, because he dips his fingers inside of me and says, “Trust me, Shae. I’m going to make this good for you. But make no mistake, we will be here all night.”

  Next thing I hear is a condom wrapper tearing. He rolls it on and brings his hands back to my body.

  I dig my heels into his ass, pulling him closer to me.

  “Easy.” He pumps his fingers in and out of me a couple of times.

  Pulling them out
, he coats my pussy with the wetness and then slides his finger down to my ass. My hips jerk, lifting off the bed as he outlines the tight ring. I gasp at the foreign feeling. No one has ever touched me there.

  “I need you nice and relaxed,” he says. “The last thing I want is hurt you now, but tomorrow, plan on being nice and sore.”

  “Rex. Please.”

  He looks up from my pussy, where his finger is making delicate sweeps back and forth, up and down, and his gaze collides with mine.

  No words are spoken. None are needed. I see my need for him reflected back at me, and in one gentle move, Rex guides himself to my entrances and pushes inside.

  All the air rushes from my lungs as he stretches me, filling me more than any man ever has. It’s overwhelming and feels so damn good and I don’t know how I’m supposed to walk away from him after just one night.

  Rex groans, and I lift my hips. My body welcomes his with ease, molding around him until he’s seated balls deep. He doesn’t move right away, instead giving me time to adjust, but I don’t need time, and I shift my hips, easing him out and losing my breath when he pushes back in.

  Rex’s eyes smolder with a look so raw and feral that it leaves me momentarily stunned. He told me before that he isn’t a gentle lover, which is how I know he’s holding back. There’s strain on his face as he prevents himself from fucking me into oblivion. But I don’t want him to take it slow. I want him consumed by the moment and the passion running through us.

  “Please,” I beg, watching where we’re joined, wanting nothing more than to see his cock slide out of my body. “I need more.”

  His grip on my thighs tightens, his fingers digging into the skin with just enough pinch to keep me grounded in the moment as he pulls himself out. My lips part, my pulse racing, and I’m not sure if it’s because I’m watching this Adonis of a man fuck me, or if it’s because it feels so goddamn good.

  “Look at us,” he says, pushing himself back inside my body before pulling out again. “I knew we’d fit together like this. Your body is perfect for mine, your tight pussy squeezing my cock.”