Damage Control Read online

  Might as well enjoy the time…and it would conserve water too.

  Between the two of us, we pretty much demolished an entire extra-large pie and several beers.

  Now, belly full and pleasantly buzzed, I stretched back out on the bed, studying him.

  “I’ve been thinking,” I announced. He'd pulled a pair of jeans on after we'd gotten out of the shower, and while I was kind of sorry to see him wearing any kind of clothing, at the same time, it'd been a good idea. When he was all naked and beautiful in front of me, I lost track of important things…like breathing.

  He glanced at me over his shoulder, a golden brow arched. “Just what have you been thinking about, Miss Piety?”

  “I’ve been thinking…” I said slowly. I rolled to my hands and knees and crawled to the edge of the bed as I grinned at him. “That you and I need to be able to convince my parents and the rest of my family that we're comfortable together, that we fell head over heels in love…or at least in lust with each other.”

  “Well, that is what you’re paying me for,” he said, turning to face me. Eyes locked on mine, he reached out and traced a bold finger down my cheek, my collarbone, then dropped his hand down to cup my breast through his shirt. “Are you saying I haven’t I done a good job of proving there’s a fair amount of lust on my side?”

  I was having a difficult time concentrating as his thumb moved across my nipple. “I think…it’s safe to say there’s a fair amount of lust on both sides.”

  He lightly pinched my nipple and I moaned, fighting the urge to wrap myself around him and tell him to just do me.

  It took a supreme effort of will to continue.

  “We have to convince them. We should…” I cleared my throat, heat rushing up to stain my cheeks red as he dipped his head and raked his teeth down my neck. He'd already left one mark, but I wanted him to leave another. But first I had to finish my thought. “We should be comfortable together.”

  He pushed his knee between mine as he wrapped his hand around the back of my neck. “I don’t feel comfortable right now. Maybe after I’ve had you wrapped around my cock for a little while longer, after I’ve made you scream my name and I've emptied myself inside you…then I’ll be comfortable.”

  Fuck me. Every cell in my entire body was practically vibrating.

  “That’s not what I…meant.”

  He grinned down at me, ice-blue eyes blazing hot. “What did you mean?”

  “We should start sleeping together.”

  “Haven’t we done that?” He caught the hem of my shirt – his t-shirt – and started to drag it up, letting his fingertips trail across my skin as he went. “Let me refresh your memory.”

  “Again, not what I meant.” But I wasn’t going to complain. Not when I could still feel what it was like to have him inside me

  “Oh.” He let the shirt go. “You meant…share your bed.”

  “Yes.”

  He looked thoughtful.

  My body burned as I waited.

  Then he nodded. “I’m fine with that.”

  He turned away from me and my stomach dropped.

  “Wait! What are you…?”

  He looked back at me. “We’re sleeping together, right? I’m tired, so I'm going to get ready for bed.”

  “But…” Glaring at him, I folded my arms over my chest, knowing my nipples would be clearly visible.

  He slowly shifted back around to face me, his gaze flicking down and then back up. “Is there a problem?”

  “You started something. Aren’t you going to finish it?”

  He came toward me, a loose-limbed prowling gait that was unbearably sexy. “So…sex and sleeping together. This is getting complicated, Piety.”

  There was a teasing glint in his eye, though, one that made me want to smile, want to tease.

  Smoothing my hand down the front of my borrowed shirt, I hitched up a shoulder. “Not so complicated. Don't you need to get your shirt back so you can pack it? Be ready for tomorrow.”

  He caught my hips, and the feel of his rough hands against my smooth skin sent a shiver through me.

  “You sound like you’re a big believer in being prepared.”

  He said the words against my lips.

  Before I could respond, he was kissing me.

  No…no, I really wasn’t a big believer in being prepared. I just would've said anything to get him to touch me again. What did it matter anyway? No amount of preparation could have ever gotten me ready for him.

  Nine

  Kaleb

  Waking up felt strange.

  For a minute, I didn’t entirely understand why.

  I lay there a few more minutes, trying to process. That didn’t take too long, but even after I’d figured out why things felt different, I didn’t move.

  If I did that, it might break the spell.

  It had been years since I’d woken up with a woman.

  I couldn’t really count yesterday. We’d been hung over and irritated, and I’d been in a stupor for several minutes even after Piety had rolled out of the bed.

  This though…

  This.

  It had been years since I’d had this.

  I hadn’t realized I’d missed it. There’d been no time for a relationship, not really. Even the few I’d had when I was younger…hell. Nothing had felt as easy and right as this.

  That in and of itself was just insane, because this wasn’t real.

  Piety was paying me.

  Not to sleep with her, but she was paying me money to stay with her, and if it hadn't been for the money, I wouldn’t have been around for any of this. And that bothered me more than I wanted to admit.

  I couldn’t lose sight of the reason I was doing this. I couldn’t afford to. And I couldn’t afford to have feelings for this woman, even though it would be damn easy to have feelings for her. She was…funny. Sweet, but in a subtle way. There was a sharp, sarcastic side to her that hid that softness. I liked all of it, and suspected the more I was around her, the more I’d like it. Like her.

  Which meant if I was smart, I’d get away and stay away.

  Rising from the bed, I moved over to the window and stared outside. Under my feet, the carpet was plush and thick, feeling as foreign to me as the rest of the room, as strange and different as the woman lying on the bed behind me.

  I didn’t fit in here.

  Brooding, I looked back at Piety, but that only made me want to climb back into bed with her.

  The temptation was so strong, I jerked my gaze away and headed for the small pile of clothes at the end of the bed. Grabbing my jeans, I headed for the bathroom.

  I didn’t bother putting them on until the door was closed behind me. Once I was lost in the relative privacy, I checked my phone to see if there had been any calls.

  No.

  Not that too many people would call.

  But Camry should have.

  But, of course she hadn’t. I squeezed my phone around the casing, hard enough that the plastic cracked a little. Then, slowly, I lowered it and punched in her number. She didn’t answer. Big surprise.

  I waited till the voicemail started and once it beeped, I left a message.

  “Hey, Camry. It’s me. Listen…something’s come up, and I’ve got to leave the city for a little bit. When I get back, I’ll have money. I’ll have everything I need to make all of this right again. It’s going to be okay.”

  Make it right again…

  I wanted to laugh at my own stupidity.

  Instead, I disconnected the call and shoved my phone in the pocket of my jeans.

  How could I make things right? How could I possibly hope to do that?

  Frustrated, I wrenched the door open, half thinking I’d go for a walk or something.

  And I came to a dead stop at the sight of Piety lying stretched across the bed, taking up two-thirds of it. She had the sheets wrapped and twisted around her, her face turned toward me, a faint smile on her lips.

  The sight of her was li
ke a blow straight to my chest, and without thinking – without letting myself think – I went to her and laid down, curling around her. I tucked my face against her hair and breathed in the scent of her.

  In a few days, a few weeks, this would be over.

  I’d go back to my life.

  She’d go back to hers.

  She’d probably forget this whole interlude. All she wanted was for her parents to get the idea that she was her own person. She was a grown woman. A fact that the body pressed to mine made abundantly clear.

  Me, though…I’d go back to my life and do what? Do what I'd been doing for years?

  This was my escape. My escape, brief as it was. I was doing what I needed to do, yeah. I couldn’t deny that. But I wanted to do it. I hadn’t wanted to walk away from Piety yet. From the moment I’d first seen her, I'd wanted her. And then I'd wanted to know her.

  When it was all over, I’d go back to a life I was just now recognizing as completely empty.

  Yes, I was going to try to fix things with Camry.

  How could I not?

  But nothing was going to be okay.

  Things hadn’t been okay in a long time.

  So I might as well enjoy this for as long as it lasts.

  Piety made a low, humming sound and stretched.

  I slid my hand down her hip, and she covered it with her own. The cool metal of the new ring she’d bought brushed against the matching ring I now wore. She’d insisted on it – her parents would never buy that she’d gotten married without an appropriate ring – for both of us.

  It hadn't felt right letting a woman buy something so…personal for me.

  But when she’d grinned at me so playfully, then slid it on my finger, I realized how personal things between us already felt. She’d told me that once this was done, I could keep the ring – sell it or do whatever.

  I would keep it. I already knew that. Even after we annulled this farce of a marriage, I’d keep it. A little piece of her.

  She stretched again, wiggling her ass against my cock. I closed my eyes as blood rushed south. When she did it again, I realized she was holding her breath a little. Little minx.

  “Something tells me you’re doing that on purpose.”

  She broke out in a laugh. “It took you long enough.” She did it again.

  I rolled onto my knees, dragging her along so that her back was flush against me. She gasped as I slid a hand around and down, pushing my fingers between her thighs. She was already wet, the slick heat making my cock even harder. She moaned as I rubbed my fingers against her clit until she swore. Her head fell back against my shoulder as she rode my hand, rocking back against my cock, until I thought I just might embarrass myself.

  “Come for me, sweetheart,” I spoke through gritted teeth just before I pressed against that little bundle of nerves. She cried out, her body jerking as she came.

  Damn, she was beautiful like that.

  I eased her down onto the bed before I eased away and tore open one of the last remaining condoms on the nightstand. We’d need more. Had to remember that. No matter how much I loved the idea of sliding into her bare. I would do at least one thing smart here.

  I rolled the condom down, as I trailed my eyes up along the curve of her spine. As I watched, she lifted up on her hands and knees, threw her hair back, and turned her head to smile at me over her shoulder.

  It was a sweet, wicked little grin that made my heart flip over and my stomach clench.

  Groaning, I grabbed her hip with one hand and held her steady, wrapping my other hand around my cock. “I think you want to drive me mad.”

  “No, I just want you.”

  Such simple words, but the things they made me feel...

  Swearing, I buried myself balls-deep inside her cunt with one thrust. We both cried out, our voices mixing together even as our bodies joined. I gave us both a moment to gain control before I started to draw back. She clamped down tighter around me, like she was trying to keep me trapped inside her. I wouldn’t mind staying like this, wrapped inside her, where I belonged.

  My balls went tight as I eased back, then slid forward. Slowly at first, then building in speed, I drove into her. Each time, she tightened around me, friction and pressure forcing me higher. I could feel my orgasm coiling in my stomach, fighting to break free. But I wasn't going to give in, not until she came first.

  Bracing my hands against her hips, I bent over her, sweat blooming on my skin, need knotting in my gut. I slid one hand under her and rolled her nipple between my fingers. She moaned and arched her back.

  “Touch yourself,” I ordered. “Rub your clit and come for me. Let me feel that hot little cunt of yours squeeze me.”

  I pinched her nipple, then tugged it as I felt her shift. She shivered as her fingers began to move over her clit. I pulled her nipple again, twisted it, and she called out my name, the sound one of pure pleasure.

  Fuck. I wanted to hear that again.

  “Say my name, sweetheart.” I could feel her body trembling around me. “Say it and come.”

  I grabbed her hair and yanked her back against me. She came apart as she yelled my name and I didn’t fight my release any longer.

  I started to climax, curses pouring from my mouth alongside her name. But the only thing that really mattered was her name.

  “You were cussing me out.”

  Her words broke the silence that had fallen as we'd recovered, and I felt my face going red as I looked over at her.

  Piety was propped on her elbow, staring down at me, a curious look on her face. “Well?”

  “Well, what?” I asked irritably.

  “I’m just…well, it’s not like I’ve slept with a lot of people or anything, but there’ve been a couple of guys.” She flushed. “And I’ve never had a guy swear at me when he came before.”

  Shit. Throwing my forearm over my eyes, I tried to explain. “It wasn’t you. It was…”

  Unable to find the words, I lowered my arm and stared at her. After a moment, I caught her and rolled until I had her under me. She wasn’t upset. I could see it in her eyes now. She was actually smiling. She always seemed to be smiling, even when it wasn't quite genuine.

  “You know the cartoons you see in the paper? Or online where one of the characters stubs his toe or something, and all he says are exclamation marks and such? It’s because cartoons don’t cuss…but sometimes it’s more effective, even though silence can say more than words at times. But then, there are times when swearing says more than words.”

  Her face softened as she reached up, cupping my cheek.

  I covered her hand with mine. “I’ve been caught in a shit storm for a while, and now there’s you. You're like an oasis.” Balancing on one elbow, I slid a hand down her belly and cupped her between her thighs. “Just being with you would be sweet. But having you moan out my name, fucking you and knowing you want everything I can do to you – that you want to do the same things to me...”

  “So, fucking me is like stubbing your toe. You can’t express yourself in any way other than cursing?” She cocked an eyebrow even as she closed her thighs, rocking up against my hand.

  “Yes.” I offered her a weak grin. “It’s just…well, in a good way. Almost like hitting your funny bone or…well, you get the point.”

  She pushed against my shoulders until I went to my back. She grabbed the last condom from the bedside table, then threw a leg over my waist.

  “Let’s see if we can hit that funny bone again.”

  Ten

  Piety

  Walking around the airport in Las Vegas wasn’t too different than walking around outside in the city itself or in one of the casinos. Okay, it was definitely cooler in the airport than in the city, but you got the same sense of excitement and desperation from many of the tourists.

  There was such a wide variety of people, and I loved people watching. It always baffled my parents when we'd traveled, although I got better about getting caught watching as I'd gotten older.
Mom had never approved.

  Piety, sit still…stop gawking. It’s so unseemly.

  A stern look from Dad had been enough to communicate the same message, but it hadn’t stopped my…gawking either. I’d just learned to be more subtle about it.

  Now I didn’t need to be subtle, but I’d learned it was more…well, polite not to so openly stare.

  I wasn’t trying to be nosy exactly.

  People just fascinated me. All of them.

  Of course, some of them pissed me off, like the mom who was yelling at a baby who couldn’t be more than six months old, telling the poor thing to quit crying.

  Just as the thought went through my mind, Astra noticed as well.

  “Like yelling at her is really going to make the baby stop crying,” Astra said, sarcasm thick in her voice – and she wasn’t quiet about it either.

  The slim blonde heard and whipped her head around, glaring at us.

  But Astra was already talking to Kaleb. “I mean, don’t you find it soothing when somebody yells at you? Especially when you’re in a loud, noisy unfamiliar place and you’re probably tired? That’s exactly what makes you feel better, isn’t it, Kaleb?”

  The look on his face made it plain as day that he didn’t know if he wanted to laugh or hide behind the menu. Taking pity on him, I laid a hand on his arm. “Half the time, being in an airport is enough to make most people want to cry – or yell.”

  I gave the mom a smile and hoped she’d take the out, and give her baby one too. We all got stressed after all, but the baby shouldn’t suffer for it.

  After a moment, her eyes fell away, and she started to bounce the little girl, patting her on the butt as she rocked her back and forth. A moment later, the pitiful wails subsided and the baby shoved her fist into her mouth.

  “I’m starving,” Astra announced, studying the menu. “Why did we get on such a late flight? I could have sworn we were flying out earlier.”