“And how is that?” I demand between pants as his fingers pick up speed. He doesn’t even try to slip them inside of me, but then again, he doesn’t have to. He has me right where he wants me, and it’s exhilarating and breathtaking and just a little scary.
I grip the center console and the door handle, my toes curling inside of my black satin pumps. A few feet away from where Jace is teasing my body into a state of pure bliss, a couple walks up the steps to B’s front door. For a moment, I startle, terrified that they might see us. Might see my head thrashing from side to side and the flush of my skin.
But as I try to pull away, Jace stills me. He dips his mouth to my ear and growls, “They’re not paying you a goddamn bit of attention, Lucy, so let go.” Then, lightly brushing the tip of his thumb nail across my clit, he takes away my ability to fear, to overthink. The orgasm hits me rough and hard, leaving me unable to form a coherent sentence.
Jace gazes down at me and shakes his head incredulously. “You do that so fast, love,” he murmurs.
“You do that so fast, love.” Even though I know his statement about how quickly I climax isn’t an insult, my thoughts instantly ping to my ex’s parting words about my future with a man like Jace. And shame pours through me because Carter had pointed out how lacking I am in bed. Now, I’m wondering if Jace thinks the same. Because I want to please the man sitting next to me, I want him to close his eyes and think of me as the woman who rocked his world, the one he can’t get enough of.
Not the fuck buddy who gets off in five minutes flat.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” he demands, thinning his slate blue eyes.
“I … come in literally seconds,” I admit. I run my tongue over my lips and shift uncomfortably in my seat. “You've been with women who can probably last all night, and you wear me out after a couple rounds.”
He arches an eyebrow, his expression hovering between amused and utterly confused. “Are you giving me shit for fucking you well, love?”
“No. Ugh, yes. It’s just something my ex-husband said when he showed up to my mother’s house.” His features darken at the mention of Carter. “It’s … it’s nothing.” I scrub my hands over my face, but he catches them in his, turning my palms up towards his mouth. He kisses the inside of each wrist, his lips soft and unhurried.
A jolt of electricity speeds through me, leaving me dizzy.
“Your ex-husband deserves to have his cock handed to him. If I were unhappy with you, if you didn't satisfy me in every way imaginable—and I do mean every way—do you think I'd be here with you right now demanding to slip your panties in my pocket?”
I let those words sink into my head for a few moments before I avert my stare to the dials on the AC, embarrassed of myself for admitting my insecurities. What happened with Carter had left me feeling inadequate—like I'm not enough to satisfy anyone—and the words he tossed my way before he left haven’t stopped bothering me. In my head, I know it’s an archaic way of thinking, that I shouldn’t care about satisfying anyone but myself, but my heart is a different matter.
It’s so fragile. So easily manipulated.
I release a tremulous sigh, and Jace moves his lips slowly along the insides of my wrists again. “I want you, Lucy. So goddamn much there's a part of me that's considering starting this car, taking you home, and spending the night telling you just how incredible you are.” He lifts his gaze until we’re eye to eye. “I don’t think just right when I’m near you, but I can’t stop. I don’t want to stop.”
Nobody has ever said anything like this to me before, and for a moment, I feel that hopeful throb deep in my chest as heat spreads through every angle of my body.
“I know we can’t leave,” he says. “Because even though my Lucy is an absolute beast, the old Lucy’s in there too. The one who rode my ass for shirking my responsibilities when we were kids.”
“I should have kept my nose in my own business.”
Releasing my wrists, he frames my warm cheeks between his large hands and bends his head to scorch my lips with his. “We’re here only for a few minutes,” he promises. “Only to watch B show off the new table to his guests. After that, your ass is mine, so be ready.”
Hell, after what he did just moments ago, I'm already tingling in anticipation. I reach to open my door, but his rough fingertips close around my wrist. I look over my shoulder to see him shaking his head. “Panties first, love,” he orders.
I roll my eyes toward the ceiling of his Challenger as I lift my hips slightly to shimmy the lace down my legs. Once they're balled up in his fist, I give him a look of feigned surprise. “What, you're not going to sniff them?” I tease. But my throat goes dry when he thumbs the center.
He slides the lace into the front pocket of his jeans. “Sniffing knickers is for thirteen-year-old boys. I just like knowing there’s nothing beneath that red dress, so that at any time, I can make you come again. I like knowing that I have your panties in my pocket and no other man in that house can say the same. No other man can say they own your body.”
“So you're claiming my body for your own now?” My voice, thick with emotion and lust, doesn’t even sound like my own.
He rubs his palm over his stubble. When he lowers his hand from his mouth, my pulse jumps at his smirk. “You’ve been mine since that very first night.” He turns off the ignition and lets out a frustrated sound. “Let's get this the fuck over with so we can get on with the real fun.”
Twenty-Six
Lucy
The first—and only time—I went to one of Mr. B’s parties, all I did was stand around numbly, gawking at what was happening right in front of me. I don’t want to be that person this time, so when the homeowner himself answers the door, I force myself to relax. To my relief, he’s dressed in black lounge pants, his lack of a shirt showing off his impressive abs. He looks more like he’s ready for bed than for a night of debauchery. I step inside, recognizing a couple from the last party as they take off for the downstairs of the house.
“Ms. Williams, welcome back,” B murmurs as soon as the door is closed behind us and securely latched. He strides over to where Jace and I wait in the middle of the entryway. I come dangerously close to losing my balance when he drops a kiss so close to my mouth I can nearly taste his toothpaste. As soon as he pulls away, I feel the warmth from Jace’s body press against the back of mine.
I cast an anxious look over my shoulder, sucking in my lower lip at his strained expression. Returning my hazel gaze to the other man, I clear my throat. “Thank you for inviting me, we’re so excited to see the launch of your Sexy Susan.”
B’s lips quirk and he casts a curious look at Jace. “My Sexy Susan? You’ve given it an official name, Exley?”