STRIPPED DEFENSELESS
By Lia Slater
Copyright 2011 Lia Slater
More stories by Lia Slater can be found at her website
Smashwords Edition, License Notes
This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This eBook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
Stripped Defenseless is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are all created by the author and bear no connection or resemblance to actual events, persons, living or dead.
Chapter One
Ava Lureau snaked her leg around the silver pole, gripped it tightly with one hand, and slowly let her body fall until she twirled around. As she came to a stop, she planted her stilettos firmly onto the stage and whipped back the auburn locks of hair that covered her view of the front door.
It swung open and a group of whooping, whistling frat boys barged through, pushing and shoving their way into the club. Two of them began jumping up and down to the beat of the techno music blaring from the speakers.
Shit. Not these guys again.
Ava crawled on her hands and knees toward the man who had been her only audience for the past ten minutes. He hadn’t showed her any dollar bills yet, but he could keep her from having to dance for one of the obnoxious Alpha Betas or whatever the heck they called themselves.
At least Zack hadn’t walked through the door.
It had been seven months since she’d packed a single backpack and fled from his Washington, D.C. condo, but his words were still fresh in her mind. Try to leave me, bitch, and I’ll hunt you down and kill you.
Ava believed him, considering he’d almost taken her life once. After recovering from three broken ribs, too many bruises to count, and a concussion, she decided to take the chance and run like hell. She emptied her measly savings account, paid cash for a bus ticket to anywhere-but-here and ended up in Flagstaff, Arizona. Twenty-two hundred miles from home.
She’d gotten off the bus and immediately noticed the strip club. A Dancers Wanted sign hung in the window. She’d never once considered taking such a risqué job before, one that forced her to be the center of attention. And she was sure her ex-boyfriend would come to the same conclusion, which made it the perfect choice.
The owner of Hothouse Gentlemen’s Club hadn’t cared that she’d “lost” her identification. The only requirement had been a flash of her breasts, and she was in. And saved from having to let anyone know who she really was, a bookish college student with little to no social life.
A woman on the run.
How would Zack find her if Ava Lureau completely disappeared?
She learned a long time ago that Zack Moreno wasn’t a man to mess with or to underestimate. He worked for one of the most powerful senators on Capitol Hill. The right hand man who did the dirty work. Work that required a jaded heart and a sick mind—something Ava hadn’t realized until it was too late.
The simple fact that he hadn’t found her yet was a miracle of its own. In the two years she had known him, he’d always needed to have the last word, and she’d always let him. Until now.
She moved along the stage, closer to the tall man with the short dark hair and leather jacket. He appeared to be early to mid thirties. Attractive. Strong, stubborn chin and an angular jaw line. Lips that beckoned without saying a word. Brooding eyes. Hmm. How hadn’t she noticed his eyes were an alluring light blue before? Well, now that they were staring at her breasts that swayed with her movements...
Yep, they’re real, bud. Just not the hair and eyes. But he didn’t need to know that. No one did. It was part of the cover.
His ice cold gaze finally blinked as she lay out on her back in front of him, arching her spine and caressing her breasts.
Her nipples were tightly budded against the cold air that perpetually loomed in the club. That along with the icy tiled floor underneath her kept them taut. But she wouldn’t doubt her current customer’s avid attention was the cause of why they tingled and felt heavier than normal.
This guy had been coming in every evening for the past week, mostly sitting a good distance away. And as Ava took in his ruggedly handsome features, she couldn’t help but wonder why. He didn’t look like the type of man who would have a hard time finding a date.
Maybe he was recently divorced? Unhappily married? Looking for a distraction from his mundane world? Who knew?
She continued with her usual routine by sitting up and sweeping her hair back. The wispy tips glided against the man’s broad chest. Then she spread her legs apart in front of him and lifted her ass to sway her hips in the sexy way she’d learned from the other girls. His gaze left her breasts and traveled down to the thin strip of sheer black panty that barely covered her pussy.
For the first time since landing a job in this place, she found herself attracted to one of the patrons. And she had to admit, getting this gorgeous man off would be a huge turn on. Having a little fun, just this once, could be just what she needed to forget about her worries, if only for a few minutes.
But he seemed so stiff and serious, she couldn’t tell if he liked her or not.
To test it out, she abandoned her routine and spread her legs wider, running her finger from her crotch up to her navel.
His lip twitched.
She swerved her finger over her stomach, between her breasts, to her mouth where she sucked on the tip and then reached out and brushed it across his full lips.
His tongue ran over the damp path she’d left.
Ava never gave any particular man this much attention, especially if he wasn’t showing any dough. But this guy’s cut jaw line, piercing blue eyes, and powerful-looking mouth had her more than interested. She knew nothing would happen. Nothing could happen. But he’d make a mighty sweet dream when she hit the sheets tonight...alone.
“Do you want a lap dance?” she asked him, since Poppy had taken the stage behind her and the frat boys were beginning to close in. “Over there?” She pointed to a secluded corner of the club across the sea of clear plastic chairs and lavender laminate-covered tables that were each topped by a faux candle. Tacky to say the least, but once again, she put the thought out of her mind.
Without a word, he stood up to his six and a half foot height and offered her a hand off the stage. A large hand with long callused fingers. Masculine. No wedding ring.
Ava was tempted to curl her smaller hand around his palm, into his embrace, but remembered the house rules. “Sorry, the bouncers will be all over you in two seconds if you touch me.” She slid off the stage on her own. “You go. I’ll follow.”
The mysterious man turned on her order and began walking. The rear view of him didn’t look half bad either. His broad shoulders and wide back put the bouncers to shame. Unfortunately, his black leather blazer covered his ass, but she didn’t imagine it would be disappointing.
He stopped short in front of her and swiveled around. His well-built frame was a good foot higher than her height in heels. And as he stared down at her with a strange intensity, a cold sliver of fear crept down her spine.
Zack was about this tall.
That bastard just wouldn’t get out of her thoughts. No matter how red she dyed her hair, what color of contacts she wore or what job she had...a job she never dreamed she’d have the nerve to do in her previous life.
The mere thought was laughable. She’d been an excellent student, working hard to get her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree. And now here she was about to purposely arouse a complete stranger. It was part of the job, but there was something not quite right about this guy. Something unsettling.
Before she could get up the nerve to turn and leave the intimidating blue-eyed man, he lowered his body into a chair and tugged off his jacket.
His black T-shirt stretched against his muscular chest and ribbed stomach as he leaned back, letting his hands dangle at his side. He cocked his head while his wintry eyes engulfed her like a hunter examining his prey.
Everything about this guy told her to flee, to get the hell away from him and fast. As inconspicuously as possible, she swept a glance around the room, finding the nearest bouncer. Jarred, the two hundred twenty pound mass of muscle, met her gaze and gave her a slight nod. At least she had that.
“What’s your name?” The man’s deep voice drew her back.
Time for the show.
She stepped in between his massive legs, bringing her knee up to rest on his thigh. Her hands braced on his stone hard shoulders as she leaned forward and let her lips touch his ear. “Lily,” she answered in the sensual, playful voice used only inside these walls. The musky smell of his aftershave wafted up her nose, relaxing her a little. “What’s yours?” She pulled back, lightly brushing her mouth across his stubbly cheek.
“Is that your real name?” His voice rumbled across her jaw line, warming her cheek and prickling her skin.
Like she was going to tell him that. She smiled and rested her forehead against his, meeting his stare. “It’s whatever you want it to be.” She ran her fingers over his temple and through the soft curls on his head.
The coldness in his expression began to fade as he edged into her touch. Not so tough after all. He was just like any other guy who walked through the door, putty in a woman’s hand. But unlike any other man, he was holding her interest.
Ava brushed her breasts against his chest, and he sucked in a breath. Her nipples hardened achingly from the friction...and from his reaction. Or maybe it was because she hadn’t had sex in so long. It was lonely being on the run. Heck, who was she kidding? She’d always felt somewhat isolated. Even in a room full of people. And nothing or no one could ever quite squelch that glum feeling.
It might have had to do with the fact that she’d never had a real family. Her mother died when she was six. After the funeral, she moved in with her only other relative, an elderly aunt, until she passed away just after Ava's seventeenth birthday. From then on, her friends were her family. Well, what few friends she chose to have.
But none of that mattered at this moment.
“What’s your name?” she asked him again and ran her fingertips over the curve of his lips—full, powerful and tempting. She let her leg fall off his to straddle his solid thigh. Her pussy jolted from the contact, threatening to drench her panties, and him in the process. Damn.
Get a hold of yourself, Ava. She cleared her throat and tried to concentrate on the show.
“Kade,” he answered, without blinking.
“I love that name,” she lied. His name didn’t make a damn bit of difference to her, but his wallet did. Why the hell hadn’t he pulled it out yet? Maybe it was time to scoot along to the college boys. At least they came prepared. “And what do you do for a living, Kade?”
“Traveling salesman,” he murmured.
“Oh, and does that pay a lot?” she asked, hoping he’d take the hint. A girl had to eat.
He eyed her lips as he spoke. “Enough to get what I need.” Then his gaze slowly lifted to meet hers. “And what I desire.”
She held her breath for a moment as she took in his seductive tone and penetrating blue eyes. There was no doubt he was used to getting everything he wanted with or without having to pay. Hell, she was proof of that as she stood there pressing her mostly naked body against his hard, masculine chest, massaging her fingers over his scalp, down his neck and up again.
She should move on, but something was keeping her in his presence. It was an odd mixture of feeling protected and scared shitless at the same time. Imagining waking up enveloped in his strong arms was the clincher. It had been a long time since she’d felt that comfort.
Ava swiveled around, angled her ass against his groin, and swayed her hips as she ground into his jeans. The bulge in his pants grew, hardening against her bottom. As she realized the extent of his length and thickness, her body heated, and her pussy pulsed with need.
She wondered how he would feel inside of her, filling her, stretching her. This place was all about fantasy anyway. Usually the patron’s fantasy, but what was the harm in indulging her imagination just this once? With this man, who she was sure could have any woman he chose?
The coarse hardness of his jeans grazed her ass and, as she rolled her hips back just so, she felt the solid column of his erection against her center. Her cheeks flushed with sudden awareness, and her pulse thundered in her chest. She’d done this a hundred times before but not once had she enjoyed it, not once had her head spun with possibilities.
Before she could snap out of her haze, his hand slid around her waist, down her pelvis and began rubbing against the thin, now-wet strip of cloth covering her pussy. She didn’t push him away. She couldn’t. The shock from the pleasure he brought her was too overwhelming.
Jarred and the other two bouncers were busy throwing one of the drunken boys out of the club. Good. She leaned against Kade’s solid chest and let her eyes roll back. His long rough finger forced the strip of useless panty aside and dipped into her wetness. She caught her breath, both startled and excited by his boldness...and how hot she was for him. God, how long had it been since she’d been touched like this?
“Does that feel good?” His deep voice rumbled into her ear as his finger kneaded into a sensitive spot deep inside her snug walls.
She nodded, paralyzed to move any other part of her body—one single finger bringing her close to a fast climax. Rough, long, and deep, it slid up into her slick channel. Then out as it rubbed against her sensitive clit. Then in. Out. In. Oh, God. This was crazy. Never had she let a stranger do something so personal and in such a public place. And with her job at risk too.
Her thighs weakened with slices of pleasure cutting through them. She panted and dug her fingers into his muscled legs as her pussy danced with tiny pulses.
Before she could come or pull away, he drew his hand back and dropped it at his side, leaving her empty and cold. “I want to continue this somewhere private,” he said, sounding confident he’d get his wish.
Focus, focus, focus.
Ava gulped and straightened. Her legs wobbled underneath her as she gathered her wits and readjusted her panties as casually as possible. She should be used to men coming on to her, treating her like a piece of meat, but this time had been different. This time she’d let herself be vulnerable.
“I’m not a whore,” she said over her shoulder, suddenly feeling completely naked in more ways than one.
She puffed out a breath, irritated with herself for allowing him to touch her, and for liking it too much to stop. Just how far would she have let him go? How far did she still want it to go? His proposal was annoyingly tempting.
“That’s good because I’m not going to pay you.” He stood up behind her, dropping his head to right above her neck. His warm, cinnamon breath swept across her bare shoulders. “Just finish the job I already started.”
She spun around and perched her hands on her hips, wanting him to know she wasn’t intimidated by his brashness. With a bravado she didn’t feel, she looked up into his pale blue eyes, swallowed her rising nerves, and said, “Why are you still here?”
He quirked up his mouth to a smirk. “I’m not a man who likes to waste time, Lily.” He said her name with all the falseness they both knew it contained.
“I’m not a woman who jumps on command,” she snapped back. The guy had a lot of nerve.
“No?” His eyebrows squinted together as he lifted the guilty finger and licked it, his tongue consuming the bodily juices that still clung to his skin. Her juices. He winked. “Sure tastes like you do.”
A surge of heat pulsed where his finger had once been, but she did her best to ignore it. “Sorry, sweetie.” She gave him a once-over and desperately tried to look unimpressed. “I don’t fraternize with the customers.”
A sexy grin spread across his face. “Room 112 at the hotel across the street. Come over when you’re done here. You won’t regret it.”
Before she could respond, he grabbed his coat and headed across the room toward the door.
* * * * *
Kade Gavin stepped out into the biting cold air and finally let out a breath. What the hell was he thinking? It was as if the woman had put a spell on him and made him forget his whole purpose for being in there. He had lost his entire focus when she moved against him in her seductive way. Her lush, petite body at his fingertips had pushed him over the edge. Almost to the point of picking her up in his arms and removing her from that shit hole of a joint. He shook the vision out of his thick skull.
He had a mission to complete and none of it involved being anyone’s knight in shining armor. Just the opposite, actually.
What a fool he was for telling her his real name. “Fuck,” he muttered and stepped across the street.
He’d been watching her for the past few days. As a PI, it was his job to observe, but it had never resulted with him getting a hard-on or fantasizing about his target’s full breasts under his caress. But the fantasies had built up every time he saw her swaying her hips on that stage or wrapping her toned legs around that pole.
“Knock it off, Kade,” he mumbled as he reached his hotel room. He was doing it again. Envisioning. Imagining. What was so different about her? None of the other women at the club had this arousing affect on him.
Get a grip. This was a job. If she showed up later, he’d play it off. It would help if he knew she was definitely the girl he was looking for, the one he was being paid to hunt down. But he wasn’t positive.
Take away the red hair and those obvious brown contacts, and maybe she could pass as the petite woman in the fuzzy photo he’d been given. It was all the information he had besides the description Zack Moreno had given him—long blonde hair, green eyes, and full C-cup. Not much to go on, but at least that had cut it down to two prospects. The one who called herself Poppy fit the description to a T, and then of course there was Lily, trying so hard to disguise herself.
He walked into the hotel room and fell onto the bed. His mind raced as he let the name slide off his tongue. “Ava Lureau.”
I’m coming to get you.
* * * * *
Snow lightly fell around Ava as she stood outside her hotel room. A chill wind blew past so she pinched her jean jacket shut. The pink and blue neon sign “Girls, Girls, Girls” buzzed across the street. Three months ago, she’d chosen this place because of its convenient location...and because they took cash and didn’t ask for identification.
But now she wished she were anywhere but here. She was too close to the mysterious blue-eyed stranger. Two rooms down to be exact.
The temptation to knock on his door was overwhelming.
She was more than entranced by the tall, broad-shouldered man who had branded a desire in her so deep she ached to have it quenched.
And spending another lonely night in a cold, bland hotel room all by herself wasn’t exactly a thrilling thought. Waking in the middle of the night whenever she heard strangers outside her room window didn’t warm her heart too much either. It was frightening to think she was a thin door away from some depraved lunatic. Or Zack Moreno.
Was there a difference?
She shook his image from her head once again.
She should be used to being alone, but the fantasy of having a safe, normal life with a loving husband and family always crept into her mind. It was silly, really. The only thing she needed to concentrate on now was survival, and if that meant being on her own for the rest of her days, then so be it.
“You’ve got the wrong room,” a deep familiar voice said behind her.
Ava swung around to see Kade standing less than two feet away with sprinkles of snow falling onto his dark hair and a brown paper bag in his hand.
“No. No I haven’t.” She backed up against her door and pulled the key from her jean jacket pocket. “See?”
He stepped closer and towered over her. “You have a room here.” It was a statement, not a question. He stared at her with a blank expression. “Why? And for how long?”
His leather blazer opened as he reached inside to pull out his own key. She fought back the urge to wrap her arms around his waist and cuddle up against him, indulging in the warmth of his body.
“Uh, not too long. My house is, um, being fumigated,” she said, using the same lie she’d used at least a dozen times in the past couple of months.
“Your house? Is it near here?”
“Why do you want to know?” No one else had cared to ask, and she hadn’t quite worked out that detail of her fabricated life yet.
“Just curious.” His mouth quirked up to half a grin. “Want to get out of the cold? Your lips are turning blue.” He rattled the bag in his hand and caressed her face with a gaze that warmed her insides. “A beer and some company on a chilly night?”
Company. What a concept. Besides work, she didn’t allow herself to have that.
For a good reason.
She opened her mouth to say no, but a pang of loneliness deep in her chest forced her to close it. Her dark, dreary room was all that awaited her. The stiff comforter that never quite warmed her. The small television that had a lousy signal. The romance novel she’d read for the hundredth time. The telephone that never rang.
It all sounded so bleak and depressing. And cold. God, why was she always so cold?
She looked at Kade and could almost see the warmth emanating from him. How would it feel to be wrapped up against him for one night?
What could it hurt? One night with a gorgeous man.
Ava nodded once and gestured toward his room. Her room was out of the question since she couldn’t remember if she’d hidden her contact case or thrown away the bottle of medium auburn brown hair dye—or any other self-incriminating evidence. Not that she was a criminal. Far from it. But she was a survivor. If anything was true, it was that. And she didn’t want to make any stupid mistakes to jeopardize the only thing she had going for—her beating heart.
Beating faster every second she was in Kade’s company.
As Ava Lureau, never would she have thought of going into a strange man’s hotel room, but as Lily, it almost seemed natural. Besides, what if he turned out to be someone she could trust? How wonderful would it be to have someone on her side? To protect her, to keep her safe...to fight for her. Maybe she was being unrealistic and foolish, but what could she possibly have to lose that she hadn’t already? Just this once she’d allow herself to play out a fantasy to see where it took her.
He led her to his room, unlocked the door, and waved a hand toward the dimly lit room. “After you.”
* * * * *
Kade pulled the six-pack out of the paper bag and set it in the mini refrigerator that also served as a nightstand. “Would you like a beer?” he asked as he used his foot to nonchalantly slide his duffle bag farther under the queen-sized bed.
“No thanks.”
He eyed Lily, taking in her nervous lip biting and the way she tapped her three-inch heels on the carpet. She stood guarded by the door with her arms crossed. Tomorrow he needed to find out exactly how long she’d been living out of a hotel room, where this mysterious house of hers was or if it even existed.
But tonight the only burning question on his mind was if she was going to scream or score her nails into his back when he made her come. It was all he could think about ever since he’d had a taste of her. Whoever she was.
After draping his coat over the wooden chair by the desk, he closed the distance between them and lifted his hand to cradle her flushed cheek. His other hand wrapped around her tiny waist and gathered her up against him.
“I’ve never done this,” she murmured just as he was about to kiss her glossy rose-colored lips.
“Done what?” He pecked at them, sampling their strawberry flavor and wanting more. It was just how he’d imagined they’d taste.
“Had a one night stand.” She looked up at him with the combined expression of naivety, lust and fear. “I mean, that’s what it would be, right? I don’t know anything about you other than you travel a lot and sell... What do you sell?”
“Software,” he answered simply. Of course it was a lie, but she didn’t need to know that.
She gave him a nervous smile. “So you’re smart then, right? I like smart men. Although, I’ll admit you don’t look like much of a computer geek.” She let out a giggle and then stopped abruptly, her smile faded to a frown. “Oh geez, not that I’m calling you a geek. I just—”
Kade brushed his finger over her lip, quieting her, growing desperate to strip the anxious smile off her face and the clothes off her body. “Why don’t we pretend that we knew each other many years ago?” He kept his voice even. “When we were both innocent and life was easier.”
A time like that didn’t exist for him, but he was sure it must have for the petite woman in his arms. Someone must have loved and protected her from the evils of the world at some point in her life. How could they have not?
Her dark coppery eyebrows knitted together as she seemed to mull his idea over. Suddenly, one of them arched up. “Did we used to play doctor?” she asked with a cute grin.
“Yes.” At this point he’d say anything to keep her in his arms, to have her soft breasts crushed against his chest. “And I always made you feel better when you were sick...or happy when you were sad.” God, that was corny. But at least she hadn’t backed off yet.
“Oh.” Her delicate fingers trembled as they fluttered along his neckline and then settled on his shoulders.
He grew achingly hard in his jeans, wanting to relax her and give her the pleasure he knew she hungered for. He fought back the questions racing through his mind.
Was this the woman Zack Moreno was looking for? And if so, what was her fate? He couldn’t let himself care. That wasn’t part of the job. Caring. All he needed to do was seize the target, deliver it to its destination, take the money, and never look back.
It was cut-and-dried. Or at least it always had been before.
She rose onto the tips of her toes to press a kiss on his lingering lips. He inhaled the innocent fruity scent and slid his tongue into her mouth searching for more.
A soft purr rumbled from her throat, and her hand traveled down, down, down his abdomen until her fingertips lightly brushed over his jean-covered erection.
So much for focusing on his job.
He shoved off her jean jacket, let it drop to the floor, and began unbuttoning her pink sweater. She was braless underneath; he could tell from the dark aroused nipples piercing against the thinly knitted material. Each button unfastened with ease, and he made quick work of it before she came to her senses and walked away.
Before she realized what a selfish bastard he was for taking advantage of her. Didn’t she sense it? The danger she was in?
He fought the struggle within himself. Tell her to run. Tell her to not use her credit card the next time she forgets and mistakenly hands it to the clerk to pay for her box of tampons.
That’s how he had found her. That’s why as soon as he pinpointed his exact target and seized it, he was going to take the money and not give a fuck what happened next. Business as usual.
Damn woman.
He picked her up in his arms and dropped her on the bed with more force than he had intended. More than she had counted on from the startled look on her face.
But still she let him unzip her jean mini skirt and ease it down her legs. Tug her black, dainty panties down her smooth thighs and drop them alongside the rest of her scattered clothes.
The dim lamplight poured over her naked body, and he took in the beautiful sight of her shaved pussy. Completely bald. Not a single hair to determine if she was a real redhead. He smirked, not all that surprised. He’d thought as much when she’d spread her legs for him on the stage at the strip joint. The panties she’d had on barely covered her.
He shut out the thought of her doing that same dance for any man who walked in those doors and let himself pretend he was special. After all, she was here with him now. And if he believed her words, then she didn’t do this often, or ever.
If it was true, he would make this worth her while.
His cock tightened and his mouth watered as his taste buds anticipated licking and tasting her soft, smooth pussy. He dipped his head and kissed her mound just once, as an appetizer for what was to come. Her honey musk scent drugged him as he drew in a breath and grinned. Good enough to eat.
One thing was apparent—the woman made him smile when everything and everyone else in his world left him annoyed and angry.
He watched her curvy body quiver as he ripped his T-shirt over his head and slowly unbuckled his belt. He wanted to tease her like she’d teased him. Make her want him like he wanted her.
She caressed her round plump breasts, and his cock throbbed and swelled against his zipper. When her pink tongue darted over her lips, wetting them, he couldn’t hold back any longer. He shoved down his jeans and boxers in one swift motion. Her tanned legs spread apart to welcome him, and he stifled a groan. God, where did this woman come from?
Hurrying his pace, he reached underneath the bed, pulled out a condom, and wrapped it over his swollen cock.
Ava Lureau or not, she wanted him. Who was he to refuse her?
Chapter Two
Ava rested her hands on his massive chest when he wedged himself between her thighs. She couldn’t keep from staring at him. Every inch of his naked body was toned to perfection, leaving her craving to trace her fingers over the strength of his muscles. He had a few scars here and there, but the one that grabbed her attention was the circular indentation on his left shoulder.
A gunshot wound? She lightly brushed her hand over it.
“Iraq,” he murmured as if that would explain how he’d been shot. And sadly, it did. Obviously, he’d been in combat. He’d fought for their country. Which had to mean he was a man of integrity, a man of honor. Right?
She clenched her eyes shut and tried to stop her bustling mind from over-analyzing. This was sex with a hot guy and nothing more. He was nothing more.
He dug his fists into the mattress on either side of her head before dipping his mouth to softly kiss her top lip and then her bottom. His tongue slipped between the two, parting them. Gently, patiently—a kiss she’d never experienced from a man.
He baited her, and Ava responded by opening for him, sliding her tongue along his. He tasted of a mixture of cinnamon, quiet confidence, and restrained power.
Who was he? She didn’t even know his last name, but every fiber of fear in her body was disappearing as he manipulated her mouth with his skilled tongue. It owned her and she wasn’t protesting.
His large, hardened cock pressed against the wetness between her thighs, tempting her. She could only imagine what he was going to feel like inside.
Daring to seek more, she lifted her pelvis and grazed her pussy against his hard shaft. He was thicker and larger than either of the two lovers she’d had in the past. And she was sure he would bring sensations that would stretch and push her to limits she’d never known.
“Fuck me,” she heard herself saying, impatiently, shocking herself.
His eyes opened and met hers, no longer the ice-cold color, but a blue that reminded her of a tantalizing hot, bubble bath.
Ava took a desperately needed breath. “Please.”
He grinned, sensually, devilishly, as if he had plans beyond her realm of fantasy. She pursed her mouth shut, thinking she’d most likely bitten off more than she could chew.
His upper half dropped onto his elbows, resting his solid chest against her sensitive breasts. She prepared herself for the roughness she thought he was capable of, but instead, she received soft kisses down her jaw line onto her neck. He licked the crevice behind her ear and gently nibbled a path to the area just above her shoulder.
Ava trembled at his touch and wrapped her legs around his waist, preparing for him to enter her, wanting nothing more.
But he didn’t. Instead, he trailed licks and kisses in between her breasts and down her abdomen to her navel, his body moving down, brushing against her sensitive pussy. Her nerves zapped and tingled, and her skin shivered with need.
“You’re teasing me,” she said.
“You’re too impatient,” he mumbled as his fingers spread her folds.
His powerful lips smiled at her before he descended and slid his warm tongue against her clit. He licked slowly, forcefully, commanding her to whimper his name. Kade. It felt like sex rolling off her tongue.
Every nerve in her body was on fire, burning for him. She ran her hands down her neck to her breasts as he sucked and nibbled on her nub. The rising pressure was almost too much to take, and just as she thought she would burst, he plunged his tongue inside her slit. His fingertips bit into her thighs as he greedily took her with his mouth. She spread her legs farther apart, enjoying his uninhibited exploration, loving how he groaned as he tasted her. A new sensation built inside her slowly...steadily.
Then she felt him pull away, leaving the cold air biting into her wet skin. “Wait,” she pleaded, not wanting the pleasure to end. She’d almost reached climax. So close. So good.
His hot breath returned as his teeth skimmed her aching clitoris. “I’m not done yet,” he murmured and lightly bit her swollen nub. “Not by a long shot.”
Panting, Ava tilted her head back against the mattress and waited as he climbed up her body. He was torturing her at his leisure. Again. His MO, it seemed. But she held her tongue, waging it would be worth it in the end.
He kissed the same path he’d branded on the way down but stopped at her breasts. The warmth of his mouth slanted against her nipple as he sucked and ardently ran his tongue over it.
A searing pang threaded through her nerves from her breast to her core, making her writhe and arch against him. “Oh, God,” she said and caressed his face, infatuation and hunger covering it. “Please, Kade.”
The low light from the single lamp cast wicked shadows off his eager eyes as he met her gaze. The tip of his hot tongue scored her as he ran it down the valley between her breasts and up to her other budded nipple. He tugged at the sensitive flesh with his teeth before sucking it into his mouth and giving it equal treatment.
All the while, he never once broke eye contact. No, his gaze silently promised her this night wasn’t going to end any time soon. Heat coiled in her womb, and she let out a small moan.
A pathetic excitement surged through her at the thought of being in this man’s arms tonight rather than alone in a cold bed. Absolutely pathetic.
Ava wondered if he’d look at her that way if he knew who she really was and what she was running from. If he’d take the chance of falling for a woman who was frightened enough to leave everything behind and hide shamelessly in a strip club, the only place where she could make money and stay under wraps.
Would she ever be able to come out and live normally, fall in love, and start a family?
He released her nipple and gently swept his wet lips up her neck, pressed a kiss on her chin and then her cheek. She relaxed against his sweet, slow pecks and the warmth of his breath across her face.
How simple it would be to let her guard down and expose her true identity. How easy it would be to get used to being loved by a man like this.
So gentle and caring.
* * * * *
Kade slipped two fingers inside her. She was soaking wet and, unbelievably hot and tight...too tight for him to fit his full length in without hurting her.
He slid in a third finger and worked them in and out until she began to loosen.
Finally.
The tips of her fingernails trailed up and down his back. He wished she would just dig them in and get it over with. Teach him a lesson for being such an arrogant prick. All he wanted her for was instant gratification. A quick fuck, in other words, and he couldn’t bring himself to care if she deserved more.
Kade Gavin wasn’t a man who stuck around to see if the scenery was good enough to pitch a tent. He wanted—no, he needed to keep going.
Without another thought, he rammed the head of his cock inside her slick, tight walls. He looked into her eyes to see if he had hurt her. But there wasn’t anything but the dead, blandness of her colored contacts staring back at him. Nothing. She was nothing to him. Why would he worry what happened to her now or ever?
“Don’t stop,” she whispered into the air between their lips.
On her words, he drew out halfway and drove back in as far as he could. He felt the pain of her fingernails cutting into him. “Sorry,” he mumbled into her ear. “You okay?”
“Yes,” she said too quickly and then bit into her bottom lip.
“Really?” He chuckled. “Are you sure about that?”
Her mouth turned up in a wicked grin, and her cute little nose crinkled. Kade nearly lost his breath at the sight of her softer side coming through the disguise.
“I can handle you just fine.” She tilted her hips up, letting him farther into her snug little pussy. “What are you waiting for?”
He held back the thundering desire to pump into her without caution. But no matter what words came out of her mouth, her soft, petite body told him different. She was more fragile than she was letting on. He couldn’t help but wonder if that was a trait she had outside of the bedroom as well.
Her pelvis sloped up against him, and Kade obliged her by inching his way out and back in. She was slick and almost painfully tight.
He parted her rigid lips with his tongue and kissed them. Gentle pecks to relax her. Like the rest of her body, her mouth was too eager as she crushed it hard against his. He slipped his tongue in and curved it alongside hers, so sweet and enchanting. She tasted like pink bubblegum, like innocence.
Someone who needed to be protected rather than hunted.
A purring moan rumbled from the back of her throat, and her walls began to stretch and loosen for him. She molded to his size, allowing him to pull out farther and delve in faster. His dick throbbed with the need for release, the primal urge to claim her body. Perspiration beaded his forehead as he held back. He never let a lover down, and he wouldn’t start now, no matter how this woman affected him.
“Mmm,” she moaned into his mouth and tore away from his kiss, tilting her head back against the mattress.
He smiled to himself and steadied his pace, slowly kneading his cock into her. Her fingernails scraped down his back again, so he grabbed her hands and tacked them down above her head.
Enough of that. He wanted her to scream now.
“Let me hear you,” he demanded.
She moaned louder, and he thrust deeper, every inch of him filling her, slick and unbearably hard.
“Kade,” she called out. “Oh, Kade.”
“Come for me,” he whispered into her ear and burrowed his forehead into her long strawberry-colored hair that splayed out over the pillow. Anything to take his mind off reaching orgasm before she did.
Her body shuddered under his as she screamed out his name one more time, her taut pussy squeezing his cock. His balls tightened as she milked him with her orgasm.
Oh, God. With all the strength he could gather, he drove into her one more time and released his pent-up heat, collapsing hard onto her small body.
* * * * *
Ava woke from too deep of a sleep and blinked repeatedly. The contacts in her eyes blurred the dark shadows around the room. The only thing reminding her where she lay was a strong muscular arm tightly wrapped around her waist, pinning her against the warm, hard flesh of his chest.
How was she going to get out of this?
Why would she want to? It was amazing. She felt safe for the first time in months, no, years.
Her eyes began to water, begging for the irritating, foreign objects to be removed. God, she hated those things. If only she didn’t need them. Unfortunately, she didn’t have a choice. They were part of the disguise.
Carefully, she unpeeled his fingers from the underside of her waist and planted them on the vacant spot she left as she rose. She observed his dark silhouette, large and intimidating. Only moments ago, he had been filling her with ecstasy with that same body.
How long had it been anyway? Ava squinted to see the green neon numbers on the clock by the bed. A quarter after six. It was still dark outside, but a beam of light shone from the bathroom.
She followed the path, closed the door behind her, and looked in the mirror. Her eyes were reddened and somewhat puffy. She had no choice but to remove the contacts.
With nowhere to store them, she let the water from the faucet carry them down the drain. It was time for a fresh pair anyway and, lord, did it feel good to have them out.
The image in the mirror was less distorted now. She ran her hands through her messy hair and remembered how it had gotten that way. Never had she been so satisfied by a man. A delightful thrill flickered throughout her body as she thought back to how Kade had pleasured her so thoroughly.
She splashed cold water on her face, but the trickles of wetness that ran down her neck to the tips of her sensitive nipples flustered her more. Her fingers followed the damp path but didn’t stop at her breasts.
With a mind of its own, her hand lowered until she cupped her tender mound. She instantly recalled how Kade had fucked her there. Meticulously. Completely.
An undeniable smile curved her lips. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. Spreading her legs farther apart, she carefully stroked her hand across her smooth folds, against her tender nub, savoring the soreness.
Kade’s tongue had worked that area with precision. She exhaled and allowed the self-indulgent fantasy of being in his arms for many nights to come, not just this once. The idea was foolish, but it warmed her, making the harsh, fluorescent lights of the bathroom that pierced through her closed lids disappear. So much so that she didn’t realize when he opened the door and stepped behind her.
She opened her eyes to see him there, grinning at first but then narrowing both his mouth and his stare.
“They’re blue,” he said, looking intently at where her brown contacts had once been.
“I know,” was all she could say. She had been caught in the lie, the disguise, and now there was nothing she could say to defend herself.
His mouth slowly formed into a full-out smile, and he looked happier than she’d ever thought a man like him could. “They’re not green.”
“Or brown,” Ava added. Had he forgotten already? Sheesh.
She looked at herself in the mirror again, abruptly remembering the compromising position he had found her in. As inconspicuously as possible, she removed her hand from her pussy and planted it at her side, repositioning her legs back together in the process.
He chuckled behind her and her cheeks warmed.
“Don’t stop because of me. I’d love to watch.” He placed his large rough hand over hers. “Or help.”
Their fingers intertwined as he led her hand back down, past her navel, over her mound. Ava held her breath and met his stare through the mirror. His light blue eyes seemed to sparkle at her darker, grayer version.
His foot guided her legs into a wider stance as he pressed his erection against her lower back. Combined fingers moved together to delve into her wetness, cramming between her sensitive walls. With her other hand, she held tight to the edge of the bathroom counter. That and Kade’s free arm wrapped snug under her breasts were the only things holding her up—her trembling legs were useless.
His long fingers bypassed hers and plunged farther up inside of her. “I think you’re ready for me,” he said with a raspy voice into her ear. “Don’t move. I’ll be right back.”
Before she could respond, he withdrew his hand and body and left her there, weak with desire. Less than a second later, he appeared behind her again. A crinkling sound could only mean he had retrieved a condom and was preparing himself to enter her.
She gulped in anticipation, now fastening both hands on the counter as she waited for him.
One of his strong hands gripped her waist while the other leaned her over, nudging gently against her back. She followed his lead without argument and ignored the tiny voice in her head telling her to stop the foolishness and leave.
Her breasts brushed against the cold tiled sink, contrasting with her scorching skin. She could still see him through the mirror. His expression was heated and full of passion.
His fingers ran down her back to her bare ass. He gripped her butt cheeks forcefully, spreading them as his eyes took in the sight. “I want to fuck you so hard,” he said through his teeth.
Turned on by his words, she dropped her head, bracing for the threat to take place. All signs of sanity hid deep in the corners of her mind while lust throbbed and thrived.
The rough fingers around her waist grew tighter, piercing her with delightful pain as he rubbed his hard cock over the sensitive area between her anus and her drenched entrance.
“Do you want me?” he asked with a deep rumbling voice and then inched the head of his penis into her slick channel.
Ava held her breath. Perspiration moistened her cheeks and forehead. She nodded once before he had a reason to pull out and leave her filled with want.
“I need a better answer than that, Lily.” His cock slid in only slightly. “Do you want me?”
Frustrated, she attempted to maneuver her hips to get him in further, but he held her still. “Yes, I want you to fuck me.”
With a fast and powerful thrust, he filled her. Ava gasped and nearly lost her footing as the wicked pleasure surged through her body.
Quickly, his arms wrapped around her, steadying her. “I thought you could handle me?” he asked in a teasing voice.
“I haven’t asked you stop, have I?” The presence of his hardness inside her pussy made her anxious for friction. “Can we quit talking now?”
A devil’s grin appeared on his face, and he bent her over again but with more force this time. She grasped the edge of the counter as his left arm gripped around her waist and his right hand slid past her hip and over her mound to her clit.
Two fingers rubbed in a circular motion over her sensitive nub as he pulled his ever-increasing erection out of her and then slowly eased it back in. A moan left her throat as he continued this same steady motion.
Again, her legs lost their balance as a climax threatened to paralyze her with its enormity. A blaze of fire twisted and smoldered deep in her womb as she gasped for air. She’d never experienced such a powerful sensation. And now she didn’t know how she would ever want it any other way. Who else could bring her this much pleasure?
“Kade,” she called out as she hit what she thought was the pinnacle of titillation. But then he hastened his pace, slamming into her, winding her to an even higher level of ecstasy. “Oh, God, yes, Kade.”
Her scream echoed in the small bathroom as she collapsed against the sink, her entire body pulsing...tingling...rushing with heat.
“This isn’t working,” he grumbled from behind. Or at least that was what she thought he said as he pulled out of her and picked her up in his arms. Her mind was still cloudy, and her body still pulsed uncontrollably.
They left the bathroom, and before Ava knew which way was up, she was dropped face down on the bed.
* * * * *
Kade despised uncomfortable sex. And the way he wanted to fuck Lily required a much safer backdrop to do it against. He spread her legs as she lay on her stomach. Then he kneeled on the mattress between them, staring down at her lush ass. This promised to be a better position. He gripped her hips and forced her ass towards his welcoming cock. “Much better.”
He slid his finger into her wet hot pussy, worshiping her creamy silken entrance. So perfectly tight. Then he pulled out, listening carefully to the sound of her syrupy liquid against his movement. A careening rush of blood surged to the head of his swollen cock, and he held back a groan.
The harsh light from the bathroom shone on her beautiful face as she turned her head and stared at him over her shoulder. He licked his finger and tasted the juice that was her. Her cum was so sweet. He’d have to remember to get more of that later.
Right now all he wanted to do was swipe that desperate look off her face. It was as if she’d never been screwed properly. That was a shame. A tight pussy like hers deserved special treatment. Repeatedly. And since she wasn’t the green-eyed Ava Lureau, he could do it as often as she’d let him.
He ran his hands over her beautifully rounded ass and spread her folds apart with his thumbs. His cock swelled painfully as he crowded it against her slit and eased in his engorged head. Her drenched pussy constricted and seemed to suck him in. He hissed in a breath and steadied his legs. God, she was perfect.
Out of the corner of one deep blue eye, she still stared at him, so he tilted his head toward her. “You’re very quiet down there.”
“I’m waiting for something to happen,” she snapped back at him.
Such a sassy girl, she was. Kade loved it. She was a woman he could verbally spar with without getting bored—the kind that would bite back when bitten.
“Well?” She turned to face the mattress in front of her.
With that, he felt he had no choice but to teach her a lesson. He slapped his hand firmly against her ass and then drove his cock inside her, deep and mercilessly. Her tight, slick walls engulfed him, all of him.
He noticed her hands clench the comforter when he pulled back and slammed into her a second time.
“Don’t stop,” she said.
“I’ve only just begun.” He hoped, anyway, wanting to give her an experience she wouldn’t soon forget.
He plunged harder and faster as he dug his fingers into her hips. His balls ground against her moist flesh with each thrust. He was going to burst soon. She felt so good. So right. At least, she seemed to be enjoying herself as she moaned and writhed against the bed. Sweet sounds that made him want more.
Her pussy contracted, clutching him. He watched his throbbing cock, slick with her juices, slide out of her and back in. His pulse raced and his gut knotted, pleading for release. The air in the room was thick as he drew in heavy breaths. He steadied and sped up his rhythm.
“Ohmigod, Kade!” she screamed. Again.
That was all he could take. He crashed into her one last time, letting his cum fill the protective barrier between them.
His body wanted to drop onto hers in exhaustion, but he held himself up in fear he would crush her. Instead, he withdrew and lay by her side.
She looped a damp, sweaty lock of dark red hair behind her ear and smiled at him through heavy breaths. Her face was flushed, her cheeks pink, her lips moist and full. Absolutely beautiful.
Kade imagined it wouldn’t be difficult waking up to see that face every morning. In fact, it would be a pleasure. If it was possible for a man like him to settle down and get married.
He’d screwed up that likelihood a long time ago when he escaped his father’s fists by joining the army. Four years later, after being shot in the shoulder by a sniper, Kade returned home to find his mother dead and buried and his father in prison for life.
He’d failed to protect the one person who mattered to him, the one person who loved him. He didn’t deserve a family, a second chance.
With his mom dead and his second family, the army, declaring him useless, he’d gone independent. It suited him. PI work paid well, he was good at it, and he never had to get close to anyone. Ever.
* * * * *
Ava rolled over and cuddled up next to Kade’s chest, crushing her breasts against him and running her fingers through his thick dark hair. “Thank you,” she whispered. “That was incredible.”
His face softened to her touch only for an instant before the ice in his eyes thickened. He slipped away and stood from the bed, then gestured toward the condom. “Better get rid of ole faithful.”
Here it goes.
Ava sighed and pulled the stiff comforter over her bare body. Why had she let herself spin daydreams that Kade might be that guy? The one who would rescue her from Zack Moreno...and herself. What a joke. Hadn’t she figured it out by now? The only one who could save her was herself.
She listened as the toilet flushed and then watched him as he walked back to the bed with a tight grin on his face. He pulled his jeans on and zipped them up, all the while avoiding eye contact.
“Want a beer?” he asked as if they’d just finished watching a football game together instead of making passionate love twice. He opened the mini refrigerator and pulled out a bottle.
“I get it,” she mumbled and began scanning the dimly lit room for any trace of her clothing. She spotted her panties and scooped them up.
“What do you get, exactly?” He twisted the cap off, not giving her his full attention and not seeming to give a crap what her answer would be.
“I’m supposed to leave before it gets awkward.” She pulled her panties on and picked up her skirt and sweater.
“Come on, you said yourself this was a one night stand.” He took a swig of his beer and then set it down on top of the fridge. “I don’t even know your real name.”