Page 31

Kenna

My stomach tightened into an excited knot when I parked in the alley behind the shop, beside Puck’s bike. The entire drive home, I’d hoped he’d be there when I got home. I’d spent most of the night thinking about him, forcing myself not to text him.

I wasn’t desperate and wouldn’t act like it. But I really did miss him.

With a groan, I dropped my forehead to the steering wheel.

I’d spent the better part of three days wading through the slog of my emotions.

I was attracted to Puck, had been for years.

But now? That desire was all-consuming. And there were all the soft parts, the gooey center of that relationship that made me want to say things I’d never thought I’d say to anyone.

Feel things I didn’t think possible.

But was I projecting? David had kicked me out, and Puck had saved me like he always did.

Hero worship, table for one.

I definitely couldn’t be falling for Puck Kelly. Because that would never work.

A brief flicker of hope lit in my belly when I remembered hanging out with Puck and Eli at the Fall Fest. Then the memory of JoJo’s words stamped it out before I could open the back door to the tattoo shop.

At ten at night, the place was jumping. People filled up the small waiting room as the hum and buzz of tattoo guns threaded through conversation. Puck’s office door was open and while I considered popping in, I thought better of it and marched up the stairs.

I wasn’t his girlfriend, for crying out loud.

At the top of the stairs sat a fat manilla envelope with my name printed neatly on the front. I opened it to see a stack of cash. I counted it as I slowly went back down the stairs. Hmmm, almost exactly what I’d left laying on David’s floor during my fight with Nadine.

“Did you leave this upstairs?” I waved the envelope around in front of my face.

Puck was perched on a stool at the large drafting desk, back to the door, sketching.

His cut was off, hanging on the back of his desk chair closest to me.

The muscles in his shoulders and back moved as his arm danced over the paper in front of him.

He half looked up before answering. “No. David came by earlier.”

The emotions I’d tried to stash away came rushing back, all tossed around and uncertain. “Oh.”

He didn’t ask me what it was, though he probably had a good idea. Instead, he surprised me by turning all the way around, body relaxed, but genuine concern on his handsome face. “You good?”

“Yeah.” Because I was. This wasn’t an apology, but it was one hell of an olive branch.

Closing the envelope, I smacked it across my hand a few times as Puck went back to work. Happiness, or something close to it, bubbled up in my chest. A lot of the bitter, bad things I felt were gone now. Just like that, my world righted itself a little.

From here, I couldn’t make out what he was working on, but the colors were vibrant.

No doubt a tattoo for someone out front.

He could toss tattoo artwork together so quick, it baffled me.

But more, the way his large body moved with such fluid grace impressed me.

I knew he could be gentle or not, as the moment called for it.

Why did that turn me on so much?

I dropped the envelope on his computer desk and went to him. Even though he was on a stool, I had to stretch on my tiptoes to look over his shoulder. What he drew was some sort of Central American legend. A temple in a jungle, with a towering god of fire standing court over his dominion.

“Whoa. That’s awesome.”

Absently, one of my hands stroked up his back, across those muscles that tantalized me so. The knuckles of my other hand keeping the same rhythm up and down his free arm.

“Kenna.” Puck’s voice caught on the end of my name, stretching it out all gruff and sexy as he tilted his head toward me.

I jerked my gaze to his. Those gray eyes had narrowed to slits and his tongue moistened his bottom lip. Heat spread out across my chest, then moved lower. I ducked my head and nipped at the slope of his neck, right where the collar of his shirt started.

He shifted, the colored pencil clicking as he dropped it on the table.

My belly tingled when he pulled me in, wrapping both his arms around me.

I inhaled the subtle scent of him. Not cologne, no I had become well acquainted with his grooming products since moving in upstairs.

But it smelled so much more delicious on him than filling the small bathroom upstairs.

“Why do you have to smell so good?” I nuzzled his chest.

“I was about to ask you why you had to look so fucking good.” His chest rumbled as he laughed. “It’s fuck all distracting.”

My work attire seemed to offer ample coverage when I was at The Black Cat. But the tiny pleather skirt and stomach baring, off the shoulder, tight pink crop top was much more revealing in the bright, fluorescent lights.

I leaned back a little to study him. Even seated on the stool, he was several inches taller than me. But I stretched to kiss him anyway, brushing my lips across his and smiling when he sucked my tongue into his mouth.

I’d only thought Jester was the best kisser I’d ever kissed. No, not even close. That title was Puck’s. The pleasure of his tongue sliding against mine radiated all the way to my platform boots. I moaned against his mouth and writhed in his arms.

Abruptly, he broke the kiss, pulled away, and smacked me on the ass. “Get out of here before I forget I have an appointment in an hour.”

“I don’t even need an hour.” I danced two fingers down his chest and lower between us.

His eyes flashed as he chuckled and dropped his forehead to mine. “It’s impossible to get work done with you around.”

“I mean…” I stepped away from him with an over-exaggerated sigh. “I guess I can go distract Jester instead.”

This time, his eyes narrowed and his chest swelled tight. But I was grinning at the door. “Bye.”

“Kenna!”

The stool rolled across the floor for a second before I heard his heavy footfalls.

I didn’t go to the door, instead waved at Chelsea and went for the jewelry case on the counter.

Puck stopped just outside his office, arms crossed over his chest, as he watched me with a half-annoyed, half-entertained expression.

A glance over my shoulder rewarded me with a teasing tilt to Puck’s mouth.

I grabbed what I wanted, shut the case, and went to him. “This where you tell me I’m distracting your customers?”

“No, this is where I tell you that when you stretch across that counter, half your ass falls out and makes Javi blush.” He took two steps back, turned, but caught my hand as he did and pulled me with him into the office and shut the door.

“Oh, really?” I hadn’t thought about that, but it worked with my plan. I wiggled out of my black bikini panties and held them up with one finger. “Might have a better view without these.”

He grunted, sitting on the stool and tugging me onto his lap. For years I’d wondered what this would feel like, to have him manhandle me like this.

It felt amazing.

“I thought you didn’t have time for distractions,” I teased, straddling him. He was so big, my feet didn’t even touch the floor. The positioning made my short skirt ride up, and my pussy rubbed against his denim covered groin, which was noticeably firmer than it had been.

He moved beneath me, so that the full girth of his erection strained against his jeans and ground against my folds. With long fingers, he traced up my arm and took the pink hoop from my hand.

“Got enough time to change this for me?”

“Kenna,” he growled low.

“I can pay.” I flicked my panties toward the envelope.

“Oh, you’re definitely going to pay.” He pulled a black glove on until it popped and stood, taking me with him.

Desire skittered up my spine as he carried me to the tattoo chair and deposited me on it. He dropped the new jewelry into the tray and pulled on another glove, lifted my legs so my boots hooked on the edge of the seat, and placed a black, rubber gloved hand to each of my knees.

Puck hovered over me like some sort of intense, tattoo wielding Viking, then pushed both my knees slowly apart, not stopping until my entire cunt was open before him.

“All you want is for me to change it?” He took the new hoop, wiped a sanitizing cloth over it and reached between my thighs. I closed my eyes and took a breath as he tugged the old jewelry out of my hood and slipped the new one in.

The new one brushed across my clit, shooting electric tendrils of pleasure all over me.

I trembled as I looked up at him. He knew damn well I wanted more than that.

With a chuckle, he used his foot to drag the stool to him and sit on it. Then he teased me with one gloved finger, sliding it inside my pussy, fingering me slow.

Then he pulled it out, the glove shining with how much I wanted him. “Tell me what you want.” His growl was low and sexy. His breath rushed across my thighs as he leaned forward, his braided beard tickling over my slit.

“I want your mouth on my pussy.” I didn’t stutter, didn’t stumble over the words.

He lifted his brow, mischief and desire playing in his eyes. Everything about him appealed to me. My body tightened and my heart raced to a rhythm of please oh please oh please. Then he ducked his head and sucked my clit into his mouth.

Gripping my thighs with those gloves, he swirled his tongue around the new ring, using it to rake across all the nerve endings all at once.

I couldn’t be still. I clutched at the edges of the chair and bucked against his face. Pleasure built, rushing up from my core where his mouth did sexy, dirty things to me. He alternated the flick of his tongue to French kissing my cunt like it was the best thing he’d ever tasted.

“Oh, fuck.” I groaned, wetter than I think I’d ever been in my life. My nipples ached, stretching against their piercings.

His hands moved from my thighs to my hips, clutching, and pushed me against the chair. Then he sucked hard on my clit, his teeth grazing the most sensitive spot so that I almost exploded off the chair.

Every muscle in my body snapped painfully tight, stealing my breath.

“Fuck…fuck…” I moaned, gasping, as I came hard on his face.

But he didn’t stop, kept licking and sucking like I was the sweetest thing he’d ever tasted. My chest heaving, gasping, I moaned his name. “Adam.” I couldn’t breathe enough to say all the things I wanted to say. If I could, I’d shout how good this felt.

Only one thing could feel better. He pulled back, kissed my thigh. “I don’t have a condom down here.”

“You don’t need one.” Trembling, I sat up, reaching between my legs toward the buckle of his belt. “I’ve been on birth control since I was sixteen, and the only sex I’ve had in almost a year…you were there for it.”

For the first time, I regretted that first night with Jester. Because I didn’t want Puck to say no now, I wanted to feel him inside me. I needed him to make me come again. Once would never be enough.