Page 31 of Down & Dirty (Holden Cove #1)

CHAPTER 31

SKYLAR

I took hold of Cory’s shoulders and did as he said. With my whole body shaking as I pressed up against him, his cock and his fingers combined to undo me. I’d have done anything he’d told me, if he’d kept that up.

There were stars in my periphery, a rush of white lights that matched the building tension in my center. With every rise and fall, Cory’s breath came out rougher, his teeth grinding together as he tilted and thrust up into me.

When I landed harder, taking him to the base of his cock, he winced and I froze. “Are you okay?”

A gust of air burst out of him, his eyes alight with sweetness. “There aren’t words for what I am, gorgeous.”

I frowned. “You know what I mean. Your back.”

“My back? The one connected to my cock? Yeah, it’s just fine, baby,” he said, lifting my hips and pressing me back down on him.

I dug my teeth into my lip. The percussion of our bodies rang like a bell through me, every nerve already so alive that I wasn’t going to be able to hold off much longer.

“You come for me, Sky. I want to see your pretty face when you fall to pieces this time. ”

I nodded, picking up my rhythm again. The way his brow bent with pained pleasure was almost enough to send me over, the edge of my orgasm teetering before me, coming at me in a rush. I’d never had this feeling before, this explosive chemistry that filled in like a river against a dam. And Cory was about to make it break.

“Just like that,” he ground out, his fingers moving faster against my clit, spinning me into a trembling storm of sensation, all hunger and want and longing.

“I’m . . .” I choked on the words.

“Yes baby,” he murmured, taking my face in his hand and pulling me in for a kiss right as the dam gave way. He kissed me as I shook, as a long cry broke from my throat. His body was tense beneath me, but he never stopped moving, stroking over every desperate, needy part of me. “That’s my girl.”

I was his girl. And I knew it because the sound of those words on his lips warmed through me like coals being stoked by a gentle breeze. I knew it because when I opened my eyes and found his searching mine, I was as open and laid bare as I’d ever been. And none of it scared me.

As my body shuddered, the last of the waves burning through my limbs, I felt him twitch inside me. His cock was still solid stone. But he wasn’t rushing to find his release. He’d been solely focused on mine, and that look in his eye said he’d do it all again for me if I wanted.

“If that’s true,” I whispered, kissing a line across his cheek, my lips to his ear when I finished, “then take what’s yours.”

Cory’s fingers flexed against my skin as I leaned back to look at him. Fire and craving swirled in his eyes and his jaw ticked.

“Hold on.”

Grabbing the side of the tub he shifted onto his knees before pushing up to stand. Water fell off us in sheets, splashing over the rim of the tub and covering the floor. He lifted me higher, wrapping my legs around his waist as I tucked my face into the heat of his skin with a smile .

He crossed the hall into his bedroom in a handful of determined strides, leaving a trail of water in our wake. He wasn’t kidding when he said we were going to make a mess, and I suspected he was about to make good on the rest of that promise.

“I’ve been thinking about how good you’d taste for weeks...” He set me on the bed, his hips nestling against mine, as he gazed down at me with mischief in his eyes. “But after feeling you come on my cock, I think I need this even more...”

He slid himself back inside, my slippery skin welcoming him in like he belonged there. My pussy pulsed, quivering around every hard inch. He’d filled me so completely before, the nip of pain had surprised me. But now he sat himself in to the wide base and I bit my lip at how good it felt.

“You like that, don’t you?” His mouth was quirked into a cocky grin that seemed appropriate for once. “You like taking all of me.” He pulled out halfway, and slammed home again, his expression dark and determined even as he smiled down on me. “Feeling me fill you all the way up,” his words broke as he rode another stroke.

“Mmhmm,” I hummed, my body already starting to build a fresh wave.

“That’s good, baby,” he said, his hips starting to move.

He thrust into me, deep and long, and I reached up to brace against the headboard. I watched with rapt attention as his abs and thighs flexed and bunched, his movements precise and measured, designed to undo us both. His breath started to come faster, his jaw tight.

“’Cause that’s how I’m going to come, buried deep inside you.”

I moaned, the pounding rhythm working over every swollen, wanton part of me, carrying me back under to the place where all I saw was Cory’s sweat-soaked brow cut by a deep line of effort and yearning, his mouth agape as he hammered into me. I was so close, my thighs turned to lead as my orgasm came speeding at me. I tugged him by the neck to kiss me, our tongues rolling over each other, before he bit my lip and held it between his teeth. He groaned, rocking his hips faster.

“Fuck, baby. Fuck ,” he grunted, pumping and pausing, and then finally giving up, his body taking over as he pistoned his cock.

“ Skylar ,” he groaned, his face falling into my neck as he trembled, his muscles clenched and still, as his release spurted hotly inside me.

The sound of his strangled voice sent me, my pussy clamping down on him as I dug my nails into his back to hold on.

“Yes, baby, fucking milk me dry,” he ground out, rolling his hips, in and out, pushing the orgasm on and on, until I finally sagged back onto the bed, my body so limp I didn’t think I’d ever recover.

With a gentle brush of his lips to my neck, Cory settled carefully on top of me, the weight and closeness of him filling me with a sense of perfect satisfaction. I ran my fingers through his hair, trailing them lightly along the ridge of his spine, savoring the feel of him in my arms, of the ease that seeped into his body the longer he stayed there. Cory was one of the strongest, sturdiest men I knew, but like this, he gave his softness over to me, and I nuzzled my lips against his temple, breathing him in.

“If you keep doing that,” he mumbled, his mouth pressed against my skin. “I’m going to fall asleep and keep you trapped in my bed forever.”

I laughed, jostling us both. “Maybe I wouldn’t mind that,” I admitted, my eyebrows raised when he pulled back to look me in the eye. He seemed slightly awestruck, his amusement tempered by a something deeper, more ardent. Something I might have been nervous to see in him if I didn’t feel the same.

He kissed my cheeks, delicate slow caresses with his lips that unfurled a fresh wave of warmth in my belly. “We both know you’d need food first.” He was lightening the mood, a special trick he had, one that I was particularly grateful for in that moment.

The mention of food made my stomach churn.

As if he could read my mind, Cory smirked. “See? If it was a choice between me or tacos, I know where I stand.”

I gave his shoulder a playful shove, a little regretful when he smacked his lips on mine once more and then rolled off me. “Stay put,” he said as he pulled on a pair of boxers.

Slipping from the room, I heard him in the linen closet. He dropped a towel on the floor, dragging it with his foot across the hall in a lazy attempt to sop up the water we’d tracked everywhere. When he returned with a soft washcloth in his hand, he sat on the edge of the bed, his gaze tracking up my body in a slow, hungry crawl. For having just come moments ago, he looked ready for another round.

“So fucking gorgeous,” he whispered, as if only to himself, while he carefully wiped up the mess we’d made.

I glanced at the clock, asking nervously, “Where is your dad?” My cheeks heated at the idea he might have been downstairs listening to us this whole time.

He tossed the towel toward the door, watching it land next to the rest of his dirty clothes. “He’d have gone back to Mack’s to watch the game.” He looked back at me, a sparkle in his eye when he read the nerves on my face. “Bigger TV. He won’t be back for a while.”

I sighed, sagging onto the bed and rolling onto my side. “Thank god.”

“Not much of an exhibitionist, huh?” he asked, stroking a gentle line up my leg with his fingertips, his eyes cast down to watch the goosebumps he raised.

“No. Hard pass.”

“Good,” he said, his tone lacking the playfulness I expected. “Me either.”

Considering how possessive he’d been around one of his own friends, I could see that. His words from the other night came back; that he’d wanted to keep anyone from seeing me. Cory wasn’t big on sharing. Which was an interesting revelation when you considered how all of his relationships before this had been so public.

But they’d also been entirely fake, right? So this was just one more sign that what he was doing with me wasn’t the same. I shouldn’t still need confirmation of that, but a part of me did. We’d started down one path, and now we were on one that felt completely different. I wanted to believe in everything I was feeling, but it had been a long time since I’d gone there with a man. And nothing had ever felt like this before.

I sat up, scanning the room for a shirt. “I’m going to make a fresh cup of tea and get some of those cookies Mack brought over. Do you want anything?”

Slipping from the bed, I pulled on a pair of sleeping shorts and the first shirt I saw. It was a thin-strapped tank top that did little to cover me, but with the wood stove downstairs I’d yet to be cold in this house.

“I’ll take a cookie,” he answered, his arm darting out to capture my waist as I walked by. He nuzzled into my chest, resting his chin there as he looked up at me. “Need the fuel so we can do that again.”

“Sure you only need one then?” I gave him a skeptical look which he answered by smacking my ass.

“I don’t need any, gorgeous. If you’re ready, I’m ready.”

I was not ready. I wanted something else in my stomach but the butterflies and anticipation that were making me feel too giddy for someone in my situation. My fake husband had just given me two of the best orgasms of my life...no, the best . And now he was looking at me like there was nothing fake about us at all.

As I gently combed my fingers through his hair, his eyes drifted closed with a rumbling groan. “I believe the holiday dictates overindulgence in all forms, handsome. It would be anti-American to leave out the desserts. ”

Cory’s eyes popped open, a dark flame simmering in them that told me I’d only given him more ammunition. “Go get your cookies, woman, before I show you what I consider dessert and overindulgence all at once.”

With my teeth dug into my lower lip I slipped from his grasp, bolting away before he changed his mind. I was still wearing a contented smile, humming to myself, as I crossed the heat-soaked living room. The sun had set hours ago, and the walls were painted in dancing fire-light. My bare feet padded silently across the wood floors and I took my time appreciating the cozy warmth of the house.

It was less of a challenge to imagine Cory as a kid now, growing up inside these walls. I still wished I knew more about his childhood, especially after his mom died, but it felt like we were getting there, like we were on the path that would lead me to those answers. We’d begun peeling back the layers of each other slowly, with care. And the sweetness of that had another wide smile on my lips as I turned toward the sink to fill the kettle.

And spotted Mack in the doorway.

“Holy shit!” I gasped, the words bursting out of me as I almost dropped the kettle, covering my heart with my other hand. Of course, in doing so, I felt the bare skin between my breasts and remembered just how revealing this tank top was.

“Sorry,” Mack said, his eyes dropping quickly to the floor. But not so fast I missed his smirk. “Didn’t mean to scare you.”

I deposited the kettle on the stove carefully, and crossed my arms over my chest, unsure if that was helping or hurting. “I didn’t expect anyone. Cory said you’d be at your place for the game.”

“We are,” he said, taking a tentative step into the kitchen and pointing to the fridge. “Just came for some leftovers and dad’s beer. I forgot to stock up and he’s not letting me live it down.”

“He doesn’t like your kind?” It was painful to try and make conversation while barely clothed .

Mack actually laughed. Or at least, that’s what I took the huff of air and a slightly brighter scowl to be.

“Nah. He’s been drinking the same shit his whole life. Calls what I drink ‘bread in a bottle.’”

I chuckled, the image of Jacob saying that coming easily to mind. He and Mack shared a lot of the same grumpiness, but Jacob’s was laced with a humor that I found incredibly endearing.

“Gotcha.”

We stood awkwardly in silence for a minute, neither of us sure who should move first.

“I’ll just grab that,” he muttered, keeping his eyes lowered as he went for the fridge and I scampered to get out of the way.

“I was just going to get us some cookies and tea.”

Mack snickered. “You’ve got him drinking tea, huh?”

I rolled my eyes, thinking of the mug upstairs Cory had completely ignored. “No, that’s for me. I’ll just bring him a beer.”

“He’s feeling all right then?”

When Mack looked up at me there was no way to miss the quick perusal he gave my outfit, or the teasing tilt to his mouth. He’d taken one look at me and known what Cory and I had been up to.

“Yeah. Getting him warmed up helped,” I said one second before I could stop myself. I’d meant in the car and bath, but I wasn’t going to explain that and dig my hole any deeper.

He nodded, his lips pressed together like he was fighting off a smile. “I bet.”

His knowing gaze had me shrinking with embarrassment and the heat on my cheeks was only making things worse.

Grabbing what he needed from the fridge, he spun for the door, but paused in the threshold.

“I’m surprised you traded sunny California for frigid Maine for your holiday. Not really a hell of a lot going on around here by comparison.” He held my gaze, a hard edge to his curiosity flickering in his eyes as he waited for me to respond.

I pulled my shoulders back, looking him in the eye. “It wasn’t really much of a contest. Between your brother and some warm weather, I’d choose him every time.”

Mack’s jaw clenched, regarding me for a minute before he nodded and gave me a polite grin. “Enjoy your cookies.”

He slipped out of the house without another word, and I deflated against the counter like a flower in a frost. Or maybe like a California girl in Maine.

As mortifying as that interaction had been, I couldn’t stop myself from laughing as I made my way back upstairs. I knew Cory would have a different take on his brother seeing me in this top.

But when I tiptoed back into the room, I found him stretched out on his side of the bed, the covers up over his chest and his arm bent above his head. He let out the faintest snore before he sniffed and rolled onto his side, nestling his face into the pillow.

Standing in the middle of the room, I studied him indulgently. The way his hair flopped over his forehead, and how the lines of determination and concern were flattened smooth as he finally relaxed. His lips, so soft yet so demanding, parted on a deep exhale. The gentle sound of it had my chest squeezing. He was so beautiful like this. Not that he wasn’t handsome and gorgeous and sexy every other minute of the day. But asleep like this he finally seemed to find a peace that wasn’t there very often.

It felt selfish to risk disturbing him, but lately I wasn’t very good at resisting the chance to be in Cory’s arms. So I set our snacks on the nightstand and carefully slipped beneath the covers. At first, he didn’t move, but after a little while of listening to his even breathing, he jolted and his arm shot out searchingly. He snaked it around my waist, hauling me into the curve of his body.

“You get your cookies, baby?” he mumbled, his voice already rough from sleep.

“Mnnhmnn,” I hummed, scooting back until our bodies were flush.

“Like you need any more sweetness,” he whispered, his lips grazing the nape of my neck .

I melted, tucking his arm tighter against me. Nicknames and compliments were things no man had ever given me with any sort of regularity, and yet Cory couldn’t seem to stop. They wound like a thread through my chest, pulled tighter every time he did. Stitching me to him one kindness at a time.

It was getting harder to resist his pull. Pretty soon I wasn’t even going to try.