Page 72 of On Merit Alone

He cupped my chest with both hands, squeezing me hard and eliciting a breathy sound from me.

This got me an appreciative rumble as my earlobe was sucked into his mouth.

I moaned as I squirmed, happy to feel him.

One of his hands slipped upward to cup around my collarbone, his thumb slipping around the bottom of my throat as he anchored me to him, and I think I liked it judging by the way I mewled.

Ira noticed and damn near growled into my ear, “You like my hands on you, Six?”

“Yes,” I panted.

His voice dropped even more. And he slipped his palm down to slowly slide across my sex, still over the towel. “You like them anywhere on you?”

“Everywhere,” I corrected.

He hummed his approval, and I gasped as he started to rub slow circles into my center.

His other hand slipped under the knot of my towel and swallowed the round of my breast as he rolled a nipple between his fingers.

The friction was overwhelming, and I wanted to feel it everywhere.

As he rubbed, my hips circled, and I could feel the sensational feeling of both his body against me and his hands working on me.

I wanted more of him and was prepared to take it.

“I fucking love it when you get greedy, Six,” he suddenly ground out in a gravelly voice. “But me and my dick can’t take much more of you squirming around in my lap like a little cocktease. And this is supposed to be for you.”

Something about the gruffness of his voice and the filth of his mouth had me shuddering. It was so unlike him to talk to me like that. I think it just became my new favorite thing.

“Touch me, Ira,” I whimpered softly. “Now.”

“Yes, ma’am,” he said, and in one smooth motion, his fingers were knocking the front flap of my towel aside and sliding into the slickness of my warmth.

He groaned. I groaned. We both cursed. And then Ira was ducking his head around my shoulder and taking my mouth with his in a punishing, bruising, damning kiss.

A kiss so sweet, with his tongue in my mouth and his hand gripping my hair to keep me in place, that I was soon grinding my hips along his other hand in chase of my release. Now .

He edged me torturously, alternating between dipping low into my wetness and dragging it achingly over my sensitive areas.

Pinching that soft bundle of nerves gently before petting it sweetly in apology.

He was driving me so crazy with his alternating speeds that I was little more than a panting begging mess in no time at all.

I think he kissed me harder so he wouldn’t have to hear me beg him. He was serious about not wanting to hear me beg.

“Please,” I let slip out as we pulled back just far enough to breathe.

His nostrils flared. “Don’t beg me, Six. I can’t say no to you, and you’re not fucking done.”

“No, Ira. I need it now. From you,” I said. “Please?”

He growled, and the next thing I knew, his teeth were on me. Scraping my neck as his fingers delved low along my sex.

“Dripping wet,” he ground out, confirming my suspicions of his words before.

And even though he was giving me what I wanted, he was a master of torture as he finally slid his long thick finger inside me. The sound I made was feral. A moan and a growl mixed into one.

“And so fucking tight,” he breathed. “You’re perfect.”

“Ira.”

“You feel so good wrapped around my fingers, baby,” he continued against my skin, adding another digit and making me feel so full of him.

“Ira,” I was crying out now, my voice not recognizable to myself as his thumb started to move around my clit and his fingers pumped a steady rhythm inside me.

“I need you coming right the fuck now, Merit,” he said. “Stop playing around. ”

“I’m going to come,” I said, both my hands clutching onto his forearm and feeling his muscles straining as he absolutely pounded into me with his fingers, slapping and plunging and not letting up. I shook everywhere, my body losing itself as it fell into his control.

He nuzzled the back of my ear, a sensitive spot. Then he did something devious. He mirrored me when I teased him to completion in the club. Nibbling my earlobe before saying, “If you wanted me to make you come on my hand, all you had to do was ask, baby. Now give me what I want.”

His fingers lifted slightly, the angle of his thrusting hitting some unknown spot within me at the same time his thumb added more pressure on my clit and I lost it.

My entire core clenched tight as I exploded. I chased a figurative high that Ira’s fingers matched as my hips lifted off of the chair and my back arched wildly with my spasms of pleasure.

And I was loud. So loud that Ira crashed his mouth over mine to quiet my screaming as I came and came and came all over his hand just like he’d ordered me to. I always knew he was bossy, in his nice leading sort of way. But it was different when he was bossy in this assertive sexy way.

It broke my brain. Both seeing this side of him and feeling its wrath on my sex after he touched me until my mind was mush. I didn’t even have control of my body anymore as I came down from an orgasm that sent me to the moon.

It was Ira’s voice that anchored me back down to earth. My body buzzing, my limbs jerking and twitching. I heard him hum in that deep, satisfied tone—felt his forehead pressed to mine as we matched our racing breaths with each other. “Easy, baby. Easy.”

I whimpered, feeling so much that I couldn’t feel much at all. He scooped me up. Pulling me onto his lap and tucking me against his chest. Chuckling. “I know, beautiful. Take it easy. I’m here. You’re good. Just let it feel good.”

“I,” I panted .

“Mer.” I knew he smiled into his words even though I couldn’t see it.

“You sound so happy with yourself,” I teased. My forehead plastered to the side of his neck.

His cheek grazed me as he looked down. “Anything to do with you makes me happy.”

“Stop trying to make me like you, I already like you too much,” I grumbled.

He chuckled. “Are you feeling better now?”

“I’m not sure if my legs work anymore,” I sighed.

“Then I did my job right,” he puffed proudly.

I would roll my eyes but those didn’t seem to work either. They were stuck in this closed state, fluttering sleepily. Could I move from this spot? How would I ever get home? With lazy, contented words I conceded. “Yes, I’m feeling better. But you knew that before you asked.”

“I know,” he agreed. “It was mostly just a set up.”

“A set up for what?”

“A question.”

“Okay...”

“Hang out with me tomorrow?”

“Why are you asking instead of just showing up like you usually do?” I asked, suspicious.

“Because we wouldn’t be alone,” he said, purposely withholding information. Weird.

I was too relaxed to be as difficult as he clearly thought I was going to be though. I just snuggled in closer and sighed into him happily. “If you want me to hang out with you and your buddies for the fourth, just ask, King.”

“Fine,” he huffed and I smiled. “I want you to hang out on the holiday. With me… and my family.”

My smile fell, my hold on him tightening somewhat as I hitched a breath. “Your… family? ”

“You’ve met about half of them already,” he murmured, his voice soothing.

“I met babies, Ira,” I corrected.

“ And your idol,” he added.

I chewed my lip. “And her too, yeah.”

“All that’s left are my brothers—well, my older brother and his wife, and then my brother-in-law. And then my mom and dad,” he said so easily, like this was no big deal at all. “We usually grill and hang out all day. Then we play around with fireworks in the driveway.”

My heart panged in my chest a little. As if he knew, Ira ran a soothing hand up my arm.

“Will they want me there?” I asked, voice forming into a whisper all on its own.

“Who do you think invited you?”

His parents had asked me to come meet them? What did that mean? And what were they expecting to get if I showed up? Had Ira painted me out to be some ray of sunshine that I was not? Or would they be ready for me ?

Looking up at him, I bit my lip.

“What do they know?” I asked.

“The important parts,” he said, understanding my hesitation. “That you’re a good person and you make me happy.”

Worry and insecurity rushed me. I wondered if I would be enough for their son. If I’d be too quiet or too intense for their warm loving family. If I could make a good first impression. And on and on.

One thing stood out among the sharpest of my worries, stabbing at the back of my mind and not letting up. So sharp that I had to say it, if only in a whisper out into the world.

“I don’t know how to be in a family anymore. It’s been a really long time,” I admitted shamefully .

He was unfazed, just running his smooth hand down my hair as he promised, “I’ll teach you. I’m patient, and so is my family.”

Quietly, I mulled it over for another second, and then I sank into him again. Still relaxed, even as nerves settled low in my stomach. “Okay. I’ll try, for you.”

“Woah, no arguments? No freak out? Just ‘okay?’” he asked, being a smartass.

I laughed breathily, saying, “Yeah, just okay.”

“I’m curious what inspired this personality shift,” he said. “Could it be?—”

“Don’t say anything about what just happened. You’ll ruin it,” I warned. He laughed, and I smiled because I was amazed that I could make this man laugh. Settling in, I sighed. “No. I’ve just never done this before. I have nothing to argue against.”

“Done what exactly? Fooled around in a locker room or met a partner’s parents? The spectrum is wide here, Six.”

“No, smartass,” I said. “I’ve never felt like I was exactly where I’m supposed to be.”

Pulling back, he looked down at me, finding something in my expression that I didn’t know was there.

Whatever it was put the softest, most tender look on his face.

Pushing him to lean forward and kiss me slow and soft.

His next words were so sure that I couldn’t help but shiver again as I heard them.

Letting them wash over me, warm and refreshing like the shower I’d just taken.

“You are exactly where you’re supposed to be.”