Insta-Ever After: A Flirt Club Novella Collection Page 6

  “I can’t handle whiskey straight.”

  “Then you’re not drinking the right kind.” Our eyes meet in the mirrored shelves behind the bar and my breath catches—honest to God. He’s the most handsome man I’ve ever seen. Broad shouldered, a strong jaw shaded with a neatly trimmed beard, and his dark hair is my kryptonite. Short on the sides but carelessly tousled and long at the top. It’s the kind of haircut that says he cares what he looks like, but not enough to spend more than a minute or two looking in the mirror.

  My drink is delivered but I barely register David’s presence. I’m focused on the intense gaze of this mystery man. Turning toward him, I smile and raise my glass. “Cheers,” I say.

  He shifts in his seat and he’s even more good looking after I get a chance to look into his cobalt blue eyes. His lips turn up in a smile and he touches the rim of his glass to mine. “Cheers.”

  We drink together, not carrying on a conversation with words. Instead, we use our eyes. Before I know it, my glass is empty and he raises an eyebrow in question, as though asking if I’d like another. I grin and nod.

  “I’m Jude,” he says, holding out a hand.

  Jude? God, that’s probably the sexiest name in the world. “I’ve never met anyone named Jude before.”

  “Really?” He grins, raising his hand and gesturing to the bartender for two more drinks. “It’s more common than you think where I’m from.”

  “And where’s that?”

  “Bristol…that’s in England.”

  I roll my eyes. “I know. And even if I didn’t, the accent was a dead giveaway.”

  His cheeks go a charming shade of pink and he bites his lower lip. “Right, I don’t ever think about that. Back home it’s nothing special. I quite like your accent.”

  I tuck my hair behind my ear. “Really? I’ve always thought it was just boring.”

  “I think your voice is absolutely beautiful.”

  My heart flutters and I think I might giggle if I don’t get ahold of myself. “You’re charming. Is that ingrained in you British boys at birth?”

  He drags a hand through his hair and laughs. “No. Some might say it’s my downfall.”

  “Not me.”

  Our cocktails arrive and I take a long sip of mine. Then Jude slides over to the chair next to me and says, “Tell me, what brought a gorgeous woman like you here? Are you here with your boyfriend? And if so, he’s a git for leaving you on your own.”

  I glance over my shoulder to see the table where Kit had met his man is now suspiciously empty. “No boyfriend. I came here looking for something different.”

  “Different from what?”

  “From the boys I usually date.”

  His eyebrows rise. “Well, I’m not a boy. I haven’t been for a long time.”

  He’s right. He’s a man. A gorgeous one. “I know.”

  “And did you find what you wanted?”

  My thighs clench and need rushes through me. “I think I just might have.”

  11

  Whiskey Sour

  Good Christ, this woman is everything I dreamed of. Her dark hair falls over her shoulder and begs me to run my fingers through the thick locks. I want to taste her lips and feel her softness under me. And God, she smells like honey and vanilla and I’m dying for a taste.

  “How long are you in town?” she asks, her full lips tempting me to lean closer.

  “How do you know I’m visiting?”

  She grins. “Just a hunch.”

  “Four more weeks.”

  “What brings you here?”

  “Work.”

  “Are you married?”

  I back away, brow furrowing in confusion. “Do I act like a married man? I’m not the kind of guy who’d cheat on his wife.”

  “Sorry. I’m just covering my bases. I’ve been fooled once before.” Her expression turns serious and something in me aches for the hurt I see in her eyes.

  I take her chin in between my thumb and forefinger, bringing her gaze back to mine. “I’d never do something like that. If I promise my heart to a woman, she’ll have it forever.”

  She nods.

  “Tell me your name, gorgeous. I need to know who’s about to ruin me for all other women.”

  Her cheeks burn a bright red. “Tillie.”

  “Tillie.” I try her name out on my tongue. It’s one I can honestly say I’ve never said before, but it’s one I know I’ll never forget. “This might sound daft, but I’d very much like to take you back to my room tonight.”

  She bites that lower lip of hers and flicks a glance back to the table in the corner where two men are laughing and drinking. “One sec.”

  Then she hops off her barstool and saunters over to them, her perfect arse swaying as she goes. She says something to the smaller guy and he glances around her to me. The guy holds up his phone and I swear he takes a photo of me. Offering him a cheers with my drink, I smile and he nods. Then, beautiful Tillie comes back to me.

  “Okay. But if you try to kidnap me, Kit has a picture of you to give the police.”

  I chuckle. “I’m not going to kidnap you.”

  “That’s right, you’re not.” She gestures to her friend. “But he’s going to make sure…just in case.”

  “If you’re not comfortable…”

  “I’m comfortable. In fact, I’m probably too comfortable for this to be a smart decision, but you’re handsome and available and not permanent. You’re exactly what I need.”

  Her hand slides up my chest and I stop thinking about everything other than her. “Then what are we waiting for?”

  I reach up and thread my fingers through her hair, fighting a sigh at the softness. It’s exactly what I imagined. Dark silk spilling between my fingers. Then I kiss her right there in front of everyone. Her lips are full and perfect, and when she sighs against me and leans closer, I have to force myself to back away so I don’t let this go too far in public. She deserves more than that. Tillie deserves respect.

  “Let’s go, Jude. Is your room far from here?”

  I pull out my phone and call a car to pick us up. “Car will be here in five minutes.”

  She takes my hand and drags me toward the door. “Good, that’s five minutes I can be kissing you.”

  I love how assertive she is, how much she wants me, because I want her too. But I’m not a prick who’ll use her for sex and drop her after. Even if we only have one night together, she’ll leave knowing she was important to me.

  As soon as we’re out the door, I’ve got her face in my hands and I’m pressing her against the brick facade of the bar. My lips are hard on hers, tasting her sweet mouth. My tongue begs entrance and she opens for me, our bodies writhing against each other as our kiss deepens.

  “God, you taste so good. I could live on this,” I murmur against her.

  “I could let you.”

  Her hands slide under my leather jacket and the drag of her nails along my back sends shiver down my spine. She moans and writhes, her hips brushing my hard cock through my trousers. God, I need to get back home with her.

  “Fuck, I want you.” My voice is rough and I wish nothing more than for the damn car to get here so I can lay her out on my bed.

  My phone rings from my jacket pocket, but I ignore it. Nothing is going to take me from her lips now. Whoever it is, they can leave a message. But the sound of an automatic window rolling down, followed by a sharp cough, pulls me away.

  Glancing over my shoulder, I see a guy looking at us from his car. “Jude?” he asks.

  Bugger. “That’s me. Sorry, mate.”

  I back up, threading my fingers with Tillie’s and tugging her along with me. Opening the door, I let her inside first and follow after. I’m painfully hard and wish with everything in me the drive wasn’t the half hour I know it will be.

  Tillie giggles and squeezes my hand.

  He turns up the music and pulls into traffic, while I run my fingers up the inside of Tillie’s thigh.

  �
�I don’t understand how you’re single, but I’m so fucking thankful.” She sighs and wiggles her hips. “Your lips taste like heaven,” I murmur before closing the distance between our mouths.

  She spreads her thighs and I slide my hand farther up her skirt. The inky black sky protects us from being seen, but the passing glow of the streetlights reminds me we’re not alone and I can’t take this any farther.

  I deepen our kiss and have to force myself to keep from touching between her legs. I can wait. She takes my hand and moves her hips as she tries to get me to do exactly what I want.

  “No, no. Wait until we get home. I promise your patience will be rewarded.”

  She whimpers, but lets go of my hand.

  “Good girl.”

  I tease her with slow kisses for nearly the entire ride, and by the time we pull up in front of the house I’ve rented for my time here, she’s a ball of need, trembling and desperate. I remove my hand from her skirt and open the door, bringing her with me as quickly as possible.

  “I thought you said you had a room.”

  I glance at the house and grin. “I do. Three actually. I’m renting this house.”

  She swallows and frowns. “I didn’t realize it was close to the campus.”

  I laugh. “You have a problem with college kids?”

  “No. Not at all.”

  “Good. Besides, there are no kids here. Now, let’s get inside so I can show you how you should be worshipped.”

  12

  Row, Row, Row Your Boat

  My lips are already swollen from Jude’s kisses and I think I might die if I don’t get an orgasm soon. The whole drive here was a constant tease and now, I’m ready for the main event. He lets us inside and then the man is on me, lips, tongue, hands. He’s everywhere, as wound up as I am.

  “I’m only going to ask you once,” he whispers in the darkened hallway. “Are you sure you’re ready to do this tonight? We can take it slower. I’m here for another month.”

  My heart lurches. This is a one-time thing. I honestly wish I didn’t even know where his house was. “I want this.”

  He groans, “Thank fuck.”

  Then his fingers are working the zipper of my skirt and the fabric falls to the floor. My lacy panties are soaked with my arousal. It’s almost embarrassing, but I want him so badly I really don’t care. I pull my sweater over my head, thankful I wore my matching lace bra.

  “You’re absolute perfection.”

  Normally I’d laugh at a line like that. Guys will say anything to get into a woman’s bed…or get her in his as the case may be. But there’s such honesty and reverence in his tone, I can’t do anything but believe him. “And you are wearing way too many clothes. How did I get to be the nearly naked one?”

  “Yours are just easier to take off.” He slides his jacket off his shoulders and grabs the hem of his shirt. I lick my lips, desperate to see the muscles I felt when we were making out at the bar. “Oxford Rowing Club?” I ask, taking note of the logo on his T-shirt.

  He nods and pulls the shirt over his head revealing taut ridges of muscles along his chest and abs. Oh, he’s even more muscular than I thought. I run my fingers over the ladder of his six-pack and bite my lower lip.

  “Thank you, Oxford,” I whisper.

  A deep chuckle rumbles in his chest. “I haven’t been a rower in a few years. This is at least an hour at the gym every morning.”

  My fingers rest on his belt buckle. I don’t know why I’m hesitating, maybe it’s nerves getting the better of me, but I wonder for a moment if this man is more than a one-night-stand. Am I ruining something by rushing into this?

  Warm fingers cup my jaw, turning my face up to his. “I promise, Tillie, I’ll take care of you tonight.”

  When I look into those dark blue eyes, I feel safe, protected…wanted. I don’t feel like a girl easily thrown away, the one who doesn’t matter. Right now, I feel like I’m his everything.

  I make fast work of his belt and open his pants with ease. They fall to the floor and join the pile of our discarded clothes. My handsome Englishman slides off his shoes and I start to do the same, but he stops me with a hand on my shoulder.

  “No. Leave the shoes on.”

  There’s a growl in his voice that tells me he’s been thinking about this. “Where’s your room?”

  “Upstairs,” he says, layering kisses to my neck, my collarbone, my shoulder.

  He scoops me into his arms and carries me up the flight of stairs, lips blazing a trail across my skin. The sensation of his heated kisses and the roughness of his beard makes me shiver in anticipation for what’s to come. What will his mouth feel like on other parts of me?

  We get to the end of the hall and he kicks open the door, revealing a neat and tidy bedroom. “One night,” I tell him as he drapes me across the bed.

  “What?”

  “One night. That’s all this is. I need you to understand that because you feel like forever but I’m not ready for that.”

  He frowns and rubs at the back of his neck. “Are you sure that’s what you want? Because I think you feel like forever too, and I want to give this a real shot.”

  I shake my head. I have too many plans, too much baggage, and far too deep a heartbreak in my past. “No. I can’t afford to lose focus right now. Everything is riding on me sticking to my plan. You aren’t part of that, even if I want you to be.”

  A heavy sigh falls from him. “So it’s either have you now, or never?”

  “It has to be that way. I’m sorry, Jude. If we’d met six months from now, things might be different.”

  He nods and then falls to his knees next to the bed. “Then I’d better make sure this is one night you’ll never forget.”

  Gripping me behind the knees, he tugs until I’m sitting with my feet on either side of his body and my legs spread. His hands roam my thighs and up my hips until they grip my waist.

  “Your curves are delectable. So soft and smooth.” He reaches behind me and unhooks my bra, letting my breasts spill free. “I’m going to taste every inch of you.”

  I let out the barest whimper as he presses a light kiss to my lace clad pussy. “Jude,” I cry out.

  He slides my panties down over my hips and farther until they’re just a memory, cast aside on the floor somewhere. Then, without any warning he slides two fingers deep inside me. The invasion makes me moan and writhe and he has to hold my hips still with his free hand. I throw my head back and close my eyes, letting go of everything else in my mind and giving in to pure sensation. When he brings his mouth to my sensitive clit, I give a harsh moan and roll my pelvis forward, searching for more.

  “I’m close. Oh, God, I’m so close,” I whimper.

  “Come on, baby. Come for me,” he murmurs against my pussy.

  And, oh, do I ever. I come so hard stars float in my vision and my legs shake uncontrollably. “I need you inside me right the hell now, Jude. I can’t stand any more.”

  He leans back on his heels and smirks. His lips are coated in my arousal and it’s so freaking hot to see him like that. “As you wish,” he whispers.

  Jude reaches for his nightstand and tugs open the drawer. I catch sight of the foil packet between his fingers and grin. Relief floods me at the sight. The last guy I was with hadn’t been so prepared and tried to convince me not to use protection. Jude is not that kind of man.

  He tears open the condom and frees his length as he slips out of his black boxer briefs. I try not to gasp at his size, but I’ve only had one other to compare with.

  “All right?” he asks. “Your eyes are big as saucers.”

  “I’m just…I’m not sure we’re going to fit together.”

  A boyish grin turns up his lips. “Oh, we will. I promise.”

  My thighs clench and arousal rushes through me as if I hadn’t just had an earth-shattering orgasm. Then he rolls on the condom and grips my knees. He spreads me wide and fits himself between my legs. His long fingers play across my belly and down l
ower until he touches my aching clit. I buck off the bed, over-sensitive and dying for him.

  “Stop teasing me, please.”

  A dark chuckle falls from him as he removes his fingers from my body and positions the head of his cock at my entrance. He leans over me and presses gentle kisses to my breasts and throat, working his way up to my lips. “Relax, Tillie.” His murmured order has me trembling with need.

  “I can’t.”

  Then he kisses me long and deep, as though he’s trying to devour me, and I give myself over to the sensation, to the connection I can’t deny. When he pushes inside, I’m lost to the feel of his thick length filling me, but it’s not painful. It’s perfect. And as we move together, there’s so much more than one night in his eyes. If I’m honest, I can see forever with a man like him and it scares me.

  Because forever changes everything.

  13

  Tattoos and Trials

  Tillie is asleep in my bed, her long hair a wavy mess across the pillow. I run my finger down her back, loving the velvet softness of her skin. She’s got a tattoo across her ribs. A line of script that says not all those who wander… and I can’t help but smile.

  I don’t know how I’m going to leave her when the time comes for me to head back home. I want more of her. I need to know her, to have her in my life. Perhaps I could extend my stay, or see if I can make this a permanent change. I’m not sure I’ll be able to get her out of my mind when I go.

  “Who are you, Tillie?” I whisper.

  A sweet sigh falls from her and she rolls over to face me. Her lips are turned up in a soft smile and she blinks sleepy eyes at me. “What are you doing?”

  “Admiring the beauty in my bed.” I can’t deny the curious swell of emotion in my chest. She stirs something inside me. Something I thought long lost. “I don’t think my pillow has ever looked so enticing.”

  “What do you do?” she asks, resting her chin in her palm as she stares at me.