Page 4 of The Distiller's Darling

Iain tried to play it cool, but he was definitely surprised. He’d been hoping that’s how the night would end, but he’d assumed he’d be the one to make a move … a few hours from now. From the time they’d walked through the door of the pub, he’d known he was going to fuck Naomi, he just hadn’t known when. He was confident in who he was. He was never going to be the best-looking lad in the room, but he had something no other man here did: an Irish accent. Personally, he didn’t see what the big deal was, but across several continents, it was a sure-fire panty-dropper.

He set his glass to the side and captured her gaze. “Just so I’m clear here, you’re asking me back to your room so we can make the bed do a little rocking in the middle of the night?” His lips hitched to the side in a smirk, while hers did the same. He appreciated that she appreciated his bad joke.

“Yes, exactly. I’d also like to make the walls rattle a bit, if you’re up for it.”

“You really are the most delightful woman I’ve ever met,” he said, sliding out of the booth and tossing a handful of bills on the sticky table before reaching out and taking her hand. “I promise to do my best to bring security down on our heads.”

As they stumbled out onto the sidewalk, a dense fog snaked its way around them, wrapping their bodies in a misty cold. Naomi shivered, and pulled her flimsy black wrap tighter around her bare arms. Iain stepped behind her and circled her middle with his arms. With her hair up in an intricate knot, he had perfect access to her neck.

“I’ve been wanting to taste you here all night,” he said, dropping a soft, open-mouthed kiss to the skin just below her ear. “And here,” he added, dotting kisses up the length of her long, delicate neck.

She shivered once more, and this time not from the cold. “Do that again.”

His tongue flicked out and licked a path from her spine to her nape. “If you taste this sweet here,” he said, trailing his lips along her shoulder, “I can’t wait to taste you here.” His hand skated its way down, down, down.

“Oh God, that’s hot.” She melted into his embrace. “Where’s that damn Uber?”

“Where’s your hotel?”

She jutted out her chin. “Down the hill, in SoMA.”

Damn. They definitely needed a cab. There was no way Naomi was walking that far in those spikes she called shoes. Reluctantly dragging his lips from her heated skin, Iain scanned their surroundings. He couldn’t be sure, but he thought they might not be too far from where he was staying.

“Is this Nob Hill?”

She chuckled. “Sure. Or the Tender-Nob. Or the Nobber-Loin. Take your pick.”

“How far is Union Square?”

“A couple of blocks. Why?”

He pulled her in tight against him. Tight enough, he knew, that she’d be able to feel his erection straining against his trousers. He wanted this woman, and she wanted him. And neither of them wanted to wait. “I’m staying at the Westin. We could—”

Before he had time to explain his line of thinking, Naomi had stepped out of his hold, grabbed his hand, and was marching them quickly down the street. He’d never seen a woman move so quickly and so effortlessly in shoes like that, but he wasn’t about to complain. Clearly, she wanted this as much as he did.

“I—”

“Shh, no talking.” She shot him an apologetic smile. “Sorry, that was rude. I’m just super keyed up right now and I don’t want to lose that feeling. We’ll be in your hotel room in approximately ten minutes, and hopefully you’ll be inside of me a few minutes after that. I don’t want to make it awkward with small talk.”

Christ. What was that he’d thought earlier about love at first sight? Because the more he got to know Naomi, the more he liked about her. Actually, honestly liked. When you factored in her no-bullshit stance toward sex, he thought he might even be half in love with her. All in the course of one evening. Provided that sort of thing actually happened in real life. But since it didn’t, he pulled her hand to his lips and kissed her palm, his tongue flicking out at the last second to give her a brief preview of what she could expect in approximately thirteen minutes.

Because while he couldn’t wait to sink his cock inside of her, he didn’t want to rush things either. He’d told her he wanted to taste her, and he hadn’t been lying. Iain had a very refined palate, and he planned to spend several long moments identifying all the unique flavors that comprised Miss Naomi.

When she moaned and squeezed his hand in a vice grip before increasing their pace, Iain chuckled to himself. Yeah, we’re on the exact same page.

Six minutes later (but who was counting?) they sailed through the doors of the hotel and into the grand lobby. Without breaking stride, Naomi made her way straight to the elevator bay, and pressed the button.

“You come here often?” Iain felt an unexpected bolt of jealousy. He knew this was a one-night stand and that they were both sexual beings, but he didn’t like the reminder of just how sexual Naomi might actually be. That probably made him a chauvinist pig, but he didn’t think she’d want to be confronted with the evidence of his past partners either.

Her eyes found his, and immediately the heat in them cooled. “Yes, many times. Is that a problem?”

He didn’t like the implication of that frosty statement, but he liked the idea of them parting ways even less. He didn’t want to say goodbye without learning just how hot their fire burned. If it was even half as potent as he thought it might be, their night together would be worth it. And besides, it wasn’t like he was going to marry this girl; what, and who, they’d done before they’d met had no bearing on the things they were about to do to one another in the here and now. All he needed to do now was wrap it up and enjoy the ride.

“No problem at all,” he said as the door chimed and then slid open. Placing his hand on the small of her back, over where her dress dipped deliciously low in the back, he guided her inside the compartment.

When the doors shut, he pressed the button for his floor and she turned to him. “I don’t come here to—”

He stepped into her space, backing her up against the wall. “It doesn’t matter,” he growled, nipping at her lush bottom lip and tugging it between his teeth. “I want you, and I intend to have you. I don’t care about anything else.”

Naomi’s head fell back with a moan, and she speared her fingers through his hair, holding him close while he feasted on her skin. With his attention focused on her dainty collar bone, Iain slid the strap of her dress down her shoulder where it pooled at her elbow. The obsidian fabric slipped down her skin with a slight whoosh, exposing her nipple to his hungry mouth. When he sucked it between his lips, she mewled, the sound going straight to his dick.

“Has anyone ever told you that you have an exceptionally talented mouth?” she asked, her words coming out in between pants and moans.

He flicked the pert dusky pink nub with his tongue and winked. “You ain’t seen nothing yet.”

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