Page 19 of Never Always
I shiver.
He notices. “That good?”
“Shut up, Granger.”
He laughs, then pops the end of the queen in his mouth and sucks. I’m in rapture, watching his mouth. I’m the one who needs a drink of water now. I can’t shake it. The urge to kiss him. Probably because he doesn’t kiss. His lips are perfectly sculpted. Pink. Wet. Thick. I lean forward without my own permission—an attraction so strong that the motion is fueled by something otherworldly.
Grange sees me move and stands, backing away from me. “You okay, Fire? I know I’m fucking good, but I didn’t think you’d lose your mind. That’s a first for even me.”
“It felt so good.”
“Yeah,” he replies, a caustic edge to his voice. “Obviously.”
“Don’t do that. Don’t back away by using your acid.”
Grabbing my shorts, I slide them on angrily. I go to the hallway closet and grab him blankets and a pillow. I toss them at his head. He catches them though. Filling my water bottle, I try not to think about his face as he was blowing on my wet pussy, the fire he ignited, the passion he instilled without touching me.
“I bid you good night, Corrick Granger. I hope you don’t roll off, hit your head, and become a better person by morning. That would be criminal. Oh, wait.”
“You don’t want a better person, Fire. You want me. Just like this. Angry, moody, uncultured, convicted, fucked up. You want all of that. Hopefully you can fall asleep and live with yourself after that epiphany.”
“Screw you,” I yell back, hand on my bedroom door’s edge.
“That an invite? I do prefer real beds, remember?”
Yes. Yes. Yes. “No way.”
“You will invite me to your bed. You’ll beg me to fuck you. When you get over your infatuation with the man version of yourself, you’ll see me. Crave everything I can give you that no one else can.” Grange peers at me intently. “You’ll pray to God I don’t tell you no way when that day comes.”
Huffing, I slam the door and lock it. Can’t be worried about the big, orgasm gifting sex demon sneaking into my bed in the middle of the night. Wouldn’t want another orgasm. Nope.
Oh, hell. Who am I kidding? I unlock my door.
Grange’s laugh carries through the thick wood.
I fall asleep angry and so sated that I remember my dreams in the morning.
His lips on my lips. On repeat.
_________________
Grange is gone when I amble into the kitchen to brew coffee just as the sun rises. Aside from the messy chess board on the coffee table, last night could have been a dream. I learned so much about him and about myself. Evidently, I turn into a lust crazed hussy when presented with a muscled man who is skilled in the sack.No, it’s just Grange, I think. I know that without anything to compare him to because of how cloudy my mind is still today. I eye the chess board closer and notice the black queen is missing. The sight makes my chest squeeze and my cheeks heat.
He was so delicate. When his friends were here, it was as if he was an animated version of himself. Was that the real Grange? I think it might be. Everything else could be an angry smoke screen. I’ll find out. I’ll research him until I know everything about him. I text Sue-Ellen a quick good morning first, then I hop in the shower, taking care this time not to wet my hair, and throw on a pair of jeans and a yellow t-shirt. I pour my coffee into a travel mug and head down to the lab.
Fishing out my cell, I find Grange’s phone number and send a quick text letting him know that I’m at work and can unlock the door for him if he’s still coming in today. It’s a casual message without any mention of anything else. I don’t have a claim on him so I have no right to ask where he went last night, without a car, or where he is now. I wish I could.
“Tennyson,” someone says from behind me, closer than they should be without me knowing. I jump, and spin, my phone drops to the cement walkway, cracking my screen in one line across the corner.
I stoop to pick it up and bonk heads with Grey. “Sorry. Hey,” I exclaim, smoothing the crack with my thumb. A jagged edge cuts my finger and a drop of blood pools on my fingertip. “You scared the life out of me. What are you doing here?” It takes several more moments to calm my pulse. He looks haggard, like maybe he’s been up doing research for several hours already. I recognize the look. “Are you okay?” I ask.
After eyeing the blood on my finger, and apologizing for scaring me, he sighs long and jagged. “You took off last night.”
I scan my card to get into the building. Grey follows. “I’m so sorry about that. I had to help… a friend.”
He scoffs. A noise I’ve definitely never heard before, and a pang of contempt hits. Is Grey judging me? “You looked really beautiful last night. I, uh, wanted to ask you something.” When we get to the stairwell door, I open it so he can go first. It’s amazing how quickly things change. Last night, before Grange, I would have looked at Grey’s question with excitement, now it’s dread.
“Yeah, sure.” Why is he here today?
