Page 38 of Duke
My mouth is going very, very dry. I’m adrift in feeling, not another thought in my head beyond the way I feel and the tightwire I’m walking toward orgasm.
“Look at me.”
My eyelashes flutter as my eyes open. “Kiss me, Stella, and let me make you feel so fucking good.”
I couldn’t stop now even if I wanted to. “Yes.” I grip the sides of his face with my hands and dive headlong into his kiss. As our tongues stroke together, the kiss gets messier the more desperate I become. His finger gently circles and circles, the tip prods, then darts away. Over and over.
I become impatient, needing more of the sensations hurtling through me, threatening to start a wildfire racing through my veins. I whimper into his mouth, then increase the intensity of the kiss. I plunge my tongue inside, swirling and chasing his, all while I shove my ass backward at him. Embarrassment at what I’m doing should be smacking into me right about now… but this is Duke. And mine is not the first ass he’s played with.
“Duke. I n-need—”
“What do you need, baby?”
“More. I need more.” And I kiss him again to the feel of him pressing a fingertip inside my tight asshole. I shudder and shake at the completely new feeling. I continue to grind my clit on him with every stroke and push backward until his cum-covered finger slips farther inside me.
My orgasm crests like so many of my orgasms do. There’s a fluttering sensation, a shimmer of sorts. Coiled tension unfurling. But then, boom. I’m knocked off my axis as my entire lower half pulses. Throbs. Detonates. My body rocks, and I cry out. I don’t even know if I’m saying actual words or simply babbling nonsense as I literally lose my mind.
It’s several moments before I’m coherent enough to understand that Duke is talking to me—whispering softly, that is. I make a little humming sound, then find the strength to lift my head so I can peer into his eyes.
“You haven’t heard a word I said, have you?”
I give him a sheepish grin. “If it was after I came, then no.”
He chuckles, rolling me to the mattress where I collapse beside him. I snuggle close to his strong body. I needed this.Weneeded this. My eyelids grow heavy as Duke envelops me in his arms, and the citrusy scent of his cologne lulls me to sleep.
* * *
I glanceup from my phone. “Are you sure it’s okay to bring me with you, Juliette? I don’t have to come in. I could wait in the car.”
Juliette glances at me, a sweet smile on her lips as she pulls her obviously expensive sports car around the back of some fancy building. “Don’t be silly. I told you, the guy who offered me the job said it was okay to bring a friend. In fact, he encouraged it.”
The place appears to be closed, only faint glimmers of light peeking out from a few of the windows. Despite that, we park in a back lot, as Juliette seems confident. She’s all smiles as she rummages in her bag, pulling out a tube of pink lip gloss. Using the rearview mirror, she proceeds to slick it on, rubbing her lips together until she’s satisfied with the way it looks. I try to get my bearings of where we are, but on the way over, I hadn’t been paying attention, instead focusing on the hand-me-down phone my mother gave me earlier this afternoon. The guy she’s dating bought her a sleek new one with all the bells and whistles. Pretty crazy. But whatever, now I have a phone of my own.
Slipping it in my pocket, I watch as she puts another coat of mascara on her lashes. I’d applied my makeup before I left the house, but now I’m wondering if I’d done a good enough job. I exhale slowly, choosing not to worry about it. “So, how’d you find out about this job again?”
“This guy who’s a regular at the diner. He’s been chatting me up for weeks. He invited me. I guess he figured I could use the money if I was working at Stella’s.” She shrugs. “He’s not wrong. I tried not to appear desperate, but…”
TWENTY
LENNON
“Lennon.”
It feels like I’m trapped underwater, unable to hear clearly. Arms wrap around me, pulling me against a warm, hard surface. I wake up with the tail end of my nightmare still ringing in my ears.Juliette. Juliette, no. We should tell someone.
I suck in an anxious breath, opening my eyes.No, no, no.My breaths are short and choppy, and my head is still clogged up with what little I remember of that night. Juliette and I had made a pact—we’d never speak again of what had happened. Juliette took our secret to her grave, leaving me with the burden of living out my life, having made her that promise. And worse, I was never certain what’d transpired because there’s a chunk of that night missing from my memory.
“You okay?” Duke pulls me close, his strong arms banding around me. I draw in an unsteady breath, recognizing that it’s his warm chest that I’ve been burrowing myself into.
“Um.” I shift, putting one hand to my forehead. “Just groggy from multiple afternoon naps, I think. What time is it?”
Duke shifts up onto his elbow, peering over me toward his nightstand. “Almost eight. Jeez.” He smiles down at me. “You wore me the fuck out.”
“Ditto, I think.”
He untangles himself from me, then playfully swats my ass. “Be right back.”
I haven’t moved a millimeter when he returns. Aside from the bullshit of what’d come to me in my dream, I feel mostly relaxed, whether it’s from sleep or sex, I don’t know. My entire body is pliant, like I’ve turned into clay and can be molded. This is proven when Duke rolls me to my back and opens my legs. I push all the ache of my memories away in favor of being in the here and now with him.
