“Right, right,” she says, rolling her eyes. “Fine then. Hustle. Scoot. Steamroll. I don’t really give a shit, Pete. You’ve caused enough problems today, so kindly move out of the way.”
This woman is unfuckingbelievable. I’ve said it before, but it’s still true. Stroking a hand over my beard, I meet her eyes with mine. “Just what problems did I cause? When you were riding my cock? Was that one of the problems? Or when I filled you with my fingers and you could barely catch your breath? Or is the problem you’re referring to the orgasm I gave you? Please enlighten me so I don’t make the same mistake again.”
“All of the above,” she snaps. “You and your gigantic penis and colossal fingers have ruined everything. I got back to my dorm today and I couldn’t fucking focus because my mind kept flashing back to the cabin and the couch and the nakedness and the sex.”
I nod because my mind did the exact same thing, but also, I want her to keep explaining why I’m in trouble for making her feel so good.
“Picture it, Pete,” she says, holding her hands up with her thumbs toward each other like she’s holding an imaginarypicture frame. “There I am in my bed, getting all hot and bothered thinking about what we did. I was so worked up that I couldn’t concentrate for shit. So, I took a little self-care break. Figured I’d take matters into my own hands and then get back to work. You with me so far?”
Again, I bob my head because it seems like our afternoons were identical.
“I couldn’t get myself off, you asshole.” Her words land with a thud in my ears, punctuated by the thin line of her lips and the narrow set of her eyes. “Nothing worked,” she continues. “Not my fingers or my vibrator or picturing any other sexual encounter I’ve ever had. My clit doesn’t work anymore and it’s all your fault.”
Okay, so our afternoons started out the same way, but they had very different endings. It’s probably wise to keep that little tidbit to myself, though. “I should probably be sorry,” I tell her, “but I am not sorry at all.”
Claire’s hands are on her hips, and I tamp down the desire to cover them with my own.
“Well, fuck you very much then,” she practically hisses at me, “because I am going to be extra bitchy until I get this sorted out. When my glare burns your eyebrows off or my disdain boils over and scalds you, you’ll only have yourself to blame.”
“Because you can’t have an orgasm without me?” I clarify, just to rile her up. Unsurprisingly, it works.
“Yes. Hopefully it’s like the flu and it only lasts for five to seven days.”
“The flu can last for ten days,” I say. “Sometimes longer. What if it never goes away, Claire? What if you’ve developed a chronic case?”
“You shut your mouth, Pete Santos.”
“Make me,” I dare, stepping closer, so our bodies are almost touching. If I take a deep breath, they will be. I’mso damn tempted to cover her lips with mine, but I hold back because the next time I kiss Claire Fowler, whether it’s in thirty seconds, thirty days, or thirty years, it will be because she wants it as much as I do. “I’m a scientist,” I say, keeping up our banter because, damn, it gets me nearly as hard as the sight of her body does. “I know things. And lucky for you, I might have the remedy to your problem.”
“Oh, yeah? What’s that? A twelve-inch dildo?”
My eyes go wide, both from the sass she dishes at me and the thought of using a dildo on Claire’s sweet pussy as I claim her ass with my cock. God, this woman makes me think filthy thoughts. “No silicone necessary,” I assure her, nudging myself a centimeter closer. Fuck me, if my rock-hard dick so much as twitches in my shorts she’s going to know about it.
Closing the paper-thin gap between us, she presses her breasts to my chest, her flat stomach to my softer one, and the valley between her thighs to the hard ridge of my dick. “What’s the fix, Pete? If you have the cure, then tell me, because I need it.”
“You already know exactly what you need. The question is what you’re going to do about it.” My hands rest on her hips as I let my eyes roam over her face, and I notice the exact moment she makes her decision. Her eyes flutter closer as she leans up toward me, her mouth seeking mine.
Claire’s lips are the sweetest thing I’ve ever tasted. I could get drunk on them.Fuck. As our tongues tangle together, I realize I could do this all night. But Claire’s not nearly as patient as I am, apparently, because she grabs my hand and leads me up the steps. “Do you have your key card?” she asks as I point to the door that’s mine.
Seconds later, we’re inside and I have no memory of unlocking the door or scanning my badge. All I canremember is the taste of Claire on my tongue. And fuck, I want more of it. Her lips part, but just when I’m about to pull her close and fuse our mouths together again, she stills and takes half a step back.
“I just want us to be clear about what this is and what it isn’t. It’s an extension of this afternoon, that’s all. The same rules apply.”
Shaking my head, I reach for her. “Do we need rules?”
Without hesitation, she answers me. “Yes.”
“Just sex?” I ask, recalling what she said earlier. “So, we’re friends with benefits, and nothing more?”
“Technically,” she says, taking my hand and guiding me toward the bed, “I think we’re enemies with benefits. But either way, the result is the same. There’s no attachment. There’s only sex.”
Standing next to my bed, I watch as she unbuttons her shorts and slides them down her legs before doing the same with her lacy black underwear. She peels her tank top off so that she’s standing in front of me in just a bra.
I should balk. Walk away. At least slow the fuck down. I’m already in too deep, and I know with certainty that this isn’t going to end well. But I am powerless to resist her. I don’t even want to try.
Instead of doing the smart thing, I reach out and let my finger trace the lace covered band of her bralette before I flick the front closure. She lets out a breathy moan and I can’t tell if it’s because she likes the way her breasts feel, naked and desperate in the cool air of the room, or if she’s genuinely surprised that I’m agreeing to her terms.
I don’t like them. But I am agreeing with them. Anything that gets Claire’s naked body closer to mine has my vote.
