Reno returned to his condo a quarter after seven and eased the door closed. It was still early, and he didn’t want to wake Zuri. She insisted on sleeping on the couch, even though he offered her his bedroom. Reno wasn’t going for that. So, after a lengthy debate, she said they’d alternate so no one would be uncomfortable for too long. He had to honor a woman who took his welfare into consideration. Though he did not like the arrangement one bit.
Dropping his keys in a crystal dish by the front door, Reno bypassed the lump of covers on the couch and tip-toed to the bedroom.
The aroma of Zuri’s berry scented hair swirled in his room like fresh baked blueberry pie. It was potent and he loved every inhale. Reno didn’t recall the scent being that powerful before he’d left. Disrobing in the darkness that the blackout drapes provided, he slid off a pair of grey sweatpants and pulled a white t-shirt over his head, tossing both on the floor. With only a pair of fitted Calvin Klein boxers on, Reno slipped under the covers.
Snuggling into his pillow, the fragrance grew stronger. Zuri had slept in the bed the previous night, but the scent didn’t linger the way it did, right now. Reno flipped over to inhale the other pillow and grabbed a handful of soft hair.
Pushing himself upright and flicking on the bedside lamp, Reno took in the full view of the angel sleeping in his bed. “What.” His mouth fell open, but no further sound came forth.
He gazed openly like an artist, admiring his subject. Zuri was stretched out peacefully in a golden spaghetti strap pajama top, that made her chocolate skin glow more than it already had. She took long even breaths as if she didn’t have a care in the world. No wonder her scent was everywhere.
Reno’s heart did a few cartwheels and summersaults. It had been a minute since he shared a bed with a woman he cared for.
“This can’t happen,” he whispered, cuffing the pillow in his arms, then bending to pick-up his sweatpants.
“Heyyy,” a sleepy voice groaned, halting his movements. “How did it go?”
Reno slowly turned. Zuri had stretched, then propped on one elbow. The spaghetti strap had slipped off of her shoulder, exposing an ample part of her breast. “Go back to sleep. We can talk about that in the morning.” He stood, sliding into his pants.
“It is morning,” she countered, pulling back the covers. Zuri’s long chocolate legs were on full display. “I was not expecting you back so soon. I should not have taken over your personal space like this––– it is not my night anyway.”
“You don’t have to get up,” he insisted. “I’ll sleep on the couch.”
“No you will not,” she said in a voice so sultry an erection almost sprang to life.
This is not a good idea.
“Come on.” Zuri snatched Reno’s pillow and placed it back at the head of the bed, then laid down under the covers.
Although hesitant, Reno slid in the bed, but he did not remove his pants.
“I just need a cat nap,” he admitted and rolled on his side with his back to Zuri.
For a while, they both remained silent. Reno thought she was asleep. Time ticked by and his every thought was filled with her. Every inhale was that wonderful scent. Another thought was the mother whose regal bearing came to mind, and her parting words. My daughter may come to you one day and need your help. I am trusting you to do right by my girl if she ever graces your door. He was certain Suby Okusanya did not mean in this way. When he finally started to drift off, she rubbed his back. Her soft hands on his bare skin were magnetic.
“Are you awake?”
“Yeah,” he mumbled.
“Thanks for everything. It has been a long time since someone has done anything nice for me.” She paused, letting out a soft breath that swept across his back. The combination of her touch and the faint breeze on his skin was enough to send his hormones into overdrive. “This is the first time a man has ever made me a priority who did not want something in return.”
Reno absorbed that statement for a moment before turning to face her.
“You’re welcome. But you shouldn’t have to thank any man for being a stand-up guy. That’s who we’re supposed to be.”
“Not where I come from.”
“Yeah, I know, but maybe one day things will change. You deserve to be loved and cherished for the beautiful woman––– person––– you are, and nothing more.”
“You make me feel special,” Zuri purred, inching closer to Reno. “And not because it is your job to protect me. I feel like you see me and truly care about me.”
Her breath danced in whispers on his face. Reno was intoxicated on her pheromones.
“I see the way you look at me when I talk to you.” Zuri moved even closer, her breast resting against his chest. “We have a connection. Please tell me I am not alone in this.”
“You’re not,” he whispered, pushing Zuri’s hair out of her face and caressing her baby-smooth skin. “But I can’t act on my feelings. It’s unethical for me to get involved with a client.”
“Not if I want the same thing.” She moaned and traced his lips with her tongue, then pressed her mouth against them with a slow precision that unsettled his soul.
Reno was losing this battle to stay on the right side of morality. His body betrayed the words that came out of his mouth seconds ago. His erection pulsed until it ached with a hunger and passion that had to be unleashed and fed, but only by her. Taking a deep breath, he teased her lips in a sensual kiss. Zuri worked her way out of the shirt and tossed it off to the side.
She gave a low, throaty chuckle as his tongue traveled down her long neck, then traced the smooth skin along her collarbone. He gently massaged her breasts in a circular motion, pushing them together and feasting on both nipples at once. Zuri moaned and ran her fingers through his hair, holding him in place as she glided her thigh over his erection.
Drifting down, Reno nibbled at her belly-button, removing her blue lace panties and slipping a finger inside her tight center. She was moister than the creamy filling inside a cannoli shell and he had to have a sample.
“I have a confession,” Zuri said as her breath came out in gasps. “I have never been with a white man before.”
“Well that makes two of us.” He burst out in laughter, then lowered his nose to the neatly trimmed patch of hair right above her pearl.
Zuri ruffled his hair. “You think you are funny, huh?”
“You think I am too,” he teased, inhaling her sweetness, then opening his mouth to taste her.
“This will be my first time with any man,” she admitted.
The tip of Reno’s tongue paused before making contact, taking in the meaning of her words. He removed his fingers and climbed along the side of Zuri. “First time? Are you sure you want to do this?”
She gazed into his eyes. “I have never been more sure about anything in my life than I am in this moment right now.”
Reno stroked her face in admiration. “You want your first experience to be special and with someone you love.”
Zuri placed a finger to his lips, cutting off any further speech. “That is why I am giving myself to you,” she admitted, removing the finger and resting her hand on his chest. “You have proven that you are worthy of my love, my heart, and my body. I want to be with you in a way that I have never been with anyone else, because I do love you.”
Reno lifted her hand to his mouth and pressed a kiss to the back of her fingers ever so softly. “I didn’t mean for it to happen. I’ve fallen in love with you, too. I’ve never felt this deeply connected to a person in such a short period of time,” Reno said, swallowing the nerves of his admission as he pulled her closer. “I’m not sure where this leads, but I promise to do right by you.”
“I could not ask for anything more,” she replied, gazing at him, her eyes dreamy.
He cupped her face, then kissed Zuri with such tenderness. Reno’s passion grew stronger with every moan, squirm she made. “I’ll go slow,” he promised as his tongue swirled in and out of her steamy mouth.
Without breaking the kiss, Zuri shimmied Reno’s sweatpants down to his knees, leaving him in a pair of Calvin Klein boxers. He worked them the rest of the way down, gathered beneath his feet.
Reno maneuvered Zuri onto her back, then took that same journey as before down her neck, to the collarbone, visiting her breasts for a while before traveling to her navel. Zuri’s back arched, causing the perfect dip as his tongue slid to her midsection. He gently inserted his fingers and played with her G-spot as he flicked her pearl with his tongue.
She tasted even sweeter than she smelled.
“Mmmmm,” she moaned, damn near lifting her bottom off the mattress.
He extended an arm to her breasts and rotated a nipple with the palm of his hand, alternating with a light pinch between his fingers.
“Mariano,” she whispered amidst breaths, quivering from every touch.
The more aroused she became, the more pleasure he wanted to give. His erection stiffened to the point that it was damn near painful, but he came up for air to get his hormones in check. Reno didn’t want to have his own pleasure before he had a chance to feel Zuri’s wrapped around him.
He leaned back into a kneeling position, lifting Zuri’s legs. Reno placed one on his shoulder and sucked her toes on the other.
She whispered something in her native tongue that Reno couldn’t understand as he dipped her big toe in his mouth. That was the first time he heard Zuri speak in Swahili.
Once the intensity of his arousal settled to a level where he wouldn’t have a spontaneous combustion, Reno switched positions, parting Zuri’s thighs, and gently sucked her pearl.
Zuri flinched so fiercely that she exploded on his mouth and chin. Reno’s tongue continued to tease and taste until she climaxed, and her legs went limp.
He moved back onto his knees and smiled down at her. She was even more beautiful after reaching her pinnacle of pleasure. This was only the beginning. He had much more in store for her. “You good,” he teased, gliding a finger from her thigh down to the top of her foot.
“Mmmm hmmm,” she responded, pushing her once tamed hair away from her face.
Reno climbed out of bed, glancing down at a smiling Zuri. Keeping his gaze squarely on her, he slid his fingers inside the elastic band of the boxers and guided them over his erection. Her eyes grew wide. He stepped out of them as they dropped to the floor.
Reaching to grab a gold square foil package from the drawer, Reno knocked the phone to the floor causing the home screen to illuminate the darkness. Narrowing his eyes, Reno retrieved the device. He had several missed calls from Daron, Kaleb, and Vikkas. What was that about?
Reno glanced over at Zuri and sighed. As much as he wanted to stay in the moment, his intuition gnawed at him. There was no way he could put off returning the unanswered calls until later. The Kings wouldn’t reach out to him repeatedly, unless it was an emergency. “My love,” Reno whispered, perching alongside the bed. “Give me a minute. I need to make a call.”
“Okay,” she responded, rolling onto her side, gliding the tips of her fingers along Reno’s thigh, causing him to flinch as tingling sensations danced beneath his skin.
What am I doing? He dialed Kaleb’s number, then smiled down at Zuri. He had a beautiful woman in his bed. Nothing else should matter.
The line was answered before a full ring echoed on his end.
“Where the hell have you been?” Kaleb barked through the phone not even saying hello. “We’ve been trying to reach you for the last three hours.”
“What’s the 9-1-1?”
“Daron was able to clone Frank’s phone much sooner than expected. And there’s a recorded three-way conversation between Frank, Godfrey, and––– ” Kaleb’s voice trailed to a halt.
“And who?”
“Reno, I don’t know how to tell you this––– ”
“Just tell me, already,” he demanded. “This ain’t how we work. Maybe some of the others, but not us.”
Zuri stood in front of Reno with narrowed eyes and a frown, she whispered, “What’s going on?”
“That’s what I would like to find out,” Reno said exasperated, and loud enough for Kaleb to hear. “Just tell me, man.”
“Don’t do anything stupid until we learn more.”
“Whatever,” Reno remarked, slapping his thigh. “Who is it?”
“Promise me,” Kaleb yelled, his loud voice booming through the receiver, causing Zuri to wince.
“Okay,” Reno conceded, rubbing Zuri’s arm in an effort to sooth her. “I promise. I’ll be cool.”
“It’s your father.”