Take my mind off the bullshit, baby.

God, she was a fucking vision.

Outlined by orange and yellow radiance.

Silhouetted by fire.

Burnished in flames.

My plan to relieve the tension in my neck had been to guzzle down about three glasses of whiskey, followed by some self-love in the shower later.

Lexi’s idea was exponentially better.

With pink-tinted cheeks, courtesy of her lingering buzz, she gifted me with the most subtly seductive, wildly erotic dance in the history of the world.

If her willowy, feminine figure was carved into marble, like the Venus de Milo, people would come from all over the world just to behold its beauty. The way her curves rolled provocatively brought to mind the ivy that had wrapped itself around the columns at our Rovinj villa. Her petite nipples were clearly outlined through her thin cami, creating a salacious image.

Those will be in my mouth tonight.

She tipped her head back, letting all that shiny blond hair fall around her slender shoulders, a sultry grin gracing her sinful mouth. She swayed to the sounds of violin strings. The melody was maudlin—almost haunting—which only served to heighten the sexual charge energizing the space between us.

“Lose the jeans,” I grated.

I needed to see what delicate material was covering that ass. What had been in contact with her pussy all day, and what now shielded her femininity from me. What would become sodden with her juices, soaked in her scent, if I sucked those distended tips into my mouth. And what I would rip to fucking pieces if I decided to impale her with my cock right here on this chair.

I needed her to show me.

As I wondered whether or not she would obey my command, she seemed to be contemplating the same question. Then, miraculously, her slim fingers slid down her torso and opened her button. Next came the zipper. Then she took her sweet time slipping the painted-on jeans over her hips and down her thighs. As much as I appreciated the sensual way she moved every inch of that body, it was proving torturous to my self-control.

My fingers dug into the armrest. “Get them the fuck off already.”

Her mouth curved, her eyes half-lidded. “You didn’t specify how I should lose the jeans.”

“As fast as goddamn possible.”

She finally stepped out of them and kicked them away. Just like the cami, her microscopic panties were silky with a lace trim. Only these were black as the midnight sky, while her cami was a pretty ivory. Another enigma. On top was guileless innocence. Down below was confident siren.

But in that moment, all of Lexi was wanton and willing.

“Show me your ass,” I demanded. “I want to see how it looks in those little fuck-me panties. Let me see what’s been filling out those jeans so well.”

A coy smile touched the edges of her mouth as she rotated her hips and presented her back to me. As if anticipating my next command, she automatically lifted the cami a couple of inches so I could see everything.

I sucked in a breath. “There it is.”

Her cheeks spilled out the bottom, exposing matching dimples on the undersides that begged for my tongue to lave and my teeth to nip. This woman’s entire backside just needed to be sampled. When she bent over slightly, sticking it up in the air, I was teased with an image of her bent over my pool table, those firm, rounded cheeks cradling my dick as I drove it brutally hard into her.

And the overall shape of it… “It’ll be a perfect fit for my hands,” I murmured. “With those long legs, it’s at just the right height.” For a good, rough pounding.

That prompted her to give it a little shake.

I chuckled darkly.

She had no idea what beastly urges she was provoking inside me. No idea how quickly the tether leashing my restraint could snap if she pushed far and hard enough.

Balancing herself on her toes, like a graceful, naughty ballerina—enigma—she turned back to me. Her skin would be warm from the fire. Bet I could give her goosebumps if I placed my cool lips on the heated flesh of her neck, or the swell of her breasts.

I crooked my finger at her. “Bring that over to me.”

She bit her bottom lip. “What will you do when I get there?”

I chose honesty. “Destroy you.”

Her breath hitched.

My eyebrow went up. “Scared?”

Her sumptuous lips parted. “Intrigued.”

I spread my legs invitingly. “Prove it.”

As she sauntered toward me, I reached over to grab a piece of dark chocolate that I always kept in a bowl on the small table next to the chair. She watched my movements with curiosity gleaming in her cobalt eyes. After unwrapping the chocolate, I held it up in one hand and my Glencairn whiskey glass in the other.

“Since you seem to be such a fan of contrasts,” I rasped, “here’s one for you. This is a sweeter brand of bourbon whiskey. There’s notes of maple, vanilla, and caramel, making it rich and full-bodied.” I tipped my head toward the chocolate. “This is sea salt dark chocolate. The contrasting flavors will drive your taste buds crazy.”

She nudged my legs wider with her knees, making room for her to squeeze in between. My gaze dropped to the apex of her thighs, mere inches from my hands. The cami was covering most of her mons—but holy fuck. It would have taken no effort at all to pull those panties aside and get my mouth on her clit.

“Are you offering me a taste?” she whispered seductively.

My eyes darted to hers. “I’m offering you decadence.”

Which was exactly what Lexi personified. I was ready to fucking debase myself and gorge on her decadence.

“Who could turn that down?” She reached for the glass.

I pulled it back. “I thought Russians were snobby about their vodka.”

“And Americans are obviously snobby about their whiskey.” She licked her lips, her eyes lowering to my lap. “Doesn’t mean we can’t develop an appreciation for all kinds of different flavors.”

Fuck. Me.

I held out the glass. “Drink the whiskey first. Roll it around on your tongue. Let your taste buds absorb the sweetness before you swallow. Once your palate has gotten used to it, then eat the chocolate.”

Our fingers brushed as she took the glass. The tingling sensation immediately turned into an electric shock that shot up my arm and had my entire body wired to fuck in seconds. My cock swelled in my pants—

Then nearly busted through the damn zipper when she took a sip.

I felt my eyes glaze over as her naked lips left the glass. She swirled the whiskey around in her mouth, even taking a second, longer sip that ended with her humming in pleasure. Her eyes drifted shut as she swallowed that second one down.

“Wow, that’s good. I’m not a huge fan of this brand, but that’s the best bourbon of theirs I’ve had.”

My jaw hit the floor. “You drink whiskey?”

She cracked open her eyes, shooting me a what do you think? look.

“Why didn’t you say anything? That’s kind of what I do.”

“You never asked. Just assumed the Russian girl only drank vodka.”

Well, holy goddamn.

She just got infinitely sexier. Which I’d been convinced was impossible.

I held up the chocolate, reminding her she wasn’t done. She reached for it, and again, I pulled back. In a sassy move, she cocked her hip and pursed her lips. When she opened her mouth to say something, I placed the chocolate right in front of my mouth.

My expression was one of challenge.

Her cobalt eyes darkened to navy.

Placing her hands on both armrests, she leaned forward, bending her upper body toward mine. The chocolate was centimeters from my mouth. I could smell it, practically taste its bittersweetness.

But even the finest chocolate in the world had nothing on Lexi’s flavor.

I’d only gotten a sample of it in that parking garage. Indulging in the sloping curve of her neck that night, inhaling her lusty scent, was enough to temporarily satisfy but never sustain. I needed to once again bask in the potency of her passion.

This time, I’d smear her essence all over my face so the drugging effects of her body would last well after we parted.

The flare of arousal in her eyes captured my attention, imprisoning my gaze. They focused on my mouth for a heated moment. Did she want to be kissed? The thought of taking control of her mouth, of thrusting my tongue deep to tangle with hers and steal every hitched breath, made my cock twitch with excitement.

I could kiss her fucking crazy.

I could madden her with my mouth.

But not yet. I wanted her uncontrolled first. Untamed.

Wars are not won through a dogged pursuit of a moral right. That’s what society wants to believe because it’s easier to accept than systemic corruption among mankind. But in reality, victory is meted out by strategy and shrewdness. And by those who understand how crucial it is to always maintain the upper hand. It’s a constant power play.

And me and Lexi… Well, let’s just say I had a whole new understanding of the phrase “all is fair in love and war.”

So, I didn’t close the small distance between our mouths. Even when her expression turned carnal with want. Even as her teeth dug lasciviously into her bottom lip. Even as I felt downright hedonistic in my desire to tie her up and force her to take my cock as deep and filthy as she could, I kept that piece of chocolate between our mouths.

Lexi had her own plans.

Eyes locked on mine, she wrapped her voluptuous lips around the chocolate and sucked on it—as I still held it between my fingers.

My own mouth went dry as I watched the blatantly sexual woman before me wield the weapons the generous Lord gave her. Christ, she was lethal with them. She was melting the chocolate with the heat of her mouth, so she barely even had to bite into it.

I was about to fuck her raw on all fours on this rug.

Like a goddamn animal.

Because that was how I felt. Reduced to my very basest, primal desires.

I ripped open another piece of chocolate. “Again.”

With a knowing smile, she savored another sip of whiskey. But instead of holding the chocolate out for her mouth, I placed it in her hand this time. I have my own plans. The moment her teeth dug into the sweet, I leaned forward and sucked her nipple into my mouth through her cami.

She gasped. “Nico.”

That’s right, legs. You say my name.

I swirled my tongue around the peak, soaking the material of her top. After giving it a few flicks that had her breath shuddering, I repeated the process with the other one. Her fingers clung to my hair as the rest of her body trembled. After leaving both nipples thoroughly puckered, I eased back, satisfied at the job done.

Oh, but Lexi wasn’t done yet.

If anything, I think I’d just challenged her to go a step further.

As if she hadn’t pushed her luck enough, the vixen then licked every bit of chocolate from my fingers. When she lightly sucked one into her mouth, I felt an overflow of pre-cum leak out the top of my cock.

I couldn’t hold out forever.

She either had to get the hell out of this room in the next two seconds.

Or I was going to mount her to the nearest wall.

“You’re right,” she purred, licking those finger-sucking lips of hers. “The chocolate does bring out some interesting flavors in the whiskey. My taste buds are buzzing. But you know what I hear really drives them insane?”

I had to consciously force oxygen into my lungs. “What?”

“Whiskey,”—she set the glass down on the table—“then chocolate,”—she glanced down at the bulge in my pants—“then cock.”

The woman was devious.

Did she know how alluring she was? Did she realize how ravenous she looked as she stared at my lap? The eroticism of the moment demolished any willpower I had left inside me to stop it. The promise of an orgasm by her mouth, in her mouth.

It was all too much to resist.

So why not succumb?

“Is that what they say, legs?” She nodded. “Well, the only way to know for sure is to test it out.”

Without hesitation, her fingers deftly slid my belt through the loops. The clinking sounds of tinny metal accompanied violin strings. My zipper was lowered, along with my briefs. When my stiff length sprang forth and pointed up at the ceiling, Lexi gasped. Her hands let go as if she’d been bitten.

I may not have had eleven inches on me, but I had girth.

More than once over the course of my adulthood, I’d had women struggle to fit me inside them. And feeling how tight Lexi was, I knew she’d have to be dripping wet before I could get balls-deep. Even then, she’d still probably have to do some serious wriggling before I could start moving. Beautiful.

“Too much for you?”

Still staring at it, she shook her head. “No. I’m just imagining all the things you could do with that.”

Shit, she had no idea.

“Swallow the tip to the back of your throat, and I’ll give you a preview right now.”

She lowered herself to her knees, treating me to one of the most glorious sights I’d ever seen. Lexi in lingerie, staring at my cock from her knees. When she wrapped her fingers around the base, I nearly came right then. Before I could ever feel the majesty of her mouth. She looked at it almost quizzically, as if pondering the physical mechanics of how she was going to make it fit. I was fully prepared—and kind of eager—to give her proper instruction, if necessary.

Turned out, she didn’t need any guidance.

She took it into her mouth, shocking the hell out of me when she bottomed out on the second attempt. That was Lexi, though. Always had to prove a point when challenged.

Spine of steel…and mouth like a fallen angel.

My head fell back on the chair with a thunk. “Oh, fuck. No shallow waters, huh? Just dive straight into the deep end?”

She pulled off with a bawdy slurp long enough to say, “If I know how to swim, why would I ever want to stay in the shallows?”

Then she got right back to work.

Her words held ironic similarities with my entire philosophy on life.

In the grand scheme of things, the shallow end was only there to warm you up and prepare you for the deep. The shallows held no surprises, only safety and security. Deep waters were literally where all the unknowns in life resided. Which might scare the shit out of a lot of people, but the unknowns were all I’d really known for the past ten years. I loved the rush that came with not seeing what’s beneath you. When you didn’t know what was at the bottom, or if there even was a bottom. When you jumped in and knew you’d keep sinking, keep drifting, without anything stopping you.

Possibilities are infinite when limits are absent.

Although, the older I was getting, the more limits I was encountering. It made me wonder if living in the deep end was becoming less and less of a possibility. If, at some point in life, limits became necessary. The problem with that was, I didn’t know how to live in the shallows. Didn’t know how to continue to be Nico with the bottom right below my feet. When there were barriers.

Which was why my head had been so fucked up with Lexi. With her, there had to be limits. I couldn’t just do whatever the fuck I wanted. For one thing, our situation wasn’t permanent. The bottom was always visible beneath our feet—it had to stay that way. Two, her father could stir up some bad shit in my life if things between Lexi and I went south.

And we were on the cusp of exceeding one of those limits tonight. In this room. With her mouth full of my dick.

But not yet.

“How do I taste, legs?”

She moaned. “Like chocolate bourbon and sex.”

That tore a groan from me. “How are those taste buds now?”

“Crazed. Overwhelmed.”

Another groan. “They’re about to be committed to an asylum.”

The harder she worked me, the more voraciously she sucked, the antsier she became. When a frustrated whimper escaped her mouth, I peeked over my knees to see her clenching her thighs.

“Is your sweet little clit feeling neglected? Does it need some attention?”

She nodded, even as her tongue snaked up my length, sending a shiver up my spine.

“Don’t torment the poor thing. The way you’re sucking me so good is making her throb for it. Rub right over that tiny button and give her what she needs.”

Again, she impressed me with her obedience. She shoved her hand inside her panties and stroked in the same rhythm that her mouth stroked me. I switched my attention back and forth between watching her finger herself and watching my erection disappear into her mouth. I knew when her climax slammed into her because her teeth extended beyond her lips and grazed my flesh.

That brief sting of pain was fucking magnificent.

Her breaths were ragged by the time her legs ceased trembling. While I was barely holding on to the edge of the cliff by my fingernails.

One final command.

One last thing I needed to see before I could release the torrent of sexual tension that had been building up inside since the day I met her.

“Put them in your mouth.”

Her gaze collided with mine.

I nodded down at her hand. “Suck if off. I want you to taste both of us when I spill.”

More obedience. In fact, she acted like she was powerless against my demands.

I lost my grip on the cliff and plummeted to my death.

I was actually surprised that emptying myself down Lexi’s throat didn’t kill me. Because for a second there, I could have sworn I’d glimpsed heaven.

Even more bewildering was how we fell into comfortable silence after she sucked me dry. As if it was something she’d done a thousand times, she laid her head on my thigh. And I stroked her hair.

We said nothing.

We acknowledged nothing. At least, not out loud.

I was afraid she’d fallen asleep before she eventually sighed contentedly.

“You need to go to bed, Lexi.”

I winced at how gruff my voice came out.

“I’m pretty comfy right here, actually.” She nuzzled my leg like a pillow. “The fire’s nice and warm.”

She was refusing to leave?

What the hell was I supposed to do with that?

I usually found a way to piss her off when I wanted her to leave me alone. But for the life of me, I couldn’t come up with a single condescending remark. I needed to be an asshole to get her out of my sight and stop touching me. Needed to remind her why she hated me and didn’t want anything to do with me.

Not that I really wanted to see her go. Having her sit with me down here, a place where I usually contemplated my entire life’s worth, was shockingly soothing. The room suddenly didn’t feel as lonely.

I knew she needed to go.

But still…my mind was blank.

I sat there stewing about what strategy to take to draw her anger back out, but I couldn’t make myself do it. After what she just did, she didn’t deserve that. She’d been brave to strip for me, knowing I could have very well yelled at her to leave me the hell alone. I could have rejected her, and she’d still gone after what she wanted.

She fell asleep while I pondered.

Ten minutes later, I carried her upstairs and placed her gently in her bed.

Then I watched her sleep for a long fucking time. Still pondering.

By the time I reluctantly trudged off to my own room, I didn’t even know who the hell I was anymore.