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Jared brushed his lips over hers, and she leaned into the kiss without hesitation. The ordered part of his brain twitched that he couldn’t get a solid read on this woman. In the few short hours they’d known each other, she’d been demure, confident, sarcastic, and removed. No one had that many variables so close to the surface. On top of that, she’d never stopped being sexy. Her black hair with a red streak, the off-the-shoulder shirt and corset combination highlighting the curves underneath, and the skirt ending a few inches above her knees drove his imagination wild.
And the way her tongue darted into his mouth completely disassembled his thoughts. His blood pressure increased another notch when a smooth metal ball rolled along the inside of his mouth. The fabric of her corset teased his fingertips, and the intoxicating scent of lemon and plum still drifted from her. His mouth watered at the thought of running his tongue up the long curve of her neck. Seeing if her skin felt more like silk or the suede tempting his palms.
He didn’t have time for this. He had pressing problems to solve, and her what the hell attitude was as disconcerting as it was contagious. Except, for the first time in he couldn’t remember how long, this moment was the only thing he wanted to focus on.
He dropped into a nearby stool and tugged her closer. She slid between his legs without hesitation, fingertips digging into his chest and soft gasps tearing from her throat. He glided his hands down her back and rested them on her ass. She pushed even closer, brushing his cock through his jeans. Jesus, he wanted more.
He trailed his nose up her neck, inhaling the sharp scent making every one of his senses sing. It took the last of his restraint, and the intense knowledge they were in a public place, not to push her skirt out of the way, bend her over the bar, and slide inside her. What was wrong with him? Tempted to misbehave just because he was a little turned on?
No way was he walking away now. Every gasp and moan whispering from her stole more of his reason. She was different—unrestrained didn’t begin to describe her—and his senses begged for more than just a taste. He grazed his teeth along her ear, nipping at her lobe. “I should warn you now, if we keep going I won’t want to stop. Hell, I already don’t want to stop.”
Her tiny laugh ended with a sigh when he traced up her collarbone with his tongue. The faint salt of perspiration mingled with the velvet of her skin. Another tick in her favor—his bluntness didn’t seem to faze her. He needed to get some of these clothes out of the way. She rubbed against him, her response quiet. “I’m not letting you strip me down in the middle of a bar.”
If he asked nicely, would she? He couldn’t hold back his smirk as inspiration struck. “We could go back to my room.”
“Or we could sneak off into one of the practice rooms they have.”
Her breathy suggestion glitched his thoughts, but reason wriggled its way in. “You think they’re not going to know exactly why we’re going back there?”
She stepped back as far as was possible without breaking the contact between them, and her lower lip jutted out. “Does it matter?”
He wanted to kiss that pout away, then run his lips lower along her collarbone and dip between the curve of her breasts. Fuck propriety. At least for the next hour or so. He waved the bartender over and dropped a bill on the counter. “We want one of the sound rooms to warm up in.”
He received an electronic key card and a raised eyebrow in return, but no comment. He tugged Mikki away from the main stage. As they passed the bathroom, something occurred to him. Convenient. He pressed her against the wall, using the dark corner to block them mostly from view. He ran his hand up the back of her leg, pushing up the hem of her skirt.
“And you were worried about what people would say,” she teased as she squirmed under his touch.
He tangled his fingers in her hair and crushed his lips to hers. When he broke the kiss, he pressed his forehead to hers. “Fifteen seconds. I’ll be right back.”
Pink flooded her cheeks. “I’ll give you twenty and then I’m leaving.”
He chuckled at the joking threat, ducked into the bathroom, and returned twelve seconds later—he’d counted—with protection.
“You’ve thought of everything.”
He nudged her toward the sound room. “Not everything, but I’ve got a head full of starting places to pick and choose from.”
The room was barely big enough for a bench and table mounted to the wall, a microphone, a screen in another wall, and a computer keyboard to let people make their play selections.
Is this place as clean as it looks? How many other people have had this same idea?
Her pelvis ground against his cock and shoved the nagging questions aside. He’d never been with a woman who was this kind of bold. His imagination was already careening out of control with the filthy things he wanted to do to her. He could overlook invisible germs. The space was small, but it was all they needed.
He twirled her so her back was to him and pulled her close again. Her warm figure pressed into him cranked his internal temperature several notches. He undid the hooks on the front of her corset and kissed along the back of her neck. The heady scent of citrus sang to his senses and filled him with a longing to feel every inch of her at once.
He tugged the bottom of her shirt out of her skirt. Every time her ass shifted, the friction made him harder. It was going to be difficult to be patient with her. He rested his palms on her bare stomach. Her skin was smoother than the silky texture he’d imagined. Warm and eager beneath his touch.
Her every sound tugged at his gut every time he touched her someplace new, making him want to hear more. He moved one hand higher, fingers brushing the bottom of her breast through her bra. His head swam at the thought of what was hiding under her skirt. He kissed the edge of her ear. “Are your panties the same black lace as your bra?”
To her credit, she didn’t ask how he knew. So, somewhere around the third or fourth song, she’d consciously undone the top two hooks on her corset, exposing a hint of lace as she’d traced her finger along the neckline of her blouse. Instead she pushed into him again. “I guess you’ll just have to find out for yourself.”
The attitude made his blood scream. He needed to be buried inside her. But first things first. He shoved her bra up, and she whimpered when the elastic brushed her nipple, followed closely by his fingers. He tweaked the hard nub between his fingers, tugging and pinching in response to her panting.
That sound was intoxicating. He moved his other hand to her other breast, squeezing both mounds. She ground into him in rhythm to his massaging, her gasps growing more punctuated with each movement. Was her frantic grinding enough to get him off? It was tempting to find out, but her pleasure came first. Always.
He couldn’t help but smirk when his hands fell away and she let out a whimper of disappointment. It melted into a gasp seconds later as he trailed his fingers down her back. Friction built between his palms and her thighs when he pushed up the hem of her skirt. The slick leather was a sharp contrast to her warm skin beneath. He couldn’t believe he was doing this. It was true, he wasn’t new to the idea of a one-night stand, but they were all but in public, and there were no ground rules around the encounter.
He didn’t want to walk away though. She was different from the women he dated. He didn’t know anything about her besides her name, and that she had a fascination with incorrect tech articles. She had stepped onto the stage with such abandon. Hadn’t caved under his attention, but made the most delicious noises as she yielded to his touch.
She pressed into him with more force when he dipped his fingers under the thin elastic holding up her panties. He glided down her slit, moisture coating his fingers before he even slipped between her folds. A groan tore from his chest. “You’re so wet already.”
She arched her back, head resting on his shoulder. His teeth sank into her bare shoulder, each twist of her body sending an exquisitely painful dagger of want through him. A loud gasp echoed through the room when he brushed a swollen nub between her legs. She rocked against his hand as he traced circles around her clit, growing tighter each with pass until she was bucking under his attention, breath coming in short bursts.
Her back went rigid, and she pressed hard into his hand as a final, soft cry tore from her throat, and a shudder racked her body when she came.
She wobbled, still panting. He laid a line of soft kisses along her neck, and then down her spine through her shirt. Hooking his thumbs into the elastic of her panties, he dragged them down her legs. “They are black. Lucky me.”
She let out a small laugh as she stepped out of the lingerie. “Glad I didn’t disappoint.” And there was her attitude. It made him as hard as the thought of burying himself inside her did. She spun to face him and plucked the panties from his hand, a teasing gleam in her eyes. She stepped close enough to rub her entire frame against him. Her hand slid along his waist, and she stuffed the lingerie in his pocket. “In case the memory of tonight isn’t enough of a souvenir for you.”
What made someone so tantalizingly bold? No, he didn’t need to know, as long as she didn’t stop. He tangled his fingers in her hair again, barely able to grasp the short strands. He pressed his forehead to hers, not able to keep the hunger from his voice. “Trust me, the memories are already enough to keep me company for a while. But when you walk out of here, at least I’ll know it’s without anything on under your skirt, the cool air brushing your skin, reminding you why you’re so wet.”
“Good thing I packed extra.” She tilted her head and nipped at his bottom lip before kissing him.
A twinge pinged deep inside at the reminder this was only a one-time thing.
He shoved the thoughts aside, more interested in the moment. His tongue danced with hers, the smooth metal of her barbell stroking him as he guided her the short distance to the table behind her. Hands on her hips, he lifted her to sit on the edge.
She never broke the kiss when he shoved his knee between her thighs and forced her legs apart. Her skirt crept higher up her hips as he stepped closer. His chest was tight from the shallow breaths he drew. The hammering of his pulse in his ears blocked out every sound not associated with her, and his tongue wanted another taste of her. Of that silver ball that teased him as effectively as her words did.
Her fingers trailed down his stomach, and she only fumbled with his belt and button for a moment before opening his pants. He growled when her cool fingers wrapped around his warm shaft, freeing it. He nudged forward, and she scooted back, breaking away from him. Teasing eyes met his, and her hand slipped into his pocket. She plucked out a condom. He’d been getting to that, but at least she wasn’t completely careless. Apparently, she could get sexier.
Seconds later she had it unwrapped. He groaned at the light sensation as she rolled the rubber onto his cock. The moment she was done, he dug his fingers into her hips and thrust forward. Her cry mingled with his when he pushed inside her.
“You’re so tight.” He spoke through clenched teeth. “So slick.”
Her knees hooked on his hips, and she yanked him closer, nails gliding down his back.
The buildup had already drawn him close to the edge, and he wasn’t going to last much longer buried inside her. She grabbed his wrist and pulled his hand up. He took the hint, finding her breast and stroking his thumb across the rigid peak. He kissed along her neck, the soft scent of her shampoo stealing his oxygen.
She matched his pace as he slammed into her depths. God, she was incredible. Her breathing grew shallow again, and this time he knew she was close to orgasm. The thought was enough to draw his own arousal to a peak. She didn’t slow down as she climaxed, milking his cock and squeezing him until he burst. Endorphins raced through him, stealing the rest of his reason and plunging him completely into the moment. He grunted when he came, biting her shoulder and not stopping until he was spent.
She rested her forehead on his chest, breathing heavy, her laugh warm through his shirt. “I’ve never been the lucky lady to come to the rescue of a helpless businessman in a karaoke bar before.”
“Honestly, I prefer to be the hero.” He pulled out of her.
“I’m not saying I mind being swept away by a knight in shining armor.” She nudged him back with her body as she jumped from the table. Pleasure rushed through him at the teasing contact. She straightened her skirt and clothing while he stripped off the condom, wrapped it in a tissue he kept in the small pack in his wallet, tossed it in the trashcan in the corner, and did up his jeans.
“I had a lot of fun tonight. All of it. Thank you.” She stepped up to him again, rose on her toes, and brushed her lips over his. “But I have to get back before I turn into a pumpkin.”
The kiss stole his thoughts. He could take her back to the hotel. See if she was interested in round two. He’d be up for it by the time they got there, if he could keep his hands to himself on the ride.
But that was a bad idea. Reason was returning. This was a one-night thing, and he had meetings in the morning. No need to prolong the inevitable, beyond making sure she got back safe. “Do you want to share a cab?”
She hesitated for a moment, brow furrowed, and then shook her head. For the first time that night, she looked like she was actually hesitating. Great, now he’d made things awkward. He should have established some ground rules.
“Thank you, but no. I’ve got things covered,” she said.
He shoved his whispering disappointment aside and instead loosely grasped her wrist, tugged her close, and rested his other hand on the small of her back. He kissed her deeply, searing the sensation into his head.
A gasp slipped from her throat when they broke apart, and the corner of her mouth tugged up. “Good night.”
He sank back onto the bench after she was gone, mixed emotions coursing through him. He focused on the pleasant ones. She’d even made him forget about work and that damn phone call for a few hours. Maybe he’d have to let Tate and Vivian pick his songs more often.