Perfect Pairing (19 page)

She obeyed the silent command and watched as Quinn unclasped the front of her khakis. She slowly lowered the zipper before allowing them to join the rest of her clothes on the hardwood floor. Then hooking her thumbs in the waistband of her cream-colored bikini briefs, she rolled her hips in the most delicious little shimmy Hal had ever seen. Like some silly cliché, her mouth watered at the sight of her, a puddle of lust, transfixed as the last piece of clothing fell away.

“God, Quinn.” She almost choked on her need, and her hips lifted off the couch of their own accord. Did she even know? Could she even begin to understand what the sight of her naked and ready did to Hal? Of course she knew. She had to. She'd played, teased, hinted at this kind of power since the moment they met. Quinn had known she could have this all along. And quite frankly, so had Hal. Refusing to acknowledge the truth didn't alter it. And why had she even wanted to?

The animal needs clawed at her, fully awake now and roaring to be released. She practically growled. “I want you so fucking bad.”

Quinn's smile was slow but not shy as she stepped forward and placed a knee on each side of Hal's thighs. Then leaning close, she whispered, “Take me.”

All awareness fled as Hal took hold of Quinn's hips and lowered her over her lap, then cupping her ass, pulled her roughly forward. Her perfect breasts swayed within reach of Hal's mouth, and she caught them, sucking, nipping, playing with one, then the other. Quinn arched her back, pushing her chest forward as she rocked her hips against Hal's crotch. Apparently she had a few animal instincts of her own to satisfy. She sank her fingers back into the hair at the base of Hal's scalp and held her tightly in place while she reached behind herself for Hal's hand. Intertwining their fingers, she gave her a little squeeze before she pulled it forward and guided Hal between her legs.

Not normally one to follow when her own needs screamed to be met, Hal quickly decided to make an exception when she felt the
sheen of wet heat coating Quinn's inner thighs. Her hips jumped again at the further proof she wasn't the only one on the verge of losing control, and she needed no more invitation to satisfy both their needs at once. Working her hand loose from Quinn's, she slipped through blond curls.

“Inside,” Quinn panted.

She thought briefly about making her ask nicely, but who was she kidding? She was going to give her what she wanted, what they both wanted, and neither of them were in any shape to wait.

Curling two fingers, she pressed fast and steady, burying herself as far as she could in a single move.

Quinn moaned, throwing her head back as she ground down on her hand and still pinned Hal's mouth to her breast. She was amazingly long and lithe, writhing against her, closing around her. She surrounded her and filled her every breath like a hot wind carrying the scent of an impending storm. Only in their case, the storm had already arrived. It crackled with electricity around them and roared like thunder through Hal's ears. She pressed on her back, sucked, bit, licked her chest. Every part of her ached to connect with a part of Quinn, and they both worked to meet those needs.

As Quinn rocked up and down against her hand, she used her thumb to rub against Quinn's clit and felt her alter her rhythm to search out the new contact. Her body was so beautifully responsive. It clearly wouldn't take much friction to set her off, and that's exactly what Hal wanted to do. She wanted to feel her come undone. She wanted to be the one to undo her. The next time Quinn rose up even a little bit, Hal followed her, increasing her pressure both inside and out.

Quinn gasped at the added contact and dropped her head forward until it rested against Hal. “Yes.” The word came out on a hoarse whisper. “Don't stop.”

“Never,” Hal muttered against her skin as she worked her hand in and out among Quinn's slick folds, making sure she hit the spots that got the best reactions. Quinn whimpered her feedback as the motion of her hips grew erratic. Hal had to work to keep her hold with the
constricting position, but she wasn't about to move. She had everything she wanted literally in her lap.

“Yes, right there.” Quinn found her voice again and pressed into her, trapping her wrist between their bodies. “Don't stop.”

Hal wouldn't have dared, not with the most perfect body she'd ever been under beginning to quake above her. Quinn threw her head back, arching up and clutching tightly to Hal's shoulders as they rocked together, suspended on the crest of the wave they'd built between them. Hal watched in awe as Quinn's eyes closed and her lips parted, while tremors of release shook along the entire length of that gorgeous arc. Her perfection ripped at Hal's chest, expanding it, making room for emotions she wasn't yet ready to process.

“Yes, Hal, yes.” She exhaled one more heavy, shuddering breath, then fell forward, skin against sweat-soaked skin as they melted back together.

Quinn lay spent against Hal's chest. She took uneven breaths, the quick thump-thumping of Hal's heartbeat under her palm. There was something soothing about the rapid pace of the flutter, like the brush of hummingbird wings against her skin.

She blinked away the glaze of her afterglow. Where had such a poetic image sprung from? What they'd just done wasn't delicate or sweet, and any animal allusions they'd inspired were surely more ferocious than fragile. She and Hal did not have the kind of relationship that lent itself to the flowery or romantic. Then again, she honestly didn't know what kind of relationship they had at all anymore. It didn't include business, at least not overtly. It did include some deep conversation on at least one occasion, but that had yet to be repeated. It didn't seem to include much mutual interest. They had a bit of history, but no discernible future. There didn't seem to be much connecting them or their encounters, unless you considered a few bouts of mind-blowing sex.

She pushed herself back and stared at Hal. Her dark eyes held the same sheen of sated lust, and her black hair stood out in places from
the combing of Quinn's fingers. Her tan chest rose and fell in the same deep, steady breaths Quinn sought, and her skin flushed warm with the remnants of their exertion. She looked utterly disheveled and seriously sexy. A low hunger stirred deep in the pit of her stomach. The pull Quinn felt toward tenderness may have been disconcerting, but it was also fleeting. The hunger, the desire, those they had no trouble sustaining.

She leaned back down and drew her tongue along the curve of Hal's neck in a slow, deliberate swipe, smelling smoke and tasting salt. Hal's muscles rippled beneath her, and her fingers curled between Quinn's legs again. The twinge of hunger rose into a roaring need, but not for a second helping of the same course. She'd been thoroughly consumed. Now was her time to do the devouring. She clasped her hand around Hal's wrist and extracted it from between them, trying not to lose her resolve as Hal dragged her finger across her clit on the way out.

“Not this time, Fryboi,” she said through gritted teeth.

Hal's smile was lazy and self-assured. “What? Can't take the heat?”

“We're not in the kitchen anymore,” Quinn said. “You're in my domain now. I make the rules.”

“Uh-huh.” Hal's grin remained cocky, and she reached out again, but Quinn caught her hands once more. She guided them up, over, and behind Hal's head before releasing them.

“Hands on your head,” she said in her most authoritative tone. “You're done touching. Now you watch, you feel, you can shout if you need to, but you don't touch.”

“Or what?”

She leaned forward, pressing the length of her naked body to every ounce of exposed skin she could reach. She ran her tongue along the curve of Hal's ear, sucking the lobe between her teeth before whispering, “Or I stop.” She sat up abruptly. “Do we have a deal?”

Hal eyed her like a poker player looking for any hint of a bluff, but Quinn had enough practice at the stone-cold business face that Hal decided against pushing that particular button. She nodded and settled back into the couch, her hands right where Quinn had left them.

Then, satisfied her authority was secure, Quinn set to exploring
her new playground. She started with her mouth, marking the increasingly familiar path across Hal's lips. Taking one between her teeth, she pulled it out and bit lightly before releasing and working south along her neck and chest. Hal was delicious, but entirely too restrained for Quinn's tastes. She cupped both her breasts in her hands, kneading them lightly and flicking her tongue between splayed fingers, grazing sensitive skin with her teeth. Hal's arms twitched, but she did an admirable job of not moving them off her head.

Quinn couldn't decide what she wanted more: to watch Hal squirm under the restraint of her obedience or to see it snap. She continued to toy with Hal's breasts while she pondered the question, but she wouldn't stay stationary for too long. She wanted to push all the buttons. Working her mouth lower, she kissed down her sternum and over the subtle crease of her abs. Sliding to the floor to get a better angle, she kneeled before Hal, looking up to see what sort of effect the position had on her willing captive. Hal's dark eyes were nearly all pupil now, and the rise and fall of her chest had grown more dramatic, but she remained still, her back sunk into the couch cushions and her fingers interlocked behind her head.

Quinn wanted to hold that picture of Hal in her mind so she could compare it to the sight of her shattered and spent when she'd finished.

She opened the top button of Hal's jeans and kissed the spot she'd revealed before working down the zipper and following it all the way with her mouth. Hal's hips jerked up, and her hands fell to her side, causing Quinn to pause, smiling against the taut skin of Hal's lower abs. She was clearly on the right path, but she hadn't even started the real show yet.

Then slipping her hands under Hal's ass, she urged her up enough to pull both the jeans and the boxers beneath down her legs and off. She cast them aside and pressed against her knees, spreading them open so she could settle in between her thighs.

Inhaling the scent of her, heady, rich, smooth, she hovered only a breath away and lifted her chin to see Hal watching her, bottom lip nearly white from the pressure of her teeth. Quinn's own arousal rose another notch at such a tell from the normally stoic chef.

Dipping her head once more, she used her tongue to spread open the final folds hiding the prize they both sought. Hal's hips jerked, once again lifting slightly off the couch, but she made no sound and no move to touch. Upping the pressure, Quinn moved with one slow, steady stroke of her tongue the length of Hal's desire. Tasting her did little to satisfy her hunger. The next time she made a sweeping pass with her tongue, she followed with one finger, then two. Each time Hal's muscles contracted around her, she grew more ravenous. How was she supposed to project a sense of authority over this little scene if she couldn't control her own desire?

Taking Hal's clit in her mouth, she finally pulled a moan from her. She repeated the motion, timing it to coincide with a thrust of her hand, causing Hal to buck underneath her. Now that Hal's armor had begun to crack, she felt the burn of a challenge spread through her sea of lust. Hal would break first, she would see to it, and she would make sure she wasn't quiet about it.

Pushing in harder, she felt Hal's thighs tremble around her. Then with her free hand, she clawed her way up across her abs. Hal's breath, harsh and raspy, caused her chest to rise and fall dramatically. She established a rhythm fast and heavy as she worked her tongue, her lips, her fingers in tandem. Then suddenly she pulled back, breaking all contact.

“Fuck.” Hal swore, her heavy-lidded eyes snapping open.

Quinn fought the urge to laugh. That would just be evil, but she couldn't contain her smile at the sight of Hal's open-mouthed gasping for breath.

“What's wrong?”

“Nothing, just making sure you wanted this.”

“What?”

“Consent.” Quinn play-acted at seriousness. “It's very important, don't you think?”

“Absolutely.” Hal said, her jaw set.

“So?”

“I consent.”

Quinn lowered her head and ran her tongue along the wetness
coating Hal's thigh. “Is that just a blanket consent, or do you want to lay out terms? Maybe you could list all the things you consent to.”

“You're teasing,” Hal said through gritted teeth.

“Maybe.” She placed a light kiss on Hal's clit and watched her head roll back again.

“Is this some sort of power trip?”

“Maybe.” She accented the point with another well-placed flick of her tongue.

Hal's fingers twitched and scraped as if trying to fist the fabric of the sofa, but her hands came up empty. “What do I have to say?”

“Oh, Hal, don't think of it as a chore. Think of it as an opportunity for better communication.” She worked her finger back inside as she spoke. “A chance for you to get your needs met.” She hovered close enough for Hal to feel the warm breath of each word against her most sensitive skin. “Tell me what you need.” Hal lifted one hand, her fingertips just barely skimming through a strand of hair that had fallen across her legs, and Quinn immediately stilled. “Tell, honey, don't show.”