Reckless Exposure (6 page)

Rand released him and stepped back. “I’m beginning to think the only reason you even brought up the idea of fulfilling Lucy’s fantasies was so you could get some pussy. But let me set you straight on that score. Lucy is mine, and I don’t fucking share.” Trey rolled his eyes. “You stupid son of a bitch. What will you do when she leaves you, huh? Beat the shit out of every guy she takes an interest in?”

Rand hadn’t let himself think that far. He was still trying to figure out how he was going to live without her. “If I have to, yeah.”

“Give me a break. You can’t hold onto her by bulldozing. You’re going to have to suppress that hard-ass nature of yours and give Lucy something special, something that proves you can be the man she craves.”

“And giving her a night with you is just the ticket? That’s the craziest thing I’ve ever heard.”

“Not me.
Us
.”

Rand still hesitated, though he wanted to strangle the man in front of him. Then again, it didn’t hurt to let him have his say before Rand buried him six feet under.

“Think about what Lucy wants for a minute, not what your possessive streak wants.”

Rand crossed his arms over his chest. “Let me ask you this, all knowing one. If you had a woman, would you be so keen on the idea of another man having sex with her?” Trey hesitated, as if warring with himself. “No, I wouldn’t be.

It’s not that I don’t feel you, man, I do. But sometimes you have to fight a hard battle in order to reap the rewards.”

“That’s real philosophical of you, pal. But I still want to punch you.”

“Fine. Then think of it this way. You give Lucy this one night of pleasure, which is something she’s always imagined, and it opens the door to more fantasies being fulfilled.”

“What do you mean?”

“Can you tell me you’ve never fantasized about doing certain things with Lucy?”

“Sure, but I know she would never go for it.” Trey arched a brow. “She might, especially after you prove to her that you can lock your alpha beast in the cage for a night.

She’ll be forced to trust you in the same way you’re trusting her.” Trey had a valid point. But if he chose to take Trey up on his offer, he took the chance of losing Lucy to the other man. On top of that, it would also permanently change their relationship. There would be no going back for either of them. Did he dare risk it?

“What do you really have to lose?” Trey asked, as if reading his mind. “She’s already said she’s leaving. Give her a reason to stay.

Give her your complete trust.”

Rand knew Trey was right and it sucked. “She does think you’re hot,” he blurted out.

Trey laughed. “Glad to hear it.”

Rand shouldn’t smile, but for some reason he was beginning to feel less threatened by Trey. He’d seen men try to get in Lucy’s pants, hundreds of times. It always set his teeth on edge. But Trey made it clear he wasn’t looking to take his place.

“If I do this, I wouldn’t want there to be any misunderstand-ings,” Rand warned. “It would be for one night only. No coming back for more later.”

“Of course.”

“And you leave right after. I don’t want Lucy embarrassed.”

“Give me some credit here. I’m not a complete ass. I would never hurt Lucy.”

Rand stepped up to the counter and took the last few swigs of his beer before saying, “Come over tomorrow night. I’ll let Lucy know you’re there to hang out. We’ll see how things go. We let Lucy choose how the night ends.”

Trey nodded. “What time?”

“Be there at seven.”

“Okay.”

Neither of them said another word. Rand let himself out. As he headed to his own apartment, one question kept running through his mind.

What the hell have I just agreed to?

Reckless Exposure: Chapter 4

Lucy had spent nearly ten minutes staring at the door after Rand left. The stricken look on his face would forever be etched into her mind. She hadn’t meant to hurt him. She loved him, more than she ever thought she could love anyone. Why couldn’t he love her back? The phone rang, pulling her from her morose thoughts. She went to the end table and picked up the cordless.

“Hello?”

“Hi, sweetie.”

Her throat clogged with emotion. Her legs gave out and she dropped onto the couch. “Mom.”

“What’s wrong? And don’t say nothing. I can hear it in your tone.”

It was always that way with her mother. She knew when something wasn’t right. “Rand and I had a fight.”

“You told him you wanted to move out?”

She’d already poured out her worries to her mother. She’d surprised Lucy when she’d sworn Rand would do the right thing and marry her. “Yeah.”

“Honey, this may be hard to hear, but I think you’re misjudging him. I don’t think he’s quite the wild daredevil you think. Are you certain he doesn’t love you?”

Lucy hated having to say it aloud. It just seemed to hurt worse.

“He cares about me, probably more than he’s ever cared about a woman. But I don’t think he loves me.”

“I’m so sorry, honey. Maybe you need a break. You should come home for a few days. It might help to clear your head.”

“I can’t right now. I can maybe get away in a few weeks, when Thanksgiving break comes up.” She sniffled. “But I need to deal with this on my own. I can’t run home every time something doesn’t go my way.”

“I understand, but I’m here if you want to talk or cry. Okay?”

“Thanks, Mom.” She heard the doorknob rattle. “I need to go.

He’s back.”

“All right then. Have patience, Lucy. It’ll all work out. You’ll see.”

“I love you,” Lucy said.

“I love you too.”

They ended the call just as Rand came through the door. He looked tired and worried. Guilt swamped her. She stood and went to him.

“You were never a street punk to me,” Lucy said as she wrapped her arms around her middle in an effort to keep from reaching for him.

Rand stared down at her, his gaze unreadable, before he took her into his arms and held her tight. His warmth surrounded her and made her feel whole and safe. She always felt protected in Rand’s arms, as if nothing bad could ever touch her.

“Don’t move out too soon,” he said. “Give me time to think. Just a little time. Okay, babe?”

Lucy nodded and buried her face against his shirt.

“I’ve got some things I need to work out on my own,” he admitted. “Please understand.”

She pushed back a few inches and looked up at him. “I never planned to leave right away. I don’t even have a plan.” He cupped her chin in his palm. “Come to bed with me. I need to hold you, baby.”

“Yes,” she said on a sigh.

Before she knew what he was about, he had her in his arms, cradled against the hard, muscled plains of his chest. He went straight to their bedroom and placed her in the center of the bed.

He stood back and started undressing. Lucy couldn’t move. He pulled his t-shirt from the waistband of his jeans, yanked it over his head and flung it to the floor. She wanted to lick him. He was so delicious. As he started on his jeans, Lucy’s breath caught. She couldn’t pull her gaze away as the material parted, revealing a pair of black boxer briefs beneath. Fascinated by the package he un-wrapped, Lucy forgot about their argument, the worries about her future. Everything fell away in the face of her mounting desire.

“Get undressed for me, angel.”

She licked her lips and nearly missed his command as he slid his jeans and boxer briefs down his powerful thighs. The sight of him nude always sent her libido into orbit. There was nothing like seeing Rand wild and turned on. Tonight he seemed especially intense.

She lifted to a sitting position and unbuttoned her red blouse.

Rand didn’t move, didn’t speak. His blue eyes darkened as she pulled the delicate fabric away from her body, revealing a red satin camisole beneath. His fists clenched as she pulled it off.

“You’re so fucking beautiful. Every inch of you is pure heaven, baby.”

His words sent a zing of pleasure through her. She’d heard others say she was pretty. Her entire life, she’d been praised for her looks. She had never needed the flattery. She wanted people to see beyond the shell to the woman beneath. When Rand paid her com-pliments, she knew he saw more than a well-toned body. He saw her soul, and that made her
feel
beautiful.

She unzipped and tugged and soon her black slacks and panties lay at the end of the bed. She lay back against the comforter and waited, curious what Rand would do next. She couldn’t get a handle on his mood this time. The way his gaze roamed over her body brought goose bumps to the surface. She’d never seen him appear so savage, as if their earlier argument had torn down the civil veneer he always kept in place.

Rand wrapped his fist around his cock and pumped once.

“Come here.”

Lucy didn’t hesitate. She wanted to get closer to Rand. Closer to all that male perfection. She needed to touch him, taste him. She scooted across the cool surface of the bed until she sat at the edge, her legs dangling over the side.

Rand stepped closer and bent at the knees. “Taste my cock, Lucy,” he demanded. “Do it now, before I lose my mind and shove it between those pretty lips of yours.”

“You would never hurt me, Rand.” As the words left her mouth she wasn’t sure which one of them she was reassuring.

He cupped her chin and leaned down. “I’m not a good little farm boy from Ohio, Lucy. Like it or not, I am a street punk from Brooklyn. Know this. I will not give you up without a fight, sweetheart, and I fight dirty.”

Lucy’s entire body flooded with heat at his guttural words. “I don’t know what you want from me, Rand,” she confessed. All the times they’d made love, he had always been gentle, sweet and giving. Now she witnessed a side to him she never knew existed.

“It’s simple. Open your soft lips and take my cock down that pretty throat of yours,” he ordered.

She reached up and stroked her fingers over his soft balls. She bit her lip as she stared up at him. She was way out of her comfort zone, as if someone had suddenly tossed her into the middle of the woods without a compass.

He wrapped his fist in her hair and pulled gently at the silken strands. “You say you love me, Lucy. Show me how much. Put the good little small town girl away for tonight and bring me the hot, willful vixen that stood up to me earlier.” Lucy shook her head as panic started to course through her.

“I’m not a vixen. I’m just me. You know that. You’ve seen the real me. Felt the real me. There isn’t anything else to it.” His fingers loosened and he kneaded her scalp with his callused fingers. “There’s so much more to you, baby. Stop hiding from me.

You want it? Then take it.”

Her control snapped. “You are the most infuriating man I have ever known!” She started to move backwards, but he was quicker.

He wrapped his hands around her thighs and held her still, keeping her from retreating. “Let me go, damn you.”

“Ah, there’s my little wildcat. Does it make you mad, Lucy?

Wanting me so badly that your pussy is soaking wet, your nipples are tight and hard, but you’re too much the coward to take me.

Sucks, huh?”

His sideways grin did things to her, made her ache so much she nearly begged, which only served to piss her off further. She tried to kick him, but he evaded her easily. “I’m not a coward. You’re just being a bully. You’re mad that I want to move out, so you’re punishing me.”

He released one thigh and caressed her mound. “No, I’m making you see that what we have together can’t be had with anyone else. I’m it for you and you’re it for me. There is no one else who can make you burn like I can.” He slid one finger between her pussy lips and she fairly moaned at the sweet torture. “There will never be another woman to turn me inside out the way you do, Lucy. Walk away from that and you’re condemning us both to live a half-life. Can’t you see that?”

Lucy could barely maintain the thread of the conversation with Rand’s finger sinking deep. As she looked into his eyes, she saw it.

Fear. Rand was scared. She could see it in the angry set of his jaw.

She’d never seen Rand afraid, not of anything. She’d once thought the man could face down an entire gang on his own and still not break a sweat. Yet the thought of losing her had made him afraid?

The knowledge dispelled her anger as nothing else could have done.

She let the tension seep out of her and knew Rand saw the change at once. Neither of them spoke as she reached up and took his heavy erection in her hand and squeezed. “I’m not a coward.” She stroked her thumb over the head of his cock.

“Fuck, Lucy.”

A second finger joined the first inside her aching pussy. Lucy threw her head back and moaned at the sensual torture. Rand was there in an instant. He pulled his fingers free and framed her face with his large hands. “Do you want me? Just me?”

“Yes, Rand. Please, I need you so much it hurts.”

“Lie back on the bed, baby.”

Beyond denying anything he asked, Lucy obeyed. The only thing that mattered was Rand filling her, making her feel warm again.

He pushed her thighs wide and knelt between them. He placed a gentle kiss to her clit before murmuring, “You owe me a sucking.

Don’t think I’ve forgotten, angel.”

She wanted to speak, really she did, but as his tongue sank into her hot center, she gave up on words and let her senses take over.

A primitive growl reverberated inside Rand’s chest at the way Lucy’s body moved against his face. When he parted her with his fingers and sank his tongue even deeper into her hot opening, she moaned his name and grasped onto his head as if afraid he’d disappear.

Christ, she was so fucking responsive. He loved that about Lucy.

The slightest touch could have her melting against him. He imagined her coming apart tomorrow night in Trey’s arms. A powerful mix of tenderness and possessiveness threatened to engulf him. He wanted to please her, make her wildest fantasy come to life, but the need to keep her all to himself was overwhelming.

He slid his tongue in and out of her creamy slit, slowly working her into a frenzy, then used his thumb to stroke over the delicate bud of nerves. He licked and nibbled, torturing her flesh until she started to beg for release. Her cries filled him and took away the fears of losing her. The only thing that mattered was watching Lucy scream out her climax as her hot juices poured over his tongue. It wasn’t enough. He was starving for the feel of her cunt as she closed around his engorged cock.