Skin Deep (5 page)

Luke raised a brow at me before smiling and
shaking his head. Hmm. No dessert for him? Too bad.

While we waited for the waiter to bring my
cake, Luke asked me, “So you and Allie are best friends?”

“Yeah,” I replied. We’ve been friends ever
since she shared her bubble gum with me on the playground in third
grade. I don’t even remember exactly what happened, but my piece of
gum fell out of my mouth into the grass. Allie saw it happen, came
over, bit her piece of gum in half and gave it to me. Gross, yes,
because she had already been chewing hers, but hey. We were young.
Been inseparable ever since.” I shrugged.

Luke smiled. “You’re right, that’s gross. But
sweet.”

The waiter arrived with my dessert then and I
wasted no time grabbing my fork and digging in. Scooping up a hefty
bite, I wrapped my lips around it, unable to stop the
uncontrollable moan of ecstasy from escaping my throat as I chewed
slowly.

I completely forgot about everything but my
cake as I continued to scoop bite after bite, savoring each and
every mouthful, closing my eyes and moaning, groaning, or humming
with every morsel. I got down to my last bite, pausing to lick the
chocolate off my fork, when I opened my eyes to find Luke staring
at me, his eyes half-closed, nostrils flared, white knuckled hands
gripping the edge of the able, and his lips set in a grim line.

Uh oh.

I blinked and asked sheepishly, “Want some?”
(Again hoping that he’d say no)

Luke didn’t say a word, just barely shook his
head from side to side, giving me the all clear to finish it myself
(Yay!). Still holding his gaze, I briefly wondered if I’d
embarrassed myself, or even Luke, eating like starving pig, but
couldn’t stop myself from scooping the last bite up to my lips and
then scraping the plate clean of any traces of chocolate
remaining.

Before I’d even set my fork down, Luke
grabbed his wallet, threw some bills down on the table, stood up
and said, “We’re done. Let’s go.”

We left the restaurant and headed to Luke’s
car. He didn’t touch me once, and we didn’t speak as we got in, he
started the car, and pulled out into the street. He wouldn’t even
look my way as we sat in silence. My cheeks were flaming in
mortification as I thought about how much of an ass I had made of
myself at dinner. I shouldn’t have ordered dessert, and I for damn
sure shouldn’t have ignored him while I made love to a piece of
cake sitting in a restaurant. Even though it was still relatively
early, only nine o’clock, I assumed that he was taking me directly
home. I wasn’t wrong.

Swallowing my disappointment in myself and
battling tears of embarrassment, I turned to Luke to thank him for
the evening as we pulled up in front of my house. Before I could
open my mouth, he got out, came around and opened my door. He
walked me up to the door, lightly clasping my fingers in his. I
guess manners still win out over disgust.

I turned to tell him good night, leaning back
against my front door, and found him watching me closely.

“Ummm…well…thanks for a nice evening, Luke,”
I said.

“Its not over, Emma,” Luke replied.

Erm. Its not? Holy shit!

“Ask me in.” It wasn’t a question, and I
found myself gaping at him in disbelief, unable to comprehend why
he would want to prolong this any longer.

I finally forced my lips to move. “Come in?
I…I’m sure I could find a bottle of wine or something…”I trailed
off, not sure exactly what to say. I mean, my cha-chi was
screaming, ‘Yes! Come in! We’re open!’, but there’s no way in hell
that’s what he was thinking. Right?

Luke followed me through the door into the
living room. I turned to shut the door, locking it behind us out of
habit. As my fingers slipped away from the dead bolt, I became
aware of Luke’s hard heat pressing close behind me. I felt him
lightly stroke the backs of his fingers down my cheek and my breath
caught in my throat. He leaned further into me, pressing me against
the door. My head fell back against his shoulder as I felt his lips
trace the side of my throat before lightly nipping my earlobe.

“Mmmm…,” Luke whispered in my ear. “You taste
as good as you look.”

Then, pulling back from me, I heard him walk
further into the room and sit on the couch. I stayed where I was
for a second, trying to convince my legs to work before turning to
look at him. He looked so good lounging on my couch that, for a
second, I contemplated kidnapping him and holding him hostage as my
personal sex slave for the rest of my life.

“Uh, I’ll get something to drink for us,” I
said before heading towards the kitchen. Luke

said nothing in reply, just smiled.

I rummaged absent-mindedly in the cabinet and
in the fridge, finding a half-empty bottle of Ice Wine that I
picked up on my last trip to Put In Bay, and an unopened bottle of
tequila. Shrugging, I grabbed two shot glasses and a lime from the
fridge, making a mental note to pick more up at the store so I
could still make my tequila lime chicken for dinner one night. I
quickly sliced a few wedges from the lime, picked up the salt and
the bottle of tequila, and headed back to the living room, figuring
I’d drown my embarrassment and subsequent confusion in liquor.

“Shots,” I said, unnecessarily, as I
deposited my load on the coffee table in front of Luke.

“Alright.” Luke said.

Leaning forward, Luke poured two shots into
the shot glasses, then picked up the salt shaker, turning to me and
grabbing my hand. His eyes burned into mine as he slowly lifted my
hand to his mouth and I felt the warmth of his breath on my skin
before his tongue touched me in the curve between my thumb and
forefinger. I couldn’t control the small gasp that shot from
between my lips at the unexpected touch.

He then lightly shook the salt over the
dampness left behind from his mouth (I ignored the granules that
missed my hand and fell into the couch and carpet…well, I told
myself to, anyway) before setting down the shaker, grabbing a lime
wedge and bringing it to my lips. He pressed the cold fruit against
my lips, wordlessly entreating me to take it in my mouth. I held it
gently between my lips, waiting for his next move. He grabbed one
of the shots from the table, pulled my hand to him, licked the salt
from my skin, and tossed back the tequila before sliding his hand
behind my neck and pulling me to him.

I moaned softly as his lips closed over mine,
tasting the tartness of the lime burst on my tongue as he bit
gently into the fruit before pulling back from my mouth. I opened
my eyes and looked at him in confusion because I still had the lime
wedge in my mouth; he hadn’t taken it. I reached up and removed the
wedge from my lips and before I could even lean forward to place
the spent peel on the table, Luke moved like lightning, drawing me
hard against him and boldly swiping his tongue against the seam of
my lips before sliding inside when I gasped. He kissed me deeply,
and I tasted the tanginess of lime and the tart bite of tequila on
his tongue.

I dropped the lime husk from my hand, not
caring when it landed on the carpet before running my hands up
Luke’s arms to tangle my fingers in his hair. I loved the feel of
it in my hands, so soft and thick, adding another sensation to the
already overwhelming tide drowning me in seduction. The silver ring
piercing his lower lip pressed against mine, the contrast of its
cool hardness against my heated skin driving me wild.

We broke the kiss, both of us breathing hard,
our foreheads pressed together as we gazed into each other’s eyes.
He lightly skimmed his fingers up my arms to where my fingers were
still tangled in his hair, wincing slightly as my fingers tightened
convulsively before releasing it from my grasp.

I blushed, muttering, “Sorry.”

“Its ok,” Luke said. “I like knowing that I
have that effect on you.” His voiced dropped an octave as he leaned
in again. “Its only fair for what you do to me.”

Whuh? What I do to him? What the fuck has he
been smoking?

I sat back against the arm of the couch,
watching him guardedly as he looked at me with hooded eyes, his
lips curved up at the corners in a lazy smile.

“It’s your shot, sugar,” Luke drawled.

I blinked owlishly at him, trying to get my
wits together but failing miserably. How can he be so calm? I sat
up and grabbed the shot, not wasting any time with the salt or
lime, and downed it. Yikes. That was a mistake, because that shit
burns
! I choked on a cough as my eyes watered and, feeling
like a moron, I felt Luke’s hand pound my back. I finally caught my
breath and held up my hand so that Luke would quit pounding on me
before I looked over at him, blushing furiously.

“You okay there, sunshine?” Luke asked,
laughing softly.

I nodded.

“My turn again, then.” Luke poured another
shot and grabbed the salt shaker before leaning in close to me
again. He jerked his head in the universal motion for ‘come here’
before tilting my head to the side with his hand on the nape of my
neck. I felt his warm breath bathe my skin just before his lips
closed over the sensitive skin of my neck, right at the curve where
it meets my shoulder. My breath shuddered out as he gently suckled
before flicking his tongue against my skin.

He pulled back and sprinkled salt sparingly
over the dampness he left behind before grabbing the shot and
placing another lime wedge between my lips. I waited for what was
coming, holding my breath, surprised when he reached up with his
free hand and pulled out the clip holding my hair up in place. My
hair tumbled down in waves around my shoulders. I glanced up at
Luke, watching in fascination as his eyes darkened before he
tangled his fingers roughly in my hair at the back of my neck, and
then, pulling my head sharply to the side, he licked the salt off
my skin, and downed the shot. Then, with his fingers still tangled
in my hair, he took the lime from my lips, again leaving behind the
tart and tangy flavor of lime and tequila. After taking the lime
out of his mouth and tossing it to the table, he brought his lips
back to mine, kissing me deeply. His tongue swept inside my mouth,
tangling with mine, stealing my breath with the intensity.

Luke used his fingers, still entwined in my
hair, to thrust my head back, exposing my throat to him. He licked
across my full bottom lip, sucked it between his teeth, and nipped
at it sharply. A surprised sound escaped from me at how good that
felt; the perfect combination of pain and pleasure. I felt his
other hand slide up my thigh, skim my ribs and cup my breast, his
thumb finding and circling my nipple with sure strokes.

I moaned into his mouth and he dragged his
lips down my cheek to my neck, kissing, sucking, and licking every
inch of my skin along the way. His fingers left my hair and both
hands then cupped my breasts, palming the soft firmness of my
flesh. I arched into his hands, my thighs squeezing together
restlessly, trying to alleviate the ache building between them.

“Emma,” Luke whispered.

I opened my eyes, gazing at him through a
haze of desire.

“Sugar, watching you wrap your lips around
your fork, licking chocolate off your lips, and hearing you moan
all night…I’m about two seconds from ripping your clothes off and
fucking you senseless on your couch. Baby, you have to tell me to
stop now if you don’t want this. Otherwise, I’m gonna slide inside
your hot, wet body, inch by inch, until I’m buried so deep between
your thighs…” his words cut off on a harsh breath.

Stop? Tell him to stop? Is he insane? I mean,
don’t get me wrong. I’m not that kind of girl; I hardly kiss on the
first date, let alone jump into bed like my thighs were spring
loaded and ready to part. But there was something seriously wrong
with his brain if he thought for one second that I would ruin what
was shaping up to be the single most satisfying, screaming orgasm
inducing, hottest sexual encounter of my life.

My cha-chi was quivering with excitement,
screaming, ‘Hallelujah, the desert days are over, girl! Bring on
the rain!’

My voice was breathy when I said, “No, Luke.
I don’t want you to stop. Please…”

Luke growled low in his throat before
grasping my legs behind my knees, pulling me down and my legs out,
kneeling between my now outspread thighs. I moaned at the feel of
his hardness pressed against my aching softness, and then he was
over me, thrusting against me, sliding his hands under my shirt and
devouring my mouth in a furious kiss.

And then it happened. No, no…I don’t mean
It
. If that would have happened, I wouldn’t be sitting here
hornier than a horny toad, glaring at the object of my fury. Well,
objects, plural. And boy was I pissed!

Just when we were getting to the good part,
my legs wrapped around Luke’s waist, his hips flush against mine,
his hands tugging my shirt up, a noise broke through my daze and I
raised my eyes over Luke’s shoulder. Standing there, faces red with
suppressed laughter and shock, was my brother, Calland, and my
younger sister, Leah. Calland had his hand slapped over Leah’s
mouth but I could still hear her muffled snorts of glee.

I scrambled out from under Luke, tugging my
clothes back into place and throwing a mumbled ‘sorry’ over my
shoulder when I inadvertently elbowed him in the stomach in my mad
dash to get away. He got up painfully and perched on the edge of
the couch, trying to hide his condition from my family but it
wasn’t working.

I glared at Calland. “What the hell are you
doing? Don’t you know how to call first?”

He chuckled, finally removing his hand from
Leah’s mouth. She immediately let loose with a loud hoot of
laughter, throwing her head back and gripping her stomach, leaning
so far back that she lost her balance and fell on her ass.
Wonderful. She’s drunk.