The Games We Play Vol. 2 (Riley Grayson) (12 page)

I love this girl. Does she even know how sexy she is when she’s flirting?
“You try a scallop, and I’ll . . .” Shit, what was he going to do? He hadn’t really thought this through very well, had he?
Nice way to lose your cool, dipshit
. Her playful look was hypnotizing. Damn, she looked so good right now.

“You’ll what?” she challenged, a smirk growing on her lips at his hesitation.

“What do you want me to do?”

For a moment she just stared at him, but then her eyes widened and sparked with mischief. “What? No. That’s such a cop out.
You,
have to decide.”

Riley tried so hard not to smile. It wasn’t working. He turned his head and looked out over the waves crashing on the moonlit beach. What should he make her do? Then, before he came up with anything good Ali said, “Me.”

“Me? What’s me? You mean
you?
” He smiled and looked around. Did she just tell him if she ate a scallop he can have her? Do her?
Damn!

Blood immediately rushed down between his legs. Riley cocked his head to the side and gave her an incredulous look.

“I mean, after I eat that stupid scallop, then later, when we go to the hotel. I want just you. No kinky threesomes tonight. Just you and me. Got it?”

“Just the two of us, huh?” Of course she’d ask for something like that, something he knew he couldn’t say no to and something that would no doubt lead to a hell of a lot of heartache for him in the end. When he’d booked the room, he’d done so with this very intention—to be alone with her—but it was different now knowing that was exactly what she wanted, too.
Why is it so hard for me to not completely trash all good things that are staring directly at me.

“Yeah, just the two of us.” She shifted in her chair and crossed one leg over the other so it was peeking out from the table, taunting him. He knew exactly how far up those legs went, and it took every ounce of control he had not to let his hands roam up the length of them.

“Unless you think you can’t handle me all by yourself,” she teased.

He mentally groaned. Did she realize she was slowly killing him? And did she realize what she wanted was just as much a reward for him as it was for her?

“I think it’s you who should be worried about being able to handle me on your own.” He winked. “I also think what you’re asking for requires more than you just eating one tiny scallop.”

“Oh yeah?” She cocked a brow. “So, you want me to eat two then?”

Riley leaned back in his chair, needing to put a bit of distance between them before he lost complete control and threw her on the table and fucked her right here. “No. I still only want you to eat one, but I want you to sit on my lap while you do it.”

“What?” She glanced around. They were alone outside, but inside, separated only by windows and a sliding glass door, was a dining room full of people. “This isn’t the place for that kind of thing.”

“That’s the deal. Take it or leave it, Ali.”

She hesitated for a moment. He could read the look of concern on her face. She was clearly a private girl and didn’t want others to see their passion for each other. “Fine. It’s a deal.”

Riley smiled with victory. She had no idea who she was making deals with. A few moments later, the waitress arrived with their appetizer. Riley slid his chair out and patted his lap. Ali rolled her eyes, smiled, and stood. No matter how ridiculous his request, deep inside he knew she loved it. He was exciting.

She came around and sat. He put one hand around her waist and instead of reaching for a scallop like he should’ve done, he traced her lips with his finger. She closed her eyes and groaned softly. Fuck, it was going to be a long dinner at this rate. He cupped her jaw and brought her lips to his, giving them a soft kiss. As much as he wanted to slip her his tongue, he didn’t trust himself enough to stop. He pulled away and reached for a scallop.

“Wait,” she said. “I’m going to need my drink for this.”

He gave her a ‘get real’ look, but reached for her glass of wine. Instead of handing it to her though, he held it up to her lips, tipping it slightly so that she could take a sip. Before she could say anything else, he pressed his lips to hers again. Her unique taste mixed with the sweet fruity liquid, and he let out a quiet moan. She nipped at his bottom lip and he felt the crotch of his pants getting even tighter than they already were. He had no doubts she could feel his erection. His pants were almost as thin as this excuse of a thing she called a dress.

“That wasn’t part of the deal,” she said breathlessly, pulling away and looking up to see if anyone was watching them through the windows. No one was. They were alone in a beautiful place.

“Consider it an added bonus.” Riley picked up a small scallop and held it out to her. “Now, the trick to eating these is to pop the entire thing in your mouth. Don’t bite it in half because it will fall apart. Here.”

Ali took hold of the toothpick and eyed the food with disdain. “It looks slimy. How about I just eat the bacon.”

Riley rolled his eyes. “It’s not slimy. I promise. Now just eat it. You won’t even notice it with the bacon.”

She brought it to her nose and sniffed. “It smells funny, too.”

Oh for crying out loud!
He almost laughed at her, she was so damn adorable, but decided to try a different tactic. Riley put his hand on her knee and inched it up her thigh, slipping his fingers up the hem of her dress.

Shit. He’d forgotten how soft her skin was, how warm it was, how it responded to his touch by breaking out in tiny goose bumps. When she slowly, subtly parted her legs just enough for him to move his hand even further up her dress. He removed his hand and then positioned his mouth near her ear. “If you want to feel my hands on you again, you better eat up.”

There was only a moment of hesitation. But that moment was torture for Riley. He just wanted to touch her. He didn’t care if anyone saw them, which they wouldn’t. He’d strategically picked the location on the deck so they weren’t in anyone’s line of sight.

Finally, Ali popped the scallop into her mouth. She closed her eyes and chewed slowly. The sight of her lips and jaw moving, of her enjoying the taste, was arousing and his cock twitched with need. He slipped his hand back up her dress, loving how soft her skin was.

“Good?” he asked.

Her eyelids fluttered open. “Oh my God that was—I think that was better than just bacon.” She laughed.

He smiled. “I told you so. Better than sex, too.”

She turned her head to look at him, clearly shocked by his comment. He opened his mouth to say something more, when Ali grabbed his face and kissed him hard. His hand, which was still inside her dress, coursed even further up her thigh and around to her bare ass.

Motherfucker! How had he forgotten she wasn’t wearing any panties? Riley gave her ass cheek a squeeze and pulled her tighter to him, which was awkward considering she was sitting on his lap.

Ali adjusted her weight, rubbing herself on his rock hard cock. Riley noticed her glancing toward the window, checking to see if there were any peeping Toms, and then continued kissing him.

Riley did nothing to suppress his groan, and then he deepened the kiss, palming the back of her head so she couldn’t easily pull away from him. He closed his eyes to fully get lost in the feel of Ali on his lap, kissing him, making is cock grow with every twist of her tongue. He knew he had to make this stop if they were going to make it through dinner. The last thing he needed was the waitress to return and interrupt them. This had to wait until the hotel when they were truly alone.

Riley pulled away briefly for air and he saw Ali’s face blush. He smiled to himself, proud once again that he could please a girl with just his tongue.

“As much as I want to keep doing this, I think it’d be wise to wait until we’re in the privacy of the hotel room, should you give me the chance later.” He jerked his head toward the restaurant, indicating that even though they couldn’t be seen by diners, they were always at risk of getting caught.

She shot Riley an excited grin and stood, looking down at his crotch. “I’m sorry. Did I do that?”

Riley looked down at his pitched tent. “Do what? Make my cock so hard it’s ready to explode?” He gave her his sexiest grin. “That was all you, girl.” He stood and escorted her back to her seat, doing the gentlemanly thing and pulling out her chair again. “Just remember, it’s all yours tonight. Just yours.”

Riley scanned the windows as he went back to his seat. No one else would feel so proud to be walking with a raging boner popping through his pants.

Ali had retrieved her glass of wine and drank all of it in one long gulp. It was obvious she was frazzled. He refilled her glass. “You haven’t changed your mind have you?”

“Why would you think that?” Her voice was much more self-assured than he expected.

“Oh, no reason.” The waitress peeked around the door just then and Ali followed his gaze. They’d been only seconds from getting caught.

She smiled. “Despite what you may think, Riley, I really can handle you by myself. And I promise you,” she refilled her wine glass and drank a bit more, “you’ll be satisfied when we’re done.”

“Is that right?” He wasn’t so sure. He popped a scallop into his mouth and then handed one to her. She took it and ate it. Riley licked his lips, expecting to taste the remnants of the food, but all he could taste was Ali. Christ, he needed more of her. It was driving him insane sitting across from her with an erection so big it was painful. What he wouldn’t give for her to yank out that hotel key card and demand they go there right now. Hadn’t he proven he was worthy yet? But he had a feeling she wasn’t going to make it that easy on him. There was still time to blow her mind.

***

Despite having sat through three full courses and she was now waiting for dessert, Ali’s skin still tingled from his touch. Her lips still trembled from his kisses. How many times had she thought about reaching for the hotel key? A hundred? Maybe two? But she kept hesitating, not wanting him to think that was the only reason she’d agreed to go out with him. She was still learning more about this man she was crazy for and the more she got to know, the more she was intrigued. Everything was new and exciting and exciting was exactly what Ali needed in her life. Now was the time to explore the field, see what else this world had to offer. Even though the sex was a big reason for her decision to be here, how could it not after the last time they were together, it wasn’t the sole reason. She really did want to get to know him better.

Everything was going perfectly. They were having a wonderful time, laughing, joking and flirting.
I mean, what more could a woman want?
There was a nice balance between flirtatious jokes and serious conversation.

Once their food arrived, the conversation shifted and they talked a bit about their families, where they’d grown up, high school, their friends. Not once did Ali mention Pat. She was proud of that and Hilary would be too.

It was nice to get a sneak peek into who Riley Grayson really was. Behind his killer good looks and soft eyes, he was just a guy struggling to find his way, to make a name for himself, and to make his father proud. The man who had raised him without a mother around.

It wasn’t all that different for Ali, aside from having two parents. She was also looking for her own path and figuring out who she was.

“So, you know I’m an artist, former pro surfer, and that I now work for Amped. My past in surfing was probably how I landed the gig, but I don’t know what you do.”

She swallowed the last bit of her food and took a drink. “I’m in college, actually. Just finished my first semester.”

“Ah, a book worm.”

“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t.” She was a bit embarrassed about being so smart. In high school she was always teased for being the first to raise her hand, to get A’s on exams and being the one to stay behind and ask questions on things she didn’t fully understand.

“Local college?” Ali was relieved. Her desire to further her education and take school seriously didn’t seem to bother him. She didn’t know why, but some guys were turned off by that. Especially those who had decided not to go to college. Maybe they were intimidated, but she didn’t think anything could intimidate Riley.

Ali nodded. “The university about an hour away.”

“Let me guess,” he tapped his finger to his chin, “you’re going to be an elementary school teacher.”

She laughed. “No. Not even close.”

“Hmm . . . A librarian!” He snapped his fingers. Ali loved how he turned everything into a playful discussion. “You’ll make a very hot librarian. In fact, I might actually visit a library if I know you’re there.”

She smiled and shook her head. “Wrong again.”

“Wow. Really?”

“Yeah. Do you want to just know?”

“No. I’m good at this guessing game.”

Ali let out a short laugh. “Yeah, I can tell.” She gave an exaggerated eye roll.

“All right. If I’m wrong this time, you can—”

“I can what?”

“Do whatever you want to me tonight,” he finished.

“You really don’t give up, do you?” She relaxed back in her chair and crossed her arms. She had a feeling she’d had a bit too much wine, as her thoughts raced through all the things she wanted to do him tonight. Things were starting to get fuzzy around the edges and she was becoming more brazen with her words and actions.