Bending the Rules (7 page)

Chapter 11

Dana

The building Olivia lived in was far more grandiose than anything I would have imagined my childhood best friend wanting. We were simply country people, or used to be. Olivia having her reputation ruined our senior year by the boy she thought she would spend the rest of her life with had changed her - dramatically. Not so much that I didn't still enjoy being around her, but enough that the trajectory of her life took a completely different path altogether.

After checking in at the front desk like one might a hotel, we walked to the elevator and pressed the button for the twelfth floor.

"Wow. This is beautiful." Kendal stood at the back of the glass-wall elevator and glanced down. "Would you ever want to live in a big city like this?"

"No. Dallas is as big as it gets, and honestly, I'd love to move back to one of the suburbs of Houston eventually. I'm from the country."

"No... I couldn't tell." He moved up and wrapped me in a warm hug. I loved how often he reached for me now that we were free to be together. I enjoyed affection immensely. It would seem he did too.

"It's the accent, isn't it?" I pressed against him and reached up to smooth his eyebrow down. It would have been so easy to tell him that I was falling in love with him, but the timing was off. It was too soon by the world's standards and we had a long road ahead of us. Neither of us deserved the burden of love if our relationship wasn't truly meant to be.

"I love the accent. It's sexy as hell." He brushed his nose by mine and smiled. "Thank you for being there for me at Mandy's funeral, Dana. I'm not sure if I really got across how much that meant to me. I didn't deserve to have you stand beside me after my blow up at the college."

"It's not about deserving anything." I ran my fingers through his thick hair as my pulse spiked. The dark scent of his cologne had been playing with me all day, but being in a smaller space, it was stronger, thicker.
So damn good.
"It's about following my heart."

"I like the sound of that." He leaned down and brushed his lips by mine softly before leaning into a deeper kiss. I welcomed his tongue deep into my mouth and sucked at his offering as he groaned against me. I wasn't sure what the rest of the weekend might hold for us, but I knew the next few hours would be a crash course in pleasure.

The door opened and I pulled away from him as a bellman cleared his throat and gave us an odd look.

"Sorry," I mumbled and moved out into the hallway. The code on the door was on my phone from an earlier text from Olivia, and it took me a few seconds longer than it should have because of Kendal's nearness.

"You said you have an older sister and a brother?" Kendal leaned against the wall and watched me with a preditorial look that did nothing for my racing heart but speed the fucker up.

"Yeah," I responded breathily before finally getting the door open. "My sister doesn't come around very often, but my brother stays with my mother. It's nice, seeing that my father isn't with us anymore."

"I'm sorry to hear that." He reached for my backpack. "Which room is ours?"

I scanned through the text. "First door on the left."

"I'll put our stuff up." He turned and walked down the hall, leaving me alone with my thoughts.

Were we really going to have sex in the middle of the afternoon? I glanced around at the lofty elitist apartment and groaned. There were so many windows and so much light. There was no way to hide some of the parts of myself that I intended on working on before Kendal saw me fully naked.

Every insecurity Cameron had burned into my flesh reared its ugly head inside of me. By the time Kendal walked back toward me, I was wide-eyed and panting a little.

"Hey. What's wrong?" He gripped my shoulders and glanced down at me with concern on his handsome face.

"I just feel self-conscious."

"What? Why? You're the most beautiful woman in this whole fucking city." He reached down and plucked my phone from my hand. "And you’re mine, right?"

"I wanna be," I mumbled as he gripped my hand and half pulled me down the hall.

"Stop fighting me. I'm spending the afternoon exploring your body whether you like it or not." He glanced over his shoulder and I simply nodded. There was no telling him no, not that I ever wanted to. I was simply scared that he would find something that turned him off or left him cold.

"I'm just worried about Olivia walking in on us." I walked into the bedroom and let out a yelp as he pressed the door closed and trapped me against it.

"No, you're not." He ran his nose up the side of my face, breathing in deeply and leaving me covered in goose bumps. "Let go and let me in, Dana. I need you so fucking bad."

"Me too." Tears burned my eyes as self-hate raced through me. We wanted a weekend away - no - we needed it, and here I was, letting the worst parts of my personality threaten it before it even started.

"Good girl." He smiled and moved down my body, nipping at my dress until he was on his knees in front of me. "You're so damn perfect. Do you know how many times I imagined feeling you shaking beneath me as I bring you to come over and over and over again?"

"Shit," I grumbled and let my head press against the door behind me. "Just don't stop, okay?"

"I don't intend to." He slid his strong fingers up my thighs, dragging my skirt with him and mumbling various things about my beauty and how soft I was. It was all I could do to stand there without turning into a trembling mess. No one had ever paid me much attention in the way of worship, but the beautiful man on his knees in front of me was making up for everyone else I'd ever given my heart away to.

He pressed his mouth to the front of my panties and glanced up as I moaned loudly. "Someone's already wet."

"Clean it up." I slid my fingers into his hair and closed my eyes at the sound of his dark chuckle. He was so proper outside of the bedroom, convincing everyone around him that he had rules that he intended to keep, but that wasn't the real him. This was.

He tugged my panties to the side and ran his tongue over my sensitive skin before pulling at my clit playfully with his lips.

A groan ripped from me as my legs began to tremble.

"On the bed, sweet girl." He moved back before standing up and pulling his t-shirt over his shoulders. "You're tired. Let me take good care of you."

I nodded and walked to the bed as I pulled my dress over my head. The white cotton panties and bra I had on were all I had left in my drawer that morning, but at least they matched.

"On your back." He worked his jeans over his taut hips and moved toward me with nothing but his black briefs clinging to his perfect body. Lean muscle covered every inch of him, and a small spray of black hair covered his chest and ran down into his underwear.

I reached for him, running my fingers over his shoulders and down his chest as he pressed himself to the top of me.

"You just tell me if you want anything from me. It's yours, okay?" He pressed his elbows to the bed beside my head and gazed down at me lovingly. There would be no denial, which left me fully open to ask for anything I wanted from him.

To murmur “love” would seem silly in the midst of our passion, but it was the top desire on my list.

"Make love to me." I pulled him down for a long kiss as his hands moved down my sides, caressing me, his nails scraping me softly.

"I can do that." He smiled and moved back down my body as he licked at his lips. "Open your legs for me, Dana. Come for me, baby."

My stomach contracted tightly as I dropped my knees open and groaned.

He wasted no time tugging my panties off of me and leaning in to pick back up where he left off. Pleasure blossomed in my stomach as he ran his fingers down my sex, petting me between long licks and strong pulls against my flesh.

"So delicious," he mumbled against me.

I gripped the sheets as every wicked hot fantasy played behind my eyes. The image of him pressing me to the bed, to the wall, to a counter somewhere and losing himself inside of me was more than enough. I'd never wanted to be anyone's whore, but the man hovering above me seemed to have the power to change that. There wasn't anything I wouldn't be willing to try if he was involved in it.

"So good," I whimpered just before my orgasm burst through the center of my stomach and forced me to arch my back and ride the high as long as I could manage it. I thrashed about, unable to help myself. Never had something felt so fucking good.

Kendal gripped my thighs tightly and forced me into submission beneath him as he drank deeply from me. The moment seemed to go on forever, wearing me down, leaving me emotionally raw and willing to make a few promises I wasn't sure I could keep.

I wanted him more than I could remember wanting anyone or anything before. It had to be the lust, right? Had to be.

"God, I love how you let yourself go and enjoy the pleasure of coming." He stood up and walked back toward our bags. "Feels good to forget about anything else and just dive in head first, doesn't it."

"With you? Hell yes." I sat up and worked my bra off my shoulders before lying back down and trying to suck in a little. Funny how the minute he wasn't in front of me, my mind went back to all the things wrong with me physically.

He walked to the edge of the bed and extended his hand. "I want you to put it on me."

I reached for the condom and opened it before giving him a cheeky grin. "Has it been so long that you don't remember how to do it?"

He smirked, stealing my breath with how incredibly sexy he was. He had no clue, or maybe he did, and I was the ignorant one.

"It's been two years, so go easy on me." He ran his fingers through my hair and gripped tightly as I rolled the rubber down his swollen shaft and stroked him a few times. He was far bigger than anyone I'd been with before, so going easy on him was a must. I had no clue if I was capable of handling him.

"I don't know how to go easy." I leaned back and pulled him down to rest on top of me again.

His expression softened as he brushed my hair back. "I'm falling in love with you. I keep telling myself it's just your beauty, or your incredibly giving heart, but it's more than that."

I wrapped my legs around his waist and pulled at him a little as he pressed just inside my body, stretching me in ways that were beyond delicious. I wanted to echo his thoughts, but I couldn't find the right words, so I stopped searching.

He ran his lips over my chest as he moved down to suck one of my nipples into the warmth of his mouth. A deep moan left me as he shifted back up and pressed himself deeper inside of me.

"Let me know if I hurt you, baby. Okay?" The look of love in his eyes was more than I could have asked for. It was everything to me.

"You're not going to hurt me. Let go like you asked me to do, okay?" I reached up and pulled him down, enjoying almost too much how well he fit against me.

"If that's what you want." He hovered above me with a naughty smile on his lips.

"More than anything else in the world." I lifted my knees a little to give him more room and cried out as he reached up and grabbed the headboard. The position opened me up farther and left me vulnerable to whatever he wanted to do.

"Then hold on tight, Dana. Don't let me go." He rolled his hips, impaling me and leaving me lost to the intense pleasure of being the center of his lust. He knew how to make me purr and he used every inch of his body to make it happen again and again and again.

Chapter 12

Kendal

"You know we're going to have to get up soon, right?" I leaned down and kissed the top of Dana's shoulder as she lay in the bed on her side, her back pressed against me. I'd come three times during our afternoon love making session. I should have been exhausted, but I was alive again, completely on fire for the woman beside me. She'd offered herself up for my pleasure in a beautiful way that felt natural and right.

"No..." She glanced over her shoulder and up at me. "Are you really falling in love with me?"

"Yes." I wrapped my hand around her throat lightly and leaned down to make love to her sweet mouth again. "But don't feel like you have to return anything, okay? Just ease into this with me."

"I'm already there." She pulled from me and turned on her other side to face me before cuddling back up. "I just didn't want to admit it to myself."

"Why is that?" I brushed her hair back and ran my hand down over her arm slowly. "Does love scare you?"

"No. I just can't imagine waiting eight months to be together like this." She tilted her head back and locked eyes with me. "Maybe I should honestly look at transferring to another school. There are lots of them in Dallas."

"Maybe I should go work for Damon. It's not like I'm ever going to get my reputation to the place I want it to be at UT. I'm fighting an uphill battle all the time." That she was willing to transfer during her senior year spoke volumes.

"You love it there, and you've worked really hard to get into the position you're in. You're not giving that up for me. It will be easier when I'm out of school."

"Will it?" I kissed her again before rolling onto my back and tucking one of my hands behind my head. "I'm dealing with Heather and her bullshit as well as several students that think flirting with their professors is not only normal, but accepted." I rolled my eyes. "Maybe I'm just living a pipe dream."

"Or maybe they are." She moved closer and leaned against my side. "You know every young girl dreams of having a sexcapade with their teacher. It's part of growing up from girl to woman."

I snorted and laughed. "Is that so?"

"Absolutely. The main problem is that most guy teachers aren't exactly attractive."

"No?" I lifted my eyebrow and worked to memorize the cute look on her face.

"Nope." She sat up and moved to the edge of the bed. "I would assume that's probably why you're getting so much attention."

I rolled on my side and watched her get dressed, grateful that she seemed to leave her modesty behind. She didn't need to be anything but herself around me.

"So it's not because I'm good looking. It's because everyone else around me is shit?" I chuckled as she glanced over her shoulder and gave me a look.

"That's not what I said, and you know it." She worked on her bra and picked up her panties, but paused. "Maybe I should go commando tonight."

"And give me a heart attack? No. Don't do that to me, please." I got out of the bed and walked toward the window to let my eyes run across the busyness of the city.

"I thought you might like the idea of me being risqué while we were out to dinner." She pressed herself to my back, fitting against me beautifully.

"I'd have a raging hard-on the whole time, so it's up to you." I turned in her arms and leaned down to kiss the tip of her nose. "Would you honestly consider transferring schools for me? For us?"

She didn't blink before responding. "Absolutely. If that's what we need to do... I'm all for it."

"It's not, but I love that you're willing."

"Would you think about moving from Dallas in a year or so if I wanted to attend medical school somewhere else?"

She assumed we were a long-term thing. I loved it.

"Like where?" I smiled as she swatted playfully at me and moved back. "What? I'm just asking where you're thinking about dragging me off to. I'm a Texas boy through and through."

"I'm thinking here." She shrugged and picked up her dress, shaking it out.

"I'd go anywhere you wanted to go, Dana. I just want to make this thing between us work. I can see you beside me in the future and it feels good. I wasn't sure I'd find anyone after all the shit that happened between me and Ana. It was like having someone rip my heart out and stomp all over it in front of me. She went from loving me like I'd never been loved before to denying me like I was a monster after her innocence. It was sickening."

"I'm sorry." She brushed her hands down the front of her dress and moved to stand in front of me. "That's not going to happen with me. I'm here for the long haul if you'll have me."

"I don't want anyone else." I cupped her face and leaned in for a soft kiss. "You'll have to get used to Damon though. He's part of the deal."

"He's back with Bethany now though, right?"

"Yes, and thank God for it. He's much more like his old self."

"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?" Her cheeky grin caused me to chuckle.

"A bit of both?"

*

Dana's friend Olivia was beautiful and seemed like a sweet girl from what I could tell. She'd gotten home about an hour after Dana and I finally pulled ourselves from the sweaty sheets and made ourselves presentable. I'd rather have stayed in the bed for the rest of the evening, but Dana seemed pumped over getting to hang out with her best friend again.

"Olivia. This is Dr. Kendal Tarrington. He's a professor at UT in Dallas." Dana moved back with a huge smile on her face as Olivia extended her hand toward me. If I didn't know better, I'd say Dana was rather proud of my accomplishments, which just seemed to make me love her all the more.

"Just Kendal, please." I shook the busty blonde’s hand and gave her a warm smile. "Dana says you guys grew up together."

"We sure did." Olivia shook my hand firmly and moved back. "We ran the town and the school back in the day, didn't we?"

Dana chuckled. "Something like that."

A knock at the door interrupted the conversation.

"That's Luke. You guys grab whatever you need, and let's go to dinner. Luke got us reservations at this exclusive steakhouse. The man knows everyone who is someone." Olivia turned and walked toward the door as I reached for Dana's hand.

"Should be fun. I love a good steak almost as much as I love hearing you moan." I wagged my eyebrows at her as she gave me a “behave” look. As if.

I was just starting to breathe again. There was no way in hell I was forcing myself into submission just yet. It felt too good to let the more passionate parts of my soul out for a stretch.

We moved toward the door as Olivia opened it wider. The guy standing in the doorway was a little shorter than me, but didn't look at all like someone I'd associate with. He had a cocky look on his face that resembled every frat brother I'd ever encountered. The night was sure to be interesting if nothing else.

"I'm Luke Taylor. Partner at Taylor, Taylor and Barden." He extended his hand and I smiled. Of course the guy introduced himself by what he did. Most people who craved significance did.

"Kendal. Nice to meet you, man." I shook his hand and introduced Dana to the prick. We made small talk for a few minutes before Olivia shuffled us out the door and into the hallway.

Dana and I walked hand in hand behind them, but I couldn't help but overhear their conversation.

"Why didn't you wear the blue dress I like?" Luke sounded put off.

"Because it's at the cleaners." She pressed the button on the elevator and turned toward us. "I wish you guys were going to be in town longer. I'd love to show you the city."

"It's New York, Olivia. I'm sure they've seen it." He snorted and held the door opened as we walked in.

"Actually, I've never been here." I threw in my two cents. "Maybe we can come up over the holidays and spend a little more time looking around. I think Dana was just being nice to one of her nursing friends and came up to support her."

"Yeah, my friend Jackie that I mentioned." Dana moved closer to me, wrapping her arm around the back of my waist and tucking herself to my side. It was so natural to play the couple we both wanted to be. How hard was it going to be back home to have her beside me and
not
be able to reach out and claim her as my own anytime I wanted to?

"And what was Jackie wanting to do in New York this weekend?" Luke eyeballed me and Dana before reaching out and taking Olivia's hand. She looked a little surprised by his actions. Sad.

"Some hotshot doctor came down to Dallas a week or so ago and she fell for him hook, line and sinker." Dana shrugged and smiled up at me. "Never know where lust might turn into love."

"What is hook, line and sinker?" Luke's tone was slightly demeaning.

"It's a southern term that refers to catching a fish." Olivia pulled her hand from Luke's and walked out of the elevator in front of us.

I let them get a few feet ahead before glancing down toward my girl. "They're tense."

"Hell yeah they are. Order a bottle of wine at the restaurant?" She wagged her eyebrows at me.

"Liquor makes me horny." I kissed the side of her head as we paused by the front door.

Olivia turned to face us as Luke walked out to talk with the valet. "I'm so glad you guys are here. This place is honestly one of the best places to have dinner in the whole city. And we're buying. No fussing about it."

"That's not fair." Dana pulled from me and put her hands on her hips. "You're already giving us a place to stay. I'll pick up the tab for dinner."

"Nope. Luke will just charge it to the company. He always does." She glanced over her shoulder and I couldn't help but notice the way her smile faded as she watched him. She wasn't in love. Hell, she wasn't in lust from what I could tell.

"You're not going to give on this are you?" Dana reached out and took Olivia's hand.

"Nope." Olivia pulled her into a tight hug and glanced up at me. "I haven't had time to check into you, but you better be a good guy. This girl is a gem and a half."

I smiled, liking the woman even better for her stance to protect Dana. "I'm well aware. I don't deserve her, but fate’s obviously smiling down on me for the time being. Now to keep her is the challenge."

"Oh, you're stuck for sure." Dana moved back into my arms. It felt almost too right with her in my arms. As if she was supposed to be there. Just having her close left my thoughts on the present and not locked in my painful past.

"I'm thrilled to be stuck." I leaned down and brushed my nose by hers.

Luke's chuckle caused me to glance up. "You guys just start dating or what?"

"Yeah. Why?" I moved back and took Dana's hand.

"Just asking seeing that you can't keep your hands off each other. It's cute." He didn't look like he thought it was cute.

"I'm pretty sure we'll be doing this forty years from now."

Olivia nodded with a look of approval on her face. "I want that in my life too."

"Then don't pull away every time I reach for you, woman." Luke pulled her into an awkward hug and kissed the side of her face before releasing her and popping her butt. "All right, come on. Enough of this lovey-dovey bullshit. We're going to be late."

Dana glanced up at me and rolled her eyes before we followed the odd couple out to the car. Thank God we spent the afternoon wrapped around each other. It was all I'd be focusing on for the remainder of the night. Surely after I played a good boy during dinner with her friends I'd be rewarded in some way or another. I wanted only one thing.

Her... naked and panting again.