Faith (The Fast Love Collection Book 1) (5 page)

Too convenient. I was beginning to suspect my darling neighbor and supposed best friend was playing matchmaker.

“I have to agree with them Rox, you'd be better off with competence.”

Dad always called me Rox, even after I said that I wanted to be called Faith.

“Gee thanks dad.” I said, taking a sip of wine.

Sober Sunday was gone, thrown out the kitchen window after Archer agreed to stay for dinner.

“I'll give her a once over.”

I choked on the wine, feeling a heavy paw thumping on my back.

“You alright there Roxy?”

“Oh.” My mother sighed happily. “Are you using your name again?”

“No, he's teasing me.”

She crinkled a look of love between us and I ignored her, continuing to eat my dinner before it went cold. My mother would play matchmaker if allowed. She'd have us married by the end of the year which wasn't good considering that it was already November.

Chapter
Eight

Dinner was done, a rousing success as always. Roast was easy, I'd perfected it with years of trial and error and now had it down pat. Everyone sat back, bellies full and thoroughly satisfied.

“Are you going home to see your parents Eddie?”

“Probably. I guess it depends on life here. You know, James, time off work and all that.”

My father nodded, seemingly happy with the response. He liked the family time thing and Eddie saying he was likely to go and see his parents was pleasing for my father.

Both of my parents adored Eddie, he was like the son they never had. My mother even had lunch with him from time to time. I was cool with it, there was no jealousy over it. Quite often I'd go into lock down and me ditching him like that made him kind of lonely. But it was how I did things and everyone accepted it. I had to be distraction free when editing so I shut off contact from the world for a few days.

At the moment there was no shutting off from the outside world, I was still in no-man's land. Adrift in a sea of hopelessness, no wind in my sails, no oars to get me to shore. I was hoping for that fabled gust of wind to hit me, praying that I hadn't hit the wall with my career.

Once everyone was done with picking at what remained, I began to clear the table. The neat freak in me had to make sure that everything was done right. My parents and Eddie knew the routine, stack the plates and cutlery and leave it alone from then on.

I took the first load of dishes to the kitchen, hearing panicked whispers from the dining room. Turning out of the room I was faced with Archer, his arms laden with bowls.

“Why don't you like help?”

“I like things done in a certain way and you are disrupting that.”

I wanted to huff when he put the dishes on the bench that I had kept clean for a very specific reason. This was exactly why I didn't want help.

“Please, go and sit down. I know you're trying to be helpful but you're not.”

He said nothing and left the kitchen, leaving me to remove the dishes from that bench. I was about to put the cups out for coffee and serving dessert as soon as I had cleared the table. When I turned around I saw more dishes and the back of Archer as he walked out of the room.

Annoyed and frustrated, I waited until he came back, knowing he was determined to help.

He entered the room with a grin, dumping the bowls onto the bench.

“Please stop trying to help.”

“Why?” He asked simply.

“I have a routine, I do things in a particular way and you are making a mess. Don't put them there.”

I put the bowls back into his hands and started to remove the cups from the cupboard.

“Ooh, did you make dessert too?” He asked as he dumped the bowls back onto the bench.

I narrowed my eyes at the offending items and then at him. He had an inane grin that was in desperate need of beating out of him.

This morning was forgotten in favor of trying not to strangle him. He seemed determined to make me frustrated at his antics, maybe he just liked being a pain in the ass.

His eyes widened as I pulled the container out, lifting the lid off the chocolate cake. Before I could stop him his finger swiped along the frosting on the side and went straight into his mouth.

“Keep your dirty fingers off the food.”

“I washed my hands before coming over here.”

Of course you did. No doubt my traitorous friend had waggled his gorgeous ass across the road and invited you, laid out his own devious plan for this evening and ensured that you were in perfect order for my clean freak ways.

That clean freak did a quick once over. No grease embedded in the fingers or nails, shaved, hair a little scruffy but that was probably intentional. Shirt ironed and smelling like it had been recently washed. There was a subtle scent of lemon underneath the heaviness of his aftershave.

He was scrupulously clean and I knew that there was something underhanded going on. I was going to have words with Eddie.

Ignoring him I searched through the dishwasher and found the spatula, turning back to find him eying off the cake again.

“Away with you!” I snapped, smacking his hand.

He chuckled and then looked over my shoulder, frowning. Concerned for what he might be looking at, I turned to the view of Eddie's kitchen and saw darkness which was to be expected. I looked back and saw Archer had his finger in his mouth again and that damned smug grin on his face.

“Get out of my kitchen.” I hissed, pushing him away.

“Have you tasted it? It's so damned good.”

“Well, I'd like to but someone keeps distracting me.”

Smoothing the icing over the finger marks, I tried to ignore him as I concentrated.

“You are way too uptight.”

My body tightened as he drew closer, the words whispered over my neck. From behind he reached out to the cake yet again and I tried to stop him. He took my hand and reached around me for the other one, crossing them over my body. With one oversized paw he held them tight against my ribs and pushed me against his body.

The free hand reached out to the cake and took another swipe of the icing.

“Taste it.” He whispered huskily in my ear.

I said nothing as I stared at the finger covered in chocolate icing.

“Be a good girl Roxy and open your mouth for me.”

His lips traced over my ear as he whispered the words, sending a fury of sensations through me. Burning need was raging, desperate for more than I could handle. My mouth was parched, I gulped with the hope that it might help but it didn't.

“Open it wide Roxy, take it into your mouth.”

Desperate for air I opened my mouth, I felt the silky sweet taste of the chocolate on my tongue.

“Wasn't so hard, was it?”

His lips were still against my ear, Archer moved forward and pressed me against the bench, his hips against my backside. Pinned under him and held tight against him, I wasn't going anywhere.

“Lips together.”

I did as he said, unable to think for myself any longer. Where I had gone, I didn't know.

Slowly his finger dragged out of my mouth, the tip of his finger sliding over my bottom lip.

His hips dug against my backside, pushing me further against the bench. But worse than being painfully pinned to something hard was the something that was even harder that was being pushed into me.

“I can't wait to taste your chocolate cake Roxy.” He purred softly in my ear.

Then he pulled away from me, leaving the kitchen. I leaned on the bench and held it for stability, my legs were like jelly.

But that was nothing. I could handle my legs almost giving out from under me, I could handle my erratic breathing and pounding heart. What I could not handle was the fact that I was seriously turned on.

His words whispered through my mind, like it was void of anything it bounced around with an echo in a cavernous skull.
I can't wait to taste your chocolate cake Roxy.

I could hope that meant something else. I could hope that chocolate cake was really code for pussy. Yep, I'd like that to be true even though it was unlikely.

I was stupid, what man pins a woman to a bench and sticks a finger laden with chocolate icing into her mouth while whispering into her ear? A man that is interested, that's what.

Pulling the knife from the block, I cut into the cake and began to load the plates. Like I was tuned to his presence, I knew Archer had entered the kitchen before I turned to see him. He took two plates and walked away, returning seconds later for another two.

The coffee machine was whirring loudly as it finished off the last of the coffees. Archer began to take the cups out now, I noted that there were still two slices of cake left on the bench. It was rather curious but I said nothing, watching as he walked back in and took two more cups out.

When he walked back in he stopped and stared at me, possibly a little confused at my constant swinging mood. I'd just flipped again, going from frustrated at him to incredibly horny. That was his fault of course, rubbing his hard cock against my backside while whispering filth into my ear.

His lips twitched as a sly smirk crossed them, he took his cup and cake and walked out of the room without a single word said. I huffed quietly and collected my things, following him out.

Everyone was eating their dessert quietly, eyes darting around at each other. No doubt they've been whispering about what they thought was going on. My mother was always one to engage in speculation and it didn't help that she had the gossip queen for all her whispered information.

“That's a nice house you bought Archer.” My father interrupted the painful silence. “Security good?”

“Yes sir.”

My father nodded with a pleased look on his face. What he didn't realize was that no one would dare break into his house, that is if they knew who he was. The man probably had a vast cache of guns and ammo hidden somewhere in that house.

I narrowed my eyes at the smug bastard across the table from me, he ate his cake with a smile that feigned his innocence. Maybe I could write about him. Maybe I could take a holiday from my romance genre and take a trip down horror lane.

The cake fork clattered to the plate and the man howled with pretend indignation.

“Stop planning me for your next book!”

Oh sweetheart, you've got no idea.

“Are you writing about Eddie honey?” My mother asked.

“Yeah, I'm taking lessons from Stephen King.” I grumbled.

James sniggered and kept his head low, refusing to look up.

“Why on earth would you be doing that?” She asked perplexed.

Because he somehow managed to get Archer perfected to my overbearing standards and here in time for dinner, somehow managing to get him invited to a dinner and now he's driving me completely crazy. Archer that is, not Eddie. I inwardly sighed, unable to think straight any more. There was not enough wine in this apartment.

“Stephen King is a master Roxanne.” My father interrupted my thoughts.

“I realize that Peter, I just don't understand why she'd change to horror writing and why she's including Eddie in her book.”

“Honey, I think you might find she was joking.”

My mother looked from him to me, frowning rather hard.

“Why joke about something like that Roxy? Eddie's a doll, why are you mad at him?”

Eddie's face winced with awkwardness as he looked away, I pressed my lips into a long thin line as I continued to stare at him.

But the problem was that she was right. I couldn't be mad at him for this situation, he was being a good friend and giving me a gentle push into what he thought was the right direction.

“I'm not mad at him.”

She was still confused but after some coaxing from my father, she let it go. Underneath the table Eddie's feet found mine, looping into them in a wordless gesture that begged for forgiveness. I sighed heavily, taking my cup and sinking back the last of what had been a good cup of coffee.

I could not be mad at Eddie, not for too long anyway. He was just too sweet and adorable.

Chapter
Nine

Coffee and cake was done, my parents had left at the same time as Eddie and James. Refusing to believe me when I said that I was fine to clean the kitchen by myself, Archer stayed.

He was getting in my way, doing things wrong and generally driving me crazy. And it was all intentional.

“Would you please stop it.”

“Stop what?”

I huffed and returned to the sink where I had stacked the plates. Across the small patch of land between the two buildings was a darkened kitchen window. No doubt the two devils in there were sitting on the leather stools with a bowl of popcorn, watching the show.

“Okay so the kitchen is clean, feel free to leave whenever you want.”

Like right now before something irrational happens. I turned around and saw his finger in his mouth again, he looked away and tried to pretend he hadn't stuck his finger in the cake again.

“Here, take it all.”

I put the lid on the container and handed the cake to him.

“Don't you want any?”

“It goes straight to my backside so no.”

He tipped his body with a frown on his face. Far out, he was intentionally looking at my backside and not caring if I knew.

“Your ass looks perfectly fine to me.”

“Could you not look at it, thanks.”

I turned away which was probably the most stupidest thing I've ever done. No wait, going to his house in my pajamas was the leader on that list. He put the container onto the bench beside me, moving closer to me again.

His whole body pressed against me, pinning me to the bench yet again. And yet again, I could feel that hard dig of an erection against my backside. Did it ever turn off? Unlikely. The man was probably worse than a horny teenager.

“You ask too much of me.”

Warm breath spread over my bare neck, lingering scent of chocolate rising to me as his hands settled on my hips.

“Especially when you get around in tiny shorts and skirts.”

His hands flattened on the material of my skirt and then gripped tight, taking the material with it. Slowly those fingers unfurled and gripped again, lifting and bunching more of the skirt material.

“I think you want me to. Tell me I'm wrong Roxy.”

I couldn't. It was never intentional or at least I didn't believe it was but I didn't want to say anything at all. Maybe my subconscious wanted more than I realized. He was easy on the eye, he'd made me laugh and was good company.

What was holding me back? He drove me a little crazy, lived across the road and he used to be part of a motorcycle club. Those were pitiful excuses for not wanting something with him. Maybe the fact that we hardly knew each other was a good one or that it had been a few days since his arrival.

I was not easy. Okay so maybe I was when I was drunk. Friday night was going to haunt me forever.

Archer's hands splayed out onto my hips, his fingertips caressing the edge of my underpants. I'd worn the pretty lacy ones, maybe my subconscious was driving me towards him.

“Come on Roxy, tell me you don't want this.”

His fingers curled under the elastic band, slowly sliding it down my body. He was torture. Pure sensual torture. The alcohol was already making me a little delirious but his words whispered over my neck was making it worse. I couldn't take it any longer.

“Archer.”

As the word slipped out of my mouth, barely audible and sounding more like a moan, his lips pressed against my neck. A murmur of acknowledgment vibrated against the skin, one hand slipping along the edge of my panties and over my stomach, the other moving over my torso.

“Not in front of the window.”

“Where then?”

My heart thumped just a little harder as I turned around to face him, his hands never leaving my body.

“Where Roxy?” He asked as he lowered closer to me.

“Bedroom.”

His lips crashed against mine, kissing me forcefully as his hands slid from my back to my backside. Lifting my legs around his waist he pulled me onto his body and carried me out of the kitchen.

My fingers laced into the hair on the back of his head as we kissed, lips and tongues wrangling and dancing in a hurried and needy kiss.

Archer figured out the path to my bedroom even though he was more interested in me. As he laid me onto the bed the pillows were pushed off and left to fall to the ground. He knelt on the edge of the bed, lifting the shirt from his body.

I was in awe of that well-toned body, I never had the inclination to go to a gym.

He leaned over and lifted me up by my hands, pulling my shirt away and tossing it to the ground where his shirt was. I lowered back onto the bed as his hands found the edge of my skirt that was still bunched around my waist. As he pulled it down my legs, I could feel his fingertips drag over my skin.

Greedy eyes raked over me in my underwear, thank the stars I'd put decent ones on.

Sitting up to him I tugged on the belt, dragging him back to his knees on the edge of the bed. The long hard line bulged rather forcefully as I stroked the jeans, his fingers sliding through my hair as I pressed my lips against the line.

There was a lot of him underneath the material, my heart was thumping hard as I undid the belt and top button, slowly pulling down the zip. Even from the exterior I could see he was beyond adequate.

Having faced some that were rather lacking, I was happy if he could get it up. But this was more than up, this was rather large.

As I pulled the sides of the jeans apart and pulled them down my heart went thud. I wanted to thump my chest to see if it was still working or if it had died of fright. Archer was more than adequate, he had enough for two men to be pleasing.

My hand wrapped around the thick cock in front me, sliding up the length as I licked my lips. He hissed a heavy grunt as my tongue lapped over the head, wetting him with each and every circle.

As I drew him into my mouth I wondered where all of this man was going to fit in my tiny body. Surely he couldn't bury himself to the base and it not be uncomfortable for the woman. I guess I was going to find out real soon.

With each and every pump of my hand and movement of my mouth and tongue, Archer groaned quietly, gasped and panted. I'd never known anyone to be so appreciative and vocal about it.

His hands cupped around the base of my head, caressing the back of my neck and sliding over my scalp.

Archer's body was beautifully sculpted, sadly I had never had the pleasure of playing with something so damned stunning. Some were a little soft, some were toned but rather limited in muscle definition. My fingers trailed over the v and through the hair, sliding around the base.

Gently massaging him as my lips and tongue continued to move I earned a deeper groan and a fuck that was hissed through gritted teeth.

Archer pulled away, his body heaving as he stared at me.

“Damn. Any time you wanna give me head you just go on in and help yourself. Don't need to ask just pull it out and suck.”

“I'll keep that in mind.”

He grinned, leaning over and kissing me hard as we lowered onto the bed. Not one to fumble with a bra, Archer had it off and tossed aside in seconds. I didn't want to over think that one.

To be fair, I suppose he could easily over think why I was so good at giving head. Usually it came through experience and in a way, yes it had. But I had a best friend that was male and loved to talk about sex. About the best and the worst things that anyone could do when giving head, in his opinion.

“Mm, very nice. Definitely better than what I'd imagined.”

His hand wrapped around my breasts as he settled himself in between my legs, his tongue flattening as it lazily dragged over my hardened nipple.

Archer kicked his way out of his jeans, every time he moved it caused a flush of glorious sensations through me. His hardened cock pressed against me, rubbing my body hard. It wasn't intentional but damn it was wonderful.

Those beautiful and naughty lips sucked on my breasts, lavishing attention on both of them equally while his hands played and massaged.

When he was done and had his fill, he rose up to his hands and hovered over me. Languidly kissing over my sternum and collar bones, up my neck and across my jaw. I moaned with the ecstasy, a few simple kisses and I was in heaven.

“Your breasts are way too big for your body, did you know that?”

I grinned, nodding slightly.

Archer bit his lip with a devious smirk, lowering to kiss me.

“I like that. I like them. Don't you go changing them, you hear me?”

“Loud and clear.”

“Good.” He said, a little muffled as he kissed the curve of my neck.

He sat back on his legs, pulling the last scrap of clothing off me. My legs raised into the air and the little scrap of red lace was tossed to the floor.

Hands washed over my legs as he kissed the skin, kissing the back of my knees as his fingers trailed over my thighs. Slowly making his way lower.

As his fingers caressed the pressed flesh Archer kissed the side of my knee, both legs over one shoulder. He was such a tease. Gentle touches, skating over the skin and enough to make me flush with need.

His fingers delved in as he let my legs fall to the bed either side of him. Two went deep, pressing against the inner wall. I gasped with each slow pump, his thumb circling my clitoris.

When the third delved in I groaned, reaching back for the headboard I gripped it tight.

“Don't stop.” I begged.

Archer continued, moving faster with each thrust of his fingers. My body erupted in a flush of sensations, my mind filling with a glorious haze that made me moan rather loudly. As my body arched off the bed I felt his fingers withdraw and slip into my mouth.

“D'ya taste good babe?”

His husky tone lured me to an unknown side of this world, I'd never tasted a woman before. I took his hand and held onto his as I sucked on his fingers, sliding my tongue around them.

“I'll take that as a yes.” He said as he chuckled.

Then he was off the bed, searching for his jeans.

Like I was queen of all she surveyed, I laid back on the bed and watched Archer put the condom on. Secretly I was trying not to be freaked out at the thought that, that was going inside of me.

Archer was on the bed before I realized it, his hands smoothing over my legs.

“Any preferences?”

Nothing too deep. I don't think I could handle it.

“I'm good for whatever.”

I was an idiot and by tomorrow I was going to be sore as well.

“Alright then. Variety it is.”

He lowered against my body, his hand in between us as he positioned himself.

“Relax Roxy.”

I gasped as he slowly sank into me, feeling extremely full. All of my fears of his girth was washed away, it felt incredible.

“Faith.” I groaned as he pushed all the way into me.

“Never going to happen
Roxy.
”