Seduced by the Baron (The Fairy Tales of New York Book 4) (9 page)

“Raf.” She pulled his head up and looked him straight in the eye, her breathing hard. “Please don’t stop kissing me.”

He could see the raw, naked need turning her indigo gaze to midnight and lust, heady and addictive, causing a primal imperative to roar through his head.

He realized he
never
wanted to stop kissing her.

Raf slammed his mouth down on hers this time, backing her into the nearby wall, his hands slipping to her hips as hers parted his open coat and slid inside. Their mouths fed off each other as he pulled on the belt loops of her jeans angling her just right to grind the hard ridge of his erection at the juncture of her thighs.

She gasped as he used the leverage of the wall and the angle of his thrust to devastating advantage. And he did it over and over again, her sharp little pants driving him on and on and on.

“
Raf,
” she moaned, breaking off the kiss, her forehead pressing into his shoulder, a hand pushing lightly against his chest. “I know I told you not to stop but I seriously think I’m going to come if you don’t.”

Raf chuckled, slowing his movements. “And that’s bad?”

She flopped her head back against the wall; her cheeks were flushed and her eyes were bright with sexual fever. She looked like a woman who was close to the edge.

And he wanted to push her over.

He undulated his hips into hers and she hissed out a breath, her eyes half closing. “It doesn’t feel bad to me.”

She opened her eyes. “It is if you’re going to be hanging around here all day. I won’t know where to look. Plus I’ll probably never be able to come down to this basement again. Also…my father’s lurking about upstairs.”

Raf wasn’t particularly concerned about her first couple of points but he had to admit the last reason held some sway. He sighed in defeat but still kept hold of her loops.

“Okay fine, you win.” She was right. He wasn’t fifteen anymore and he had more control and respect for Faith than to have a quickie in her father’s basement even if that’s exactly where they’d been heading.

That’s not how he wanted their first time.

Not when he had a very nice hotel room with a king size bed in Manhattan. He wasn’t sure how many times he could roll her over in that thing but he sure as hell wanted to find out.

“But only if you come out with me on that date tonight after you close up.”

She looked at him askance. “We don’t close til
ten
.”

“So,” he shrugged. “This is New York, the city that never sleeps, right? Work will be over and I’m giving you
all day
this time to organize someone to be with your dad.”

She looked at him unsure. “Say yes, Faith,” he murmured, tugging on her loops, tugging her harder against him increasing the pressure through the middle seam of her jeans. “You know you want to.”

Her lips parted as she shut her eyes and Raf couldn’t tear his gaze from her face. “Where’s your favorite place in the whole of the city?”

Her eyes opened again and looked directly into his. “The Met.”

He frowned. “The Metropolitan Museum of Art?”

“Yup.”

Not an answer he’d been expecting. “I don’t suppose it’ll be open then?”

She laughed. “I’m afraid not.”

“What else?”

He watched her as she thought for a moment. Or tried to at least. He could tell his erection pressing into the seam of her jeans was being a little more than distracting. “Ice skating at Rockefeller Center? It’s good fun and is open til midnight. We should be able to get in an hour or so.”

“Ice skating?” Not something surfers were renowned for mastering. “Not a lot of ice rinks near the beach.”

“I can teach you.”

His dick pulsed at her innocent offer. Her
teaching
him.
Down boy.
Jesus, didn’t his dick know that
it
in particular was going to be subjected to extreme low temperatures every time he fell on his ass on the ice? Which would probably be frequently. “Isn’t that outdoors? Won’t it be a little on the…cold side for that?”

“Not once you get going.” She raised an eyebrow. “You chicken?”

Chicken? No. Horny? Yes. And they’d both have to warm up afterwards, right?

With one yank on her loops he pulled her off the wall until all of her body met all of his. He pressed a brief hard kiss against her mouth. “Ice skating it is.”

Her gaze was soft and her mouth was wet and it took every ounce of Raf’s control to not push her back against the wall again and to hell with propriety. “Can you get someone for your dad?”

“I think. Just need to make a couple of phone calls.”

He took that as a very definite yes to the date. “Good. Do it.” He dropped his fingers from her belt loops and stepped away. “Go on upstairs. I’ll join you in a minute.”

Her brow crinkled. “You want to check up on your beer?”

“No.” Raf shook his head. “I’m not going up there with a hard-on the size of the Empire State Building if your father is lurking. I’d really prefer to not meet him with a massive erection courtesy of
his daughter
.”

Her gaze dropped to his crotch and lingered way longer than was good for him. Way longer than was good for his erection. “Oh,” she murmured lifting her gaze back to his face. He expected to see that he’d embarrassed her but there was a distinctly sexual gleam to her gaze.

“Yes. Oh.” He shoved his hands on his hips. “Now get out of here before I decide I don’t give a damn what your old man thinks of me.”

She grinned but thankfully headed for the stairs. With an extra wiggle to her hips if he wasn’t very much mistaken.

So
not
helping.

‡

F
aith started when
Raf appeared about ten minutes later. She wasn’t ready for him yet. She was still achingly aroused by his kissing and excruciatingly aware of the way his black jeans hugged his stride and how his polar fleece sweater barely contained his shoulders.

Shoulders a girl could really sink her teeth into.

“Mr. Sullivan,” Raf said, holding out his hand across the bar and his beachy scent wafted her way again. “Very nice to meet you, I’m Rafael Quartermaine. My deepest gratitude to you for allowing me to conduct a trial here.”

Pop, who was trying some Baron lager, shook Raf’s hand. “Faith’s right, it’s a far better drop than the other two tap lagers. And considering how shite I think lagers are generally then you can take that as a compliment.”

Faith held her breath for a second wondering how Raf would take the rather
backhanded
compliment. The Sullivans weren’t a lager family but her father could be blunt and that was known to rub some people the wrong way.

Much to her relief, Raf threw back his head and laughed, drawing her attention to the little scar beneath his chin.

She wanted to kiss him there.

And
on the mouth.

“I do indeed, Sir,” Raf assured. “Faith’s a good champion.”

Pop nodded. “She knows her beers.”

“Not to mention she’s a great advocate for Sully’s.”

Pop patted Faith’s shoulder. “She’s a good girl.”

Faith cringed and her cheeks warmed at her father’s choice of words. She knew he didn’t mean anything by it, that it was a generic compliment to let her and everyone else know how proud he was of her but as a
grown woman
it grated. It had been a long time since she’d been a girl or had even cared about being
good
. But it made her squirm today in particular considering what had just transpired in the basement less than half an hour ago.

She hadn’t been
good
in that basement. She’d been bad. And if her father hadn’t been in the bar waiting for her then she may well have been
very
bad.

“It has a distinct flavor, doesn’t it?” Pop asked. “Is that because of the yeast you use?”

“Ah, just excuse me,” Faith jumped in before the conversation got bogged down in beer talk. The pub was due to open in fifteen minutes and she had to try and arrange for either Zel and Ty or Dawn and Finn to come over while she went on her date.

“I have to make a couple of calls.”

Faith walked out the back into the kitchen area. It was deserted at the moment but the kitchen staff would be in soon to start their shift. She leaned against a spotless stainless steel bench and dialled Dawn. It went to her voice mail but Faith didn’t leave a message. Dawn could get so wrapped up in her research it could be hours before she checked her messages and Faith didn’t want to wait.

Zel picked up on the second ring. “Got that date yet?”

Faith rolled her eyes. “Yes.”

“Good. When?”

Faith hesitated. It was such short notice and very late. “Just say no if it’s inconvenient.”

“I’m not going to say no, Faith, so stop stalling.”

“It’s tonight. You probably already have plans.”

“Nope. Ty will no doubt have some case to work on but he can do that anywhere.”

“Yeh, but it’s not until after work. So it’ll be late. And Ty and Pop can get on each other’s nerves.”

Ty and her father had butted heads for a lot of years. It was better now but Faith knew, even though Ty had never said it, that he didn’t like being in the pub. And he blamed Pop for their mother having to work so hard to juggle five little kids and a struggling pub.

Ty hadn’t been able to see like Faith had, how much her mother had loved this place too.

“Well, Ty’s just going to have get over himself,” Zel said dismissively. “Sitting down and talking with his father is probably what he needs most anyway. We’ll come for dinner. I’ll bring take out. And we can stay the night, that way you don’t have to worry about rushing home should dating turn to something a little more…horizontal.”

Faith blushed at the thought but didn’t even bother to refute Zel’s suggestion. Something horizontal was what she was hoping for.

Maybe she should just suggest they skip straight to that? But then bringing Mr. Cocky down a peg or two by watching him fall on his ass on the ice could be useful. Not to mention how much fun could be had by helping to warm him up afterwards?

“Okay, thank you. That would be great. Pop loves company. But only if you’re sure?”

“Positive. We’ll see you later. Probably around seven?”

Faith nodded. “That’ll be fine.”

“What about condoms? Do you have some? Should I bring some with me?”

Faith did blush then. Oh God – she was really going to have
sex
with Raf. “I have some.” Somewhere…“They could be expired. I’m sure he’ll have some.”

“
Faith Sullivan
,” Zel tutted. “Never rely on a male taking care of things. I’ll bring some just in case.”

“Okay.”

“I think I even have a sample pack of those new bacon condoms.”

Faith screwed up her face. “Bacon condoms?”

“Yep. Supposed to smell like bacon.”

“What the hell for?” She wanted Raf to smell like Raf. Like the ocean. Like sex on the beach.

Zel laughed. “Isn’t everythings better with bacon?”

Faith groaned. “I’m hanging up now.”

She ended the call and took a deep breath, her pulse galloping a little in excitement. She was going on a
date
tonight with the sexiest man she’d ever set eyes on. And with any luck it’d finish up in his bed.

With gratuitous use of condoms.

*

Pop and Raf
were deep in beer conversation when she stepped back into the bar. It was a strange sight. Her father with the man she was hoping to see naked in a handful of hours. Raf glanced at her, a question in his eyes and she gave a small nod. Their sudden glitter quickened her breath.

“It’s ten,” Pop said, checking his watch. “Time to open up.”

Faith watched him walk out of the bar then reappear around Raf’s side, shrugging into a jacket as he headed for the door. Pop liked to be the one to open up in the morning. And lay the fire. He tired easily so how long he hung around after that was always fluid but the door and the fire were his rituals and Faith was going to let him have them for as long as he wanted to do it.

Both she and Raf watched him as he headed towards the doors, his white hair a beacon amongst the darkly panelled ambience. Faith heard the familiar turn of locks and slide of bolts and a slice of bright light cut inside as Pop opened the door to another freezing New York morning and stepped out for his usual reconnaissance of the neighborhood.