The Scale (Martha's Way) (8 page)

“Jason.” Her voice was ragged. Minka placed her hands over
her thighs in an effort to stop her legs from shaking.

“Let it happen. It’s okay.”

“But…”

“We have all night.”

He continued to kiss her, encouraging her to climax. Not
able to hold back, Minka closed her eyes as her body drifted into the air.

“Jason.” Out of desperate need to give her lungs some air,
she screamed his name. She never thought someone could reach an orgasm so hard
through oral sex. Her body was still trembling when Jason’s weight lifted off
the bed; she opened her eyes to see him step out of his jeans and boxer briefs.

He stood naked before her. Rock hard, big, and oh so
beautiful. A mixture of emotions filled her; excitement, fear, and arousal. He
reached into the nightstand drawer to retrieve a condom. Her gaze stayed on him
as he removed the foil and sheathed himself. Minka found the act erotic. Leaning
over the bed he kissed her once more before rolling her onto her stomach. She
ached to have him fill her and spread her legs for him.

“I love your ass,” he rasped over her back.

He bit one of her cheeks lightly and then he was inside her.
A tight, deep thrust forcing past her engorged and swollen
tissues.
A soft sound escaped from her throat, a combination of pain and
pleasure. She parted her legs a little more, giving him further access. Not
quite submerged inside her, he came to a standstill.

“Minka,” he grunted.

She knew right away the reason for his hesitation. Her lack
of experience was physically evident. She shut her eyes, anticipating the
humiliation she was sure was seconds away. Men like Jason Montgomery didn’t go
to bed with inexperienced women. “I’m not a virgin,” she quickly informed him. “Please
don’t stop.”

He remained still inside her, as if contemplating his next
move. To her chagrin, his body shifted from over her. Shame ran through her.
Minka reached for the cover, but he reached over, grabbed her hand and gently
turned her to face him. She closed her eyes.

“Look at me.”

Slowly, she did as he commanded.

“When were you last intimate with someone?”

She didn’t want to answer the question. It would prove how
inferior and unskilled she was. But his stare remained on her, demanding an
answer.

“In college.”

Silence fell between them. He knew her age because of Keely.
The realization that the one time she had been intimate with someone was six
years ago brought many questions. But he asked none. Jason seemed to want her,
yet seemed ill at ease. Like being with an almost-virgin was uncharted territory
for him.

“I’ll get dressed,” she whispered.

“No,” he said. “I don’t want you to leave. If you do, I’ll
only come after you.”

The admission excited her. “I don’t need pity sex.”

“I wanted you the second I laid eyes on you.” He reached and
stroked her cheek. “I will try to be gentle.”

Relief flooded her. She met his eyes and saw the raw desire
reflected in them. “I don’t want you to be gentle.”

He opened his mouth as if to point out the obvious
differences between them; instead he touched his lips against hers. “But I
can’t promise I will be able to keep my end of the bargain.”

“I need you to be with me like you would be with any of your
other women.”

She needed him. At least for tonight, she wanted to feel
what every other woman her age experienced when a man like Jason took an
interest in them. She craved to reach that height he had taken her to seconds
ago, but only this time with him engulfed in her, rocking her to the brink of
ecstasy. She wanted to feel beautiful, desired.

She allowed the cover to fall away from her body and Jason’s
jaws tightened as he took in her nudity.

“Let me please you, Minka.”

His words carried such wonderful promises she ached to
discover what he could do. Minka reached over and cupped him in her hand. Jason
groaned.

“Teach me what to do.”

“We have all night.” He said the words again before pinning
her back to the bed. “I apologize beforehand for my selfishness this first
round,” he whispered in her ear. He ran two long fingers between her thighs,
over her wetness. “I need to be inside you right now. Is that okay?”

She nodded and smiled with pleasure when she felt the slight
pressure between her legs as he kissed her. He was gentle, but her muscles were
tight. Minka wrapped her arms around his wide shoulders, keeping him close. Gingerly,
he rocked himself inside her until he was fully immersed then increased his
rhythm.

“Wrap your legs around me, baby.”

She did as instructed. One of his hands came to rest under
her waist, clutching the fullness of her butt. He plunged deeper inside her.

His mouth crushed against hers with a desperate need that
matched hers. Flesh against flesh, their bodies moved together in a slow
rhythm. Evidence her inexperience was being taken into account. The sensation
felt good but she wanted more.

“Harder, please,” she begged. She wanted those muscles over
her with no constraint.

He hissed, “Baby, I’m trying to be gentle.”

She dropped her head to meet his gaze. “Don’t.”

A look of torment crossed his face. She continued to watch
him and with a slight nod he withdrew, then plunged inside her again, this time
with a force so fierce the bed rocked. The combination of pain and pleasure
made her groan and clench her nails on his shoulder, pulling him closer. Jason
moaned as he continued to thrust faster and harder. “Come for me again,” he
growled

She was ready and within seconds drifted into oblivion.
Seconds later, she heard him swear before his body collapsed over her. Minka
wrapped her arms over him, holding him close for a little while longer. They
lay in silence, catching their breaths. She enjoyed having his weight on her.
Soon reality would rear its ugly head, but for now she wanted to savor the
moment.

“I have to go clean up,” he spoke at last.

He rolled over his strong arms trapped her to his chest.
Their bodies molded together as the scent of sex filled the room. He buried his
face into her curls and kissed her forehead before pulling away to gaze into
her eyes. “You’re staying the night.”

It wasn’t a question but a confirmation. Deep down, she knew
it was best if she left now. But, she also wanted more of this feeling she was
experiencing. She felt drugged.

“Jason.”

“Hmm…”

“I want more.”

In the dark, she heard him chuckle, a sound filled with
promise.

“The night is young,
chérie
.”

Chapter Six

“I woke at intervals until…the intervals of waking tipped
the scales, and I was more often awake than not.”

Annie Dillard

Minka pressed her body closer to the hardness against her,
nestling her back into the heat. It felt nice and warm. She didn’t want to wake
up.

Wait!
Heat?

While the images were fuzzy, the memory of the event came
flooding back, hitting her like a brick. She had sex with Jason.

Oh God, no.
The
realization of what had occurred sent a shudder through her. She shook her
head, refusing to acknowledge the truth, not that it hadn’t been good. In fact,
if she dared to admit, it had been too damn good and under normal
circumstances, she’d want more. Except this was Blake’s best friend.

A strange, fluttery feeling in her stomach reminded her he
was sound asleep barely inches away.

One Mississippi, two Mississippi.

She squinted, adjusting to her surroundings. Nothing looked
familiar. The room was large, painted in a dark shade of gray with heavy blinds
blocking out the day. Over the footboard of the Victorian brass bed, she
glanced at a natural pine-colored, six-drawer dresser filled with knots and
natural imperfections. She found it beautiful and studied it a bit longer. Five
books were stacked in order by size on the dresser against the wall. A green
ceramic bowl with a thick silver bracelet dangled on the edge of the dresser.
A man’s watch.

Her gaze traveled to the right corner of the room where an
ample-sized distressed cocoa-colored leather Baxter chair sat. A pair of jeans and
a gray
cotton T-shirt slung on the armchair.

Yup.
She had lost it. Her brain
scrambled to find a logical excuse why she’d do something so careless, except
her mind seemed to have gone on a long-term hiatus.

She exhaled a noiseless breath and brought her body to a
semi-seated position. He was still sleeping, good. Except for the lean, tanned
arm draped over her, she could easily make a quick exit.

Minka chewed her lower lip, her thoughts centering on the
facts of the situation. Right next to her lay Jason Montgomery. His body, inked
with random tattoos on his torso, was even more beautifully sculpted than she
had imagined.

Jason rolled over onto his back, shifting the weight on the
bed. She leaned her back against the headboard, welcoming the cool touch
against her neck. To her amazement, her neck and shoulders were sore.

The memory of the evening jumbled in her mind. She closed
her eyes in a desperate attempt to put the pieces together, but along with the
soreness was a constant thumping in her head. She was hung over from a wild
night of sex with Blake’s best man. It couldn’t get any better than this.

After a couple of seconds passed, she refocused her
attention on the man next to her and studied his chiseled face. His blond hair was
slightly tousled. His beard much more prominent, making him even sexier. An
ache to touch his strong jawbone underneath the dark blond hair almost overtook
her senses, but she quickly brushed it aside.

The man was sleeping, for Christ’s sake.

Inquisitive eyes moved to his lips, which only brought vivid
images of the kiss they shared against the women’s bathroom door at Vapor,
their kiss in the lounge. Their hungry bodies against one another flashed
through her mind. His kisses, the way he lowered his head to suck on her
breasts and her inner thighs.

The familiar ache thrust its ugly head again.

Pushing the images aside, she continued her inspection of the
rest of his exposed body. His chest was lean with tight washboard abs. On the left
side was a tattoo of what looked like a fallen male angel. The ink that caught
her curiosity the night before at Vapor was a picture of an eagle covering his
left shoulder to bicep. She yearned to touch the daunting black symbol.

She stared as his chest rose and fell in a slow breathing
rhythm.

She had not dreamed last night. Jason Montgomery was real.
And, oh God, he was beautiful. Even sleeping, there was something dangerously
sexy about him. She continued to inspect his various works of art. Bold dark
Chinese letters inked down his left ribs. She wondered what the calligraphy
translated to as her eyes lingered on the area slightly below where the cover
rested on his waist, light traces of blond hair led to a path down below his
waist. Minka swallowed back, grateful for the cotton blanket wrapped around his
midsection, obstructing her view.

She suddenly became aware of her own nudity.

Panic swept over her.

She needed to escape before he woke up. The thought of this
man opening his beautiful eyes to see her naked next to him as he gently tried
to calm her worries or make empty promises to call her ran through her mind. She
didn’t want to deal with any discomfort or regrets.

Been there, done that, thank you very much.

Closing her eyes, she let out a long sigh and wished that
once she opened them again, she would find herself alone in her bedroom. One
sheep, two sheep, three sheep, she counted and gave herself an extra second for
the beloved character Scotty from Star Trek to beam her back to her hotel room.

Slowly she opened her eyes in hope of a
Ta-da
moment. Maybe Scotty beamed him away. She could live with
that. She always liked Scotty.

Please, please, please make him disappear.

She turned her attention back to the space next to her.

Nope, he was still there. On his back sleeping. And once
again, the sheer male beauty he possessed struck her.

For a moment, Minka simply sat there, pondering her next
move. If she got up, she might wake him up. And if she woke him up, there was a
good chance he might have a good laugh over the absurdity of the situation.

She also couldn’t stay there completely naked next to
someone she barely knew and risk seeing the revulsion in his beautiful eyes.
The humiliation never stopped.

Vivid pictures of them laughing in the night.
Jason teasing her with his kisses, his touch.
She groaned.
Last night, she had cast away her inhibitions and enjoyed the moment. He had
made her feel attractive, wanted, and she had enjoyed every second they spent
together. But, she knew better than to kid herself. Whatever they shared last
night was to be tucked away and looked back upon with fondness.

She turned her attention back to the naked body beside her
and noticed a small red bite mark on his chest. She groaned miserably. It was
becoming more and more apparent there was a side to her even she didn’t know.
At twenty-seven and even with her limited experience, this was the first time
she could ever remember leaving love bites on a man.

Her gaze traveled lower to the trail of dark blond hair
again, she stopped and swallowed before curiosity got the best of her. As
gently as she could, Minka leaned in, lifted the cover from his waist, and
peeked.
All the while sending a silent plea to God to let him
sleep through the experiment.