Wasted (10 page)

We ate in silence a few moments.

“
You look very beautiful,”
he complimented as he rubbed his hand across his bare chest. “I
guess I’m a little underdressed. Maybe I should go put on a
shirt.”

“
No.”

He choked on his food and took a long swig
of juice. The corner of his mouth tilted upward. “Why, Lexi. If I
didn’t know any better, I’d think you liked looking at my
chest.”

My faced burned, and I concentrated on the
bacon in my hands. I could feel his gaze scorch my flesh. I tried
to think of something to say, but I’d pretty much been busted.

“
It’s okay,” he whispered,
tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. “I like looking at your
chest, too.”

My eyes flew to his face, and I didn’t know
whether to slap him or hug him.

“
I’s just messing with ya.”
His eyes were alight with mischief. “Sort of.”

Unable to come up with a response, I stuffed
the bacon in my mouth.

“
So,” he drawled out,
clearly looking to change the topic of conversation as we finished
our meal, “we both have Friday night off. Why don’t we invite
Seren, Cade, and Hawk over?”

“
I have to work
Friday.”

“
You do?” He cleared away
our plates and put them in the sink.

I followed him into the kitchen, rinsed
them, and loaded the dishwasher. “Yeah.”

“
Are you working with
Daniel, the bartender on the other shift?”

“
No, I’m going to wait
tables.”

“
Wait tables?
Why?”

“
I just wanted to try it.
Spanky said it would be okay.” I leaned back against the
counter.

“
But you’d make a lot more
money bartending.”

“
It’s just a temporary
thing.”

“
Alrighty then. If that’s
what you want.”

He stared at my lips, and I swallowed, my
self-consciousness making me press them together to smooth my
lipstick.

“
You really shouldn’t do
that in front of me.”

“
Do what?”

“
Draw my attention to your
lips. Especially when they’re red. Red’s my favorite.”

He flattened his hand out against the
counter on each side of me, trapping me between his muscular
arms.

My breathing became erratic as he closed in
on me. “You can’t kiss me.”

He pulled his head back and cocked his
brows. “I can’t?”

“
No.”

“
Why the hell not? I’m
pretty sure you liked it when we kissed earlier today.”

I lowered my lashes. “I did.”

“
Then what’s the
problem?”

I lifted my eyes to his. “I want you to tell
me your story first.”

Chapter
8

Fortune Teller

Mason

She wanted to know my story?

I was pretty sure she was the only girl I’d
ever wanted to kiss who lined out requirements before the deed
could take place. And I’d kissed plenty.

Had it been anyone else, I would have walked
away. But it was Lexi. And she stared at me now with those wide
brown eyes, her plump, red lips beckoning to me.

“
I know how this ends. I
tell you my story, and you run the other way like a sweet angel
with the devil nipping at your heels.”

She pursed her lips, and I was mesmerized
with the urge to suck on her bottom lip until she opened to me.

“
I never said I was a sweet
angel.”

“
You didn’t have to. If
there’s anything a devil knows, it’s when he’s in the presence of
an angel, and a beautiful angel at that.”

“
Then how ‘bout we strike a
deal?”

“
What are you offering?” I
leaned in closer to her, appreciating her light floral
scent.

“
I’ll kiss you first, but
then you have to tell me your story.”

“
You kiss me first, and
I’ll tell you part of my story. You don’t get to earn it all at
once.”

“
Fair enough.” She closed
her eyes, and I looked at her face, her dark lashes fanned across
her cheek, her red lips slightly parted. I heard her intake of
breath.

Her eyes flipped open. “What are you waiting
for?”

“
You’re supposed to
kiss
me
,
remember?”

“
You know what I
meant.”

“
I know what you
said.”

She took a deep breath. “Fine.”

I stood still, watching as she chewed on her
lip, her white teeth contrasting sharply against the glossy
red.

She released her lip, closed her eyes, and
pressed her mouth against mine. It didn’t take much contact for me
to take over the kiss. I didn’t know why I found her so damn
irresistible. Maybe it was because she wanted more from me than
just a night of pleasure. In the last few weeks, I’d come to
consider her more than just a temporary roommate. She was my
friend. My beautiful, sweet, sexy friend. I knew she was attracted
to me, same as I was to her, but she also seemed to genuinely
care.

I may have been drunk last night, but I
remembered the feel of her hands on my face, the gentleness in her
voice, the concern etched on her brow.

Her presence had been like a soothing balm
to my tortured state of mind. When was the last time anyone cared
about what was bothering me?

Her hands slipped around my waist, and I
wondered if she’d even realized it. She was kissing me with as much
fervor as I was kissing her, and I could do nothing to prevent my
body’s reaction to her desire.

Gripping her by the waist, I picked her up
and set her on the edge of the counter, never interrupting our
kiss. During the shift, her hands had wrapped around my neck, and
she clung to me for support.

My hands found her knees, and I kneaded her
silky flesh as my fingers worked their way under the hem of her
dress. My thumbs stroked her inner thighs, teasing her as they got
ever closer to the thin barrier of her panties.

She stopped the kiss, her breath coming out
in broken pants. She leaned her head against the cabinet, her eyes
closed. There were plenty of things in this world that I knew
nothing about, but if there was one thing I did know, it was women.
And Lexi was about as turned on as any man could ever hope.

While massaging with one hand, I used the
other to push her skirt up until I could see a scrap of black
transparent silk. My thumbs began rhythmically stroking her inner
thighs again. Getting closer and closer. When I could see her
physically squirming, I brushed my thumb against the center of her
core. Her panties were damp, and I closed my eyes, trying to fight
my own needs as I focused on hers.

She gasped.

And I stroked.

“
Mason, we shouldn’t….” She
pushed against my chest.

I captured her lips with mine and kissed her
while I continued to tease. “I’ll stop if that’s what you want,” I
whispered. She looked at me with hooded eyes. “But you feel so damn
good. Let me feel you, Lex. I promise it’ll go no further than
this. Just let me touch you.”

She swallowed, her chest heaving.

“
Okay?”

She gave me the slightest nod, and that was
all the indication I needed. I pushed her thighs apart and slipped
my thumb beneath the fabric, parting her flesh.

A soft moan escaped her lips, and she
gripped the edge of the counter until her knuckles turned white.
Her response excited me, and I wondered how long it’d been since a
man had made her feel this way.

As I stroked and rubbed and teased, her neck
arched. Her eyes were closed, her breathing labored. I knew she was
getting close.

I withdrew my hands, and her eyes flew
open.

“
Mason,” she whispered in a
breathy rush. This time, she wasn’t trying to stop me. She was
begging me not to stop.

I reached up to each side of her hips and
grabbed the waist of her panties, pulling them down to her knees.
“Don’t worry, love. I’m going to take care of you.” Hastily
removing her black strappy heels, I set them gingerly on the floor.
Then, in one swift motion, I discarded her panties.

My thumb once again found her sweet spot,
and I caressed her in a sensual rhythm until she squirmed beneath
my hands. She clutched my shoulders and arched her body.

Desire consumed my thoughts, and I was so
freaking hard, it was difficult to think about anything but my own
release. But this wasn’t about me.

Forcing myself to focus on Lexi, I parted
her flesh with one hand, while a finger from my opposite hand
slowly entered her. I continued to alternate between withdrawing
and plunging deeper, while her body accommodated me. She was tight
and hot, and it didn’t take long until she was shuddering in my
arms, tiny puffs of air being forced from her lungs.

I watched her face, wanting to remember
every detail: the way her dark lashes fluttered along her cheek as
she creased her brow in concentration, the way her red lips pursed
together then slightly parted as a ragged breath escaped, the way
her artery pulsed as she arched her slender neck.

Remembering the way she had cradled my face
in her hands last night, I kissed the hollow above her collarbone
as I slowly withdrew from her. A guy could get used to having a
girl like Lexi around.

I picked her up by the waist and lowered her
to the floor, her hands resting on my biceps.

“
You should get dressed,” I
said hoarsely. She stared at me, her eyes assessing my face. I’m
sure she wondered what this meant for us, just like I
did.

Contemplating another kiss, I leaned toward
her, but then I pulled back and turned to go toward the hall.

“
Mason?”

I stopped, but I didn’t look back. I angled
my head, and I could feel my hair brush across my bare shoulders.
“Yes?”

“
You promised.”

“
When you’re ready, come to
my room.”

After washing up and trying to think of
mundane things to alleviate my erection, I lay on my bed, thinking
about how much money in tips I needed to make in the coming
week.

A half hour later, a soft tap sounded on my
door. “Come in.”

Lexi entered. While she still wasn’t wearing
her shoes, she did look a little more composed. I wondered if she
was wearing anything under her skirt but thought it better that I
turn my brain toward more wholesome thoughts in an effort to keep
my body under control.

She crawled on the bed and stretched out on
the pillow beside me. I motioned for her to come closer, and she
laid her head on my shoulder as I wrapped my arm around her
waist.

She curled into my side. “Do you mind having
company?”

“
Not if it’s
you.”

She was quiet as she lay beside me, her arms
folded between us.

I exhaled, dreading the questions that were
probably tumbling around in her mind.

“
I don’t usually…you know.”
Her soft words made me smile, and I could tell she found her
situation awkward.

“
What? Attack an
unsuspecting male and force yourself on him?”

She released a gasp of disbelief. “You are
the furthest thing from an unsuspecting male I’ve ever encountered,
and I did not force myself on you.”

“
Then you’re going to have
to be more specific.”

“
You’re going to make me
say it?”

“
Say what?”

She hit me in the side with the back of her
hand. “I don’t usually let things go that far…not without a
relationship.” She emitted a groan. “I mean…I’m not asking for a
relationship. I just don’t….”

“
If it makes you feel any
better, I don’t usually tell girls my story…not without a
relationship. And I haven’t had a serious relationship
since….”

When I didn’t continue, she asked, “Since
when?”

“
It doesn’t
matter.”

She sat up and repositioned herself in the
bed, looking damn near delicious with her hair cascading sensually
over her shoulder. Facing me, she propped herself up on her arm as
she leaned against me and curled her legs out beside her. “It
matters to me.”

“
Why?” She began tracing
the edges of my tattoo, and I found it strangely
comforting.

“
Because you’re my best
friend in Creekview.”

Her word choice made her seem young and
innocent. Telling someone your secrets may have been okay in
elementary school, but there was nothing appealing about it now.
Anything I kept to myself was for a damn good reason. Some shit
people didn’t really want to know, even if they thought they
did.

“
The less you know, the
better you’ll like me. And having said that, it’s perfectly fine
with me if we forget about our little agreement
earlier.”

“
Oh, no.” She poked me in
the ribs. “You owe me a story, and I’m not going anywhere until I
get it.”

“
I have no problem with you
staying in my bed.”

“
Mason! You
promised.”

She glared at me through narrowed eyes, her
frustration evident.

“
Fine.” I folded my hands
behind my head. “What do you want to know?”

Her narrowed eyes returned to normal, and
she watched me thoughtfully for a moment. “Do you love your
mother?”

I raised my head up and stared at her,
wondering why she picked that question. “What the hell?” I glanced
around at my surroundings. “Am I on the crazy couch at the
psychiatrist’s office?”