Authors: LuAnn McLane
Wicked Wonderland (21 page)
Justin’s gaze was rapt on her fingers as she unbuttoned her shirt. One button revealed cleavage. . . . Another showed the underside of her breasts. . . . Her fingers hovered above the second-to-last button and she pulled away to scrape back her hair.
“Take off your shirt,” Justin demanded.
The dark edge in his voice thrilled her. She wondered how close he was to losing all control. Rachel didn’t break eye contact with Justin as she reached down between them and quietly unbuttoned her shirt. When the last button slid free, she shrugged the red flannel off her shoulders.
“Now touch yourself.” His voice was thick and gravelly.
He really wanted her to show how hot she was for him. “I want you to touch me.”
“I will,” he promised with a wicked smile. “But ladies first.”
Rachel grinned at that. He knew she was no lady. It was time to remind him of that. She reached up and tousled her hair before dragging her hands down the sides of her face and neck. As she rode his cock, Rachel caressed her chest.
She cupped and fondled her heavy breasts before playing with her tight nipples. Rachel pinched them and moaned, rocking her hips, as the fire stormed through her. She tossed back her head, her hair cascading down her back, as she chased the wild sensations.
“Keep going,” Justin urged, bucking against her.
With one hand on her breast, she trailed the other hand down her stomach, past her hips, and to the strip of dark hair. She slid a finger along the wet folds and rubbed her fingertip along her swollen clitoris.
Her hips jerked and twitched, grinding against Justin. Her touch wasn’t enough. She needed more. “Justin,” she said with a whimper. “Please.”
Justin sat up and drove her hips down on him. She leaned back and offered her breast to his mouth. He moved desperately for her nipple, sucking it deep into his mouth. Rachel grabbed the back of his head and pressed his face in her breast.
She dimly heard a roar and her world shifted. Rachel blinked and felt the satin sheet under her spine. She saw a glimpse of Justin just before he devoured her with a kiss and surged into her. Rachel clung to him, her fingers scratching his sweat-dampened back. Justin’s thrusts grew ferocious and the last of his iron control disintegrated. He shuddered and climaxed as the white-hot pleasure inside her burst.
Rachel stilled, the blaze scorching through her, tearing through her mind. It broke free, splintering. She felt like she was shattering into a million little pieces and the only thing that held her together was Justin’s strong arms.
Justin slumped against her, his breathing harsh and choppy as he gulped for air. Rachel went limp, satisfied. Her body throbbed, her skin hot and sweaty. She closed her eyes and cradled him against her, her arms wrapped around his back.
“Justin?”
He stiffened. “Yeah?”
“I’m not feeling one bit of regret.”
She felt his chuckle against her neck. “Rachel, the night isn’t over.”
Chapter Seven
J
ustin lay in bed and held Rachel close. She slept soundly, her legs intertwined with his, her heartbeat matching his. Streams of light filtered through the curtain as the sun began to rise. Justin looked down at Rachel, brushing her long black hair from her face.
ustin lay in bed and held Rachel close. She slept soundly, her legs intertwined with his, her heartbeat matching his. Streams of light filtered through the curtain as the sun began to rise. Justin looked down at Rachel, brushing her long black hair from her face.
Last night was hot.Wild. Perfect. Momentous.
And it was all one big mistake.
Justin looked away from Rachel, ashamed at his unrestrained response throughout the night. He should have stayed strong. He should have held Rachel off with a candy cane.
He should have slept on the floor.
But he was weak when it came to her. Always had been, and always would be. Her insatiable need for him drove him over the edge. How could he reject the one thing he wanted most?
He wanted to live the dream that she was hot for him.That her need rivaled his need for her. Justin wished it could continue, but in the light of day, he had to admit the truth: She said she was crazy for him to get what she wanted.
And he accepted the answer because he wanted to believe. He saw the look in her eyes and it had felt right. But the way he was struggling to keep his hands off her, she could have told him Santa landed on the roof and he’d believe it.
And now she was heading to the airport to get him out of her system. It’d probably work like a charm. And when she returned, every day at the office was going to be torture. He would still want her, and she would want him out of her sight.
Unless he could trap her here for the rest of her Christmas vacation. He could lie about the weather reports or claim there was a massive airline strike.Tie her up with a red ribbon ...
No. Justin sat up in bed and drew away from her. He didn’t deserve Rachel. He said he could handle her wild ways, but he only made it worse. He needed to admit defeat, even though he wanted to stay with her. He could trick her only so far, but it wouldn’t keep her at his side.
He sighed and looked at the alarm clock. No time like the present to test his resolve. Justin cupped his hand on Rachel’s shoulder. He paused, enjoying the feel of her skin before he gave her shoulder a gentle shake. “Rachel, it’s time to get up.”
“Five more minutes,” she mumbled sleepily.
“No, we need to leave now.” His tone was sharper than he intended, but it was either that or lie back down and kiss Rachel thoroughly awake. “Checkout is before noon.”
Justin was in a bad mood, Rachel realized as she swallowed the remaining bite of her breakfast. She thought he would be sated and satisfied, but that might have been arrogance on her part. Was he impatient because he’d gotten what he’d wanted all along? Her mood took a dip at the thought. Now that he had her total surrender, was it time to move on?
“Are you okay?” she asked before she gulped down her coffee.
“Never better.” He didn’t meet her gaze as he grabbed for the check.
He was capable of lying better, that was for certain. Rachel made a face as she rose from the table and followed him to the cash register. She waited until they stepped out of the hotel restaurant before she tried again. “You want to talk about it?”
“Nothing to talk about.” He shrugged. “Come on, I had my car brought out front.”
Oh, yeah. Now he sounded like the men from her past. She hurried to catch up with him. His strides were eating up the ground, and they were already halfway across the lobby.
“Did I do anything to upset you last night?”
He looked straight ahead. “You mean besides making me wear reindeer pajamas, tackling me in bed, and having your way with me?”
“Most guys would take that as a compliment.”
He shrugged again. “Most guys would have lasted longer.”
Longer? Seriously? The guy had her screaming for mercy long before he climaxed. “Your self-control was admirable.”
“My self-control was nonexistent,” he said in disgust.
“Is that what is bothering you?” Men were all the same. They talked the talk, but deep down they weren’t confident about their performance. Justin had nothing to worry about.“I thought you had amazing staying power.”
He frowned as they stepped outside the hotel. “No, I didn’t.”
“You mean you could have held out for longer?” Her skin felt tight and prickly. “What’s your record?”
Justin finally stopped and looked at her. “Huh?”
“You could go on and on,” she said a little breathlessly as she remembered. “I’m the one who couldn’t take it anymore.”
He tilted his head to one side and narrowed his eyes. “Are we talking about the same thing?”
“Your amazing stamina?” Rachel unbuttoned the top of her coat. She was a little flushed.
“No!” He paused. “Well, yeah, my stamina is good, and I could have held back for ... Wait, that’s not my point.”
“Well, what are you talking about?”
He looked around and noticed they were attracting attention. Justin placed his hand on her back and guided her to his car. “I promised I wouldn’t have sex with you. It was my full intention to keep that promise.”
“I’m not holding it against you.”
“That’s not the point,” he said. “I wanted to prove that it wasn’t just this Christmas crap that made you hot for me.”
“You did,” she insisted. “I’m not arguing with you on that anymore.”
“I was determined to prove that I’m just what you need. And not just in bed.”
She stopped in front of his car, stunned by the misery in his voice. “Justin.”
“But all I managed to prove is that I can’t say no to you.” He raked his hand through his hair. “I failed you.”
“Wow.” She blinked. “I didn’t know that’s how you felt.”
Anger flashed in his eyes.“How did you think I’d feel after last night?”
“Satisfied,” she suggested with a smile. “Sore?”
He glared at her, obviously not in the mood to be teased. “Try defeated. I could have held out for something much more, but I grabbed for just one night.”
“Who said it was just for one night?” She took a step closer to him and reached out, but he was already turning away.
“We should get you to the airport.”
She suddenly had a better idea. Rachel nervously licked her lips. For a reckless impulse, this was the craziest, and probably most dangerous. “I decided not to go to the airport.”
He whirled around. “Say what?”
“There’s no point, is there?” She hated how her voice trembled. She wanted to sound confident, as if there was no way Justin could reject her.
“Oh, I get it.” His mouth drew into a straight line, his eyes dulled with disappointment.“It’s because you already made the mistake you were trying to avoid?”
“No, because I want to spend Christmas here.” She reached out for him again, grasping his coat and tugging him forward. “With you.”
He resisted. “No, you don’t.”
“Yeah, I do.” She took another step until her boot touched his.Their coats brushed, and she hated the barrier their clothes put between them. “Justin, you make me feel things I haven’t felt for years. In fact, you make me feel things I’ve never experienced.”
He looked at her suspiciously, as if waiting for the zinger. “But ... ?”
She bit down on her bottom lip, knowing she had to tell him exactly how she felt. She hated revealing her mistakes when she wanted his admiration and adoration.
“Okay, here’s the thing. It’s taken me two years to get my life back on track, and I’m still dealing with the consequences from when I went off the rails. I was scared that this wildness I felt would make me go back to square one.”
“I wouldn’t let that happen.”
She knew he wouldn’t. She heard the sincere promise in his voice.“I appreciate that, but this was something I wanted to do on my own. I needed to trust my instincts and my choices. Especially in men.”
Rachel felt Justin bracing himself for what came next. “And?”
“And I really thought you were bad for me.”
He took a step back as if he had been punched in the gut. Justin exhaled slowly. “Thanks a lot.”
“Until we came here,” she quickly added.
A muscle twitched in his cheek, and she saw the pain shimmer in his eyes. “I’m taking you to the airport and I’m not taking no for an answer.”
“Are you listening to me? That’s what I thought until I came here. I could blame it on the Christmas craziness. I could blame it on you, but we both know the truth. I’m wild about you because you are everything I want.”
“You don’t want me.” He unlocked the door with his remote key chain. “You don’t want wild.You said so yourself.”
“I don’t want to fall back into my old habits,” she corrected him. “Or my old life.That’s not going to happen with you.”
He opened the passenger door. “How do you know?”
“Well, for one thing, I’m done running away.” Every stupid thing she had done in her past was an escape or a distraction. It had been easier to walk away than make it right. It had taken her until now to see that. With Justin, she wanted to dig her feet in and make this work.
Justin leaned against the door. “As of three minutes ago?”
She winced. It sounded harsh, but it was true. She had been ready to run away up until a few minutes ago. It wasn’t Justin’s fault that he called her on it.
“Fair enough. You don’t have to believe me if you don’t want to. That’s fine.” She was tempted to walk away, but that would totally defeat her statement.
Justin dipped his head in regret. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you.”
“Listen,” she said as he tossed her weekend bag in the backseat. “I’m not the easiest person to be around, and you still haven’t seen me at my worst.”
He lifted his head and held her gaze. “I’m not worried.”
She could see that. Either he liked a challenge or he was delusional. Or possibly both. “I’m still figuring things out,” she confessed. “I make mistakes more than I get things right, and I have the uncanny knack of letting a great thing pass me by.”
“You know you’re not the only one, right?”
“I’m not asking for a lifetime or asking you to move in,” she explained, “but I’m asking for Christmas vacation.”
He stepped around the car door. “To start.”
Rachel felt a sparkle of hope. “You may want to rethink that once New Year’s comes around.” She felt obligated to give him an out. She knew she was no prize.
“I don’t need to, Rachel. I already had to rethink my life the day I met you.”
“Really?” She remembered that day vividly. The moment she met him, she had turned into a rambling, befuddled mess. “That was a really bad first impression.”
“Then you still haven’t figured out how much you affect me,” he said with a lopsided smile. “Get in the car, Rachel. I’m taking you home.”
This time she knew without a doubt he meant his home. Rachel put one foot in the car and stopped. She looked up at Justin. “By the way, there’s one more thing you should know about me.”
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