Reforming the Rock Star Page 8

  It felt intimate and scary…and amazing. He rubbed the pad of his thumb lightly over the tender skin on the inside of her wrist and she sucked in a breath. This was what guys like Laz could do to a girl. Hijack her sanity with one eighth of a thumb. The thought of him using the rest of his fine self on her was mind-boggling. Surely, she’d expire from sensory overload.

  “Cherry?” he asked softly.

  She hadn’t even realized they’d stopped moving, but there they were, parked in front of the dessert display. She met his gaze, lips parted to decline on the dessert again, when the look on his face had her struggling for breath. He didn’t take his eyes off her as he traced his thumb over her wrist again, this time more slowly.

  “Your pulse is pounding, Syd,” he murmured, angling his body toward hers until they were almost touching.

  “Um, yeah. I’m super out of shape. All the dancing.” She managed a brittle laugh and tried to remember what she’d read about the monks who could slow their heartbeats with their minds. Damn it, why hadn’t she paid closer attention to that article? “That’s why I can’t have pie.”

  She patted her belly and then stilled. She was blabbering and fidgeting like a child, but the weight of his stare and attention made her feel antsy. Like if she didn’t move or talk, she was going to explode into a million pieces.

  “Interesting. You didn’t seem to have trouble keeping up when we were out on the floor. I’m wondering if maybe it’s more than that.” He bent low until her breath tickled his chin. “I’m wondering if you’re thinking about my proposition. What to do you say, Syd? Want to come back to the house? We can get you out of that tight skirt, I’ll feed you, and then we can see if we can cook together?”

  Chapter Seven

  “You can do this,” she whispered to her reflection, flexing her shoulders like she was prepping for a fight. So what if the hottest guy on the planet was in the next room waiting for her to come out there and make the sex with him? Nothing to be nervous about.

  The ride home had been hell, though. Her brain had been stuck in overdrive, her thoughts so loud and chaotic, she couldn’t carry on even the most rudimentary conversation. Every time he tried to talk to her, she’d said something nonsensical back. It mustn’t have bothered him, though. She’d about convinced herself he changed his mind when, the second they pulled into the driveway, he all but leaped out of the car.

  “I can’t wait to touch you,” he’d murmured as he led her up the front stairs.

  Luckily, the great room had been empty and they were able to sneak up to his room together, undetected. Now, though, she wasn’t feeling so lucky.

  Not that she didn’t want to go through with it. She did. So bad.

  But she couldn’t seem to work up the nerve to open the bathroom door.

  “You okay in there?”

  Her heart tripped, and she opened her mouth to answer and then snapped it shut. What did he mean, was she okay? Had she been in there so long he thought she was under some sort of gastrointestinal distress?

  Way to keep it sexy, Syd.

  She turned on the faucet and called back through the door. “Yeah. Fine. Just washing up. Cuz I’m a dirty girl.”

  Even as the words left her lips, she wished for them back and leaned forward to bang her head silently on the glass. Why did she have to be this person who said and did all the wrong things? She so didn’t want to blow it and make things weird with Laz, but she hadn’t even gotten to see his twig and berries yet and she was already acting like a fool. Sex was going to be disastrous. Better to recognize it now than later.

  She blew out a sigh and ran a hand through her hair before opening the door.

  “Listen, I don’t think this—” The rest of that thought flew from her head as she took in the scene before her. Laz Stone, rock star and sexpot extraordinaire was reclining on the edge of the bed shirtless, in just his threadbare jeans, leaned back on both elbows. His chest was a dream, and she resisted the urge to wipe drool from her chin.

  “You chickening out on me, Metcalf?”

  His tone was so low and melodic, so sweet and sinful, she found herself leaning toward him, like a rat in the vicinity of a sexy pied piper.

  “N-no,” she said, licking her lips. “I was just thinking maybe it was kind of late and we should do it tomorrow.”

  He laughed and glanced at the clock. “It’s eleven o’clock at night. Surely that’s not passed your bedtime.” He sprang up and padded toward her, looking every bit like a predator on the hunt. Her body even reacted to him like she was prey. Her palms itched, her pulse pounded, adrenaline poured through her blood, making her head swim.

  By the time he stood in front of her, she could barely catch her breath. And then he kissed her, his tongue dancing over her lips before dipping between them and tangling with hers. She sucked in air through her nose and pressed into him, not fighting the need to feel the heat of him flush against her. When their hips touched, she could feel the thick evidence of his arousal, and she moaned into his mouth.

  He pulled back to meet her gaze, his own heavy with want. “If you’re not sure, Syd, you can sleep on it. Think it through. But I wanted you to know that I’m sold on the idea, hook, line and sinker. And I haven’t stopped wanting to do this since the second I saw you climbing out that window.”

  Could she be enough for a guy like Laz? A guy who’d seen it all? Done it all?

  As she stared at his beautiful face she realized she didn’t care. He thought she was and she wasn’t about to miss this opportunity.

  She shook her head and bounced onto her tiptoes to nip his chin lightly, dropping the Mary Ann and channeling her inner Ginger. “I was being overly cautious. It’s my nature, but not tonight.” She looped her arms around his neck and worked up a smile. “Tonight, I’m going to be wild. Because that’s how you make me feel.” It might not come easy, but damn it, she was going to give it her all.

  Laz dropped another quick kiss on her lips again before letting out a relieved groan. “That’s really good news. I hated the idea of another cold shower.” He tugged her toward the bed, and she followed, feeling almost separate from her body. Like she was floating, so high with excitement and anticipation that her feet weren’t touching the ground.

  The back of her knees bumped the bed frame and she wasn’t sure whether to sit or stay standing. “Should I get on the bed or…?”

  Her voice sounded reedy to her own ears, and she tried to calm herself down with deep, slow breaths.

  “You nervous?” he asked softly, stroking her cheek with his calloused fingertips.

  “A little,” she admitted, shifting her gaze from his. What if she screwed it up? What if he thought she was terrible in bed?

  “Well,” he said, reaching for the hem of her shirt. “I gotta admit. I’m a little nervous, too.” He tugged the shirt over her head, talking the whole time. “I find myself really wanting to impress you, for some reason. Why do you think that is, Syd?”

  She shrugged her now-bare shoulders and stared up into his beautiful eyes.

  “I’ll tell you what I think.” His hands were at her skirt now, and he unzipped it and slid it over her hips. “I think it’s because I’ve never been with someone like you. Someone who I want so badly but who also makes me laugh the way you do. I like you, Syd. And I’m a little like a teenage boy right now because all I keep thinking is that I hope you like me, too.”

  His panty-searing, hopeful half grin made her pulse clamor and that was when she realized he was a genius. Somehow, he’d taken her mind off the fact that he was undressing her and now, she was almost naked.

  “Well played, sir,” she murmured, resisting the urge to fold her arms over her chest.

  He shook his head and shrugged. “I don’t even feel bad because I meant every word of it.”

  He reached around and unhooked her bra with a deft flick of his fingers. When it fell away, the cool air licked at her nipples and they stiffened.

  Laz let out a low hiss of a
pproval and dipped his head low to nip one with his teeth before straightening again. “Your breasts are stunning.”

  A bolt of heat hit her straight between the thighs and she lowered herself to the edge of the bed, unable to stand up any longer.

  Laz made short work of his own clothes, and tossed them onto the floor next to hers. She could barely keep up with the carnival of treats. Broad shoulders, ropy, glorious abs, lean hips, and jutting out from between them—

  “Jesus Christ on a cracker,” she whispered. He was huge. Stiff and thick, and she wondered if she could get her fingers around it.

  His low chuckle sent a sizzle through her. “Thanks, I think.”

  “Oh, it’s a compliment. Very nice, sir.”

  He laughed out loud this time and shook his head at her. “See what I mean? You’re funny.”

  She was feeling anything but funny right now, but she was glad he thought so.

  He took her shoulders and gently pressed her back against the mattress.

  “Let me see you, Syd,” he whispered. “Don’t cover yourself.”

  Cheeks flaming, she let the hands that had crept up to fold over her chest fall to her sides. Was he noticing the slope of her belly or the fact that her thighs touched? Was he wishing her boobs were a little smaller? A little more perky?

  “Fuck, you’re gorgeous.”

  His voice was all grit and growl and she peaked up at him through half-mast lids. He didn’t look like he was noticing any of her flaws. In fact, he was staring at her body like he was a starving man and she was scrumptious meal. She leaned to the side and let her thighs fall apart to give him a better look and he grunted his approval.

  “This view is going to be stamped in my mind forever,” he said solemnly, before climbing onto the bed next to her. He trailed one finger from the pulse pounding in her neck down, slowly down over her collarbone, past her breast, over her ribs, and then back again. Each time getting closer to her nipple. She waited with bated breath for him to make contact, but it never came. Her hips moved restlessly against the blankets as he gave the opposite side the same treatment. The tight buds were peaked and aching by the time he closed his mouth over one, and pinched the other lightly between his thumb and forefinger.

  “Mmm,” she moaned, straining toward his molten mouth as electric heat washed over her. She slipped a hand into his hair and held him close, savoring the feel of his tongue on her breast, breathing in his scent.

  He released her nipple with a pop and met her gaze. “Your body gives me so many ideas, Syd. So many.” He crawled down the bed, dotting each of her ribs with kissed, caressing her abdomen with his hand before turning his attention to the vee between her legs. At his urging, she spread them, a little at first and then wide, ignoring the little voice in her said that told her yank up the covers. If he wanted to see, she was going to let him see his fill.

  “You’re so gorgeous here,” he whispered, almost reverently, running his fingers over the wisp of hair and then tracing the slit of her center. He climbed between her legs and pressed his mouth to each hip before kissing her pubic bone. Just having him in that vicinity sent a shiver through her and she bowed her back, angling closer.

  “I can’t wait to taste you,” he murmured, and then he did, letting his tongue flick out to lap at her clit. She gasped as the heat of her need burned away the embarrassment.

  This was her one chance to live a little and she was going to take it.

  …

  God, this woman was going to drive him insane. She tasted like fresh peaches, her skin was so soft it could’ve been spun from silk and those little sounds she was making in the back of her throat made his cock so hard, he could hit a home run with it.

  “I-I want you inside me,” she gasped. He hadn’t been down there two minutes and already she was writhing, legs tense, thighs trembling, so close he could feel it. Funny, sexy, and unbelievably sensitive in all the best places? Sydney Metcalf was a fucking dream.

  He ignored her pleas for as long as he could. She tasted so good, he couldn’t pull himself away. It wasn’t until the tugs on his hair became insistent and his name became a chant on her lips that he rose to his knees in front of her.

  “Please, Laz, I need…”

  He knew exactly what she needed because, damn, he needed it, too. With a silent vow to take it slower next time, he reached into the bedside drawer and grabbed a condom. Once he was situated, he moved over her, positioning himself between her legs. Her eyes were hot with want, and she pulled him close so they were chest to chest.

  The feel of her breasts grinding against his chest made him grunt. Her soft stomach pushed against his as her hips swiveled, seeking his cock. His breath went short as he took himself in hand and slid the swollen head into her waiting heat. She surged upward on a groan, but he trapped her hips in his hands.

  She couldn’t take all of him so quickly. With excruciating slowness, he filled her one inch at a time, gritting his teeth the drag of her flesh over his. She was so tight, it made his head spin with the need to plunge forward. To feel that slick channel close over him like a fist.

  “Laz, that feels so good,” she muttered. Her head was tossed back and her eyes were wild as she struggled to take him deeper. Halfway in, he pulled out and began the steady slide back in.

  His cock twitched and jerked, locked and loaded for release. He wanted to stroke deep, pound in and out of her until she screamed his name and he could explode inside her. She must have felt the same, but she was done letting him control the pace. She reached around and gripped his ass, yanking him forward. He bit back a curse, and she gasped as he filled her completely.

  “Oh, God,” she groaned.

  Then it was on.

  She went wild beneath him, hips fluttering frantically as he worked her with long, slow, deep strokes. They moved faster, and he dipped his head to suck her nipple as he plunged into her again and again.

  Her body tensed, tightening around him, and a moan started deep in her throat. His cock swelled and stomach clenched with the need to come bearing down on him. His balls went tight, the pressure building to the point of near pain. She called his name, her fingers digging into his back.

  “That’s it. Yeah,” he murmured as she convulsed. She pressed her mouth to his, slipping her tongue between his lips and whimpering into his mouth.

  All conscious thought disappeared as he flexed forward one last time. The wave hit hard, like a tsunami obliterating everything in its path but pleasure as his body exploded, and he emptied himself into her.

  Chapter Eight

  The closest thing she’d ever had to a one-night stand before tonight was the night she’d met Laz. And before that? A kiss-and-run incident in the sixth grade. That time, she hadn’t made the most graceful of exits, tripping over her Mary Janes before Callie came over to help her make her escape.

  With Laz already snoring softly beside her, she lay corpse-still trying to remember any booty-call protocol she might have gleaned from roommates in culinary school. Nothing came to mind, and she had half a notion to wake her bed partner and ask him what his ladies normally did the morning after. Was she supposed to leave and pretend it never happened? Was she expected to send a thank you card?

  Hey Laz,

  Thanks for the hot beef injection.

  Yours,

  Syd

  Yep, that sounded super smooth.

  But she had to focus on the present and right now, none of it mattered. All she knew was that the sun was minutes from rising, and she had to get down to the kitchens and start her day. It was going to be a doozy. She had to do a dry run for all the food they were doing at the fair. It was only a few days away, and as the kickoff event, everything needed to be perfect.

  If she could avoid the awkwardness of dealing with Laz right now, that would be peachy. He’d probably appreciate it in any case. The way she saw it, she was giving him an easy out. At least he didn’t have to come up with a bunch of lame excuses to ask her to leave. That
would’ve been hideous.

  It was embarrassing enough that he’d brought out a side of her that she hadn’t known existed. Had she really bit him? Her cheeks went hot at the memory. There was no need to continue the torture with platitudes and small talk. Better to get the hell out of Dodge before she had to face him.

  Like adults do.

  She squashed that little voice and focused on the task of trying to escape Laz’s bed undetected. For the second time in three days. How ludicrous, considering every other woman in the free world was trying to do exactly the opposite.

  She scooted toward the end of the bed, and he rolled over in response, flinging out an arm and trapping her beneath his tree-trunk-sized biceps. His skin burned against the sheet, and a part of her was grateful for the buffer. If she felt him in the flesh again, she wasn’t sure she would have been able to leave.

  Though how she would leave with him spearing her in place was another problem all together. She wiggled her hips, trying to shimmy from beneath him and she stopped as his arm began to choke her in the effort. Apparently, stealth was not her strong suit. But at least he hadn’t woken up. Yet.

  There was no way to limbo her face beneath his grasp, so she lifted him gently and finally freed herself. Victory. Next, she collected her discarded clothes from the floor, but couldn’t find the prototype heels that Callie had let her borrow. In any other case, she would have left them behind, a casualty of war, but if she lost those shoes, she’d be a dead woman.

  Still in the buff, she paced the room, checking high and low, but the shoes were nowhere to be found. With no choice left, she got on all fours to search beneath the bed.

  The nude sole peeked out from under the cedar chest at the foot of the bed. Eureka!

  She let out a little squeal of delight.

  And then the mattress springs announced her terrible, awful, no-good mistake.

  “Syd?” His voice was still groggy from sleep, but there was no doubting he was awake.