Chapter 1
Christie
The ice tinkled as it slowly melted, diluting the double Crown I hadn’t ordered. God, I didn’t want to go home. I really, really didn’t want to go home. Mom would want to listen to my lecture if I did it at home, and there was no way in hell I wanted to put on a show like a five-year-old. She would be cooking now, which meant she’d have plenty of time at the dinner table to ask why I didn’t make my flight and when the next one would be. And why did I smell like a bar?
Screw. That.
I spun the glass, then downed the drink.
I cringed, blinking as if that would cure the burn blooming in my chest. When the bartender set another double in front of me, I sniffed, catching a heated look from a man at the end of the counter. His deep-blue flannel shirt enhanced the broad frame hiding beneath it. The last thing on my mind was romance, but the pair of hazel eyes glinting under the dim lights had other thoughts. Obviously. It wasn’t as if I didn’t have time, but it meant that I couldn’t prepare before my first session at the conference tomorrow. Stupid flight cancelations. I took a smaller drink this time, hissing as the cold whiskey burned my throat.
“You’re thinkin’ long and hard over there,” a voice said, almost causing me to choke on my next sip. I glanced at the stranger who bought me the drink, but as the whiskey’s haze settled in a soft veil over me, I realized the words came from a different man who drew a sip from his beer two seats over.
“Yeah.”
“Miss your flight?” He scratched his full beard and angled toward me. I opened my mouth to answer, then a figure slid into the seat between us.
“May I join you?”
The sound was like dark silk, and I almost shuddered at the smile accompanying it. It was Blue Flannel from down the bar. I offered a polite smile and a nod as he made himself comfortable and set his glass on the counter, neglecting the napkin the bartender had slipped toward him moments before. He brushed his shirt. It was ironed too flat like he was used to wearing button-up shirts and pressed pants. I was tempted to look at his pants to see if he wore jeans and if they had iron creases in them too.
“Are you looking for conversation?” I barely met his gaze, the green in his eyes more vibrant now.
“Nah. The seats over here just looked more comfortable.”
I snorted a laugh, sputtering into my glass as the whiskey shot into my nose. I heaved, sputtering again and wheezing out words that weren’t words at all.
Blue Flannel rubbed my back as if that would do anything, and I tried to swat him away as I gasped for fresh air. My breath tickled my throat, sending me into yet another coughing fit. I inhaled slower, clearing my throat and squeezing my nose to help the burn dissipate.
He was laughing, brushing back his blond hair and dragging his hand down the side of his face. “I’m sorry. I didn’t think I was that funny.”
I shook my head. “Honestly, I just meant to be polite.” I shook my head and smiled as I confessed my mistake. “I inhaled through my nose instead of my mouth, and it went downhill from there.”
He offered a short laugh, shaking his head as he faced the bar again.
“Thanks for the drink,” I said in a raspy tone, ready to call it a day and go home after all that. I wasn’t really comfortable having this guy slip in like some jealous suitor, either. Not that he was that. At all.
“You okay there?” It was Full Beard from two stools over.
I leaned back behind Blue Flannel enough to catch his eye, and we exchanged smiles. “I lost a couple of years off my life, I think.”
His laugh was deep and hearty. He slapped the table lightly, the dark red hair on his arms glinting orange in the light. “It’s all right. I know CPR if you end up needin’ it.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Thanks.”
He dipped his head. “I’m Ryan, by the way.”
“Christie.”
Ryan’s smile enhanced his features tenfold. His cheekbones rose, the lines on his face deepening and showing his true jawline. His auburn hair brought out the freckles in his cheeks, which were faint everywhere except right around his eyes.
“And I’m Mike,” Blue Flannel said. “Another drink?”
I almost smiled back but caught myself. “Another might kill me.”
Mike grinned. “I won’t let that happen.”
I struggled not to roll my eyes. “My hero,” I said sarcastically, though I didn’t think he noticed.
Ryan said something that I didn’t hear, so I started to lean over the bar to ask. Before I could, Mike lurched forward, reaching for the napkin he’d neglected earlier. “Looks like I’m stuck here tonight.”
My eyes widened. “You’re not the only one,” I said as I sat back on my stool, swiveling slightly. Several flights had been canceled, and sometimes airlines provided credits or something. Hotel stays, maybe. I wondered if I could talk my way into getting one. Then I wouldn’t have to go home. I could order a pizza or some Whataburger, maybe watch a movie, be my own woman for once. Or invite someone to share my room.
I blushed at the thought. I’d been thinking about that a lot lately. I hadn’t really thought about dating in years—I’d been so focused on school and work—but this was the second time in the last month that I’d been hit on, and it was making me wonder if that was part of nearing your thirties. Desperate times called for sticking yourself out there.
“You too, huh?” he asked.
I glanced at my glass, wondering if I should drink water for a while.
“You’re too pretty to be by yourself. No one’s with you?”
I narrowed my eyes at him, rising to sit up straight. “I have an army waiting outside for me.”
The hungry glint in his eyes remained despite his posture, which stiffened as he waved his hands in front of him. “No, no. I don’t mean like that. I’m sorry. I just meant you’re taking a trip alone. Like to visit family? Or is it business? Are you a working woman?”
“What if it’s both?” I’d felt a flicker of chemistry for a moment, but now the spark was sputtering out. I wouldn’t ask him if he was a working man.
“Calm down. Calm down,” he said. “Look, I just wanted to tell you that you caught my eye, is all.”
“Thanks.”
He nodded and smiled again, settling back on his stool and leaning closer to me. I started to lean back, only to hit the backrest. “You’re pretty. I’ll bet you’re a lot prettier up close. Up real close …” The smooth tone gave me a weird feeling, and for some reason, I couldn’t find my voice. I opened and closed my mouth as if I’d eventually say something, but Mike’s smile grew as he seemed to peel off my clothes with his eyes, the penetrating gaze making me feel vulnerable and exposed.
“I think you are starting to annoy the lady, sir,” Ryan said. When Mike swiveled in his stool, Ryan pulled his hand back after getting his attention. “Might be best if you go back to the other side of the bar.”
“What?”
“Other side of the bar. Now.” The firm glare Ryan gave him made me shudder. Something was demanding about his green gaze that made my heart hitch, and I swallowed as Mike slowly rose to his feet, then took his drink back to the side of the bar, where he glared at Ryan from afar.
I started to smile at how easily a creeper was dismissed, but it fell away when Ryan met my gaze. Whatever superpower he had, I wanted it.
“Sorry. Maybe you like guys like that, and I’ll back off if you do, but he’s been eyeing you since you sat here. Fuckin’ disgusted me the way he talked to you just now.”
“It wasn’t that bad. He might’ve just been a little bit of a creeper.” I chuckled. “And I can stand up for myself, thank you.” I didn’t want to give him too much grief. He was just trying to help.
Ryan scratched his beard. “Yeah, well, I don’t think a little flirtin’ does much harm, but he was getting’ that look in his eyes …”
“Yeah. I know how that goes,” I repeated. “Some boys just don’t like to hear no.” Gazing into my glass, I sighed softly.
He leaned back in his seat. “Yeah, totally. Boys is right. Sure as hell ain’t men.” A laugh escaped his lips in a puff of air. “Just know that look he was givin’ you.”
“And what look was that?” I challenged.
“One that might not end the way you want.”
I measured him, wondering whether I should feel flattered or insulted by how he stepped between us. I had to admit Mike had started giving me weird vibes, and I wasn’t one to challenge fate. At the thought, I eyed my whiskey and chose a slow, careful breath when I realized who’d bought the drink.
“You’re fine,” Ryan said. “Bartender made it and gave it to you. He didn’t touch it.”
“You were watching pretty close,” I commented as I downed the rest.
“Just keeping an eye out.”
I canted my head in thought. “Defending your territory?”
He brushed his arm across his space at the table until it reached a spot inches away from my glass. “How about we draw a line? You stay on your side and me on mine. That way, you don’t think I’m tryin’ anything.”
“How will you know I’m not trying anything?” I challenged, realizing once I said it that I was flirting. Ryan’s green eyes sparkled as the skin around his eyes wrinkled with his smile. It was a contagious smile, one that made my stomach flutter. That moment cleared the tension from earlier; I relaxed on the stool and leaned an elbow onto the bar. “I won’t flirt if you won’t.”
His eyebrows rose, and he drank another sip of his beer. “And if one of us slips?”
“Hm.” I tried to think, wondering first about choosing the buy-a-drink tactic, but the last thing I needed was to wake up with a hangover and miss my flight, so I chose something that seemed fun and noncommittal. “We’ll just have to see what happens.”
He smacked the table and laughed, and with his contagious smile, I laughed, too. His auburn hair almost looked like a rich orange, glistening in the light as he shook his head and beckoned the bartender for another beer. Ryan had this way about him, this commanding presence that made it impossible to ignore his voice and difficult to stray from his gray-green eyes.
“So, what do you do? I mean, if you can answer without sounding like a big shot.”
He brushed his fingers through his hair. “What if I am a big shot?”
“Then you better sound humble about it.”
He chuckled. “Well, I humbly own a landscaping business.” He shrugged. “No big deal.”
“Okay,” I said with a giggle. “Saying ‘no big deal’ doesn’t make it humble.”
He quirked an eyebrow. “Doesn’t it?”
“Not in the slightest.”
“What would make it humble?”
I bit the inside of my lip in thought and tried not to meet his gaze. Ryan seemed to know his place and his boundaries, and he was breaking mine down and weakening my grasp on my resolve to shut him down. And while we’d only been talking for a few minutes, I was already having fun.
“Just say what you are without the job description to make it fancy. You’re a lawn guy.”
“A what?” he asked, an airy laugh carrying the question from his lips. “I am not a lawn guy.”
“A gardener then.”
“Not a gardener.”
“You plant stuff, right?”
He scoffed. “I hire people who ‘plant stuff.’” He curled his fingers in air quotes.
“Oh, sorry.” I realized I may have insulted him, but Ryan’s lips quirked, and he trailed my arm with light but rough fingers. I jerked my arm away and drew an invisible line between us, which drew a smile across our faces.
He threw up his hands in a placating motion. “That was stupid. Sorry. What do you do, Miss Sophisticated?”
I fought a glare and instead smiled at the fingers that had grazed my skin. Goosebumps followed his touch, and I sucked in a breath. I hadn’t realized it, but we’d both made a decision at that moment, and I was ready to explore it. I smiled a little at the thought of a one-night romance with a stranger, forever forgotten after we parted ways. The idea had never appealed to me before, but there was something about him, something daring and exciting, that begged to be discovered.
“I’m whatever you want me to be,” I said with a challenging tone, grinning up at him as a glint touched his eyes and lit a fire within me.
We sat at the dim airport bar, and while he asked me questions about my dreams and what I enjoyed doing, he seemed genuinely interested, as if we weren’t just two strangers who would part ways in the morning. As if we were colleagues or friends, and I found myself enjoying the stress-free feeling of it all.
My heart leaped when he took my hand in his. I’d known this man for less than an hour, yet something about him was reassuring. His palms were warm and firm as if he’d either done this before or felt as confident as I did that something was right—about this, about now.
“Let’s get out of here.” His voice had deepened, the words so low that my whole body trembled at the sound.
I nodded quickly, too ensnared by his gaze to do anything but. I wanted this. I wanted this excitement to go further. I wasn’t sure where it would end, but the pounding in my chest and swirling in my core told me I was ready for all the excitement Ryan had to offer, and I’d succumb to the weakness it drew out of me.
Ryan offered to rent a room in the airport’s hotel, which meant I didn’t have to explain why a twenty-six-year-old still lived with her mom. I was glad we didn’t need a ride there, too afraid of risking a missed flight, and I didn’t want to be without an escape plan in case he turned out to be crazy.
When we found his room, I shucked off my jacket. He went into the bathroom while I propped my stuff against the wall by the door. I heard the faucet come on and then shut off almost as quickly before he came out. My eyes shot open. His broad chest glistened with the stray droplets that had splashed when he washed his face. He was more than ready, bulging through a pair of blue boxers as he stepped closer to me without an ounce of humility.
“You don’t mess around,” I said with a nervous laugh.
His gaze traveled up and down my body. “I can go slower.”
I bit my lip, welcoming the swirling pool in my stomach that ignited the flame from earlier. I wasn’t the innocent I was in high school, but I still felt like I was someone else tonight. I shook my head, then exhaled softly, my mind spinning as his fingers trailed tenderly down my neck, curving around my side, making me shiver. I sucked in a breath when he pinched my nipple through my shirt and leaned toward him.
His lips parted, and he grazed my body with his fingertips, gripping my shirt lightly and helping me out of it. I exhaled softly, stretching my arm so he could pull off my bra next, then stepped out of my pants. He pressed into me, and I realized he’d removed his boxers. His penis was hot and firm against my stomach, slowly moving down and making me hum with anticipation.
I pressed against his hairy chest, inhaling the scent of beer and salt on his breath as his lips met mine. Tomorrow could go to hell. Work could go to hell. The conference could wait. Every moment drew me deeper into euphoria, and my cares stayed behind. We landed on the bed in a plume of cool hotel room air and the cloud of a white duvet.
He grabbed my hips and flipped, so I was on top of him. “I don’t normally—”
“I don’t care,” I said, my core aching with need. I didn’t know whether he would say he didn’t normally do this to make me comfortable or because it was true, but either way, the siren within me had awakened, and I wanted to devour and be devoured.
I heard a wrapper, then spread my legs over him. The tip of his member pressed against my entrance. I sucked in a breath, then exhaled slowly. I descended on top of him as his thickness filled me wholly, stretching my walls and stealing my thoughts. It felt glorious. And freeing. I rocked slowly, moving around so I could feel every part of him inside me. He groaned, and my stomach fluttered at the sound.
“What do you like?” I murmured in his ear, kissing under his chin and smiling as the beard hair prickled my lips. “What do you want?”
He shivered beneath me, and his eyes were closed. He felt around until his hands found my legs, gripping and traveling to my butt. I squealed as he squeezed my cheeks, his fingers wrapping toward my center until they massaged around my entrance, playing and making my core pulse.
“What do you want?” I asked breathlessly, driving him deep into me, then slowly pulling up. I kept going, reveling in the bliss of his fullness and the euphoria that bloomed in my core and filled my whole being.
“I want . . .” he breathed, his breath husky as he withheld a moan. “I want to make you scream.”
My eyes shot open, and as if he’d cued himself, he flipped us back over. I squealed in surprise but giggled, his hungry gaze drawing out something foreign from within me. I’d never thought a stranger could give me such pleasure. I never thought I’d find such bliss. But right now, at this moment, it was only him and me, and as he thrust into me over and over, I wanted nothing more in the world.
“Ryan,” I breathed, sucking in a breath when his mouth captured my nipple. He nibbled tenderly, but his teeth teased and taunted the tip until it was a hard nub. I moaned, unable to open my eyes for fear that the sensation would dissipate. I bucked, his member pressing against my walls and sending a painful pleasure straight to my core.
Rough hands pulled my wrists up, and he held them with one hand. I resisted only for a moment, but he held firm, and I squirmed as my body weakened to his will. I exhaled his name on my breath. He wanted me to scream. But as his mouth returned to my nipple and his free hand pinched my other one, I couldn’t find the air in my lungs to let one out.
He sped up his pace, pumping short but quickly, and I struggled in his grip as my hands instinctively wanted to brace against his shoulders. Sweat had formed a thin layer on his arms and shoulders, a rivulet racing down his chest and beading on curled hair. He shoved in me again, and I moaned, my body trembling as I neared my release.
“Scream for me,” he said breathlessly, moaning with each shove in and out.
He nipped my neck, then my nipple, and I shrieked. I couldn’t breathe, stars dancing in my vision as I rode the waves of pleasure, then when he bit me again, I screamed and let the climax overcome me. I gripped him as his moans hitched, and when he called out, I shoved onto him once more before lifting off. The motion threw me over the edge. I screamed for him and me as the small room seemed large and endless with the sea of pleasure. His lips captured mine, and I groaned into his mouth as our tongues danced and mated while my mind fell slowly back to earth.
We didn’t speak after that; I didn’t have the energy or the words. I hadn’t been in a relationship in a while, nor had I sought pleasure with anyone. Something about this, though, felt different. Simple. As if we had a silent agreement that this was only a moment and that this moment was meant to last only for tonight. We weren’t friends or even lovers, but tonight we were all those things.
Tomorrow, we’d get on our planes and never see each other again, but the story we wrote that night still had a happy ending.
