Dare to Resist (a Wedding Dare novella) (Entangled Brazen) (7 page)

“Colton, I can’t. I can’t.” She was almost sobbing from the pleasure and the intensity that nearly turned it to pain.

He braced his hand on the door above her shoulder and nailed her with a hot, intense stare. “Oh, you sure fucking can. Wait for it.” He worked his hand harder, shifting from an in-out to a front-to-back rhythm which targeted that sensitive spot. The movement of his hand made her wetter and wetter, until she could
hear
just how wet she was.

An immense, pleasurable pressure built up around his fingers until she knew that she was not only going to come but that she was going to soak his hand, just as he’d demanded. She grabbed on to his arm, needing something to hold, something to anchor her against the wave of sensation building inside her.

“That’s right, sweetheart,” he rasped.

Holy shit, she was gonna— “Colton!” she screamed.

“Yeah. There it is,” he gritted out, his hand still moving, drawing her orgasm out until it was almost painful. “You just came all over me. Taste.” He pushed shiny, wet fingers into her mouth.

She grasped his wrist and sucked him in to the knuckle. In the wake of the two massive orgasms he’d just given her, she was so filled with gratitude that she would’ve gladly done anything he asked. Even as good as her own orgasms could be, there was simply no comparison. She’d never really thought she’d been lonely the past three years until this very moment. Now? Absolutely. How was she going to go back to the way things were after
this
?

Colton’s hand cupped her face as he pulled his fingers free of her mouth. He bent down to align his eyes with hers. “Everything okay?” he asked.

The emergence of sweet Colton brought the sting of tears to the backs of her eyes. Here he was, taking care of her in yet another way. “Everything’s perfect,” she said.

A small, tender smile played around his lips for a moment, and then it dropped and his eyes went molten. “Good, then bend over the damn bed.”

…

Colton watched Kady, waiting to see what she would do, how she would react. Because she’d surprised him over and over. Even when he’d guessed correctly what her reaction might be, he’d had absolutely no idea what it would feel like to be doing any of this with her.

Kady blew every one of his fantasies entirely out of the water. Brave, daring, willing to give herself over to the pursuit of absolute abandon, he found her appealing in ways he never even knew to imagine.

She’d talked about wanting him to see her. Well, today, right now? He realized how damned much he’d been wanting—no, needing—someone to see him, too. See him and accept him for everything that he was. And not just someone. Her. Kady.

And, damnit, she
got
him. He could see it in her eyes, hear it in her voice, feel it in her touch.

Kady’s eyes darted to the side, and Colton smiled inwardly. She was thinking about running again.
Do it, Kady. I dare you.
“Keep me waiting one more second and I’m going to make you sorry.” When she still didn’t move, Colton grabbed her arm and dragged her stumbling toward the bed. He’d been keeping an eye on her throughout this whole thing—a very close eye—and everything he saw told him that what they were doing turned her on and got her off.

Damnit all to hell, but Kady Dresco was perfect for him in every way—including her smart mouth—and she’d been right in front of him all this time. Realization and certainty crashed into him—he’d never find someone better suited to him. And he didn’t even want to look.

Colton was caught up deep enough in his thoughts that when he released her and shoved her onto the mattress, he wasn’t prepared for her to use the momentum of his push to scrabble across the bed.

She tossed him a challenging glance as she bolted off the other side, smiling and laughing.

Colton felt the grin crawl up his face. Damn if he didn’t love her playfulness. “Aw, you are going to pay for that.” He shot around the bottom of the bed and took off after her. He easily caught up as she dashed into the bathroom, then stalked her until her sweet little ass came up against the countertop.

“Sorry, sorry,” she said, smiling and shaking her head and trying to flatten herself against the tile.

“Too late for that,” he said, still wearing that grin. “See, I was going to give you the soft warmth of the bed, but maybe this suits you more.” He claimed her mouth in a hard kiss. Kady literally melted into him and moaned like he was the water she needed to drink.

Her hands wrapped around the back of his neck and slid into his hair, tugging and pulling and scratching in a way that drove him wild. She wrenched her mouth away. “
Please
.”

“I like it when you beg.” He whirled her around, tore off his T-shirt, and pushed her upper body forward until she hovered over the counter. Frustrated by the clothing that separated them, he slid off her skirt, undid his pants, and shoved everything down around his thighs. Then he caught her by the arms. “Want to watch me fuck you?” he asked, his blood scalding hot with the need to bury himself deep.

Kady bit down on her lip and nodded. “I’d love that.”

That made two of them. But Colton was also very conscious that this was their first time together. Even though they were playing and he knew she was completely into it, he couldn’t be rough about this moment.

Taking himself in hand, he aligned his head with her opening—

He wrenched back. “Goddamnit. Let me get a condom.”

Kady blinked as if pulling herself from a fog. “I’m on birth control,” she said. “And I’m healthy.”

Going bareback inside her was a fucking dream he never thought he’d experience. “I’m clean, too, Kady. But are you sure?”

She nodded. “I trust you. Now, please.”

Satisfaction roared through him. He tugged her upward so he could speak right into her ear and met her gaze in the mirror. “Tell me you want me inside you, Kady. Tell me you want me so deep I might never find my way back out again.” Intense pressure bloomed inside his chest. He was well aware he was asking for more than her confirmation that she wanted his cock.

She leaned her cheek against his. “I do, Colton. I want you inside me. I want you
everywhere
.” Maybe it was wishful thinking, but the look on her beautiful face told him her answer was bigger than just this moment, too.

And it was all he needed to hear. Still holding her arms behind her back, Colton bent his knees, tilted her hips, and slid his cock into her tight, wet heat. “Fuck, you are so small. Don’t let me hurt you,” he growled.

“You won’t.” She moaned and bore down on him, taking him in deeper.

Colton wanted to hold back, to resist, but she was too damn hot and wet and
good
. And his need for her could only be denied so long. He bottomed out inside her, his balls settling against her sensitive flesh. “That’s a good girl, taking all of my cock.” He bit down on the soft tendon that ran between her neck and her shoulder. Against his stomach, her hands fisted and unfisted, her nails scratching his skin.

“Please, please move. God, you have to move.” Molten green eyes pleaded with him in the mirror. Her hips wiggled and tried to make him.

Colton groaned. “Oh, yeah, Kady. You fuck me.” He loosened his grip so she could move. Because of the way he restrained her arms, she could only do so a little, and her growing frustration reached between his legs and squeezed his balls. He let her struggle for another moment and then tugged her back against him. “What do you want?”

“
You
.”

Colton held himself still, hand around her throat—an excruciating feat of discipline. His cock absolutely throbbed for the need to move. “Give me the words and tell me what you want me to do.”

A flush ran over her chin from her cheeks down her neck to her chest, where the luscious mounds of her breasts jutted out from her position. “Fuck me. I want you to fuck me.”

His cock jerked inside her. “How do you want it?”

“However you want to give it to me,” she rushed out.

Colton gave a satisfied chuckle. “Brace your arms on the counter.”

Kady moved like her life depended on it, and her urgent need escalated his.

Grasping her hips, he withdrew almost all the way to the tip and then slid all the way in again, a soft, teasing stroke just to allow them to get the feel of each other. The next stroke was just as slow on the withdrawal, but he snapped his hips and drove back in, shoving her whole body forward. More of those hard, punctuated thrusts followed, knocking a moan out of her every time.

It was all the adjustment he could allow her before the heat in his head and his chest and his gut demanded total abandon. Colton grabbed her hips and fucked her hard and fast. Her rhythmic moans turned constant at the harsh pace. Wanting her absolutely wild, he angled his thrusts to hit her G-spot. Now that he knew she was capable of coming so forcefully, he wanted her doing it on him again and again. With his other hand, he reached around and massaged her breast and pinched and rolled her nipple. And then he wrenched her up into an almost-standing position, one hand across her breasts, the other dragging down to find her clit. He circled his fingers there and she screamed.

Her orgasm fisted at his cock and her slick wetness coated him. “Fuck, yeah,” he roared, fighting back his own release. He wasn’t done with her. Not by a long shot.

“Oh, God, Colton,” she said in a low, wrung-out voice.

“I want you under me,” he said as he pulled out and kicked his pants off the rest of the way. He turned her around, then he lifted her into a fireman’s carry over his shoulder.

She let out an indignant cry and beat at his back. “Put me down!”

Colton chuckled and swatted her on the ass. Kady screamed and laughed as he threw her onto the bed and crawled up over her, his hips and legs pinning hers, his hands manacles around her wrists. “You’re mine.” He grasped his cock, forced her thighs apart, and slid home again. “This body. This pussy.
Mine
.”

“Yes, yes,” she said, her mouth dropping open and her eyes closing.

“Tell me, Kady. Mean it.” Still holding her wrists, he fucked her in an alternating pattern of fast and shallow and slow and deep.

“I’m yours, Colton. Make me yours.” She lifted her head, seeking a kiss, and he was only too happy to give her what she wanted. It was rough and possessive and fucking delicious.

Halting his movement when he was buried deep, Colton pushed her legs down straight and carefully slid his thighs on the outside of hers. The length of his cock kept him inside her even with her hips forced flat by the position, which ensured that he rolled over her no doubt over-sensitized clit with every stroke. He pushed her arms up straight above her head and held her there, completely flat and trapped beneath him. Damn, this was where he wanted her to stay forever.

“Oh my God,” she moaned when he started to move, making sure to grind against her with every thrust. Sex filled the air, their scent, the wet sound of their fucking, the slap of skin on skin, and harsh, panting breaths.

Slamming his hips down on hers, he knew he was probably going to bruise her with his hip bones, and he fucking loved the idea that she’d wear him on her skin, too. That days later, she’d see the evidence of their lovemaking and think of
him
.

Lovemaking. Was that were they were doing?
You really have to ask that, Colton?

No. Not really.

And that realization shoved him hard toward his orgasm. He released her arms and curled his hands around the top of her head, giving him leverage to drive into her hard and fast. Her arms came around him, gripping and clawing and holding him. Damn, how he hoped she marked him, too.

Hunching himself around her, Colton kissed her with his eyes wide open. She did the same, seeming to understand his unspoken command. They sucked and licked and bit at each other as he fucked her. “You’re going to make me come. Where do you want it?” he asked.

Her hands slid down and squeezed his ass. “Inside. Don’t leave me.”

The words kicked him in the spine and had him driving into her. If he was going to come in her, he was going to be as deep as possible. In a fast motion, he slid his knees between hers again and lifted her legs up so high she was nearly bent in half. One arm holding her leg, he braced his weight on the other against her collarbone. “Here it comes,” he rasped, feeling her swallow beneath his hand.

On his second thrust, Kady came. Her face crumpled in pleasure and her pussy went painfully tight and maddeningly wet around his cock.

Colton’s orgasm plowed through him and he jerked and poured himself inside her. “Fuck, Kady,” he growled, moving helplessly through the almost-violent release.

The minute it was over, the haze of aggression fled from Colton’s mind. It was always that way, as if a pressure valve had been opened and drained. Until the next time.

He kissed her once, twice, gently and reverently. The smile of satisfaction she wore reached through his sternum and grasped his heart.

Easing up off of her, Colton slowly withdrew as a rock took up residence in his gut. He didn’t want this to be the only time. He didn’t want this to end at all. Rubbing her hip, he said, “Stay right here for a minute.” He slipped off the bed.

Staring into the bathroom mirror as he waited for the water to warm, Colton’s mind churned. He wasn’t sure what to do or where they went from here. Even aside from the bullshit in his head, there were logistics to consider. They had jobs and houses in two different places. Could they do a long-distance relationship? Probably. Did he want to? Not at all.

So then, what was his plan?

Chapter Seven

Kady could barely move, and she’d never felt better in her life. God, being with Colton was everything she’d ever hoped and fantasized—and more. Almost her entire life, Colton Brooks had been the man of her dreams,
and
now
she knew he was also capable of providing her with the means of experiencing every desire she had.

Without a doubt, she’d never had a more erotic or more satisfying sexual experience in her life. And more than that, she’d had it with someone she knew and cared about and respected, someone she already clicked with in so many other ways. Even when they drove each other crazy, it was still fun in an exasperating way. She wanted more than just this one moment with Colton, but she had no idea how that might even work—or if Colton would want the same.

She hadn’t forgotten his warning that relationships freaked him out. It made her heart hurt to know that all the crap with his parents had scarred him so badly, but she understood. His parents had come to some of her family’s barbecues and parties when she was a kid, and she’d seen for herself how they’d ignore each other, make snide comments in joking form, or outright criticize each other in front of everyone. And she knew from things Tyler had said and from overhearing her parents’ conversations that what she’d seen had just been the tip of the iceberg.

On a sigh, Kady rolled her head to the side and looked at the clock to find that it was pushing noon. Their ride would be here in three hours to take them to the airport, and they’d get on planes heading in two different directions.

Obviously they could talk on the phone or Skype or email, but an uncomfortable pressure in her chest was demanding she tell him that she wanted more now. Before something happened to burst the bubble they were in. But she also didn’t want to come off as needy or clingy—she didn’t want to do anything to chase his friendship away if that’s all he decided he could give in the end.

Part of her desperately needed to talk to Christine, Regan, and Julie about what’d happened between her and Colton, but part of her wanted to keep it secret, private, just for them. Especially since she didn’t know what it meant. If anything.

Colton returned to the bed, glorious in his nakedness. He was all long, lean muscles and golden skin. A dark smattering of hair covered his chest and led in a trail to his groin, where he was partially erect.

He crawled up between her legs and knelt. “You okay?” he asked, dark eyes boring into hers. “Too rough?”

She smiled, her heart squeezing at the concern in his voice. “I’m great. It was perfect Colton, thank you.” He placed the warm cloth between her legs and she gasped, self-consciousness flooding through her for the first time. “You don’t have to—”

“I want to take care of you,” he said, wiping her clean and escalating the pressure in her chest. He threw the rag to the floor and climbed up behind her. “It
was
perfect,” he said as he wrapped his arms around her and hauled her back against his stomach. “
You’re
perfect.” He pressed a kiss to her neck and her ear, and Kady turned enough so that he could kiss her on the mouth.

The kiss was sweet and tender, but no less sexy. She cupped the side of his face and stroked her fingers into his short hair. Against her hip, she felt him harden, though he made no move to act on it. Still, it made her smile.

“What?” he asked around the edge of the kiss. She shifted her hip against his length, and he grinned. “Can’t help it when I’m around you. Truth be told, I’ve
never
been able to help it when I’m around you.”

That made her smile even bigger. “Can I ask you a question?”

“Anything,” he said, propping his head up on his hand.

“How did you figure out you liked…what we did?”

His fingers dragged over her belly, making small unconscious patterns that tempted her to squirm. “One time when I was on leave in Germany, a group of us went to this sex club with live demonstrations in addition to all the private playing that was going on. Some crazy shit. But there was a very intense BDSM scene going on. And watching it flipped a switch in my brain. You sure you want to know this?”

“Yes. You’re thirty-two and I’m twenty-six, Colton. Both of us have had experiences before today. I can handle it.”

“Okay.” He winked and pressed a kiss to her temple. “A woman saw me watching the scene and one thing led to another. She was a masochist, and frankly wanted more than I could give. But that switch of mine? Actually experiencing this for the first time permanently stuck it in the on position and made me realize that something had always been missing for me.”

Kady totally understood that feeling. Something had definitely been missing for her, too, and now she knew what it was. “Pretty sure the same thing just happened to me.”

Colton quirked a crooked smile, but then his face went serious. “I’m glad it was me.”

“I’m glad it was you, too.” Words sat on the tip of her tongue, but all she could hear was Colton telling her that the idea of long-term relationships freaked him out. She didn’t want to be
that
woman—the one who had sex and then started planning a wedding.

Meeting his gaze, she gave him a small smile. He was so damn gorgeous it made her heart hurt, though his eyes were bloodshot and dark. A long moment of silence stretched out, and Kady dreaded it turning awkward. She stroked her fingers over his cheek. “You look tired. We have some time. Lay your head down,” she said.

“Yeah, that sounds good.” He scooted down, laid his head on her chest, and covered half her body with his, his thigh across hers, his arm thrown across so he could tuck his hand beneath her. He let out a sigh of pure exhausted pleasure. “You mind?” he asked, a bit of a humor in his voice.

Kady chuckled. “I suppose I can put up with it.” In truth, she adored it.

“Your fault I was up all night reading,” he mumbled.

Heat filled her cheeks again, and Colton was right—it was ridiculous that his discovery of her stash of erotic romance made her react that way after everything else that’d happened. “Exactly how much did you read?” she asked.

“Pretty much everything from the scene in the alley ’til the end.”

“Ohmigod,” she said under her breath, thinking through all the filthy scenes that included. Her stomach flip-flopped.

He squeezed his arm around her. “Luckiest thing that ever happened,” he said in almost a slur.

The words seeped from his mouth right through her skin and into her heart. If he really believed that, maybe he was feeling some of the same things she was—that she wanted more, that she didn’t want this to end. Really, there was only one way to find out. “I don’t want this to be it, Colton.” Her pulse tripped into a sprint at the declaration.

No answer, unless the slow, deep inhale of his breathing counted. He’d fallen asleep. And as much as it sucked that she’d found the courage to say something after he’d passed out, the fact that this big, strong man had found the comfort and solace of sleep on her body was the sweetest satisfaction.

With him lying all over her like this, she couldn’t not touch him. She brushed her hand over his hair, stroked his back, and ran her fingers along his arm. Above all the questions about what might or might not happen between them that ran through her head was the feeling of absolute rightness about what they’d done, and what they were doing right now.

That feeling of rightness spread over her even more completely than Colton. And Kady resolved to say something before they left today.

…

A musical ringtone played way in the distance, hauling Colton out of sleep. His mind rose slowly into consciousness, resisting and regretting being pulled from the best sleep he’d had in days. Maybe longer.

As soon as his mind broke the surface, he realized he’d been hearing the ring of his cell. Panic flashed through him. What time was it?

He lifted his upper body and his eyes tracked to the clock on the nightstand. Two thirty. Damnit. The ringing cut out and Colton groaned. They needed to be dressed, packed, and ready to go in a half hour.

Staring down at the naked woman sprawled on the bed, Colton admired Kady’s beauty. The combination of her black hair, pale skin, and dark-pink lips was alluring and so damn appealing to him he didn’t want to look away. But the time didn’t give him a choice.

His stomach churned and burned over exactly he wanted to say to her.

Colton kissed Kady’s forehead. “Wake up, cupcake,” he said, loving how the mere mention of his longtime nickname usually piqued her ire.

“Are you really still gonna call me that?” she asked, coming awake on a smile. Her eyes were soft and warm and gentle as they focused on him.

Man, how he’d love to wake up to her every day. It made his cock harden just to imagine it. “Of course I am,” he said. “Nothing has to change.”

Kady blanched, then Colton literally saw as she shut down her reaction to his comment and brightened her expression again. She looked away. “Oh my God, is that the time?” She rolled out of the far side of the bed, avoiding Colton all together. “Shit, shit, shit.”

“Yes, that’s why I woke you,” he said, analyzing what had caused that momentary reaction. And then his mind repeated his own words back to him. “Kady, I didn’t mean—”

“Listen, we don’t have to do a whole postmortem,” she said. “And we don’t have time right now anyway. Mind if I grab a quick shower first?”

“No,” he said as his shoulders fell. Kady grabbed her purse and disappeared into the bathroom, the door closing behind her.

As much as he’d needed the sleep and sleeping with Kady had been amazingly restful, Colton was irritated with himself for wasting his remaining time with her. They could’ve spent the afternoon making love, talking, a thousand things that were way better and more productive than sleep. He stalked to his cell on the dresser and check who’d called, then pressed the button to listen to his voicemail message.

It was the private confirming that one highway was good to go and he’d be here to retrieve them at fifteen hundred. So Colton was definitely out of time.

When the shower water came on, Colton knew he didn’t want to leave things between them so unclear and unspecified—no way he wanted her a thousand miles away wondering if he wanted her.

He marched across the room and into the bathroom, not even bothering to knock.

“We need to talk,” Colton said to the closed shower curtain as he leaned his bare ass against the counter and crossed his arms.

The edge of the curtain whipped back and Kady poked her head through. “Uh, taking a shower here.”

He smirked at her and forced himself to resist the urge to lick the droplets of water from her lips. “Yes, well, fortunately, you’re very bright and able to multitask, and I’ve already seen all your beautiful parts.”

She rolled her eyes and tugged the curtain closed again. “Okay, so, what do you want to talk about?”

One beat passed, then another, and then Colton laid himself on the line. “I want us to try being together,” he said, his heart racing in his chest. “I want us to figure out how to make that work. If you want to, of course.”

This time, the curtain eased open much slower. Kady met Colton’s gaze, and her eyes were so bright with excitement. “Really? Yes, I definitely do,” she said. “Do you mean, like, a long-distance relationship? Because I’ve got a ton of frequent-flier miles. Or we could drive and meet in the middle, or—”

“I appreciate that, but if we could find a way, I’d love to avoid the long-distance thing,” he said, crossing the room so he could stand right in front of her. “First, because after eight years in the army, I’ve had my fill of long-distance everything. Second, because I’m a novice at relationships and I don’t want to screw it up. And, third and most importantly, because I don’t want to be away from you that much.”

A sweet smile played around her lips at his words. “What’s the alternative, then?”

Colton braced himself and uttered the invitation that he wasn’t sure why he’d never issued before. “Come work for me. As my partner. The two of us together? We’d be unbeatable. The job would bring you back to Boulder and we could be together.”

Man, was Logan—Colton’s college roommate and his best friend back in Boulder ever since—gonna have a field day with this development when Colton told him what was going down. But Colton didn’t even care about the hardcore razzing he had coming from all his buddies because he felt the rightness of this idea down deep.

Kady’s mouth dropped open. She shut the water off, grabbed a towel, and opened the curtain all the way. Her gaze dragged over his nakedness, and it said something about how important his invitation was to him that he didn’t immediately focus in on her feminine interest. She squeezed the water out of her hair with the towel. “But…but…but we’d kill each other within three days. We always pick on each other. And if I land this contract, I’ll get a promotion.”

“I’m offering you a promotion,” he said. “A big one. To partner. That’s not something you’re going to get at Resnick, no matter how many contracts you land. I need a partner, Kady, and you’re the best there is. And we won’t kill each other. We’ve always clicked around the work, and you know it.”

Dried off now, Kady wrapped the towel around her body and stepped out onto the bath mat so that they were almost toe-to-toe. “It’s an amazing offer, Colton. Really. But what happens if I quit my current job and took this one, and then you and I…”

Colton didn’t like any of the ways he thought she might’ve intended to conclude that question. But he couldn’t say it was an unfair concern. “My gut’s telling me that’s not a problem, Kady, because we fucking
click
. But even if things didn’t work out, this offer is in no way contingent on us having a relationship. In fact, I’d first thought about this yesterday before anything happened between us. You’re too good for Resnick, and you’re sure as shit too good to have to deal with Bob Chase. We’d be professionals, and your job would be safe no matter what. But if things didn’t work out and you wanted to move on, I’d make sure there was a generous severance package in your contract, just like you’d get anywhere.” He stood in front of her and swiped a droplet of water running down her temple with his thumb. “All these things we can work out, but first you just have to agree.”