Homewrecker (Into the Flames #1) (17 page)

“That’s it!” I say, pushing to my feet and gesturing to the poster sized photo of a woman with bright blue streaks in her hair. “Except I want mine in purple. It’ll match my car and my toes.”

“Kennedy?”

The voice causes me to freeze. Turning around, I come face to face with Ava. Standing in front of us in a black dress with a bright pink name tag on it, she grins at me. “I thought that was you. Decide to pamper yourself, huh?”

Mark and Lynsey instantly stop arguing, flanking me on both sides. “Hello, Ava.” Lynsey nudges me, and Mark clears his throat, making me roll my eyes. “Lynsey, Mark, this is Ava. She’s the friend of Dixon’s from the other night,” I say, glancing at Lynsey.

“Oooooooh,” Mark and Lynsey say in unison, looking her over with judgmental gazes.

“I feel like I missed out on a very interesting meal,” Lynsey says, wrapping an arm around my shoulders. “Don’t you, Mark?”

“I’m damned insulted that we weren’t invited,” Mark says, nudging around me to get closer to Ava. She tosses her hair over her shoulder and smiles at him, batting her eyelashes.

“Next time, for sure.” Ava nods.

“Yeah,” Lynsey says, sarcasm dripping from her lips. “Well, when he calls you, be sure and let him know how excited we were to meet you.”

“Sounds great. He forgot to give me his number, so I’m gonna swing by the fire station after work and see if he’s there.” Ava says, pressing her hands together. Turning to me, she cocks her head sideways. “So, how about we get you in a chair, Kennedy? You’re sure you want purple?” she asks, leading me away from Lynsey and Mark toward an empty salon chair.

Looking at the tiny blonde and her scrutinizing blue eyes, I nod. “Yes, lots of purple streaks.” Sitting down in the chair, I smile wide. Nodding her head, clearly not impressed with my choice, she turns and heads over to the front desk and begins talking to a woman, a stylist, I assume. Shaking out my hair, I smile and prepare to embrace another piece of my inner wild and crazy.

“Ha!” Lynsey laughs, leaning her ass against my chair. “That Twattertot actually thinks he’s gonna call.” Looking down at me, she arches a brow. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me about this. Did you not think I deserved a laugh?”

“Shhh,” I whisper, shooing her with a slap to her ass. “She’ll hear you.”

Lynsey arches her brow, “Do you think that I give two rabid fucks if that twatswat hears one goddamn thing I have to say?” Waving in her direction, Lyn smiles at her before chuckling. “She has no staying power. We all know that ever since Ivy walked out on Dix before their wedding, he hasn’t tapped a piece more than once.”

“Except me,” I whisper looking down at my hands remembering the look on Dixon’s face when he had to tell everyone that the wedding was off. You never forget the look on someone’s face when their world is going up in flames. After that, Dixon became harder, colder, especially to people outside of our group. He was still that playful, raunchy guy we all knew, but Ivy ripped at scars that were left from losing his parents. The heart he kept hidden from most people because he had lost so much growing up, was now completely removed from his chest, never to be seen again.

Lynsey nods. “Yeah, but you’re safe.”

“Safe?” I ask, not sure what the hell she means by safe. I’m his friend. Married to his best friend. Hell, they grew up like fucking brothers after Dixon’s parents were killed.

“It’s not like he has to worry about his heart getting involved, you’re already in love with Gunnar.” Tapping my nose with her finger, she winks. “That makes you safe.”

The thought echoes loudly in my head. Nothing about any of this situation is safe, but God knows I can’t turn away now. I hate that I crave things from both men. Both set me ablaze in ways that I’d sooner give up breathing than do without. I compartmentalize the parts of me that belong to Gunnar when I’m with Dixon and feel nothing but the inferno he instills in me. Then with Gunnar’s touch, I feel it differently, it burns to my very soul and soaks into every fiber of my being. I can’t begin to understand the need for both men, but I know that I feel it growing more and more every day. It’s also pulling me in two in some sick and twisted game of tug of war.

“Let’s see what we have here.” The woman who was talking to Ava says, spinning me in the chair to face the mirror, knocking Lynsey away. Her hands comb through my hair, and she smiles. “You will look marvelous when I’m done with you, my purple streaked diva. Nothing better to put sass in your step than some bright color.”

“I can think of something,” Lyn says a bit too loud, crossing her arms over her chest.

“Dream on sister, because you’re never gonna get it!” Mark sings, doubling over in laughter in front of the rack of expensive shampoos.

“I’ll make you eat those words along with a bag of dicks, you whorey little butt slut,” Lynsey snaps, glaring daggers in his direction. Mark’s eyes shoot straight to the floor as her words silence him.

“They do this a lot?” the stylist asks, slipping a cape over me and securing it around my neck.

I giggle, shaking my head. “This is nothing, just wait until they really get started.”

Closing my eyes, I relax and chit chat with the stylist, who is named Haven, as she sections off my hair and begins applying the color. When I open them again, I see Lynsey and Mark walking out of the salon doors and heading up the hallway. The assholes have gotten bored with me and my hair intervention and left me, probably to get facials while they talk more shit.

Traitors
.

***

Once my hair is streaked fabulously purple and Lynsey and Mark come back from God knows where, we head for the parking lot. After I drop them off, I head home to get dressed for my night with Gunnar. Of course, not before they tell me again how important it is for me to let a digit slip while I blow my husband’s mind later tonight as a thank you. After flipping them off, and blushing a horrible shade of red, I head home, fully prepared to take my time getting ready so that I look flawless for whatever he has planned.

Stepping into the house, I stop dead in my tracks. Red and pink rose petals trail through the living room and down the hall. Dropping my bag to the chair, I smile. “Babe?” I yell, looking around, even though I know his truck isn’t in the driveway.

Following the trail of petals, I stop in the doorway and cover my gaping mouth with one hand as I take in the bedroom. Flameless candles are flickering all over the room and there are flowers everywhere. A beautiful black strapless dress and a pair of silver peep toes sit beside a pink bag on the bed with a post it note stuck on the front. Walking over, I remove the note and read.

Babe,

Wear this and be ready at seven.

Love, G.

Pinning up my hair, I take a long bath, making sure to take my time pampering my entire body. After brushing out my hair, I curl it into loose spirals, loving the way the purple offsets the brown. I apply my make-up, being sure to make my eyes pop along with adding a sheer gloss to my lips, knowing that Gunnar loves it.

Pulling the contents from the bag, I slip into the pale pink lace lingerie before pulling on the dress and stepping into the shoes. Standing in front of the full length mirror beside my vanity, I give myself a once over.

“You look beautiful,” Gunnar says, stepping into the doorway. “Wow, your hair.”

“You like it?” I ask, looking at him in the reflection of the mirror.

“I do,” Gunnar says, closing the distance. “Wow, I just, wow. I didn’t expect it, but damn, it’s sexy as hell.” My eyes rake up his body, taking in his blue dress shirt tucked into the waistband of his dark wash jeans. His arms wrap around my middle when he reaches me. Brushing the hair off to expose my neck, he runs his lips along my bare shoulder, pressing kisses along my skin until he reaches my ear. “Happy anniversary, baby.”

Turning in his embrace, I wrap my arms around his neck then brush my lips over his. “Happy anniversary. Today has been perfect.”

“That’s just the beginning,” he murmurs against my lips. “I’ve planned an entire night, just the two of us.” Releasing his hold on me, Gunnar takes my hand and leads me from the room. When I expect him to lead me towards the door to the garage, he heads for the patio, confusing me.

Stopping, he slides open the door before gesturing me to step out in front of him onto the deck. The sun is beginning to set and the entire deck is lit up with more flameless candles. The patio table is set for two with pasta, salad, and bread, and two glasses sit beside an iced bottle of my favorite white wine. I can feel the tears welling up in my eyes at how much effort he has put into the day. Emotion overwhelms me and he must sense it because he wraps an arm around me, pulling me to him. “I wanted to do something special for us tonight. Different,” he emphasizes, brushing his fingers over my cheek. “You put so much of your heart into everything you do, baby. I know that the last few weeks have been crazy for us with school starting and the team scandal shit, and you’ve been my rock. It’s been a rocky patch lately, and I know that is partially on me because I’m preoccupied. That’s why when I started planning for today, all I could think of was showing you the gratitude that I can’t express because words simply aren’t enough to measure how much I love you. That’s the gift I wanted to give you.”

Tears pool in my eyes again, emotion clogging my throat at the beautiful gesture Gunnar has made. Brushing his thumb beneath my eyes, he catches a tear. Looking down at me, he wraps his arms around me, pulling me flush against his chest. “Hungry?”

I nod. Gunnar presses his lips to mine quickly before leading me to the table and pulling out my chair. Sitting down, I cross one leg over the other while he pours me a glass of wine before taking the chair beside me.

Between bites of food, Gunnar and I talk about the day. Once I’ve told him all about the spa, he tells me about fishing with the guys. Reaching over, he grabs a small glass dish and sets it between us. Picking up a spoon, he cracks the caramel glazed crust revealing a rich chocolate tart that has my mouth watering. Lifting a bite to my mouth, he slips it past my parted lips.

“Mmmm,” I moan when the delicious dessert hits my taste buds.

Setting down the spoon, Gunnar cups my face in his hands and takes my mouth with his. His fingers slide into my hair, slipping through the spirals as he holds me to him. “I really need to feel you, baby.” His words have my entire body convulsing, desire coursing through my veins.

I nod against his lips, not wanting to break the contact. His arms wrap around me as stands, pulling me to my feet. Hoisting me into his arms as if I weighed nothing, he carries me into the house. My lips move along his jaw, my body cradled against his as he moves purposefully down the hallway. I feel safe and secure in his arms, loved and beautiful. His hands roam my body, his fingers brushing over my thighs, pushing my dress up over my ass.

Gunnar looks up, his eyes meeting mine before going to the mirror. “Beautiful,” he whispers, staring at my ass encased in the pale pink lace thong. Settling me on my feet, Gunnar walks around me, stopping to brush the hair off my neck. His lips run along my shoulder, his hands running up my bare arms slowly. I watch every touch, every brush of his lips in the mirror, frozen in place.

Pulling the zipper of my dress down, Gunnar lets it fall to my feet on the floor, his eyes hungrily taking in my body. Unfastening my bra, he lets it fall to the floor before cupping my breasts in his hands. His eyes meet mine in the mirror as he nuzzles my neck. My eyes follow the fingers of one hand as they move across my skin slipping into the front of my panties and sliding through my wetness.

Gunnar circles my clit, his teeth nipping at my earlobe making me moan. His arm wraps firmly around my chest, holding me to him while he continues his slow, methodical movements against my clit. I roll my hips, pressing against his hand wanting more friction, wanting the intensity to match the heat in his eyes.

“Open wider for me,” he says, adjusting his stance. His tone is harsher than usual, gruffer and almost intimidating if I didn’t know Gunnar like I do. It’s fucking hot.

I spread my legs farther apart allowing him to slip two fingers inside me. I gasp when they slide in and out slowly, his thumb brushes over my clit as he grinds his rock hard erection into my ass. I’m teetering on the edge of climax, but I don’t want it this way. “I need you, Gunnar,” I moan, wanting to touch him. Needing his skin against mine. Now.

Covering his hand with mine, I try to halt his movements. I don’t want to come this way, I want to feel him inside me when I do. I want to strip him down and run my hands and mouth all over his body until neither of us can stand it anymore. Then I want to lower myself onto his cock and ride him until we are both left gasping for breath and shattering into a thousand pieces.

“Jesus, Kennedy,” Gunnar says, almost growling. “That’s fuckin’ hot.”

Did I say that out loud
?

The low growl from him could be one of the sexiest sounds I have ever heard. His control is teetering on the edge, I can see it in his eyes. Could Lynsey and Mark be right? Is it possible for me to push the boundaries enough to send Gunnar over the edge and get him to stop holding back?

When his hand slips free of my body, I turn and face him. My eyes draw from his feet up to his face, slowly taking him in. Taking a deep breath, I cup his cock through his jeans causing him to hiss out a breath. My fingers move slowly up his body, making a trail along the buttons of his dress shirt. “My turn,” I whisper. Brushing my lips over the hollow of his throat, I notice how ragged his breathing is.

My lips press against his chest with every button I free, kissing the bare skin before kneeling in front of him and popping the button of his jeans. Sliding the zipper down, I look up at Gunnar through my lashes and wet my lips with my tongue. He doesn’t move, just watches me and every move that I make as I free his erection from the tight confines of his jeans. I grab his shirt and pull, making it fall to the floor behind him. After tugging his jeans and boxers down his legs I splay my hands on his thighs and push, silently urging him to lie back on the bed. The moment his back hits the mattress, I yank his clothes free and throw them across the room. Gunnar’s eyes stay locked on me, watching every move that I make. When I run my fingers along the inside of his thighs, his cock jerks causing me to lick my lips again.