Love Discovered in New York (The Washington Triplets) (5 page)

I laughed, “Yes!”

His sexy, confident smirk was back. In the same voice he’d used in the bar when he wanted to see the back of my dress, he rasped, “Prove it.”

That voice
, I thought as my belly quivered again.
If I could listen to him talk while staring into his beautiful eyes with that body pressed against me, I would—

Leaning forward, Colton interrupted my thoughts. “So are you going to show me these alleged tattoos? I’d like to see my work.”

“You didn’t do these tattoos. A woman did.” I leaned forward and continued with a wink, “And anyway, there’s only one tattoo I can show you in public.”

His eyes instantly clouded with a heated intensity as he shifted in his seat. “Show me what you can.”

“You are so demanding,” I huffed playfully as I turned my head and bent my ear forward. The sensitive spot behind my ear showcased a small black heart.

He reached over and ran the pad of his forefinger over the tattoo. I shivered. When he removed his skin from mine, I sat back and took a deep breath.

“I like it. It suits you,” Colton complimented. “Did you get that one from Inkwell?”

“No I got this one on my eighteenth birthday.” I shook my head at the memory.

“Because of that face you just made, you have to tell me the story that goes along with that birthday tattoo.”

“What?” I asked, taken aback by his perceptiveness.

He just looked at me, sipping his milkshake, imploring me with his eyes.

“There’s not much to tell. I’d wanted a tattoo since I was fifteen or sixteen. My parents were against the idea, but I thought if my sisters and I all got one together, it would bond us even closer.”

“So what happened?”

“Nothing. I was the only one who got it.” I shrugged nonchalantly. “It is what it is.”

His eyes furrowed briefly. “Are you and your sisters close?”

“So what ended up happening with your nephew and the cop?” I asked, abruptly changing the subject before taking a bite out of a fry.

He rubbed his temples. “That dumbass was drunk and hit on some dude’s girl and they got into it. When the guy said that he was a cop, Mike came in to get me. By the time I ran outside, your security guard had handled the situation and the couple was gone.”

“Wow...” I breathed under my breath, my eyes wide. “Happy Birthday, Vinnie.”

“Yeah, I had to send him back home to his parents early.”

“So Vinnie is your sister’s kid?” I asked curiously, sipping my milkshake.

“Yeah, her birthday’s next month and I was going to visit her. But now that she thinks I corrupted her kid, I don’t know anymore,” he joked.

I laughed and he joined in. The more I heard him laugh, the more I wanted to hear it.

“Is there a big age difference between you and your sister? Because Vinnie is twenty-one, right?”

“Vinnie is her step-son, but she raised him like he was her own since he was four years old. Even though they are only fifteen years apart, it worked. My sister, Corrine, married Tom, Vinnie’s dad when she was nineteen. He was twenty-five, I think. My parents were pissed at first. I mean, who gets married after a few months of dating?”

My dad’s wedding invitation flashed in my mind and my body filled with anger. Taking a deep breath, I focused on Colton’s lips. They looked as soft as they felt. My lips tingled in remembrance, causing my anger to wane.

“…They assumed the worst—she was going to drop out of college, get pregnant and then Tom would leave her high and dry. But seventeen years later, they are still going strong. And recently, they moved across town into our childhood home,” Colton finished with a nod.

I smiled, “Good for them. Where’s back home?” I asked, sipping my milkshake.

“Chicago.”

My stomach dropped at the mention of my hometown. The city’s huge and made up of lots of different neighborhoods, but still. The thought of him being from the same city as me blew my mind. “Chicago?” I coughed, choking on my milkshake.

He gave me a perplexed look. “I know what the media says, but Chicago isn’t that bad. I mean, it is in some places,” he laughed. “But it’s home, you know? Even though I’ve lived in New York for the past eight years, Chicago is where my family is.”

I know. I know far too well
, I thought, gaping at him.

“You don’t sound like a native New Yorker,” he continued.

“I live in Brooklyn,” I interjected quickly, hoping to steer the question away from my home and my family. “Not too far away from here actually.”

He swallowed before responding, “I don’t live far away from here either. My apartment is a couple of blocks that way.” He gestured in the opposite direction of my apartment.

I swirled the straw around in the last little bit of my milkshake. “Do you live with anyone? Roommates?”

Significant other?
I wondered, watching to see if he gave anything away.

“No. I live alone,” he answered with a smirk. “And I’m single.”

I swallowed the fry that was in my mouth before responding, “I didn’t ask.”

“Your eyes did.”

I gave a short, dry laugh as I sat straight up in the booth.

Starting at the crown of my head, I slowly ran my fingers through my long, curly hair. With my arm above my head, I felt the sweetheart neckline slide a little lower on my chest. His eyes didn’t leave mine, but I could see him warring with himself. When he licked his lips, I smiled at him.

“Now whose eyes are saying what?” I asked innocently, dropping my arms and picking up my milkshake to finish it.

Colton chuckled. “Are you ready to get out of here?”

“Absolutely.”

Standing, he pulled out a twenty dollar bill and dropped it on the table. “Are you tired? Do you want to walk home or take a taxi?” He offered his hand to help me up. When I put my hand into his, I looked up into his eyes and I felt his desire.

“I’d actually like to see your apartment before I head home,” I said as I let him help me up.

“Oh I’m sorry… I guess I wasn’t clear. When I asked you if you wanted to walk or ride home, I wasn’t talking about your place. I was talking about mine.”

The confidence in his words caused my body to stir. “Lead the way.”

SITTING DOWN IN THE DINER
gave my feet the chance to relax so I didn’t mind the two-block walk to Colton’s apartment. The cool summer breeze felt good against my skin and Colton kept me laughing the entire walk. When we reached the three-story brick building surrounded by a black wrought iron fence, I looked around impressed. I had applied for an available apartment in that building when I first moved to New York, but I was denied due to lack of credit history, the amount of student loan debt, and the monthly cost.

And of course, Mom and Dad wouldn’t cosign for me. They pretty much condemned me for moving to New York without a job and then fussed at me about living somewhere safe…all while not being emotionally or financially supportive. I didn’t even want their money, I just needed them to cosign for credit purposes,
I silently grumbled before quickly pushing the thought away.

“I like,” I acknowledged as we walked through the security gate.

“Thanks.” He pulled out his keys and opened the door to the building. He gestured for me to go through the doorway first. With his hand on the small of my back, he silently ushered me to Apartment 1E at the very end of the hallway.

Before I could turn around to move out of his way, Colton’s hand skated across the small of my back until he grasped my left hip, holding me in place. With him behind me, I was sandwiched between his front door and his muscular body. He was so close that I could feel the heat radiating from his body. A puff of air escaped my lungs as the soft cotton of his shirt gently brushed against my bare back. The silence that engulfed us was so absolute that all I could hear was my heart racing.

Leaning into me, Colton unlocked his front door and pushed it open. Maintaining contact with me, his hand stayed firmly placed on my hip. I took a few tentative steps into the darkened apartment, not wanting to disconnect myself from him. Once the door clicked shut behind us, he flipped a switch and the living room flooded with light.

“Would you like a tour?” Colton asked in a low tone, guiding me by my hips further into the apartment. Letting me go, he leaned against the breakfast bar and watched me take in his living space.

The living room was large and roomy. My eyes swept over the chocolate brown leather sofa with matching chairs. A large, abstract drawing hanging above the sofa. An oversized flat-screen television was mounted against the wall with two signed guitars on either side. On the other side of the room was a small, but tidy kitchen that separated itself from the living room with a breakfast bar.

“This is really nice, Colton,” I said, turning in a circle to make sure I saw the entire space.

I need to fold the basket full of clean laundry that’s on the floor in my room,
I thought, fascinated by how clean and well put together everything looked. I let my fingers caress the smooth surface of the oversized leather chair.

“Thank you,” he said, his voice barely masking his desire. The sound of his voice made my heart flutter and I felt a tightening deep inside of me.

I turned to face him and my fingers curled, gripping the chair behind me as my body slacked. I had to lightly perch myself on the back of the chair as I watched his gaze travel down the length of my body. The air instantly became thick and I could feel how badly he wanted me. My body responded instantly. Although he couldn’t see how wet his gaze made me, my hardening nipples gave me away.

Pushing himself away from the wall, Colton was in front of me in three steps. He was so close that our bodies were almost touching and I had to tip my head up to maintain eye contact. With our closeness, my breathing had become more labored.

Colton ran his hands up my arms until he worked his way up to my face. I resisted the urge to nuzzle my head into his palm. Instead, I kept my eyes focused on his, allowing the storminess of them to tell me everything he wanted to do to me. I wasn’t aware that my eyes were telling him the same thing until he broke the silence.

“I want to hear you say it,” he demanded sexily.

“Say what?” I whispered. I was so turned on that speaking loudly wasn’t an option anymore.

“Tell me what you want.”

“I want you to kiss—”

His mouth crashed into mine, interrupting my sentence. All of the pent up sexual tension between us exploded. His tongue played with mine in a way that made me long to feel it all over my body. That thought alone gave me chills.

As the kiss intensified, we pulled each other closer, kissed each other deeper, grinded against each other harder. I wanted to take his shirt off, but I couldn’t do it without breaking the kiss. It took everything out of me to pull away from his lips, but I endured the short separation in order to pull his shirt over his head. We resumed kissing and I let my hands play over his muscles, feeling the ridges of his chest and the definition in his arms.

My hands had a mind of their own as they dropped lower and lower down his sculpted abs. Unbuckling his belt and unzipping his jeans, I ran my hand over his hardness. The low groan that erupted from him when the palm of my hand rubbed against him caused my entire lower body clench deliciously.

With him so close, I inhaled deeply and my eyes fluttered shut. He trailed kisses to my ear before he growled softly, “Turn around.”

I heard his belt hit the floor and my eyes flew open. Looking down, I let out a trembling breath when I saw the length and width of him. Reflexively, I licked my lips and reached out for it. It was hot and heavy in my hand. I stroked it slowly, in awe of it.

“Turn around,” he repeated, his voice raspier. I looked up and I could see the effect I was having on him.

With his hands on my hips, he helped turn me around. Standing so close behind me, I could feel him, heavy and hard resting against my ass and I almost lost it. I had never been more turned on in my life and my knees started to shake.

“Step out of your shoes,” he commanded. “I don’t want you to hurt yourself.”

Bending me over the leather chair, my hair gathered in the seat. I used my upper body strength to balance so I could quickly get out of my shoes. I felt instant relief once my feet sank into the plush carpeting.

Leaning over me, Colton trailed kisses from the nape of my neck all the way to the small of my back. As he kissed his way back up to my neck, he slowly pushed the skirt of my dress up over my hips, exposing my red G-string.

He palmed my left ass cheek before giving it a light smack. “You have a nice ass, you know that?” Colton asked, giving the right cheek a similar smack.

I thought the question was rhetorical so I didn’t respond.

Colton tickled my skin as he ran one of his hands slowly up my spine. I was so distracted by how good his warm hand felt on my back that I lurched against the chair when he ran an unexpected finger across my wet panties. While one hand pressed firmly on the small of my back, keeping me securely over the back of the chair, he used the other hand to play with the damp lace. “Do you know what a nice ass you have?” Colton asked again.