RetroCog (a Power Up! story) (9 page)

Her cheeks turned pink, but she didn’t look away. “So are you.”

“So we going to go two out of three? That might have been a fluke.”

“You want to do it again?”

He grunted. “That’s a stupid question.”

“But, well, can you?”

“Lara, trust me. That was just the beginning.”

She bit her lower lip, and the endearing gesture socked him hard in the gut. What the hell?

“Well, if you’re sure.”

“Let me get a change of clothes, and I’ll be right back. I’ll show you
sure
.” He needed more condoms.
A lot
more.

Lara watched him leave and closed the door behind him. She took a few steps to her bed and flopped down onto it. Holy crap, but she’d never felt that before. Sure, she’d had her share of orgasms, mostly by her own hand. A few of her ex-boyfriends had tried to please her, but the lackluster climaxes had convinced her she’d always done something wrong. Now she wondered if it had been them and not her.

Letting Noah take charge had been a little scary, but she’d been so hungry for him, she would have accepted just about anything he wanted to do. But that… He’d been so demanding, so forceful. She should have been frightened, at the least pleaded with him to slow down. But she’d known, deep down, they belonged together. She froze.
Belonged together
? How could she think that? She’d just met Noah, knew little about him, and hadn’t been with anyone else in years. Yet she’d allowed him to order her around. She’d put her mouth around his penis—
hello, unprotected sex
—and still didn’t care. How stupid could she be? Yet she instinctively knew he’d take care of her.

He always has and always will, sugar.

Oh hell, not the voice again. But for once, Lara didn’t mind the words. She wanted to believe them.

She tingled all over just thinking about what she and Noah had done. And he was coming back.

For two years, she’d gone without. She knew she had nothing to worry about sexually. No diseases and a habit of taking the pill she’d never given up, hopeful she might need the protection again. But she didn’t know enough about Noah to go skin to skin, as much as she wanted to. In hindsight, sucking him off hadn’t been too smart, but God, he was so sexy.

He returned sooner than she’d expected. Or maybe she’d been so lost in fantasies of him that she’d lost track of time. Ghosts, stolen paintings, and dead bodies paled next to Noah First in the flesh. His eyes flashed, more green than brown, and she could do nothing more than lean up on her elbows and watch him, knowing him for the large predator he truly was.

After once more locking the door behind him, he tossed a small bag on the floor. “I’ve been thinking about it. You’re not safe alone.”

Disappointment speared her. Was that why he intended to spend the night? Though he’d said he’d be roaring to go again, in her experience, once the guy got his, he normally petered off to sleep.

“I’ll watch over you, Lara. Close. Real close.” He shrugged out of his shirt, shoes, socks, and pants and stood in nothing more than white boxer briefs that left little to the imagination. Noah had muscles on top of muscles, and the long, thick shaft that had felt so big in her mouth looked huge and hard between his legs, encased by white cotton.

“Now strip down, and then you and I have a few things to talk about.”

“Like?” She couldn’t stop staring at him. A hunk, truly. All hers, and he wanted to talk?

“Like the fact that I’m clean. I haven’t been with a woman in nearly six months. I only have one more condom, and no way in hell is it going to be enough. So unless we do some sucking or ass fucking, we’re going to need to get creative.”

She blew out a long breath, hoping she didn’t look too excited at his words. They’d only just met, after all, and she didn’t want to come across as a total slut.
No, just a freak who has secret fantasies of being ordered around
. Ghostly laughter filled her mind. “Um, I don’t know about the ass thing.”

His sly smile had her heart racing. “Oh, Lara, I can guaran-damn-tee we’ll see to that. But I only have one more condom. Now, let’s talk about you. You’re tight. I’m betting it’s been awhile for you.”

She flushed. Had she been so obvious? “Yeah.”

“So you probably aren’t on any birth control.” He sighed.

She’d never had such an upfront conversation about sex before, but Noah didn’t seem to see it as anything but a formality before they did it again. That he wanted her, had decided they would be together again, soothed her worries that he was a one-shot wonder.

“Actually, I am on birth control. And I’m clean.”

He froze and just looked at her. “So you’re telling me I could come inside you, and we’d be safe?” At her nod, he took a step closer to her. “You okay with that? Because you need to be up front about it. Once I get inside you, you’re mine, Lara.”

“Arrogant much?” They’d spend some fun time together before he left for Oregon in a few days. Thoughts of his leaving depressed her, though she couldn’t understand why. She didn’t really know him, and it wasn’t as if there was a shortage of men around here. Bill, Mike—if she grew too desperate—and a few others had expressed interest. But none of them held a candle to Noah.

He grinned, and the joyful expression floored her. In the short time since she’d known him, Noah had seemed anything but happy. Now he glowed with satisfaction.

“Oh baby. You have no idea what I plan to do with you. So what’s it going to be? You in, or am I sleeping on the couch?”

She glanced at the settee against the far wall. “You’re a bit big for my little sofa.” He took a step closer. All that huge, imposing muscle intimidated and aroused in the extreme. But what made her say yes was the look in his eyes. Possessive, hungry, yet somehow tender as well. He confused her, and she wanted to know the real Noah. “I’m in.”

“Be sure. I’ll be in control. Of all of it. No safe words, no playing around. You’ll be mine. All of you, Lara. Can you handle that?”

The implications of what he said took her aback…and made her wet. She bit her lip, nervous, but couldn’t stop herself from rising to her feet to meet him halfway when his gaze locked in on her mouth.

“I’d have to trust you not to hurt me.” She considered him, her instincts, and the strange, ghostly voice that moaned with approval at the idea. She’d be a fool to accept the word of a man she’d just met. And to give him control of everything? But these circumstances—and she herself—were anything but normal.

“You have to trust me, or none of this is worth anything.” Noah waited. Not demanding, not coercing her, but leaving the decision in her hands.

“I do. Trust you, that is.” To her surprise, she did.

“I’ll never hurt you,” Noah promised. “I’m going to make you come so hard and so much, you’ll be begging me to never leave.”

That was what she was afraid of.

* * *

He didn’t like the fact that Noah First’s room remained empty. Or that he and Lara had played detective at the morgue. The idiots in law enforcement around here had no idea who their murderer was, nor would they unless he announced it. Dropping the girl where she could be found had been a calculated risk. The tradeoff would result in an investigation turning the town into a mass of chaos and confusion—confusion that would do him a world of good.

While everyone turned their attention to the deceased, he’d continue on the next stage in his plan. His first girlfriend had been a true disappointment. But this new one, the nurse, might fare better if she learned how to use her mouth. Parts of him rose in anticipation of teaching her, and then of finally getting Cecilia, his prize, and he had to force himself to adhere to his carefully woven strategy. Smaller steps would take him closer to his goal. To move too fast might lose him any opportunity to achieve fulfillment, and that he couldn’t stomach.

She belonged to him and him alone; he’d bide his time.

He’d never been closer to the end-state than he was recently. After too many years to count, he could see the finish line so close. He could almost reach out and touch it.

And touch
her
, finally. His Cecilia. His Lara. One and the same.

He erased the foolish grin curling his mouth and finished what he’d come for. The search turned up nothing more interesting than the man’s shoe size. A big man with a steely gaze and a firm grip on what it took to hunt. He’d seen it when he’d looked into Noah First’s eyes. A minor obstacle, nonetheless.

Figuring and readjusting his plan, he decided to get rid of the man sooner than he’d intended. If Lara was lucky, she’d have a new best friend to comfort her through her loss. Time enough for his future bride to learn what he liked and didn’t like, and to ready herself for their honeymoon.

Pleased with his reasoning, he drew out a small box and opened the lid.

She lay naked on her bed, her wrists and ankles splayed and tied to the bedposts. Noah still wore his underwear, but the small bit of clothing only made him look that much more impressive.

“Noah, what—”

“Quiet.”

It was that voice, the commanding, sexy, deep tone of a man in charge, that had her wet and staying that way. Despite her orgasm, her entire body revved for more. She’d once had a lover try the dominant role, but he’d been ill-suited for it and killed the mood between them. Noah was the real deal. He turned her inside out. For the first time in forever, nothing but a man filled her world. No voices, no worries, no demands that she be anything but herself. Right now, with him, she could submit and wait for orders. Noah knew exactly how to handle her. She shivered, wanting to feel him inside her, flesh to flesh.

“You okay?”

She would be, once he lost the underwear and showed her that thick cock again. She needed to make every moment with him last. “When are you going to get naked too?”

He smiled, but the expression didn’t relieve her. The rational part of her mind told her to be wary, but instinct commanded her to wait, to trust. That if she gave in to his demands, she’d find more than sexual fulfillment—something deeper, something more.

Filled with menace, Noah’s smile threatened as much as it aroused. “When I feel like taking my briefs off, I will. I thought I’d made it clear that I’m in charge.”

Her heart raced. Would he punish her? Oh God,
would he?

“Naughty girl.” As if reading her mind, he leaned closer to her breasts and closed his mouth over one nipple. And bit.

She would have yelled out, but he muffled her with his hand. He treated her other nipple to a bite, then sucked the sting away. The sweet contrast set her entire body aflame.

The hot suction of his mouth pulled at her womb. Sensations streaked from her breast to the rest of her body, need and anticipation coiled to take flight without much more provocation.

“That’s it. Beautiful. It doesn’t hurt, does it, baby?”

She loved him calling her that.
Baby
. His to cherish, to protect. A girly nickname that made her feel feminine and sexy surrounded by his much larger, imposing frame.

“No. Feels so good.” She arched up into his mouth.

Noah left her breast and kissed his way back to her other nipple, licking a trail of heat in his wake. He tongued her areola and sucked the taut bud between his lips, worrying the flesh with a gentler bite that made her clit throb.

She couldn’t help pleading with him for more. To her surprise, he gave it to her.

Noah straddled her neck and leaned closer, shoving his cotton-covered cock and balls into her face. “Suck me through the material. Get it nice and wet. Let me feel your mouth.”

She traced his size with her tongue and sucked his balls, wanting to feel him and not his clothing. Nuzzling his sac, she urged a groan out of him and continued to kiss and caress him until she felt him humping her face.

“Lick it.” He leaned back to better angle his groin toward her and exposed his flushed cockhead, his slit beaded with moisture. “I want to watch you tongue me.”