Should’ve Known It’s You (Not You Again #7)

Chapter 43

CHAPTER 43

AUSTIN

I took the kiss I wanted, really happy when she didn’t push me away. All night, I’d been longing for this from afar, staring at her lips and wishing the dinner would go smoothly just to get to what came after.

Now after was finally here, and I was ready to take her upstairs, do anything and everything she’d let me do to her, and then pass out together. I didn’t need an answer from her tonight. It would’ve been nice to get one, but I’d known she might not agree immediately.

I had known for a while now what I wanted, but for Kennedy, our relationship was all caught up in the drama with her parents and her sister. The success of her fledgling business was her priority, and our feelings needed to take a backseat.

I understood the situation was more complicated for her, but I just couldn’t bring myself to hold back. I didn’t need words or affirmation. All I needed was her.

She’d already said earlier that just for tonight, we could be more than business partners and it didn’t look like she’d changed her mind. Instead of shoving me off her or telling me she didn’t want this, her arms looped around my neck and she took a step into me. I deepened her kiss and she moaned against my lips, making my blood sizzle.

Fucking finally.

I ran my fingers up and down her sides, relishing in the shivers as they passed through her body. I couldn’t get over how responsive this girl was. Outside of bed, she was fierce and independent, the type who shouted at investment brokers in the middle of a packed office, but behind closed doors, she could be playful and fun, passionate, and she definitely took what she wanted, but she was just a little bit submissive.

I liked that. She gave me control and she never failed to let me know how much she enjoyed me having it.

My cock strained against my slacks as her soft body fused against mine. Her fingers brushed across the skin at my nape, making me damn near purr like one of Ms. Cartwright’s cats. She seemed to adore toying with my hair while we made out, and it was becoming familiar to me in the sexiest way possible.

For just a minute, I considered stripping her out of her floor-length, skin-tight red gown right here, too pent up after all the fooling around this afternoon and all the waiting for this to happen again to control myself any longer, but in the end, I grabbed her hand and dragged her upstairs with me.

Laughter bubbled out of her. Her cheeks were flushed and her eyes shimmered with need as she ran up with me. “I love it when you’re in a hurry like this.”

“Good to know.” I wondered if I should add that I was always in a hurry when it came to getting her naked, but I decided against it.

As much as I was always turned on by her jokes and playful banter, I just wasn’t in the mood tonight. It had been a long, rough, tiring day, and it had also been way too long since I’d been inside her. I felt starved. Desperate.

I kicked the door shut to the stateroom where we’d gotten ready and made sure to lock it.

Kennedy eyed me up and down. “Austin, are you okay?”

“Nope, but I will be.” I used my grip on her hand to tug her to me. My lips crashed back into hers and my fingers tangled into her hair. “Shit, Kennedy. I miss you.”

I never spoke like this, but it was true and I was over trying to pretend otherwise. She crushed her mouth to mine and pulled me to the bed as my urgency seemed to fuel her own. Bringing her fingers to my shirt, she undid my buttons, leaving my shirt hanging open to loosen my tie when she was done.

My pulse spiked as I unzipped her dress. The soft whir of the metal as I lowered the zipper made me even harder. My heart slammed against my ribs, the anticipation of getting inside her killing me tonight.

Especially after I’d told her I wanted more.

Just because I hadn’t expected an answer didn’t mean saying those words out loud hadn’t affected me. That was the closest I’d ever come to saying I love you . To asking someone to really be with me.

In this moment, I didn’t just want her. I needed her. I felt the ache all the way in my bones. I needed this girl to be mine. If it was just for tonight, then I would deal with that tragedy tomorrow.

My tongue swept into her mouth as the zipper hit the stop at the bottom. I pushed the top of her dress down, helping her wiggle it over her hips before I felt it slide free. It pooled around her feet and she stepped out of it, her torso now bare since I knew she hadn’t put on a bra under the dress.

With my shirt still hanging open, I felt her nipples hard against my skin and my pulse thundered in my ears. I moved my hands to her hips, gripping them hard as I pushed her down on the bed. Then I dropped to my knees to worship my goddess, spreading her legs wide open and positioning myself between them.

Kenny sucked in a surprised gasp. I grabbed her ankles to pull her ass closer to the edge of the bed, and my fingers hooked into the waistband of her panties once I had her where I wanted her. She kicked off the fabric when it reached her feet, propping herself up on her elbows to look down at me. I dragged my tongue across the inside of her thigh.

“What’s gotten into you tonight?”

I glanced up at her, seeing the lust glazing over her eyes and shaking my head. “It’s you, Kennedy. You make me crazy. Now lie back for me, baby. I want to drive you crazy too.”

She did what I’d said without questioning me or pushing me for more answers, but I suspected it was because she already had them and she knew it. I’d told her I couldn’t just be her business partner anymore. What she chose to do with that information was up to her.

Bringing my head closer to her core, I blew hot breath over it. My cock throbbed as she let out another soft moan in response. Now that I had her where and how I wanted her, I licked through her slit from top to bottom, swirling my tongue around her clit before I repeated the motion. Her legs tensed around my head as I kept going.

I kept running my fingers up and down the insides of her thighs, teasing them closer and closer to her entrance but not quite that far until she finally broke down and asked for it. “Austin, please…”

I grinned against her skin, so tempted to give her what she wanted. “Please what?”

“Touch me.” She panted into the dimly lit room, squirming against me as she reached for her breasts and squeezed her nipples. “Please. I need you.”

Her words were music to my ears. Feeling the slick heat of her on my fingertips when I moved them closer again, I decided that had been enough. Sliding a finger into her, I sucked her clit into my mouth. Her muscles contracted around the digit and a tremor shot down my spine at the feel of it.

She whimpered and writhed against my face. Her breathing became more and more staccato with every passing moment. A few beats later, she finally let go, shouting with the intensity of her release and nearly triggering my own as I saw her through it.

When her orgasm subsided and I’d cleaned her up, I pushed to my feet again. My breathing was choppy as I pulled a condom out of my wallet while she recovered. Fully naked and so fucking gorgeous as she lay on the fully made bed with her wavy hair spread out around her like a dark halo, I drank her in. My gaze raked across every inch of her, from her parted lips and the little furrow still on her brow, to her peaked nipples and her rapidly rising and falling chest, to her perfect, swollen pussy, and her long, smooth legs.

A low groan rumbled through me and her eyes opened. They slid lazily up to mine. She seemed to realize I was still mostly clothed, standing next to the bed with the condom in my hand and wanting her so badly I was almost afraid to move.

She pushed herself up on her knees, wordlessly yanked my shirt off my shoulders, and let it drop to the floor. Her hands were still trembling as she undid my belt and my fly, carefully removed my slacks and my underwear, and then waited for me to kick off my shoes. Then she took the condom from me.

She stared into my eyes as she opened the condom and reached out to roll it on. Heat mingled with concern in her gaze. “Seriously, what is up with you tonight?”

She put the condom on me and the backs of her fingers brushed against my shaft. Pleasure streaked through me and I inhaled a sharp breath. Understanding seemed to dawn in her eyes. “Oh.”

Nope. Not oh. It’s really not just that I’m painfully horny. I need you. I think I lo ? —

I shut down that train of thought, simply winding my fingers into her hair and slanting my lips over hers. I climbed onto the bed with her. Pushing her down to the mattress, I positioned myself between her legs. My eyes closed as I kissed her.

I lined my cock up with her entrance. The wet heat of her almost made me lose it, but I flexed my thighs and thrust inside, still kissing her like I needed her more than air. Right then though, it kind of felt like I did.

I knew this was intense. All of it. The romantic state room with the fire I’d lit earlier flickered in the stone fireplace. The lights were off and the room was awash in an orange glow. The four-poster bed with the tub right beside it.

Shit, it felt like the kind of place people got engaged. Or spent their wedding night.

I sank into her, her lips so soft and fervent on mine and her body welcoming me like it was a part of itself, and I even wondered if I should push her for an answer after all. This woman had become everything to me, but as desperate as I was to know, I decided to leave it alone for just a little while longer.

She’d been through a lot today, and right then, we were together. That was enough. It was all I could’ve hoped for, so instead of pushing, I let go and lost myself inside her. I didn’t stop until I felt her come apart around me.

In the aftermath, I held her close. My breathing was still labored and my thoughts were still out of control.

She lightened the mood. “I’m pretty sure we didn’t have a permit for that.”

Surprised by the joke, I laughed and stroked my fingers through her hair as I fought for breath. “Like that was ever going to stop me.”

Nothing would. Now that I knew how I felt about her, I knew I would go to the ends of the earth for this. I would fight until my very last breath to make her mine in the way I was now hers. Unless she didn’t want me, in which case, I was really fucking screwed.

And not in a good way this time.