The Bartender

Working Men Series

(Book Three)

Ramona Gray

Copyright © 2018 Ramona Gray

Published by
EK Publishing Inc.

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This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental. The characters are productions of the author’s imagination and used fictitiously.

Adult Reading Material

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Edited by
L. Nunn Editing

The Bartender

Working Men Series Book Three

By Ramona Gray

He goes down better than a shot of whiskey.

Rachel

Being a twenty-three year old virgin isn’t the worse thing in the world.  Being a twenty-three year old virgin in love with a man who doesn’t know I exist?  Tragic, right?  Local bartender, Ren Parker, might not be into librarians with questionable fashion taste, but it doesn’t stop me from fantasizing about getting him alone in the library and breaking all the rules about quiet time.

But, a girl has to be realistic, and I can’t stay a virgin forever.  Picking up a nice guy at the bar to take my v-card is surprisingly easy.  That is, until Ren discovers what I’m doing.  Suddenly, the man I thought wouldn’t give me the time of day, has his hands all over me until my insides are shaken and stirred.

He says my virginity belongs to him and I’m more than happy to prove him right.

Ren

I’ve wanted Rachel Banks from the moment I saw her.  Sweet and gorgeous with a body I can’t wait to have under me, she’s got my world turned upside down.  But, a man like me isn’t meant to have a woman like her.  Until the night I see her about to give away what’s mine.

Now, I’m insisting she belongs to me and I won’t rest until she gives me her innocence and her heart.  I’m playing a dangerous game.  I have a past, one that a woman like Rachel would never understand, and the right thing to do is let a better man have her.

Too bad I’ve never been good at giving up what’s mine.

* * *

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Table of Contents

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter One

Rachel

“Ms. Banks, I can’t find the book.”

I moved around the desk and followed the little girl across the library to the children’s section.  “It’s supposed to be right here, but it isn’t.”

I scanned the shelf before studying the one above it. “Here it is, Emily.  It just got shelved wrong.”

“Isn’t it your job to shelve it right?”  The seven-year-old cocked her eyebrow at me and I swallowed down my urge to laugh.

“Everyone makes mistakes.”

“I guess.”  She took the book and then smiled at me.  “Sorry, Ms. Banks.  I wasn’t trying to be mean.  You’re a real good librarian.”

“Thank you, Emily.

“Emily?  Em!  C’mon, let’s go.  Mom’s waiting for us in the car.”  Her older brother, Ethan, was waving at her from across the library.  “C’mon, dummy!”

“Be quiet, Ethan!”  Emily yelled.  “You’re not supposed to yell in the library!”

“You’re yelling too!”

Emily gave me a do-you-see-how-I-suffer look before marching toward the desk.  “I just gotta check this book out and then I’m ready.”

Ethan tossed the football he was holding into the air and caught it.  “Fine.  I’m gonna go wait in the car with Mom.”

Emily waited patiently as I scanned her card and her book into the system.  I tucked a bookmark into the book and handed it to her.  “Remember, it’s due back in fourteen days.”

“I know.  Hey, Ms. Banks?”

“Yes?”

“Why aren’t you married?  Is it because you’re a librarian?”

“Why would you think that?”

She shrugged.  “Ethan says that librarians never get married.  They just go to work and then sit at home with their twelve cats.  Do you have a cat, Ms. Banks?”

“No, I’m allergic.  Not being married doesn’t have anything to do with being a librarian.  Plenty of librarians are married, Emily.”

“Okay.”  She turned and walked away, apparently having lost interest in why I wasn’t married.

I watched her go, a small smile on my face, before glancing around the library.  For a Saturday afternoon, it was surprisingly empty.  Normally Saturday was our busiest day.  A group of seniors usually met up after lunch to read the magazines and gossip quietly.  The computer room was almost always full and there was usually a table or two of students, their text books and tablets and laptops covering most of the table.

This afternoon, there were only three people in the computer room, the seniors had never shown up, and only half a dozen people perused the books.  I walked to the cart of books at the end of the biography aisle and began to shelve them. 

Your virginity is mine, Rachel.  Mine to take, mine to own.

I whirled around, my heart thudding in my chest.  There was no one behind me.  His deep voice was just in my head.  The way it had been nearly every hour since I’d left Ren’s Bar last night.  It was driving me insane, making me lose sleep and not eat, and shelve the damn books wrong.  It was stupid to even think he was here.  He never came to the library.

I shook my head to clear it and shelved the book I was holding before grabbing another.

No one looks at you, no one touches you, no one fucks you, but me.  Is that clear, sweetheart?  Say it.

“No one fucks me, but you, Ren.”  I murmured before looking around.  Thank God there was no one near me.  I rested my burning forehead against the shelf of books.  The temptation to go back, to relive that moment from last night, was too hard to resist.  I closed my eyes and let it consume me.

* * *

“You’re gorgeous.  You know that, right?”  Elliott was holding me too tightly as we danced, his gaze glued to my exposed cleavage.

I tried to wiggle back a little.  I was starting to regret coming to the bar tonight.  I had gone to Ren’s bar for two reasons.  One – to support my best friend Madison, who was trying to make her crush jealous and two – to try and make my crush jealous.  I had failed miserably at it.  Despite dressing sexier than I normally did – okay, maybe that was an exaggeration.  I was still wearing my hair up in a bun and my round ass and chunky thighs were completely covered by my tights and ankle-length skirt.  But, I had let Madison convince me to wear a shirt that was four sizes too small and barely covered my breasts.

Anyway, it was a waste of energy.  I’d been lusting after Ren Parker for months.  I’d even had the silly idea that he would be the one I’d give my virginity to, despite the fact that he’d never once looked at me like he wanted me.  So, when Madison told me of her plan to make Jacob jealous, I’d temporarily lost my mind and decided to try the same thing with Ren.

Only it hadn’t – wasn’t – working.  Whenever I went to Ren’s bar, he usually at least acknowledged me, but tonight he hadn’t looked at me once.  It was like he was deliberately avoiding me.  I shouldn’t have been as hurt as I was.  I don’t think I’d had a single conversation with the man beyond, “Hi.  Nice weather, huh?”, but I was hurt. 

Hurt enough that I decided I was taking Elliott home and using him to get rid of my pesky virginity once and for all.  I was twenty-three years old and still being a virgin was starting to be embarrassing.  I was self-conscious about my looks, but Elliott seemed to be a boob guy. Maybe he’d be so busy with them, he wouldn’t notice how round my stomach was or how thick my thighs were.

Of course, now I was second-guessing my decision to screw Elliott.  It wasn’t just the way he couldn’t stop leering at my breasts.  It was his bad breath, his blank look when I’d asked him what his favourite book was, the erection he wasn’t even trying to disguise as we danced.  Did I really want to give up my v-card to someone who didn’t even read for pleasure?

Ren liked to read.  I’d never seen him at the library, but I’d seen him at the coffee shop a few times with a book.  A real book.  Not a tablet or an e-reader, but a paper book.  It was totally snobby of me, but knowing that he liked to read, knowing that he liked to read paper books, made me even more attracted to him.  Like, wet in the pussy, tingly in the nipples, attracted to him.

What can I say?  Hot guys who read, turn me on.

“Did you hear me?”  Elliott asked

I tried to smile.  “Uh, thanks for the compliment.  Listen, do you think you could stop holding me so – oh!”

My arm was taken in a firm grip and I was pulled away from Elliott so hard that I stumbled in my sensible heels.  I stared at the man holding my arm.  “Ren?  What are you doing?”

“You’re touching what’s mine.”  Ren wasn’t even looking at me.  He was glaring daggers at Elliott and the younger man immediately took a step back, holding up his hands.

“Hey, she never said she had a guy.”

“I don’t,” I said.  “He’s not my -”

“Hush, Rachel.”

I hushed.  It wasn’t so much what Ren said, but how he said it.  I wasn’t one for blind obedience to a man, but the tone of Ren’s voice had me shutting my mouth with a snap.

“You don’t ever touch her again.  Do you understand?”

“Yeah, I get it,” Elliott said a bit sullenly.

“Let’s go,” Ren said to me.

“Go where?”

He didn’t reply, just started off the dance floor.  He was still holding my arm and I had no choice but to follow him.  Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Jacob standing behind Madison.  Ren was leading me into his office and just before he closed the door, I saw Madison put her arm around Jacob’s waist.

The door shut and Ren dropped my arm.  His office was small, and Ren was a big man.  I backed up nervously when he stepped toward me, but my butt hit the edge of his desk almost immediately and I was trapped.

“What are you doing, Rachel?”

“Wh-what do you mean?”

“This.”  One finger brushed against the exposed swell of my right breast and I moaned.  I couldn’t help it.

He gave me a hard grin.  “Why are you showing off what belongs to me?”

“I – what?”

“These.  Belong.  To.  Me.”  With a quick flick of his fingers, he flicked open the button that was straining to stay closed over my breasts.  My shirt gaped open and I automatically lifted my arms to cover my breasts.

“No.”  He blocked my attempt.  “Arms at your side, sweetheart.”

My arms dropped, and he studied my breasts that were barely covered by my bright red bra.  It was a demi-cup with lace edging and he traced the edging with his fingers.  “Your tits belong to me.  Stay it, Rachel.”

I shook my head mutely, but I didn’t even try to stop him when he tugged on the edges of both cups of my bra.  My nipples popped out like they’d been waiting all night for him.  He made a low noise in the back of his throat that made my lower muscles clench and my pussy flutter.

“My nipples.  Say it.”

“No, I can’t say that.  I can’t – ohh!”

He pulled on my nipples, forcing me to move closer to him as pain and pleasure flooded my body.

“Mine.”  His voice was matter-of-fact.  His mouth came crashing down on mine before I could protest.  My lips parted for his tongue and I stood stock-still for a moment.  Ren was kissing me.  Ren has his tongue in my mouth like he owned it.  Ren was cupping my breasts and rubbing my nipples and holy mother of Mary, it was the hottest moment of my life.

I threw my arms around his shoulders and pressed up against him.  His long fingers tugged down my bra cups until my large breasts were completely exposed.  He tugged at my nipples again as he angled his mouth over mine and kissed me deeply.  I let him take what he wanted from me, rubbing myself like an eager little slut against his obvious erection.

He pulled back and I shuddered all over at the look in his eyes.  He was normally so calm, so laid-back and almost sweet.  There was nothing sweet in his gaze now.

“These are my tits.”  He gave them a hard squeeze.  “Say it.”

“They’re yours.”  My voice was a whisper but steady enough.

“That’s right, sweetheart.  And are you going to show them to anyone else?”

“No.”

“Good.  I’m the only one who gets to see your tits.”

“Okay.”  I wanted him to rub my nipples again, but he frowned and gave them a little pinch.

“Say it, Rachel.”

“You’re the only one who gets to see them.”

“Why?”

“Because they’re yours.”

“That’s right.”  He turned me around to face the desk with a swiftness that surprised me.

I ground my ass against his erection and he pinched my nipples again.  “Be good, sweetheart.”  He kissed my neck before sucking lightly.  “Do you have any idea how tempted I am to mark your soft skin?  To send you back out in the bar with my teeth marks all over your throat, so that everyone knows you’re mine?”

“Ren, please.  I – I should go.”  I was so turned on, the crotch of my panties was soaking wet.  I decided it was probably better to get out of his office before he figured out just how hot his claim of ownership was making me.

I realized with horror that he was pushing his hand under the waistband of my skirt.  As it slid into my tights and panties, I tried to wrench away.  “Ren, wait.”

“No.”  Just that one word made my pussy clench.  His foot kicked my legs apart and then his hand was cupping my pussy.  For the first time in my life, a hand other than my own was touching my pussy.

I froze against him as he made a low chuckle and his other hand cupped my breast.  “Look how wet you are for me.”

“Ren, I… oh my God!”

His rough fingertips had found my swollen clit and I shamefully began to writhe and beg immediately.  “Please, oh please.”

“You want to cum, sweetheart?”

“Yes.”

“Who else has touched you like this?  Who else has made you cum on their fingers?”

“N-no one.”

“Good.”  The pleased tone in his voice made me gush liquid into his hand.  “We’re going to keep it that way.  No one ever touches your pussy, but me.  Do you understand? “

“Yes,” I moaned.  “No one touches me, but you.”

“Well done, sweetheart.  Now just a few more,” he paused and ran the tip of one finger against the side of my clit, “clarifications, and then I’ll let you cum.  Okay?”

“Okay,” I panted.  I wiggled against his hand, trying to move his fingers against my clit and he gave my wet pussy lips a little slap that sent lightning bolts of pleasure up and down my spine.

“Stop trying to get off, sweetheart, and pay attention.”

“Please,” I moaned.

“Pay attention.”  He reached up and plucked the two sticks from my hair.  My hair fell out of the bun and he made a low noise of appreciation.  “So pretty.  I love your hair, sweetheart.”  He petted the long strands before burying his face in it and breathing deep.

“Thank you,” I whispered.  “Please, can I cum now?”

His fingers, his deliciously rough fingers, were still circling my clit.  “Soon.  Listen carefully, Rachel.  Are you listening?”

“Yes.”  I arched my back, straining into his touch when he cupped my breast again.

“Your virginity is mine, Rachel.  Mine to take, mine to own.”

I stiffened against him and he made a soothing noise before gently caressing my breast.  “It’s mine.  Do you agree?”

“Ren, I – oh, oh my gosh!”

His fingers were rubbing my clit again and I was on the verge of my climax when he stopped.

“No!”  I was almost crying for my relief, my body shaking and my nipples so hard they were painful. 

“Do you agree, Rachel?”

“Yes,” I moaned, “yes, my virginity is yours.”

“Good, sweetheart.”

“Please touch me.”

“No one looks at you, no one touches you, no one fucks you, but me.  Is that clear, sweetheart?  Say it.”

“No one fucks me but you, Ren.”  At that point, I would have opened the door and shouted it to the entire bar if he’d asked me to.

His fingers pinched my clit, pinched and then pulled, and I cried out as my climax washed over me like a tidal wave.  My body shook, my knees buckled, and I would have fallen to the floor if Ren hadn’t held me up with an arm around my waist.  I shuddered and moaned as Ren slid his hand free.

“Bend over, sweetheart.”  He pressed on my lower back and I bent over the desk obediently, my breasts pressing against the smooth wood.  Ren was pulling up my skirt and I stared wide-eyed at the wall.  Holy shit.  I was about to have sex with Ren Parker.  He was going to take my virginity and –

“Fuck.”

My skirt was almost over my ass and I looked over my shoulder in confusion when Ren tugged it back down.  “Ren?”

“Stand up.”

I straightened. My legs were still shaking, and I weaved a bit when he turned me around.  Regret, lust and what looked like anger crossed his face as he quickly popped my breasts back into my bra and buttoned my shirt again.  He scowled at how much of my breasts were still showing before reaching down and adjusting his cock.

“Ren?  What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.  You need to go home.”

“What?”  I stared at him in numb disbelief.  “No, wait.  I – aren’t we going to have sex?”

He shook his head and I chewed at my bottom lip.  “But, you said my virginity was yours.”

His groan and the way he clenched his fists only confused me more.  “You need to leave, Rachel.”

“I don’t understand.  What did I do wrong?  I – if you tell me what I did wrong, I won’t do it again.”

“No, it’s not…” His gaze drifted to my breasts again and he reached down and adjusted his cock again.  “For Christ sake, Rachel.  Will you just please do what I say and go the fuck home?”

Hurt flooded through me and I turned and fled his office.

Chapter Two

Ren

“You gonna tell me what the fuck is wrong or just sit there and pout all goddamn night?”

My gaze slid to the woman sitting on Jack’s lap.  She studied me for a moment before pressing a kiss against Jack’s mouth.  “I’m going to have a bath.”

She slid off his lap, twitching a little when Jack gave her ass a squeeze, and smiled at me.  “It was nice to formally meet you, Ren.”

“You too, Lily.”

I watched Jack watch her ass sway out of the living room and grinned at him when he finally turned his attention back to me.  “Never thought you’d be tamed by a woman.”

Jack shrugged and took a swig of beer.  “What can I say, she’s got me wrapped around her fucking baby finger…and she don’t even know it.”

An orange tabby wandered into the living room.  It fixed me with a look, found me wanting, and ambled to Jack.  A rumbling purr came from its chest as it brushed repeatedly against Jack’s legs.  When it jumped into his lap and Jack petted it roughly, my jaw dropped open.

“What the fuck happened to you?”

Jack arched his eyebrows at me.  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“I mean, for the last month you’ve been playing house with Lily “Ice Queen” Carson and you got a damn cat in your lap.”

“I like pussy.”

I snorted and took my own swallow of beer.  “Are you and the Ice Queen serious?”

“Her name is Lily, not Ice Queen, and yeah we are.”

“What the fuck have you done with my best friend?”  I rested my beer on my knee.

“Oh please, you tryin’ to tell me that if that sugar-won’t-melt-in-her-mouth librarian offered up her virginal pussy on a platter, you wouldn’t be following her around like a dog with your tongue out?  I got me a woman that I love.  End of story.”

I peeled off a section of the label on my bottle.  “You know I’m happy for you, right?”

“Yeah.  Thanks, brother.”

I ripped off another layer of label.  Jack Williams was the closest thing to family I had.  I’d moved here nearly six years ago, determined to start fresh and leave my past behind me.  Not two months after I moved here, my shitbucket of a car had crapped out on me.  I’d taken it to the mechanic in town – Jack’s father.

Jack’s old man had been an asshole, but Jack was a good guy, despite his fuck-you attitude and his occasional dickish behavior.  It was Jack who had gotten a bunch of his high-school buddies to help me renovate the bar after I bought it three years ago. 

Hell, it was Jack who had convinced the bank to give me the loan to buy the bar.  I’d grown up in the city and the everyone-knows-everyone small town vibe was as foreign to me as streets lined with skyscrapers were to Jack.  The bank manager had owed Jack a favour from high school, and Jack had finally cashed it in to help me.

After years of watching my back, of never trusting anyone but myself, it was an almost unfathomable act of kindness. 

“So, are you gonna tell me what’s wrong, or do I have to stare at your ugly face all fucking night?”

I rolled the bit of label stuck to my fingers into a tiny ball.  “I fucked up with Rachel.”

“Oh yeah?”  Jack rubbed the cat’s scarred ears affectionately.  “You tell her goodbye instead of hello when you bumped into her on the street?”

I rolled my eyes when Jack laughed.  “What?  It could be that.  Her little pussy has you so worked up, you don’t know if you’re comin’ or goin’.  Although the way you’ve been lustin’ after the sweet little librarian for the last three years, I imagine you’re doin’ a lot of comin’.  Am I right?”

He made a jacking off motion that I ignored.  “I told her that her virginity was mine and that no one else was allowed to touch her.  Then I made her cum all over my fingers in my goddamn office.”

Jack leaned forward, and the cat made an irritated meow and jumped off his lap.  “Holy fucking shit.  You are fucking kidding me.”

I shook my head.  “I wish I was.  She came into the bar Friday night with Madison.  She was wearing this shirt that – that showed off her tits and she was dancing with this guy, and I lost my fucking mind.”

“Hold up.  Rachel Banks was showing off her tits?  Seriously?  The woman dresses like a virginal librarian.”

“She is a virginal librarian.”

“Is she actually a virgin though?  I know everyone thinks she is but -”

“She is.”  My cock twitched against my jeans.  “I was ninety-eight percent certain before Friday night and now I’m a hundred percent.”

“You popped her cherry?”

I shook my head.  “No.  But she didn’t correct me when I told her it belonged to me.  She even admitted that no one had touched her pussy but me.”

“Jesus.”  Jack leaned back in his chair. “How the fuck that hot piece of ass has gone this long without even having her pussy touched, I’ll never know.  She tries to hide it with her clothes, but that body of hers is -”

“Enough.”  My temper was rising.  I knew Jack had no interest in Rachel, but the anger was still there.  “Don’t talk about her body.”

Jack gave me an assessing look.  “Keep your dick in your pants.  I ain’t after your girl.”

“She’s not mine.”

Jack laughed and drank some beer.  “You’re fighting a losing battle, brother.”

“I’m not.  Do I want her?  Yeah, maybe a little, but that doesn’t mean I -”

“A little?  When was the last time you fucked a woman?”

“What’s that have to do with anything?”

“When?”

I sighed.  “Two years ago.”

“Fuck me.”

“No thanks.”

Jack stretched his legs out.  “Two years is a long time to go without some pussy.”

Yeah it fucking was, but only Rachel had done it for me for a very long time.  I drank almost half my beer in two big swallows.  I couldn’t tell Jack that the last two women I’d slept with had looked eerily similar to Rachel.  He’d think I’d lost my damn mind. 

Fuck.  I had lost my damn mind.

“If you made her cum, then obviously she’s into you.  Why are you fucking sitting here at my house, instead of getting with her?”  Jack asked.

“It’s Monday night.  She’s working until seven.”

Jack checked his watch.  “So, in half an hour, you go to the library, drive your woman home and fuck the virgin right out of her.”

“I can’t.”

“Can’t or won’t?”

“She’s too good for me.  I don’t deserve -”

“Shut the fuck up, asshole.”  Jack leaned forward again and gave me an angry look.  “Rachel’s a nice girl, but she ain’t the fucking Queen of England.  You deserve her.”

“If she found out what I’d done, where I’ve been, she’d -”

“You don’t know what she’d do.  You barely fucking talk to her.  Why don’t you try getting to know her, you douche?  Or, fuck her brains out until she doesn’t care what you did in your past.”

“Rachel’s smart and -”

“You’re smart too.  Fuck, you read enough goddamn books to fill a fucking library.  Just because you’ve been in prison, doesn’t mean you can’t have the woman you love.”

I winced and glanced at the doorway. “Keep your voice down, and I don’t love Rachel.”

Jack bellowed laughter.  “Jesus fucking Christ, you’re drowning in that river of denial.”

“Shut up.”

“If you don’t love her, then why are you losing your shit the first time you see another man on her?  Why are you telling her that her cherry is yours?”

“Maybe I have a fetish for virgins.”

Jack laughed so hard, that beer burbled up out of his bottle and landed on his jeans.  “A virgin fetish?”

I just shrugged.  It didn’t exactly make me feel like a good guy, but yeah, Rachel being a virgin got my motor going.  Knowing that no one else had been in her pussy, that it would only be my cock she’d ever know the feel of, made me harder than a fucking rock.

I’d spent the last three years fantasizing about taking her virgin pussy.  The first sign that she might let someone else have it, had made me lose my fucking head.  I wanted – needed – it to be me who took it.

“Look, you know she wants you, and you want her.  Take her for fuck’s sake,” Jack said.

“It’s not that easy.  Rachel is…special.  She deserves to have someone who can give her everything she wants.  Not some fucked-up ex-con.”

“She’s a grown-ass woman, she can make her own decision about what she wants.”

“Can we just drop it?”

“All I’m saying, is that if you want to be the one to pop her cherry, you better get your fucking ass in gear.  She’s not gonna wait around forever for you.”

My best friend had a point.  I wanted Rachel’s virginity, and I needed to take it.  I wasn’t an idiot.  I knew Rachel had a crush on me.  I had ignored it despite my own desire for her.  There was no future for us.  But I had fooled myself into thinking she wouldn’t give herself to another man.  That she would just pine away for me for like she was some princess in a damn tower and I was her knight in shining armor.

Fuck.  I was an idiot.

* * *

This is not a good idea, Ren.

It was a fine idea.  I parked on the street, locked my car and walked toward the library. I reached into the back pocket of my jeans and touched the smooth sticks.  Rachel had left them on my office desk on Friday night, after I had…

My cock swelled against my jeans and I took a quick look around before adjusting myself.  Fuck, I couldn’t think about Friday night.  I had left Jack’s place and told myself to go home.  Instead, I had driven to the library.

There was only ten minutes until the library closed.  Maybe, if I was really lucky, Rachel would be alone and I could try and explain what happened Friday night.

Or finish what you started.

Bad idea.  Very bad idea.  I had just barely restrained myself from taking her in the bar.  Taking her at the library wasn’t any better.  Rachel’s first time should be in a proper bed with every part of her glorious body naked and ready for my touch.  I’d tease her and torment her, make her cum a few times until her tight little pussy was dripping wet.  I’d give her my cock and show her just how good I could make her -”

“Asher, you’re really good at this.”

My head snapped up.  I’d been so deep in my fantasy about taking Rachel’s virginity, that I’d nearly walked right by the library.  Her soft voice had pulled me back to reality in a damn hurry though.  Especially when it was filled with admiration and… dammit, that had better not be lust.

I hurried up the sidewalk toward the library.  Rachel was standing on the steps talking to Asher Stokes.  Jealousy ate into my stomach and I could feel my hands clenching into fists.  Fuck, I needed to calm down.  I was a big guy and could hold my own in a fight, but at 6’6” and over two hundred pounds of what was mostly muscle, Asher Stokes would hand my ass to me in less than five minutes.

I took a deep breath and reigned in my jealousy.  Asher worked for a welding company here in town and from the looks of it, he was just doing his job and repairing the wrought iron railing on the front steps.

“It almost looks brand new.”  Rachel hadn’t noticed me yet.  Probably because she was thinking about giving her virginity to that asshole Asher.

“Thanks, Rachel.”

My skin grew hotter.  Asher was a quiet man, probably the quietest man in the entire goddamn town, so how did Rachel know him well enough for them to be on a first-name basis?

“Do you think you’ll be finished by tomorrow or…”

I felt the hard bite of satisfaction when Rachel finally noticed me.  Her cheeks turned pink and she quickly backed up the rest of the steps.  “Um, excuse me, Asher.  I have to um... excuse me.”

With a final glance at me, she yanked open the heavy wooden door to the library and disappeared inside.  Asher turned and studied me as I stalked toward him.

“Stay away from her.”  My voice was hard.  The giant standing in front of me could probably crush my skull in one massive hand, but I didn’t fucking care.  He didn’t get to have Rachel. 

“What if I don’t?”  Asher leaned against part of the railing. 

Why did I get the feeling he was toying with me?  “She belongs to me.”

Asher glanced at the door.  “Does she know that?”

“Stay away from her, Stokes.  This is your last warning.”

A grin hovered on his lips.  “Relax.  I’m not after your woman.”

I wanted to believe him, but my jealousy and my rage wouldn’t quite let me.

He gave me a look that suggested he’d stomp me like a bug if I got too close, before packing up his tools.  I walked up the stairs, yanked open the door and stepped into the library.

Despite my love of reading, I’d only been in here a handful of times, and only when I was certain that Rachel wasn’t working.  I hadn’t been here at all in the last year.  My obsession had gotten to the point that it didn’t matter if she was working or not, just being in the library made me restless and anxious for her.

I looked around as I walked toward the front desk.  There wasn’t anyone browsing the books and Rachel was alone at the desk.  Her hair was in its usual bun and she was wearing an ankle-length skirt and a shirt that buttoned to her throat.  It was on the looser side, but it didn’t matter.  I had seen her tits, had touched her nipples and listened to her moan.  The sight of her beautiful breasts in that fire-engine red bra was burned into my damn memory.  I stared at her chest, wondering if she was wearing that bra today.  I was itching to find out.

Her arms crossed over her chest and she cleared her throat.  I lifted my gaze to her face.  Her cheeks were pink, and her lips were wet as though she’d just licked them.  I could barely hold in my groan when her tongue darted out and licked her bottom lip. 

Christ, I wanted to fuck her mouth so bad.

“The library is closed, Mr. Parker.”

I checked my watch.  “It closes in two minutes.”

She scowled at me.  “If you want a book, you’ll have to come back in the morning.  We open at nine.”

“I’m not here for a book.”

“Then you should leave, Mr. Parker.”

“Ren.”

“I – what?”

“What happened to calling me Ren?”

“I don’t think, that is – I’ve decided I don’t know you well enough to call you Ren.”

“Is that so, Rachel?”  I leaned over the desk and she licked her bottom lip again.

“Ms. Banks,” she whispered.  “You may call me Ms. Banks.”

I grinned at her.  All my good intentions had scattered to the fucking wind, the moment I saw her.  The moment I smelled her.

“I’ve had my fingers in your sweet little pussy, made you cum all over them, and I’m not allowed to call you Rachel?”

Her mouth dropped open and I groaned out loud.  The urge to push her to her knees and fill her mouth with my cock was almost too difficult to resist.

“Don’t – don’t be crude, Mr. Parker.”

“You like it when I’m crude.”

“No, I don’t.”

I just grinned at her.  “I have something for you, Rachel.”

“Wh-what?”

My grin widened when her gaze flickered to my crotch.  Fuck, she was just the sweetest little thing.  I couldn’t wait to be balls-deep inside of her.

“Eyes up here, sweetheart.”

Her cheeks turned an alarming shade of red as she whipped her head up.  “I wasn’t looking at – I mean…what do you want?”

Before I could answer, the low voice of Asher came from my left.  “You okay, Rachel?”

Rachel stared at Asher.  “Yes, of course.”

“You need me to stay while you lock up?”  Asher’s gaze fell on me and I ignored my urge to cave his skull in.  Like I would ever fucking hurt my sweet Rachel.

“Stay?”  Rachel gave him a blank look.

“He thinks you’re afraid of me,” I said.

She blinked in surprise before shaking her head.  “No, I’m not afraid of Ren.  He’s – we’re…”

“Friends,” I supplied.  “Very good friends.”

“We’re not friends,” she gave me a scathing look, “but I am absolutely not afraid of him.  Thank you, Asher.  I’ll see you tomorrow.”

She gave him a warm smile and my jealousy cranked up another notch.  I’d never been jealous like this with a woman before, and I had no idea what to do with it.  My instinct to sling Rachel over my shoulder and carry her off to my house while beating on my chest, seemed… unwise.

“Good night, Rachel.”

“Good night, Asher.”

The big man turned to leave. 

“Good night, Asher,” I called after him.  He studied me, and I gave him a shit eating grin that practically screamed ‘take a swing at me’.

Luckily for me, he just turned and walked away.  Christ, I really was trying to get myself a nice, long stay at the fucking hospital.

Rachel followed him to the door and locked it when he left.  I considered it a victory that she hadn’t kicked me out yet.  I studied her curvy body as she returned to the front desk.  She grabbed a stack of books from the desk and carried them to one of the carts at the end of an aisle of books.  She set them on the cart and grabbed one to shelve it.

I picked up a book and watched as she shelved the one she carried.  When she was done, I handed her the book I held. 

“Thank you.  Uh, what did you have for me?”

I grinned at her and she turned scarlet as her gaze drifted to my crotch again.

“Sweetheart, when we’re in public, you have to stop looking at my cock like you want to suck on it like a lollipop.”

“I’m not.”

I think she was aiming for indignant, but she just sounded breathless and turned on as fuck.

My grin got wider, and she gave me a furious look.  “I am not interested in sucking on your-your penis.”

Not only was I gonna teach Rachel how to suck my dick, but I was also making it my mission to have her talking filthy while she did it.

“It’s called a cock, sweetheart.”

“Maybe to someone with a limited vocabulary.”  She gave me a haughty look that only made my dick harder.  “Regardless, I’m not sucking -”

“That’s right, I almost forgot.  You’re not going to suck my dick until I eat your pussy first.”

If I had thought her cheeks were red before, now they looked like they were going to burst into flames.  “I – I want no such thing.”

“That isn’t what you told Madison in the coffee shop.”

“It’s very rude to listen to private conversations, Mr. Parker.”

She made a good point, but I hadn’t been purposely eavesdropping.  I was passing by her table just so I could catch a hint of her perfume, and see the gleam of her dark hair in the sunlight.  Hearing her say she would make me eat her pussy had thrown me so far down a rabbit hole of dirty fantasies, that I was surprised I hadn’t taken her home right then and there and fucked her senseless.

After I ate out her pussy, of course.

“You were talking very loudly,” I teased.

She shelved the book with a hard thump.  “I wasn’t talking about you.”

“You were.”

A scowl crossed her pretty face.  “Can you just leave, please?  I don’t want to talk to you.”

She tried to slide by me and I cupped her elbow and pulled her to a stop.  “Since when?”  I leaned down and buried my face in her neck, inhaling the scent of her skin.  “I know you have a crush on me, Rachel.”

“Had, Mr. Parker.  I had a crush on you.”  Her voice was low and husky with need.

I straightened and slid my hand around her waist, drawing her up until my erection pressed against her belly.  Her soft moan and her almost imperceptible rubbing against it, lit me up like a fucking candle.

“What’s changed?”  I ran my thumb over her lower lip.

“You-you kicked me out of your office Friday night and you were rude and coarse and…”

Another soft little moan when I traced her collarbone through the thin material of her shirt.

“I also gave you your first orgasm, didn’t I?”

“Not my first.”  She gave me a defiant look.  “I might be a virgin, but I’m not a prude.  I masturbate as much as the next girl.”

I laughed, and she gave me an uncertain look tinged with embarrassment.  God, she was so fucking sweet.

“I meant,” I kissed the tip of her nose, “that I was the first man to make you cum.”

“Oh, well, I…maybe you were.  But you still…”

“Do you use a vibrator or a dildo, Rachel?”

Her mouth dropped open and she stared at me.  “What?”

“When you masturbate.  Do you use a vibrator or a dildo in your virgin pussy?”

“Well … neither.”

“Just your fingers then?”

I could see the answer on her face before she shook her head no.

My cock swelled against my jeans and I moved my hand down to cup her delightful ass.  I kneaded it as I rubbed my dick against her.  “So, you’ve never had anything in your pussy, sweetheart?  Do you just rub your sweet clit when you touch yourself?”

“Yes,” she whispered.

Fuck.  I was a total ass, but it made me even hotter to know that her pussy had never taken a vibrator or even fingers.  Of course, that was about to change.  Right here and right now.

My hand tightened on her ass and she made a soft squeak.  “It was really awful of you to kick me out after – after making me say those things.”

“It was.”

My quick agreement made her jerk against my hard body.

“I’m sorry for doing that, sweetheart.  It was a dick move and I won’t do it again.”

She blinked at me.  “I – okay?”

I grinned and leaned down to nuzzle her neck before I walked her backwards toward the big round table that was near the wall.

“Of course, an apology isn’t really enough to make up for my terrible behaviour, is it?”

“What do you mean?’  Her eyes widened when I gripped her around the waist and lifted her.  I sat her on the table and she immediately closed her legs before I could step between them.

“Don’t lift me like that again,” she said. “You’ll hurt yourself.”

I just laughed. “Sweetheart, I can handle your curves.”

She crossed her arms over her torso.  “What are you doing?”

“Making up for being an asshole to you on Friday night.”

“Madison kept telling me you were a nice guy, that you were sweeter than you seemed.”

“She’s right.  I’m very sweet.”  I plucked at the first button of her shirt.

“Not that sweet.  More like -”

I dipped my head and covered her mouth with mine, thrusting my tongue between those soft lips and licking at her tongue.  She moaned into my mouth and returned my kiss.  Tentatively at first, but with increasing enthusiasm the longer I kissed her.  I broke the kiss, gave her the chance to take a couple breaths, then dove back in.

Her hands curled around my waist, her fingers digging into my sides.  I tugged on her thighs and when she didn’t open them for me, I pulled back.

“Spread your legs, Rachel.”

“Ren -”

“Spread them for me right now.”

Her legs parted, and I pushed them apart as far as her skirt would allow before stepping between them and pressing my dick against her.  I cupped her ass and made her grind her pussy against me.  She shuddered all over and I kissed her again. 

When she was pressing her pelvis rhythmically against my cock, I unbuttoned her shirt and pushed it off her shoulders and down her arms.  I leaned back and made a low groan.  Her bra was a navy blue push-up and I wanted to bury my face between her glorious tits.  I reached around behind her and she gave me a startled look when I unhooked her bra.

“What are you doing?”  She crossed her arms over her breasts to keep her bra from sliding off.

“I want to see your gorgeous tits, sweetheart.”  The flush was rising up her chest and I tugged on the shoulder straps of her bra, sliding them down her arms.  “Move your arms.”

She refused, and I leaned down and nipped at her bottom lip.  “They belong to me, remember?  Show them to me.”

“Ren, we can’t -”

“Show them to me.”

She stared at my mouth and then dropped her arms.  I pulled her bra away and dropped it to the floor. 

“Sweetheart, I love your tits.  Someday I’m going to fuck them.”

“What do you mean?”

“It means,” I cupped her breasts and pushed them together, “you lie on your back and push your tits together for me, just like this.  Then I straddle you and slide my dick back and forth between your beautiful tits.”

She bit her bottom lip.  “I want to see your cock.”

I rubbed my thumbs over her nipples until they were hard little peaks.  “Soon, sweetheart.”

“Ren, no.  I want to see it right now.  Before you – oh my goodness!”

I had bent my head and took one hard nipple into my mouth.  I licked it and sucked it and teased it with my teeth and tongue as her hands threaded through my hair.  Her back arched, shoving more of her breast into my mouth.  I cupped her other breast, pulling on her nipple as she made little moans and squeaks of pleasure.

I straightened and pulled the sticks from the bun in her hair, shoving them into the back pocket of my jeans next to the other sticks.  Her hair tumbled down to nearly her waist and I smoothed it back from her face.  It was as soft as silk, and I tugged on one lock.  “You should wear your hair down more often.”

She chewed at her bottom lip.  “I – it doesn’t look good when it’s down.”

“It looks beautiful.  You’re beautiful, sweetheart.”

“Thank you.  You – you’re beautiful too.”

I pushed on her shoulders.  “Lie back, Rachel.”

“W-why?”

“Because I’m going to eat your pussy.”

“What?  No, you can’t!”

“Why not?”  I placed one hand between her breasts and applied gentle, steady pressure until she was flat on her back on the table.  I leaned over her, preventing her from sitting back up and palmed one heavy breast.

“Because this is where I work.”  Her pelvis thrust against mine when I pinched her nipple.

“The library is closed.”

“I know, but…”

“Are there security cameras in here?”  I grinned at her as I rolled her nipple between my finger and thumb.

“I – oh God – um, no.  Just outside.”

“Then there’s no one here to see me eat your sweet pussy.”  My hands were already reaching for her skirt and I pushed it up her nylon-clad legs.  “Hips up, sweetheart.”

I waited for her to refuse and I couldn’t stop my grin of satisfaction when she braced her arms on the table and lifted her hips.  I quickly pushed her skirt up around her waist before she could change her mind.

“That’s my good girl.  Now, I’m going to…holy fuck.”  All the spit dried up in my mouth as I straightened and looked down at Rachel’s pussy.

“What’s wrong?”  She automatically covered her crotch with her hands.  “Oh God, let me up.  I can’t -”

“Hush, sweetheart.”  I pulled her hands away and pinned them at her hips.  “Let me look at you.”

Rachel was wearing a pair of silk, dark blue panties with a matching garter belt and black stockings.  My cock was so hard it was threatening to tear a hole through my jeans.  Fuck, if I’d known Rachel dressed like this under her long skirts and loose shirts, I wouldn’t have been such an idiot and waited so long to make her mine.

“Ren?”  Her voice was thick with uncertainty and her entire body had tensed.  “Please let me go.”

I released her hands but when she tried to pull her skirt down, I shook my head. “Don’t do that.  You’re so fucking sexy, Rachel.”

Her hands stilled on her skirt.  “I am?”

I traced the top of her stockings with my fingers.  “Fuck, yes.  Do you wear garters and stockings every day?”

“Almost every day.  I like to wear pretty, um, underthings.”

“It’s very pretty.”  I ran my finger along the waistband of her panties.  “I’m going to take these off you now, sweetheart.”

I expected her to argue, but she just stared at me with her dark eyes and lifted her hips when I tugged on her panties.

“Good girl,” I praised again.  I pulled them down her thighs and calves and slipped off her shoes for her before removing her panties completely and stuffing them in the front pocket of my jeans.

“Feet on the table.”  I cupped her calves and lifted her legs up before she could argue.  She planted her feet on the table and I grinned when I studied her pussy.  Her hands were over it, covering it completely from my view and I ran my fingers over the back of her hands.  God, I loved how shy and sweet she was.

“Let me see your pretty pussy, sweetheart.”

Her hands were trembling.  I lifted them and held them tight for a moment as I looked her in the eye.  “Relax, Rachel.”

“You don’t have to do this,” she whispered.

I kissed her knuckles.  “Sweetheart, I’ve been dreaming about tasting your sweet pussy for three years.”

Her eyes widened.  “Seriously?”

“Yeah, sweet one.  Rest your hands on the table.”

She pressed her hands into the table, making a little nervous squeak when I placed my hands on her inner thighs.  “Open your legs nice and wide for me, sweetheart.”

I pressed on her smooth thighs, my fingers tugging on her garter straps.  She opened her legs and I pressed them even wider before staring down at her pussy.

“Such a pretty little pussy, Rachel.”  I touched the small triangle of dark hair at the top of her pussy before running my fingers over her plump and swollen lips.  I held my hand up so she could see the moisture on my fingers.  “So wet for me.”

“Ren, I – oh!”

I had pressed on the bud of her clit that was already protruding from her lips.  Her hips jerked, and I pressed my other hand against the curve of her lower belly.  “Don’t move, sweetheart.”

I leaned down and she made a breathless moan when I licked her pussy lips.  I lifted my head and smiled at her.  “Sweetest little pussy ever.”

“Oh God,” she moaned.  “Ren, please.”

“You want more?”

“Yes.”  Her hips were already rising.  “Yes, do that again.”

“Whatever you want, sweetheart.”

I liked her lips again before circling her wet hole with my tongue.

“Oh, oh my goodness!”  Her low cry made me smile and I licked my way up to her swollen clit.  I flicked it with my tongue and caught her by the hips when she shuddered and nearly slid off the table.

“Careful, sweetheart.”

She gave me a pleading look.  “Please, oh please.”

I bent my head, parted her wet pussy lips with my fingers and licked her clit with a wide, flat stroke of my tongue.  She cried out, her pelvis thrusting into my face and her hands grabbing onto my head.

Fuck, her reaction was so hot, it was pushing me over the edge.  I reached down and unbuttoned and unzipped my jeans.  I pulled my dick out and rubbed it roughly as I sucked on Rachel’s clit.

She shrieked, the sound echoing through the library, before grinding her pussy against my mouth.  I took my hand off my aching dick and pressed my index finger against her virgin hole.  I licked and sucked on her clit for a few minutes more.  When she was moaning and wiggling wildly, I straightened and stared at her jiggling tits.  I rubbed her clit with the pad of my thumb as I slowly slid my finger into her hot, wet entrance.

She froze with her eyes squinted shut and her hands squeezing the edge of the table.  “Ren?  Is that…”

“Just my finger, sweetheart.  Relax for me.”  I circled her clit and then rubbed it firmly.  Her pelvis rose and her pussy swallowed my finger right to the last knuckle. 

“Good girl.”  I slowly eased a second finger into her while I massaged her clit. 

“I want to cum,” she moaned.

“Soon, sweetheart.  You’re so tight.  You feel so good around my fingers.”  I made a few experimental thrusts with my fingers and her pussy squeezed around them.  I groaned.  My dick was rubbing against her thigh and smearing precum all over her nylons, but I couldn’t fucking help it.  Rachel was so goddamn hot and the way she squeezed my fingers was just about enough to make me cum all over her.

I hesitated for only a second before burying my face in her pussy again.  Fuck it.  I would make her cum and then I’d fuck her.  I’d waited three fucking years for Rachel’s virgin pussy, I couldn’t wait any longer.

I licked and sucked on her clit until she made another loud shriek and her entire body arched off the table.  She came all over my face, her body shuddering and her thighs squeezing around my head.  I pushed her thighs apart and licked away her sweet cream as she moaned and shook.  Her pussy was clenching and unclenching around my fingers.  I pulled my fingers free and she made a cry of disappointment.

“I know, sweetheart,” I said.  “Your little pussy needs to be filled, doesn’t it?”

“Yes,” she whimpered.  

“Do you want my cock?”  I held my dick in my hand and stroked it roughly.

Her eyelids fluttered open and I watched as she stared at my dick.  She nodded, although I could see the anxiety on her face, and I squeezed one thigh.  “I’ll go slow, sweetheart.  But I can’t wait any longer.  I need to fuck you.”

I rubbed the head of my dick along her soaking wet slit.  She shivered all over and jerked away when I rubbed her clit. 

“Too sensitive?”  I kneaded her thigh.

“A-a little,” she gasped out.

I moved my cock down to her entrance.  I pushed, and she moaned in response.  I pushed the head of my cock into her and stopped.  Fuck, she was so goddamn tight.  I needed to do some deep breathing exercises, or I’d shove my entire dick into her pussy without a second thought.

“Ren?  Why are you stopping?”

“Give me a minute, sweetheart.  I want to go slow but I -”

The pounding on the front door of the library made both of us jerk wildly.  Another inch slid into her tight pussy and Rachel made a strangled sound that had too much pain in it.  I pulled out of her in a hurry, sat her up and cupped her face.  “Sweetheart, I’m sorry.  Are you okay?”

“I, yeah, I’m okay.  I just -”

“Rachel!  Rachel, open up!  Are you in there?  Open the door!”

The woman’s voice was muffled but I could hear the anger in it.

“Who the fuck is that?” I said as Rachel scrambled off the table and shoved her skirt down.

She reached for her bra, giving me a look of shame.  “My mother.”

Chapter Three

Rachel

I wanted to die. 

I wanted to drop dead right there in the library.  I had been seconds away from finally losing my virginity to Ren Parker, and my mother was interrupting us like I was a stupid teenage girl. 

Could a person literally die of shame?  They could, right?

I whipped around until my back was to Ren and threw my bra on.  I raked the straps up my arms.  “Can you do me up?”

Ren fumbled at the hooks as my mother’s voice, muffled but clearly understandable, screeched through the door.  “Rachel!  I know you’re in there.  Open the door.  Why are you ignoring me?  I’ve been waiting fifteen minutes for you!”

“Hurry!”  I muttered.

“Sorry, sweetheart, I’m better at unhooking these.”  His voice held more than a hint of laughter in it.

“This is not funny.”

“It’s kind of funny.”  He finished doing up my bra and I grabbed my shirt as my mother pounded on the door again.

This time I could hear the panic in her voice.  “Rachel?  This isn’t funny, young lady!  I’m about thirty seconds away from calling the police.  Do you hear me?”

“Fuck!”  I yanked my shirt on and buttoned it as Ren tucked away his penis and buttoned his jeans.

“What’s she doing here?”  He asked.

“Her car is in the shop, so she borrowed mine and said she would pick me up after work.  I completely forgot.”

I pushed my feet into my shoes and hurried toward the front door, straightening my shirt and my skirt compulsively as Ren followed me.  I was trying to think of an excuse for why Ren was in the library with me, but I was barely thinking straight.  Ren had just eaten my pussy until I had the best orgasm of my life.  Ren had almost fucked me.  Would be fucking me if it hadn’t been for my…

Oh shit.

I stopped with my hand on the lock and gave Ren a frantic look.  “My panties.  Where are they?”

I kept my voice pitched low, but my mother had the hearing of a hawk.  She immediately pounded on the door again.  “Rachel?  Is that you?  Open the door right this minute!”

Ren winked at me and pulled a bit of my panties out of his pocket.  “I’ve got them right here.”

“Give them to me.”  I held out my hand, glaring at him when he shoved them back into his pocket.

“No time, sweetheart.”

“Ren, I need -”

“Rachel!  Open the door!”

Groaning inwardly, I smoothed my hair and reached for the door.  “Don’t say a word.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Why did he have to be so friggin’ sexy?

I unlocked the door and pulled it open, blocking the doorway with my chubby body.  My mother glared at me.  “What are you doing?”

“Just closing up, Mom.  I’m running a little late, but I won’t be much longer.  Give me five minutes and I’ll meet you in the car.”

“I’ll wait for you in here.”  She shoved past me and looked me up and down.  “You look awful today.  How many times have I told you not to wear your hair down, Rachel?  It makes your face look even fatter and your -”

“I think she looks beautiful.”

My mother screeched and swung around to stare at Ren.  “Who – what are you doing here?”

“Mom, this is Ren Parker.  He owns Ren’s Bar.  He’s looking for a book.”

Please don’t insult him.  Please don’t insult him.

“Since when do bartenders read?”

“Mom!  Stop it.”

“What?  Bartenders don’t read, Rachel.”

“How many bartenders do you know, Mrs. Banks?”  Ren’s voice was polite, but I could see the anger brewing on his face.

“None.”  She sniffed.  “We don’t associate with your type of people.”

“Enough, Mom.”  I took my mother’s arm and tugged her away.  “You’re being rude.”

“Who cares?  He’s below us and -”

“Stop it.”  I shook her roughly, and she yanked her arm from my grip.

“What is going on with you?  Are you forgetting all that I’ve sacrificed for you?”

“No,” I said in a low voice.  “But Ren is – is a customer at the library and I’m not letting you insult him.  Do you want me to lose my job?  Is that it?”

“You concentrate way too much on your job.  You don’t have the looks to catch a man, so you need to work on your personality.  If you would spend less time working extra shifts at the library, and more time working on your social skills, you might not be single and alone.  You need -”

I walked away before she could finish her sentence.  I had no desire for Ren to hear all about my boring personality and awkward social behaviour.  I stopped in front of Ren and gave him a please-get-the-hell-out-of-here look.  “Mr. Parker, if you give me a couple of days, I’ll see if I can find that book you’re looking for at one of the other libraries and have it transferred.”

Ren studied me for a moment before nodding.  “Sure.  Thank you, Rachel.”

“You’re welcome.”

He leaned forward and for one pulse-pounding moment I thought he was going to kiss me right there in front of my mother.  Instead, he picked away an invisible piece of lint from my shirt sleeve and gave me a boyish grin.  “Bye.”

He turned and opened the library door.  Before he could step outside, my mother’s voice rang out.

“What is that in your pocket?”

My heart stopped.  Just gave up for an entire three seconds before clanging back to life in my chest.  I wheezed in a breath as I tried to think of a plausible explanation for why Ren had my panties in his pocket.

“Why do you have those in your back pocket?”  My mother demanded.

Ren pulled the two sets of sticks from his pocket and studied them before holding them out to me.  “Right, I almost forgot to give these to you.”

My hand was shaking so bad, I almost dropped them.  Ren curled his hand around mine, keeping the sticks in my palm.  “You okay, sweetheart?”

“Sweetheart?”  My mother’s voice was high enough to make dogs howl.

I pulled my hand away from Ren’s and stepped back.  “Yes, Mr. Parker, thank you.  Have a good evening.”

Hurt flickered across his face, but he smoothed it out, nodded and left the library.  I closed and locked the door behind him before staring at the sticks in my hand.  Why were Ren’s feelings hurt?  And why did it bother me that I hurt his feelings?

“Rachel, what is going on with you and that man?”

“Nothing.”

“Don’t lie to me.  He called you ‘sweetheart’ and he had your hair sticks in his pocket.”

I pushed past her and headed toward the front desk.  “He’s just a flirt and I dropped the sticks at his bar the other night.  He was being nice and was returning them to me.”

“Why were you even at the bar?  Nice girls don’t go to the bar.  Were you with Madison again?  You know how I feel about that girl.  She’s a total slut, and if you aren’t careful, she’s going to drag you down with her.  Why, just the other day, Eleanor Rochen told me that she thinks Jacob is sleeping with Madison.  Can you believe that?  He’s twice her age and was her father’s best friend.  What kind of man sleeps with a child?”

“Madison isn’t a child and Jacob isn’t twice her age.  He’s a nice man,” I said.

“He’s a sicko.  I don’t want you hanging out with Madison anymore if she’s going to be sleeping with a sick man like that.  Oh, and did you hear that Lydia Davis is coming back to town?  Our idiot mayor is giving her the key to the town.  And for what?  Because she won some kind of acting award?”

“She won an Emmy, Mom.  It’s kind of a big deal.”

“Well, call me when she wins an Oscar.”  My mother sniffed.  “She was always so stuck up.  Her sister isn’t much better, you know.  I swear, she deliberately gives me the wrong coffee every time I stop at Mugs.  I ran into Michelle at the gym the other day and she said…”

As my mother droned on about the people in our small town, I smiled and nodded and pretended to listen while I closed down my computer.  I hated listening to my mother’s mean-spirited and petty gossip about the town, but at least she wasn’t asking me any more questions about what exactly Ren was doing with me in the library.

* * *

“Wait,” Madison tucked her legs under her and settled back on the couch, “so, did you and Ren have sex last night in the library or not?”

“I don’t know,” I admitted.

“How can you not know,” Madison said with a grin.  “Either he put his dick in you or he didn’t.”

“I told you, he started to, but we were interrupted.”

“How much did you get?”  Madison took a sip of wine.

“What?”

“How much of his dick did you get?  If you got the whole thing even just once, then your cherry’s been officially popped and I’m opening up a second bottle of wine.”

“Uh, I don’t think it was the whole thing,” I said.  “I mean, I know he put the, uh, head in, but I think that’s all he got in.”

“If it was just the tip, it doesn’t count,” Madison said as Jacob strolled into the living room.

“Just the tip of what?”  He leaned down and pressed a kiss against her mouth.

I turned a truly hellish shade of red as Jacob nodded to me.  “Hey, Rachel.”

“Hi.” 

He studied my red cheeks before turning back to Madison.  “What are you two talking about?”

“Girl stuff.”

“Okay.  Well, I’m gonna have a quick shower and then I’ll start the steaks.”

“Thanks, honey.”

He left, and I said, “So, are you two officially living together now?”

“He’s basically living here, but he hasn’t sold his place and moved his stuff in yet.”

“Is he going to?”

She nodded.  “If he knows what’s good for him, he will.”

I laughed.  “I’m happy for you, Mads.  You know that right?”

“Thanks, sweetie.  But don’t change the subject.  I’m making my ruling and,” she pounded out a drum beat on the arm of the couch, “congratulations, Rachel Banks, you are still a virgin.”

“Thanks.”  I drained my glass of wine and jumped up to pour myself another from the bottle sitting on the coffee table.  “Did I mention it hurt a little?  Maybe he did pop it and -”

“Were you bleeding after?”

“No, but I did a lot of horseback riding when I was a teen.  My actual hymen is probably long gone.”

“Good point.  Well, unless Ren was in balls-deep, I don’t think it counts.”

My cheeks were still boiling hot and Madison grinned at me.  “It’s adorable how talking about sex makes you blush.  Once Ren takes your virginity, I’m gonna miss how flustered you get when we talk sex.”

I drank more wine.  “He’s not going to take my virginity.  Not after my mother interrupted us.  God, it was so humiliating, Mads.  One, to be interrupted like I’m some damn teenager, and two, she was so rude to him.  She said mean things and -”

“Your mom is a bitch.”  Madison poured herself more wine.  “Scratch that, she’s not a bitch, she’s a full on Disney villain.  She’s Cruella da Ville…no, she’s Ursula from The Little Mermaid.  If she was a character in a book, she’d be Hannibal Lecter.  Minus the cannibalism.”

She paused and gave me a suspicious look.  “Minus the cannibalism, right, Rach?”

“I dunno.  Does eating my self-esteem for breakfast every morning from when I was eleven until I moved out at nineteen, count as cannibalism?”

Madison scowled.  “All jokes aside, I hate what that woman has done to you.”

“She’s still my mother.”

“Only by blood.  I have never met a less mom-like woman in my life, and I grew up without a mother.  You need to cut off contact with her, Rach.  She’s bad for you.”

I sighed and stared into my wine glass.  I’d had this conversation off and on for years with Madison.  She wasn’t wrong, my mother was toxic, but she was still my mother.  She sometimes said hurtful things only because she wanted what was best for me.

Does she, though?  Because it comes off a lot like hatred.

The red in my cheeks faded and the wine sloshed in my belly until I felt nauseous.  My mother didn’t hate me.  Mothers didn’t hate their children.

“Rachel?  You okay?”

“Yes.  Just a little too much wine and not enough food.”

Madison stood and took my hand.  “Come into the kitchen.  We’ll munch on the veggies while we wait for my man to cook us some meat.”

I smiled and squeezed her hand.  “Thank you, Mads.  I love you.  You know that, right?”

“I do,” she said.  “But, really – who doesn’t love me?”

Chapter Four

Rachel

Mugs Coffee was one of two coffee shops in our small town.  It’s prime location on Main Street meant it was always the busier of the two, and this morning was no exception.  I joined the line-up, surfing Facebook on my phone as the line slowly shuffled forward.  I hadn’t slept well last night or Monday night, and I was tired and feeling a little emotional.

I had blown it with Ren.  I’d had my chance to lose my virginity to him, and I’d ruined it.  He hadn’t tried to contact me at all since Monday night and I wasn’t surprised.  Depressed?  Hell, yeah.   Surprised?  Not in the least. 

I rubbed at my forehead before stuffing my phone into my pocket.  The tap on my shoulder made me jump and I turned.  I stared at the wide broad chest, the blue fabric of his t-shirt stretched to the limit across it, and craned my neck to stare into his face.

“Hello, Rachel.”

“Morning, Asher.”  I smiled at the big man.  “You should have told me you liked coffee, I would have picked yours up for you and brought it to the library.”

“Appreciate that, but I usually stop in every morning for coffee.”

“You, me and the rest of the town.  So, is today your last day at the library?  Our library assistant mentioned yesterday that you said you’d be finishing up today.”

He nodded.  “Should be done by noon.”

“That’s good.”  There was an awkward silence.  I’d lived in this town all my life, but I don’t think I’d ever spoken to Asher until he was hired to fix the railing at the library.  He was a few years older than me and we only had one year of high school together before he graduated.  His sister Isabel was my age, but she’d been a cheerleader in high school and one of the popular girls, and our paths rarely crossed.  She’d moved with their parents to Florida just after graduation.

“Uh, so how is Isabel doing in Florida?” I asked.

“She’s good.  Moving back next week.”

“Really?”

He nodded but didn’t provide any further details.

“Well, that’s nice.  Is she going to stay with you for a bit or…?”

“For a bit.”

“Good, that’s good.”  I tried to think of something else to say and came up with nothing.  I really had nothing in common with him.  Well, other than the fact that we both went to Ren’s Bar.  I’d seen him a few times at the bar with Knox Jameson.  Knox was a landscaper in town and he and Asher had been best friends for years.

They were an unlikely pair.  Knox was funny and outgoing and never seemed to stop talking.  Asher was the quietest man in town.  Even my mother couldn’t find anything to gossip about when it came to him. 

“Your turn.”

I stared blankly at Asher.  “What?”

“It’s your turn.”  He pointed behind me and I turned around to see Luna Davis, sister to Lydia, the Emmy-winning and soon-to-be recipient of the key to our fair town, giving me an impatient look.

I stepped up to the counter.  “Sorry, Luna.  I’ll take a venti mocha, hold the whip.  Plus, whatever Asher’s having.”

Luna’s fingers paused on the cash register before she added a venti dark roast to the order. 

“You don’t have to do that.”  Asher had joined me at the counter.

“I know.  I want to.”  I watched as Luna’s face turned red and she gave Asher a quick, jittery smile. 

“Hi, Asher.  How, uh, how are you this morning?”

“Morning.”  He gave her a brief look before nodding to me.  “Thanks for the coffee, Rachel.  I appreciate it.”

“You’re welcome.”  Shit, compared to how he was with Luna, he was downright chatty with me.

Asher moved to the far end of the counter and I quickly paid for the coffees.  “Thanks, Luna.”

“You bet.”  She made another furtive little glance at Asher as I walked away to join him.

Maybe it was because I had lost my chance at the guy I wanted, or maybe I just wanted someone to get laid, but I decided to try and help her out.  “Luna’s cute, huh?”

Asher stared down at me and I cleared my throat.  “She’s cute and she’s a total sweetheart.”

“Didn’t know you two were friends.”

“We’re not.  I mean, we’re friendly but we don’t like, hang out together.”

“Then how do you know she’s a sweetheart?”

Now it was my turn to go red as Asher arched one thick brow at me.  “Well, I…I mean, I’ve heard that she’s really sweet.  Not like her sister.”

He picked up his coffee from the counter and nodded to me.  “See you at the library.”

“Okay, bye.” 

He walked away, and I snuck a quick look at Luna.  Despite the long line of customers, she was staring at Asher’s ass as he walked out of the coffee shop.  She realized I was staring at her and, blushing furiously, turned back to the customer in line.

* * *

Rachel

I was making a mistake.  No, I was being a hopeless idiot. 

After work, I’d gone home and ate dinner before staring blankly at the TV.  Half an hour later, I was rummaging through my closet for shirts and jeans that I had deemed too tight.  Half an hour after that I was in my car and driving to Ren’s Bar.

I pulled open the door and walked into the bar.  It was packed full of people and I groaned inwardly.  Shit, I forgot that Wednesday was karaoke night.  I studied the tables closest to me.  All of them were full and I didn’t want to sit right at the bar.  I had come here because I was hoping that Ren still wanted me.  But, I had lost my nerve and now all I wanted to do was go back home, take off my stupidly tight shirt and jeans and crawl into bed.

I turned and ran straight into a hard wall of flesh.  A big hand wrapped around my arm and steadied me.

“You okay?”

“Yeah.  Thanks, Asher.”  I smiled at the welder.  “You can’t seem to get away from me lately, can you?”

He just shrugged.  His gaze landed briefly on my tits before he stared at my face again.  “You here for the karaoke?”

“God, no.  I can’t sing.  I was just, uh, I thought I would have a drink, but all the tables are full so… I’m just gonna go.”

“You can sit with us.”  Asher took my arm and led me through the crowded bar.  Thanks to his size, people naturally moved out of his way and it took less than a minute before we were at his table.  Knox Jameson was sitting at the table and he grinned at me as Asher pulled out a chair for me to sit down.

I sank into it as Knox leaned forward.  “Hey there.  I’m Knox.  You’re the librarian, right?”

“Yes.  I’m Rachel.”

“Nice to meet you, Rachel.” He held out his hand and I shook it.  Unlike Asher, his gaze lingered on my breasts and I self-consciously crossed my arms over my chest.  Ren wouldn’t like other men staring at them.  They belonged to him and –

Shit, what was wrong with me?  I abruptly dropped my arms.  My boobs didn’t belong to Ren.  Telling him that in the heat of passion was one thing, but to just start believing it … I was going crazy.  I had to be, right?

“Can I get you guys another round or… Rach?”

I smiled at my best friend.  “Hi, Mads.  How are you?”

She leaned down, the apron around her waist jingling with change, and kissed my cheek.  “Hi, sweetie.  I’m good.  What are you doing here tonight?”

I shrugged.  “Just thought I would stop in and say hi to you.”

“Isn’t that sweet.”  She pressed her mouth against my ear.  “Ren is here, but in his office.  Want me to take you back there?”

“No,” I said a little too quickly.  “No, I just stopped in for a drink and to say hi to you.”

“Oh.”  She straightened and studied my body.  “Your tits look great tonight.”

“Madison!”  I gave Asher and Knox an embarrassed look.

Knox finished the last of his beer before grinning at me.  “She’s not wrong.”

Madison laughed and grabbed his and Asher’s empty beer bottles.  “You guys want another?”

“Sure do, gorgeous.  What are you doing after work?”  Knox gave her a sexy, smile.

“Going home to my man,” Madison said with a grin.  “I’ll bring you a glass of wine, Rach.”

She walked away, and I tugged self-consciously at my shirt as Knox turned his attention to me.  “Guess I’ll just have to set my sights on a sweet little bookworm.”

“Knock it off,” Asher grunted to him.

Knox ignored him.  “So, what do you like to do for fun, Rachel?”

My answer was drowned out by a loud cheer from the audience.  I glanced toward the small dance floor where the karaoke was set up.  Luna Davis was picking up the microphone and she blushed as the crowd cheered again.

“Is she good?” I asked Knox.

He nodded as Madison returned with two more beers and a glass of wine.  Before I could reach for my wallet, Asher handed her some bills.  “Her glass is on me.”

“Thanks, Asher.”  I took a sip of wine as Madison glanced over at Luna.

“Oh good, Luna’s gonna sing.  She’s fucking amazing.  Hell, I think half the people in here show up every Wednesday night just to hear her.”

She suddenly scowled and waved to someone in the crowd before muttering, “Yeah, yeah.  I know you’re waiting for your beer, Henry.  Keep your damn pants on.  I gotta go.  Later, Rach.”

“Bye, Mads.”

She left, and Knox leaned forward.  “What are you going to sing, Rachel?”

I laughed.  “Nothing.  I’d clear the place out as soon as I…”

My voice died as the music started and Luna began to sing.  I stared wide-eyed at the petite redhead before turning to Knox.  “Holy shit.  She’s so good.”

“She is.”  Knox took another swig of beer.

“She could be a professional.  Don’t you think, Asher?”  I turned to the welder when he didn’t reply.  He was staring at Luna, his big hand gripping his beer bottle and his body ramrod straight.

“Asher?”

He jerked and turned toward me.  The lust in his gaze took my damn breath away.  He made a short nod before immediately turning back to Luna.  It was like he couldn’t look away and honestly, I could understand why.  Her singing voice was powerful and velvety-smooth, and I had no idea that a voice that big could come out of a woman that small. 

I stared at Asher again as Luna’s voice floated across the dead-silent bar.  He wanted her, it was more than obvious, and I wondered why he had been so cold to her in the coffee shop this morning. 

Luna finished her song and there was a moment of silence before the crowd erupted into loud cheers, whistles and catcalls.  Luna blushed and said a soft ‘thank you’ into the microphone before walking back to her table.  I winced when she tripped over her own feet and did a face plant into the floor.  Asher jumped to his feet and took a few steps forward, but Madison and the other bartender, Peter, had already helped Luna to her feet.  I could see blood trickling from her bottom lip and she shook her head when Madison said something to her.  She pulled a tissue from her pocket and pressed it against her mouth before patting Madison’s arm and returning to her chair.

I took another sip of wine as Asher sat back down and drank half of his beer in three big swallows.  I had no idea why Asher wasn’t going after Luna when it was so obvious he wanted her, but who was I to judge?  I wanted Ren but here I sat, too chicken to go to his office and talk to him.  I took another drink of wine.  God, I was an idiot.

Chapter Five

Ren

“Hey, Ren?”

I glanced up from my computer. “What’s up, Madison?”

“I’m going to be taking my break soon and Peter wanted to know if you can cover the bar when he takes his break?  It’s really busy tonight and he doesn’t want to leave Mike alone.”

“Wednesdays always are.  Tell Pete I’ll be out in five.”

“Okay.”

She lingered in the doorway of my office and I raised my eyebrows at her.  “What?”

“Nothing.”  A cheeky grin crossed her face.  “Just thought you might want to know that Rachel’s here and she’s sitting with Asher Stokes and Knox Jameson.”

She closed my door, but I was already on my feet and crossing the small office.  What the hell was Rachel doing here?  It was a goddamn Wednesday.

I yanked open my office door and stormed down the hallway and into the bar.  It was crowded with people and normally that made me happy, but tonight?  Tonight I was pissed that I couldn’t find Rachel in the crowds.  I started searching the tables one-by-one as the sound of a dying goose came to my left.  I studied the dance floor, grimacing at the blonde woman who was standing next to the karaoke machine and murdering an Adele song.

I turned back to the tables, my eyes narrowing when I saw Rachel leave her table and head toward the bathrooms.  She was wearing tight jeans and a shirt that… shit, it was so tight I could see the outline of the lace on her bra beneath it.  My nostrils flared.  I don’t know what the hell was going on with my sweet Rachel, but her new habit of wearing clothing that showed off her magnificent tits was going to be the goddamn death of me.

She disappeared into the bathroom and I waited a few minutes, trying to cool my lust and my jealousy.  When I thought I had it under control, I turned my attention to the two men sitting at her table.  Anger immediately swallowed me whole and I made my way to their table, my hands already in fists and my muscles vibrating with rage.

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing, asshole?”

Knox nearly spit out his beer as Asher gave me a cool look.  “Nice to see you again, Ren.”

I leaned down until my face was only inches from his.  “I told you to stay away from her.  She belongs to me.”

“And I told you I wasn’t after your woman.  Now get your face out of mine.”

I refused to move as Knox said, “Ren, you idiot.  Walk away before Ash turns you to mincemeat.”

“If you go anywhere near her, I’ll -”

“Walk. Away.”  Asher’s voice was calm, but I could hear the anger simmering beneath it.  It amped mine up and I was getting ready to do something truly stupid when I heard Rachel’s soft voice.

“Ren?  What are you doing?”

I straightened and held out my hand.  “Come with me.”

To my relief, she didn’t argue, just took my hand in her small one.  I walked her across the bar and out the door.

“Ren?  Where are we going?”

I didn’t reply as I searched the parking lot for her car.  When I found it, I walked briskly toward it, as Rachel hurried along beside me.

She pulled her hand from mine when I stopped next to her car and gave me a confused look.  “What are you doing?”

“Get in your car and go home, Rachel.”

She glared at me.  “No.”

“Yes.”

“You’re not my damn boss, Ren Parker.  I’m going back to Asher and Knox and -”

I pulled her into my arms, my hand cupping the back of her neck as I scowled down at her.  “You stay away from the both of them.  You belong to me and I don’t want you anywhere near that manwhore Knox Jameson.”

“I don’t belong to you.  I’m a person, not a -”

Hearing her say she didn’t belong to me sent jealousy rocketing through my body.  I kissed her on the mouth, stopping her protests.  She returned my kiss and didn’t object when I shoved my tongue deep into her mouth.

I kissed her until I was desperate for oxygen.  I pulled away, both of us gasping for air, as she stared wide-eyed at me.

I cupped her face and rubbed my thumb along her bottom lip.  “You belong to me.  Say it.”

“I belong to you,” she whispered.

“That’s right.  Now, get in your car and go home.”

“I don’t want to.  We need to talk about -”

I squeezed her ass and nipped her bottom lip.  “Go home, strip down to your panties and wait for me in your bedroom.”

“I – what?”

“Go home, take off everything but your panties and wait for me in your bedroom.  I’ll be there in an hour.  I want you to lie on your bed and think about how good it’s going to feel when I fuck you, Rachel.”

“Ren,” she moaned as I squeezed her ass again and then nuzzled her neck.

“Go home, Rachel.  Go home and think about me kissing you, touching you, fucking you.  I want you wet when I get there, but don’t touch your sweet pussy.  That’s for my fingers only.  Do you understand?”

“Yes.”

“Good.”  I touched her hair that was piled on top of her head in its usual bun. “I want your hair down when I get there.”

“O-okay.”

I kissed her once more, palming her ass through her jeans and pressing my erection against her so she could see what she fucking did to me.  “Be careful driving home.”

“I will.”

“That’s my good girl.  I’ll see you in an hour.”

* * *

Ren

Rachel’s house was small and cozy.  She had left the front door unlocked for me and despite never being in her house before, it took me less than a minute to find her bedroom.  I eased open the door and my dick immediately hardened.  In the dim glow of the lamp next to the bed, Rachel looked like a goddess.  She was wearing just a pair of pink panties and she was lying on the bed, staring at the ceiling.  I sat down on the bed beside her and studied her gorgeous body.  Her nipples were hard points and her breathing was short and shallow.  She continued to stare at the ceiling, but I could see the nervousness etched into her face.

“Sweetheart -”

“I don’t have any condoms.  I thought I did, but they’re expired because I was waiting for…”

Her cheeks turned pink.  She still wouldn’t look at me and she made a nervous gasp when I rested my hand on her abdomen.

“Look at me, sweetheart.”

She pressed her lips together before turning her head.  Her dark eyes were wide with anxiety and I rubbed her warm skin.  “Waiting for what, Rachel?”

She took a deep breath.  “You.  I wanted you to be my first.”

A smug grin crossed my face.  I knew it made me look like a total dickhead, but I couldn’t help it. 

The flush on her cheeks was moving down her throat and over her chest.  “Stop looking so smug.”

I stripped off my t-shirt and relaxed on my side next to her.  I traced tiny circles between her breasts as she made a low moan.  “Did you do what I asked, sweetheart?  Did you think about me fucking you?  Are you wet for me now?”

Her gaze skittered away from mine.  “I wanted to. I mean, I tried to, but I got anxious about the condom thing and I didn’t know if I should text you, but then I didn’t have your number anyway.  And I was afraid if I told you I didn’t have condoms, you wouldn’t come over and I really wanted you to come over.  But I’m an idiot because it’s not like we’re going to have sex without a condom, and now I’ve messed everything up again and I’m going to be a virgin for the rest of my fucking life!”

She dragged in a breath and before she could say anything else, I leaned over and kissed her.  I pushed my tongue into her mouth, flicking at hers as I threaded my fingers into her long, soft hair.  When I pulled back, she was breathless, and the anxiety had disappeared from her gaze.

“Better?”  I petted her long hair and pressed a kiss against her forehead.

“Yes.”

“Good.”  I traced her collarbone with the tips of my fingers.  “I have condoms, sweetheart.”

“Oh thank God.”

The relief in her voice made me smile.  I took her hand and linked my fingers with hers.  “Are you on the pill, Rachel?”

“Yeah.  My period is pretty bad if I’m not so I… uh, sorry, that’s not something you want to know.”

She was wrong.  I wanted to know everything about her.

She bit her lip.  “Anyway, I am, but if you have condoms, what does it matter?”

I let go of her hand and reached into my back pocket for my phone.  She watched with confusion as I tapped something into my phone before turning the screen toward her.  “Look at this.”

She studied the screen, her forehead wrinkling in a truly adorable way.  “Is that – are these your medical records?”

I nodded, and she gave me another look of confusion.  “Why do you have these in your phone?”

“Because I want to fuck you without a condom, sweetheart.  I want nothing between us for your first time.  I want to feel the warmth and wetness of your pussy around my bare cock, so I want you to see that I’m clean.  But, if you’re still not comfortable with that, then I’ll use a condom.”

She stared at me for a moment before plucking my phone from my grip.  She scrolled across the screen, reading my records with the careful concentration of a lawyer going over a contract.  I couldn’t stop my grin and she flushed a little when she finally gave me my phone back.

“What?”

“Nothing.  I just love how carefully you read it.”

“It’s important to know your boyfriend’s past sexual history.  A girl has to protect her body from…oh God, I didn’t mean boyfriend, I meant a random guy that you have sex with.  Wait… not that you’re just a random guy.  You’re, um -”

I kissed her again and I could almost feel her relief at the way I’d stopped the flow of words.  She returned my kisses with eagerness and I cupped her bare breast, loving the softness of her skin.  I flicked her nipple with my thumb and she gasped into my mouth before arching her back.

I pulled back and she pouted at me.  “Please, Ren.”

“Soon.  We haven’t finished our conversation.  Will you let me take you bare, sweetheart?”

“Yes.”  There was no hesitation in her voice and the last of my well-hidden anxiety disappeared.

“I’m gonna make you feel so good, Rach,” I whispered into her ear as I cupped her breast again.  I sucked on her earlobe.  “Let’s get naked, what do you say?”

Her soft laugh turned into a moan when I pulled on her hard nipple.  “Yes.  Yes, naked is a very good idea.”

Chapter Six

Rachel

I watched with barely-concealed eagerness as Ren sat up on the side of the bed.  The muscles in his back flexed as he took off his socks and I wanted to touch his warm, hard skin. 

So, touch him then.

I sat up and ran my fingers down his spine.  He made a low groan and I moved to my knees behind him and pressed my breasts against his back before kissing his shoulder.  I licked my way to his neck and nipped his rough skin as I slid my arms around him and rubbed his flat abdomen. 

I sucked on his earlobe and ran my hands up to his broad chest, touching the coarse hair that covered it.  My long hair was everywhere, brushing against his body and getting in my face.  I reached for the hair elastic that sat on my nightstand, but Ren took my hand and shook his head.

“No.  Keep your hair down for me.”

He reached up and took a lock of my hair, rubbing it through his fingers.  “It’s so soft, so beautiful.”

“Thank you,” I whispered.  I ran my right hand down toward the waistband of his jeans but when I tried to cup his dick through the denim, he caught my hand again and pulled it away.

“I’m sorry.”  Dull embarrassment coated my apology.

“Don’t be sorry.  If you touch me, I’m gonna explode all over your hand.”

I giggled a bit nervously and he squeezed my hand before standing.  He turned and shook his head when I went to cover my naked breasts.  “No, sweetheart.  Don’t be shy.  You’re beautiful.”

I lowered my arms and watched the need in his eyes flare.  It made my nipples harden into painful buds and my pussy wet.  I squeezed my legs together, for once not thinking about the chunkiness of my thighs.  The way Ren looked at me, the obvious bulge of his erection against his jeans, made me feel as beautiful as he said I was.

He was undoing his jeans, and I watched with a mixture of anticipation and trepidation, as he pushed them and his briefs down his muscular thighs.  His cock popped free and my anxiety kicked it up a notch.  It looked huge to me, huge and almost angry with the head of it a dark red and a bead of precum at the tip.

He smiled at me as he removed his clothing.  “Nervous?”

“A little.  I’m worried it’s going to hurt and I’m not great with pain.  I did a lot of horseback riding as a teenager so I’m pretty sure that I don’t, like, have a hymen left or anything, so I doubt I’ll bleed, but I’m still…”

Rachel.  Stop talking.  Please.

“Oh God, sorry.” I gave him an embarrassed look.

“For what?”

“I’m babbling.”

“I don’t mind.”  He stepped closer and stroked my hair.  “I’ll take my time, sweetheart.”

“Will you?”

He nodded.  “I’ve waited three years, I can wait a little longer.”

My jaw dropped as he moved closer.  With me on my knees on the bed and him standing, we were the same height.  His hard chest pressed against my breasts and I could feel his dick brushing against my lower belly.  He gathered my hair in his hands and smoothed it down my back.

“Three years,” I whispered.  “You’ve wanted me for three years?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

He slid one arm around my waist and pulled me up tight against him.  “Why?  Because you’re beautiful, because you’re sexy, because you were meant for me.”

“Why did you wait so long?  You knew I had a crush on you.”

He cupped my breast and ran his thumb over my nipple.  “Enough questions for now, sweetheart.”

He kissed me and cupped and kneaded my breasts until hard beats of lust pulsed through my body.  I rubbed against him, made soft mewing noises into his mouth, and clutched at his waist as I forgot my nervousness.  God, I wanted him so much.

When his hand slid into my panties, I spread my legs eagerly, ready for the pleasure he would give me.  He didn’t disappoint.  His rough fingers parted my swollen pussy lips and rubbed against my clit.  He dipped his head and sucked on my nipple as I arched my back and begged for more.

I was already on the edge, and to my relief, he didn’t tease.  Instead he rubbed my clit with firm and steady pressure as he sucked and licked my nipples.  I writhed against him, my fingers digging into his broad back as he brought me to the edge of my climax and pushed me over with a hard tug of my clit.  I moaned and shook against him, the pleasure flooding through my entire body as Ren pushed two fingers deep into my pussy.  I squeezed around him and he groaned before kissing me hard again.

“I need to fuck you,” he whispered against my mouth.

“Yes,” I said.  “Please, Ren.  I’ve waited so long.”

He pulled his fingers out of my pussy and pushed my panties down to my knees.  “On your back, sweetheart.”

I moved to my back and Ren pulled my panties off my legs and dropped them on the floor.  He knelt in front of me and pushed on my knees.  “Open for me.”

The pleasure of my orgasm was fading, and my anxiety was returning.  What if it really hurt?  I wasn’t lying when I told Ren I wasn’t great with pain.  It was embarrassing, but I’d always been a total wimp.  What if I started crying?  Worse, what if I screamed or told him to stop and he didn’t, or he got angry and -”

“Sweetheart.”

Ren’s low voice broke through my frantic inner babbling, and I stared at him as he rubbed the outside of my thighs.  “Trust me.”

I studied him for a moment longer before spreading my thighs wide.  I did trust Ren, trusted that he would do everything he could to make it good for me.

He stroked my inner thighs before leaning down and kissing me.  His cock rubbed against my pussy, but I didn’t feel any anxiety, just a powerful desire for him.  He reached between us and rubbed my pussy before showing me the moisture on his fingers.

“Look how wet you are for me,” he said in a low voice.  “You’re ready for me, sweetheart.”

“Yes,” I whispered as he propped himself above me on one hand and used the other to guide his cock to my entrance.  He pressed the head against me before resting his other hand next to my head.

I closed my eyes as he pushed the head of his cock into me.  He stopped and brushed a kiss against my mouth.

“Rachel.”  His voice was hoarse, on the edge of his control.  “Open your eyes, sweetheart.”

I did what he asked and stared up at him.

“That’s my good girl.  I want you to look at me while I make you mine.  Can you do that?”

“Yes, Ren.”  I clutched at his narrow waist and stared into his eyes as he pushed steadily into my body.  The cords in his neck stood out and I could see a vein throbbing at his temple, but he kept the same slow pace.  To my surprise there was no pain, just an uncomfortable feeling of fullness.  Even that seemed to dissipate as he pushed deeper, and my inner walls stretched around his invading cock.

“Good, sweetheart?”  He groaned.

“Yes,” I whispered, “don’t stop.”

He made another low groan and pushed until his pelvis was pressing against mine.  I was completely impaled on his thick cock and he raised a shaking hand and cupped my face for a moment.  “Now you really do belong to me.” 

“I belong to you,” I whispered.  I meant it.  Every part of me screamed that I was Ren’s and always would be. 

He leaned down and rested his forehead against mine, his warm breath washing over me.  “I have to move.  Are you okay?”

“Yes.  It feels good.”

I’d barely gotten the words out before Ren was moving in and out of me with long, deep strokes.  I stared up at him and didn’t object when he grasped my leg under the knee and lifted it.  He sunk even deeper and I felt a brief flare of pain that quickly disappeared.  His strokes were turning faster and harder.  I wanted to try and match his rhythm, but it was too erratic and he was beginning to thrust so hard that I was bouncing a little on the bed.

I watched his face, fascinated by the way his head was beginning to twist and turn, the way he was starting to pant and moan.  My body was doing this to him.  My body was making him lose control, and I couldn’t stop the smug sense of pleasure I got from it. 

“Fuck,” he muttered.  “Oh fuck, I’m gonna cum.”

I lifted my head and licked his neck, and he groaned loudly and thrust hard and fast before his entire body stiffened.  He threw his head back and cried my name as I felt new wetness flood my pussy.  He shook and pushed in and out for another few strokes before collapsing against me.  He buried his face in my neck and I hugged him tight.  He kissed my skin before rolling off of me.  I laid on my back and stared up at the ceiling.

I was no longer a virgin.  I reached between my legs and touched my pussy, felt Ren’s cum dripping out of me as a small smile crossed my face.

Ren leaned over me.  “You okay, sweetheart?”

I nodded, and he gave me an oddly anxious look.  “You sure?”

“Yes.  It didn’t hurt.”

“Good.”  He kissed me and pulled me closer, nuzzling my neck as his hand stroked from my breasts to my pussy.  “Tired?”

“Yeah.  I haven’t slept well since Friday night.  Are you leaving now?”

“Do you want me to?”

“No.”

“Good.”  He cupped my breast and we laid in silence for a while before he said, “Are you asleep yet?”

I laughed.  “No.  I’m tired but I’m also a little, I don’t know…”

He studied me.  “Do you regret fucking me?”

“God, no.  It was amazing.  Really.  Do you – was it okay for you?”

“Sweetheart, it was better than okay.  It was incredible and well worth the wait.  Your little pussy is so tight, I barely lasted five minutes.”

“I didn’t mind,” I said.  “Of course, I guess I don’t really have anything to compare it to so…”

“Well,” he leaned down and sucked at my nipple until it was hard and fresh need was blooming in my belly, “I guess we need to remedy that.”

His hand slipped between my legs and rubbed at my clit and I moaned and clutched at his arm.  “You want me again?”

“Sweetheart, I never stop wanting you.”

I studied his face before pressing a kiss against his mouth.  “Mads was right.  You are sweet.  The sweetest man I’ve ever met.”

He grinned at me.  “Let me show you just how sweet I can be, Rachel.”

“Yes, Ren.”

* * *

“Rachel, wake up.”

I grumbled and tried to pull the covers over my head when Ren shook my shoulder.  “Go away.”

He laughed.  “Not a morning person.  Good to know.  Get up, sweetheart.”

“Why?”

“Because it’s eight-thirty and you’re going to be late for work.”

I yawned and stretched before cuddling up against Ren.  “I don’t work until noon today.”

“Shit.  I woke you up for nothing.”

“That’s okay.  I can think of something to do until I have to go to work.” I reached under the covers and stroked Ren’s dick.  He hardened immediately, and I pouted at him when he pulled my hand away.

“What’s wrong?  Do you have to go to work?”

He shook his head.  “No, not until later this afternoon.”

“Then we have plenty of time for sex.”  I didn’t understand his hesitancy.  We’d had sex three times last night and from what I’d heard from Madison, guys loved morning sex.

“No, sweetheart.”

My heart dropped into my stomach.  Shit, was he tired of me already?

He must have seen the sick look on my face because he cupped my face and pressed a kiss against my mouth.  “Only because you’re too sore.  Not because I don’t want you.”

“I’m not sore,” I protested as Ren climbed out of the bed and walked naked toward my master bathroom.  “Ren, I’m not sore.”

“You will be as soon as you start moving around,” he said.  “I’m going to run you a bath.  Stay in bed.”

I relaxed in bed, both a little miffed that he wouldn’t fuck me again and happy that he was being so sweet to me.  He returned in less than fifteen minutes and pulled the covers back.  “C’mon, sweetheart.  Climb into the bath while I make us some breakfast.”

I slid out of bed and started toward the bathroom.  I winced and stumbled, and Ren slipped his arm around my waist.  Shit.  He was right.  I was sore.  At least my thigh muscles were anyway.  My pussy felt a little sore, but it was my legs that were yelling in outrage.  God, I needed to work out more.

“You okay?”

“Fine,” I said grumpily.  “I’m not sore.”

He laughed.  “Then why are you limping?”

“I have some mild discomfort in my thighs, and I believe I mentioned to you last night that I was a wimp.”

He laughed again, and I grinned at him when he kissed the tip of my nose.  “I added some Epsom salts to your bath.  Climb in, little wimp, and soak away your aches and pains.”

* * *

“Are you sure you got enough to eat?”

I grinned at Ren before opening the dishwasher and sticking my empty bowl into it.  “Plenty.  The oatmeal, pancakes, fruit and toast are about ten times the amount I normally eat for breakfast.”

“Breakfast is the most important meal of the day.”  He cleared the table, handing me each dish to put in the dishwasher before rinsing the dishcloth and wiping down the table.

“You made breakfast, I should be doing the clean-up,” I protested.

“I don’t mind.”  He joined me at the counter, rinsing the cloth again and hanging it neatly over the sink.

He had gotten dressed before breakfast, but I had thrown on my nightgown after my bath.  I’d deliberately not worn a bra or panties in the hopes of convincing Ren to fuck me one more time.  My thighs were still a little sore, but I didn’t care.  Just being around Ren made me horny, and I wanted more of what only he could give me.

“I should probably get going.  You have to be at work in an hour and a half.”  Ren was studying me, and I wondered if I was imagining his ask-me-to-stay look.

I decided there was only one way to find out.

I stepped closer, relieved when Ren automatically put his arms around my waist, and nuzzled his neck.  “I have a better idea.  Why don’t you come to the bedroom and I’ll say thank you for running me a bath and making me breakfast.”

One big hand slid under my nightgown and squeezed my bare ass.  “I don’t want to make you late for work.”

“You won’t.”  I licked his throat, enjoying the way his breath hissed out and the feel of his hardening dick against my stomach.  “Don’t you want to know how I’ll say thank you?”

He grinned at me before dipping his head and kissing me.  I moaned when his tongue invaded my mouth and sucked at it as he rubbed me against his erection.

“Does it involve your hot little mouth?”  He whispered against my lips.

“It might.”  I licked his bottom lip and then sucked on it.  God, Ren was turning me into a sex addict.  “If, you know, you want me to, um, please you orally?

Oh.My.God.

Ren’s laugh sent both lust and embarrassment through me. 

“Oh shit.  That was the least sexiest way to offer a blow job ever, wasn’t it?”

“Sweetheart, just about everything you say turns me on, but we could maybe work on your dirty talk.”

“I’m sorry.  I’m really bad at this.”

“You’re not.”  He bent his head and kissed a trail down my throat before licking along my collarbone.  “You just need practice.  Repeat after me.”

I squeaked when his other hand cupped my breast through my nightgown and his fingers played with my nipple.  I could feel my pussy getting wet as I let me head fall back so Ren could kiss my throat again.  He was talking, but I couldn’t hear past the rapid pounding of my heartbeat.

He pinched my nipple and I squealed loudly.

“Pay attention, sweetheart.”

“I’m trying.  Stop playing with my nipple so I can concentrate.”

He laughed and tugged on my nipple again.  “Focus, sweetheart and repeat after me.”  He bent his head and his voice was muffled against my throat.  In between soft nips and licks, he said, “I want your cock in my mouth, Ren.”

I turned bright red but whispered, “I want your cock in my mouth, Ren.”

“Louder.”

I cleared my throat and tried again.  “I want your cock in my mouth, Ren.”

He cupped and kneaded my breast until I was moaning and arching my back.  He pushed one thigh between my legs and I shamelessly rubbed my bare pussy against him.  “Good girl.  Try this one – Please let me suck your extra-large cock, Ren.”

I dissolved into giggles and poked him in the back.  “Seriously?”

He winked at me before kissing me.  “Fine.  Please let me suck your cock, Ren.”

“Please let me suck your cock, Ren.”

“I need you to be louder, sweetheart.”  He tried for a disapproving tone but didn’t stop me from humping his thigh.  He kissed my neck and exposed upper chest again as he teased my nipple through the soft cotton of my nightgown.

Fuck.  The feel of his hands, the rough fabric of his jeans against my clit had me suddenly, achingly close to an orgasm.

“Ren,” I gasped.  “Ren, I…”

“Say it, sweetheart.”  One big hand pressed against my lower back, holding me still.  I whined my disappointment and he nipped my throat.  “Say it, and then I’ll let you rub your little pussy on my leg until you cum.  That’s what you really want, isn’t it?  You want to cum all over my thigh?  Mark me with your sweet cream?”

“Yes,” I moaned.  “Yes, I want that.”

“Then tell me what I want to hear.”

“Please let me suck your cock, Ren.”

The relentless pressure of his hand on my back didn’t let up.  Feeling delirious with need – I had been so fucking close – I almost shouted it the second time.  “Please let me suck your cock, Ren.  Please!  Please let me -”

“Rachel!”

I screamed, my body jerking against Ren’s.  He pushed me behind him as he swung around to face the person who had shouted my name.  His body stiffened, and he muttered, “fuck” under his breath.

I peered around him, my jaw dropping open.  “Mom?  What the fuck are you doing here?”

Her eyebrows almost disappeared into her hairline.  “You watch your filthy mouth, young lady.”

“I’ve told you a million times that you can’t just walk into my house unannounced.”  My embarrassment and – I’ll admit it – anger at being interrupted, was making my usual tone with my mother harsh and resentful.

“Of course I can, I’m your mother.  What are you doing with him?”  She studied Ren and when her gaze fell on the bulge at his crotch and the wet spot on the thigh of his jeans, her mouth drew down in repulsion.  “Tell me you did not let him have his disgusting way with you, Rachel Eugene Banks.”

Her casual dismissal of my rule and the way she spoke about and looked at Ren, fired my anger into something uncontrollable.  Unstoppable.

“Get out,” I snarled.  “Get out of my house right now.”

Ren’s hand took mine and I gripped it tightly, grateful for his silent support.  “Give me your key and leave.  Immediately.”

My mother’s mouth dropped open.  “No.  Not until you hear what I have to say.”

“I’m done listening to you.  I’m done letting you tell me what to do or what to say or how to act.  This is my life and who I sleep with – no, who I fuck is none of your business.  I don’t care what you say or how you feel about Ren.  I love him and I -”

“He’s a convict!”

I stared wide-eyed at my mother.  “What?”

“He’s a convict, Rachel.  That’s why I’m here – to warn you.  He’s been in prison and I am not allowing my only child to be with someone like him.  He’s not good enough for you.”

Ren dropped my hand and I turned to him.  The look of shame on his face made me want to cry, but when I tried to touch him, he twisted away.

“Ren?  Is it true?”

“Of course it’s true,” my mother snapped.

I ignored her and took another step toward Ren.  He backed away and my heart twisted in my chest.  “Ren, say something.’

“It’s true.”  The words fell from his mouth like bricks.  “It’s true, Rachel.”

I stared dumbfoundedly at him and he grabbed his jacket from the chair.  He walked toward the door, ignoring my mother when she skittered out of the doorway and into the kitchen and gave him a look of fear.

“Ren!”

He paused in the doorway and gave me another brief, shame-filled glance that broke my heart.  “I’m sorry.”

He walked out of the kitchen and a few seconds later the front door slammed.  I slumped against the counter, staring blankly at the floor.  Ren had been in prison.  The quiet, sweet man I was in love with had been in prison.

I guess I should have felt disgust, maybe.  Or was it anger or hurt I was supposed to be feeling?  Ren had lied to me about –

No, he didn’t lie.  You never specifically asked him if he’d been in prison.  You’ve barely asked him anything.  Too busy using him for your own needs, weren’t you?  You’re in love with him, but you can’t even take the time to have one damn conversation with him?  You’re just panting after him like a bitch in heat.

I winced, but my inner voice wasn’t wrong about any of it. 

Still, shouldn’t I have been angry with him for keeping something like that from me?

Maybe.  But instead all I felt was sorrow and an ache in the pit of my stomach.  The way Ren had looked, ashamed and sad and guilty, made me feel awful.  It ate a hole into my stomach and I wanted to comfort him, to assure him that it didn’t matter to me what his past was.

I took a deep breath as the truth of it hit me.  It really didn’t matter.  I didn’t care what Ren had done or why he’d been in prison.  I would ask him and if he wanted to tell me then fine.  If he didn’t, I wouldn’t push him about it.  All that mattered to me was who he was now.  A good, sweet man who didn’t love me the way I loved him but made me feel loved anyway.

“I can’t believe you thought your own mother would lie to you.  You’ve always been too naïve and trusting.  You think I smother you, but you need me, Rachel.”

I blinked at my mother.  I had almost forgotten she was there, even though she hadn’t shut up since Ren left.

“I just knew if I left you to your own devices, you would screw this up.  I can’t believe you were having relations with that man.  Do you have any idea what you’ve done, Rachel?  When word gets out that you slept with him, a bartender and a convict, my reputation will be destroyed in this town.”

“His name is Ren and I love him.”

My mother gaped at me.  “Stop it.  Stop being so difficult.  Now, go and wash his filth off, and then you and I are going to see Father McRoy.  You’re going to confess all of your disgusting -”

“I’m not going anywhere with you, let alone to the church we haven’t set foot in since Dad left fifteen years ago.”

My mother paled.  “Don’t you talk about him.”

“He left, Mom.  He left the both of us and it’s time you get over it and stop interfering in my life.  I know you’re lonely, I know you’re angry, but you need to figure out how to fix yourself and stop trying to fix me.”

I walked toward her and cupped her arms, squeezing gently.  “It’s not your fault that Dad left, okay?  Stop beating yourself up about it and -”

My mother yanked away from me and gave me a disdainful look.  “Of course it’s not my fault.  It’s yours.  You were a terrible baby and an awful child, and all of my attention went to you.  Your father cheated on me because I was too busy with you.  If you’d been a good baby, a well-behaved child, then your father would never have left me.  I would have had more time to see to his needs.  I’ve been alone the last fifteen years because of you, Rachel.”

For the second time in less than fifteen minutes, I was struck silent.  I knew my mother had never gotten over my father leaving us, but I’d had no idea she blamed me.  She was right – I was a naïve little fool.

“You hate me.”  My voice was dull and heavy.  “All these years, you’ve actually hated me.”

“Don’t be ridiculous.  I’ve never hated you.”

“But you don’t love me.”  I stared up at her, my stomach churning when I saw the answer in her eyes.

She looked away.  “Get dressed.  We’re going to church and you’re -”

“Stop, Mom.”  My voice was gentle and low.  “Just stop.”

She studied me for a moment and when she opened her mouth, I shook my head.  “We’re done.”

“What do you mean?”

“I love you, I do, but I can’t do this anymore.  I need you to leave and not contact me again.”

“You don’t mean that.”

“I do.”

Her gaze narrowed.  “You ungrateful little bitch.  All that I’ve done for you, all that I’ve given up for you, you’re going to just tell me that I don’t have the right to see you.”

I nodded.  “Yes.  For now.  Maybe in a few months -”

“Months?”

“Maybe in a few months, we’ll talk again.  But right now, we both need space.  Don’t call me, don’t text me, don’t come and see me.  I won’t let you into the house.”

“You’re abandoning your own mother for a man?  A worthless -”

“Don’t.  Don’t call Ren worthless.”  My voice was harsh, and my mother chewed at her bottom lip before giving me a smoking look of hatred.

“You’re no better than your father.  I guess the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, does it?  You’re leaving me just like he did for nothing more than a bit of-of dirty, filthy sex.”

I didn’t say anything.  I couldn’t say anything.  The venom and anger spewing from my mother had rendered me silent and I just wanted her to leave.

I wanted to be free.

“He’s a convict, Rachel!  You can’t possibly want to be with someone like that.”

“How did you find out?”  I asked.  “Did you hire someone to dig into his past or did you do the dirty work yourself?”

“All you have to do is Google his name, Rachel!  He’s a bad person and -”

“He’s not.  He’s a good man and I love him.  I won’t apologize for that.”

“He doesn’t love you.  You’re not pretty enough for a man like him.  He’s used to thin girls with pretty faces.”

For the first time in my life, her jabs about my looks didn’t bother me.  I may not have been thin, I may not have had a pretty face, but Ren wanted me.  He wanted me, and he thought I was beautiful.  There was no doubt in my mind about that.

“Fine,” my mother suddenly spat.  “I’ll do what you’re asking, but I hope you’re prepared to come crawling back to me on your knees when that awful bartender breaks your heart.  When he tells you you’re fat and ugly and stupid.  When he -”

“He won’t say that to me,” I said.  “You’re the only one who tells me I’m fat and ugly and stupid.”

Her face flushed, and she straightened her shoulders before marching toward the kitchen door.

“Mom?”

She turned, her face already triumphant and smug.

“The key.  Give it back.”

She hesitated, and I sighed.  “I’ll just change the locks.”

She dug in her purse and pulled out the key, throwing it on the floor in a fit of temper.  “You’re going to regret this decision.”

“Good-bye, Mom.”

Chapter Seven

Ren

“You need to slow down.”

I glared at Jack and deliberately tipped the shot of whiskey down my throat.  It burned its way down my esophagus before joining the first two shots in my stomach.

He rolled his eyes and put his feet up on my worn coffee table before taking a drink of beer.  “Don’t give me that look.  Tell me what’s wrong.”

“Nothing.”

“Bullshit.  You’re supposed to be at work but you’re home, sitting in the dark and getting drunk.”

“I just wanted a night off.  What’s the big deal?”

“You never just take a night off.  Stop being a dick and tell me what the fuck is wrong.”

“How did you even know I was home and not at work?”

“Jesus, the whiskey is making you stupid.”  Jack took another drink of beer.  “Lily and I stopped in at the bar for a drink.  You weren’t there, I got worried.”

“Now who’s the bullshitter?”  I stared at the whiskey bottle, contemplating whether I should pour myself another shot.

“Fine.  That waitress, the one who’s fucking Jacob Marken, what’s her name again?”

“Madison.”

“Right.  She told me you and Rachel had a fight, and you didn’t come in to work.”

“I’m firing her for telling you that.”

Jack laughed.  “Yeah, right.  You’re so fucking soft-hearted, it makes me cringe.  How the fuck we’re even friends, I’ll never know.”

“You are an asshole.”

“Don’t I know it.” Jack raised his beer to me.  “But I’m the asshole who’s always had your back, so tell me what the fuck you fought with Rachel about.  And Jesus, have you even fucked her yet? Tell me you have or I’m taking your goddamn man card away.”

“We were together last night,” I admitted.

“So, what?  Your little pecker wasn’t enough for her and she got pissed?”  He gave me a good-spirited grin.  “Don’t feel bad.  Not everyone can have a monster dick like ‘ole Jack.”

He grabbed his crotch and despite how miserable I was, I couldn’t help but grin.  “You’re such an asshole.”

“Yep.”

I stared at the bottle of whiskey again.  “It was good.  Really good, you know?  She might have been a virgin, but she was so…she was incredible.”

Fuck, I sounded like an idiot, but I didn’t know how else to explain it.  After the third round of sex, Rachel had fallen sound asleep, but I had stayed awake like a love-struck fool and just stared at her.  I was falling for her, and falling goddam hard, and I had no idea how to stop it.

I didn’t want to stop it.

I wanted Rachel.  I loved Rachel.

I cleared my throat.  “Anyway, it was really good and the next morning I ran her a bath and cooked her breakfast and -”

Jack laughed and held out his beer bottle to me again.  “Pussy-whipped already.”

I glared at him, but he gave me another good-natured grin. “Hey, welcome to the club.  The other day, I fucking went clothes shopping with Lily.  Held her goddamn purse and everything.”

I laughed, and Jack shrugged.  “It feels good to do something for the woman you love.  Doesn’t it?”

I nodded.  “I love her, Jack.  I do.”

“Yeah, that’s been fucking obvious for the last three years.  So, what happened?”

“Her mother stopped by and told her I’d been in prison.”

“Shit.  How the fuck did she find out?”

I shrugged.  “I’m sure it wasn’t difficult.  There were articles in the newspaper and online about it.  The cops had been trying to bust Tony for a long time, so it was a big deal when they did.”

“You were pretty low down on the chain,” Jack said.  “For fuck’s sake, you only did four years.”

“Yeah, but I’m sure my name was mentioned in at least one article.”  I reached for the bottle of whiskey and poured a shot.  I stared at the amber liquid.  “Anyway, Rachel’s mother found out I was an ex-convict and she told Rachel.”

“What did Rachel say?”

“She wanted to know if it was true and I said yes.”

“Then what?”

“I left.”

“What?”

“I left.”  I studied Jack over the shot of whiskey. 

“Why?”

“What do you mean, why?  You really think Rachel’s gonna want to be with me after this?  The look on her face…”

“What about it?”

“She was shocked and upset.”

“Angry?”

I just shrugged.  Truthfully, I had no idea if she’d been angry or not.  My own anger at Rachel’s mother, my shame at Rachel finding out what a fuck-up I was, had made my memory of Rachel’s reaction a little fuzzy.

Or maybe that was the whiskey.

The doorbell rang as I lifted the shot to my lips.  Jack glanced at my front door.  “Expecting someone?”

I shook my head.  “Ignore it.”

“You don’t need that shot,” Jack said as he stood up.

Maybe I didn’t need it but I sure as fuck wanted it.  “Don’t answer it,” I said when the doorbell rang again.

Jack flipped me the bird and crossed the room to the door.  I pressed the glass to my lips and then spit whiskey all over the coffee table when Jack opened the door and I saw Rachel’s sweet face.  I wiped my mouth, jumping to my feet, as Jack grinned at her.

“Hey, Rachel.”

“Um, hi.”  She gave him a nervous look.  “You’re, uh, Jack, right?”

“That’s right.”

“I was looking for Ren.  Is he home?”

“He’s right here.  Come on in.”  Jack stepped back and grinned at me.  I swallowed as Rachel stepped into my house.  I had the immediate urge to pick her up and carry her directly to my bedroom.  How many times had I fantasized about this moment?  About having her in my bed, her scent in my sheets?

My cock hardened, and I wiped my mouth again as Rachel gave me a small smile.

“Hi, Ren.”

“Hey.”

She chewed on her bottom lip before glancing at Jack.  “I just stopped in to, um… that is, if you’re busy…”

“He’s not.  I was just leaving.”  Jack opened the door and before I could stop him, he was gone.

“Um, hi,” Rachel said.  She stared at my small living room.  “I like your place.”

“It’s not as nice as your place.”

“No, it’s nice.  Really nice.” 

I just shrugged and stared at the puddle of whiskey on my coffee table.  “You want something to drink?”

“No thank you.”

“Why aren’t you at work?”

“I worked until six and then asked Barb if I could leave early.  Why aren’t you at work?  Madison texted me and said you didn’t come in.”

“I didn’t feel like going in,” I said.

“May I sit down?”

I shrugged again.  “If you want.”

I expected her to sit in the armchair.  When she joined me on the small couch, sitting right next to me, the heat of her thigh against mine made me panic.  I tried to move away, and she put one hand on my thigh.

I groaned, I couldn’t help it.  Just being near her had me so fucking horny, I couldn’t think straight.

“Ren, look at me.”

I didn’t want to, but I forced my gaze to hers.  There was heat in it and my balls tightened when her hand rose higher on my thigh.  “Do you know why I’m here?”

I shook my head.  I was mesmerized by the curve of her lower lip, the tip of her tongue as it darted out to wet the upper one.

“I’m here because I never did get to thank you for making me breakfast this morning.  I’m here to suck your cock.”

“What?”  My voice was full of hoarse disbelief.  “What did you say?”

She smiled, showing her even white teeth before wetting her lower lip this time.  “Please let me suck your cock, Ren.”

Her soft hand covered my crotch and I hissed out a breath when she rubbed my erection.  She leaned in to kiss me and I pulled away, grabbing her hand and yanking it off my dick.  “Stop.”

“You don’t want me anymore?”

I hated the hurt I could hear in her voice. “No.  God, no, that’s not it.”

“Then what’s the problem?”

I stared at her in disbelief.  What the hell was happening?

“Let me suck your cock, Ren,” she repeated.  My cock surged against my jeans and I winced at the pressure.

“What are you doing, Rachel?”

“I think I’ve made it perfectly clear.”

“We can’t.”

“Why not?”

“Because!”

“Because, why?”

Her voice was relentless.  Just like her hand sliding up toward my cock.

“Rachel, please.”

Something in my voice must have upset her, because she pulled her hand away and crossed her arms over her torso as she blinked back tears.  “I’m sorry about what happened with my mother.  I took back her key so that won’t happen again.  If you would give me another chance, I swear we won’t keep getting interrupted by her.  In fact, I’m not even talking -”

“Rach,” I took her arms and gave her a gentle shake, “this has nothing to do with your mother interrupting us and everything to do with the fact that I’m an ex-convict.”

“Oh thank God,” she said.

I blinked at her.  “Thank God?”

“I thought you were rejecting me because we keep getting interrupted by my mother, like I’m a stupid teenage girl, not because of the convict thing.”

“The convict thing?  Rachel, I was in prison.  Do you understand that?”

“Yes.”  She gave me a miffed look.  “I’m not an idiot, Ren.”

“You shouldn’t be here.”

“Why?  Because you’re an ex-convict?”

“Yes!”

She rolled her eyes.  “I don’t care about your past.”

“What?”

I knew my mouth had dropped open and I shut it with a snap when Rachel giggled and said, “Close your mouth, Ren, you’re gonna catch flies.”

She took my hand and squeezed it.  “That’s something my Dad used to say.  Honestly, I don’t remember him very well anymore.  I was eight when he left, but my mother burned all of his pictures and my memories of him have grown increasingly fuzzy over the years.  It makes me feel bad, you know?  That I can’t even remember his face.  Sometimes I remember the sound of his voice, but even that’s fading.”

She gave me a sad smile.  “I don’t care what my mother says, it isn’t my fault.”

“What isn’t your fault?”

“It doesn’t matter.  Just like your past doesn’t matter.”

She took my hands and tugged on them. “Come on.  Take me to your bedroom.”

“Rach, no, I can’t.”

“Can’t or won’t?”

“I’m not good enough for you.”

“Bullshit.”  She squeezed my hands again.  “You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me, Ren Parker, and I’m not letting you go this easy.  I don’t care that you’ve been in prison.  Do you care that I stole a tube of mascara from the Walgreens when I was fifteen?”

“It’s not the same.”

She just shrugged and now it was my turn to squeeze her hands.  “Don’t you even want to know what I did, or did your mother tell you?”

“She didn’t tell me.  She tried to, and I wouldn’t let her.”

“Why?”

“Because it isn’t any of my business.”

I studied her for a moment.  “I want you to know.”

“Then tell me,” she said simply.

I tried to pull my hands away and she shook her head.  “No.  Don’t pull away already.  Just tell me, honey.”

I took a deep breath and stared at her sweet face.  “I was raised by my aunt and uncle.  My mother was a single mom, and she got into drugs and died of an overdose when I was ten.  Her sister took me in, but her husband was a drunk.  He beat my aunt, my cousin, and me whenever he got drunk, which was often.”

“Oh honey.”  She leaned forward and hugged me before I could stop her.

I wrapped my arms around her and buried my face in her throat as she stroked my back.  After a few minutes, we broke apart but when she leaned against me, I didn’t stop her.  Her hair was braided, and I touched the thick plait as she wrapped her arm around my waist and rested her cheek against my chest.

“I ran away when I was sixteen.  Three weeks later, my uncle was drunk and downstairs in the basement.  My aunt and my cousin were upstairs in bed.  My uncle passed out while smoking and the house caught on fire.  They all died.”

“I’m so sorry,” she said again.

I kissed the top of her head.  “I lived on the streets until I was nineteen and got arrested for grand theft auto.”

She lifted her head and stared at me.  Feeling sick to my stomach, I said, “I was working for this guy named Tony, jacking cars and bringing them back to his shop.  I knew it was wrong, but I needed the money, and there was a part of me that didn’t care.  I was… angry and bitter at the world.”

“I’m not surprised,” she said before squeezing me.  “You didn’t have a good life, Ren.”

“Anyway, Tony ran the biggest car jacking ring in the city and the cops had been after him for a while.  Eventually, his time ran out and he, as well as a bunch of his employees, myself included, were arrested.  Because I was only nineteen, the judge was lenient.  I got four to seven years with the chance of parole.”

She petted my chest through my shirt.  “How horrible was it in prison?”

“It wasn’t great, but I got my GED while I was in there and stayed out of trouble.  After four years, I was granted parole.  My parole officer was, well, he was actually a pretty good guy, and he helped me out a lot.  He found me a place to stay and was okay with it when I got a job as a bouncer at a bar.  A lot of parole officers don’t like that shit.  They want you to get a job in an office or at a fucking car dealership or something.  Anyway, the owner of the bar liked me and after about three months, he stuck me behind the bar and taught me how to be a bartender.”

“Do you like being a bartender?”  She asked.

“I do.  I like owning my own bar.  Anyway, after a year, I wanted a fresh start, wanted to get out of the city, you know?  So, I talked to my parole officer and got his permission to move.  I moved here and worked construction for a few years before Jack helped me get the loan to open my bar.”

“Are you still on parole?”

I shook my head.  “No, it’s done.  Rach, I never did anything violent.  I swear.  I got in a few fights here and there, but I -”

She sat up and cupped my face.  “You’re a good man, Ren Parker.  That’s more than obvious.  I’m not afraid of you and I know you’re not violent.  You’re the sweetest man I know.”

“What about your mother?”

“I’m not talking to her anymore.”

“I can’t be the person who comes between you and your mom.  I won’t -”

“You’re not.  I don’t want to go into detail right now, but I promise to give you the whole sordid story soon,” she said.  “My Mom is…well, let’s just say I’m cutting her out of my life for me, not you.”

“Are you sure?”

“God, yes.”  She gave me a mock look of annoyance.  “It’s not all about you, Ren Parker.  I have my own baggage, you know.”

I smiled a little before sobering.  “I’m not good enough for you.”

Her forehead wrinkled, and her hands squeezed my face.  “Say that again to me and I swear I’ll make you eat my pussy a thousand times before I suck your dick once.”

I laughed, I couldn’t help it, and she beamed at me before standing up.  “C’mon, handsome.  Let’s go to your bedroom.”

“Rachel, we should talk some more.”

“No, we’ve done enough talking for now.  Come to your bedroom and let me suck your dick, Ren.”

I hesitated a moment longer and she tugged on my hands.  “Do I need to get on my knees and beg?”

A slow grin crossed my face.  “If you’re on your knees in front of me, sweetheart, your mouth will be too full to beg.”

“There you are.”  She gave me a cat-like look of satisfaction as I stood and took her hand.

* * *

“You are so fucking hot, sweetheart.  Do you have any idea how beautiful you are?”

I smoothed Rachel’s hair back as she stared up at me.  I had unbraided her hair after we had undressed, and I gathered her long tresses in one hand as I stared down at her.  Fuck.  Rachel, naked and on her knees with my cock in her mouth was the most beautiful goddamn thing I’d ever seen.

“Good, sweetheart.  Suck a little harder.”

She sucked harder, staring up at me as I tugged lightly on her hair to guide her back and forth over my dick.  She had admitted to me that she’d never had a cock in her mouth when we got to the bedroom, but goddamn, her enthusiasm for sucking my dick was overshadowing any of her awkward, not-quite-certain-what-to-do moves.

“That’s good, sweetheart.  Do you like sucking on my cock?”

She nodded, and I made a harsh groan, my hips thrusting forward when she hummed, and her lips vibrated around my aching dick.  I pulled back and she grinned up at me as I wiped away a mixture of my cum and her saliva from her chin.

“I read about doing that in a book.  Did it feel good?”

“So good.”  I hauled her up into a standing position and she pouted at me.

“Why are you making me stop?”

“I need to fuck you right now.”

“Okay.”  She gave me a thumbs-up and hopped onto the bed.

I laughed and stretched out next to her as she studied my dick.  “Can I try being on top?”

I nodded, and she straddled me a bit clumsily.  I groaned when she rubbed her soaking wet pussy against my dick.

She made an unladylike grunt that did nothing to lessen my hard-on for her as she tried to push her pussy onto my dick.  “Ren, help me.  I can’t get it in.”

I winked at her before patting one smooth thigh.  “Lift up a bit.”

She braced her hands on my chest and lifted her lower body.  I grabbed my cock and rubbed the head of it against her clit.

“Oh!  Oh my gosh.  Maybe you should just keep doing that,” she moaned.

I ignored her and guided my dick to her wet, hot hole.  As I pushed the head in, she made a happy little squeal and sank down, taking all of my cock in one hot push.

“Oh!”

“You okay?”  I gave her a worried look and she nodded.

“Yes, you’re just really thick.  I need a minute.”

I tucked my hands under my head and smiled up at her.  “Take all the time you need, sweetheart.”

She traced her fingers over my chest and I bucked a little into her when she pinched my nipple.

“Ooh, that’s nice,” she said.

She braced her hands against my chest again before moving up and down in a slow rhythm.  I began to thrust up in time with her movements and she moaned happily before cupping her own breasts and pinching her nipples.

“Fuck!”  My hands came out from under my head in a hurry and I gripped her hips before fucking her hard and rough.

She squealed and rode my rough movements, squeezing her thighs around my waist like I was a bucking bronco.

“Touch yourself.”  I demanded.

She wet her lips before reaching down and rubbing her clit a bit hesitantly.

“Don’t be shy, sweetheart,” I said.  “Touch it like you want it.”

She giggled but began to rub her clit in a hard circular motion.

“Good,” I said.  I watched her rub her clit as I fucked her, and when after only a few minutes, she began to moan and toss her head back and forth, I didn’t stop her from cumming.  Watching Rachel cum all over my cock was something I would never tire of.  Her moans grew louder, and she shouted my name as her climax rushed through her.  Her body stiffened, her pussy tightened exquisitely around my cock and then milked it with hard, rhythmic pulses as she came.

I cursed and thrust in and out, Rachel’s squeezing wet pussy drawing my own orgasm from me in a hard, roaring rush that took my breath away and made my entire body shake.  I arched into her again and again until I collapsed on the bed, panting harshly.

Rachel rested her head on my chest and I petted her hair as she rubbed my arm.  After a few moments, she eased off of me.  I missed her soft warmth almost immediately and I pulled her close as she snuggled against my side.

“So good,” she whispered.

“Hmm.”

“It’s good for you, right?”  She stared up at me and I kissed her forehead.

“Sweetheart, you have no idea.  I can’t get enough of you.”

“Good.”  She rested against me again.

After a while, I shifted beneath her and she raised her head.  She studied my face and touched my jaw.  “What’s wrong?”

“Why do you want to be with me?”

“Because I love you.”

I sucked in a hard breath.  She had said she loved me in her kitchen, but I didn’t know if she had meant it or was just saying it to piss her mother off.

“Why do you look so surprised?”  She asked.  “I know you heard me say it earlier.”

“I didn’t know if you meant it.”

“Of course I meant it.  I wouldn’t say it if I didn’t.  I know you’re not there yet, and I’m not trying to freak you out or anything, I promise.  I just wanted you to know that I love you.”

“I love you too.”

She sat up and stared at me.  “Did you just say you loved me?”

“Yes.”

“For real?”

“Yes.”

“Like, you’re in love with me, want to be with me, will let me fuck you whenever I want to, love?”

“Yes, yes, and…yes.”

She laughed.  “I knew it.”

“You did not.”

“Did too.  You’re an open book when it comes to your feelings and I, Sir, am a librarian.  I read books for a living.”

I burst into laughter before pulling her down on top of me and kissing her hard on the mouth.  “God, I love you.”

“I love you too, Ren Parker.”

* * *

Please enjoy an excerpt of “The Welder”, Book Four in the Working Men Series.

The Welder is available for preorder HERE.

The Welder

(Book Four)

Working Men Series

Copyright © 2018 Ramona Gray

Luna

Now’s your chance, girl.  You have to tell him.

I wanted to ignore my inner voice as the big man approached the counter.  It was strange to see him in the coffee shop at this time.  He always stopped by in the morning, and when I didn’t see him this morning, I had resigned myself to the fact that I wouldn’t see him at all today.

But now, just five minutes before my shift ended, he was walking through the doors.  He was wearing his usual t-shirt and jeans and I admired the broadness of his chest before peeking quickly at his crotch.  Not sure why I looked, but damn if I didn’t every time.  Apparently I was expecting, or maybe hoping, that he would just once have a noticeable woody.

Yeah, because he just can’t control his reaction to you.

I sighed.  Pretending that Asher Stokes was attracted to me was the stupidest thing ever, but damned if I hadn’t been pretending since high school.  He’d never shown a single lick of interest in me though, which made what I was about to tell him a thousand times harder.

You did it to yourself.  This is what you get for lying.

My inner voice wasn’t wrong but, man, did it have to sound so judgmental?

Of course, I didn’t have to tell Asher anything.  I could just admit the truth to my sister when she came to town in minus three days and counting. 

I could look her in the eye and say, “Lydia, I’ve been lying to you for the last eight months.  I am not, in fact, dating Asher Stokes.”

It sounded simple enough in my head, but my entire body cringed at the thought.  The look she would give me, the smug smile, the “Oh, Luna, I knew it all along.  If Asher didn’t want me, he’d never want you.”

She probably wasn’t wrong, but that didn’t mean I wanted to hear it.  I had spent my entire life living in my sister’s shadow, and it had felt so good to finally have something she’d always wanted, but never had.

The fact that it was one giant whopper of a lie that was three days and four hours away from unravelling around me, was small details.  Right?

The giant was standing in front of me now and my body started shaking, just like it always did when he was close.  Not from fear.  Oh no.  Even though he could have crushed me easily with one ham-sized hand, I’d never felt any fear around him. 

Bone-rattling, vein-throbbing, body-shaking, lust? 

Yeah, that I was familiar with.

“Hi, Asher.  Your usual?”  My voice was high-pitched.  I sounded like fucking Minnie Mouse.  Great.

“Hey.  Yeah, the usual.”

“Coming right up!”

His brows drew down and he studied me thoughtfully as he pulled a few bills from his wallet.

Oh fuck.  I was screwing this up royally.

Then don’t talk to him.  Just admit to your sister what you did and be done with it.

“No!”

“I’m sorry?”  Asher gave me another confused look as he held the bills out to me.

Oh God, I’d said it out loud.  I smoothed my shaking hands over my apron, wishing I hadn’t spilled that Frappuccino all over it after lunch.

“Um, nothing,” I said.  I took his money and rang it through before handing him back his change.  My fingers brushed against his rough palm and my shaking increased tenfold.  God, I needed to get control of my own damn body.

I turned away and poured his coffee, venti dark roast, and brought it to the other end of the counter where the man of my fucking dreams was waiting.  I’d left more room than I normally did but I’d had no choice with the way my body was vibrating.  As it was, I still spilled a bit of the hot liquid on his hand when I set the coffee down.

He made a soft hiss and I dabbed at his hand with my fingertips, trying to, I dunno, soak up the hot liquid with my own flesh because that made perfect sense.

“Oh God, I’m so sorry.  Are you okay?”

“Fine.”

I grabbed his hand and studied the top of it.  “Do you need a bandage?  We have a first-aid kit in the back and it has stuff for burns.”

He yanked his hand away.  “It’s fine.  I get burned all the time.”

I blinked at him.  “Oh, uh, right.  Sorry.”

Fuck, I was an idiot.  The man did welding for a living and his hands showed it.  They were marked with small scars from burns that would have hurt a lot worse than some hot coffee.

“Bye.”  He picked up his coffee and turned away.

Shit, he was leaving.  I had to do something, say something – “Asher?”

He turned around and studied me silently.

“Um, do you have a few minutes to talk?  I’m off, uh, now actually, and there’s something I wanted to discuss with you.”

I waited for him to say no, waited for him to make the decision for me about whether I was humiliated in front of my sister or humiliated in front of the man I’d wanted for most of my life.

“Okay.”

“I’m sorry?”  I blinked up at him, certain I had misheard him.  Okay sounded like no in some languages, right?

“I said okay.”  He repeated himself like I was slow and, honestly, I couldn’t blame him.

“Oh, great.  Okay, I just need ten minutes.  Do you mind waiting while I cash out?”

He shook his head and I stumbled back from the counter.  “Okay.  Great.  Okay, I’ll be right back.  Don’t go anywhere!”  I laughed like a drunk donkey having a stroke, and then tripped over the box of coffee that someone – me, it was me – had left by the counter.  I landed hard on my ass and popped back up immediately as my coworker Jeff rolled his eyes and kept on walking.

I resisted the urge to rub my butt as Asher stared at me.  “Sorry.  I’ll, uh, be right back.”

* * *

The Welder (Working Men Series Book Four) is available for preorder HERE.

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Books by Ramona Gray:

Individual Books

The Escort

Saving Jax

The Assistant

One Night

Sharing Del

Other World Series

The Vampire’s Kiss (Book One)

The Vampire’s Love (Book Two)

The Shifter’s Mate (Book Three)

Rescued By The Wolf (Book Four)

Claiming Quinn (Book Five)

Choosing Rose (Book Six)

Undeniable Series

Undeniably His

Undeniably Hers

Undeniably Theirs

Working Men Series

The Mechanic

The Carpenter

The Bartender

The Welder

The Electrician

The Landscaper