Best Man with Benefits Page 5

  “Ha, well, in my dreams it is. You throwing yourself at me, me pleasing you.”

  My pussy throbbed. I put down my slice, picked up a napkin, and dabbed my lips. “Stop,” I said. “You’re not helping. It’s difficult to not hate you and not want you.”

  “Right?” Jacob laughed. “I’m serious, Chloe. I know you. Or I did. You were that girl who had her head in the clouds. You’re a creative. It fuels you or some shit. I remember you writing songs and practicing your singing, and whenever you did, you were happy. Tonight, you weren’t happy.”

  “I told you, it’s because I haven’t made it.”

  “Charlie told me you were close,” Jacob said.

  “He said that?” That was nice to hear. Charlie had harped on me endlessly about getting a stable job. Picking a career. Doing anything other than singing.

  “Yeah. He mentioned you were working on a big project.”

  “I was,” I said, and my stomach sank. “But not anymore.”

  Jacob let the unspoken question linger between us.

  “I was dating a guy.”

  “Always a good way to annoy me, starting with that. I remember that jackass who took you to prom, what was his name?”

  “Mike,” I said, chuckling.

  “Yeah, you wore red and he tried to fuck you and then I saw red.”

  I picked up my pizza again, gobbled it down to avoid the conversation.

  “So, this guy you dated. What were you going to tell me about him?” Jacob asked, scrunching up one eye and pointing at me.

  “He screwed me.”

  “That’s what I wanted to hear.” He pulled a face.

  “Oh god, not like that,” I said and choked on my pizza. The humor was refreshing. I hadn’t laughed at myself or much of anything, not fully, in a while. “He’s an EDM producer, and he wanted me on a track. I did vocals for it, for the experience, you know, and he used them. Anyway, that song got super popular.”

  “That’s great,” Jacob said.

  “He didn’t credit me. I don’t get any royalties from it. He broke up with me shortly after he published it. I’m an idiot, in summation, a total idiot. You see why I can’t trust my attraction to you, right?” The last sentence was a means of softening it for myself.

  I didn’t want to see pity on his face.

  And there was none. Jacob’s lips thinned, his jaw clenched. “Motherfucker.”

  “It is what it is.”

  “No, that’s not how business works. You should have signed a contract, or fuck, you should let me speak to this asshole. I’ll beat some sense into him.” Jacob dropped his slice into the box. He was ready to jump up, march from the room, and find my ex. “What’s his name?”

  “Jacob, chill. There’s nothing you can do. It’s over.”

  “What’s his name?” Jacob asked.

  “Don’t worry about it.”

  “Does Charlie know about this?”

  “No. And he doesn’t need to know. Really, it’s fine, Jacob. I’m fine.” I sighed. This was the last thing I needed and the reason I hadn’t told Charlie. He was protective over me and refused to believe that I could handle my shit. “I can deal with this on my own.”

  Jacob licked his lips and leaned back again, but his eyes were narrowed, and the anger was doubtlessly still there. It was kinda nice, kinda annoying. “All right,” he said. “Still want to know his name, though.”

  “Deezerdorf.”

  “Bless you,” Jacob replied.

  “No, I mean, his name is Deezerdorf. That’s his EDM name.”

  “Jesus H. Christ. He sounds like a true hero,” Jacob replied.

  “I know. His real name is Ned.”

  “And continuing on with the hero theme…”

  I rolled my eyes and ate the rest of my slice in silence, thinking it over. The fact that it had been easy to tell him, to laugh about it here, after I’d spent weeks regretting ever having met the guy, was crazy. Jacob comforted me without even trying. It wasn’t right. It wasn’t fair, either.

  “You sure you don’t want me to pay this Deezdwarf a visit?” Jacob asked.

  I laughed. “No, it’s over. It’s done. There’s not much I can do about it.”

  “Take him to court.”

  “No.” Taking him to court would mean relying on my parents’ money. I didn’t want the help. I would prove that I could do this on my own. They had given me nothing, practically disowned me when I’d started out, and I, the idiot, had signed an NDA with my ex. “Can we talk about something else?”

  “Sure.” Jacob lifted the pizza box off the floor between us and placed it on the crystal-topped coffee table. “What do you want to talk about?”

  I grabbed my purse off the sofa and unclipped it, reached inside, and withdrew my cell phone. “It’s past eleven. I should probably get back to my room.”

  “Stay a little longer.”

  “Are you asking me or telling me?” I put the phone back in my purse. No calls, no notifications—that was normal for me. The only person who’d call me was Kathy, and she had a big play on this weekend.

  Jacob tapped his nose. “Asking.”

  “All right,” I said. “I’ll stay. But first, tell me what’s new with you. Last time we spoke, you were still wearing leather jackets and riding motorcycles around.”

  “Yeah, unfortunately.” Jacob’s expression shifted. “I made my mistakes.”

  “What kind of mistakes?”

  “You want to talk about that now?”

  “Hey, man, you were the one who got all deep with the conversation.” And that was the territory I’d wanted to avoid. Deep with Jacob would lead to sympathy or understanding. It was easier to hate him.

  “True.” Jacob cleared his throat. “Surely Charlie has told you what I do for a living?”

  “Uh, no? No offense, but we’re not exactly hanging around chatting about you whenever we get the opportunity.”

  “I’m insulted.” He pressed a hand to his chest. “Here I was thinking I was something special.”

  “So?” I asked. “What is it that you do? Who are you, really, Jacob?”

  “Well, Oprah, I’m a billionaire philanthropist.” He put on a rich, cheesy voice. “Nah, I don’t do anything special. I make drones.”

  “You make drones?”

  “Yeah. For industries that need them. It’s quite fulfilling, and I get to fly them from time to time, too.”

  “That’s actually cool,” I said. “Not something I envisioned for you.”

  Jacob smiled.

  “Do you have any cool contracts? Like stuff for the government?”

  “Nope.” Jacob got up and brushed off his clothes. “You’re right, though, Chloe. It’s getting late. Better if we call it a night now, before it’s too late.”

  “Too late?”

  “I don’t want to do something we’ll both regret.”

  I didn’t have to ask what. He offered me a hand, and I accepted it, allowed him to pull me to my feet. I stopped myself from stumbling into him, barely. “You’re right. I should go.” I walked for the door, but he was hot on my heels. I paused. “So, what are we going to do?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “We can’t go through the next week hating each other. Or…the other thing.”

  “Fucking?”

  “Yeah,” I managed, and my heart skipped a beat. Even that word from him was a temptation. “That one.”

  Jacob opened the door, and I exited. I stopped for final goodnight, but he’d already shut the door behind himself. “I’ll walk you to your room,” he said and glanced up and down the hall.

  “Uh, I’m fine,” I said. “It’s just next door.”

  “I want to.” Jacob placed his hand on the small of my back, and we walked down the hall together.

  I fumbled my keycard out of my purse and swiped it through the slot. My door clicked open. “Thanks for tonight,” I said. “It was nice. Not what I expected.”

  “Why? What did you expect?�
��

  “I’m not sure. Just not this.” A brief silence, a shifting of my feet in their heels. “So, we’ll be civil until the wedding is over.”

  “Yeah,” he said. “And keep our distance from each other.”

  “Totally.” But neither of us moved.

  And Jacob’s eyes had transformed into those endless pools again. A muscle twitched in his jaw. “Sure.”

  “Yeah.”

  We remained in place.

  “So, have a good night then. Thanks for the pizza,” I said.

  “Yeah. Thanks.”

  I opened my arms. “Hug it out?”

  Jacob dragged me into his arms instead, wrapped them around me and squeezed, gently. “Hug it out,” he said, in my ear.

  “Yeah.” I craned my neck and kissed him on the cheek, inhaling the scent of his skin. “Thanks again.”

  “And thank you.” He kissed my cheek too, his breath brushing against my ear.

  I shivered and turned my head, seeking him, his lips. “Jacob.”

  Nine

  Jacob

  She was mine for the taking.

  Chloe’s lips drew closer to mine, and I held our position for a minute, a low growl in my throat. She wanted this as badly as I did.

  Memories of our first time rose, and I held them at bay. Held my desire back.

  Christ, not that it was possible now. My dick ached to be inside her again.

  “Jacob,” she whispered.

  And that was it. All I could handle.

  I took her lips with mine, looped my arms around her waist and lifted her. We crashed through her room door and into the suite.

  Chloe’s fingers tugged at my shirt, worked over my buttons, grasping, desperate.

  I kicked the door shut behind us.

  Her bag thudded to the carpet. My shoes were off, the straps of her dress dragged over her skin. My shirt was ripped free next, my pants, her bra, until finally, fucking finally, we were naked in front of each other.

  “Oh god,” Chloe said, her throat closing around the words so they didn’t quite make it out properly. “Oh my god, Jacob.”

  I needed this minute to admire her. To remember, to appreciate the differences.

  She’d aged beautifully.

  A woman’s body, curving at the hips and up to the waist. Meaty thighs, full breasts, and a strip of pubic hair tracking a path over her pussy’s hood. Her face was open, the desire she’d hidden from me raging across it now, eyes glinting, her pouty lips parted, breaths rushing in and out of them.

  “Come here,” I said and opened my arms. “Now.”

  She walked over to me, and my cock throbbed, dripped for her. Christ, even her walk was sexy. Not overpronounced, but perfectly feminine. Her breasts bounced, nipples puckering, and she stopped within arms’ reach.

  There was the briefest glimmer of hesitation or fear. I couldn’t quite place it, but it needed to be quashed.

  She had to know how bad I wanted her, and how fully I was about to make her mine.

  I pulled her against my chest and kissed her so hard she let out a squeak. I stole her breath, tasted her tongue, worked my fingers to her breasts and played with them.

  Chloe gasped and scraped nails down my back, arching into me, greedy with her kisses, desperate for more. “Yes,” she whispered. “Please. Fuck me, Jacob. Right now. Please.”

  “Condom,” I grunted and snatched up my pants. I brought out my wallet, extracted one, then ripped it open and slipped it on.

  She watched me. “Isn’t that too tight for you?”

  My dick was red, the latex glistening against it. “Too bad. I need you, now.” I slipped a hand under the backs of her knees and hoisted her into the air, carried her to the bed, and then dropped her onto it.

  Chloe laughed, breathily, then struggled backward, until her head rested on one of the pillows.

  “You ready for me?” I asked.

  She nodded.

  “Open your legs and let me see, gorgeous.”

  She parted her thighs and flashed me a view of her wetness, her swollen pussy dripping for me.

  “Fuck, that’s good. Touch yourself. Play.”

  Chloe bit down on her bottom lip and did as I’d told her, slipping two fingers down to her pussy lips, then dragging them over her clit. She jerked and gasped. “Oh god.”

  “Good?”

  “Too good. It’s never this good.”

  “Say my name.”

  “I’ll come,” she whispered.

  “That’s what I want. Come for me. Say my name.”

  Chloe’s fingers circled her clit, dipped into her pussy for more lubrication, the moist suck of noise driving me wild. “Jacob,” she whispered.

  “Louder. Again.”

  “Jacob.” And it was a strangled cry now. She’d picked up the pace, frantic to make herself come, her pupils dilating as she stared at me. Her legs shook, thighs jiggling, breasts rising and falling. “Jacob. Oh my god. Oh my god. Jacob, I’m going to come.”

  “Come for me,” I said. “Come for me, baby.”

  Chloe’s eyelids fluttered open and closed, her feet planted, and she lifted off the bed slightly, giving me the perfect view of that pussy. She rocked into her orgasm, clenching around nothing—it should have been my dick.

  She lowered that sweet ass back to the bed, breathing hard. “Oh my god, that was good. That was…”

  “Haven’t even touched you yet.” I was on her in an instant, kissing her hot skin, from the throat to her breasts. I sucked one nipple into my mouth, then the other, working her delicious body beneath my hands, grinding my cock against her wetness.

  “I want you inside me,” she gasped. “Jacob, I can’t wait any longer.”

  “You’re going to come again.” I wanted her satisfied. She’d never forget this night. I slipped my tongue over her right nipple, then kissed a trail over her stomach and to her pussy.

  I parted her lips and admired how red she was. Gently, I blew on her clit.

  Chloe jerked and cried out, clawing at the pillow behind her head. “I’m sensitive.”

  “Good.” I dragged my tongue over her wetness, dipped it into her pussy hole, and drank her in. Goddamn, she tasted amazing, clean and ever-so-slightly savory. I tongue-fucked her roughly, and her fingers clamped down on my hair, tightened, and pulled.

  “So good. So good.”

  I swapped out my tongue for fingers inside her, then placed my mouth over her clit and suckled noisily.

  Chloe lost her mind. She cried out and kicked her legs, shuddering against me. A beat passed, and then her walls closed around my fingers, and she crashed through another orgasm. Satisfaction radiated through my chest. Now, she was ready for me. She was ready for us.

  I withdrew my fingers from her, kissed her clit one last time, then positioned myself over her. “Ready?”

  She couldn’t even reply. She’d lost her breath.

  “I need a yes, Chloe.”

  “Yes,” she whispered. “I’m ready.”

  I kissed her on the mouth, positioned my cock, and then slid into her, burying myself to the base. My eyes rolled back. The warmth of her, even through the condom, was too damn much.

  “Fuck, Chloe. Fucking—” I couldn’t get the words out. I had to go slow here, or I’d nut in a second. “Wrap your arms around me. Legs.”

  She drew me into her arms and kissed me. It was sloppy, wet, everything we needed right now, and I pumped myself inside her, going as slow as I could to lengthen this.

  “I want you to come,” Chloe whispered, against my lips. “I’m going to come if you do.”

  A moment of hesitation, and then… I pounded into her, lost myself in her scent, in the feeling of her pussy, and the fact that she was mine. All fucking mine. She always has been. Yours.

  The thought drove me over the edge. “Coming,” I growled.

  “Oh my god. Yes.” Chloe closed around me, tight.

  My mouth went slack, and the pleasure pressed through me. I tensed and
released, thickening inside her, taking all I could, giving too. I pumped my way through my climax, coming harder than I’d done in my entire fucking life.

  “Jacob,” Chloe whispered, in the throes of her third orgasm. “Jacob. Jacob.”

  My mind blanked out, my head dropped, and I inhaled the scent of her neck.

  We came down from the heights and settled against each other, breathless.

  I rolled onto my back then pulled her to me. Her head rested on my chest, her arm draped across my abs, but strangely light. She was tense. So was I. The sex should’ve removed that, but the frustration was still there.

  Our bodies cooled.

  The sweat dried.

  My thoughts wandered. We’d fucked again, we’d done the wrong thing, and it had been too good.

  “Well, that was…” Chloe trailed off.

  “Amazing.”

  “Ill-advised.”

  “A mistake,” I agreed.

  “Mind-blowing.” Chloe sat up, brushing her fingers over her arms. She got out of bed, walked to the armoire and opened it, then withdrew a fluffy robe and put it on, turning toward me as she tied the strings. “I only have one.”

  “One what?”

  “Robe.”

  “Shit, no problem. I should probably leave anyway,” I replied. “You need your sleep, and so do I. Probably not a good look for me to be seen coming out of your room.”

  “True. True.” She bobbed her head. “That was…”

  “Yeah.” I rose from the bed and strode over to her. I took her by the waist, marveling at how small she was beneath my hands, and drew her into my arms again. I pressed my lips to hers, taking one last chaste kiss.

  Chloe let out a tiny moan. “Jacob, if you don’t leave now…”

  “I’m going.” I walked through the suite and collected my clothes, then dressed fast. “I’ll see you in the morning. Brunch.”

  Chloe put up a smile, but her shoulders were tense. “Sure.”

  I let myself out of her room and made off down the hall for mine. The regret had started up. We’d done it again, but this time, I got the feeling that walking away wouldn’t be possible.

  Ten

  Jacob

  Brunch was a fucking nightmare.