Alex couldn’t help but smile then leaned over and licked her nipple softly. She trembled more and then shifted as he latched on and sucked softly. Her hand was suddenly on his head, and she ran her fingers through his hair.
“Alex,” she said groggily.
Alex sucked a bit harder before pulling away just long enough to ask, “What were you dreaming of?”
“Not sure.” He heard a muffled giggle just as he began to suck her nipple again and played with the other one with his fingers. “I’m pretty sure it was something naughty.”
“I knew it,” he said, sucking even harder and making her arch her back ever so slightly.
“And I’m pretty sure it was about you.”
He jerked his head up to see her smirking. In an instant, he was on his knees but refused to so much as crack a smile when she shrieked with laughter.
“I’m kidding!”
“You’re not funny, Z.”
“I thought it was funny.” She continued laughing, even as he pulled the sheet completely off her with a rough yank.
Normally, he liked torturing her slowly. It was as much a turn on to him as it was for her. Watching the faces she made, the utter pleasure she was getting from his torture, drove him fucking insane. But now he had other plans.
“You know what this means, right?” he asked easily, flipping her over and making her shriek even louder. He pulled her sweet little ass up in the air. “You know what it means, right, bad girl?”
“Yes!” she said, still laughing, then wiggled that beautiful ass for him. “And maybe that’s why I said it.”
Alex groaned, reaching over to his nightstand for a condom. Things like this happened so often between him and Valerie he’d gotten damn good at slipping a condom on in lightning speed. The second it was on he slammed into her with another groan.
He loved hearing Valerie cry out. While the buildup was his favorite, their spontaneous lovemaking was yet another one of the things he loved about their relationship. It was the only good thing about them arguing so often. Most times it went from heated accusations to tearing each other’s clothes off passionately, and Valerie was always game for it anywhere.
Alex stopped keeping track of the times he’d dropped her off at her dorm when she was still in school, and because her roommate was there, she’d jumped on his lap in the car and ride him right there in the dark parking lot.
He slapped her ass playfully as if he knew she enjoyed it, then squeezed it with a grunt as he dove into her deeper.
“Bad girl,” he said through his teeth, trying to hold off coming just yet, but it was building fast.
“Yes!” she said loudly, lifting her ass even higher for him. “I am bad girl.”
Damn this wasn’t helping. He slammed into her hard a few more times before burying himself in deeply for the last time with a loud groan. He let his head fall back as he held her waist firmly. “Ugh!”
All the energy drained out of him as it always did. Truth was, all kidding aside, her comment had pissed him off. Maybe if he knew for a fact she couldn’t possibly be serious, it wouldn’t have, but he didn’t.
They collapsed onto the bed next to each other, still catching their breath, and he knew it wouldn’t be long before she was out again. Next to eating and having wild passionate sex, sleeping was one of her favorite things to do. She always said she slept best after some good loving, and she wasn’t kidding.
A few minutes later, when he turned to ask if she was hungry, he almost laughed when he saw she was already dozing off. He turned on his side, resting his head on his fist, and gazed at her for a moment. This was another thing he did a lot. He loved staring at her delicate features: her long soft lashes, her cute little nose, and those lips he’d devoured so many times. Every time he stared at her in such a peaceful state, he had to wonder how someone so petite and sweet-looking could be so rambunctious and outspoken.
The photo he’d been admiring, the one of the two of them that first day he met her, was still lying next to her pillow. He frowned, remembering how that conversation where she explained about why she’d broken Reggie’s heart had started the long wild ride they’d been on ever since. That very conversation was why he couldn’t rule out that infuriating comments such as the one she’d made tonight weren’t actually just a joke. He squeezed his eyes as he thought back to that conversation again.
The day they met . . .
Tilting her head to the side playfully, Valerie bit into a strawberry as Alex squeezed his legs tightly. Watching her eat was decidedly one of the most entertaining things he’d ever done. He could probably do it for hours if it weren’t for the ache he was beginning to get in his pants.
“I don’t think I broke his heart,” Valerie said.
Alex shook his head. He knew this one for a fact. “He sat out during one of the most important games senior year because he fucked up his hand when he punched it through a window. And I heard his dumb ass did that because he got wasted after you dumped him.”
Valerie stared at him straight-faced. She didn’t look shocked, so she’d obviously heard the story. She just hadn’t expected Alex to know about it. Normally, Alex might not have remembered something like that in such detail, but for months before the incident, he’d seen several photos of Reggie with Valerie inside his gym locker door. It was just one of those well-known things on a high school campus. Reggie had been whipped as shit over Valerie. Reggie was one of their best running backs that year, and Alex remembered being worried when he heard they’d broken up that he wouldn’t bring his A game that Friday. So he’d been even more pissed to hear what the idiot had done. It was the only reason he remembered, but he was glad he did because now he was really curious.
As usual, Valerie seemed unfazed, but she did do a quick pout. “I didn’t mean to hurt him, but it was the honorable thing to do. If we’d stayed together, it would’ve been worse later.”
“Honorable?” Alex asked, confused.
“Yeah,” she said, spearing a slice of pineapple from her still-loaded plate. “I thought I was ready for the whole exclusive-relationship thing.” She shrugged, looking at him straight in the eyes again. “I was only seventeen. I was still having too much fun going out with my girlfriends and what not—being free. Heck, I still am. Having someone I needed to answer to and not just being able to come and go as I pleased got old really fast. It was suffocating, and I didn’t want to do him wrong, continuing on with him when I had a feeling”—she stopped and the side of her lip lifted in that cute way it did often—“okay, I knew if I stayed with him any longer I’d likely cheat on him. Maybe not sleep with anyone else, but even flirting with other guys or giving out my number or texting and stuff with someone I found interesting felt wrong when I was supposed to be with him exclusively.”
That little brow went up. So did that sweet little chin, the one Alex was already having visions of kissing his way down to her neck.
“Just so you know, I never cheated while I was with him.” Alex’s eyes followed her every movement as she lifted her sexy shoulder then dropped it and stabbed another piece fruit with her fork “The heavy, committed-relationship thing just isn’t for me, not now anyway. I have too many friends—girls and guys I like to do things with—and I don’t need anyone telling me who I can and can’t hang out with. Lying isn’t an option either. So I had to do the right thing and break up with him.”
In hindsight, Alex now felt stupid about how relieved he’d been that day to hear how she felt about exclusive relationships. He’d been so busy back then trying to keep up with his schoolwork and football the last thing he had was time to worry about dealing with a full-time girlfriend—one who would likely make demands on how much together time they had and would require him to give up all the quickies he had so much access to from eager cheerleaders and classmates in general. Hell, there was no shortage of them anywhere. A man, especially at that age, has needs but no time for anything complicated. So quickies, with no strings or hurt feelings
attached, sounded ideal.
He’d been an idiot to think he’d be fine with that kind of arrangement with Valerie. The first clue should’ve been how taken by her he’d been from the moment he met her. But she’d reiterated her philosophy about relationships often and even in recent months had made a comment about loving her freedom. Of course, she’d been drunk and pissed when she said it. Though he’d heard more than once that drunks don’t lie. He and Valerie had been playing this game for too long. Like tonight her actions spoke louder than words. She’d be as accepting of Alex being free to go out with other girls as he was accepting of so much as seeing her with someone else.
There was no doubt about it. Things had been changing between them for some time now As busy as his life still was—as much as he had going on—he welcomed the change. Seeing Valerie with someone else had always ended explosively or close to it. All those times she hadn’t even been doing anything more than what she’d been doing tonight at the party. But all it took was a few stupid retorts from the guys she happened to be hanging out with, and fists would start flying.
Of course, Valerie would be angry, and they’d argue heatedly. Not always but most of those times, the night would end just as heatedly but in a good way. It was how things had been for years, and they were used to it, but Alex didn’t think he could deal with the not knowing for sure anymore. He was fairly certain he’d made his unspoken claim on her loud and clear. Valerie was his—always had been—but he needed more now. It was time to grow up.
Much later, after Alex had pored through all the old photos of him and Valerie, he was still staring at the one he’d forgotten Sofie took of him and Valerie that first time he met her. They were sitting in that booth while they ate. Sofie often did that even now, take photos with her phone of customers and employees interacting so she could pin them up on the wall in the back room.
Valerie stretched, groaning a bit. “What time is it?”
Alex put the photos aside and snuggled up next to her. He slipped his arms around her naked body, holding her firmly in his arms and kissing her neck from behind. “Does it matter?” he murmured.
“Yeah, it matters,” she said. “It was already late when you showed up at the party. I have last-minute cramming to do tomorrow, and you have to work.”
“So what?” he said again, kissing the side of her neck. “Stay here. You can study while I’m at work. I’m only working half a day. I’ll bring you food, and we can hang out when I get home.”
Valerie turned to study him for a moment curiously, and Alex knew what she must be thinking. He rarely asked her to hang out for the whole weekend. He was always too damn busy. When it wasn’t one thing, it was another.
“My study material is at home.”
“So we’ll get it in the morning,” he said, feeling hopeful that she just might say yes, “but come back and wait for me here.”
With her brows slightly furrowed, the corner of her lip began to lift. “Why?”
“Because,” he whispered, kissing her softly, and he knew what he was about to say next would surprise her even more, but this was part of the change. He was initiating this right now because he was ready for this. “I don’t want you to leave. Stay with me . . . please?”
For a moment, she seemed speechless, and then she smiled so sweetly it warmed him, confirming this was absolutely the right decision. “Okay,” she said, smiling even bigger.
With a groan, he hugged her even tighter, and it was time for round three.
Chapter 3
Valerie
The weekend stay at Alex’s turned into five days straight. The only time she went back to her place was to get a change of clothes, but after going back Monday, Alex suggested she bring more than one change.
It felt too good to be true, so she wouldn’t say anything. But Alex was sending a clear-cut message. He wanted her here. He needed her as much as she needed him, and falling asleep and waking in each other’s arms day after day was such an amazing feeling. Neither had imagined how good it would feel. It was heaven, and just as Alex often said, Valerie couldn’t get enough of being with him.
In the past, he’d repeatedly said he wished she could stay but he had this or that going on. She heard the inflection in his voice and saw it in his face those times he’d apologize for having disappeared on her for days—sometimes weeks. There was more to it than he was telling her. As painful as it was to think about what he was likely doing and with whom all that time away from her, she refused to investigate further. She didn’t want confirmation. Even after all this time, she still wasn’t ready to walk away from him forever. It made her feel weak, but there was no denying it. For him, she was.
Absolutely weak.
She’d been weak for him from the very beginning. Even before she’d been formally introduced to him, he’d made her weak in the knees. All those times she’d walked by him in school or seen him at the football after parties, he was breathtaking. So finally meeting him and seeing the genuine interest he took in her so quickly was like a dream come true. She’d pulled off the miracle of all miracles by being able to keep her cool the first time they met.
That was the thing. It wasn’t nearly as hard as she’d thought it’d be. Alex made it so easy to talk to him. She’d heard through the grapevine that he and his brothers were sweethearts, but she always thought that meant sweet-talkers. She’d been blown away by how fun and easy to talk to he’d been. Not to mention how attentive he’d been from the moment she’d sat down across from him that first day at the restaurant. His interest in everything she had to say had been genuine.
All that being said, even then she’d known better than to expect anything more than a fling from a guy like Alex. Back then, it was more than she could’ve asked for. She didn’t dare allow herself to think he’d ever want more. Even if that first kiss had been beyond magical. She still remembered it as if it were yesterday.
Their first kiss . . .
They walked along the beach, chatting and laughing. Valerie could hardly believe that just earlier that day they’d been introduced for the first time. After having brunch and hanging out for hours with him at the restaurant, she’d gone home and changed, and he picked her up when he was done with his shift at Moreno’s.
Ironically, she’d teased him about what an easy job he had since he’d spent most of the two hours she’d spent with him there sitting and talking to her. “Exactly what are they paying you to do today?”
Alex had laughed, insisting that normally he’d be in the back, making sure everything was running smoothly and helping out with the service. But he did admit to slacking a bit that day then added that it was for a good reason.
As they strolled along the walkway at the beach, he slipped his hand in hers, and though it awakened the swarm of butterflies in her belly, it felt strangely . . . right. Despite having just met him that same day, it felt as if it was something they’d been doing for a long time.
Since he’d taken her out for sushi before their walk at the beach, Valerie was considering this an official date, even though neither had labeled it that. So she was fairly certain it would end with at least a peck—their first kiss. Even though she’d always fantasized about how amazing a kiss from Alex Moreno would be, she’d never imagined feeling what she had that day.
The beach was as crowded as expected for a beautiful early Sunday evening. The sun was just setting as Alex took a seat on the wall that separated the beach from the walkway. He hadn’t let go of Valerie’s hand, and he played with her fingers, scrutinizing the rings she wore.
He pointed at the one with the two entwined hearts and a tiny little diamond in the middle of each. “This looks romantic,” he said, glancing up at her.
“It is,” she admitted. “It’s a promise ring.”
He’d already asked her earlier if Reggie had been the only boyfriend she’d ever had, and she confirmed he had been. So she smirked, knowing what he must be thinking as both his brows lifted and he glanced down to t
ake a better look.
“You still wearing Luna’s ring, Z?”
She laughed because that morning at brunch they’d discussed football and such. She asked him why he often referred to his friends by their last names like Romero and some of the other guys mentioned during their conversation. He said Romero had just always been Romero but for the others it was a football thing. On the field, everyone went by the name on their jerseys, and it just stuck off the field.
When she’d told him her last name was Zuniga, he immediately said the clunkier names like hers that didn’t roll off your tongue in a quick shout were usually reduced. In her case, she’d be Z. She’d only been around him for a day, and already she’d picked up on him calling her Z when he was pretending to be agitated by her teasing.
But she wasn’t teasing this time. It was the truth. “No,” she said. “It’s my mom’s. This is the ring my dad gave her when they first started dating back in high school.”
Now he smirked as if he knew what she’d done there. Even his playful agitation about her still wearing her ex’s ring while she was on a date with Alex wouldn’t have her getting her hopes up for more than just a short-lived fling with him. One thing Valerie knew about guys was—in a relationship or not—they were territorial. She’d already witnessed it firsthand from his younger brother and the way he acted around Sarah. Valerie didn’t expect any less from the older Moreno whose temper was said to be legendary.
The guy was daunting, no doubt. As big and as intense as she knew him to be now that she’d gotten to know him a little better, back then she almost couldn’t picture him angry.
“What about this one?” He pointed at the gaudier ring on her other hand. The one with the pink glass slipper. “Let me guess,” he said, holding her hand with both of his as he continued to examine it. “You’re a big fan of Cinderella?”
She laughed, pulling aside the strands of hair that blew in her face with the wind. “Close,” she said as he looked up at her those amazing dimples going even deeper with his widening smile. “It is from Disneyland, and it does have something to do with Cinderella, but it’s not because I’m a fan.” He was gazing at her now in a way that stirred up the butterflies in her stomach again. “This one is a gift from Reggie though.” His gaze went a little darker, and even though she knew she didn’t have to explain, she did so quickly. “But it wasn’t anything romantic, and I like it, so I still wear it. He got it for me because of my craze for big shoes—high heels. Kind of a joke actually.”