Holding Aces Read online

  I undo every button and tug his shirt free from his pants. I push it open and let my eyes roam freely.

  No inhibitions.

  No worries.

  My fingers trail over every ripple of his stomach, hard and smooth until Denham’s patience snaps. His hands capture my face, his fingers holding my jaw in place while he burns into me with his hungry stare. His head dips slowly, and I take in every second, every breath, then his lips crash into mine.

  Fast.

  Feverish.

  His tongue finds mine and strokes coaxingly, a mutual exploration and a discovery of something very special indeed. I faintly hear the ding of the elevator reaching the penthouse and the doors sliding open as Denham walks us backwards, not breaking our kiss.

  We reach the door in a tangle of hands and clothes. I can’t touch him enough, I want to feel every part of him, every inch, even if it takes me all night to do it. He pushes the door open and I’ve barely stepped in before he scoops me up into his arms and kicks the door shut behind him. He carries me effortlessly, his breaths coming rapidly through desire as opposed to exertion. He lets my legs down gently until I’m standing albeit shakily.

  “Ari, this is your last chance to back out. I want you … God, I want you,” he says squeezing his eyes together, “but if you don’t want to … I won’t … I’ll wait. I’ll wait as long as it takes.”

  I don’t answer with words.

  I kiss him, every feeling poured into the sensations passing through our lips and he understands perfectly. I can’t stop. I don’t want to. For the first time in my life, I’m in charge of how I feel. I don’t want it to be over as soon as possible so I can scrub the feeling away in the shower and, hopefully, not have to do it again too soon. I want it to last all night. I want to be able to touch him every day, make him mine and give myself to him in return.

  “Turn around,“ he orders huskily.

  I do as he asks without hesitation. I face away from him, but make sure I turn slowly so his eyes can drink me in. He slides the dress off my shoulders, down my arms and pushes it gently over my hips. The garment pools at my feet until I’m standing in only heels and black lace panties.

  He groans and his finger lightly touches the back of my neck before he drags it down my spine. He elicits a shiver from me and his touch twinned with the exposure causes my nipples to peak. He takes his time, placing feather-light touches in the curve of my waist, the backs of my legs …

  I hear him remove his shoes, then the clink of his belt buckle being undone. His hands travel back up and down my body, deliciously torturous, until they come to rest on my shoulders.

  He turns me toward him gently and sucks in a deep breath when I’m fully facing him. His hand cups one of my breasts, gently stroking my nipple with his thumb. Fire jolts of electricity to my core and I let out a whimper. He takes a step back and keeps me at arm’s length, letting his gaze drift over my hard nipples and dropping down to my flat stomach, then traveling the length of my legs.

  “Mmm, black lace,” he mutters appreciatively. “And heels. I love the heels.”

  If it were anyone else I would feel objectified, but it’s not anyone else. It’s Denham King and I feel beautiful. Desired.

  “I want to see you in just heels more often … and diamonds ...” he muses. “Yes, heels and diamonds.”

  I can’t wait any longer. I step toward him and reach for the button on his pants, his belt is hanging open and his torso is on display. He is an Adonis.

  Sculpted.

  Bronzed.

  Beautiful.

  I undo his zipper and slide my hands in the waistband of his pants, pulling them down to join my dress on the floor, I’m met with skin.

  No boxers.

  No briefs.

  Hot, smooth skin with no more barriers between us.

  I take a deep breath, knowing that this seductive undressing is about to come to an end and I need a minute to try and gather my thoughts. He’s gloriously naked in front of me, so I give in to my desire to touch him, sliding my hand between us, down the channel of his ‘V’. I take his length in my palm and wrap my fingers around him firmly. His chest shudders.

  “Fuck ...” I mutter under my breath.

  “Was that a request, Stunner?” he jokes with a smirk, flashing me that sexy dimple.

  “Yes,” I reply seriously. “I can’t take it anymore. I want you inside me.”

  His eyes widen and his body stills. I’ve stunned him with my directness.

  He seals my words with a hard kiss and backs me up to the bed before lying me down gently. My hair falls around my head in ringlets and Denham leans down to touch it.

  “I love your hair in curls. I love your hair any way you wear it. You’re perfect, Ari, you really are.” I don’t turn away at his words. “You’re not embarrassed that I called you perfect, Arianna?” he says, his finger trailing lightly from the curl in my hair, along my collarbone and down my body between my breasts. He stops when he reaches my stomach and places the heel of his hand over my sex.

  “No, I’m not embarrassed,” I whisper.

  “Would you be embarrassed if I did this?” He dips his head and sucks one of my tight nipples into his mouth. The pressure increases in my core and I rotate my hips against his hand, trying to find some friction. He groans against my flesh, releasing my nipple from his lips and blowing gently across the wet skin, causing it to tighten and peak.

  My chest tightens and my breath is shallow. “No,” I reply hoarsely.

  His hands slide over my smooth skin, the rough pads of his fingers heightening the sensation as he trails my waist and hips before hooking his thumbs into the corners of my panties. The muscles in his arms bunch as he pulls, ripping the delicate fabric and exposing the last covered part of me. I gasp as he tugs me to the edge of the bed and drops to his knees. He runs his hands slowly up the inside of my legs.

  Torturously slow.

  Then he licks.

  The hypersensitive nerve endings have my body jerking in response to his tongue. I’ve never been licked there and embarrassment washes over me. I turn my head into the mattress and my curls follow to mask my face.

  “Arianna ...” his voice is low, seductive with an edge of concern. “You don’t like that?”

  “I … I’ve never …”

  “I will not let you be embarrassed. Look at me,” he commands.

  I turn my head slowly, curls still covering some of my face. His fists are buried into the mattress beside my head and his body is towering over me, stretching all his defined muscles. “I told you before, I want to cover every inch of you … I want to explore every part of your body with my eyes, my lips and my hands. But I won’t do it if you’re shying away. Be bold.”

  I brush the curls from my face and look directly in his eyes. They’re burning. “No one has ever kissed me … there … before …” I feel small and inexperienced.

  “Good,” he replies firmly. “I don’t want you to think of anyone else. Ever. I want you to remember me and only me. The way I make you feel, the way my fingers tangle in your hair, the way my tongue sets your hot little pussy on fire. Ari, we are going to make love and wipe out the past. It can’t hurt you now, I won’t let it. Just think about the here and now. Think how good it’s going to feel when I push inside of you. Now close your eyes.”

  I let my eyes flutter shut, the smell of scotch washing over me as Denham breathes close to me. “When I’ve finished with you, you’ll be begging me to let you open your eyes and watch us, but for now, keep them closed and just feel.”

  His hands move from beside my head and the heat of his body disappears from above me. I’m desperate to open my eyes to see where he is, but I don’t. I obey his gentle command and keep them shut, waiting for his touch, waiting for him to make me feel.

  He kisses my flat stomach, the gentle kisses moving south. Little trails of sensation transferring from his lips to my skin. I tense but don’t give in to the urge to cover myself with my han
ds. I want to move past it. I want to move on.

  I feel a rough fingertip gently trace my hip bone, following the top of my leg around, then slowly dragging his finger up through my opening. His touch is light, teasing, but when he reaches my clit, I jolt, this time with less emotional discomfort and more pleasure. His other hand comes up to hold my hip as his finger stills. I lift my head and I’m about to open my eyes when he starts to move in a circular motion, gently massaging and building an intense pleasure that has me panting and instinctively pushing my hips to meet his hand for more resistance.

  Every muscle in my body is quivering for more as I rotate my hips and match the rhythm of his dexterous fingers. Blood whooshes through my ears as my body climbs higher. I can hear distant moans, and unfamiliar noises and I realize they are coming from me, my own body voicing immense levels of pleasure and reaching an explosive climax.

  I call Denham’s name, a blessing and a promise floating from my lips. My breath comes in long surrendering moans as my body rides the hypnotizing aftershocks of my orgasm. I hear foil rip and a moment later the bed dips.

  I open my eyes to meet his burning stare. “More stunning every second that you breathe,” he groans. He kisses me, then tilts his hips and pushes into me, inch by delicious inch.

  I’m still on the high my orgasm left me with and I feel greedy that I want more. Denham has opened up a floodgate, draining my defenses and awakening my body from its sleeping sexuality.

  His body shudders as he pushes as deep as I can take him. “Fuuuuck,” he hisses and I groan in response. He draws back painfully slowly and pushes in again, his thrusts beginning to come faster.

  “We fit like you were made for me, just me,” he states. “I can’t make it slow this time, Stunner. You feel too fucking good.”

  “I don’t want it slow,” I respond, surprising myself with the words that follow. “Fuck me fast ... and hard.”

  “Fuck, you talk like that and I’m not gonna last long.”

  I lift my legs and open my pelvis, seating him deeper and triggering something carnal within him. His pace picks up and I dig my heels in his ass, pulling him closer, not wanting to let him go. Our bodies are covered in a fine sheen of sweat as we glide against each other, his rhythm increasing

  The building pressure in my core surprises me and I thrust my hips upwards to meet Denham’s. The sound of our flesh slapping together mingles with the moans escaping our bodies.

  “Ari, fuck, that’s it … ride it with me,” Denham rasps out.

  His lust filled voice is all I need to hit the peak. Denham grits his teeth and pushes into me as far as he can go, the pressure holding me at the top of my climax as I feel him swell and pulse inside of me before letting me gently over the edge to float back to earth.

  He rests his head on my shoulder, his breaths matching mine and coming fast in heaving pants. He isn’t allowing his full weight to rest on me, but our chests are touching and I feel his heart beating through his ribcage.

  He lifts his head and brushes his lips across mine. “Arianna, you’re … that was—”

  “Shhh.” I press my lips into his. I don’t want words. We don’t need words. I’m pretty sure we could live forever without needing to talk to convey our emotions.

  I know.

  He knows.

  Denham disposes of the condom, then lifts me onto his side of the bed.

  He folds my curves into the contours of his body, naked and moist from our lovemaking. We lie flush, skin against skin, not a scrap of clothing between us. I feel like I could stay like this forever.

  “Sleep, Stunner,” Denham whispers. I close my eyes and smile with the feeling of satisfaction and contentment.

  My body has surrendered to him and my mind quickly follows.

  I WAKE UP DRAPED HEAD TO TOE in Denham King. Soft, full lips kiss me awake, running along my collarbone, nipping at my neck, then taking my mouth in an insistent but gentle caress. I automatically start to protest because I’m pretty sure Denham does not want to be greeted by my morning breath. After all, he’s not deluded. I don’t taste of vintage champagne all the time, despite what he might say.

  “Nuh-uh.” I shake my head and turn away from him.

  “You don’t want me to kiss you, Stunner?” he asks curiously and I can hear the smile in his voice.

  “Morning breath,” I mumble into the pillow.

  “You think that would stop me from wanting to kiss you?”

  “You’d want to kiss me if my breath was stinky?” I ask, frowning.

  “Yes, but I might just kiss you like this ...” He starts to kiss the delicate flesh under my chin before licking my jaw line, painting a path to my ear. He takes my lobe in his mouth and sucks gently. I moan as it send jolts to my core and forget what I was protesting about. He has my full attention and I couldn’t turn away from him now if I tried.

  “I want to kiss your lips, morning breath and all. I want to suck on your tongue and hear those little noises you let go of that make my dick hard. You’ll still taste like honey to me. You want me to kiss you, Ari?”

  I nod as he has left me speechless with his direct words once again. “Tell me,” he orders. My brows scrunch together and he rewords his demand. “You want me to kiss you? You have to ask.”

  My breath comes on a choked laugh. “I have to ask?”

  “Yes ...” His voice drops to a husky whisper and he teasingly hovers his lips over mine; I can feel the heat coming from him. “Ask me to kiss you, Ari …”

  No matter how brave I feel, it’s still hard for me to be so forward. I know what he’s doing. He’s not pushing me out of my comfort zone to make me uncomfortable. He’s doing it to make me brave.

  “I ...” I stutter, the words faltering and sticking in the back of my throat. Then I look at him, his soft eyes with those mesmerizing gold flecks, and I muster up all the confidence I own. “I want you to kiss me, Mr. King. Will you … please?”

  His eyes react before his body and his lips meet mine before I can prepare myself. He pulls back, straddling me with his long muscular legs and resting his elbows either side of my head. His breath has picked up as his lips brush softly back and forth across mine, teasing me and sending sparks flying through my whole body. I arch my neck, pushing my lips further into his, and he smiles against me.

  “Oh, Arianna, what I’m going to do to you ...” he growls.

  His lips leave mine and he licks and sucks his way down my neck, then he pushes up on his strong arms and sits back. Taking my breasts in his hands, he squeezes and pulls a moan from my body when his thumbs graze my nipples. My back arches involuntarily, pushing my breasts further into his touch as his hands begin an arousing exploration of my soft skin, searching for pleasure points and finding more than I knew I had. He moves downward, skimming my waist, then back up slowly over my ribcage.

  Awakening.

  Torturous.

  More sensual than I ever thought possible.

  I let my gaze travel over his body as he touches mine. He’s beautifully proportioned and owns masculine. His stomach muscles are taut, and his V is prominent, drawing my line of sight down to his cock. I can’t help but look. It’s not something I’ve ever felt compelled to do but now, with him, I can’t stop myself. He smirks, then winks, rewarding me for not pulling back, for not withholding my desire to feast my eyes on his body. He lets his hands slide back up, and leans into me, his cock flat on my stomach as he tilts his pelvis toward me.

  “I have never wanted anyone as bad as I do you,” he groans. “I want in you, Ari. I want on you and I want over you.”

  I stroke his back with my nails, gently at first, then deeper into his skin. He grinds into me harder and I give in to the need to touch him. I leave one hand on his back, clawing gently as I wrap the other hand around his cock.

  Boldly.

  Unwavering.

  Stroking.

  The way his body reacts to my touch has me feeling empowered. He moves his hips, pushing into my han
d. He may be on top, but I now feel like I’m the one in control. Spurred on by the heady feeling, I let my fingers travel down his back and dig my nails into his ass.

  “Fuck,” he cusses. His teeth clamp together, wanting to enjoy it but trying not to lose control. “Too much, Stunner. I’m not gonna last,” he pants. He reaches into his top drawer next to the bed, pulls out a condom and puts it on while still straddled over me.

  I feel like a voyeur.

  I am a voyeur.

  My mind still tells me that I shouldn’t be looking, but it’s getting easier to be brave, and the fact that I know he would like me to look, makes me want to watch him even more. He strokes himself slowly after the condom is fitted and I can feel everywhere south of my belly twitch and clench in response.

  When I tear my eyes away, I meet his hooded stare. “You like watching me, Ari?” he asks throatily. I nod. “Someday soon you can watch while I come all over your beautiful skin, but right now I want to be inside your tight little pussy. I want to feel your desire grip me when I make you scream.”

  He slides his finger between my legs, coaxing my opening, stroking my clitoris with his thumb in rhythmic circular motions and curling his finger inside me. Heat rises through me like the hottest volcano, clouding my brain and drawing me to a height of passion that makes my whole body vibrate. I can’t control the scream that slips past my lips.

  “Denham, fuck ...” I pant uncontrollably as my body explodes into sharp jerks and shivers. Every nerve shakes as I ride his hand and let the waves of the most powerful orgasm I’ve ever had ripple through me.

  Denham’s hand leaves me, and I feel suddenly empty but not for long. He pumps his cock twice with his hand, takes a deep breath, and then thrusts into me hard. He fills me completely, not allowing my sensitive body enough time to come back to earth.

  “I can’t go slow, I want you too bad,” he pants into my ear. “So fucking stunning when you come … so fucking stunning.”

  Each thrust builds the tension through my body again. “Holy shit!” I cry. “I’m gonna come, you’re gonna make me come again.”