Very Truly Sexy

“After what you just did, I’d better.”

“I had a good time, too.” He chuckled lightly and kissed her. She tasted herself on his lips—clean and muskily female. His eyes shone with unquenched arousal. She had to fix that—do something as wonderful as what he’d just done for her—but she wasn’t great at oral sex. At least, she didn’t think she was great at it. She’d never gotten any real feedback.

What could she do that she’d do well? She’d read that men liked the woman to be on top. She could do that. She rolled over and pushed AJ onto his back, straddling him. “Your turn,” she said.

“Oh, if you insist,” he said with mock reluctance.

She reached across him to the nightstand for a condom packet, but when she tried to tear it, it slipped out of her fingers and to the mattress.

“Allow me.” AJ grabbed it, opened it and rolled it onto himself in one smooth motion. She took over when he’d finished, rubbing his latex-encased erection with more pressure to make up for the barrier, though this was a very transparent condom. “Ultrathin for maximum sensitivity,” she breathed.

“I love it when you talk dirty,” he teased, lying back, relaxing into her touch.

“I hope you’ll love this even more.” She moved so his tip pushed against her opening. She was so wet that he immediately slid into her, thick and long, and the sudden fullness made her gasp.

“Oh, yeah,” he said. “I love this even more.” He reached deep, providing a sweet ache that made her throw back her head with the pleasure of it. That pressed her clitoris against his shaft. So, so good. This had to be instinctual behavior.

AJ dug his fingers into her hips. “You’re good.”

She raised and lowered herself experimentally. She felt awkward, jiggling above him like that, until AJ released her hips and grasped her breasts with both big hands.

She arched into his palms, stretching her breasts until the skin was taut and her nipples ached for action.

Which AJ gave her, pinching the tips with just enough pressure to send arousal beelining along her nerves, straight to her core.

She began to ride him, slowly at first, sliding against his shaft, dropping the weight of her breasts into his palms.

“Beth,” he said, thrusting upward, reaching deeper.

She went faster, feeling his urgency, wanting to quench his need. She looked into his eyes, which told her with every flicker and flash of light that she was pleasing him.

He was close, she could tell, and she matched the force of his upward thrusts with her downward pushes. Then he stilled for a second and, looking into her eyes, placed the pad of his thumb directly on her clitoris. She’d been so intent on pleasing him, she’d forgotten about her own climax, which had been moving happily closer all along. This just-right pressure brought her instantly to the brink. Her climax surged and she rocked mindlessly on him, pivots and circles and trembling jerks.

When she was nearly finished, he exploded inside her.

She collapsed onto his chest, panting, sweat making their bodies slide and squeak, but the sound didn’t embarrass her.

“That was great,” he said, his voice rumbling against her ear.

She rose up and looked down at him. “I know,” she said, feeling positively triumphant. She’d just had two orgasms in the space of a few minutes with a man she’d barely met. Talk about Em on the town.

“Got any more things you’re not good at?” he said.

“Oh, lots,” she said, gratified that this incredibly hot man seemed to think she was good in bed.

“Can’t wait for you to show me,” he said. “If you don’t kill me first.”

She rested her cheek on his chest and he held her snugly on him. They rested like that for a few silent moments, hearts beating as one, and then he slowly pulled out and headed to the bathroom.

She lay on her side, propped on an elbow, waiting for him, completely thrilled. She was so glad she’d been bold enough to take a chance. Not only did she have tons of material for her column—practically writing itself in her mind—but her sexual self-confidence had gotten a major boost.

AJ slid between the sheets again and she opened her arms to him, twined her legs with his. She wanted to thank him somehow. “That was really special. I have to tell you that I’ve never even slept with a man on the first date before, let alone picked one up in a bar.”

“You’re kidding!” he said, in mock amazement.

“Was it that obvious?”

“You did lock yourself in the bathroom, babble about condom selection and issue a disclaimer about how I should forget about your climax and go for mine.”

“That tipped you off, huh?”

He chuckled softly, tucked her hair behind her ear, then stroked her cheek with the backs of his fingers. “You’re a very sexual woman, Beth. If some man made you feel differently, he was an idiot.”

Or not as skilled as AJ. Sara was right about one thing—okay and sex shouldn’t be in the same language, let alone sentence.

“Though I wouldn’t brag about picking me up,” he said with a wink. “Technically, I picked you up.”

“No, sir,” she said in mock outrage. “I invited you to my table. All you picked up was a pen.”

“But I insisted,” he said, pushing her onto her back on the pillowy mattress and pinning her by the wrists, which made her feel very sexy.

“So, am I threatening your masculinity?” she teased.

“Nope. You make me glad I have it.” He kissed her softly, then released her wrists.

“I’m serious, though,” she said. “I was nervous and you made it so easy. Like I said, I’ve been out of circulation…and you helped me get my feet wet.”

“Your feet?” he asked, sliding his hand to where she was still slippery. “I’d say something way more fun than your feet got wet.”

“Oh, yeah. Very true.” Wow. She’d never felt like this before—in or out of circulation. The three men she’d slept with hadn’t been much interested in sex, now that she thought about it. Dan, in college, had been a virgin, too, she’d been sure. She’d gotten a book to help them, but he’d been embarrassed to admit his inexperience, so sex was always fumbly.

Mark had been a philosophy professor—very cerebral—and sex had been a low priority. And then there was Blaine. Blaine had been haphazard about sex, sometimes rushed and often preoccupied. Had she subconsciously chosen men who didn’t enjoy sex? Or maybe she hadn’t rocked their worlds. She could have made more of an effort, she guessed, but the awkwardness of the topic had intimidated her.

What a mistake, she realized now. There was way more to sex than she’d thought. And what a perfect time to find out—when she had a column where she could share all her insights. She had the tiniest impulse to slip into the bathroom and take notes, but then AJ touched her and her thoughts flew away like dandelion fluff.

Her notes could wait until AJ was finished with her. And she was finished with him. Who knew how long that would take?

A FEW HOURS LATER, Beth rested her cheek on AJ’s sweat-damp chest and listened to his heart thud steadily against her ear. He was dozing now. He’d earned a rest, having given her another amazing series of orgasms. Even in sleep, he held her close. She breathed in his wonderful smell and sampled his salty skin with her tongue. Mmm.

She would love to spend the night here, tangled up in sheets and man, but she didn’t dare. She had to let her dogs out to pee, and she itched to start her column. Plus, she didn’t want to spoil the moment with talk. AJ might have annoying opinions and she wanted to preserve the magic at all costs. For her column. And for herself.

Moving carefully so she wouldn’t wake him, Beth untangled her limbs from AJ’s, rolled over and slid out of the bed.

“Don’t go.” His sleep-fogged voice floated to her in the dark.

“I have to,” she said, grinning madly at the desire she heard beneath his slurred words.

“I’ll be back in two weeks,” he muttered so faintly he might have been talking in his sleep.

She grabbed her clothes bundle and ducked into the bathroom to dress. Her reflection in the mirror stopped her. Her face was soft, her lips swollen and her eyes gleamed. Freshly laid. That was how she looked. She’d had no idea sex could be so easy and so fun.

Dressed, she tiptoed out of the bathroom, then stood watching AJ sleep for a moment. He was a big man, a bundle of male power curved under the sheets, his muscular arm and chest slightly revealed, dark against the white sheets in the dim room. He didn’t want her to leave.

For a moment, she was tempted to crawl back in and go for more. Maybe she’d turn out to be good at oral sex, too.

No. She had to go. Her pets and her column were waiting.

I’ll be back in two weeks, he’d said. That was a lovely thought. She smiled to herself as she went to the desk and wrote, “Call me when you’re back in town,” on the hotel notepad. She left her number and signed it simply “Beth.” Easy-breezy.

Then she left, walking as silently as she could down the hall, in deference to the hotel’s sleeping guests. She was leaving a man’s room in the middle of the night like the “Sex on the Town” columnist would do, casually scribbling her number for next time. She tossed her hair, loose now, and waltzed to the elevator. In the lobby, she gave the sleepy desk clerk a jaunty wave, then bounded out to the late spring night.

The barest hint of dawn lightened the horizon, she noticed as she drove. She liked how few cars there were on the streets. She felt part of the secret society of middle-of-the-night lovers. Her skin felt so silky, her muscles were tired and she could still smell AJ’s cologne on her skin, hear his voice in her ear telling her how good she felt and sounded and tasted.

At home, she took her guys out back to do their business, then went straight to her computer. Four in the morning or not, she was wide awake, alive with sense memory. She would write about the sex she’d just had with the same confident verve she used in her entertainment column—leaving out the bathroom jitters and her orgasm disclaimer, of course. Otherwise, she’d be Em all the way.

Her animals sensed her excitement and jostled for position around her in her office. Ditzy curled up on her lap to sleep and Beth began to type.

Along with hot new drinks, your “Sex On the Town” reporter decided to sample a hot new man. I scoped out a popular watering hole known for its trendy drinks—two birds with one bar, after all—for likely bed buddies. My first choice was nursing a heartbreak along with his microbrew. (Check out the mouthwatering Raspberry Wheat Cream from Copper Springs Brewery, by the way.) After a quick pep talk, I sent him back to make nice with the girl he’d gone emotionally AWOL on, along with an appropriate gift idea. Your ever-helpful Em.

Then I set my sights on Mr. Broad Shoulders, Lazy Grin, whom I’d spied as I was returning from the ladies’ room. Note: Before deciding your perch in a bar, girls, take a trip to the powder room to assess the best seats for ogling the playmate buffet.

Oh, and note to fellow fashionistas: Hello Kitty barrettes can be man-magnets.

After exchanging a few conversational bon mots with Mr. Broad Shoulders, hereafter to be known as Mr. Perfect Timing, the steam rose and so did we—up the elevator to his room.

Note to the nervous: Hotel bars ease the transition to intimacy. One quick lift and you’re bed-bound….

The words flew and soon Beth was reading over her first draft, smiling so broadly it hurt. She’d described first-time sex with a sensual man in luscious detail, without being explicit, and ended with her meditative drive home enjoying the intimacy of empty streets in the pre-dawn light.

She had to know what Will thought of this right away, so she slapped the column into an e-mail and shot it through cyberspace. By the time she got to the Phoenix Rising office at ten, Will would be ready to sing her praises.

Her lavender-sprayed sheets welcomed her, but she wished they didn’t carry a scent, so she could keep smelling AJ. Maybe he would call before he left town, just to say goodbye. She couldn’t stop thinking about how he’d looked at her with such appreciation, as if her body, with all its flaws and flab, was gorgeous, as if his whole purpose was to make her feel good.

He was a special man. Or maybe he was just the first of a breed she’d be on the lookout for from now on. Beth had fought the new column tooth and nibbled nail, but she realized now that it was a gift to herself and, she hoped, to her readers.

4

RAFE WOKE AND STRETCHED across the spongy hotel bed, reveling in the open space. Except something was missing. Beth. He usually liked sleeping alone, not having to worry about disturbing a woman when he rolled around or punched the pillows. But this morning he missed Beth.

Sure, he’d been celibate for a while, and hunger made the best sauce, but something about Beth’s wide-eyed pleasure and eager interest had superheated the experience. She’d challenged herself into circulation, evidently—made a bet or accepted a dare from her friend—and he’d been in the right place at the right time to enjoy her win.

The sex had been remarkable. She’d been so focused on every nuance, every movement, as if it were completely new to her. Does this feel good? Do you do this with other women? Why like this and not this? Almost like she was taking notes. She was a technical writer, so of course she’d be detail-oriented. That made him smile.

He wasn’t sure why he’d been ducking sex lately. It was a fine pastime. But the pleasure hadn’t seemed worth the hassle for the last year or so—roughly coinciding with his restlessness at work.

When he had gotten involved, it was never serious. He made certain of that. His parents’ marriage had failed, largely due to his father’s lack of emotional staying power—a lack Rafe believed he shared. So he kept things light with women.

Being a journalist led to a certain dispassion—a neutrality that kept him from really putting his weight down in one place or with one person. Forever was a hell of a long time.

Meeting Beth had been a splash of ice water in the face—fresh and bracing and impossible to ignore—reminding him that not only had he spent too much time alone, but he hadn’t been paying much attention to the little joys of life.

Beth had reacted to sex with the wonder of a child getting her first taste of ice cream, and that was damned erotic. She was sweet and smart and surprisingly innocent. An uncertain sex goddess.

But a hell of a quick learner.

He’d like more, but she was gone. Hell, he didn’t even know her last name. Probably just as well. For all of her one-night-stand enthusiasm, she struck him as a woman who cared a lot about everything. So if last night had been enough for her, that was okay by him.

He was glad he hadn’t told her he’d overheard her phone conversation. The last thing she’d want in her sexual triumph was to think that he’d felt sorry for her in her little-kitty hair thing and shaky heels.

Hungry, he climbed out of bed to locate the room-service menu. He would eat before he headed across the street to the Phoenix Rising office.

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