Page 28 of Pay the Piper

“You.”

“Okay, Mr. Smooth Talker.”

She pinches my side as I speed out of a turn, distracting her from our game for a moment and relishing the way her thighs tighten around me. I’m already stretching her wide, but it doesn’t seem to bother her. A lifetime of her parting her legs to make room for me flashes before my eyes, but she continues her game with a few more nonsense questions before asking another that hits a little close to home.

“Have you ever met someone and immediately felt like they’d matter forever?”

Throttling down at the last red light we’ll see for a while, I flip my visor up and contort myself so she can see how much I mean my answer.

“Twice. Once, a long, long time ago. And again much more recently.”

She didn’t have anything else to say to that, continuing to ask about my favorite foods and childhood memories. I have plenty of opinions about the former, and I hopefully did a decent job making up vague, happy lies about the latter.

“I don’t think anything about you could be boring.”

We’re finally at the destination I had in mind, as far away from city lights as you can get in this part of the state. There isn’t anything remotely resembling a cliff in Florida, necessarily, but once you cross the state line, one of my favorite hidden gems isn’t far.

“Holy shit!”

Well, that’s an even better reaction than I could’ve hoped for. Abby’s pulled off her helmet, but hasn’t loosened her legs from my waist an inch. It’s no trouble for me to balance the bike since I’m so tall, and she’s too busy taking in the scenery to even think about getting down. Far into the horizon, gullies and cliffs dominate the landscape. Streaked with layers of rusty red, peach, lavender, and white clay, the captivating backdrop is nothing compared to the woman who’s rekindled the dim torches of my soul.

“That’s what I said the first time I saw it, too. The sunsets here are unreal. Otherworldly. Beautiful.”

The thickness in my voice betrays me, and her eyes snap to mine, only to find me staring at her instead of the view. Kicking out the kickstand, I rise to my full height and pull off my helmet, setting it beside hers on the rocky dirt. Sitting backward on my bike, I take in her messy braid, skin flushed from the ride, and nose sprayed with freckles that have seen more sun today than they’re used to. Even after hours of languishing under a helmet, nothing can stop the curls framing her face from springing forward, and I can’t keep myself from tugging on one gently, just to watch it bounce back into place.

“My turn to ask questions now, lesnaya?”

My light touch across her brow is the only point of contact between us, and she shudders a nod as I trace down her delicate cheekbone.

“Have you ever met someone and known, in the deepest, quietest part of yourself that they’d matter?”

If there was any chance for Abby to escape her fate, she obliterates it and seals herself as my own with the pull of her plump bottom lip between her teeth as she rewards me with a small smile.

“Once,” she whispers, and I’m done for.

There’s a moment when I consider waiting, prolonging this torture as I long to taste her. But my legendary patience is nowhere to be found when it comes to her, and I lean in slowly to finally capture my siren’s lips.

She opens for me on a soft gasp, and I barely partake of the opening she gives me before pulling back. A whine as she chases me, leaning forward as I move away, is the sweetest thing I’ve ever heard, and with a feral grin I recapture her mouth and give her what she wants. Before long, she shimmies her way down to press against me, the undeniable inferno of her heat while we’re heart to heart is life changing.

Just as I wrap her fiery braid around my wrist and tug, exposing her neck and working my way down, her hips finally meet mine. My unmistakable rock-hard length is perfectly positioned to give her something to grind against.

Instead of another glorious whine of desire, the strangled whimper that escapes makes me pause a second before she’s tumbling back and off the bike, hitting the ground in a heap before popping back up with a fake smile plastered on her face.

“I’m fine! Just fell…sorry about that. Uh, great view. I—”

“Abby. Hey, it’s okay. Don’t be sorry. I’m the one who should be sorry. Clearly, I misread the—”

“No! I mean…no, you didn’t. I just…Can we just enjoy the sunset and then maybe take the short way home? I don’t want to be out too late. But this is really nice. I’m having a great time, I swear.”

Her cadence is forced, and her smile is still too bright to be anything but the facade of someone used to making themselves small. She’s obviously on the verge of tears. For now, I’ll let her have her way. But whatever the fuck just happened will have to be addressed sooner or later.

Hopefully, she’ll tell me on her own. I’d hate to have to dig too deep.

Chapter 13

My second dinner at the Santori house is progressing much more smoothly than the first. Without the awkward introductions, and without the scary older brother present, it’s been light-hearted and fun. Well, I shouldn’t say without any introductions. Ellie brought her fiancé, so I was finally able to meet the notorious Teddy. He looks every bit of his hockey nickname, Cuddles, and I can see the general teddy-bear vibe. Tall, broad, and hairy, he has a warm and welcoming aura that’s no doubt enhanced by Ellie’s presence. He looks at her like she hung the moon. And holy attractive Batman. More like Superman, actually. He totally gives off Clark Kent vibes, complete with the forehead curl and glasses.

With Gabri’s absence, everyone has shifted so that I’m seated next to Nikki again. It’s obvious the Santori ladies are playing matchmaker, and I’m not stopping them. This is my mission after all. Get in with the Santori family and wait for further instructions. With a “date” already on the books for tonight, I think I’m doing just fine.