Chapter 18

It was after seven in the evening and Monica was still working. So much for her slowing down to enjoy life. He was tempted to go up to her office and drag her out for the evening, but before he could step out of his truck, the lobby door opened.

Even after a long day in the office, she was the most beautiful woman he had ever met. He watched as she looked around and could tell the moment she spotted his truck.

He stepped out and met her at the passenger door.

"What happened to Ryker and Dom?"

She was so damn cute when she scrunched her nose up like that. He was starting to associate it with her thinking face.

"I sent them home since I was going to your place anyway."

Monica put her hand on her hip and popped it out. "Is that so? Why would you assume you were coming to my place tonight?"

He guided her into the truck and then walked around to climb back in. It wasn"t until he started the truck that he answered her question.

"Because I"m going to be staying with you until this mess is over."

"Oh, really?"

There was that fight he loved so much. It was crazy to think just how hard it made him whenever she challenged him.

"You sound very sure of yourself," she added after a few seconds.

"I"m not about to leave you alone and there"s no way in hell any of my teammates are going to stay with you. I would have to kill whoever offered and that would ruin the business arrangement I have with them."

"I guess I can"t let you kill Ryker. I was just starting to like him."

A growl slipped up his throat before he could stop it. Monica merely smiled and shook her head.

"You really do make this too easy."

Luke put the truck in drive and pulled out of the spot before he spoke again.

"Does torturing me make you happy?"

"Immensely. If I learned anything from my two best friends, it was how to handle alpha men such as yourself. The key is to keep you on your toes."

He glanced in her direction and caught the wink she gave him.

"I get the feeling Trista was the primary teacher of that lesson."

Monica tossed her head back against the seat and let out the most alluring laugh. The sound was a shot straight to his cock, and suddenly, his jeans were a little too tight.

"Yes, she was. The night you met her, she had already consumed several glasses of wine. I wish I could say that loosened her up some but the Trista you met was how she is all the time. She keeps Falcon on his toes and then some."

Luke was starting to think he misjudged this Falcon guy the first time he met him. He could just imagine what it took to keep up with a woman like Trista. He had the feeling he was going to get a crash course in that same lesson dealing with Monica.

"Does she find herself in a lot of trouble?"

"Why the sudden interest in my friend?" she volleyed back with one eyebrow raised.

"Just trying to gauge what my future holds with you in it."

His response gained him a flirtatious smile. Luke decided he could get used to this. The light banter back and forth was a good way to get rid of the stresses of both their jobs. He decided to shake up the conversation some.

"You didn"t seem all that surprised when I said I would be staying with you. I expected a little more resistance."

In truth, he expected to be told to fuck off, so the fact that she teased him instead threw him off his game.

"Ash called today. She bitched me out for not telling her about the vandalism." He looked over and raised his own eyebrow, not understanding how Ash found out. Thankfully Monica picked up on his silent question. "Someone from the office called her when I lost my shit on Carmichael this morning. I had hit my breaking point and he had been the unlucky recipient of my mood. Someone called her, so she called me. During our conversation, it dawned on me that you are exactly like Bentley and Falcon, which meant you would go all caveman and move in. I had time to mentally prepare myself."

All caveman? He wouldn"t say that"s what he was doing, but it was a good thing she realized what was going to happen. It saved him the trouble of arguing and proved both of his friends wrong. He could gloat about that later.

"And what was Ash"s response?"

Monica looked uncomfortable in the passenger seat. Now he really wanted to know what Ash said because being uncomfortable wasn"t normal for his girl.

"She wants to triple-date," she reluctantly told him.

That didn"t sound awful. People hung out as couples all the time. Nothing about that should make her feel uncomfortable. Unless . . .

"Do you not want me around your friends?"

That thought was a kick to the gut. Maybe she didn"t see things headed in the same direction he did.

Monica threw her hands up as he parked a few spots down from her townhouse. "We haven"t even discussed things past taking things slow. My life is a disaster! I just screamed at my partner. And as much as I don"t want to, I need to apologize and deal with that at some point. Someone is doing their best to intimidate me and you sleeping at my place isn"t because we are trying out this whole relationship thing, but because someone is after me. None of that is the best foundation for a healthy relationship!"

This wasn"t a conversation they needed to have in his truck. Turning off the engine, he climbed out and rounded the hood. Opening the door for her, he yanked Monica out and all but dragged her to the front door. When it was clear she had no intention of opening it, he held his hands out for the keys. With a huff, she finally pulled them out of her bag and dropped them into his palm.

Once they were finally in her townhouse, he spun around and pinned her against the door.

"We were starting this relationship before we left Rome and before you decided to get on your high horse because of Carmichael. I"m not going to let your partner scare you away again. The reason behind me staying here doesn"t matter. I"m tickled fucking pink that I have a reason to spend every damn night with you. So sure, blame the reason for me being here on the vandalism but don"t think for one second I wouldn"t have been anyway."

Monica looked like she wanted to say something but changed her mind at the last minute and instead rolled up on her toes and captured his lips.

It wasn"t a sweet kiss. It was all tongue and teeth. He ground his cock against her core but realized it wasn"t enough. He wanted her closer. Reaching down, he grabbed her ass in both of his palms and lifted it until he heard something rip and her legs went around his waist.

"I think I ripped your skirt." He kissed along her neck and grazed his teeth on the soft spot where her neck connected to her shoulder.

With her head tossed back to give him better access, Monica groaned. "I don"t fucking care. I"ll buy a new one later."

Monica"s soft moans and the way she was dry-humping him against the door were enough to push him over the edge. If he didn"t get inside her now, he was going to shoot off in his pants.

"Are you on birth control?"

Please, God, let her be. He wanted to feel her wet heat wrapped around his bare stiff cock.

"If I say yes, will you fuck me faster?" Monica panted.

Luke fumbled with his belt and zipper to get them down so his pants were resting just below his ass. "Only if it"s a true yes."

Her damn panties were soaked. Just the slightest bit of friction from his thumb and she was ready to detonate under his touch.

"Yes," Monica hissed in his ear. "Now fuck me already."

Pushing her panties to the side, he thrust in until he was fully seated inside her pulsing pussy. If it weren"t for biting down on his molars, he would"ve fallen off the cliff with her. That"s how good her bare pussy felt wrapped around his cock with nothing between them.

"You feel like fucking heaven."

"Then move." Monica"s heels dug into his ass.

Luke didn"t need to be told twice. He fucked her through her first mini-orgasm and then built her up again. He set a punishing pace as he slammed into her repeatedly, over and over again.

He would"ve worried he was too rough on her, but her nails scraped along his neck as she begged him for more.

Harder.

Faster.

His girl didn"t care how much he gave her, she met him eagerly and gave as good as she got. Tomorrow he would be sporting proof of their evening.

"I"m close, sweetheart. I"m going to need you to get there with me." The endearment from their time together in Rome slipped out. She felt too good and there was no way he was going to last long.

"I"m close."

With his next thrust, she rotated her hips and hit a new spot that seemed to be magical for her. Within seconds her pussy fluttered around him and she was screaming his name. Her orgasm dripping down his balls was the last straw. His balls tingled just before he coated her insides with his sperm.

His hips jerked and he tossed back his head to roar out his own release. Never had he come so much. It just didn't end. And yet her greedy pussy continued to suck him in.

It was several moments before he could form a coherent sentence. "I think you sucked me dry."

"Pretty sure you"re right considering I can feel you dripping out of me."

Luke choked out a laugh as he set Monica back down on her heels.

"Oops." He reached his hand back and yanked off his shirt. "I guess I better clean that up."

The smart thing would"ve been to go to the bathroom and grab a washcloth. Instead, he used his shirt to wipe up the mess their combined juices made on the floor. It was a good thing he packed an overnight bag.

While kneeling, he glanced over to find Monica yanking off her heels and sliding her panties and torn skirt down her legs.

"Are we stripping down here?"

Her blouse and bra were next to hit the floor. Then she stood gloriously naked in front of him with her hands on her hips in challenge. "Wanna chase me?"

He was already kicking off his shoes when she turned around and took off up the stairs. How he managed to run and shed his pants was beyond him, but by the time he caught up to Monica, he was wrapping her in his arms and tossing them both down onto the bed where they continued more of what they had started downstairs.