Craving Candy

Chapter Nine

The apartment door closed with a solid thunk. Although she wanted this to happen, Candy was nervous. The ride back to Lucas’ place hadn’t helped any, as both of them were quiet, wrapped up in their own thoughts. She jumped slightly when his hands clasped her shoulders.

“Relax, sugar. All I want to do is take your coat.”

Now she felt like a complete idiot. Really, she had to get a hold of herself. She unbuttoned her long coat and allowed him to slip it off her shoulders. While he was hanging up her coat and removing his own, she looked around his home, interested to see what kind of a place he lived in. She knew it was a new apartment, built at the same time the store was being renovated two stories below, but she still hoped to learn more about the man beside her by his surroundings.

He’d flicked on the dim light in the foyer as soon as he’d opened the front door. She was surprised to see that it opened directly into a large room, which was shrouded in shadows.

“Would you like a tour?”

“I’d love one.” She was undeniably curious about him and wasn’t about to turn down the opportunity to see his home.

With his hand on the small of her back, he led her into the room. He stopped by a large support beam and touched a few switches. The room came alive, bathed in soft, muted lighting. Her breath caught in her throat as she stepped away from him, slowly turning in a circle as she tried to take in the magnificence of the room all at once. “This is gorgeous.”

“Thank you.” She could hear the pride in his voice. No wonder, she thought as she drank it all in.

The living area was painted a pale yellow, making it feel warm and inviting. The furniture was large and masculine. The sofa and two loveseats, covered in a rich chocolate brown fabric and grouped into an intimate seating area, looked incredibly comfortable. She could all too easily imagine the two of them curled up on a cold winter’s evening. A huge oak cabinet with doors dominated the wall across from the sofa and she’d bet good money that his electronic equipment was housed there. A large, patterned area rug completed the sitting area.

“It really is lovely, Lucas.”

“There’s more.” He wrapped his arm around her shoulders as they walked across the floor. Her shoes sounded loud against the hardwood. Floor-to-ceiling drapes in a chocolate brown that matched the sofa practically covered the far wall. Lucas left her standing in front of them and then tugged them open. The view was breathtaking.

“Oh, Lucas.” She really didn’t know what else to say. The lights of the city gleamed in the darkened skyline, making both the moment and the view seem magical and beautiful.

“Yeah, I know.” He stood behind her, slipping his forearm around her waist and pulling her back against his hard body. “I put in a stairway that leads to the roof and I plan to put in a rooftop patio this summer so I can sit out on hot summer nights and enjoy it.”

Candy just nodded. She could picture it in her mind, filled with plants and comfortable furniture and maybe even a barbecue. But she was surprised by just how sad it made her feel. By the time summer arrived, their business association would have ended, and she was realistic enough to know that the likelihood of her ever seeing the rooftop patio was remote at best.

She’d gone into this relationship with her eyes wide open and she didn’t expect it to last. But that didn’t mean she wouldn’t enjoy every single moment that they had together. Shaking off her melancholy, she turned in his arms and smiled at him. “Show me more.”

His lips grazed the sensitive outer shell of her ear as he nuzzled her neck. “It gets better.”

She didn’t know how that was possible, but he turned her toward the dining area. A large wood trestle table sat in splendor atop a sumptuous area rug. Two huge wooden chairs dominated the ends while long, high-backed benches flanked the sides of the table. It looked very old and very solid, and Candy loved it on sight. She didn’t realize she’d slipped out of Lucas’ grasp and hurried forward to stroke her hands over the backs of the benches before reaching out to tentatively touch the table until he laughed. Like a guilty child, she pulled her hands away and tucked them behind her back.

“No, don’t stop. Go ahead and touch it.” Picking up her hands with his, he laid them back on the table, covering them with his own. “I did the exact same thing the first time I saw it. I knew it had to be mine.”

She could certainly understand that feeling. She’d love to own something like this. It spoke of history and permanence and felt almost alive beneath her fingers. In the quiet of the room, she’d almost swear she could hear the sounds of people who’d sat at it over the past several hundred years. “It’s amazing, Lucas.” A large antique sideboard dominated another wall, its construction simple but the quality obvious.

“But there’s still more.”

She was loath to leave the table behind, but allowed him to lead her to the kitchen. A three-foot-wide granite countertop jutted out at a right angle from the wall separating the kitchen and dining area. About eight feet long, the countertop was actually at two different levels. The lower section had two comfortable stools pushed up next to it on the dining room side, making it a cozy breakfast nook. The slate floor was almost too beautiful to walk on and the appliances were obviously high quality and gleamed even though the light was dim. The amount of counter space was incredible, but it was surprisingly uncluttered, everything tucked neatly away in the vast expanse of oak cabinets that filled the area.

“Wow.” She didn’t know what else to say. Her own apartment had a postage stamp-sized kitchenette and she didn’t cook very much, but this looked like a cook’s dream straight out of a fancy decorating magazine.

Lucas chuckled as he tugged her into the kitchen behind him. Turning her, he backed her up against the lower section of the counter. His hands were warm as they stroked down the length of her bare back before coming to rest at her waist. Wrapping his fingers around her, he lifted her and perched her on the edge of the counter.

Candy licked her lips in anticipation as he leaned toward her. When their mouths met, she sighed deeply. This was what she wanted. What she needed. His hands came up to frame the sides of her face and she could feel the roughness of his fingers against her cheeks. The contrast was highly arousing. There was no doubt that Lucas was strong and tough, but his touch was always gentle, always restrained, as if he were well aware of his strength and didn’t want to hurt her. It made her feel special and cherished, but it also made her want to strip away his control and have him be as wild for her as she was for him.

His tongue stroked along the seam of her lips and she parted them eagerly. But instead of plunging inside, he barely flicked the inside of her mouth before withdrawing again. Her hands gripped his shoulders for support, digging into the muscled expanse beneath his suit. Over and over, he tasted the inside of her lips but went no farther into her mouth. It was intoxicating and it was maddening.

Finally, unable to take it any longer, she sifted her fingers through his short hair, gripped his skull in her hands and pulled him tighter. Plunging her tongue into his mouth, she took what she wanted. She stroked his tongue with hers, reveling in his deep groan of pleasure as he responded to her. His tongue played with hers before he tilted her head for a better angle and began to plunder her mouth.

Heat rushed over her skin. Her clothing felt tight and confining and when his hands left her face to spread her thighs wide open, she eagerly complied, almost whimpering when he shoved the skirt of her dress high on her thighs and pushed his way between them. His hands slid over her hips, pulling her close, angling her so she could feel the outline of his erection pressing against her slit. She could feel his cock pulsing through the fabric of his pants and her sex throbbing heavily in response.

Lucas tore his mouth away from hers, gasping for breath. “Dessert. I promised you dessert.” Stepping away, he removed his suit jacket and tossed it over the end of the counter. His tie quickly followed.

“Dessert.” Her mind was muddled with desire. She wanted him now. No more waiting.

He smiled at her as he unbuttoned his shirt and tossed it aside. The large expanse of male flesh distracted her. She hadn’t gotten a good look at it that day in the storage room. It had been too dark to see much. She knew his chest was impressive by feel alone, but that was nothing compared to actually seeing it. His shoulders looked about a yard wide and his chest was thick with muscle as it tapered down to his waist. She’d never seen an abdomen like his before outside a magazine. His abs were clearly defined and rock-hard.

Reaching out, she laid her hand on him. The muscles beneath her fingers jumped before hardening to steel and the heavy thump of his heart beat against her palm. Placing her other hand on his stomach, she slid it upward, enjoying the feel of the crisp line of hair that ran from the center of his chest downward and disappeared into his pants. The hair was blond but slightly darker than the hair on his head.

He captured her hands in his and kissed them before stepping back. “Much more of that and you won’t get dessert.” His voice was deep and husky with desire and she shifted uncomfortably as her body clenched with need.

Turning from her, he lit the candle under a small fondue pot that was set up on the upper part of the counter before he went to the refrigerator and pulled out several containers. While he was rummaging around the cupboards, setting up a few more things, she took the opportunity to study him further. The man was as fine from behind as he was from the front. The muscles in his back and arms rippled as he moved about the kitchen, and his butt was tight enough to make any woman drool.

But it was the tattoo that captured her interest the most. It wrapped around his entire upper left arm and seemed to be barbed wire, if she wasn’t mistaken. It definitely enhanced his bad-boy image. “Was it painful to get?”

He placed a plate on the counter next to her. “Was what painful?”

“This.” She traced her finger over the design.

“Not really. I was young and brave and stupid.” He laughed, but the laughter didn’t reach his eyes. Reaching over, he plucked something off the plate and held it to her lips. “Taste.”

Candy was smart enough to know when someone wanted to change the subject, so she didn’t mention the stylized Celtic knot tattoo on his left shoulder. Maybe he was embarrassed by it. After all, lots of people did things when they were younger that they wished they hadn’t. She dismissed it from her mind as something smooth and cool touched her mouth.

Flicking her tongue out, she tasted chocolate and strawberry. Taking a bite, she savored it. Licking her lips, she opened her mouth for more and he obliged, feeding her the entire treat. “That was delicious.”

Twisting around, she looked with keen interest at the plate he’d laid there. A cream-filled, bite-sized pastry sat next to what looked like another one of those amazing brownies. There was another chocolate-covered strawberry as well, but this one seemed to be dark chocolate on one side and white chocolate on the other. Candy moaned in anticipation.

Lucas chuckled as he picked up the pastry. It looked ridiculously tiny in his large fingers, but he held it firmly yet carefully as he raised it to her mouth. “Open.” She automatically parted her lips and he popped it inside.

It occurred to her then that she trusted Lucas. Not just in a superficial way, but deep down all the way to her core. The way he handled the food said so much about him. He’d touch her the same way— firmly but gently, making sure she found satisfaction before he did. After all, up until now, she was the one who’d had all the pleasure. He was the one who’d been left unfulfilled. But not once had he mentioned it or complained. He seemed to get great enjoyment out of pleasing her and that made him a very unique man in her eyes.

Too many men were in it for their own pleasure without any thought of their partner. A quick wham, bam, thank you, ma’am. She’d been lucky not to have that experience often, but it had happened to her while she was in college. Not all men were as giving, caring if their partners found pleasure. As long as they came, they didn’t care. She’d heard that complaint more than once from her few female friends, and the women’s magazines were filled with letters griping about just that thing.

Theirs might not be a forever kind of relationship, but it would certainly be a mutually pleasurable one. And she’d never realized just how erotic it was to have a man feed her. The pastry practically melted in her mouth. The soft cream filling was slightly sweet and there was a touch of peppermint that made her mouth tingle.

Lucas bent forward and licked her lips. The single stroke made her nipples tighten as she imagined his rough tongue tasting them, touching them. As if he could read her mind, he cupped one of her breasts in his hand and stroked her distended nipple through the fabric. This time she moaned aloud, unable to swallow back the sound of her pleasure.

She almost cried out at the loss when his hand slid upward, cupping the back of her neck. His other hand joined the first and he slowly, methodically began to unhook her dress. When he was done, he lowered the bodice, exposing her breasts to his view.

“Now for the real dessert.”

Lucas could feel his mouth water as he lowered the top of Candy’s dress. Her breasts were large and full, tipped with pale pink nipples that were puckered into tight nubs. Nothing would stop him from having her this time. He had the entire night to discover all her secrets, to touch every inch of her velvety skin, to taste her and to savor her.

His cock, which was already rock-hard, pressed against the zipper in his pants, straining to be released. He’d take her, and soon. But first, he had to taste her.

His fingers looked large and rough against her creamy skin as he cradled her breasts. He plumped the soft mounds with his hands as he leaned forward and traced around the edge of one of her nipples with his tongue. Her fingers dug into his shoulders and he knew her short nails would leave a mark. Nuzzling his way to her other breast, he repeated his action.

He smiled when she gripped his short hair and tugged his mouth to the tip of her swollen nipple. He knew what she wanted and was more than willing to oblige. Stroking the hard nub of one breast with his thumb, he rasped his tongue across the other before capturing it with his mouth and sucking hard.

Candy moaned and arched her hips toward him, trying to get closer. With his free hand, he pushed beneath the skirt of her dress, shoving it high, until his fingers found her sex. Damn, she was so hot and wet it took all his control not to come in his pants. He found it incredibly exciting that she held nothing back, but gave herself completely.

His fingers traced the swollen, slick lips of her labia before slipping past her tight entrance and deep into her core. Using his thumb to stroke her clit, he thrust his fingers in and out of her cunt, her inner muscles clenching tight around them.

Candy was panting hard now as she hooked her legs around his waist and pumped her hips against him. He knew she was close by the desperate way she gripped his head, holding him to her. A bead of sweat rolled down his back as he continued to pleasure her. Capturing her nipple carefully between his teeth, he flicked the bud with his tongue. A high, keening noise escaped her lips as she tightened herself around him. He pushed his fingers as deep as they would go. Then she came.

He could feel the gush of liquid from her core, coating his hand. She cried out again, the sound music to his ears as he kept his fingers in motion to bring her the maximum pleasure. “Enough,” she finally groaned. “I can’t take any more.” She seemed to melt in his arms, almost becoming boneless against him.

Carefully, he withdrew his fingers from her as he raised his head from her breast. She gave him a sleepy, sated smile as her eyes drifted shut. Lucas captured the lobe of her ear between his teeth, giving it a slight nip. Candy moaned, her neck arching to give him better access. “Now it’s my turn,” he whispered.