Wicked Beat

Chapter 10

After the concert—which had been utterly phenomenal—Eric ducked behind the low, tiled wall in the shower room and peeked at Rebekah. She glanced at him briefly and winked before she turned her back and started to remove her clothes. She’d found him backstage after the show and asked if he really wanted to watch her in the shower. Well, duh, of course he did. She told him she wanted to pretend she didn’t know he was there until he couldn’t keep his hands off her and had to join her. She didn’t really need to instruct him on what she wanted him to do. That’s exactly how he would have responded to watching her shower.

Rebekah pulled her T-shirt over her head. She looked so sexy in her lacy white bra and blue jeans. Eric licked his lip and tried to keep his excitement contained. She unbuttoned her jeans and slid them slowly down her thighs. She wriggled her hips as she bent at the waist to release one leg from her pants and then the other. She folded her clothes and put them on a bench, before reaching behind her back to unfasten her bra. Eric held his breath, waiting for a glimpse of her beautiful breasts. Would her nipples be hard? Would it excite her to know he was watching? She kept her back to him when she removed her bra. She was so good at pretending he wasn’t there, he could almost believe that she was unaware of his presence.

She turned slightly, and he caught a brief glimpse of one pert breast and her flat belly. She twisted her shoulder-length hair and clipped it to the back of her head. Every movement was mesmerizing.

Exposing her neck like that? Somewhat cruel. Her panties joined her pile of clothes on the bench, and then she approached one of the heads in the community shower. When the first blast of water struck her skin, she emitted a shriek of surprise. “C-cold!” She danced away from the water, and Eric chuckled.

She paused and turned in his direction. “Is someone there?”

Well, duh, she knew he was there, but he ducked behind the wall and pretended to hide.

“Guess not.” She reentered the stream of steaming water and sighed in contentment. She had one of those poofy things to spread liquid soap lather over her body. She dumped a healthy amount of soap on her poof and drew it slowly over her skin. Her arms.

Her breasts. Her belly. Her breasts again. Transfixed, Eric watched, his hand pressed against his already bulging fly. He had to practice making himself last so she would teach him lessons on a regular basis. No matter how much he wanted to pull his throbbing cock free and stroke it while she soaped her body, he wouldn’t. Not yet.

Must. Maintain. Control.

Damn, she sure didn’t make it easy.

Rebekah turned her back and bent to wash her shapely legs.

He strained his neck to see the mysteries between her thighs. Still bending forward, she spread her labia with one hand and soaped her tender flesh with her poof. He could see everything, and though he knew no woman washed herself like that unless she wanted someone to see what she had to offer, it didn’t make it any less sexy.

Eric unfastened his pants and slid his hand into his underwear.

He tugged his cock free and ran his hand gently up and down its length. What he really wanted was to plunge into the slick hole that Rebekah was washing quite thoroughly. He prayed she was ready for his possession soon. He wanted her more now that she’d told him about her problems than he’d ever wanted anyone. That she trusted him with such personal information meant the world to him.

Masses of suds gathered at her mound and dripped down both thighs. Eric wished that white froth was his cum. Wished that finger she’d slipped inside her pussy was his cock. Wished“Are you really standing here jerking it?” Trey said. “What the fuck is wrong with you?”

His fantasy shattered, Eric scowled and forced his cock into his pants. “Go away.”

“She knows you’re watching her.”

“Yeah. So?”

“If you’re too lame to accept that open invitation, I’ll have to crash her party in your place.”

Eric reached to grab Trey’s shirt, but Trey was already striding toward Rebekah with a sexual confidence Eric knew he’d never match.

Trey kicked off his shoes and socks and peeled his T-shirt over his head. He joined Rebekah in the shower still wearing his jeans.

Rebekah gasped in surprise and turned to look at him. “Trey?”

His arms slid around her back, and he drew her against his length, her breasts pressed against his naked chest. “You look lonely,” he murmured. And then he kissed her. That son of a bitch.

Normally, when Eric watched one of his bandmates engage with a woman, it excited him. But watching Trey kiss Rebekah didn’t excite him. It pissed him off. He was stalking toward them before he knew what he was doing. He grabbed Trey’s arm and yanked him away from Rebekah’s submissive form. What the fuck? After she’d opened her heart to him, she still wanted Trey?

“Get your goddamned hands off her,” Eric said.

With an impish gleam in his eye, Trey grinned at him crookedly. “Why should I?”

“Because I don’t want you to touch her. If you touch her again, I’ll… I’ll…”

“You’ll what?”

Eric’s hands balled into fists. “I’ll kick your ass.”

“I don’t mind if he kisses me,” Rebekah said.

Eric felt as if someone had taken a branding iron to his heart.

“But Eric and I have a deal,” she added.

“A deal?” Trey questioned.

“So if he doesn’t want me to kiss you, or touch you—” Rebekah ran a hand down Trey’s belly and over the bulge in his jeans, “—or suck your cock while he watches, then I won’t.”

Eric faltered between being really pissed off at Trey for infringing on what he already considered his territory, and being really turned on by the thought of Rebekah on her knees sucking his cock in the shower. Not Trey’s cock. His.

“I’d rather Trey leave and you kiss me. Touch me. Suck…”

“You?”

He nodded.

She grinned. “No can do. Your next lesson isn’t until tomorrow.”

“Lesson?” Trey questioned. He was still holding her loosely.

Water from the shower poured between their naked torsos.

“Part of our agreement,” Rebekah said. “Sorry, Trey. I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”

Eric stifled a relieved sigh. He would rather her have ask Trey to leave because she wasn’t interested in him, but Eric would take what he could get.

“Since when would you rather participate than watch?” Trey asked Eric.

“I still like to watch. Just not with you,” Eric said. “Or anyone else for that matter.”

Trey surprised him by smiling. “Good. My work here is finished.” He released Rebekah and sloshed out of the shower in his wet jeans. “Make me proud, buddy.”

Huh?

Trey retrieved his discarded clothes and shoes and left the locker room.

“Where were we?” Rebekah asked.

“I believe you were washing yourself, and I was touching myself.”

“You were touching yourself?”

Her hand slid into the front of his jeans and brushed against his cock. His underwear separated their skin, but that didn’t stop him from drawing a breath through his teeth.

“Show me, Eric. I want to see.”

Knowing he wouldn’t be able to keep his hands to himself with her this close, he went to the bench where she’d stowed her clothes and sat down. “Make me want you, Rebekah,” Eric murmured.

“How?”

“You really don’t have to do anything but stand there.”

So she stood there, hands on both hips, water coursing over her gorgeous body, and it was more than enough to make him want her.

“Take your clothes off,” she said. “I want to see all of you.”

She approached him and pulled his sweaty T-shirt over his head.

If anyone needed a shower after a live show, it was him.

“Now your pants,” she said, her fingertips trailing down one side of his chest to his rib cage. She snagged his nipple ring on the way down and tugged it just hard enough to make his belly tighten.

Eric kicked off his shoes and lifted his hips from the bench to remove his jeans and underwear.

She leaned over him, her fingertips skimming the length of his cock. His entire body jerked at her attention. “I know I said you weren’t going to get lesson two until tomorrow, but I’m going to be proven a liar. I am so going to suck your cock tonight. Probably more than once. I want your cum in my mouth. To taste it. To feel it hit the back of my throat. To swallow it.”

He groaned.

“Do you want that?”

He nodded.

She glanced over his shoulder. “Is there a lock on that door?”

Her words took awhile to register. Her close proximity and promises of coming in her mouth had all rational thought scattered with the wind.

“I’ll go check,” he said finally. He forced himself from the bench and staggered toward the door. It did have a deadbolt. After he locked it, he turned to find Rebekah back in the shower soaping her beautiful breasts. He watched her from across the room, completely transfixed by her motions and the way she pretended he wasn’t there.

She was so perfect for him. Everything about her. Perfect. He’d never believed one person was tailor-made specifically for him until now. He was starting to think like Brian von Romantic de Retard.

Pretty lame. Yet so totally not. Now that he knew what it felt like, it wasn’t lame at all. Eric approached the low wall slowly, never taking his eyes off Rebekah. He stood there for several minutes, watching her pluck her nipples impatiently until he couldn’t stand it and went to join her.

Rebekah gasped, as if surprised by Eric’s presence, and covered her soapy, wet breasts with her hands. “Oh, monsieur,” she said in a poor attempt at a French accent. “I apologize for my trespass in your private bathroom. How long have you been watching me enjoy the flow of water?”

“Far too long. I couldn’t stay away another minute.”

“I pray you will not punish me too harshly, monsieur. How will I ever escape such a devilishly handsome rake?”

Eric hesitated. “Rake? Like for leaves and junk?”

Rebekah tossed her head back and laughed until Eric thought she would pass out from lack of air. When she finally stopped howling with laughter, she wiped the tears from her eyes and dropped her teasing French accent. “I thought we could play one of those pretend games we talked about,” she whispered.

He instantly imagined her in a slutty nurse outfit in his mind’s eye. She could test his reflexes all night long as far as he was concerned. “Will this require thinking on my part? I’m way too turned on to think right now.”

“Well then, my handsome, devilish rake—meaning scoundrel, not leaf-gathering tool—maybe you should demand certain favors in return for this innocent young maiden’s safe release. She was trespassing in your private bathroom, after all. The least she can do is please you.”

“That’s pretty sleazy, even for me,” Eric said.

“It’s a game. Just go with it.”

“Okay, but don’t get mad at me for being more devil than rake.” He grinned, hoping he looked more devilish than sleazy.

“Mademoiselle, there are consequences for trespassing in this part of… France?”

Rebekah nodded, grinning and totally out of character. “Please do not turn me in to the authorities, monsieur. I will do anything.”

“Anything?”

“Yes, yes, anything.”

“I require but one kiss,” he murmured and wrapped his arms around her to draw her near.

“That’s it?” she said, losing her accent again.

“It is more than any leaf-gathering tool deserves.” He lowered his head and kissed her. She tasted like pure heaven. Her soft curves pressed against his hard chest. He filled his hands with her slick flesh and allowed himself to sample every inch of her mouth. Something had changed between them. There was a mutual trust. A bond. It had spawned from her confession about her brush with cancer and her limp-dicked ex-boyfriend. Eric vowed to never do anything to upset that trust. He didn’t want to move too fast and scare her away.

He planned to keep her around for a while. Like an eternity, or something a bit longer.

She tugged her mouth away. “Monsieur, what is that poking me in the belly?” She batted her eyelashes.

Well, okay, if she insisted on moving faster and making his every fantasy a reality, he wasn’t going to resist. Much. “That is what happens to a man when he has a naked chick in his arms.”

“Chick?”

“I mean innocent… What did you call it?”

“Innocent young maiden,” she whispered.

“Right.” He cleared his throat. He was having an exceedingly difficult time concentrating. “That is what happens to a man when he has an innocent young maiden in his arms. Especially a fucking gorgeous, naked one named Rebekah Blake.”

“I’ve never seen such a thing, monsieur,” she said, her eyes wide with wonder. “Might I examine your wondrous protrusion?”

“Wondrous protrusion?” Now it was Eric’s turn to laugh. “Sure, baby, you can examine my wondrous protrusion as much as you want.”

Her small hand circled his cock and stroked its length. “It’s so hard and hot. The skin so smooth.” She rubbed her thumb over the expanded head, and he drew a shaky breath through his teeth. “Does that feel good, monsieur?”

“Yes, that feels really good.”

She rubbed his cock head gently. Already his excitement was near the breaking point. She touched the bead of pre-cum with her fingertips. “What is this?” she questioned. She collected the tiny sample of fluid with her thumb and rubbed it on her tongue. “Oh, monsieur, the taste is delicious. Is there more for me to sample?”

Eric tried to think of something to continue their little game, but the best he could come up with was a breathless, “Yeah.”

She slid down his body and licked the head of his cock tentatively. “How do I get more to come out?” she asked.

“S-suck.”

She sucked. His fingers tangled in her silky hair as she sucked hard and bobbed her head to rub her lips over his sensitive rim. He watched her suck him, his cock disappearing into her sweet mouth.

His breaths came in excited huffs. His pleasure built. And built.

Oh God. He fought orgasm, but as usual his body didn’t cooperate with his will. He clung to her scalp and thrust deep into the back of her throat as he came with a hoarse cry. She swallowed his cum, her throat muscles working around the head of his cock, and it was almost too much to bear.

“Oh God, Reb. Stop. It feels too good. I can’t—” She sucked him dry and then pulled back to release him from her mouth. “Oh, monsieur, that was so delicious. I would like more please.”

“Give me five minutes,” he said breathlessly.

She stood and snuggled against his chest. “I have such strange feelings between my legs, monsieur. What does it mean?”

“Strange feelings?”

“Yes, there is a wetness there, and it throbs and aches.”

“Perhaps I should take a look.”

Rebekah chuckled. “Yeah, I really think you should.”

Eric turned off the water and led her to the bench. He spread several towels over its surface, knowing his beautiful Rebekah deserved better. “Lie here, mademoiselle. I will try to help you with your strange feelings between your legs.”

“Thank you, monsieur. It is most perplexing.”

He sat on a towel on the floor and pulled her to the end of the bench. He stroked her slippery folds with two fingers. “I see the wetness you were talking about,” he said.

“What is it?”

He touched his tongue to her flesh, and she jerked in response.

“My favorite flavor,” he murmured and licked the rim of her opening until she was clinging to his hair, and her juices were flowing freely.

“Oh, monsieur. A little higher up there is a spot that needs examining, I think.”

Eric grinned. He leaned away and drew his fingers through the curls at the apex of her thighs. “Here?”

“Close,” she panted.

He brushed his fingertips over her clit. “Here?”

She sucked a breath through her teeth. “Yes. Yes. Right there.”

He rubbed her clit in a circular motion. “Does that help?”

“Oh yes.”

He leaned forward to replace his fingers with the suction of his lips and the flick of his tongue. “Oh Eric,” she gasped. “I’m so close.

Slide your fingers inside me.”

He knew she was worried about her body being weird inside. He hesitated. “Are you sure?”

“P-please.”

He slid the tip of one finger into her hot, slick flesh. His cock grew hard within seconds. He inserted a second finger and slowly pushed inward while he continued to suck and flick her clit.

“Oh, yes, Eric. That feels so good. Does it feel weird inside?”

It felt like pure heaven. Smooth. Warm. Silky. He wanted to bury his cock inside that slick, swollen passage. “It feels perfect, Rebekah. Perfect. Not weird at all.”

He pressed his fingers into her as deeply as he could and then slowly withdrew before thrusting inside again. He continued to take her deeply with his fingers while he suckled her clit. She cried out, and her pussy gripped his fingers in rhythmic spasms as she came.

Nothing weird about that either. He only wished her muscles were gripping his cock and he was joining her in bliss. When her body stilled, he carefully removed his fingers from her body.

“I’m ready,” she whispered. “Put it in.”

“What?”

“Put it in, Eric. I want to know what it feels like for you.”

“You’re asking me to make love to you? All the way. For real?”

“Yes.”

“Not here,” he said.

He climbed to his feet, stricken by her beauty. Flushed skin, dazed expression, heavy eyelids. She gnawed on the side of her finger, and he forgot the thread of their conversation.

“What do you mean, not here?” she asked, a hitch in her voice.

If she started that endearing stuttering thing she did when she was upset, he would totally lose it. “Don’t you want to?”

“Our first time is going to be someplace nice. Get dressed. We’re going to the most expensive hotel I can find.”

“But—”

“No arguments, mademoiselle. I’m going to make love to you in a nice comfortable bed, not on a bench in a men’s locker room.”

“Why Eric Sticks, I never knew you were the considerate, romantic type.”

“I was mostly thinking about how hard it would be on my back.”

He clutched his lower back and grimaced in pain.

“Sure you were.”

Q Eric found Jon in a dressing room playing a drinking game with the vocalist and drummer of the opening band, Kickstart.

“Eric!” Jon said in his outside voice. “What’s going on? Grab a chair. These dudes know how to party.”

“I can’t stay. I just want to borrow your car.”

“For what?”

“For a while.”

“Sit down. We have tequila. Good stuff. Not that rotgut you carry around in your flask.”

“I’ve got other things to do,” Eric insisted. He glanced over his shoulder and caught sight of Rebekah waiting near the door. She was twisting her hands in the hem of her T-shirt and looking entirely adorable as usual.

“Such as?” Jon pressed.

Eric forced his attention to the man he had once considered his best friend. “Important stuff. Look, can I borrow your car? If not, I’ll call a cab or something.”

Jon fiddled in his pocket and produced a set of keys. He held them in Eric’s direction suspended on one finger. When Eric reached for them, Jon closed his hand. “You can borrow it, but you owe me one.”

Eric stifled an angry retort. It was always like this with Jon.

The guy could never do someone a favor out of the goodness of his heart. He always kept a running tab. And there was one thing he’d been holding over Eric’s head for almost three years. If Eric hadn’t wanted to take Rebekah someplace nice, he would have told Jon to forget it. He really did not want to owe the guy another debt, but taking Rebekah to a hotel where he could treat her right was totally worth it.

“Fine. I owe you one. Give me the keys.”

“You’re going to party with that hot little roadie, aren’t you?

Re-bek-kah.” Jon chuckled. “She’s going to take everything she can from you and leave you high and dry like the others.”

Eric scowled. “She’s not like the others.”

“That’s what you always say.”

“Just give me the keys.” He yanked them out of Jon’s hand and stalked away.

“You’re welcome,” Jon called after him.

Eric flipped him off.

Rebekah wasn’t just using him for her own gain. Eric refused to let what Jon said get to him. Just because all his other relationships had been sham and he’d been a sucker didn’t mean this one was a repeat performance. He trusted Rebekah. Just like he automatically trusted any member of the female persuasion. Damn it.

He paused in front of Rebekah and she looked up at him, all beautiful, and sweet, and delicate. No way could she have some ulterior motive. Right?

“Before I do something all stupid like fall in love with you, tell me exactly why you’re with me tonight,” he blurted.

Her eyes widened as if she’d been caught doing something wrong, and Eric’s heart plummeted into his belly. Great. Just fucking wonderful. She did have some scheme planned. Did she want his money? Someone in the band wrapped around her finger as job security? A way to get closer to Trey? What?

“You’re going to make me say it?” she asked uneasily.

“Yeah. I’ve been nothing but honest with you. I think you should be just as honest with me.”

She flushed and struggled to maintain eye contact. “Okay.

You… you make me feel special.”

“And?” he pressed. “What else?”

“That’s it.”

“That’s it?”

“Well, that, and I like to be with you.” She placed a hand on his abdomen and leaned closer. “I like you, period.”

He couldn’t help but grin. “Yeah?”

She smiled crookedly and nodded. “Yeah.”

He wrapped her in both arms and kissed the top of her head. “I like you, exclamation point.”

She laughed and squeezed him. “Why are you acting suspicious all of a sudden?” she said against his chest.

“Stupid Jon. Putting doubts in my head. Sorry to be such a dick.”

“You’re not being a dick. I’ve just never been in a brutally honest relationship before. It’s a little intimidating,” she said.

He did throw it all out there most of the time. “I’ll try to tone it down.”

“Don’t,” she said and slid her hand to the center of his chest to push him back far enough that she could look at him. “I like it. No head games. Better to be a little intimidated than royally confused. I spent my last relationship confused. I’m still pretty confused about it, actually.”

“I’d pry, but the last thing I want to talk about is one of your ex-boyfriends. Let’s go make love now. I need to be buried inside your sweet pussy.”

Her eyes widened, and he bit his lip.

“Sorry.” He was bound and determined to fuck this up with his big mouth.

“Don’t apologize. I need you buried inside my sweet…” She swallowed. “…pussy.” That last word came out in an excited whisper.

He grinned. “Yeah, you do.”

They headed out of the stadium and hurried toward the buses, equipment trucks, and Jon’s Jeep. Jon was not allowed on the tour bus, so he had to meet them at the venues in his own vehicle.

Eric loved how Rebekah held his hand as if they were an actual couple while they crossed the parking lot.

“Are you free of STDs?” she asked.

Eric tripped over both feet. “What? Why would you ask me something like that?”

“Just tell me the truth.”

“Yes, I’m clean. I always wear a condom. Sometimes two to decrease my sensitivity.”

“Always?”

“Yes, always.”

“Would you be against not wearing one tonight? I want you to feel everything inside me. Intimately.” She ducked her head. “I swear to you that I’m clean too.”

“You want me inside you without a condom?”

“Well, it’s not like I can get pregnant.” She sounded so sad when she said it that Eric’s heart shattered.

He released her hand so he could wrap his arm around her shoulders and draw her closer.

“Does it bother you? Knowing that?” she whispered.

“Of course not. Just the thought of being inside you without a condom has me hard as stone.”

Her hand slid over his fly and she discovered he wasn’t lying about that either.

“Are you sure you can get it up more than once in a night?”

she asked.

He chuckled. That would be absolutely no problem whatsoever.

Especially not with Rebekah. He’d had a perpetual stiffy since he’d gotten his first glimpse of her. “I’m sure.”

She grinned. “I’m counting on that, you know.”

She was? He wondered what she meant. When they reached Jon’s Jeep, Eric opened the door for Rebekah and helped her into the passenger side. When he climbed into the driver’s side, he pushed the seat all the way back to accommodate his long legs. Rebekah’s hand landed in his lap. At first, he thought she had her hand on his cock by mistake, but then she unfastened his fly.

“What are you—”

“Shh,” she said. “Turn on the overhead light.”

“What? Why?”

“It’s dark in here. Don’t you want to watch?”

“Watch?”

Her hand slid into his underwear and against his cock. He almost jumped out of the seat. He fumbled with the controls until the light came on. He looked at his lap and watched her slide his cock into her mouth. Watching his flesh disappear into her mouth coupled with the exquisite pleasure had his breath hitching immediately. He tenderly stroked her soft hair from her face and discovered more than the pleasure she gave as he watched. Emotions welled up in his tight chest. He’d never felt anything like this. Well, yeah, he’d had innumerable fantastic blow jobs in his life, but the other side of this was entirely new. The feeling that he’d do anything to make this woman happy, anything to be with her. That was unique and a bit scary. Not scary enough for him to back off though. His dreams of a perfect woman didn’t even come close to how wonderful Rebekah was.

He knew he’d never done anything to deserve her, but that would not stop him from claiming her as his. Whatever it took.

He lost the thread of his thoughts as her suction intensified. He gasped, and his eyelids fluttered. The steering wheel was in her way, so she couldn’t pull back very far. She made up for it by writhing the back of her tongue against the head of his cock.

“You’re so beautiful,” he whispered as he watched her. “I’ve never wanted a woman as much as I want you.”

She sucked harder.

“God, that feels good,” he gasped. She sucked harder. She was going to make him come. Should he even try to fight it? She was unusual in that she didn’t expect him to. She liked him to get carried away in his own excitement. “Rebekah. Rebekah? Rebekah!” His fingers clutched her hair. She pulled back at the last moment and held her mouth open. He watched his cum spurt into her mouth and bathe her tongue. She shifted slightly so the second spurt hit her lower lip. Her chin. Into her mouth again.

“Fuck.” He gasped and forced himself not to squeeze his eyes shut in tormented bliss. That was the sexiest fucking thing he’d ever seen in his life. She wrapped her lips around the head of his cock and sucked long after he’d stopped spurting.

“Okay. Okay. Okay,” he gasped, his entire body shuddering with the aftereffects of release.

She released him from his blissful torture and sat upright. Her tongue slid from between her lips and she licked at the cum just under her lower lip. Eric grabbed her and pulled her onto his lap. The horn blared, and she started before laughing. He placed openmouthed kisses on her chin, collecting his fluids from her skin before kissing her smiling lips. She returned his kisses hungrily. By the time she tugged away, his excitement was already getting the better of him again.

“If you don’t stop doing sexy stuff like that, you’re going to give me a heart attack,” he said.

“I think your heart can take it,” she challenged. “You’re young and healthy. And you lasted at least ten minutes that time.”

“I did?”

“I have this theory about you,” Rebekah said. She reached for his softening cock, which twitched excitedly in her hand as soon as she cradled it in her palm. She carefully tucked it into his boxer briefs.

“What kind of theory?”

She looked at him, her beguiling blue eyes half-hidden by thick lashes. “The more often I make you come, the longer you’ll last.”

His heart thudded. Did that mean what he thought it meant?

“Are you planning on testing that theory?”

She grinned. “Heck yeah, I am.”

“You are the smartest woman I’ve ever met.”

She laughed. “I’m more into hands-on learning, if you know what I mean. Are we going to the hotel now? I want to try more experiments.”

He started the ignition, checked over his shoulder, popped the clutch, and punched the accelerator. The Jeep shot backward out of the parking space. He shifted into first and the tires squealed as they sped out of the lot.

Eyes wide, Rebekah fastened her seat belt and clung to the dashboard with her fingernails. “Eric, slow down.”

He grinned, and the tires barked as he downshifted and slid around a corner. “I always drive like this.”

“Then I absolutely refuse to help you fix your Corvette. You’ll end up killing yourself with that much power in a little car!”

He eased off the accelerator slightly. For her sake, not his. He loved to go fast. There were few things that got his blood pumping as quickly. He spotted a neon sign ahead flashing XXX. And that would be another one.

“Pit stop,” he said and hit the brakes.

Skidding sideways, he stopped directly in the center of a parking spot in front of the entrance of the adult store.

“I’m driving the rest of the way,” Rebekah said. “As soon as my knees stop knocking together and I can get my fingernails pried out of the dashboard.”

“I’m a good driver,” Eric insisted. “Never had an accident.”

“How many speeding tickets have you had?”

“They have to catch you to give you a ticket.” He winked before opening his door and darting around the car to her side.

Her eyes were as wide as saucers when he helped her out of the car. “W-what are we d-doing here?”

Oh God, the stuttering thing. He kissed her trembling lips.

Couldn’t help it. “Supplies,” he said and grasped her hand.

“I’ve n-never been in an adult s-store before.” Her stuttering was so fucking cute. He wondered if she had any idea how endearing she was when she was unsettled.

“Do you want to wait in the car?” he asked.

She shook her head. “I didn’t say that.”

She clung to his hand with both of hers as they entered the store.

She attempted to use his body as a human shield, which made everyone notice her more, not less. They started in the adult toys section.

Even more adorable than the stuttering, Rebekah blushed a shade redder than her T-shirt. He couldn’t wait to get her alone and just bask in her sweetness. When she pulled a huge vibrating dildo off the shelf, his thoughts took a sudden turn south. Oh God, she was going to let him fuck her. Accept his cock inside her body. Without a condom.

“What is all this stuff?” she whispered, her eyes wide as she ogled the package in her hands.

“For your pleasure, my lady.”

He stole a kiss and selected several things he figured she’d enjoy.

He handed them to her in quick succession. Her arms were overflowing with dildos and vibrators, butt plugs and clit stimulators within minutes.

“We better get lots of batteries,” he told her.

She blushed a shade deeper and then busted out laughing, dropping several packages in the process. “They have costumes,” she said, nodding toward the back of the store.

Eric dropped off a load of purchases on the counter. If the clerk was surprised, she didn’t show it. “Is there anything I can help you two find?” she asked.

“Just start ringing it up. We’re in a hurry,” he said.

Eric grabbed Rebekah’s hand and tugged her to the back of the store. He reached for a nurse’s outfit first. He still wanted her to test his reflexes. He held up the little white dress in front of her. “Is this the right size?” he asked.

She checked the tag. “It should fit. I don’t think it will cover my ass though.” She tugged at the hem.

“Then it’s exactly the right size.” It was about the length of a long T-shirt and cut low in the front. Ah man. He was getting hard just picturing her in it. Maybe she’d wear white thigh-high stockings and heels. And a little hat. And stick a thermometer in his…

Eric forced his attention back to the merchandise. Unable to decide if he’d rather her dress as a cat or a pirate wench or a devil girl or a French maid or a teacher or a naughty schoolgirl or any other fantasy a man could possibly have, he grabbed one of every costume available and all the accessories that matched.

“If you think I’m the only one dressing up, you have another thing comin’, Eric Sticks.”

“What did you have in mind?”

“Get the chaps and the cowboy hat.”

“Yes, ma’am.” He rifled through a rack of fringed, suede chaps, looking for his size. Tall.

“Oh, and the vampire cape and the baseball player and the camouflage with the dog tags.” She paused and looked up. “And the rock star leather.”

He laughed. “That’s not a fantasy, baby.”

“Maybe not for you, but it is for me.” Arms overloaded with purchases, she tilted her head back and offered her lips. “We need to go. It’s getting late.”

He kissed her. “Yeah, we’ve both had a long day. We’ll probably just fall asleep as soon as we find a bed.” He glanced at her sidelong, giving her a chance to back out if she wanted to.

She chuckled in the back of her throat. “You’ll be lucky if I let you sleep at all. I’m ready to have fun. I hope you’re ready to be up all night.”

He smiled. She still wanted him, even knowing he was far more Mr. Porn Star than Mr. Romance. His arms full, he nudged her toward the checkout. While Rebekah oversaw the process, Eric browsed an aisle for various oils. He caught Rebekah sneaking things into their pile of purchases when she thought he wasn’t looking.

Standing at the counter beside Rebekah, a display caught his eye.

He lifted the package and read its contents. “They have numbing condoms I could try,” he whispered into Rebekah’s ear.

She looked at him with a wrinkled brow. “Why would you suggest that?”

He bent close to her ear again. “So I can’t feel anything. I’ll last a lot longer.”

“No,” she said. “I told you that’s not important to me.”

He sighed. “You say that now.” He put the condoms back in a display on the counter.

“And I want you to feel everything,” she whispered.

Her words punched him in the gut and left him breathless.

Well, if she insisted.

“Did you find everything you needed?” the cashier asked.

Rebekah chuckled. “I think so.”

“Wait,” Eric said. “Do you have any camouflaged condoms?”

“Camouflaged?” The cashier’s forehead crinkled in concentration. “I don’t think so. We have every flavor and color imaginable, but I don’t think we have any camouflaged.”

“Why would you need a camouflaged condom?” Rebekah asked.

“So you won’t see me coming.”

Rebekah snorted and then burst into delighted laughter. The cashier rolled her eyes and shook her head as she stuffed a large dildo into a sack.

Eric kissed Rebekah’s temple, his heart thrumming with adulation. “I love that you laugh at my corny jokes.”

“They’re funny.”

Well, if she insisted.

When Rebekah and Eric finally got out of the adult store, they had multiple bags overflowing with their purchases.

“I think we’ll need to check into a hotel for a week to try all this stuff,” Rebekah said as they loaded the trunk.

“I don’t have a problem with that. Do you have a problem with that?”

“We sorta have a job to do. What time does the bus leave tomorrow?”

“Sed mentioned something about hiring a driver so he could get some fucking sleep. That should give us a little more time. We need to be in Austin in two days.”

She held a hand out. “Keys.”

“You’re not going to let me drive? For real?”

“For real.”

There was one good thing about letting Rebekah drive. Eric could watch her the entire time and dream up things they could do once they reached the hotel. Also, there was something undeniably hot about a woman who could handle a stick shift.