Never Let Go: A Collection of Sensual Short Stories Read online

  The orgasm surprised me, hitting me hard and fast. My gaze flew to the conference room door, the sudden fear that we’d be interrupted just as I came ran through me. Daniel didn’t relent his assault, and continued to pump his fingers in and out of my body, thumb pressed hard against my clit, as the fear hit and my eyes locked on that door.

  The knowledge that someone could walk in any moment, see me splayed out—legs spread and Daniel fucking my wet pussy with his fingers—made me come harder. The danger of it. The utter vulnerability.

  Then he was standing in front of me, having me step out of my underwear. I gripped his shoulder for balance and did as he said. He undid my bra expertly and hissed at the sight of my breasts. The world felt surreal, hazy from the orgasm, but he brought me back to earth when he lowered his head to suck on my nipples.

  I held onto him, dropping my skirt and threading my fingers through his hair, over his neck, digging my nails into his shoulders. He licked and nipped and sucked on one breast, then the other. My nipples beaded, and my breasts felt heavy. He bit one nipple and I cried out, not sure if it was from pain or pleasure.

  “Turn around,” he said, his voice rough with need. He pulled at the button of his pants and I could see his cock straining against the material of his slacks. I swallowed hard.

  “I said turn around.”

  I made a noise of protest. I wanted him to keep touching my nipples. Ached for him to touch my pussy again. Selfish neediness overran my thoughts, my emotions, and I couldn’t seem to think straight enough to even speak.

  Apparently tired of waiting for me, he grabbed my arm and forced me to turn. My hands went flat against the surface of the table and I felt my skirt shoved up more securely around my waist. Cursing filled the air behind me, and I heard the sound of a condom wrapper ripping.

  “Fuck.” Daniel’s hand slid up my bare ass to settle in the small of my back. I arched my back at the touch, needing him to fill me more than I’d ever needed anything in my life. I was empty, and so achy that it felt almost painful.

  “You’re so fucking sexy.” His hand slid smoothly down my ass and he continued his soft assault on my senses with a single finger he dipped into me then slid over to tease my anus.

  I cried out and arched toward him for all I was worth. A small sound escaped him, something like a chuckle crossed with a groan, and then he pinched my clit gently.

  “Maybe next time,” he murmured, and I gasped, fear rolling with a strange desire inside of me. Surely he couldn’t mean…but I didn’t get a chance to ask.

  “I’m going to get a hard-on every time I come in this room. I’m going to remember exactly how you look right now. So wet and open and ready for me. So fucking sexy. So fucking needy.”

  He stepped between my legs and caressed my naked back. My breasts pressed against the cold conference table, sending a spike to my core. Then I felt his cock, the tip sliding up and down my slit as he lubricated himself with my desire. I moaned and tried to push back, to take him, but his hand moved from my back to grip my hip firmly.

  “None of that,” he murmured. The tip of his cock penetrated me and I gasped. “Do you want me to fuck you, Alison? You want me to fill that cunt?”

  I moaned and tried to press back into him, but he held me firm, the part of his body I needed so badly just out of reach.

  “You have to say it.” I could hear the smile in his tone, even though I couldn’t see him. “Do you want me to take you here at work? Make you come all over my cock—even though someone could hear you? Walk in while you scream?”

  Lust and need so great hit that I almost screamed right then and there.

  “Say it, Alison. Tell me to fuck you.”

  The words didn’t want to form. Thoughts didn’t want to form. But I finally gasped, “Fuck me!”

  With one quick motion he thrust into me, filling me. Someone screamed, and it might have been me. He was big, bigger than I’d expected. And he didn’t slow to give my body a chance to adjust to him.

  “So fucking tight,” he said, voice strained.

  My thighs pressed into the edge of the table so hard with every thrust that I knew I’d be bruised. I dug my nails uselessly into the wood as he fucked my hungry, aching sex. Deeper and harder and faster. A touch of pain only added to the barrage of pleasure.

  I hadn’t seen his cock, not directly, but it filled me perfectly with every thrust. And for some reason, the realization that I hadn’t seen him made me instantly insane with lust. A cock I hadn’t even seen penetrated me, fucked me. The pleasure rolling from my pussy was in stark contrast to the pain from the table digging into me and I cried out, overwhelmed.

  “Come for me,” he said, voice firm. It wasn’t a request; it was an order. One of his hands slipped from its punishing grip on my hip around to pinch my clit, hard.

  The orgasm hit, rolling through my whole body like a tidal wave. His hand moved back to grip my hip and he held me firmly, pumping into me relentlessly as I screamed.

  Daniel cried out and pushed into me hard, his body spasming against mine. Another noise cut through the air, a loud click. Mind still rolling in the pleasure of it all, I turned to look at the door, but it was still closed. My paranoia playing tricks.

  Holding me to him, Daniel took a long breath, his face buried in my neck. “You’re amazing.”

  I smiled and a half laugh escaped me. He was pretty amazing, too.

  Chapter 3

  I caught myself humming an old 80s tune while riding in the elevator Monday morning. I only caught myself when the elevator paused on the second floor to pick up an older woman I didn’t recognize, who looked terribly proper in her perfectly pressed suit. She got off on the floor below mine, but I managed to keep myself from resuming my personal jam. Out loud, at least.

  The weekend had passed by in a surreal haze. I hadn’t spoken with Daniel after Friday night, nor had I the urge to pick up the phone. I couldn’t remember ever having sex with someone without that need to follow-up before, the need to pursue a relationship—or continue to within one, as the case had always been with me. The whole thing felt rather…freeing.

  So when I stepped out of the elevator and only narrowly avoided running into my boss by the smallest of margins, I couldn’t help the big smile on my face.

  “Morning, boss.”

  He didn’t smile back, if anything he frowned harder. “Miss Connolly.” He glanced at his watch and when he looked back up he didn’t meet my eyes, instead he stared into the elevator behind me. He stared so hard that I almost turned around to see what thing of interest might have popped up behind me to grab his attention. “We need to speak. My office in a half hour.”

  I gave him a short nod, even though it was clearly not a question. He pushed past me and stepped into the elevator. Without ever looking me in the eye, he hit the button and the elevator doors closed.

  What had that been about? Someone apparently needed more coffee.

  I dropped my purse into my desk drawer. A quiet knock sounded and I turned to see Daniel leaning against my cubical wall.

  “Good morning,” he said, white teeth flashing.

  I couldn’t help the grin that blossomed on my face at the sight of him, or the relief that ran through me at his laid back posture and expression. I hadn’t even realized that I was worried things might be awkward, or that he might have changed his mind and decided he wanted more than a quickie in the conference room until I saw him.

  “Morning yourself.”

  He set a cup of coffee that he’d been holding in his hand behind the cubical wall on my desk.

  “Have a good day, Alison.” He winked and then turned and left, whistling softly under his breath. Apparently I wasn’t the only one feeling musical today.

  Things were going to be fine. Daniel wasn’t looking for anything serious with me no more than I was with him. And he seemed perfectly capable of keeping things friendly and not awkward between us. Heck, it was probably something he excelled at—a normal way of lif
e for him. If anyone screwed up our dynamic, it would be me. And I was determined not to.

  I was still smiling when I stepped into Bruce’s office twenty minutes later. But his hard expression made my cheer falter, just a bit.

  “Close the door, please.”

  The door clicked shut, and when I turned back to face Bruce, he was standing, facing the wall-length windows that made this office so coveted. The view of Lake Michigan was divine.

  “Have you read the employee handbook, Miss Connolly?”

  I blinked. “I’ve skimmed it.” That was a lie. I’d read it cover to cover, but people tended to consider such attention to detail a tad crazy.

  “Then you know that it’s against company policy to fraternize with other employees.”

  My stomach dropped and twisted. Heat rushed to my face. And in the breadth of a moment all of the confidence I’d gained from my adventurous night with Daniel dispersed like a bit of smoke in a heavy Chicago wind.

  Bruce knew. I could lose my job, as could Daniel. More than that, I was mortified. But how did he know? Daniel wouldn’t have said anything.

  “How did you—”

  He turned, finally meeting my gaze, and the rage behind his eyes startled me into silence.

  “Does it matter how I know?” He clipped each word off precisely, but his voice rose as he spoke.

  “I don’t understand why you’re so upset.”

  “I’m not upset, Miss Connolly. I couldn’t care less who you choose to share your affections with. But I do care about company policy, and good taste. No more screwing your boyfriend at the office.”

  I swayed, suddenly lightheaded, and grabbed the back of one of his guest chairs for support. And if my face could have gotten any more flushed, it would have.

  “You saw. You were there.” Even as I said it, I knew it was true. Of course he’d seen. Bruce worked late—that’s what he did. He must have heard us, came to check. I’d never been so mortified.

  “That’ll be all, Miss Connolly.” He picked up a file folder from his desk and flipped through the pages.

  I opened my mouth to argue. To yell. To let out some of the horrible embarrassment rolling through me. But no words came. I didn’t know what to say. So I headed for the door, with tension filling the air so thickly I felt like I waded through it to make my escape.

  By Friday afternoon, I’d moved beyond embarrassment and into barely concealed misery.

  For days I’d avoided Bruce as much as possible—made easier by the fact that he seemed just as intent to avoid me. But I’d also done my best to dodge Daniel. I focused on my work, and resisted the urge to search through online job listings.

  I hadn’t done anything wrong, dammit. Okay, strictly speaking maybe I had—according to the company handbook, anyway. But I was an adult. So was Daniel. We didn’t even technically work in the same department, let alone have some sort of authority over one another. Bruce had no right to give me the cold shoulder all week.

  I needed an outlet for my embarrassment and fear—one that wouldn’t get me fired. So I sent Daniel a quick text, asking him to meet me for lunch. He agreed.

  Lisa’s Diner was just far enough from work that it was unlikely we’d run into coworkers, and Daniel already had us a booth by the time I arrived.

  “Hey, sexy,” he said when I sat down. His eyebrow quirked. “What’s wrong?”

  Great. I wasn’t nearly as good as I’d hoped at hiding how upset I was. No wonder it felt like half the office had been giving me concerned looks all week.

  The waitress chose that moment to stop in and take our drink orders, giving me a chance to figure out exactly what I wanted to say.

  “I had a conversation with Bruce on Monday.” My voice came out oddly calm, as if I hadn’t been nearly sick with worry about it all week.

  “Oh, so did I. The man was pissed.”

  “He still is. And…I’m pretty sure he saw us.”

  A flitter of worry that was quickly replaced by his normal relaxed expression was Daniel’s only reaction. “Did he, now? I thought I heard something while we were—well, you know when. But I can’t believe seeing the show is what’s got him angry.”

  “I thought I lived for rules. I guess he really takes them personally.”

  Daniel chuckled, a low sound that sent a flutter through my stomach. “I don’t think it’s the rules he’s taking personally.”

  “I—” The waitress dropped off our drinks and I thanked her automatically, mind spinning. “No.”

  “Oh, hell yes. The man drools after you.”

  I gaped at him, unable to marry the idea that Bruce might have feelings for me with reality. “He couldn’t. He’s never—”

  “Doesn’t matter what he’s done, sweetheart. He’s got it bad for you.”

  I still couldn’t quite wrap my mind around that. “How long have you known?”

  “Hell, it’s been obvious since he started months ago. But he never manned up and made a move, so I did.” He shrugged. “I thought you knew. He stares at you all the time.”

  I thought I’d felt Bruce’s intense gaze on me, but I’d only rarely caught him actually looking. “I thought I was just imagining things.”

  “He was imagining things too, I’ll bet you. Dirty, dirty things.” He frowned. “Not that he’d ever act on those feelings anyway, not with what he’s been through.”

  “I heard he had a bad divorce.”

  Daniel laughed, but the sound held no humor. “Nah, he’s not divorced. His wife died a couple of years ago. Car accident or something.”

  A sharp, twisting pain overtook my chest and I looked away from Daniel. Bruce was a widower? I found the idea more upsetting than I should. The man was in his late thirties—forty at the oldest. That was too young to lose a spouse. No wonder he hadn’t been willing to reach out to me.

  Maybe it was time to reach out to him.

  Chapter Four

  It took all of my self-control not to march into Bruce’s office the second the full impact of what Daniel had told me hit. But I’d forced myself to finish lunch with Daniel, and did my best to focus on actually doing my job for the rest of the afternoon. By six o’clock my depression had twisted into full-fledged rage.

  That Bruce was a widower had kept my anger at bay. I felt for him, I really did. And I couldn’t imagine how losing someone so important must have felt. But the way he’d looked at me after I’d slept with Daniel made the ache I felt for his loss mix with anger at how he’d treated me.

  I deserved answers from Bruce, and I was going to get them.

  The office emptied quickly after five, and while I suspected there were a few stragglers around aside from me and my boss, I was so ready to burst from holding in my rant all day that I didn’t care.

  Bruce barely glanced up from his laptop when I slammed the office door behind me.

  “Can I help you, Miss Connolly?”

  “Yes. First of all, you can quit calling me Miss Connolly, as if you haven’t been calling me by my first name since you started working here months ago.”

  My tone caught his attention, and he leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. A deep frown cut across his handsome face, but for once I wasn’t in the mood to make him smile.

  “You owe me an explanation.”

  His eyes widened, but his low voice was carefully controlled when he spoke. “I owe you an explanation?”

  “Yes. For your attitude.”

  He stood, and the anger that had laced his expression deepened. “I wasn’t the one fucking a coworker on company grounds. I don’t owe you anything.”

  My breath caught. It was inexplicable and strange and probably stupid, but his anger—open and out there for the world to see—made my pulse race. And not from fear. At least, not only from fear.

  “Why do you care?” I demanded. The temptation to mention his wife was strong, too, but I couldn’t. He’d never mentioned her, and I didn’t want to violate that privacy. If he’d wanted me to know, he woul
d have told me. So I pushed the sadness I felt for him back, and focused on my anger at how he’d treated me.

  “I don’t. It’s just inappropriate for you to have liaisons with your little boyfriend at work.”

  Liar. “I’m not in a relationship with Daniel—not that it’s any of your business who I fuck. Or why.”

  “I agree.” He stalked around the desk to stand only a couple of feet away from me, and I swallowed hard. “And I don’t give a damn. So get back to work and out of my office.”

  I don’t know if it was sleeping with Daniel—having sex with a man I didn’t love at my work of all places wasn’t something I’d ever thought myself capable of—but suddenly I felt more in power and control than I’d ever felt. Filled with confidence I hadn’t even known I’d possessed. Powerful enough, even, to speak the truth, damn the consequences.

  “Liar,” I said, staring him down as best as I could, given he had nearly a foot of height on me.

  A stillness settled over him, so abrupt it was unsettling. I itched to take a step back, remove myself from his space, but I resisted. Regardless of how long it had taken for me to realize he was attracted to me, I knew it now. And I wasn’t going to let him punish me for his decision not to act.

  “What did you say?”

  “I said you’re a liar. You’re not upset because I broke some company rule.” I took a deep breath and forced the rest out through clenched teeth. “You’re pissed because Daniel fucked me when you were too scared to.”

  A full five seconds passed before he responded, five of the most painful, uncomfortable seconds of my life. I was on the edge of a precipice, and the worst embarrassment and humiliation I’d ever felt were over that cliff. He had the power to push me.

  Then our eyes met, and the fierceness in his made my chest tighten. I couldn’t look away.

  “And what, pray tell, is it I’m afraid of? You?” He snorted with derision, but took a step closer. “You’re just a little thing, Miss Connolly. What’s there to be afraid of with you?”