Wilder Read online

  Seconds later I’m in my boxers and this beauty is in lacy black panties, a bra that hides nothing. Her nipples are hard, tight little nubs showing through and I’m not capable of resisting pressing my mouth to them. To her.

  Our bodies collide, brought together with a force I’m not familiar with. My hands are on the base of her neck, her arms snake around my waist and with her chin upturned, I kiss her.

  Hard. I kiss her as I hold her. I kiss her and she knows I’m not messing around.

  And it’s not just because my boner is between us, it’s because her mouth parts and my tongue finds hers and then there is no going back.

  “Oh, Wilder,” she moans in my mouth. “This is exactly what I need tonight.”

  My hand slides to her ass, thinking this is exactly what I need too. I’ve been alone on that mountain for far too long.

  Her ass is round and soft, and when I squeeze it she leans into me, offering to go faster, farther, more.

  “I’m going to fuck you, Stella, the way a woman like you needs to be fucked.” I slap her ass, not to the point of pain, but to the point of pleasure.

  She likes it. Her hand slides beneath my boxers, wrapping her hand around my massive cock.

  “And how do I need to be fucked?” she asks, her breath hot against my ear as she strokes my shaft.

  I draw her closer to me, a hand on her neck, my thumb pressing against her lip. “Like you are mine.”

  “For tonight I am.” Stella purrs, as she touches me. “Tonight you can do whatever you like to me.”

  My cock pulses with need, and I lift her up, carrying her to the bed. She laughs as her head falls to the pillow, and I lean over her, pulling down her tiny panties.

  “Damn, baby,” I groan, spreading her legs, looking at her pussy so nice and pink and wet. “Your cunt is a fucking creamsicle.”

  “Then you better lick me before I melt.”

  I don’t need to be asked twice. My mouth is between her legs, and I hold her thighs with my forearms, not letting her squirm away. I’ve known her less than an hour, but I’m smart enough to know this sort of chemistry could take a lifetime to find.

  “Ohhh, God. Your beard is tickling me,” she laughs, raising her ass as my tongue licks her slit up and down.

  She’s wet as fuck, and I nuzzle against her, letting my beard get her all bothered. Her juicy pussy loves it, and I flick my tongue over her clit, over and over again until she is struggling to breathe.

  “Wilder... what the fuck kind of magic is this?” She moans, her fingers running through my hair.

  I laugh, my mouth breaking away from her sweetness. “This is me making you mine. I plan on ruining you for all other men.”

  “With a tongue like that,” she sighs, “I think your plan might work.”

  I suck her pussy until she comes with a crash, my tongue lapping up all that spilled milk. Then I slide a finger into her tight little cunt, groaning as I do because fuck, her pussy is going to flip the hell out when I start filling her with my twelve-inch cock.

  “Baby, I wanna fuck you,” I tell her, moving my fingers in and out of her tightness.

  “Then do it. I’m ready, Wilder. I’m ready to be yours.”

  Chapter Four

  Going down on me until my pussy explodes is one thing. Finger fucking me until my knuckles are white from gripping the sheets in ecstasy is another. But him trying to fill me with his cock? That’s an entirely different matter.

  “There’s no way, Wilder,” I say, biting my lip, my eyes stinging. “It hurts.”

  He immediately pulls the tip of his cock from me. And internally I cry because no. This is not the way this complete fairy-tale evening is supposed to go.

  I mean, I legit picked up a guy from a hotel bar and was in his room ten minutes later. What sort of movie am I living right now?

  And maybe we shouldn’t answer that. I know what kind of movie this could be, but I swear it isn’t some porno.

  Oddly enough, this feels almost... magical.

  I know. He’s a stranger and this is the first one-night stand of my life so maybe it is the endorphins or the complete insanity of it that is rushing through me right now -- but it does feel like more than hook-up.

  Wilder seems genuine.

  Like, he genuinely likes my pussy.

  Which, again, I know. What guy wouldn’t like a relatively normal looking woman to come to their hotel and fuck them, no-strings-attached? Pretty much every man, ever.

  Still, Wilder is different.

  Like right now, as I admit that my body and his body are not puzzle pieces meant to fit together, his response surprises me.

  “I can suck your cock...” I offer. And I will. I mean, my mouth is going to have just as hard a time managing to take him as my lady-parts, but a blow-job might be a bit more realistic.

  “Fuck, baby,” he says, cupping my face with his hands as his naked, chiseled, tattooed body hovers on top of me. “That’s not gonna cut it.”

  “No?” I try not to be offended. I just told him it hurts, and he wants me to keep going?

  “No.” Wilder shakes his head. “No way in hell am I going to hurt you. But I am going to fill your pretty pussy up tonight. So we need to stretch you out a little more, get you nice and ready for my cock. Don’t you worry, we can take our nice, sweet time.”

  I smile, relieved that he wants to make this work because I do too. God, I need to.

  “How do you plan on getting me ready?” I ask.

  He grins, and damn, that gets me wet all over again. Seriously, how is this my life right now?

  “I need to help you relax.”

  I smile, already feeling my shoulders loosen with the slow, steady rhythm of his voice. He doesn’t rush his words, he takes his time, and I like that he wants to take his time with me, too. This may be a fling, but he sure as hell is making it a romantic one.

  He unclasps my bra, then palms my breasts like their size is perfect. I’ve always been self-conscious that they were too small. That my nipples were a touch too big, and that a real man like Wilder wouldn’t find them attractive.

  But his eyes are hooded, and he’s on his knees, my legs wrapped around him, and he shakes his head while thumbing my nipples.

  “Damn, baby, your body is so fucking perfect. Like a dream. Like a perfect fucking wet dream, except it’s not. It’s real. You are real.”

  Heat rises to my cheeks, and I close my eyes, my heart contracting as his words fall over me. I’ve dated guys, slept with them, but maybe that was the problem. Guys are different than men.

  And Wilder... he is all man.

  And tonight he said he was all mine.

  My worries about my job and my flailing plans and my sister's criticism all float away as Wilder presses his mouth to my breasts, licks them like they are something delicious. Something to savor. Something to enjoy.

  He runs his hand past my belly, between my legs, touching so tenderly, as if I am made of rose petals ready to fall to the ground.

  I sigh, letting him go nice and slow over my folds, and my pussy is dripping under his spell.

  “Try again, Wilder,” I ask. “I want you in me.”

  “You sure, baby?”

  “Please,” I say again. “Please come in me.”

  His hands are on either side of my body as he lowers himself above me. I reach for his cock, wanting to feel his velvety warmth.

  “You’re so hard.”

  “For you.”

  My eyes close, my back sinks deeper into the hotel mattress, as I guide him to my entrance. His tip presses inside me, and I breathe through the pain this time, and as he fills me up, it passes. Instead of wincing, I’m floating away.

  I wrap my arms around his neck, pulling my body closer to him. “I’m on the pill,” I tell him, later than I should have. The truth is, I want to feel every inch of him in me without anything in the way.

  “That’s too bad,” he whispers in my ear, planting kisses along my cheek as he slowly rocks
into me.

  His arms slide under me, and he manages to pull me over, and up, so I’m straddling him. Looking in his eyes, I ask, “Why’s that?”

  “Because I’d love nothing more to knock you up. To put a baby in you and keep you as my woman.”

  I don’t know if he’s joking. I mean, of course, he is joking. No one talks like that... thinks like this.

  Except his eyes are fixed on mine, seeing deep into my soul.

  “I don’t want babies for a long time,” I tell him.

  He smiles, as I move my hips in small circles, my pussy exploding with pleasure as he fills me from this angle. “Not even mine?”

  I laugh, pressing my hands to his chest, and I lean over, kissing him again, as his cock pulses inside me.

  “I don’t even know where you live, Wilder. I don’t think we’re quite ready to make a baby.”

  “Maybe not,” he tells me, tucking tendrils of hair behind my ear, then his hand cups my face. “But if we were, you are the sort of woman I’d want to make one with.” He thrusts deep inside me, and I moan as an orgasm washes over me.

  “Why, Wilder,” I beg, my hands on my breasts as I move harder, harder, harder against him. “Why a woman like me?”

  He comes in me, grunting as he does, his hand moving to my hips as he releases deep inside of me.

  “Because you, Stella, you don’t mess around. You go all in. I like that, how confident you are.”

  I grin, clearly, Wilder has a way with women. Has a way with me.

  “I’m not as confident as you think, my professional life is kind of a cluster, to be honest,” I tell him, thinking about my messed-up interview. I roll to his side and he wraps his strong arm around my body, cradling me.

  “It’s all about the delivery,” he tells me.

  “What do you mean?”

  “At the bar, you exuded confidence, knew exactly what you wanted. That’s what you need to do in business too. Don’t give anyone a reason to doubt you.”

  I think back to the interview, how I so quickly deemed myself a terrible designer for a job that seemed bigger than my skill set. But I know if I spent a few weeks cultivating my eye for more rustic interiors, I could do great.

  I pull up and rest my chin on my hand, knowing I should head out. This was a hotel bar hook-up, not intended for anymore, and I certainly don’t intend to outstay my welcome. “Thank you.”

  Wilder raises an eye. “For what?”

  “For the advice. And for the fuck.”

  “That’s it, you’re going to leave?” He sits, up, watching me as I stand and reach for my discarded panties.

  “Well, I mean....” I shrug, not really knowing what I mean, but also pretty positive that when I walk out of here I’ll be asking the TV producers for a second chance.

  And I will bring it.

  Tenfold.

  “When can I see you again?” he asks.

  My eyes linger on his cock. It is so big, felt so good, and I never even had it in my mouth.

  Maybe I should stay for another round.

  But then I think about my future. Happy hour just ended; it’s still only six o’clock. I might have time to make a case for myself, to catch the execs before they leave.

  “Where do you live?” I ask. The odds of us seeing one another again are slim. He’s a businessman staying in the city, and if he knew how paycheck-to-paycheck I am; he probably wouldn’t have been quite so generous with the compliments.

  “I live in Idaho,” he says, surprising me. “You ever out that way?”

  “No,” I tell him, pulling up my pants. “I haven’t been to Idaho since I was a kid, vacationed at a lake there once.”

  “That’s a shame.”

  I twist my lips, thinking about my next few months. “You know, actually, I’m going to be in Spokane in three months. I have an interior design convention that my mom got me tickets to for Christmas.”

  This piques his interest. “I don’t think I want to wait that long to see you again,” he tells me.

  I laugh. “Wilder, you are so full of shit. You don’t even know me.” I clasp my bra on then pull on my top. “Why don’t you give me your cell phone number and I’ll call you when I’m in town. Spokane is just over the Idaho border.”

  “I know where it is. But I’m not giving you my cell number for you to lose. We’re making plans, here and now.”

  I shake my head, honestly completely smitten with his relentless pursuit.

  “The conference is at the Davenport Hotel, that’s where I’ll be. Meet me in the hotel bar for happy hour.”

  “What day?” he asks, pulling on his boxers as I lift my purse to my shoulder.

  “May tenth.”

  Wilder shakes his head slowly. “So this is all I get, not even a last name?”

  “No,” I tell him, feeling exhilarated by the spontaneity of all of this. The flirty eyes in the bar, the hot and heavy sex, the appointment to see him again. So mysterious. It’s like a scene from a romance novel... not a scene from my actual life. “This way is better. The anticipation will be worth it.”

  “For someone who doubts themselves, your confidence at the moment is through the fucking roof, you know that right?” He walks to the door, opening it for me.

  “Well, I have you to thank for that.”

  Before I leave, Wilder grabs my wrist, pulls me to him, and kisses me hard.

  “I won’t forget our date,” he tells me, slapping my ass, and watching me walk away.

  Chapter Five

  If you’d have asked me yesterday about the defining moment of my life I would have undoubtedly said it was meeting Stella.

  But then I check my phone as I walk to my truck after I disembarked from the plane ride home.

  Seventeen missed calls.

  Eleven voice mails.

  From phone numbers I know and numbers I don’t.

  My pulse quickens, no one calls that much when things are good. Good news, even the best good news, can wait until the plane touches the ground. Everyone I know knew I’d be a thousand miles up in the sky when they left these messages.

  This news can only be bad.

  I throw my suitcase in the back of the truck, turn on the engine, and stare at the fucking phone screen. It’s taunting me. Begging me to look, to listen, to call back.

  I’m terrified. Worse case scenario on a mountain can be pretty fucking bad.

  Before I can make a decision, the phone starts vibrating. It’s Jaxon.

  “Hello?” I say. Praying like hell nothing happened to his babies, to Harper. God. I run my hand over my beard, anxious as fuck. “What happened?”

  “Did you get the messages?”

  “I haven’t listened to anything. Tell me your family is alright. That Buck’s family is alright.”

  Oh hell, what if something happened to sweet Rosie? The poor girl spent her life waiting for a break. She finally got it when she met Buck. I’m gonna lose my shit if anything happened to them.

  “We’re all okay,” Jaxon tells me.

  I exhale, my head falling against the headrest. Thank god.

  Jaxon is silent for a beat too long, then says, “Wilder, your brother and his wife, they’re not.”

  The air leaves my lungs. “What do you mean, not okay?” Jasper and Tracy are my only family. Well them, and their twins, Briar and Finn.

  “There was a car crash out on the interstate. The whole family was in the car, but the twins are okay. Thank god. But you need to get to the hospital outside of Boise. They were airlifted there an hour ago.”

  “Are they alive?” I ask, trembling on the words I can’t believe are my own.

  “Just get to the hospital. I’ll meet you there.”

  I slam my hands against the steering wheel. Then I turn on the engine and wonder what is left of my family.

  The funeral is frigid. Snow is still on the ground and I wish there were something to make it melt away, to make all of the last few days fade into oblivion.

  Most of
the time I’m grateful my parents, rest their souls, died the way they did. They were in a fatal car wreck, just like Jasper and Tracy, a tragic coincidence, but they were dead on arrival.

  Tracy and Jasper were in surgery by the time I arrived at the hospital. Twelve hours later, they both died on operating tables, in the same wing of the hospital. Their bodies broken, their hearts stopped, and yet they were just across the hall from one another.

  And now they are buried beneath the snow, and my mind works to memorize every detail of our lives together because their babies are going to need me to remember.

  “Wilder,” Jaxon says, as we head to our vehicles after the service. It’s just such a fucking waste. “The girls are at our cabin. You gonna be okay to drive?”

  I nod, needing to be alone for a few more minutes. Knowing it’s the last time I’m gonna be alone for a real long time.

  Harper is spoon-feeding Briar and Finn when Jax, Buck, and I arrive. Rosie is stirring a pot of soup on the stove, and the children are in various states of play. Some are crawling, some are swaying in a swing, and some are stacking Duplo blocks.

  “Hey boys,” Harper says, setting crackers on my niece and nephew’s high chair trays. “You look like you could use a drink.”

  Jaxon nods and grabs us beers from the fridge.

  “Did it go okay?” Rosie asks, pulling out a warmed loaf of bread from the oven.

  I nod tightly. “It was cold as fuck. Sad as fuck too.” I look around the room at all the kiddos and apologize for my language. We all talk shit, but we try to keep it clean around the kids.

  “It’s okay, Wilder. We know you’ve had the worst week out of anyone.”

  I look over at Briar and Finn. “Not anyone. Those two lost their parents. How am I supposed to explain that to them?”

  As Rosie ladles soup into bowls she answers me, “That isn’t something you need to worry about for awhile. Right now, you just need to focus on making sure they are loved and taken care of.”

  I take a long pull from my beer. “That’s the hardest part, though. I’m in so far over my head.” Being the only family these two have, they are now in my care. I am their legal guardian. Their parents’ will plainly stated they were to be mine, which is no surprise. I’m their godfather... but also now their parents’ replacement.