Johnny Loves Krissy (10 page)

For a moment, he held her still, gasping for breath. Her heartbeat slowed. A brief kiss touched her lips then he rested his forehead against hers.

Her dangling legs dropped to the floor. “I can't stand.” Knees buckled and her legs trembled. “Do you think the gang is growing suspicious?”

Johnny chuckled and looked out the window. “Our friends seem to be oblivious to our absence. They're all in the hot tub.”

“Oblivious, huh? Not likely.” She stepped into her bikini bottoms and tugged them over her hips. She located the bra top and adjusted the triangles of shimmering fabric over her breasts. How was she going to walk back out to the patio when her legs weren't strong enough to keep her upright?

And heaven help her, what was she going to do about her feelings for Johnny? She'd always known they cared for one another. Having sex logically took them to the next level. Johnny was right, how would she handle it when he moved on? Her history with men sucked. The last thing she wanted was to hurt him. She just didn't know how to make it past the hurdle of good sex and fun into a full- blown, committed relationship. “What happens if they do suspect something?”

“It doesn't matter.” He smoothed her hair with his palm. “Lie, deny, and counter- accuse.”

She giggled and leaned against his chest as he pulled her into his arms. “You really are a shit,” she said. “It won't be the same now that we've broken the rules.”

“You started this when you made me watch Regis.”

He had a point. If someone bore the guilt of drawing first blood, she did. Who would've guessed not even Regis could kill the mood?

“The rules were never going to last,” he said. Not when he felt like pounding his chest and doing the call of the wild whenever they were together.

After she'd touched him in the hot tub, Johnny had just snapped. There wasn't another explanation. The thin ribbon of control he had over his cock just
snapped
. He'd been rough. Unable to get enough of what she'd denied him for the past two days, he took it all at once. He felt like an ass, but that wasn't what had him puzzled. Krissy seemed to be taking it in stride. She smiled and laughed.

Not only wasn't she upset, she'd taken just as much sexual aggression out on him. He'd been insatiable, and she'd met him stroke for stroke, adding to the fire blazing between their bodies rather than trying to douse the flames.

Johnny shifted his shoulders. No way could he get back into the hot tub. He needed to grab his T- shirt and cover the red, welting, claw marks stinging his back.

“Will you get my shirt from outside? I'll hang in the kitchen.” He turned around.

Krissy covered her mouth with her palm. “I'm sorry.”

“I'm not. But I don't want to have to explain.”

He followed her out of the laundry room and watched her ass as she sashayed out the sliding glass door and grabbed his shirt. Shelby and Casey grilled her about where she'd been. He heard her tell them. Good girl, stick to the truth and avoid forgetting what lies you've told. They had been
talking
...and moaning and kissing.

“What's up?” Drew came into the kitchen and grabbed another beer out of the fridge. “Listen, I was talking on the phone. Damn, but that chic knows how to talk dirty. And I say that with the utmost respect for her.” He twisted the top off the beer. “I was heading to my room to finish the conversation in private when I heard the strangest noises coming from my laundry room.”

Johnny didn't move. He didn't breath. Shit! “Maybe you have a rodent problem.” That could possibly be the dumbest thing he'd ever said. Wasn't he just praising Krissy on keeping it simple?

“I've never thought of you as a rat.” Drew set the beer on the counter. “Look, I'm not getting into your business. You and Krissy have something special. We all know it. We've ribbed you over the years, but we all wondered why you two never hooked up. I'm not saying I know what was going on, even though we both know I do. I'm not going to say anything to the gang. It's your business.”

Johnny raked his fingers through his hair. “If I could say anything, it would be that I've loved her...forever. I can't watch her make a life with another man without at least trying to see if there could be something more between us.”

“Then you're the guy she spoke of?”

Johnny didn't acknowledge it, nor did he deny it. Drew was like a brother. Omission was his only choice.

Drew seemed to understand. “Well, good luck. Trying to tame the wood girl, you're going to need it.”

“I wouldn't want her to change. But I want more than the friendship she wants.”

“Trouble is, Krissy doesn't trust in relationships,” Drew said.

“But she trusts me.” Johnny straightened when she approached the glass doors.

Krissy had Johnny's shirt in her hand. “Thanks,” he said, slipping it on. “I'm going to bail.”

“Want to come over to my place?” She grabbed a diet soda out of the fridge.

Oh, the devious twinkle in her eye should've warned him off, but Johnny wanted to take her home and break every rule ever conceived.

“We'll see you later,” she hollered out to the gang. “Johnny and I are leaving.”

“What? Why?” Shelby leaned against the edge of the hot tub with her arms bent and her chin resting on the backs of her hands. “I want to hear about the guy?”

“She won't talk,” Casey said.

“Krissy always shares. And we want details.” Shelby worked her eyebrows up and down.

“Not this time.” Krissy gathered her belongings.

“See you later,” Drew said and waved.

Johnny breathed a sigh of relief. “Yeah. See you on the flip side.” He might not have Drew's full support, but at least he wasn't giving him grief about the whole thing. If it turned out to be a mistake, it was his and Krissy's to make.

Drew put a hand on Johnny's shoulder. “Why don't you and the wood girl meet up with us at Stu's later?” Drew glanced over at Shelby and Ryan. “Are we still going?”

They nodded.

Johnny didn't want to go to Stu's. He wanted to get Krissy naked. Spend the rest of the day discovering her secrets. “Maybe. I'll let you know.”

Drew leaned in so only Johnny could hear. “A word of advice?”

Johnny nodded.

“You want the wood girl, you're going to have to play her game.”

Krissy loved the chase. Once a guy turned serious, Krissy ran. This time it would be different. Johnny wanted forever. Drew was right. He needed to play her game. Have fun, be carefree, and enjoy the ride.

“See you later then.” Johnny waved, then walked into the kitchen, through the living room, and out the door. Krissy waited by her car. “They want to go to Stu's tonight. Are you up for it?”

“I'd rather stay home.”

He gritted his teeth. Damn, but he didn't want to go either. However, he could see the bigger picture. Krissy thrived on anticipation. “I told Drew we'd go.”

“Sure then. It should be a quiet night, and if we discover we'd have a better time at home, we can leave early.”

Looking back at the house, assuring they were alone and unobserved, he turned and pulled Krissy into his arms. “The only reason I don't want to go is because I'm not going to be able to touch you. I'd rather stay home, in bed— ”

“Fucking ourselves dumb,” she said with a smile.

“And without rules, but you don't want our friends becoming suspicious.”

“Tonight will be a test of endurance. We can keep our hands off each other for a few hours.”

Johnny wasn't so sure.

Stu's wasn't the average sports bar with heavy smoke hanging in the air. It boasted pool tables, darts, karaoke and a grill comparable to any steakhouse. Stu's was home away from home.

Johnny reached under the table and wrapped his hand over Krissy's bare thigh. The hem of her skirt brushed against his knuckles. He pressed his fingers into her soft skin, and then inched slightly higher. She sucked in a quick breath, recovering nicely by adjusting in her chair. He slid his hand higher up her thigh.

“Is this what you want?” Krissy smiled, and then shifted her legs.

“You know it.” Her panties were damp against his fingers.

She snapped her legs closed. “No, not here.”

“One touch.” He'd pry her legs apart to get to her sweet heat, but she opened enough for him to delve under the edge and brush her wet curls. She bit into her bottom lip as he glided a finger between her silken folds and deep into her channel. She barely rocked against him, and cream slicked his finger.

“Oh, okay,” she said on a breathy gasp. “One touch,” she whispered.

With a reluctant groan, he removed his hand.

“Don't,” she said with a commanding tone. “Do not put your finger in your mouth, or everyone is going to know where you've had it.”

He chuckled and adjusted her skirt to cover her thighs.

“I'm going to mingle.” She set her drink to the side and slid off the barstool. “Maybe I'll go dance.”

Right, and he'd sit at the table and drive himself crazy if he had to watch her flirt with the bar crowd. Krissy didn't mingle, she pollinated. She flitted from table to table, sometimes talking, always smiling and laughing. It wasn't her fault she was beautiful and men loved the way she was built. But her ass belonged to him now and he wasn't going to stand around while someone else ogled it.

“I'll come with you.” He stood.

“No. You stay here.” She leaned in close. The essence of her perfume drifted around him. Her fingers rested on his forearm, burning her brand into his skin through his clothing. “Johnny,” she whispered. “My panties are wet. My clit is throbbing, and if you touch me again, I'm going to come on your hand.” She narrowed his eyes. “That is not going to happen.”

“No one is looking under the table.” Mentioning her coming had his cock instantly hard. He experienced the same hunger he had in Drew's laundry room, yet he didn't want to take her in the bar bathroom. Too degrading and dirty. He'd rather whisk her home, make love by worshipping her body from her delicate toes, up her toned calves, smooth thighs...damn, but he needed to stop now. Swallowing the excess saliva in his mouth, he said, “How long should we stay?”

“A little while longer.” Laughter hinted in her smile. “It's an endurance test, remember.” She spun on her heels and sauntered her sweet ass in the direction of the pool tables.

The erection in his pants faced the endurance challenge. Tracking her movements around the bar only brought to mind the way she moved under him. She glanced over her shoulder. The hussy, she knew what she did to him and took perverse pleasure in his misery. He smiled. Who cares if she was right? He did enjoy her blatant sexual energy. He just didn't want anyone else feeling the effects.

“Johnny, you want to sing?” Ryan smoothed his hair back with his fingers.

Johnny hadn't had near enough to drink to sing karaoke with Ryan. “No duets tonight.” At least not the singing kind, and not with Ryan. He glanced around the room having lost sight of Krissy. He wasn't keeping track. He simply enjoyed the view.

Maybe he did need to focus on something else. The night would end soon enough and then he'd have her to himself again. He upended his beer. “Buy me another and I'll sing.”

Krissy closed her eyes. A particularly bad rendition of Matchbox 20's
Push
bellowed from the speakers. Johnny and Ryan serenaded a red- faced Casey from the karaoke stage. Shelby laughed and cheered from the table. In fact, the whole bar was singing along.

Stu's collected regulars like the six- pack. It was a rare treat for Johnny to sing. She could tell by his tone— and the fact he could carry one— that he wasn't drunk.

Stepping around a couple, she worked her way to the edge of the room, trying to find an unobstructed view. Ryan played the Las Vegas crooner and Johnny held the microphone like a washed up rocker without the big hair. Casey's head bobbed to the beat.

Johnny looked good. He didn't work out often, but his physically active life sculpted lean muscles into his genetically lucky physique. They used to play racquetball until Johnny's school schedule interfered.

Speaking of schedules, she should have been getting her ass into the office. A few of her projects were behind schedule, but she'd catch up. A bigger concern was her growing attraction to Johnny. He made her hot just looking at him. Those lips, smiling at her from across the room, created a fluttering in her stomach.

Would she have slept with Johnny had she known how it would change the way she saw him? Probably, no, maybe, she grinned, hell, yes. The unreasonable expectation of thinking they could screw and not touch, kiss, or caress was grossly overestimated. When the connection became too intense, she'd just gently remind him that although they'd broken the rules, they still needed to keep perspective.

He bent his knees, held the microphone, and strained his neck, reaching for chords out of his range. She wanted to wrap her arms around him, feel his hard muscles beneath her fingertips...she just wanted him and she didn't want to wait until tonight. She never used to be indecisive either. Once she decided to have sex with a man, she did. When it was over, she didn't look back. With Johnny she was afraid to look to the future. Right now, she couldn't get enough of the present, and terror struck her heart over the thought of losing what she'd had with him in the past.

Even though he sang the song to Casey, she felt the words in her heart. Anticipation had butterflies fluttering in her stomach. For now, she could have as much of him as she wanted. Like a decadent dessert, she couldn't get enough. Soon it would be gone, and she didn't want to regret not taking— Johnny.

Glancing around, she noted the people around her. She didn't want to attract unwanted attention. What she had planned was for only Johnny's eyes. Time to put his endurance level to a test. Her gaze locked on his. Flicking her tongue against the tip of her finger, she emulated lapping at the slit of his cock head. Then she slipped her middle finger into her mouth and sucked, making her cheeks concave. His dark eyes narrowed, focused. Her body hummed with the possibilities. She licked her lips, her teeth, and then sucked her finger into her mouth again.