Thirst, p.20
Thirst, page 20
I text Remi when I enter the ballroom, but I don’t see her. I find an exhausted Darby talking to a few of Archie’s cousins and ask her if she’s seen Remi. She hasn’t. I wander around for a few minutes before eventually seeing Remi at the free bar talking to Patty.
“I’ve been looking for you,” I say, coming up behind her and kissing behind her ear.
“Oh shit. I forgot to text you back. I got talking to some people. I figured I’d find you in here eventually,” she giggles and reaches back to pat my cheek.
Patty gives us a sad look like she would like to have a boyfriend, and she wanders away, leaving us alone.
“Having a good time?” I ask.
“I’m exhausted,” she replies.
“I think that’s going around. Let’s have one more dance, and I’ll take you home.”
I take Remi out to the terrace just as Clinton Kane’s “I Guess I’m in Love” comes over the speakers. Perfect timing.
Taking Remi into my arms, she rests her head on my shoulders. “Don’t fall asleep there,” I whisper into her hair. “Although, it’s not a big deal if you do. I guess that would mean you’re comfortable enough with me to fall asleep on my shoulder.”
Remi just chuckles and wraps her arms closer around my waist as we sway to the music and the perfect song to describe how I feel about her. I never thought I’d find someone like her or get to be with someone that makes me feel the way she makes me feel. I can’t wait to tell her all of this stuff as we get to know each other better. I can’t wait to see what happens.
Once the song ends, I nudge her a bit and kiss the tip of her nose when she raises her head to look at me. She must have been thinking the same thing because she looks at me with hooded eyes. “Take me home, Chief.”
We walk hand in hand back into the ballroom so that we can say our goodbyes. She finds Darby and says goodbye, and I notice a lot of other people are leaving. Lee is packing up her stuff and hugging Darby and Remi. Guests are taking wrapped up plates of leftover cake home, and Archie tells me he’s not far behind.
I wait for Remi to finish telling Darby goodnight and glance over at the bar. What I see there causes me to chuckle and cock my head. Bennett and Linus are both talking to Patty, and Bennett runs his hands up Patty’s thigh as Linus leans in to hear something Patty says. He nods and looks at Bennett, who also nods. I wonder what’s going on there and laugh at the thought that I probably don’t want to know.
We take a rideshare to Remi’s apartment because we’ve both had way too much to drink. We hold hands in the elevator the entire ride up, but we don’t talk. I think we’re too tired from too much talking, and I want to save what energy I have left for other activities.
As soon as we enter her apartment, Remi goes right to her cupboard to get a water glass while I put my tux jacket on the back of one of her eat-in kitchen chairs. Remi silently walks over to the window, looks out for a few minutes and gives a deep sigh. Part of me wonders if she’s thinking about all the people out there that she and Linus helped.
The city lights from outside shine through the window onto Remi’s face and her bridesmaid’s dress as she sips her water. I turn on some soft jazz music on her stereo while I watch her for a moment. Slinking up behind her, I remove some of her hairpins and breathe in the scent while wrapping my arms around her. A small sigh escapes her mouth as she touches my arms. We just stand like that for a few minutes, looking at the lit-up city around us.
“I love you, Remi,” I murmur in her ear and nuzzle the side of her head.
“I love you more,” she giggles, wrapping her arms around my neck. “We need to get you out of this dress shirt before I explode, though. I’ve been eyeing these forearms all night and can’t wait to unwrap the rest of it.”
I raise my arms above my head and look her straight in the eyes. “What are you waiting for? Go ahead and unwrap.”
She doesn’t waste any time. Maintaining eye contact, she slides the bowtie from around my neck and tosses it on her chair. She undoes every single button of my shirt until I help her take it off, and she throws it on the chair with the bowtie.
She places one warm kiss on the middle of my chest, and that’s all that’s needed to make my dick rise to attention. I reach back and unzip the back of her gorgeous dress that I’ve been waiting to take off all night. Sliding the straps down over her shoulders, I give the dress a little push, and it puddles on the floor at her feet. I pull back a little to stare at the white bra and panties set she’s wearing and hook my fingers in her panties as she places a hungry kiss on my mouth.
Groaning slightly, I grab her hand and lead her to her bedroom, where I make short work of taking off the bra and panties before she even makes it to her bed. She lies on the bed, and I gently lower myself onto her warm body. As I melt into the warmth of her skin, her nipples meet my chest.
“I’ve been thinking about these hands all night,” she whispers between kisses.
“Yeah? What have you wanted these hands to do for you?” I ask, quivering at the thought that Remi knows all kinds of things to do with hands that I’ve probably never considered.
“I want them around my throat.”
“Fuck, Remi,” I grunt as she unbuckles my pants and moves them down my body. I help her by wiggling them off and kicking them onto the floor. “I love that you like fucking so rough and dirty.”
I nudge her legs apart with my own and slide my finger into her first. “Is this what you’re so wet for, sweetheart? Do you want my fingers or my dick?”
“I want you inside of me, Zeke,” she responds, arching her back at the enjoyment of my fingers.
I take my fingers out of her and bring them to my mouth. I suck on them and savor the taste of her as my other hand holds her hips down, entering her in one quick move. She gasps and moans my name as I bring my fingers to her mouth to also lick.
After she takes a lick as if approving a glass of wine at dinner, I slide my hand to her throat and rest it there gently as I speed up my thrusts. Her pussy is so wet, and the sound of my thrusts are arousing on their own. Remi puts her hand on top of the one at her throat and wraps her legs around my waist as I fuck her.
“Fuck, baby, you feel so good,” I whimper as her tightness massages my cock as I enter her again and again.
I can’t last much longer, so I need to slow down. Removing my cock from her, I slide down her body with my mouth as she groans. Below me, she sighs at the loss of my body weight on top of her. I flick my tongue over her clit and watch as her back arches off of the bed as I suck on her.
Rolling my tongue over her repeatedly, Remi pants above me until she can’t fight it any longer. She grips her thighs around my head as she trembles with an orgasm. She moans my name and pulls at my hair as waves of pleasure roll over her. When she stops shaking, I flick her clit one last time and kiss my way back up her body.
Entering her again, I fuck her harder and put my hand back at her throat. She meets my eyes as we move together, and I’ve never felt so emotionally close to someone I’ve had sex with. Sex has always been a physical reaction for me, even with past girlfriends, until I met her. For the first time, I feel emotion with another person, and I feel so close to Remi that I want to meld into one person with her just to be with her all the time.
“Yours,” she whispers under me as my thrusts increase with my building orgasm. “I’m all yours.”
I know some guys like to say “mine” when they fuck a woman. The fact that Remi is beating me to this and giving me everything makes my heart melt, and I kiss her deeply even as my hand rests on her throat. I squeeze it a bit as an orgasm moves electrically up and down my body.
I look into her eyes as my orgasm rests just on the edge, and my eyes flutter, fighting to stay open. As my body shakes with my own undoing, I look at her and moan one word back to her.
“Yours.”
Epilogue
Remi
My head is comfortable on Zeke’s chest, and the heat from his body gives me a cozy feeling of home like I’ve never felt before. His hand lazily strokes my hair as we talk in the darkness and cuddle on my bed. Our breathing is calm and match each other’s inhales and exhales, and even our heartbeats beat in unison.
“I love you so much, Remi,” Zeke murmurs in my ear while trailing a finger over my shoulder. “I can’t wait to see what our future looks like and where this goes.”
His words make me smile, and I exhale deeply with a sense of relief. Soft music plays in the other room, and I realize that I need to get up and turn it off before bed just in case it bothers the neighbors. Zeke jokingly tries to hold me in place by my waist as I slip out of the bed naked. He props his head on his arm and watches me walk into the other room. As I walk, I feel his eyes on me.
I turn off the music and put the leftover wedding cake slices into the refrigerator. Darby wouldn’t let me leave without taking some home. On my way back to my man, I naughtily stop at the kitchen sink and turn it on just to see the water run out.
It’s a glorious sight. Water. Amazing, gorgeous and heavenly water. It doesn’t sputter or come on sporadically, and there’s plenty where it came from. It comes out of the faucet with no time limit, and I take a sip from the running faucet, enjoying the non-plastic taste of water that hasn’t been trucked in from downstate.
The knowledge that Linus and I worked together so that Jensen City has no more water worries fills me with pride. Zeke and Linus and I are going to some surrounding towns in the coming weeks to help them, too. There’s no feeling like it in the world, and I smile, finally proud of myself. This pride makes this power over water worth having, and I realize Darby is right. I can use it to help people.
I walk back to my room and find Zeke standing at the window. Red and blue lights flash across the building across the street., and Zeke scowls as he looks left and right. Scowling, I walk to the window and wrap my arms around his waist.
“What’s going on down there? Are those your boys?” I ask.
Zeke shakes his head. “It’s the police. Lots of them. I can’t see what’s happening or even where the hubbub is happening.”
A chill moves up my spine as I realize which building is involved. “Zeke, that’s Linus’s building,” I whisper, gripping his arm. “I’m going to get dressed and go down there.”
“I’m coming with you,” he responds, and we both dress in silence.
We don’t wait for the elevator, and we both run at breakneck speed down the stairs. I don’t like the feeling in my stomach. I pray for a stupid domestic dispute or a break-in that doesn’t involve the scientist that can recreate amp and just saved Jensen City from a water crisis. My entire body tingles in fear, and I pull out my phone to text Darby. I know it’s her wedding night, and she’ll probably kill me, but I need to know if she knows anything.
She calls me back as soon as Zeke and I hit the sidewalk. “What the fuck do you mean there are a billion police cars in front of Linus’s building?”
“Just what I said. We’re investigating. I wanted to see if you knew anything. I’m sorry to bother you on your wedding night.”
“Psh. Archie and I were sleeping. Don’t laugh, but we consummated in the limo between the wedding and the reception because we knew we’d be too exhausted afterward,” Darby says with a chuckle. “It's not like we've never fucked, for Christ's sake. We’re dressing and will be down there in a few minutes. Call me if you hear something before we get there. Maybe it’s something stupid.”
“I have a bad feeling, Darby.”
“Me too. We’re coming. We stayed at a hotel, and it’s only a couple blocks from you.”
Zeke and I reach Linus’s building and look around frantically for someone to talk to who knows what’s going on. Police are putting up yellow caution tape around the entrance, and two official-looking agents are led into the building. They look like federal agents or a similar agency. A woman with long, blond hair and a badge at her belt points, giving orders to underlings in the area.
“I’ll see if I can find out what’s going on,” Zeke says, leaving me to look for someone he knows.
I see one lone ambulance, and someone is sitting on the back of it while an EMT does a concussion check. I move closer and realize it’s Patty in the ambulance. “Patty! Fuck!” I yell and wave my arms to get her attention as I push through the crowd. “Are you alright?”
“Remi? Holy shit, Remi. I’m so glad to see you,” she says, reaching for my hand and starting to cry.
She’s holding me and sobbing when I find Darby at my side, and she envelops both Patty and me in a huge hug. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Archie also start to look for someone to give us info. Patty sobs uncontrollably into my shoulder, and her curly hair is all over the place while mascara streaks her cheeks.
“What happened, Patty?” Darby asks, pulling her away from us so we can look at her face. A purple bruise is forming at the side of her head, and a snot bubble threatens to drip from her nose.
“Two men,” she sobs into her fist. “Two men came into the room right as it was getting good. I was taking care of Bennett with my mouth, and Linus was behind me…”
“Patty! We don’t need to know the details. What happened to Linus and Bennett?” Darby asks, and I give her a dirty look for interrupting. I kind of wanted Patty to finish her story.
“I don’t know. Something hit Bennett in the arm. I couldn’t see well, but he slumped over. Linus did the same a second later,” she mumbles and starts sobbing again.
Archie and Zeke walk over with their shoulders hunched. “Then what, Patty?” Darby presses.
“Two men came in, and one of them hit me so hard he must have knocked me out. When I woke up, Bennett and Linus were gone. I woke a neighbor, and they called the police. The guys took my phone, but I noticed they also took Linus’s and Bennett’s phones. I looked for those before I went to the neighbor.”
“Did the men look familiar?” Archie asks in a soothing voice.
Patty shakes her head and starts to cry again. Darby, Archie, Zeke, and I look at each other in silence, trying to figure out who would want to kidnap Bennett and Linus.
“This has to be about Linus and amp,” Zeke says, but we’re all thinking it. “They came to his apartment. Bennett was probably just in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
“Yeah. I can’t see someone wanting to kidnap a fireman,” I say.
“Who wants Linus?” Archie asks, and Darby nails him with a stern look. “Too soon?”
“Is there someone who wants amp or someone that wants to stop Linus from using it? Or is someone cheesed off that he can actually make it?” I ask, and we all kind of look at each other again, not sure where to start. “I’d think he’d be seen as a hero since he basically saved the city.”
“You’d be surprised what jealousy and greed look like even when heroes are involved,” Archie says, running his hands over his growing five o’clock shadow.
I stare at Darby while she looks around at the cars. Something catches her eye, and she squints. I keep my eyes on her as she leaves our little circle and slowly walks toward whatever she sees by the building across the street. Color drains from her face, and I follow her stare to a woman standing in the shadows across the street. Even as I notice the woman, the woman disappears down the alley under the cover of darkness.
“Who’s that?” I ask as Archie and Zeke also come over to see what she's looking at.
We stand in a half-circle huddle behind Darby, looking at the alley opening where the woman just fled. Darby hasn’t even blinked. She can hardly speak, but she eventually gets one word out and mumbles it so softly we have to strain to hear.
“Rose.”
The End…For Now
Thank you for reading Thirst. The series is complete on all major retailers. Reviews help indie authors, so please leave a review or star rating on your purchase platform.
Arson – Archie and Darby's story
Thirst – Remi and Zeke's story
Darkness – Bennett's story
Amp – Linus's story
To subscribe to my newsletter to be the first to learn when I have new releases, you can sign up at my website at www.smuttybooklady.com. Just scroll to the bottom of the main page and click on the newsletter icon. If none of that flips up your skirt, you can follow me on Facebook or Instagram at @authortoriross.
Titles by Tori Ross-
All I Wank for Christmas
The Cuffing Season Contract
Contact High
The Panty Plot
Rocks
Winning the Witch
The Flower Festival Fling
The Traveling Calvert Sisters (Romantic Comedy novellas):
Head Over Heels in Hawaii
Loved in Las Vegas
Christmas on the Cruise Ship
Out of Luck in the Outback
Turkey in Tennessee
About the Author
Tori Ross is the bestselling and award-winning author of steamy contemporary romance and romantic comedy. Her book, The Cuffing Season Contract, won the National Indie Excellence Award for romantic comedy, and she's written several shorts, novellas, full-length books and serials. When she's not writing, she runs a podcast called Sitting Here Reading Corn with Tori Ross and plays pickleball to get out of the house. She lives with her family and a hyper dog that needs extensive training.
Tori Ross, Thirst
