Cuff Me at Christmas Read online

  “What’s a nice girl like you doing in a place like this?” I slid into Richard’s now vacant seat.

  She'd watched me threading through the crowd toward her. Without her glasses, I noticed the gray-green of her eyes and her dark lashes.

  "Who said I'm a nice girl?" Her lips wrapped around the straw of her drink, and she sucked.

  Fuck. My cock ached for her.

  "Is that club soda?" I nodded to her drink. My throat was hoarse from trying to remain calm.

  "I'm a one-drink kind of girl, so the merlot was it. From here on out, I'm ginger ale all the way." She cocked her head to one side, considering me. "Honestly, I'm a bit disappointed. Based on your reputation, I had high expectations. I must be catching you on an off night."

  I wasn't too surprised to learn I had a reputation. I might not fuck around at work, but for a city of eight million people, word gets around more than I would've guessed when I first moved to town.

  Right now, I didn’t care about any of that.

  I considered finding a dark corner to fuck her into submission. Too public. My desire to publicly claim her warred with my need to protect her from harmful gossip.

  Clearly, I was going insane.

  "You got rid of him, didn't you?" She played with her straw, keeping her eyes down. A light blush tinted her cheeks.

  “Do you mind?” I pushed Richard’s discarded drink aside.

  “It depends on the reason.”

  “I can’t stand the thought of you with him.” There it was. No sexy innuendo or flirty dialogue with her. That was like wearing an ill-fitting suit.

  I couldn’t be anything but honest with Jess. Maybe all that time together at work hardwired me for truth. There was no time for bullshit when lives were at stake.

  Jess stabbed the ice in her glass with her straw. She concentrated on her task. "For the whole hour, you knew we were together."

  This was true.

  "I don't like it." In the six inches of space between us, her scent poured over me. The hospital’s soap mixed with her own light lavender scent.

  "This from the man who whores his way through New York." She raised her eyebrows, but she still wouldn't meet my gaze.

  I wanted her to.

  Why?

  I was silent, thinking hard about this overwhelming need for her that had hit me like a tidal wave tonight.

  “Nothing is ever going to happen between us.” Jess sipped her drink. Naturally, she knew what I was thinking. Did she know I wanted those lips of hers wrapped around my cock?

  "Let me try changing your mind." It wasn't a question. It was a statement; I was used to getting my way.

  She shook her head. "Sorry, the stats aren't in your favor. I don't need the complications."

  I couldn't fault her for that. Up until an hour ago, avoiding complications was my life goal.

  Something had changed between us. It was like an arc of current connecting us; she felt it too. Even in this crowded bar, it was as if we were on an island.

  "I'll walk you home." It wasn't a request. There was no way she was leaving this bar and walking the city streets alone. It was New York, after all.

  “No need for that. I live three blocks away.” She grabbed her purse and slid out of her seat.

  “Humor me.”

  I knew she lived in the hospital's subsidized housing for staff, residents, and medical students. Housing in New York was a nightmare. I didn't need subsidized housing, nor did I care to live right next to where I worked. Only Derek and Lee knew I had a brownstone townhouse in swanky Greenwich Village. It was a benefit of coming from a ridiculously wealthy family.

  But Jess didn’t come from money.

  The evening was cooling down fast. She crossed her arms across her chest.

  We didn't talk, but it didn't feel awkward because I'd never known Jess to enjoy small talk. It was one of the many things I admired about her as a colleague. The streets were busy with people heading home from work and others heading out for the evening. Street vendors were closing down their carts for the night.

  We reached the unremarkable brick building where she lived. There was no doorman on duty, and the keycard entry looked pathetically easy to bypass with any hospital ID. I couldn't believe she really lived here. What was wrong with the hospital that their security was so lame? Tomorrow I'd be calling administration. I made significant contributions to the hospital, which I asked to keep it anonymous, but the admin knew the donors' identity.

  "Aren't you going to ask me up for ginger ale?" I angled my body to shelter her from the breeze blowing off the East River.

  A corner of her mouth quirked. “Max, I know you. I’ve worked with you daily for the last year. The only reason you could possibly want to see my room is for sex.”

  I put my hand against the brick wall by her head, trying to block more of the breeze. Goosebumps peppered her bare arms. The points of her nipples were hard against her dress.

  "My interest in residential fire safety inspection might not be well known, but it is important nonetheless." I dipped my head lower. Even with her heels, I towered over her.

  Jess arched a brow at me. She'd folded her arms across her chest, pushing her breasts higher; the rounded curve of the tops made me want to run my lips across them.

  Her lips twitched the way they did when she was suppressing a smile.

  She ducked under my arm and slid her keycard into the door. Then she inclined her head for me to follow her.

  The elevator’s first stop was floor seven. Stepping out on the floor, it had the same antiseptic institutional smell as our department, only slightly less pronounced.

  “It’s a women’s only floor.” She glanced over her shoulder to find me staring at her ass.

  Before that glance, I had been inspecting the living conditions. I was generous to report they were lacking. With dim lighting and dingy paint, the place was depressing as hell.

  We passed a door to the women's showers. At the end of a long hall, she turned at the last door.

  “I’ll spare you the tour of the communal kitchen and lounge as you’re not supposed to be here.” She tapped the door to 721. “I’m here, safe and sound.”

  “You’re not going to show me inside?”

  Jess tilted her head to the side. In this light, her eyes were more green. "If you're looking to slum it, I'm sure you can find some co-ed at NYU who would happily have sex with you in her dorm room. And it will probably have a private bath, at least."

  "I like seeing where you live. It's a whole new side of you." It was true. I had a hunger to know every part of her life that I'd missed.

  Annoyance churned at me that I knew next to nothing about Jess besides her favored running shoe brand, and that she liked her pizza with extra pepperoni. Also, she enjoyed cat memes when she was stressed.

  Her lips parted slightly. Again I was struck by the strongest impulse to pull her into my arms and kiss her until she was breathless.

  Voices down the hall echoed along with the ding of the elevator.

  She unlocked her door, pulling me inside by the arm with the force that surprised me. The light was off. “We can get thrown out for having male guests in our rooms.” She whispered in the dark.

  "How old are you?" I liked the darkness. It wrapped us in our own cocoon. I knew Jess had graduated medical school early, but now I wondered precisely how early?

  "I'm twenty-one." She laid her finger against my lips as two female voices grew louder in the hall.

  I sucked her finger.

  Jess inhaled sharply. I released her finger to pull her into my arms. A breath eased from me.

  Now that felt right.

  In the hall, two women recapped their evening for several minutes until the sound of their keys and doors eventually rattled. Soon, the hallway was quiet again.

  Jess stepped out of my arms, flipping on the light.

  If I thought the lighting was bad in the hallway, I winced.

  The narrow room was wide enough t
o fit a twin bed under the single window with a built-in closet, a desk, and a makeshift bookshelf filled with textbooks. It was painted the same dull gray color as the hallway. There was a handmade quilt on the bed and a few pictures on the window sill.

  “Home sweet home,” she said softly.

  I was stunned to think this was where Jess lived. My downtown townhouse was a palace compared to this.

  "Jess," I started. I was unsure of what to say, but I wanted to say something.

  "Don't pity me." She shook her head. Her words were low yet fierce. "I didn't bring you here to pity me."

  “Why did you bring me here?” I asked.

  She flicked off the light. Stepping forward, her hands ran up the front of my shirt.

  I pulled her into my arms. This time I had no intention of letting her go easily. It was like I’d held her a million times before. It felt so right.

  Her face was upturned to mine and illuminated by a sliver of light from the window.. Her voice was quiet, but the words were unmistakable, "After tonight, we'll never mention this again."

  2

  Jess

  Max was in my room, pressing me against the wall. I could feel all of his hard body against mine. And the best part was this dirty talker had a Scottish accent. It was like finding out I had a secret craving and then being able to immerse myself in it.

  His lips were on my neck. His hands roamed my body, cupping, and stroking. I wasn't thinking of Richard, not in the least. Nor did I feel guilty about that. He was my first boyfriend, and outside of kissing and cuddling, he didn't have much desire to explore things between us physically. Richard wanted to save my virginity for our wedding night like I was a piece of glass set on a shelf.

  It was all about what he wanted.

  What I wanted was for Max Ransom to fuck me.

  I blamed my virginity for this situation.

  A twenty-one-year-old virgin in New York City? It was embarrassing. But labeled a genius at an early age through all those intelligence tests had left some gaps in my education.

  So here I was, plastering myself against my colleague who, by any measure, was a womanizer, while I was on the other end of the spectrum.

  That was what my brain told me, at least.

  My body was on fire for him. My familiarity with Max from working with him daily erased my usual awkward feelings in social situations.

  This was Max.

  Yes, he was an arrogant asshole, as I reminded him regularly. But I'd also seen him give away his winter coat to a homeless man in the ER on a frigid night and I knew he’d paid more than a few patients’ medical bills. He didn't know I knew that.

  I popped the top few buttons of his shirt while his lips kissed my collarbone and lower. I slid my hand inside his shirt, feeling the solid plane of his chest. My fingertips curled in the dusting of hair there.

  “Let’s lie down,” I whispered.

  "I've wanted to fuck you against the wall all night," Max growled. His voice had a bit of a burr to it when he was excited. "Fill that tight pussy of yours with my cock."

  I gulped. Max growling in a Scottish burr was fucking fantastic.

  He lifted me so that his hands were under my ass. I wrapped my legs around his waist. His fingers kneaded my ass, sliding ever closer to my—

  “Oh!” I cried, dropping my forehead to rest on his shoulder.

  He rubbed the fabric of my panties before hooking a finger side. I moaned into his suit jacket when he fingered my clit.

  “Jess,” Max’s voice was ragged. “You’re so wet.”

  All I could do was nod when he stroked a finger along my pussy lips. The sound of his finger working me and my wetness was loud in my room. "And Jesus, you're fucking tight." He angled his finger, and I ground my hips against him.

  Holy Mother of God. He was fucking fantastic with his hands.

  "Such sticky panties. Let that pussy come all over my cock."

  “Yes.” I hooked one hand around his neck while the other reached for his waistband.

  “There’s no rush, Jess. We have all night.” He carried me to my small bed.

  Maybe there wasn't a rush for him, but I felt like I was fucking going to explode if I didn't have him inside me.

  He lay me on the bed while he pulled off his jacket. The buttons on his shirt that I opened gave me a glimpse of his bare skin. My mouth watered. He removed his shirt, then his jeans. There was just enough light from outside that I could see him with my room lights off.

  When he pulled down his briefs, his thick cock sprang forward. I'd seen plenty of dicks in my line of work, but nothing that aroused me like Max's cock did. It was fucking huge. I was familiar with the mechanics, but I wasn't exactly sure how that was going to fit inside me.

  And yet I never wanted anything like I wanted Max buried inside me.

  My dress hem was bunched around my waist. Max reached down, hooked his fingers into my panties, and ripped them off me. The sound of the shredding fabric echoed in my room, along with my own surprised, "oh!"

  I froze, afraid the hallmates would sound the alarm that I had a beast of a man in my room.

  No one came running to beat down my door.

  "Now you'll never wear those panties again." Max crumpled them into his fist, then pressed them to his nose. "I bet your pussy tastes delicious."

  I was wound so tight already that all I wanted was to feel him inside me.

  I touched my clit, redirecting his attention. “Fuck me, Max. Fuck me hard.”

  His color heightened as I toyed with my clit some more. He liked seeing me touch myself, and he had clearly been planning on going down on me.

  I was starving and wanted to get to the main course. I let go of my clit and sat up to pull my dress off over my head.

  Max sat back on his heels at the foot of my bed, watching me. I hadn't worn a bra with the dress, so I was naked quickly. I dropped the dress to the floor.

  He remained where he was. He stroked his cock from base to tip in one hand. My tongue longed to lick the precum off his head. I reached down, pushing his hand away and replacing it with mine. Max closed his eyes, exhaling at my touch.

  I lay back again, drawing him down to me. Holding his cock, I angled it to stroke between my legs. Holy fuck, the feel of his head against my pussy lips made me flush with pleasure. I rubbed his head against my clit. That felt fucking fantastic. If I just angled a bit more.

  "Easy, Jess." Max pulled back. "You're so impatient and greedy. I like it." He must've removed a condom from his pants pocket because I heard to rip of paper.

  I sat up to see him roll the condom over his cock.

  Disappointment dipped inside me.

  Of course, this was a prudent move. Logically I should be pleased Max was careful and responsible. But the primitive part of my brain wanted to feel him inside me bare. And then there was the little matter of my lack of experience or birth control. What was the etiquette for virginity reveals?

  "Do you always wear a condom?" I asked.

  Max's head snapped up. "Is this a trick question, Jess? Honestly, right now I'm blind with desire for you."

  "I was just wondering." I reached for him. My fingers brushed the condom covering his head. I wished he'd skipped the condom even though that was stupid of me.

  “Always.” He leaned down, bracing his weight on his forearms.

  My arms slipped around his neck. I wanted his body against me, pressing me into this bed. My feet were flat on the mattress at his hips and I hooked them around his legs. Drawing him closer to me was the most natural thing in the world.

  “You’re greedy for my cock, you dirty girl.” He ran his tongue along the rim of my ear.

  “I want you to fuck me bare.”

  “I bet you do.” He laughed darkly. “You want my cum filling up that pussy?”

  “Yes!” I breathed, closing my eyes to savor this feeling. “Please.”

  "Please, what?"

  I opened my eyes.

  His intense gaze stud
ied me.

  "Please, Max."

  “Try again.”

  His cock pressed against my pussy lips, trying to slide inside me. I angled my hips, so the very tip of him entered me.

  We both paused. Fuck, he was huge. I was already stretched.

  He frowned, trying to puzzle something out. He was about three seconds away from discovering my secret.

  "Fuck me, Dr. Ransom," I whispered in his ear as I flexed up, pulling more of his head inside me. My fingernails dug into his ass.

  "Christ!" He thrust. He'd anticipated my cry, so his lips covered mine swallowing my moans.

  What he hadn't anticipated was me being a virgin when his cock penetrated me.

  He'd felt my hymen rupture, and he stopped.

  “Jess, what the fuck?”

  "Don't pull out, please!" I tightened my legs to hold him inside.

  “You’re a virgin,” he said wonderingly. “How can that be?”

  “I haven’t had a cock inside of me before.” A few tears escaped.

  "Oh, baby girl. Why didn't you tell me?"

  “Because I wanted to avoid this.”

  He was quiet, wiping my tears away with his thumbs. He was still inside me; he shifted slightly. "What do you want?"

  "I want you to fuck me." My voice was quiet, but my tone was serious. Doubt crossed his face. "Right here. Right now, Dr. Ransom."

  "Fuck, Jess," Max growled. He thrust further, completely penetrating me. I loved feeling completely filled by him. He pulled back, and my pussy muscles tried holding him inside me. He moaned appreciatively.

  He settled into a slow but steady rhythm. He kissed my cheeks, my eyes, and my forehead. As his pace increased, we kissed open mouth, hungry and panting.

  “That virgin pussy of yours is so fucking tight. It’s like you’re made for me.”

  I might be a virgin, but I was plenty wet for Max. The sound of my wetness seemed loud in the room. He grunted in pleasure at it.

  With his cock inside me and his balls rubbing my clit, pleasure radiated through my body.

  My orgasm was starting to build.

  "Max, that feels so good." Any earlier soreness was forgotten. His cock stroked me expertly, creating a buzz inside me.