Vanessa
"We need to talk."
As the four words that no one ever wants to hear slipped from Matt's mouth, I gripped the edges of the seat cushion. My knuckles turning white, I gulped before slowly nodding. "Yea, sure." My words came out shaky and I had to take a deep breath to steady my nerves.
Way to go, V. You've officially ruined the first relationship you ever had before it even had a chance to evolve into something genuine. As I exited his Jetta and walked up the sidewalk to his house, my knees feeling as though they were constructed of rubber, my brain ran through all the possible solutions I could implement to save myself from losing him.
A thought suddenly popped into my head, a lone glowing lightbulb in an otherwise bleak night. The red dress. Of course! How could I have forgotten? It was a scandalous idea, but it was nearly certain to do the trick. After all, hadn't such a preposterous and hare-brained scheme worked for me once before?
Once inside Matt's place, he directed me towards the living room, but I kept my feet firmly planted to the chevron rug that ran up the hall in the foyer.
Shrugging off his leather jacket and hanging it from the coat hook, Matt turned to face me. "What's wrong?"
What's wrong? Is he joking? Oh, I don't know. How about the fact that you're gearing up to rip my heart out of my chest and squash it between your fingers, not even giving a shit that it's the difference between me living or dying? The thought was slightly dramatic but a world where I didn't have him in it, was one where I was as good as dead.
I gently patted the base of my throat, mustering out a small cough. "My mouth feels a bit dry. Do you think you could get me some water first?"
He gestured with his fingers for me to come follow him and I happily obliged, if only to prolong the inevitable for a minute or two longer. While he made work of opening a kitchen cabinet and extracting two glasses before filling them up at the tap, I hopped up onto the center island, setting off on my own task. I pulled out the Santa hat I had stowed away inside my purse, back when I had envisioned this evening playing out much differently.
Tugging the white fur trim over my head, I then made haste of unbuttoning my dress and pushing aside the fabric to reveal the lacey red lingerie that barely contained my breasts. The deep cut-outs in the leg revealed bare skin that went all the way up to my bikini line. Shaking out my hair, I waited for him to face me.
At the sink, Matt shut off the faucet before picking up the water glasses in both hands. As he turned around, his eyes bulged, and his mouth dropped open. The drinkware slipped from his fingers as though they were coated in Vaseline, tumbling to the linoleum with a smash.
"Oh...my God," he stammered. "Where did that outfit come from? Fuck..." His jaw worked open and closed as he stood there frozen. "How is it even possible for someone to be this hot?" He rubbed the back of his neck, a flush creeping up his cheeks.
Vanessa, you saucy seductress, you. You've done it! A slow mischievous smile spread across my lips at the sight of him practically panting. I mentally gave myself a clap on the back. Good work, girls, I silently praised my boobs as I cupped them. The action was enough to have Matt hurdling over the broken glass shards and throwing himself into my arms.
His lips closed the gap in between us, smothering me with kisses and taking all of me in with his tongue. He tasted of citrus, a stark contrast to the cedarwood aroma that wafted from his skin. A soft moan escaped his throat as I snaked my arms around his neck, pressing my breasts firmly to his chest. "Merry Christmas, handsome," I muttered against his mouth.
A deep chuckle vibrated throughout his upper torso. "I thought those that had been naughty weren't supposed to be rewarded with presents," his gravelly voice whispered into my ear. "I do believe I've earned myself one too many detentions to have qualified for the nice list this year."
"There's a new Santa in town," I replied, smacking him on the ass. "And she's changing up the rules. Those that have been bad now have to prove just how rude they can be."
Pulling away, I slipped my dress from my body before balling it up and tossing it into the kitchen sink. I leaned back on the counter, sprawling my fingers on the cool granite and allowed him to fully take in the skimpy lingerie that left little to the imagination. "Now, Matthew Jones, are you going to have your way with me or not? Show me every disobedient thought that's been running through your brain."
Slowly, he circled the island, his searing gaze orbiting around me as though kept there by some gravitational pull. "Alright," he drawled. "First, how about I do this?" He stopped in front of me, kneeling to the floor.
His sights still affixed on mine, he bent his head and slowly licked his way from my ankle, all the way up my calf and halting at my inner thigh. The move was enough to send a shiver up my spine that rivaled the sensation of pressing my palms to a chilled windowpane while basking in a cozy warmth.
"And then," he whispered. "I'll follow with this." He nudged the thread thin strap off my shoulder, placing heated wet kisses atop my skin. His lips left a trail of goosebumps as he moved them across my collarbone and then to the tops of my breasts.
He flicked his tongue in between my cleavage before pulling down the neckline of my garment and marking me with more smooches. His fingers gently began to caress my nipples and he proceeded to alternate between touches and licks around the beaded buds.
My thighs began to tremble as a deep ache inside my groin begged for more. He moved his hand down between my legs, massaging the damp scrap of fabric that was only getting wetter the more that he teased me. Frustrated with his slow pace, I kicked off my lingerie piece in an effort to prompt him to the place that I really wanted him to be.
Arching a brow and giving me a frisky grin, he slipped his fingers inside of me. I tilted my head back, my vision growing spotty as he massaged me. I focused on the lazy turning of the ceiling fan above me in an effort to control my bucking body.
"You know," I said panting. "If you really want to impress Santa then you'll have to do better than that. Only the baddest of the bad boys get rewarded."
Chuckling, he removed his touch to quickly undo the zipper of his jeans. Then slipping them off, he freed himself from his boxers. "Is this more what you had in mind? I suck at school so this might be my only opportunity to earn myself a gold star."
"I think that's exactly what I'm searching for," I answered, my voice husky. I gripped the fabric of his t-shirt in between my fingers as I yanked him to me. A gasp escaped my throat when he eased himself inside of me, his thickness filling up every inch.
His thrusts started out leisurely, his goal to leave me begging for mercy. Afterall, naughty guys aren't always in a rush to appease. Gradually his pace began to quicken, matching the rhythm of his breathing.
I dug my nails into the flesh of his back, dragging them all the way down until they gripped his behind. My firm grasp sunk him into me even deeper, which was enough to push us both over the edge. Stars danced in my peripherals as my orgasm exploded throughout my body, making my toes curl.
"What do you know?" I breathed, clutching my chest to calm my rapid heartbeat. "It seems as though we are both naughty."
Wiping his brow, Matt shook his head at me, a grin tugging at his lips. "When I stated that we needed to talk, I wasn't referring to dirty talk." He slid his jeans back on, pausing to glance at me. "But I suppose that's not the worst conversation we could have had."
Pasting a tight smile on my face, I grappled around on the floor for my lingerie. I had been hoping to redirect him from his original intentions, but it appeared as though our tryst had only been a minor detour and he was still every bit as determined to continue full speed ahead to his final destination of shattering my fantasies.
Blowing out a breath that caused the loose strands of hair framing my face to go flying, I pulled myself up into a standing position. "Okay, shoot," I replied, jutting out my chin. "Just rip off the band-aid and tell me what you need to. Let's get this over with."
Matt's features softened as he came over to me and placed his hands on my shoulders. He gave me a feathery light kiss on the cheek before pressing his forehead against mine. "Vanessa," he began in a whisper. "You have no idea how much I want this and the impact you've had on my life these past few months."
"But...?" Unless he had been planning on dropping down to one knee and presenting me with a shiny rock, there was only one direction this conversation could go.
Dragging his fingers down his cheeks and chin, he exhaled. "But...I think that perhaps we should cool things off."
My shoulders sagging and the air escaping from my lungs in a whoosh, I let my gaze fall to the floor. I focused on the dust bunny poking out from beneath the stove as I counted to ten and willed the hot tears to recede.
Matt's hand found its way to my jaw, cupping it and raising it so that I was forced to look at him. "Just for a little while, at least."
Swallowing, I searched his steely grey stare for an answer, but it only provided me with more questions. "Why? Is it because of what I said about you and Jake earlier?"
At my words, his solemn expression morphed into a grin. "You mean when you gave me your blessing to sleep with your brother?" He shook his head. "No, it wasn't that, but Jake is the reason." Sighing, he leaned against the counter and took a sip of water. "He's so important to me, V and I have too much respect for our friendship to continue to defy his wishes. So, I do think that you and I need to dial this back until we can get things sorted with him."
Racing over towards Matt, I grasped his fingers in between mine. "Then talk to him," I pleaded. "Please."
He squinted at me, a silence filling the room, and pain twisting his beautiful features. Then slowly, he nodded. "Okay," he agreed. "If that will make you happy, I'll give it a shot."
I exhaled the weight that had been crushing my insides like a vice grip, feeling much lighter. So, it wasn't great news. But at least he wasn't ending it. Humming to myself, I plucked my dress from the sink and began buttoning it.
But I instantly stilled when I caught sight of Matt. He was watching me, the line between his brows creased and a frown tugging at his mouth. He had a faraway expression as he wrung his hands.
And the sudden guilt of what I had asked him to do nearly sent me sprawling back onto the linoleum. If his discussion with Jake goes awry, you'll still have your brother but who will he be left with?
Taking a step forward, I caressed his cheek with the palm of my hand. "I'll do it. I'll tell Jake how I feel about you. I'm his sister. It should come from me."
Question of the day: How do you think Jake will respond when Vanessa speaks to him?