Tinsel (Lark Cove #4)(39)

I waited two thundering heartbeats then dared to crack my eyelids.

Dakota was waiting, his chest heaving, as he silently asked if I was sure he could have me bare.

“Yes.”

One word and he thrust forward, pulling my knees onto him as he impaled me.

“Fuck,” he groaned as I cried out.

I collapsed forward, giving him my weight. He stayed rooted, pushing me back so my ass was on the counter as I stretched around him.

“So good,” I moaned. “So, so good. Keep going.”

“I need a sec or I’m gonna come already.”

I smiled into his neck, squeezing my inner muscles around him.

“Goddamn it, Sofia,” he grunted. “Knock that shit off. I’m not going to last as it is.”

“Sorry.” I wasn’t.

Making Dakota lose control was my latest obsession.

He pulled out slowly then eased back inside, making my legs shake as they dangled by his thighs.

My breaths were jagged. My heartbeat erratic. Dakota wasn’t the only one who was ready to come. The man’s silken flesh inside my tight heat was the best—the most incredible—sexual moment of my life.

“Give me your mouth.”

I straightened from the crook of his neck, lifting my chin so he could claim my lips.

His tongue slid inside my mouth at the same time his cock thrust deep. The two of us were fused together, clinging to one another as he moved in and out, setting the pace.

Dakota liked control when we were together. It was something I’d learned over the last three nights spent between his bedsheets. The dominance was a different experience, something I hadn’t had with another man. It was thrilling to just let go and trust that he’d get me to my peak.

Not once did I have to ask him to do something different. I didn’t need to worry that he’d get so focused on chasing his own release that he’d forget about mine. Every one of my orgasms had been real.

Even with my hair in a messy knot, still wet since I’d showered and hadn’t dried it yet. Even without a swipe of makeup. He made me feel like the sexiest, most desired woman on earth.

We fucked on the counter, just like he’d promised. He brought me higher and higher until I exploded around him, coming with so much force my entire body felt like it was breaking apart.

Dakota came at the same time, groaning against my skin as he bit down on my shoulder, hard enough I hissed at the sting but not so hard that it hurt. It just made the pleasure spike for one more delicious second.

We held on to each other with sweaty limbs as we came down from the high. Our bodies stayed connected until Dakota’s release began to slide out, slicking down my inner thighs.

The sticky drops made me smile. “I need another shower.”

“Me too.” He kissed my temple then slid out. “You take the first one. I’ll finish breakfast and hop in after you.”

The clock on the oven showed we still had forty minutes before we had to be at the bar for work, but a rush of alarm had me jumping off the island. To do my hair, get dressed and put on makeup, I needed at least an hour.

I scurried out of the kitchen naked, my pajamas left piled on the floor with Dakota’s clothes.

My shower was fast, but it took time we didn’t have. I’d only just gotten my hair dried and curled in the time it took Dakota to take his own fresh shower, get dressed in some jeans, his boots and a long-sleeved Henley and finish our omelet. He brought me in a plate with half the omelet, the cheese oozing from the egg wrap. I devoured bites as I swiped on some foundation.

“We gotta go soon.”

“I’m hurrying.” I put my finishing powder away and got out an eye shadow palette. I glanced in the mirror to see Dakota leaning against the doorframe of the bathroom, a steamy mug of coffee in his grip.

“You don’t need all that. We’re just going to work.”

I took out a brush from my case. “I don’t go out in public without makeup.”

I didn’t even go to the gym or the spa without makeup first. I’d sweat through it or my technician would wipe my face clean.

“No one at the Lark Cove Bar is going to care that you aren’t all done up today.”

“But I care.”

He pushed off the door, coming right into my space. He set his mug down next to my plate and pulled the hair off my shoulder. I was only wearing a towel wrapped around my chest, so he lowered his head and kissed the spot where he’d bitten me earlier. The faint outline of his teeth was still pink.

“Don’t you feel beautiful without it?” he asked.

“Yes. I don’t know.” No one had ever asked me that question before. I don’t think I’d really even asked myself. “I’ve just always worn makeup.”

“If it makes you feel good, put it on. We can be a few minutes late.” He ran his knuckles over my cheek. Then he kissed my hair, picked up his coffee cup and walked out of the bathroom with my empty plate.

My insides swirled, my lungs unable to get full. I used a minute I didn’t have to stare at the makeup brush in my hand. Then another minute to take a hard look at my reflection in the mirror.

My entire reflection.

Did makeup make me feel good? Yes. Did I feel beautiful without it?

I pulled my shoulders back and lifted my chin. My cheekbones hadn’t been contoured or highlighted. My eyes were still naked, and my lips were their natural pale pink.