Pieces

Chapter Thirty-Six

**Kayla**

"Are you ready for the rain, darlin'?"

Kayla barely managed to hold onto the gasp of air as Mason came up behind her. As was depicted in the book, she wore a white, cotton camisole that clung to her breasts and black, cheeky panties. Though she hadn't addressed her concern to Haley or Sam, it would clear what would happen once that rain started to fall. Her cheeks burned with heat. She may as well be standing here stark naked once that shirt got wet. And Mason knew that. Closing her eyes, she listened as the thunderstorm soundtrack began to play, drowning out the thundering of her heartbeat.

At Sam's nod, Mason closed the gap at her back and his bare chest and placed his large hand on her belly, bringing her backwards until she was plastered against an already growing bulge in the front of his jeans. The sprinklers in the ceiling of the came on, the screens behind them played the recreation of a storm scene. Within moments, they were both drenched. Haley walked around them, doing her magic with her camera.

"Come close to her ear, Mason," Haley instructed through the downpour. "Now, just like you did yesterday, talk to one another. Doesn't have to be loud enough for Sam or me to hear. Just make it look natural."

"I can't do this anymore, Jessi," he whispered in her ear.

The fact that he was calling her by the character's name from the book caught her off guard for a moment, but if he wanted to take it this route, she'd go with it. "Can't do what anymore?"

"Pretend I can stay away from you." He paused then, gently moving the wet strands of hair slowly off her neck. "I want you, darlin'. All of you."

Her lips parted as his breath fell hot and minty against her neck. Goosebumps formed on her skin. And just as she'd predicted, her nipples grew hard and evident as she felt his gaze touch her there. Blood raced in her veins at those last three little words. What was he saying? Did he mean...? Her head came back to rest against his warm chest as he let his hand make a slow trail up her arm. "All of me?"

He nuzzled the side of her neck with the tip of his nose, inhaling deeply, breathing her in. "Every inch of you."

Kayla's lashes touched her cheek as her breathing hitched more than a few notches. A shiver took over her. "M-Ma...Aaron," she breathed, forcing herself to remember that she was Jessi right now. She was a tough bar owner with a secret. No man had ever had her. She'd promised herself to Aaron at the tender age of fifteen. Years had passed. And she'd kept that promise. Only, he didn't know. He'd never known how she'd waited for him. Not the real reason that she'd left town. Not that she'd loved him so much that it hurt. "I w-want you too."

"You're shivering," he whispered in her ear as she leaned against him, seeking his warmth. "Are you cold?"

"No," she responded so quietly that she wasn't even sure that he'd heard her. The way he made her feel, as if she wanted to soak into him, the way his fingertips played with the short hem of her top, was more than incredible. Tantalizing, even. And though she knew he wouldn't, not with his aunt and Haley moving quietly about the room, her lower belly trembled with need as she imagined how good it might feel if he slipped his fingers lower.

And then, as if he had been reading her mind, he growled into her ear. "I might have to bring you back here tonight."

She trembled at the thought. "Oh."

"I want to take those nipples into my mouth," he told her, his voice low as his fingers moved to push one of the straps of her top off her shoulder. "To lick you. To taste you. To pinch and tease until your knees are weak." His fingertips pressed against her lower belly. Somehow, he'd managed to lift the soaked shirt until his bare hand was resting just below her belly button. "And then, I'd slide my hand inside your shorts. Tell me the truth, Kayla. Are you wet for me yet?"

She swallowed, her cheeks flaming at his bold question. Never in her wildest dreams had she ever imagined she would enjoy a man talking dirty to her. And that he had slipped and called her by her name sent another wave of pleasure to the aching spot. How did he know her so well? "You know I am."

"Good," he whispered. "I told you I'd make you beg. I intend to stand by that. But not now. Not yet."

Surprised, she nearly broke her stance and looked at him. Catching herself, she tried to keep the disappointment from ripping a hole in her gut. "When?"

"When the time is right," he replied slowly. "As badly as I'd like to make you scream my name, it'd probably be really inappropriate to do so under the watchful eye of my aunt and her photographer."