Read Online Layers Off by Lacey Silks - Free Book Online

inside me as I stood up and leaned in to help Julian remove his jacket.
    The surprise beamed from his eyes, but he didn’t resist.
    “More than you know.” There was that rusty sound from his throat again. He lowered the jacket to the side of the couch and loosened his tie.
    I sat back down beside him, a little bit closer, and took another sip. The alcohol cruised through my veins as if the sails of its boat were fully open.
    “So, if I showed you this” – I pulled out a joint from my purse – “would you freak out?”
    He regarded me for a moment and I wondered whether he’d take it away from me.
    “It helps me forget some stuff.” I shrugged. “Maybe it could help you?”
    “What stuff do you need to forget about?”
    “It’s dreams mostly. You know, the past. But I think it could help you relax a little,” I said.
    “There’s only one thing that could relax me now, K.”
    Julian’s voice was different, now. It held hunger and despair. I wanted to ask him what he meant by that, but I didn’t get a chance. He unbuttoned the top of his shirt, which really distracted me. The patches of darker curls on his taut skin captivated me. Julian reached for the weed, grinning from the side. “You got a lighter?”
     
    Julian’s house – present day
     
    There was no way Julian remembered everything from that night, was there? We were both so high – him forgetting about his new responsibilities, and me finally enjoying the company of a man I’d felt I belonged with since the beginning. He listened to everything I told him, he shared my excitement for my vision for Kissed, and then, for hours, we got lost in each other.
    I finally found the courage to ask him, turning to face him. “What exactly did you remember?”
    Flurries of snow danced to the wind outside. The fireplace flickered and my heart pounded like it had just gotten a shot of adrenaline through a needle jabbed right in my chest.
    Julian’s eyes glowed with excitement and danger, the same way they had that night. He shifted on the swing, adjusted his crotch, took my knees from underneath me, and stretched my legs out over his. Julian’s chocolaty breath smelled so different now, but I didn’t doubt it would taste just as delicious.
    “How much I enjoyed your mouth.” His finger touched my lips. “The smell of your skin and the soft curves of your body.”
    With one swift pull on my legs I was almost straddling him, as he continued, “How wet you were for me that night, and how much making love to you in my office was one of the best nights of my life.”
    I covered my mouth with my hand. Suddenly I was back at Cross Enterprises, pressed against that white couch, kissing those perfect lips I’d longed for. We’d finished off half of that scotch together that night. After the weed made the rounds from Julian’s mouth to mine, we kissed. He locked his lips around my mouth and I inhaled his breath to exchange the gray smoke.
    My thighs tightened at the memory of feeling his muscles flexing over me, his weight so perfect between my legs. His eyes were shiny and dilated as for the first time, he stretched me with ease and care before plunging into me. I’d never forget his eyes as he hit his groin against me, over and over again. His lips roamed over my body, caressing my nipples and swollen folds until that sweet release blasted as I called out his name.
    I couldn’t get enough of him that night. Our first time together had been spent drunk and high; and while I relished every single inch of him, raking my fingers through the scattered hairs on his chest, feeling their delightful tickle, I never thought he remembered. Afterwards, Julian had called Charlie, the company’s driver, who took me home. Neither one of us ever spoke about what had happened in his office.
    And tonight, six years later, the memories I’d always cherished and kept close to my heart stirred something else: a sensation I didn’t want to know again. Not after what had