Love, Lies, and Deception Read online

  “Surely you’ve had other women to occupy your time. A guy like you has to have girls lined up around the corner,” I replied dryly, hating the fact that I actually felt jealous just thinking about him and other women. Get a grip, Marissa! You barely know the guy and you want to stake your claim to him.

  In a way I did, but I knew that anything that happened between me and Alec was going to be just a thing to pass the time. I would be leaving soon, but I wasn’t going to let that stop me from enjoying the time I had left.

  Alec stiffened momentarily at my comment, but then picked up with his tantalizing kisses down my neck to the tops of my breasts that peeked out slightly from my low cut top. “Yes, there have been women, but no one like you, Marissa. I already told you … you’re different.”

  The next moment, he caught me off guard and picked me up in his arms, making me squeal. He carried me to the couch and laid me down gently on the cold, black leather. “You’re not seeing anyone else right now, are you?” I asked hesitantly. I had seen him with a couple of girls over the years, but no one recently. It didn’t mean he wasn’t seeing someone though.

  His hypnotic blue gaze bore into mine. “The only girl I see right now is you.”

  Slowly, he bent down to claim me with another kiss, and laid his body on top of mine, pressing me into the couch. He cupped my breast in his hand and massaged it gently before moving further down to the button of my jeans. His fingers fumbled with the clasp, but before he could get them unbuttoned a loud, obnoxious banging above stopped us cold.

  “What the fuck is that?” he growled, climbing off of me. Taking my hand, he pulled me up off the couch and I straightened my clothes. “It’s coming from your place,” he claimed warily. “Were you expecting company tonight? Your ex-boyfriend perhaps?”

  “No,” I shrieked with wide eyes. “That’s over and done with. I don’t know of anyone who’s supposed to come by tonight, especially not from someone who sounds like they’re about to beat down my door.”

  Alec ran his hands through his tousled brown hair and gave me a stern look. “You, stay here. I want to see what’s going on.”

  “What are you going to do when you get up there?” I asked. I had no clue who was ravaging my door with such brutal force, but I really wanted to know. Kristian wouldn’t be doing it, and I knew my ex-boyfriend wouldn’t be; he wasn’t the violent type to do anything like that.

  He shrugged. “I have no clue, but I’m sure I’ll figure it out.” He turned to leave, but I grabbed his arm before he made it out of the open door. “Wait,” I hissed quietly, pulling him back. “What if it’s someone trying to break in. What if they have a gun?”

  He looked at me incredulously and said, “They wouldn’t be making that much noise if they were breaking in.”

  “Yeah, you’re right, well in that case I’m coming with you.”

  He smirked at me. “You wouldn’t have stayed here anyway, would you?”

  Sheepishly, I bit my lip and smiled. “No, probably not.”

  “Are you always so stubborn?”

  “Pretty much,” I admitted.

  Alec sighed and took my hand. We left his apartment quietly and made it up the steps to my apartment. By the time we got up there we were too late. No one was there, but in the wall by my door were huge dents in the siding where it looked like someone took a baseball bat to it. I walked over to the markings and ran my hand over them.

  “That’s strange,” I murmured. “Why would someone do this?”

  Alec shrugged and looked around. “I don’t know. Someone could’ve gotten mad and just happened to take it out on the wall. You haven’t pissed anyone off recently, have you?”

  Shaking my head, I said, “No, definitely not. I have no clue who it could be.” I wrapped my arms around my middle and shivered. It was all so strange and it left an unsettling feeling in my stomach.

  Alec put his arm around my shoulders. “Hey, are you going to be all right? You’re shaking.” He stood behind me and rubbed his hands down my arms, trying to warm me and to stop the chills.

  “I’ll be fine. It’s just strange that’s all.”

  “Why don’t you stay with me tonight, or if you feel more comfortable I can stay up here with you and sleep on your couch. I don’t want you to be alone.”

  Placing my hands on my hips, I turned around and eyed him skeptically. “Are you sure you didn’t plan this so you could keep me safe and weasel your way into my bed.”

  He scoffed and pretended to be offended. “Are you implying that I did all of this to get in your pants? Marissa, there are other more successful ways to do that other than to stage a farce. I have no intentions of seducing you anymore tonight, so your virtue will be safe with me. Now come on and let’s get your brownies and come back up here. It’s getting late and I know you have class in the morning.”

  We walked back down to his apartment, got the brownies and my phone, and headed back upstairs. The unsettled feeling still felt like a boulder weighing heavily in my stomach, and I didn’t like it one bit.

  My alarm clock buzzed right at seven in the morning, and I was greeted with a massive headache throbbing at my temples. Why did I drink all that wine?

  I buried my head under my pillow to block out the sunlight glaring through my window into my eyes. I laid in bed for a few minutes longer and was about to get out when I heard a knock on my bedroom door. It had to be Alec because I knew very well that Emily wouldn’t have made it back that early in the morning from Justin’s.

  “Go away,” I muttered halfheartedly, my voice subdued by the pillow. I didn’t really want him to go away.

  The door creaked, signaling that he entered my room, and I smiled, hidden by the pillow. I could hear his footsteps coming closer—slowly—step by step. “Wake up on the wrong side of the bed this morning?” he teased. The bed dipped down from his weight, and I could feel the heat emanating off of him. Why couldn’t he have kept me warm last night?

  “Nice room by the way … very earthy.”

  Green was my favorite color, and I made sure to have a lot of earthy tones in my room. It reminded me of nature and being out in the woods, something I enjoyed living out in the mountains.

  “What can I do for you this morning?” I offered dryly.

  He moved closer and leaned over my body. “For starters you can stop hiding your face and look at me.”

  I held the pillow tighter. “Nope, not gonna happen. I have a terrible headache and I feel like shit. I’m sure I look like shit, too. I also need to brush my teeth.”

  Alec huffed and the next thing I knew he scooped me up underneath the arms and tackled me across the bed, grasping for the pillow. I squealed and held on tight, but he easily pulled it away from me, chuckling the whole time. Once he saw me, he smiled brightly and ran his finger down my make-up free face.

  “So beautiful,” he murmured. Leaning into his hand, I closed my eyes, soaking up his tender caress.

  He was beautiful; bare-chested with only his boxers on. I felt like I was going to hyperventilate. He smirked, clearly aware of the effect he had on me. Smiling to myself, I thought, Let’s see how he likes this. Swinging my pillow, I smacked him across the face with it and he went down, taking me with him. We rolled around on the bed, getting tangled in the sheets, when everything just stopped.

  Breathing hard, I straddled atop Alec, gazing down at his heat-filled stare. His hands were on my bare thighs, skimming across my boy short underwear until he ended with them on my ass. I was only wearing a thin T-shirt, but the way he drank me in made me feel naked. His cock was hard between my legs and I couldn’t stop my hips from moving against him.

  “I wondered if you were going to come in here last night,” I rasped, breathless.

  He dug his fingers into my skin and guided me over his straining erection. Biting his lip, he groaned, his cock thickening underneath my torturous glide. My panties were soaked, wet with need, and I ached to feel his warm skin inside of mine. What is his touch doing
to me?

  “Trust me, I wanted to,” he said, his voice full of need.

  “Why didn’t you?” I asked hesitantly, slowing my hips.

  Alec reached up, tucking my hair behind my ears, and held onto my face with his large, soft hands. “Because I wanted you to have a clear head before you made the decision to have sex with me. You were a little lit last night. The last thing I wanted was for you to regret what we did.”

  “Hmm …” I pulled back, thoughtful. “I’m sure most guys would’ve taken advantage of the situation.”

  He shrugged and met my eyes head on. “And most guys would’ve taken advantage. I used to not care, to be honest, but you’re also not the type of girl I’m used to being with.”

  “How do you know I’m not like the girls you used to be with?” I asked curiously.

  Pulling me down on top of him, he brushed his lips against mine. I closed my eyes and relished the feel of his body being so close. When I opened them, his intense stare vibrated throughout my body, and he whispered softly, “You’re not like the other girls because when you look at me you actually see me, the person I really am. For the first time in a long while I feel normal. Last night made me feel normal.”

  Confused, I furrowed my brows at him. “That was kind of cryptic, Alec. How do people normally see you?”

  Sighing, he looked away. “The people I used to be around back home didn’t care what I was like or who I really was. Most of them used me, and I used them back. It was all I ever knew until I came here and saw things in a different perspective.”

  “You’re aunt?” I inquired.

  “Yes, my aunt,” he agreed. “She literally beat some sense into me. Maybe one day you’ll get to meet her.”

  “It’ll have to be soon if I do,” I informed him. “I move once the summer is over.”

  His face fell. “Oh yeah? Where?”

  Alec’s tone gave me pause, and I stared down at him, trying to figure him out. I never thought that what we were doing would have an impact once I left. I liked him, and I was severely attracted to him, but I refused to do another long distance relationship if I moved away. I wanted to enjoy my life, except Alec did something to me that made me want to throw all of my rules out the window.

  Cautiously, I replied, “Emily and I are moving to Wilmington, to the beach. I’m going into the Marine Biology graduate program at the University of Wilmington in the fall. It was something I decided to do a few months ago.”

  His face finally lifted and he smiled, a gleam twinkling in his eye like he knew something I didn’t. “Trading in the mountains for the beach, eh? I guess I can teach you how to surf after all.”

  Giggling, I shook my head. “I don’t think we have the waves you do in California.”

  “So,” he said, grasping my hips, letting his gaze fall to my lips, “I could teach you anyway.”

  I bit my lip, teasing him. “That would mean you’d have to visit me out there. It’s a little early to be thinking about that, isn’t it?”

  “Maybe, but it’s worth a shot.”

  Slowly, I bent down and trailed my tongue up his neck to his ear. The salty yet sweet taste of his skin was electrifying. “Well, then I look forward to it,” I whispered.

  He groaned when I bit down lightly on his lobe. Not wasting any more time, he ran his hands up my back, bringing my shirt up and over my head, discarding it to the floor. He hissed as he raked his hungered gaze down my bare chest on down to my pink, lacy boy shorts.

  “Fuck, you’re beautiful,” he muttered in awe. His hands trailed up my sides and wrapped around my breasts, massaging them feverishly. He pulled and tugged on my sensitive nipples until they were plump and taut for him to suckle. Licking his lips, he swirled his tongue around my nipple, making me gasp and moan.

  I moved my hips over Alec’s pulsating cock, earning me a growl from him as he bit down on my breast. I winced from the sharp bite, but it felt so damn good. Still torturing my aching breast, Alec used his other hand and stroked my throbbing clit through my underwear. He pulled them aside and slipped a finger inside me.

  He groaned, and pushed another finger inside. “Damn, that’s hot. You’re so wet for me.”

  “I’ve been deprived,” I confessed sheepishly.

  Alec grasped me by the shoulders and flipped me onto the bed, hovering over me. “I’ll be more than happy to help you with that.”

  The throbbing between my legs intensified, and I growled low in my throat, arching my back off the bed. He kissed my stomach, and slowly made his way to between my legs where he nipped my clit through my underwear. “Ah, Alec …” I breathed.

  His husky chuckle echoed in my ear as he peeled off my underwear and immediately settled himself between my legs, pushing his tongue into my damp opening. So many sensations racked throughout my body, and I was close … so close to losing control.

  My orgasm was put on hold when my phone rang loudly on the bedside table. “No,” I hissed impatiently.

  Gazing up at me, Alec stopped his tormenting and uttered breathlessly, “Don’t answer it.” Mischievously, he grinned and ran his tongue over my opening, staring into my eyes the whole time. I contemplated ignoring the call, but I just couldn’t do it.

  Reluctantly, I reached for my phone and saw that it was Kristian. The time also read eight-thirty. Shit! I was going to be late for class. Alec laughed and plunged his tongue into me once again, making me scream. “Are you going to answer the phone, sunshine?” he taunted playfully.

  “Not if you don’t stop!” Defiantly, he pulled back and smirked at me. “Thank you,” I muttered breathlessly.

  Trying my best to sound normal, I pressed the ‘Call’ button and answered, “Hey, Kristian.”

  “Where are you? You said you’d call if you ran late again.” He sounded irritated.

  “I’m sorry, I overslept. I had a little too much wine last night.” At that moment, Alec spread my legs and began devouring me again. I bit my lip to keep my gasp tucked inside.

  “With him?” Kristian asked dryly.

  “Actually, it was before him,” I pointed out, trying not to pant. I did actually drink most of my alcohol before I had dinner with Alec.

  “Okay, whatever. Hurry up and get ready, I’m almost to your apartment.” He hung up immediately, and I groaned. Shit!

  “He’s almost here!” I screamed, giving myself into the desire of being tongue-fucked.

  “I better hurry then,” he added, tasting me greedily. I was already so close. Just a few seconds after rocking my hips to the rhythm of his tongue, Alec had me spilling over the edge.

  “Alec,” I cried, giving in to it all. The sheets were clenched in my tight fists as I rode wave after wave of sweet orgasm.

  Alec climbed up between my legs and hovered above me, smiling, before leaning down to kiss me on the lips. He forced his tongue into my mouth and I accepted it willingly, tasting my desire on his lips.

  “You shouldn’t be deprived anymore.” He grinned wolfishly with triumph in his gaze.

  “No,” I breathed softly. “I’m not, but what about you?”

  He silenced me by putting his finger to my lips. “You can make it up to me tonight.”

  Regretfully, I shook my head and he moved his finger so I could speak. “I can’t. I have a study group tonight.”

  “Well, then I suggest you come by afterwards.” He said it with such authority and demand that it had me enthralled.

  “What if I don’t come to you?” I asked, teasing.

  With a firm grasp, Alec took my face in his hands and pierced me with his stormy blue gaze, penetrating through to my soul. “Then I will come to you.”

  It wasn’t a threat, but a promise. The trance broke as soon as we heard the pounding on the door. Alec slid off of me, smiling wickedly as I scrambled off the bed. “I’ll get dressed and let him in,” Alec insisted, heading for the living room where his clothes were.

  I had a strange feeling Kristian wasn’t going to be too happy with me.


  Luckily, it only took me a total of fifteen minutes to get ready, a new world record for me. I was dreading having to face both Kristian and Alec at the same time, especially given what just happened not twenty minutes ago. I could already feel the heat rising to my cheeks.

  When I stepped out of my room, both guys turned and gaped at me. Alec smiled appreciatively while Kristian scowled and clenched his teeth.

  “Are you ready?” Kristian asked impatiently while grabbing my bag off the floor by the door. Oh yeah, he is pissed at me all right. I noticed he was wearing the brown leather bracelet I bought him in Fiji, and it made me want to smile, but I didn’t because of his attitude.

  I ignored his tone and fetched my usual breakfast from the kitchen: orange juice and a blueberry cereal bar. “Yep, I’m ready,” I said casually, taking a sip of my juice.

  Kristian opened the front door and walked out while Alec and I slowly followed behind him. Once Kristian descended the steps, Alec’s light grip on my elbow stopped me. I gazed up at him, my heart fluttering out of my chest.

  “I had a good time this morning,” he said, winking.

  I blushed. “Me too.”

  “Have fun in class today. I’ll be sure to think about you while I’m slaving away at my aunt’s house.”

  “Do you go there every day?” I asked, wondering if that’s all he ever did during the days.

  He nodded, but his smile had faded; the guarded look was back. “Just about. There’s always something she likes for me to do.”

  Grabbing his hand, I held it and squeezed. “Well, don’t work too hard. I’ll see you tonight?”

  Alec moved closer and tilted my chin up with his finger. “You bet you will,” he promised.

  Rising on my tiptoes, I leaned closer and kissed him lightly on the lips. “I look forward to it,” I whispered huskily.