Ruined Promises Read online

  When I felt strange hands grab my hips, I froze for only a moment. My eyes met Hadley’s, and we had a nonverbal conversation as to whether I should brush this guy off or not. Nobody wants to dance with an ugly creeper. But the way she smiled and nodded slightly told me he wasn’t too bad on the eyes and that she approved.

  I should have pulled away and told him tonight was about me and my group celebrating, but what better way to forget about everything than getting lost in someone. And I do just that. The way his hands feel, fingers spread out on my waist, my heart beats so fast it matches the beat of the techno remix the DJ is currently playing.

  We are so close that his scent of soap and pine fills my nostrils even through the crowd and sweat. When he slowly spins me around to face him, I come face-to-face with the sexiest man I have ever seen. No wonder Hadley approved.

  Dark eyes.

  Dark hair that lines his chiseled, sharp jaw.

  Broad shoulders that fill out his black button-down shirt.

  My eyes follow a bead of sweat as it drops down his Adam’s apple, and I am tempted to trace that same path with my tongue and see just how far the sweat will drop. Get a grip, Lex. You just met this man. Wait, we haven’t even officially met yet. I don’t even know his name.

  When our eyes finally connect, it’s as if everyone else disappears, and it’s just us alone in the crowd.

  “Ben.”

  “Lexi.”

  “You’re gorgeous, Lexi.”

  My cheeks heat up, and my panties dampen at the sound of my name on his lips. I bring my bottom lip between my teeth and bite down. Ben grips my chin and uses his thumb to free my lip from my grasp. I suck in a breath at how intimate the movement is.

  “You know, you’re not so bad yourself.” I give him a cheeky smile, now back to feeling relaxed from his touch. He wraps his arm around my waist, twirling me back around, pulling me flush against his chest.

  “You’re quite the dancer, too,” he whispers in my ear, and I close my eyes as I feel his hot breath on my skin.

  “Oh? I have all sorts of moves.” Woah, where the fuck did that come from? I sway my hips side to side again and then in a figure-eight motion. I hear him growl behind me as I make sure to press my ass into his groin harder, rubbing against the hardening outline in his pants.

  Song after song, we continue to dance. He leans down and nibbles my earlobe, making wetness pool in my panties. “You keep doing that, I’m going to take you right here on the dance floor and devour you,” he growls.

  I lean back, reaching my arm up behind him, running my fingers through the damp hair on the nape of his neck. “Maybe I want you to.”

  Ben whips me around so fast I worry I’ll suffer from whiplash. He brushes the hair out of my face and pulls me tightly against his hard body. I wrap my arms around him to steady myself.

  “Do you mean it? Do you want me to?” My body wants nothing more than to say yes. Before I allow my brain and heart to catch up, I nod. His grip tightens on my waist, and his lips crash on mine. This kiss is like no other kiss I have ever experienced. This kiss I feel everywhere, and I am no longer drunk from the champagne; I am drunk on his lips. I slide my arms around his neck, holding him to me. One hand goes from his neck to his chest, gripping his shirt. He groans into my mouth when I roll my pelvis against his erection. The entire time we’ve been dancing, I’ve felt it poking against my back. I can’t help but wonder what it would be like to wrap my fingers around him. This is so not like me, but there is something about this man that makes me loose control.

  When he nips my bottom lip, I gasp, and he thrusts his tongue against mine. He swallows my moan. His hand grips the bottom of my dress and begins to slide it up. The music changes to a song with more bass, and we remember we’re in the middle of a crowded dance floor. Ben presses his forehead against mine as I continue to grind against him.

  “Lexi, are you sure this is what you want?” His voice is hoarse and tells me he wants me as much as I want him. I stare at him, and he looks just as nervous as I am. This time my heart and brain have caught up with my body.

  “Yes.”

  He grabs my hand and leads me off the dance floor toward the bathroom. My internal monologue is screaming at me, Are you about to have sex with someone you just met moments ago in the bathroom of a dance club? Ben opens the door slightly to check it’s empty. He then pulls me into the bathroom, shutting the door and locking it. I stare at his gorgeous figure. Oh, hell yes, this is about to happen. I attack his mouth with my own, pushing him up against the door with a loud thud.

  Without breaking our kiss, I reach for his belt, undoing the loop. When I go to unbutton his pants to free his hard cock, Ben surprises me by swinging me around so my back presses firmly up against the door. Hopefully, no one is on the other side because I am pretty sure they would have heard that loud thump, even over the music.

  He weaves his fingers into my hair, tugging on the locks so that my head tilts upward. He takes advantage of my movement by deepening the kiss. I wrap my leg around his waist. One hand meticulously drags down my body to my thigh, aligning my center with his erection. When he pulls my dress up, bunching it around my waist, I throw my head back. It is currently swirling with how much I want this man—no, how much I need this man. It has been so long since I’ve had an orgasm that wasn’t courtesy of my fingers or toys.

  His fingers graze over my soaked panties, the moisture seeping through the material. He slides the material to the side and drags a finger over my drenched slit.

  Ben groans, placing his forehead against mine. “I hoped I would find you wet, but hot damn, baby, you’re soaked.” He doesn’t hesitate sliding two fingers inside me, and I already feel the orgasm begin to rip through me. His fingers slide in and out as his lips lick, nip, and suck my skin along my collarbone.

  “Mmm,” he hums against my skin. My pussy walls contract against his fingers, but just as I’m about to come, he pulls his fingers from me.

  I whine at the loss of his touch. I open my eyes to say “what the hell” when I see him undoing his pants, freeing his cock. Holy shit, there is no way that thing is going fit inside me. He reaches down for his wallet to retrieve a condom as I squirm my thighs together, needing some sort of friction in hopes of seeking the much-needed release.

  Ben’s eyes meet mine, and a devilish smirk appears on his lips. “Spread your legs, Lex. Only I get to make you come.”

  His stern voice and dirty words unleash something inside me.

  Once the condom is on, Ben reaches behind my thighs, hoisting me up. I instinctively wrap my legs around his waist. While one hand clings to his shoulder, I thread my fingers of the other hand through his dark locks, tugging on the ends and pull him into a searing kiss. A kiss I feel all the way down to my core with a new layer of wetness seeping out of me.

  “You are so fucking sexy, Lexi,” he breathes against my lips before claiming them again. I know there is no way I won’t be walking out of here with my lips swollen—both of them.

  Ben lines up his cock to my entrance, teasing me as he drags it up and down my slit, coating the condom with my arousal. Without warning, he thrusts into me, and I cry out. He slowly pulls out so that just the tip is still seated within me before shoving his cock back deep inside me. He kisses me feverishly, and I moan loudly into his mouth as his thumb finds my clit, rotating in a circular motion.

  “Fuck, I’m going to come,” I moan, and suddenly he stops thrusting and pulls out of me.

  “Not yet.” He moves us from the door to the counter. The perk about meeting in one of the hottest dance clubs in town? The luxurious bathrooms. He sets my bare ass on the counter and spreads my legs wide as he lowers himself. He latches onto my clit, sucking on my little bundle of nerves, and then he inserts a finger. “I want to taste you,” he murmurs, the vibrations sending waves of pleasure through my body. I slap the mirror behind me with one hand, thankfully not hard enough to shatter or damage it, while the other grips on to the counter
as Ben laps up my orgasm.

  He doesn’t even give me time to recuperate because he’s standing and sliding his cock back inside me. And he doesn’t stop. I come, and I come again before he buries his face into my neck, groaning as he finds his own release. The brush of his facial hair tickles my skin. He slowly pulls back, both of us breathless as we stare into each other’s eyes. Did this really happen? Did I just have sex with a stranger in the bathroom of a nightclub? I don’t know anything about this man—he could be a serial killer for fuck’s sake.

  Ben removes the condom and tucks himself away. He tosses the condom in the trash and walks back over to me. I am sliding off the counter, adjusting my panties and dress, when he stands in front of me, caging me in. He cups the back of my neck and kisses me. I taste my release on his tongue. When he pulls back, he places his forehead against mine. “I know you’re in the VIP section with your friends, but will you come back to my section for a drink?”

  I nibble on my lip, unsure. He traces my bottom lip that is stuck between my teeth, releasing it. “Meet me upstairs, Lex.” His eyes plead with me.

  I don’t know if it’s the postorgasm haze or the way this man messes with my thoughts, but I nod. “Okay. But let me freshen up first.”

  He kisses my cheek, lingering just a moment longer than necessary before he unlocks the door and exits. I spin, facing the mirror. My makeup is smeared with sweat, and my hair is a mess. As Brynn would say, I look thoroughly fucked. Can I go out there and have a drink as if I didn’t just let this stranger fuck the hell out of me?

  I run cold water on a paper towel and dab my face, fixing the messed-up makeup. This guy—from the moment he walked up to me on the dance floor, I felt a pull to him. My skin feels hot, too hot. I can’t believe I had sex with someone I haven’t even known an hour—that’s not like me. I can count on one hand the number of people I have had sex with, and none of them was ever like this.

  The blood pounds in my ears as I grip the countertop, looking down at my feet. My heart thuds in my chest to the same beat of the music. This is all too much. I close my eyes and count to three, trying to relax my breathing. When I return my gaze to my reflection, my eyes swim with tears that I refuse to let spill over.

  I need to get out of here. Thankful I still have my clutch and phone, I quickly text Hadley.

  Me: Not feeling so well. Guess the champagne caught up to me. Heading home. See you tomorrow.

  With my phone back in my clutch, I open the door and make sure the coast is clear and that Ben or my friends aren’t waiting for me and quickly make my escape. I grab a taxi sitting out front and don’t look back.

  Buzz. Buzz. Buzz.

  The sound of my phone vibrating on my nightstand startles me as I stare at the darkness in my bedroom. I managed to get changed out of my dress and into an oversized WCU T-shirt and gym shorts before I broke down crying. My shoes are scattered somewhere in my living room. At least I managed to get my phone on the charger.

  I groan as I reach over and lift it to see who’s calling. Hadley’s name appears. Ugh, I knew I wouldn’t be able to avoid her asking questions about my abrupt departure, especially when going out was my idea to begin with. But I had at least hoped that she had gone home with Josh, and maybe I would have more time before she confronted me about it. I set the phone back down as it continues to vibrate. Finally, it stops. Thank God. The phone vibrates again. I grab my phone and hit the Ignore button.

  “Oh, hell no! I know you did not bitch button me,” my best friend shouts from the living room after slamming my front door shut. Well, so much for her going home with the bouncer.

  “Ugh, I need to get my own place,” I mutter to myself but loud enough for her to hear.

  She laughs. “Yeah, right. We both know that’s not happening.” I hear the clicking of her boots as she walks down the hallway to my bedroom. “You wanna tell me what this is all about because I don’t believe your bullshit of not feeling well. I saw your sexy friend come back upstairs and knew something was…”

  Hadley stops talking and stares at me as she takes in my appearance. While I did change my clothes, I hadn’t taken my makeup off yet, and by now, I cried enough to have it running down my face.

  “Lex, what happened? Did he hurt you? What’s going on? You’re scaring me.” She races over to my bedside and pulls me into her arms. I begin to cry again as my best friend goes into mother mode. “I’m going to fucking kill the bastard if he hurt you. Oh my God, Lex, he didn’t rape you, did he?”

  I sniff and sit up, wiping the combo of snot and tears with my sleeve.

  “Calm down. He didn’t rape me. It was nothing like that.” Quite the opposite, actually.

  She stares at me intently. “Okay, then what am I missing here. Why are we here, then, you looking like that—” She runs her hand up and down at my appearance. “—and not back at the club with you all over Mr. Tall, Dark, and Handsome.”

  I shrug and pull back from her arms, settling against the headboard, and bring my knees to my chest.

  “Lexi, I need you to talk to me. I don’t understand what’s going on here. But he didn’t hurt you?”

  “No,” I spit out louder than expected. My tone softens. “No, Ben didn’t hurt me. He was perfect. It was the best sex of my life. Fuck, I’m not sure I’m going to be able to walk tomorrow.”

  “You had sex with him,” my best friend shouts in surprise. I’m still trying to wrap my head around it myself. I don’t do things like that; the random one-night stands are usually Hadley’s MO.

  I wince at her volume. Oops. I smile shyly. “Yes?” It comes out more as a question than an answer.

  Hadley shoves my arm. “You skank. Look at you.” A giant smile on her face is quickly wiped away with a look of confusion. “Wait, again, why are you here, then, and not there, or in his bed naked with him.”

  “I kind of freaked out. We had mind-blowing sex, like seriously an orgasm that ended all orgasms.” More than one. “He invited me up to his VIP section for another drink, and I told him I just needed a minute to freshen up.”

  She winks dramatically, and I laugh, but my laughter quickly fades. “But then I started to panic. I mean, I just met this guy. Remember what happened with the last guy I met and jumped right into things with.”

  “Aww, honey. Not everyone is like Dominic.” She pulls me back into her arms for a deep hug.

  “Well, it’s too late. We didn’t exchange numbers since I guess he hadn’t planned on the evening ending when it did, so now all I know is that his name is Ben.”

  “You could always run an ad in the magazine,” Hadley says somehow with a straight face, before breaking out into laughter.

  “Yeah, I could see it now. I could do a Dear Jane letter.” I join in on her laughter.

  “You mean Dear Ben,” she interrupts, waggling her eyebrows.

  “Yes, Dear Ben, if you are the same guy who I met at Eiffel Park and fucked me into next week in the bathroom, can you please give me a call. I’m sorry for running out on you like Cinderella.” I’m thankful that my best friend came to my rescue. I already feel the weight has lifted slightly.

  “Works for me.” Hadley shrugs, having trouble keeping a serious expression.

  I grab a pillow from behind me, smacking Hadley in the face.

  “No, it was nothing. Just a one-night stand. Time to move on.” I sigh.

  She gives me a soft smile and doesn’t push the subject anymore. Hadley lets out a large yawn. “I’m crashing here. I’m too tired to go to my room, plus your bed is more comfortable than mine.”

  I throw my head back in laughter as I rise from the bed to head to the bathroom to wash the mess of makeup off my face. “We have the same bed.”

  “And your point is?” I ignore her statement because, honestly, I’m grateful to have her here with me. “Oh, hey, Lex?” Hadley shouts from her place on my bed. I poke my head back out of the bathroom. “You better not ignore my calls again, bitch.” I can’t hide my laughter. “The
only time you’re allowed to ignore me is when you’re taking a shit.”

  “One time I do that, and you never let me forget it.”

  “You’re goddamn right.” Hadley’s voice trails off as she steps into my closet to grab a change of clothes.

  When we both return, she curls up in the space next to me, and we laugh until we both fall asleep.

  If this was nothing more than a one-night stand, why is it that as I close my eyes, I still feel him, smell him, and dream of him?

  Monday morning comes way too quickly, and nothing has gone my way. Not only could I not get Ben out of my head all weekend, but I also debated going back to the club Saturday night in hopes that he would be there again. But why would he? Was he pissed at me for running out? Maybe I’m overthinking everything, and one-night stands in club bathrooms are usual for him. I have no idea; I don’t know anything about this man, not even his last name.

  These things kept me up late last night, and I ended up oversleeping, which I never do. This man has flipped my world upside down. I raced into the elevator, nearly spilling my cup of coffee, and had just enough time to drop my belongings in my office and get to the conference room for the Monday morning staff meeting. Today we are also meeting the new boss—that alone has me a bit of a nervous wreck. I know everything there is to know about this job, but I just want to make sure I leave a good impression.

  “Jeez, I was starting to think you were going to be a no-show,” Amy, our fashion editor, jokes as I pull the seat out at the conference table. “Long weekend?”

  “Ha,” I snicker as I sink into the chair. Oh, she has no idea. Thankfully she begins chatting with a sales rep sitting next to her, giving me a chance to catch my breath. I sigh heavily and rest my head back against the back of my chair when I overhear Amy and Mary’s conversation beside me.

  “Did you see the new owner this morning? I caught a glimpse when he was in walking into his office. Holy shit, he is smoking hot. He is so much hotter than Mr. Jennings. If I didn’t love coming to work here already, we now get some eye candy to watch.”