Lick & Devour (Monster Novelette) Read online

  Sipping on the warm, rich wine that would've been even more delectable iced cold, Eden sat quietly and listened.

  "God yeah, just like that,"

  A small, perverse smile tugged at Eden's mouth even while her cheeks flamed from the image her mind instantly conjured. Except it was her in there rather than her blonde haired friend and in place of the male with the muffled voice, it was the deep, sexy rumble of one Dominic Armstrong. God she missed him. Valentine's Day was tomorrow and they were oceans apart. So honestly she couldn’t be blamed for wanting to live vicariously through her friend.

  "Yeah, fuck, lick it slow..."

  Dominic had an extremely talented tongue. As the thought whispered in her mind, Eden’s eyes drifted shut, the corner of her bottom lip between her teeth, she imagined what it would be like to have him here with her now, putting that expert tongue to good use. He would kiss her first, plunge between her yielding lips with that fierce male dominance of his and violate her mouth in the hottest way possible. Then he would lick down her neck, scrape and nip with teeth that would be hungry to get a bite of her skin. She could practically hear the panty wetting huskiness of his baritone, whispering at her ear. "Sweet pet," he would murmur, "do you have any cream for me?" his large hand would cup her breast, while the other trailed slowly between her legs, strong, thick masculine fingers would part the soaking lips of her clit and----

  "Eden!"

  Eden yelped, jumping nearly out of her skin at being caught, she accidentally tipped her glass sideways effectively spilling the deep red wine all over her skirt and Jenna's dark oak floors. In the stretch of silence that followed, Eden looked up and saw a handsome man standing next to her best friend, who, clad in a black satin robe peered down at Eden with humor dancing in her cornflower blue eyes.

  "Oh God, Jen, I'm so sorry!" Mortified, she scrambled to the kitchen to grab a roll of paper towels on the counter and hurried back seconds later. Knowing of the embarrassment that awaited her if she dared to look up again, Eden kept her amber gaze on the floor. That awkward moment of silence appeared to stretch in to eternity, but was in actuality only a few seconds before Jenna, bless her kind heart, turned her attention to her male friend and ushered him away from the debacle that was Eden.

  "Sorry to cut it short, Ryan."

  "Don't worry about it. I've had my mom walk in on me several times when I was with a girl."

  A long pause followed that silence before, "Your mom?"

  "Yeah. She can be real cool roommate, but sometimes she gets a little weird when I bring girls around. But don't worry about it, she'll totally be cool with us using my room tomorrow night. She's got a date, I've got a date---"

  "Actually Ryan, I think I have gonorrhea."

  Eden covered her giggle with a cough.

  "But..."

  "Trust me I'm thinking of you. You should find another date for tomorrow."

  "But..."

  "Bye."

  Slam!

  Laughter filled Eden's throat at Jenna's shuffled return, but because she was a good friend she swallowed it down.

  "You can go ahead and laugh, you little skank," Jenna fired without a hint of malice, her own spout of amusement thick in her voice.

  "You should keep the date, who knows his mom might bake you guys heart shaped cookies after he fucks your brains out," Eden said in between gasping breaths.

  Jenna picked up roll of paper and threw it at her, just as she burst out in another fit of laughter.

  ***

  Later, once Eden had calmed enough to beg her friend for a change of clothes, they both sat on the couch with their respective wine glasses in hand, both filled nearly to the brim.

  "Man, I sure know how to pick ‘em. I didn't realize I was fucking Norman Bates." She said with a shudder. "God, but he had a nice dick. Can you believe it's pierced?"

  Eden's eyes widened over the rim of her glass, "Mama's boy?"

  Jenna grinned, "Oh yeah, eight inches, with a barbell at the head."

  "Jesus,"

  "Yup. And he comes likes a fucking racehorse.” She sighed, raking a hand through her ash blond hair, she pursed her lips. “I was really hoping for a good time tomorrow. Too fucking bad he lives with his goddamn Mom. I mean the guy's almost thirty. That's not fucking normal!"

  "Who says you have to see her? That's what hotel rooms are for. Hell I'll promise to stay far away from here tomorrow if you want to bring him back here." Eden smiled sheepishly. "Sorry by the way. Didn't mean to interrupt. It's just been an extremely dry few weeks."

  "He's been gone, what, two weeks now? When is he coming back?"

  Eden sighed, taking another sip from her glass. "Not for another two weeks. This is longest he's been away since we got back together." She lamented. "And it's not even just the sex, Jenna. I really miss him. I feel like I'm not whole until I'm in his arms. Crazy right?"

  Jenna smiled wide, "Sweetie, that's love. It wouldn't make sense if it wasn't crazy. He's changed a lot in the last year. Is he still in therapy?"

  There were a lot of things Eden had kept private from her friend. Namely the issues of Dominic's past and the demons that had turned him into the heartless monster he'd been for so long. She'd revealed very little, simply enough that the other woman knew that Dominic was working on himself so that he and Eden could continue to strengthen their relationship. Five years of a broken marriage couldn't possibly be healed in the short year that they've reconciled, but they were both so willing to work on it, to make it better than it was. Though she’d signed the divorce papers, Eden hadn’t given them to her attorney. But considering how good things were going, she doubted she would. She loved their relationship the way it was now. They were still getting to know each other, still so eager to make the other one happy. She wasn’t wearing her wedding ring and he wasn’t pressuring her to. There was a silent understanding between them that it would take time, and he’d told her on more than one occasion that he would wait for as long as it took and for that alone, Eden adored him so much more than she ever imagined she could.

  "Yeah, I even had a few chances to sit in one some of his sessions. Couple's therapy,” she mused. “It’s been good for us.” More than good, actually. But Eden didn’t want to divulge too much. “How’s your day been? I mean aside from having ‘mama’s boy’ deep sea diving in your lady bits.” She grinned at the glare her inquiry provoked.

  “Work sucks, school sucks even harder, but at least I’m one step closer to the nursing program, so score for that.” Jenna raised her glass up to Eden in cheers before guzzling down the little bit that remained.

  “I’m so proud of you, Jen,” Eden said with a smile, genuinely happy for her best friend. “You’ve been busting your ass just to get into that program. I can’t wait until you’re finished and we can celebrate your success.”

  Jenna stood and headed for the kitchen, with the empty bottle of wine she’d grabbed from the coffee table. The openness of her living room allowed her to keep the other woman in her line of sight as she grabbed the second bottle of Merlot Eden brought from the countertop and put it inside the fridge. “It’s honestly all thanks to you, Eden. I wouldn’t have been able to afford these classes if it wasn’t for the loan you gave me.” Retrieving an ice cold bottle of Riesling, she popped the cork and returned to the living room. “You’ve been such an amazing friend to me. I don’t know what I would do if I didn’t have you in my life.”

  “We’ve been there for each other, Jenna,” Eden said, holding her glass out so Jenna could fill it. “You were there for me through the whole Dominic ordeal and even before that. You’re like my sister and I love you. You have to know I would do anything for you.”

  “God you’re such a sap,” Jenna replied with tears in her eyes. “I love you too,” she said quietly.

  “You’re pretty syrupy yourself, bright eyes.”

  They laughed and the rest of their conversation continued on in that regard until they’d polishe
d off the second bottle of wine. They eventually migrated to the kitchen and while Eden watched Jenna cook, she recounted the details of her day, ending with the catastrophic Mr. Blake and his weird come on.

  “No fucking way, he did not say that!”

  “I swear, he did. The man stood there and hit on me, knowing good and damn well he’s married! And get this, he was like ‘my wife is of no concern’. You know we’ve had our share of experiences with icky men, Jen, I mean just imagine the clientele at Crazy Pussy and you’d have this asshole pegged. He practically implied that I was going to sleep with him!”

  “What did you do?”

  “Got the hell out of there,” she murmured, grabbing her fork and twirling the Spaghetti on her plate. “I’m probably going to have my ass handed to me at work tomorrow, but that man gave me the creeps.”

  “You gonna tell, Dominic?”

  Now wasn’t that the question? It wasn’t like there was anything to hide. But Eden knew Dominic and she knew just how territorial, alpha male he got when it came to her. She could just imagine the reaction she’d get if she told him about this guy. Not only would he become doubly protective, but he would feel it in his right to sic the bodyguards on her. And that was something Eden would not have.

  Eden shrugged, “It wasn’t really a big deal. But do you think I should?” she asked peering at Jenna expectantly.

  Her friend took a bite from her plate before replying, “I say for the sake of honesty you should. Why keep it from him if it wasn’t a big deal? Besides, I’m pretty damn sure Dominic gets hit on plenty of times. You guys might just have a good laugh over it.”

  Eden doubted Dominic would find any sort of humor in this particular situation. But then again odder stuff had happened in their relationship, she mused silently.

  With dinner soaking up the majority of the alcohol Eden drank, she made her way safely home thirty minutes later with a Tupperware full of heart shaped cupcakes Jenna had baked for her little butterball Liam.

  The multi-million dollar mansion that had once upon a time been Eden’s prison, was now a haven that was everything a home should be. The horrible memories that had once permeated from the ivory walls, was now replaced with joy and laughter. The shadows of animosity and anguish was replaced with love and happiness and little Liam Bennett Armstrong was at the center of that. Eden could hear his laughter the minute she walked into the mansion and it brought an instant smile to her face. She found him and Jacqueline in the second floor living room. He was in his pajamas, giggling uncontrollably while his chubby arms and legs flailed in his attempt to wriggle free of the raspberries Jacqueline was blowing on his stomach. It was only when Eden moved within his line of sight, falling to her knees at his side that he managed to pull free and crawl to her. “Mama!” he cheered, throwing himself into her loving embrace.

  “Hey there, kiddo!” she dropped kisses on top of his dark head before cupping his face to smooch his lips. “Did you miss me?” she asked, not expecting a reply but laughed happily when Liam nodded. “Did you have fun with, Jacqueline?” Eden greeted the housekeeper/nanny.

  “Would you like me to make you something, Mrs. Armstrong?” The matronly woman asked after returning Eden’s greeting.

  Despite her insistence that Jacqueline either call her Eden or Ms. Mercer, the housekeeper continued to use her married name to address her. Eden assumed it had more to do with habit than stubbornness, but that didn’t make it any less irritating.

  “No thanks. I already had dinner.”

  Jacqueline nodded. “Very good. Liam had his dinner and a bath, so he should be ready for bed soon. Would you like me to put him to sleep?”

  “I’ll do it. Thanks, Jacqueline.”

  Twenty minutes of playtime with Liam before he was conked out. Eden settled him down gently in his crib, pulled the soft, fleece monkey blanket over him before she pressed a kiss to his forehead. She showered and slathered on her favorite lotion and before crawling into the gargantuan bed she shared with Dominic, Eden retrieved her phone from her purse. She did a little bit of work, answering emails and memorized her appointments for tomorrow. The thought of calling him barely had time to take root before her fingers where done dialing the last digit of the number she knew from memory. There was a thirteen hour time difference between Hong Kong and the U.S, and while it was nearing midnight here, Dominic was already well into his day at eleven, which probably meant that he was in meetings, making the likelihood of him answering her call very slim. But Eden made the attempt anyway and was stupidly disappointed when the call went straight to voicemail.

  “Dom…” she murmured into the phone. With so much to say Eden failed to find the right words to express how much she missed him. At least nothing that felt or sounded right to say over a recording. She craved more than anything to hear his voice right now. “It’s me…” A pause. “I’m…call me when you have the chance. Nothing is wrong. Just call me.” She hung up then and dropped the phone on the pillow beside her. Two more weeks. Eden sighed heavily. Two more weeks of nights like this. Alone in their bed, aching for his companionship just as deeply as she ached for his sexual mastery. How the hell was she going to survive another two weeks?

  “Get a grip, Eden.” She admonished herself. She could do this. It wasn’t like she had any other choice. So she needed to figure out how she was going to make it through the next fourteen days without pining. The distraction for this particular evening came in the form of the T.V.

  Pure, trashy television would definitely take her mind off of Dominic. But it seemed there was only so much of housewives, hip hop reality shows and C-list celebrity dramas she could take before her mind melted into goo. With an exasperated sigh, Eden found herself growing more agitated as she mindlessly flipped through channels. The instant she turned off the television, laying on her bed in near darkness, her mind instantly reached out for Dominic’s image. Her memories of him so detailed that she only needed to close her eyes to conjure him. Her dark haired lover, with the insanely sculpted facial features and those rapier sharp green eyes that eviscerated her as mercilessly as they stoked the flames of her arousal, stood before her in all his masculine glory. Molded perfection. Broad shoulders, long, muscled arms, sculpted pectorals and abdomen that called for her touch. And Eden wanted to touch him. Needed the feel of his warm, solid skin beneath her fingertips like life depended on it. She wanted to follow the dark treasure trail of hair until she reached the black, springy curls of hair between his powerful, masculine legs and take hold of the very sizeable, very beautiful and mouthwatering dick that jutted there.

  Legs scissoring across the cool comforter beneath her, Eden’s skin felt on fire. The scorching heat that blazed through her core like the sweetest slice of torture, rippled up to the surface of her flesh and covered her skin in a fine sheen of sweat. A thick, heaviness pulsed between her legs, the heat liquefying her pussy until she could no longer ignore the all too obvious flood of her screaming arousal.

  God, she was so horny. Not only that but she wanted Dominic so badly that it was a physical ache. She needed him here, now, on the bed with her, inside her. Releasing a whoosh of air, Eden popped up to a sitting position. She needed a remedy, something to take the edge off. Practically jumping out of bed and disregarding the fact that she almost broke her neck tripping over her long, partially open bathrobe, Eden raced to the walking closet.

  Heading to the back row of shelves neatly stacked with her various summer clothes, it took Eden a few hopping jumps in front of the middle shelf before she was able to reach the square, dark orange Hermes box. The box was a ruse, there was no delicate scarves to be found between the flurries of sexy, lace undergarments she had yet to wear. What the box carried was far more precious than the delicate panties Eden hastily pulled out, discarding them carelessly on the carpeted floor in search of her prize. She found it minutes later and her pussy clenched reflexively as her hand curled around the slightly curved, pink wand made of cured silic
one and glass. She had various other vibrators, different shapes, each one built for a specific purpose, whether it was clitoral stimulation or deep penetration, but none of them came as close to total gratification than the wand. It was her favorite and it never failed to bring her the orgasms her body sorely needed when her lover was away.

  Back on the bed, she made a little throne for herself with five fat, luscious pillows she propped against the headboard, the sixth one, smaller than the ones at her back she placed beneath her thighs to give her better elevation. Pulling apart the already unraveling bathrobe, she shrugged it off and tossed it on the floor. Unabashed in her nude state, she settled back against the pillows releasing a soft sigh as a cool draft swept across her fevered skin. Her hands were too soft, too small, the pressure from her fingertips not hard enough, not nearly as demanding or satisfying. But Eden eyes drifted shut as she languorously touched herself as her lover would, the caressing exploration of her hand trailing across the rounded mounds of her breasts. A soft whimper passed between her lips as her fingers brushed across one hardened nipple, gently rolling the sensitive bud between her fingertips sent an electrifying jolt to her pussy. Eden did it again, adding a little more pressure this time and moaned as the jolt intensified. Alternating between each taut nipple, her hands squeezed the soft the flesh of her breasts in a way that Dominic would. Needing to alleviate the pulsing heat of arousal, Eden pressed the expertly hidden on switch of the vibrator before bringing it between her legs. The slight shaking of her hand was the only indication that it was on as her knees feel further apart to allow the noiseless toy better access to her throbbing clit. Heart racing, breath coming in and out of her parted mouth in shallow puffs of dragging air, Eden touched the curved, silicone tip of the vibrating wand to her swollen, wet pussy lips and her insides clenched, hungered for the intrusion of that bulbous head.