“I guess I’ll go clean our room.” Memphis laughed when Eloise handed her the key cards.
“Come see me when you’re done,” I said.
“Sure.” She stood on her toes, fisting a handful of my shirt to drag me to her lips. Then we went our separate ways, her toward the elevators while I headed for Knuckles.
The dining room was empty for the lull between lunch and dinner. It would start to fill in the next hour as people began wandering in for a meal. But the kitchen was busy, all hands on deck, preparing for the wedding tomorrow.
Music blared from the radio in the corner. The scent of onions and garlic permeated the space. Skip and Roxanne argued over which drink was better—eggnog or Tom and Jerry’s.
“Knox, which—”
“Eggnog,” I answered before Roxanne could finish her question, then disappeared to my office to check a few emails.
The bride for tomorrow’s wedding had been emailing me daily since we’d started planning the menu. As expected, the moment I opened my inbox, there was a note from her confirming we had enough champagne for the event. Something, if Memphis had been her wedding planner, she could have confirmed weeks ago.
It was a brilliant idea. Quincy, and The Eloise, could use a planner. Maybe we could hire Memphis to be the hotel’s official event coordinator. It would mean a pay raise and if she wanted to expand into her own business, we could give her that flexibility too.
My computer dinged with another email and I tensed at Gianna’s name. I clicked it open to find a simple message—Merry Christmas—and one photo.
It was the picture she’d taken of Memphis, Drake and me in the kitchen.
Memphis was the spotlight, her face so beautiful I struggled to tear my eyes away. She looked up at me while I smiled down at her. The only one actually looking at the camera was Drake.
I shoved away from my desk and weaved through the kitchen. “Be back.”
Memphis was on the fourth floor when I found her in the empty room. She’d stripped the bed and was dusting when I walked inside.
“Hey.”
“Hey.” She smiled. “What’s up?”
“Got this today.” I dug my phone from my pocket and pulled up the email. Then I handed it over so she could see the photo.
Her eyes softened. “I love this.”
“I love you.”
Memphis gasped and the phone fell from her hand, landing with a thud on the carpet. “W-what?”
“Not exactly how I’d planned to say that,” I muttered. But it was out there now, and well . . . it was the truth. “I love you.”
Her eyes searched mine. “I love you too.”
I slammed my mouth on hers, my tongue delving inside for a taste of her sweet.
She clung to me, her fingertips digging into my arms, her heels rising off the floor as she lifted to her toes.
We kissed until we were breathless, then I tore my lips away and worked free the button on her jeans.
“Knox.” Her eyes darted past me to the open door.
I held up a finger, then stalked over to kick free the stop and let it slam closed. When I came back, she arched her eyebrows. “I’ve wanted to fuck you in one of these rooms for months.”
Her cheeks flushed. “I’m on the clock.”
“Then tomorrow we’ll clean it off the clock and call it square.” I dropped to a knee, holding her gaze as I pulled her tennis shoes off her feet. Next came her jeans. I slid down the zipper and as I tugged them down, taking her panties along for the ride, she shimmied her hips and kicked them free from her legs.
“Climb up on the bed. Get that shirt off. Then hands and knees.”
She nodded, obeying my every word. Off came her top, followed by her bra. Then she shot me a wicked grin as she planted a knee in the mattress and aimed that beautiful ass my way. Her pussy, pretty and pink, was wet and ready.
I freed my shaft from my jeans and hurried to pull on the condom I’d been keeping in my pocket. Then when I was sheathed, I dragged my cock through her folds as I stood behind her, earning a moan. “This is going to be hard and rough.”
“Yes,” she hissed, pressing back.
With one hand, I guided myself into her slick channel. With the other, I grabbed her ponytail, wrapping it around my fist. And then I thrust home.
“Oh, Knox.” She arched into me, her bottom lip sawed between her teeth.
“Fuck, you feel good. So fucking good.” Every time, it got better and better.
Maybe that was because I loved her, more every day.
Her inner walls fluttered around my cock as I pulled out and slammed inside. She moaned, a heady, sultry sound from her throat. It was the same moan she’d given me just last night when she’d dropped to her knees and let me fuck her mouth.
“Say it, Memphis. Say it again.” I thrust forward once more, her breasts bouncing and swaying as my hips smacked her ass.
Memphis purred, “I love you.”
I fucked her hard, thrust after thrust. I filled the room with the sound of skin slapping skin. Of her hitched breaths and whimpered moans. I worked her into a frenzy, her hands gripping the mattress, her toes curling over the side. I gripped her ass, squeezing hard, until she flew over the edge.
Memphis pulsed around me, squeezing and clenching through her orgasm. Being inside her was an addiction. I was at her mercy. There was only one box of condoms left at home, and when they were gone, I’d start going bare.
I’d claim her in every way. I’d send her to sleep every night dripping with my come.
Her climax retreated and she collapsed onto the mattress, leaning into her forearms. But I kept on pounding, working my hips faster and faster as I palmed her ass. The build intensified, the pressure at the base of my spine blinding, until finally I let go. When the white spots faded from my eyes, I fell onto her, holding her tight as the world came back into focus.
Memphis giggled as I pulled free. “I can’t believe we just did that.”
“Round two, tonight.” I chuckled, heading to the trash can to dispose of the condom and tuck myself away.
She pulled on her shirt and bra, then stepped into her panties. Her eyelids were heavy and she yawned as she sat on the mattress to tug on her jeans. “Now I want a nap.”
My woman slept hard after sex. “I’ll pop over to Lyla’s and get you a latte.”
“Double peppermint mocha, please.”
“You got it.” I kissed her forehead. “How much longer you got here?”
“Thirty minutes. I cleaned the bathroom already. I just need to dust, make the bed and vacuum.”
“I’ll call Mom and make sure she’s good to babysit. If she can’t, I’m sure Talia will. I’ll meet you in the lobby in thirty with your coffee. Then we can go home and pack a bag.” I headed for the door but before I could touch the handle, she called my name.
“Knox?”
“Yeah.”
“I love you.”
I pressed a hand to my heart. “I love you.”
With a wink, I left her to finish working while I headed for the kitchen to check in and grab a coat. Snow covered Quincy, but the sidewalks were clear and the roads plowed. The sun was dipping toward the horizon, inching toward the mountain peaks. Streetlamps illuminated the faint light as I made my way to Lyla’s.