Spark: Book 1 (The Heat Series) Read online

  “Oh no, you got caught out there?”

  “Yes, two more blocks and I would have been home free. There was a traffic accident, and the cab I was in was stuck several blocks away. I decided to walk the rest of the way.” He opened his office door, and she followed him in shutting the door after her. From his desk drawer, he piled a pair of slacks and a polo shirt on the desk along with a dry pair of athletic socks and sneakers.

  “Always be prepared! I like to keep an extra outfit in my desk for days such as this. You have no idea how many times I got soaked from a cab or a storm when I worked for the PD’s office.” She watched as he took off his clothes. His suit was a drippy mess. He used some paper towels to dry his hair.

  “You might want to turn around. I’m going to have to go commando. My boxers are wet.”

  She turned away while he removed his boxers and put on his slacks. When he was finished, she ran her hands through his damp hair trying to fix it. Instead, he pushed her hands away and pulled her against him. He kissed her hard moving his lips over hers.

  “This makes everything better. I could stand here all day and kiss you, but I have some work to do. I will talk to you later.” Xander swatted at her backside as she walked out of the office.

  She sat back down in the alcove and continued to type the rest of the notes she had. By the time the end of the day rolled around, she had finished everything. She placed the files on the network and went to Xander’s office. He was on the phone. She waved and blew him a kiss as she left. By the time she got home Xander, had texted her.

  Hey, gorgeous. Would you like a change of scenery and stay at my place tonight?

  She preferred her place because it was home to her, but she couldn’t expect him always to be there.

  What time are you getting out of work?

  I’m in a cab right now. I can stop by your building on the way to mine.

  Ok. I need to feed Riley and will get some things for tomorrow.

  Ava ran about her apartment gathering her things to leave at his place. If they were going to go back and forth, she didn’t want to keep bringing clothes to his house. When she was packed, she made sure to feed Riley extra food. “Sorry, buddy, but you are on your own tonight.” He meowed and rubbed against her leg. She exited her apartment and lugged everything downstairs. When Xander came, he helped her load her things into the cab.

  Ava stepped out onto Xander’s balcony and looked at the view of the city, the Hudson River, and New Jersey. He was lucky to have this place even if it was his father’s. They had ordered dinner and Xander was downstairs paying the delivery person.

  The evening was warm for early spring. They sat on the balcony enjoying dinner. A breeze had started to blow so when they finished; they went indoors. They sat on the long sectional couch, where she had her head in his lap, and he was playing with her thick auburn locks while flipping channels on the large flat screen TV.

  “I’m curious about something.”

  He shut off the TV so he could pay full attention to her. “What makes you curious?”

  “I was wondering how many women you’ve slept with,” and Ava continued nearly without a breath, “Because I’m worried that I am going to disappoint you in bed.”

  Xander looked pained. “Sit up.”

  “It doesn’t matter how many women. Everyone is unique in their experience. Even the most experienced women can be horrible in bed. Somehow I strongly doubt you will be like that.”

  “But how can you tell?”

  “Because you aren’t selfish. You are giving, caring, kind, anything but selfish. And the occasional fire you display could make for fun in bed.”

  She hugged him, “Thank you.”

  He turned the TV back on and cradled her in his arm. She laid her head on his shoulder. He kissed the top of her head and soon he had worked his way to her mouth. Ava could feel the passion in his kiss. He was forceful as his tongue rubbed against hers. If this continued each night, she was sure he would end up making love to her soon. Tonight was different though because she chose to touch him. As they kissed, she rubbed his inner thigh. He was wearing sweatpants, and his semi-erect cock was apparent. She inched her hand up until she was pressed against his balls. She could feel the heat of them on her hand. He worked his way kissing down to her neck, gently sucking on it but not enough to make marks. She found the courage to lightly grasp his penis and start stroking it through the fabric.

  “What are you doing?”

  She said nothing but continued stroking him. She could hear his breathing grow heavier as her hand slid up and down. He stopped kissing her.

  “Do you want to see?” Ava felt nervous, but she did. She nodded, and he pulled down the waistband of his pants and boxers to reveal his erection. He was quite large and thick. She wondered how he was going to fit inside her.

  “Do you want to touch me?” She reached out with her fingers and ran them up and down his shaft. The skin was smooth and hot. The head of his cock was glistening with precum. He pushed his hips up and pulled his pants down to his thighs. His pubic hair was trimmed and neat. She hesitated but wrapped her hand around him. Her fingers barely met as she encircled his cock. She began to stroke him, and he put his hand over hers to show her the right technique. She used her other hand to explore his balls, fondling them.

  Xander murmured, “You don’t have to do this.”

  “I want to,” as she continued stroking, she heard a moan escape from him.

  He was moaning, “Yes, yes. Just like that.” He released her hand, and it was all her stroking him. His breathing got heavier until he was panting.

  “Ava, you’re going to make me come. Stroke me faster.” She moved her hand faster up and down until her efforts were rewarded with his release. Jets of cum shot up his chest and stained his shirt. He again wrapped his hand around hers to make sure she jerked him until he was completely spent. When he was finished, he leaned over and kissed her. Her eyes were transfixed on his shrinking cock.

  “I need to change.” He said.

  She looked at the cum that had coated her hand. “I should wash my hand.” She held it up for him to see. He led her to the bathroom where he stripped while she washed her hands in the sink. He turned on the shower while she sat on the counter watching him until the glass fogged up. She had made her first step towards sex. It was the first time she had jerked a man off. She was full of desire, but she did not know how to tell him what she wanted.

  Later as they lay in bed, she put her head on his chest. He cuddled her to him before he spoke.

  “You gave me an orgasm. Can I do anything for you?” She wasn’t sure what she should say. It had been several days since she had given herself an orgasm. She had changed her panties when he was still in the shower because they were damp. She had become aroused at the sight of his hard cock and what she did for him.

  “You can tell me if you want something.”

  She bit her lip. “I’m not sure what to ask.”

  “Do you trust me?”

  She immediately answered, “Yes,” though she didn’t know where he was going.

  “Then let me make you feel good.” He pulled back the covers, and she felt him spread her legs.

  “What, what are you doing?”

  “Trust me. I would never do anything that you don’t feel comfortable. You can say stop anytime.” She felt his hands grasp onto her panties. “Lift your hips for me.” She did as he asked and he pulled her panties down her hips and took them off.

  “Spread your legs. Do you want to turn on the light?”

  She could feel her face getting hot. “No, can we please leave it off?” She could feel his hot breath on her. His fingers parted her and then she felt his tongue on her clit. “Oh,” She moaned. He flicked his tongue over her.

  “You’re so wet, and you taste wonderful.”

  This was all new to her, but it felt so good, better than her vibrator or fingers. Xander continued to use his tongue on her most intimate area. The
n she felt his finger slip inside her. He worked it in and out of her while still sucking her clit. Then she felt another finger stretching her. She could feel her orgasm building. What Xander did not see in the darkened room was that she was rubbing and pinching her nipples. She was turned on more than she had ever been before. She moaned and called his name as he continued to bring her closer and closer to climax. He plunged his fingers in and out while latching onto her clit with his lips, rubbing it in between them. With a loud prolonged moan, she felt her insides burn white hot, and she came for him. Xander removed his fingers and used his tongue to lick at her juices.

  “No more. Please.” She was far too sensitive for him to touch her any longer. He climbed over her legs and up her body to lie next to her.

  He nuzzled her cheek and asked, “How was that?”

  She could barely speak, but she managed to mumble, “Fantastic.” She fell asleep within a matter of minutes. But not before she heard him say “I want you for always Ava. I love you.”

  The next two days were a whirlwind at the office. Both she and Xander found themselves drowning in work. They barely had time to say hello and goodbye during the day. Thursday night Xander did not leave the sixteenth floor until almost 10:00 PM, too late to sleep over or for her to go to his place. Friday was a different story. He was able to leave by seven and be at her place by eight. She missed spending time with him.

  They ate an easy dinner even though Xander would have taken her out. She preferred to stay home with him; Ava had fallen for him. She had told herself not to let it happen, but it was too late. She had heard him say that he loved her on Wednesday night but then again she already knew that. She wasn’t sure when she would be ready to tell him she loved him, but it could be soon. She had spent a lot of her previous free time reading romance novels. The feeling Xander gave her when he was near told her that she was in love with him. Those were the same feelings describe in the multitude of books she had read. The butterflies, the fluttery feeling, the smile you felt bloom on your face when your lover was near.

  That was how she felt when Xander was around. She had liked Liam, thought she was falling for him, but realized it was different. The feeling with Liam was because he had been nice to her. The feeling with Xander was because he was genuine in everything he did for her. She was dying to discuss what she felt for him with someone. Sam might figure it out. Rachel, Robert, and Dani could be very suspicious and want to meet the guy. She could never tell Jacob. He was the most protective of all, (Probably because Michael had given him the 411 on most of what happened before she came to New York) If Jacob found out she was dating Xander, he might reveal their relationship to her uncle or Peter. Xander could lose his job. She didn’t want that to happen. He was working so hard to prove to his father that he was worthy of his position.

  The past two days were tough for Xander, too. After Wednesday night he had trouble concentrating on his work. He was surprised that Ava was so forward about sex. He expected her to be hesitant about touching him or letting him touch her. He had made up his mind that as much as he was in love with her, he would let her lead. Now he could only think of making love to her.

  He wished that he could have seen her whole body naked, but she was shy when he went down on her. She tasted sweeter than any woman he had before her. He had made sure to carry condoms in his wallet should the request arise that he make love to her. He was pretty sure she wasn’t on birth control, and the last thing he wanted was an unexpected pregnancy though he would not hesitate to ask her to marry him if it did happen. He knew that she wanted to do things in the right way, dating, engagement, marriage then children.

  But maybe she didn’t want to marry him. He was thinking way ahead especially since he had secrets to reveal before they got even close to marriage. That thought kept resonating in his head.

  “Are you paying attention to me?”

  Xander snapped out of the thoughts in his head. “Sorry, I was thinking about something for one of my cases.” He lied.

  “What did you ask?”

  “I was asking if you’d tell me some things about you. Or I could ask Michael, but he might get suspicious.” Xander felt his heart start to pound. He had things to tell her, but this was not the right place.

  “What do you want to know?”

  “When is your birthday? Did I miss it?”

  “My birthday is August third so no, you did not miss it. When is yours?”

  “It's June fourth, so you didn’t miss mine either.”

  “I’m glad you told me or I would look like a jerk not getting my girlfriend something for her birthday.”

  “Don’t worry; I would have made sure to tell you before you made a jerk out of yourself.”

  She lightly ran her nails over his arm, and he pulled her on top of him. She liked the feel of being on top of him. He wrapped his arms around her and held her against him. She put her head on his chest.

  “Ava? Can we go to bed? I’m exhausted.”

  She lifted her head to look at him. “Really? It’s not even ten, and it’s Friday.”

  He sighed, “So what do you want to do?

  She flipped the channels on television until she came upon a Hitchcock movie, Rear Window. “Did you ever see this movie?”

  “Yes, but a long time ago.”

  “Shhh, my favorite part is coming up.”

  He stopped talking, and Grace Kelly flashed on the screen sitting in James Stewart’s lap. They were kissing. Xander watched Ava as her eyes transfixed onto the screen. When the scene was over, she turned to Xander.

  “I just love how romantic that is. I think it’s one of the sexiest scenes on film.”

  “What? Even with all the sex and passion like in Fifty Shades of Grey?” Ava raised her eyebrows.

  “Have you ever read the books or seen the movie?”

  Xander smiled. “As a matter of fact, I have. Abby used to read the books aloud to me. It’s not my style, but I was trying to be polite. I could never see hitting a woman for pleasure. But deep down when you get to the core of the story, there is romance and passion.”

  Ava thought about this for a minute and agreed. “Are you the romantic type or not?”

  “I like romance. We haven’t been together long, but you’ll see.” She reached up and shut off the lamp so they could watch the rest of the movie together. By the end, Xander was sleeping deeply. Ava shut off the TV and fell into her own sort of dreamless slumber.

  Waking the next morning, Xander was taking over most of the bed. His arms were stretched out, and his legs were splayed. She was sleeping on her side and at the edge of the bed. She decided she needed to take action. Ava tickled Xander’s nose with the tip of her finger. He slapped at the offending finger, catching it in his hand. He pulled her hand and took her finger in his mouth. Xander gently sucked on it and ran his tongue over the pad. Ava felt the butterflies start in her stomach. She leaned down to kiss his face.

  This was nothing like she had ever experienced before. She guessed this is what you called a whirlwind romance because she was decidedly in love with him. When he released her finger, she ran her hands through his thick hair over and over.

  “I like that,” Xander said.

  She continued the motion until her arms grew tired. She moved down next to him and asked what he wanted to do today. “We could go to the park or see a movie.” She reached for her phone so she could check the weather. It was going to be another warm day and what’s more it was the first day of May. The morning sun was blazing behind the drapes. Riley was sitting on the window sill sunning himself. When she got out of bed, he followed her expecting breakfast. She prepared his bowl and got the coffee ready while he gobbled up his food. Xander came out of the bedroom and let out a loud yawn.

  “Ava, since we were in last night would you want to go out to a club tonight?”

  “Which club?”

  “I heard of this place Club Olé that is pretty popular. I know one of the bouncers, and he could prob
ably get us in the door quickly.” Ava felt unsure because that was where she and Liam had first met. She decided that she wasn’t going to let that stop her.

  “Yes, let’s go.” But then another thought crossed her mind. Suppose they met someone they knew there. What would they say? Sam liked to go there a lot, and she hadn’t spoken to her much lately because they were both busy.

  “Xander, do you think we should go? Samantha likes to go to that club a lot.” She watched worry cross his face.

  “Maybe we should go somewhere else then. We don’t have to go to a club; we can go to Charlie’s.”

  “Where is Charlie’s?”

  “Are you serious? You never heard of Charlie’s? It’s a landmark. I go there every so often to have a drink.” And find women to fuck. “I have an idea? Let’s go to Hudson River Park. If you don’t mind, we can walk over there. I forgot to ask you how your knee is feeling.” She held it up for him to see. The bruises had turned yellow, and the abrasion had scabbed over.

  “I think this is going to take awhile to heal. My hands are better, though.” She held them up, and he could see a few scabs but mostly light pink skin. Xander took her hands and kissed where the scrapes had been.

  “Did I tell you that I love your delicate little hands? They are so pretty.”

  Ava blushed and looked at her feet. “Of all the things to say, you say it about my hands?”

  “I have plenty more to say about the rest of your body, but we could be here all day.”

  They got prepared for the day by loading a backpack with drinks, a blanket, and sunscreen then headed to the park. The streets were busy with pedestrians even though it was early. Xander took the backpack from her and slung it over his shoulder. He held her hand tight as they walked to the park. She was getting that fluttery feeling again. It had to be love.

  When they got to the park, a slight breeze was blowing, and the sun was shining brightly in the almost cloudless sky. They walked along the boardwalk enjoying the breeze. It was almost seventy-five degrees, and Ava wished she had worn shorts instead of jeans. They stopped to lean on the railing and look at the water. Xander kissed Ava and put his arm around her. When they broke their kiss, they heard someone calling Xander’s name.