Beneath The Surface 18+ (Sample)

4. Alone

Leslie artfully dodged her father's questions about where Grant could have gone off too.

"I saw him about an hour ago," she said, stone-faced. It was probably about the hundredth time he had asked her the same question, due to her father's fondness for brandy by the quart. "He told me he had an emergency but that he would speak with you before going." She shrugged. "I guess he couldn't find you to make his excuses. "

She looked like she was on the brink of telling him to shut the f**k up about the scumbag when Craig scrambled to save the situation. The waves of frustration wafting off Leslie's normally cool exterior were practically palpable.

"So tell me, Mr. Devereaux, how did you end up becoming so involved with the Joyous Heart Foundation? I happen to have a soft spot for domestic violence advocacy."

Thank you, Lance, Leslie thought, giving him a small but heartfelt smile. He smiled kindly back at her.

Her father was off and running about his passion for the organization.

"Have you seen Delancey this evening, dear?" Shelia inquired. "You two haven't been spending much time together lately..."

Why, oh why would they both have to touch on my sore spots tonight? Leslie thought. She looked over at Lance, who was still chatting with her father about goodness only knew what now.

Hmph-no help there. She sighed and pretended she hasn't heard the question.

Leslie anxiously checked her watch and leaned toward her father. "Excuse me Daddy, but it's almost 10 PM."

Luke Devereaux stood. He wiped his mouth and forehead with a perfectly starched white napkin before tossing it onto his dessert plate.

"Very well, my dear. Time to get the show on the road." He clapped his hands together and took his wife's arm. They headed toward the stage platform where he would emcee the auction.

Craig looked towards Leslie with raised eyebrows.

"The auction begins at 10." said Leslie, answering his silent question. Now that her parents were otherwise occupied, she was keyed up, practically bouncing up and down in her seat with excitement.

"What were you two chatting about over there? You looked thick as thieves." she remarked.

Craig laughed and leaned forward and conspiratorially whispered, "He wanted to know how much I would charge for a double 'date'."

WTF?!?!

Leslie blanched and looked around, but no one seemed to have heard him over the din of silverware and the happy chatter at each table.

Craig laughed even louder saying, "You should've seen your face!" Leslie, blushing a deep crimson, narrowed her eyes and muttered something unintelligible.

Craig leaned towards her. "What was that, love? I didn't quite catch what you said." His grin widened.

"I said you are this close to never having to worry about finding out!" Leslie hissed through clenched teeth. A telltale sparkle in her eyes betrayed her angry facade.

Craig chuckled softly, not believing her threat one bit. He relaxed back into his chair and they sat in a companionable silence for a few minutes.

Leslie pulled her chair closer to Craig and laid a light hand on his arm to claim his attention. "I-I am afraid I am three sheets to the wind tonight and can't drive you back home, but I am more than happy to call you an Uber whenever you would like to head home."

Craig stilled at the abruptness of the offer. His eyes darkened as he murmured, "Trying to get rid of me so soon, my pet?"

There was something in his tone that made her heart stutter and her core liquefy.

"N-no, not at all. I figured since Grant is gone and my parents will be heading the auction, you might be bored. The b***h is MIA as well." she added with a shrug. "Now it's mostly just a bunch of wealthy men in a fiduciary pissing contest. Not everyone's idea of a hot date." She smirked. "And I have had too much to drink to be any sort of company for you so I am cutting you loose. Any time you are ready to leave, let me know so I can sort out a ride for you. I can make your excuses to my parents." She added as an afterthought. She peered up beneath her black lashes at Craig a little guiltily.

Craig sat back and spoke. "You're rambling, my dear," he said as he relaxed further into his seat, not showing any signs of departing. "Actually, I am having a much better time than I thought I would. You are quite entertaining company, Ms. Devereaux. I think you are better off without 'He Who Shall Not Be Named.'"

"Tell my father that," she spat out bitterly with a cutting laugh. "He would have had me married off and toting a passel of Grant's brats around while playing the dutiful Stepford Wife."

Craig looked taken aback at the bite in her tone. "You don't like children or just the idea of bearing Grant's children?"

Leslie scoffed. "I adore children, I really do. I just wish Mother and Father would let me live my life according to my own wishes and not condemn me to a future they planned out before I was even born. It's so-so antiquated. I feel like they are really marrying off their name and not me." She paused. "I am their only child. It means too much to them for me to make the perfect match, love be damned."

Craig gazed long and hard at the helpless look on her face. She seemed so much like that beautiful butterfly again-only this time she was trapped in a glass jar, beating her wings against the translucent walls of her cage, slowly suffocating under the unendurable weight of her prison-her parents.

Since when did I turn into such a f*****g poet? Craig thought. I write mysteries not prose.

Looking at her, she reminded him ever so slightly of his dearly beloved sister, who was too delicate for this world. He felt his eyes prick with emotion.

First poetry, now tears, Craig thought. I should probably hand in my man card now.

He cleared his throat lightly, looking away toward the stage where Luke and Sheila Devereaux were just arriving.

Leslie excused herself from the table to make another trip to the lady's room, her eyes glassy and her voice wobbly and thick as she excused herself.

The sound of a gavel echoed throughout the room as the auction commenced.

Craig listened as the first few lots were auctioned. As Leslie had predicted, it was mostly trips to vacation homes, jewelry and delicacies. They sold at outrageous prices and the irritating back thumping in the crowd that accompanied each "Sold!" was enough to grate on even the late, great, Mother Theresa's nerves.

Craig was about to take Leslie up on her offer of making it an early evening when she came back to the table, much more composed, and gave him a radiant smile. His heart gave an involuntary squeeze and he smiled back. She sat down quite close to Craig and lightly grabbed his hand on the table and gently squeezed before letting go.

They continued to watch the proceedings in a companionable silence for a while, only occasionally murmuring comments or compliments on the items being sold. Other times they scoffed at the outrageous extent some people would go to get a diamond studded dog collar for their pet Maltipoo.

"Lot 217, original painting done in oils depicts the love of Mother and Son..."

Craig instantly tuned out the rest of the painting's description-and the din of the crowd- when he glimpsed this stunning piece of art. He was entranced by the simple beauty of it.

The painting itself was a simple ocean scene at daybreak or sunset (it was indeterminate). A mother and child stood hand in hand, looking at the waves crashing onto a sandy shore. They appeared to be laughing and the child looked to be on the verge of breaking away from the mother to head towards the water.

"Lance? Lance, are you okay?" Leslie inquired from what seemed quite far away. He continued to stare at the painting. Craig eventually looked over at Leslie, mouth working but no sound coming out.

******

Craig's POV

Oh, my God....

I sat there transfixed and found I had no words.

The painting was not only astounding in its beauty, but it reflected the ghost of my dead sister's soul entirely. The clarity of the waves made it feel like you were watching the tide ebb and flow. I could almost taste salt water on my lips as I looked at the crash of the waves.

The laughter hinted at in the mother was the type I remembered in Cassie-before she fell prey to the man who would ultimately break her. My poor sweet sister was not strong enough to be put back together. Not even strong enough for the child inside her.

I felt my face getting hotter and wetter as I finally started to hear sound.

"Lance? Lance, are you okay?" A familiarly sweet voice caressed my ears and I blinked away whatever was keeping me from seeing properly.

After a few more confused blinks, I looked up to see Leslie, face white as a dove's, concern etched into her eyes. Her sparkling sapphire eyes were set ablaze beneath twin pools of water.

I could only utter one word, "Beautiful."

"What? What's beautiful?" Leslie seemed even more concerned. "Are you certain you are feeling alright? Would you like some ice water?"

"The painting-it's the loveliest thing I've ever seen." I shook my head helplessly. "It's-breathtaking."

Leslie seemed to be dumbstruck for a few moments. She finally opened her mouth to speak but I didn't expect what came out just then.

"Thank you."

My head snapped in her direction, eyes slightly bulging. "You painted this?"

She nodded her head. "I offered it to the organization to be auctioned off, well-sort of. The woman with the child-it seemed to fit very well with this type of charity." She smiled a little bitterly. "It was one of my favorites, but I knew had to offer it as part of the auction. Plus, my mother was quite insistent."

I stared down at Leslie and thought a number of things. Why wasn't she making money hand over fist with a talent like hers? Didn't she say she was a social worker? Social work was a commendable job but her paintings-or at least this one-spoke to people.

I studied her face and thought of how lonely she looked. Leslie Devereaux is neck deep in money and talent and heart, but there is no one there to see it-let alone share it with.

I tried to snap out of my fugue-like state and Leslie attempted to escort me away from the cacophany of auction noises, insisting on making sure I was okay.

At first I had the urge to wander aimlessly throughout the crowd until I feel a slim firm hand enclose on my forearm. Leslie took a firm grip and led me to the relative quiet of the main hall.

She directed me up the stairs into the quiet of the living quarters. With no hesitation whatsoever, she ushered me into her bedroom door and into the adjoining bath.

Like a mother with a child, she stripped off my suit jacket and loosened my tie. She ran a soft washcloth under the cool water in the sink and wrang out the excess. She began to bathe my hot face with it, ever so gently.

Once she sensed my relative calm, she smiled sweetly at me and asked, "Better now?"

I was an escort. Paid man meat. And this woman seemed as concerned for me as if I was a cherished lover of many years. Something snapped within me.

I had no words. Just the desire to pull her body close to mine and take her.

I grabbed her slender waist, tugging her towards me as I attacked her soft lips with my own. At first there was very little movement. Leslie seemed to be stunned into immobility.

I run my tongue over her bottom lip slowly and she sighed, allowing my tongue entrance. Our tongues entangled, first fighting, then massaging the other's until our breath came in small gasps.

I used my left hand to hold her head in place as I ravished her mouth. My other hand lightly traced the curve of her waist down to the swell of her ass. I moved my hand to the underside of it and squeezed hard. Leslie made a helpless mewling sound as she detached from my lips in stunned shock. I sucked her bottom lip, coaxing her mouth to open and was granted entrance once again.

As my hand massaged her firm bottom, I pulled her deeper into my embrace. She groaned into my mouth as I pressed my throbbing length against her stomach in search of friction.

I snaked an arm around to her back, finding the zipper of her dress and slowly pull it down. I was almost tempted to just rip the material from her, but I wanted to take my time with her, to tease her-as her body had teased mine all night.

I separated my body from hers only long enough for her dress to fall to a puddle on the floor. I lifted her ass in the air with my hands and Leslie wrapped her long legs around my waist. She locked her ankles tight around me.

Her soft, wet kisses had begun to distract me and I found I was unable to locate the part of the brain that controls motor function. I was beyond frustrated as I fumbled with my pants button.

Leslie seemed to understand my frustration and unlatched her legs from around me to set her feet on the ground again. I moaned in frustration until she bit my lower lip. She undid my belt quickly and gently pushed me onto her bed, detaching her lips from mine.

I gasped as I hit the comforter with soft thump. She crawled up onto the bed to straddle me above my knees.

Slowly, Leslie unbuttoned the top of my pants. She looked down, studying her handiwork while she undid her half bra, letting it fall to the floor beside the bed.

I immediately reached for her breasts. She leaned forward to welcome my touch and I gently cupped the sides and dragged my thumbs agonizingly slowly across her n*****s. They immediately puckered and she let out a deep moan as she forced them even further into my open hands. I pinched and twisted the stiff peaks and her hips buck and swayed in time with my ministrations.

I swiftly sat up and took her right breast roughly in my hands. Bathing her n****e with my tongue, I slowly alternated between suckling, biting and twisting it until it pebbled to perfection. I treated her left breast with the same care and pretty soon she was wantonly grinding against my sheathed c**k, taking deep shuddering breaths and moaning desperately.

I continued the slow torture of Leslie's breasts until my c**k was painfully hard and aching to be released from its prison. I couldn't seem to stop laving her creamy breasts with my tongue, though.

"Please," she sighed. "Oh, Lance, please. " her moans became a whimper. A desperate 'V' formed on her forehead.

I started to lick and suck my way up between the valley of her breasts, pausing to pay a little more attention to the crease between her neck and collarbone. I sucked, nuzzled and licked my way up to her ear, pausing only to whisper, "It's Craig, baby. Only my clients call me Lance."

She moaned and I once more attacked her mouth with mine, pulling her tongue into a tangle of wet nerve endings fighting for domination.

******

Leslie's POV

Hot breath and wet tongue was all I could concentrate on at the moment. I knew I was grinding on him like some s*x starved wild woman, but his grunts and heavy breathing let me know he wanted this as much as I.

He assaulted my n*****s with his rough tongue and I could barely manage not to scream for him to f**k the s**t out of me right now. I fisted my hands in his hair as he started to lick and kiss his way up chest and neck. Without thinking, I called out his name, begging.

"It's Craig, baby. Only my clients call me Lance." he said and his mouth captured mine once more. I shuddered in pleasure as he pulled me down to lay on top of him. My body undulated as it yearned for more purchase against his. It moved in a way I thought only liquid could.

We continued to kiss at a frenetic speed as I unbuttoned his shirt. Once I released the last button, he unzipped his pants and I forced his dress shirt off his shoulders. I could easily drown in the feeling of his body against mine.

I reluctantly detached my lips from his as I started to pull his pants down.

Holy fuck...

His boxers were tented and I was almost afraid to find out what was inside. He looked overly large and I tentatively grabbed his girth through the thin material of his boxers. He moaned and I willed myself not to do the same.

I moved my hand up and down over his clothed length a few times and his thick head popped through the flap in the front. My eyes widened and I pause in my ministrations to take in the sight.

If the head of his c**k was any indication of how large the rest of him was, I may be in for a world of hurt. Literally.

A bead of pre-c*m glistened at his tip and without warning I dipped my head down to Craig's velvety length. I slowly licked the bead of dew and his member twitched as he growled deeply. I swirled my tongue around his head a few times, tasting him and feeling the hot readiness of his c**k.

I placed my lips around his head and sucked hard.

"f**k, Les!" he cried. "Oh God, baby do that again." I complied and a stream of curses flew from his mouth with reckless abandon.

I slowly tried to fit his entire shaft inside my mouth, easing myself down further with each bob of my head. About two thirds of the way down, I hit a barrier. Or he hit my barrier. I held the head of his c**k in place at the back of my throat. My throat closed and spasmed as I worked to control my gag reflex.

As my throat began to relax, I slowly moved up and down on his erection again, hollowing my cheeks for more friction. The base of his d**k, which couldn't fit into my wanting mouth, was being massaged by my hand. Craig breathed in through his teeth and his d**k jumped in my mouth.

I eventually set a hard and fast pace and his hips thrust up deep into my mouth as I twisted my head, angling to get more of him in me by hook or by crook.

He was getting dangerously close to the end of his tether when he started to pant and plead with me.

"Stop, baby stop." I looked inquiringly up at his face which was bent to catch my eye. "I'm so close to coming. If I let go, I may drown you before I can taste you for myself."

Oh, my word.

I let go of his d**k with a small, wet pop and licked up and down the ridge on the underside of his member. Craig hissed through his teeth as I licked and nibbled my way up his length to where his head and shaft meet, where I paused to tease him with my tongue. He growled and in one swift movement, flipped me over so that he was on top of me. His tongue worked its way from my breasts to my belly button before he paused and said, "Lift that ass in the air so I can taste you."

I felt like the top of my head would fly off but I obliged. Craig stripped me of my panties and we were both gloriously naked, a thin layer of sweat the only thing clothing us now.

Craig pulled my legs over his shoulder to gain better access to the apex of my thighs. He dipped his head into the moist folds of my s*x and started to slowly lick my engorged nub. Every once in a while, he flicked it with his stiffened tongue, causing me to jerk and shudder. Then he would smooth me out with slow languorous licks up and down my lower lips.

My hands fisted into the bed sheets and the pants and moans I emitted became more desperate as he tortured me with his delicious tongue.

"Please, L-Craig!" I caught myself and I thought I felt a smile between my wet thighs.

"Yes, my pet?" he murmured between lazy licks. "What will you have me do to you?" He latched onto my c**t and sucked me up between his teeth.

"f**k, f**k-YES!" I cried, pushing my p***y into his face, eager for more friction.

"Hmmmmm, baby in time. But until then what will you have me do?" He swirled his tongue around my c**t and I practically passed out from the sensation.

I moaned unintelligibly.

He stopped lapping and said, "I can't understand what you said, Love." He teased me by breathing onto my core. "How will I know what you want if you can't form a coherent sentence?" He flicked his tongue onto the bundle of nerves and I am undone.

"Ahhhh!" I screamed. "Craig! s**t, I want you to eat me 'til I come!" My legs jerked as he hit a particularly sensitive spot. "Ohhhhh, right there! Then I want you inside me f*****g me so deep that I can taste you at the back of my throat when you come."

With that Craig latched onto my s*x with renewed vigor, biting and nibbling like I was gourmet chocolate. He slammed a finger into my p***y and stroked my front wall agonizingly slowly, caressing my sweet spot until I started to tighten around him.

He added a finger as I came closer to my release. I ground my hips onto his fingers, my legs twitched and a fullness gathered in my lower abdomen. I felt I had no control over my own traitorous libido as I clamped down hard on him as I came. My thighs clenched around Craig's neck and I could still feel him stroking my insides, lengthening my climax so I would slowly come down from my high.

"Oh, my f**k!" I exclaimed as Craig continued to tease me with his tongue.

As I released my legs from around Craig's head, I tried to regulate my breathing and practically whimpered with embarrassment over my over-exuberant orgasm.

Craig lazily lapped at my sensitive nub and shock waves went through my system with each flick of his tongue. I covered my face with my arm and felt Craig's weight shift in the bed.

He crawled closer to my face and I squirmed away, murmuring my apologies. I felt his hand on my forearm and suddenly he had brought my arm down to my side as I tried to look away. I had had oral s*x before, but never had I so successfully completed it-and been so vocal about it.

His face was coated in my juices and when he lowered his lips to mine, kissing me slowly, I could taste my arousal on his tongue. "There's nothing to be sorry about, Gorgeous." He bent to nibble my ear and I practically came again when he whispered, "You look so f*****g sexy when you come for me."

I moaned as he licked and nibbled the outer shell of my ear and my nether regions moisten anew.

I felt emboldened as I sensed his shaft stirring against my thigh and I quickly flipped over to straddle him.

I ran my hands along his hard chest and murmured, "Now it's time for me to see you face when you come apart beneath me."

Craig groaned as I aligned his stiff length at the entrance to my womb. I teased him a bit by rubbing it along the length of my s*x, from c**t to slit.

"Please baby, don't make me wait. I need to feel you around me, feel you coming all over my c**k, wringing me dry." He implored with a groan.

I moaned loudly and slowly sat down upon his length, getting used to the feel of him inside me, inch by inch. The slickness of my p***y allowed him halfway in and by then I am panting uncontrollably as his head rubbed the sweet spot inside me.

I looked down on him panting and something in my eyes made the lust in his own soften to concern.

"Don't worry, Princess. You will fit me like a glove." Without disengaging, Craig flipped me over.

"Let me show you." he said as he thrusted his full length deep within me.

******

Craig's POV

Fuck, but she is tight, I thought.

The first few thrusts into her tight, wet p***y had me practically emptying myself into her.

With much restraint, I slowed myself and started to stroke her from within, my c**k delving deeper with each thrust. This elicited a series of whimpers from Leslie that were making it hard for me not to pound into her and annihilate her sweet p***y.

With each thrust, I felt myself bottoming out in her.

"Yes! Oh God, yes right there!" she cried as I hit a sweet spot inside her. She threw her head back and arched her body against mine.

I circled my hips and slammed back into her. Leslie cried out and jerked. "Like that, sweetheart?" My voice came out a low growling whisper.

She nodded, "Yes, more. Oh, God I'm s-s-so close."

I started to stroke her faster, feeling the delicious clench of her inner walls around my steadily thickening shaft.

"Come for me, baby." I moaned, feeling her walls begin to spasm around my c**k. "Come all over this dick."

With an unabashed scream, she tightened her legs around me, grinding and meeting my thrusts with her own, riding a wave of passion that I was drawing out of her. Her walls felt like heaven as they clenched my c**k, massaging and milking it.

I concentrated on keeping a steady rhythm as she came. The look on her face while climaxing was almost enough to have me shooting my load into her. I was determined to ride her orgasm out-and then make her come apart for me again.

I smiled down at her, her chest heaving as she tried to catch her breath. Little aftershocks of her release made my c**k twitch inside her as I plowed even deeper into her.

I was getting into another steady rhythm and could feel my own release building in my gut.

"You like it raw baby? You like my bare c**k buried balls deep in you?" I growled in her ear and felt her shudder with want beneath me.

"Yes, oh yes." Leslie breathed. "Oh God!" She exclaimed as I increased my speed, burying my shaft to the root in her tight hole.

"You want me to paint your insides white baby? Empty myself in you?" She moaned. "I want to feel you come around my c**k as I fill you up. Can you do that for me, baby?"

She moaned lustily and I could feel her inner walls starting to tighten again, aching for release. It nearly tipped me over the edge.

"Craig!" she moaned, looking into my eyes, my own lust reflected in hers.

I moaned, "Yes, kitten?" I circled my hips and slammed into her again, hoping she was on the precipice. I know I was.

Her eyelids fluttered. "Come in me, please. I need to feel you in me, emptying yourself." She moaned loudly. She crooned. "Fill me up."

I couldn't take it anymore. I started to thrust fast and hard into her tightening hole, pummeling into her like a jackhammer. Just as I was about to find my release, her walls clenched around me, sending me spiraling down into my own climax. Thick spurts of my come blasted her inner walls as her s*x clenched around me, wringing my manhood dry. Our moans were in unison as we came to completion together.

"Oh, Fuck." I murmured into her mouth as I tasted her sweet lips. "That was..."

"Mmmmmm" she moaned into my open mouth, stopping my words with a slow, soft kiss. "Stay with me tonight." She deepened her kiss, stifling my weak protests with her tongue. "I will drive you home in the morning." She bit my bottom lip and I moaned, giving in. "No one needs to know."

I pulled her deeper into my arms in silent acquiescence.

Author's Note: This book has been purchased by another writing app and is going to be uploaded in full, one chapter at a time until complete. To read 'Beneath The Surface' for free (at least for now) go to: h***:://dreame.com/novel/1963695-Beneath-The-Surface.html