Grit And Grind (Dirty South Book 1) Read online

  She could taste herself on his lips.

  “Look at me. I want to see your eyes that moment I first slip inside you.” Chris paused long enough to let Klara buck against him, begging for him to fill her up.

  Her cheeks flushed pink, her breath wavering. She moaned, her hips rising to meet him, restless. She needed to feel him inside her. He leaned over and reached for a condom from the nightstand drawer, tearing the foil with his teeth and rolling it on in one swift motion.

  “Are you ready? I bet you feel so damn good, Klara.”

  Chris held her tight as he slowly—very, very slowly—slid right inside her wetness. She gasped and hooked her legs around his waist, positioning herself so that he ground against her clit with each thrust. She reached behind her to grip the headboard. She had to have something to hold on to. She felt like she was going to fall off the edge of the world.

  Feeling her body start to tremble, Chris started to quicken his pace. His rhythm matched hers as they both let themselves go. They tangled themselves together, melting into each other. Not knowing where one body started and the other ended.

  They rocked back and forth together. Their bodies in sync. Their moans in sync. Their breaths in sync. Their orgasms in sync as a warm tingle overtook them, sending waves of pleasure rippling through them.

  Klara lay still, throbbing, as Chris remained on top of her, kissing her shoulders, her neck, her lips before lying down next to her. She turned to face him, running her hands along his chest, arms, and those abs that made her feel so damn dizzy. His abs were a work of art. He was a work of art. From his chiseled build to his beautiful mind. Klara was falling, fast. She wondered if he was, too. She couldn’t let herself get hurt. Not this time, not anytime.

  “I guess I’d better go,” she said, slowly rising from what felt like a dream. She needed to pinch herself. She needed to wake up, but then again, she didn’t want to wake up.

  “Go? I thought you were staying?” Chris sounded offended. “Did I do something wrong?”

  “No, not at all! I just know we have to both be up for class in the morning, and I thought … I don’t know. Isn’t that what I am supposed to do after? Leave?”

  “After? I was just getting started! And I definitely don’t want you to go anywhere. Stay with me. We can set your alarm for a little earlier for you to swing by your house and get ready.”

  “Are you sure? Won’t you be too tired to teach in the morning?”

  “Am I sure? Jeez Louise! I have a gorgeous woman in my bed. And I would love to fuck her brains out. Again … and again … and again. Do you really think I want you to go?”

  “Did you just say, ‘Jeez Louise’? Is that like old geezer talk? Can we go back to the filthy language?”

  “Ha! I think I’m supposed to be bending you over my knee for being a naughty student, isn’t that right?”

  “Yes. I have been pretty naughty, haven’t I?” she said, turning to meet his gaze.

  His eyes took her all in. Her slender thighs, her swollen pink lips—both sets. Her nipples, hard and tingling, ready for him to reach out and touch her again. He looked at her for what seemed like forever. Long enough to make her start to feel self-conscious or that something was wrong with what he was seeing.

  “You are so damn beautiful, Klara. Every. Single. Bit of you. I want to spend every moment I can with you. I wouldn’t want us to leave the room if we didn’t have to. Now, get back down here and let me teach you a lesson,” Chris said as he grabbed her hand and pulled her back down to the bed.

  Klara could feel herself becoming a puddle in his hands.

  They were lust-drunk. Both falling—and fast. This couldn’t end well.

  five

  Chris paced the floor as he gave his lecture. His demeanor was professional without a hint of the dirty lover he’d portrayed last night. His calm voice steady and reassuring the students of their successes. Nothing like the growly boss man who had been whispering in Klara’s ear just hours ago.

  What I wouldn’t give to have him on that desk, Klara thought.

  Their rendezvous had left her a little sore and very tired. She was sore in places that she hadn’t even known could ache. She smiled to herself as she tried to sit comfortably in the desk. Each pang in her muscles sending her back into her memories and back into his arms. She was still smiling when she looked up and noticed everyone was gone, except Chris.

  “What’s the smile for?” he said as he approached her desk. “Watching musclemen porn on that laptop?”

  “No way! Who do you think I am? Besides, that’s not the kind of porn I watch.” Klara grinned. She wanted him. Again. Today. Tonight. Tomorrow. Now. What the hell is wrong with me? She was insatiable.

  “Oh, it’s not? Well, what kind of porn do you watch? Tell me what you like,” Chris said, his eyebrows raised.

  The halls were calm and quiet. The only sound in the room was the sound of their breaths. Klara frantically tried to steady her breathing as her heart rate began to rise.

  Am I breathing too loud? Too fast?

  He was going to think she was having an asthma attack if she didn’t get herself under control. That was not very sexy. Code red for the silly schoolgirl with the teacher crush. Her palms started to sweat.

  “Oh, you know, just the regular vanilla stuff. I’m not very interesting,” Klara lied. What kind of porn didn’t she watch? Oh, well, yeah, there was that stuff her ex David was into. No. Way. What was that even called again? A hot carl? A hot pocket? A steaming Alabama? A pocket ball? She could feel herself getting nauseous as her mind wandered down this path.

  “I don’t believe that for a second. And … I think you’re very interesting. But that’s okay. You can tell me more about this porn habit over lunch. What do you say?”

  “I do not have a porn habit!” Klara’s face was starting to turn pink. She could feel her cheeks getting warm and flushed.

  Is he serious?

  She could never tell with Chris. He was such a tease. One minute, she wanted to cross her arms and deliver him the evil eye; the next minute, she wanted to spread her legs and deliver him the bad mamma jamma. Mamma jamma. He was turning her into a sex fiend. An awkward, goofy, drunken-on-him sex fiend.

  “So … I take it that is a yes?” he asked.

  He smiled, noticing her brain clearly wasn’t functioning this morning. He knew why. His brain had barely caught up from last night’s events, too. All morning, his mind had been on the way her hair had framed his face as she leaned down to kiss him. The view of her perfect, bouncing breasts and her parted pink lips as she had thrown her head back in ecstasy while her hips ground into him. Several times, he could feel himself start to harden. He quickly had to think of something, anything, before that happened. He had been in the middle of speaking about colloquiums to the class when he noticed himself start to rise yet again. His thoughts frantic, trying to stop the rise of his need. His need for her.

  The xy=bc and the square root of something is the third law of motion? Isaac Newton naked? Isaac Newton standing butt naked, writing his laws of motion on a chalkboard while his wrinkled old-man ass hangs, melting off his back? Fuck, that’s nasty!

  Chris’s desire stifled as he brought himself back to reality. He was going to have to remember that naked Newton was a surefire way to make his cock shrivel like a raisin. Poor thing. He would need to make sure it was okay the first chance he got.

  “Yeah, I’ll take some lunch. I have just the place for you. It’s an old brothel turned into a greasy burger bar.”

  “Oh my. You sure do know the way to my heart,” he said before realizing he said it. Heart.

  She was going to think he was love-struck. She was going to think he was a stage five clinger. That one romp in the sack was enough to send him hugging her legs and begging her not to leave him. How unattractive.

  He cleared his throat and straightened himself up, sensing the awkwardness that followed his heart. “I mean, I’m always down for some greasy food! And I
would love to see an old brothel. Perfect place for some of my research. Now, if you’d please quit watching that Sasquatch porn, let’s go. I’m starving!”

  “Damn it, you caught me!” She laughed as she packed her belongings up.

  Her mind was racing and still on the fact that he’d totally said she knew the way to his heart. Clogged arteries and bawdy ladies? Probably. Typical American male. She made a mental note to dress like a call girl and take him out for steaks before he left. Maybe that would do it.

  Do what? What exactly am I trying to do? Klara was still unsure what she wanted.

  She’d thought she knew what she wanted. She was happy enough, living in her own little world and working on her own little things. That was up until she’d met Chris. And, now, she was confused as to what she wanted. He would be leaving soon, and long-distance relationships never worked. Besides, she was probably just a plaything to him while he was here. Except she wasn’t. She sensed it. She knew the way to his heart. He’d said so himself.

  The restaurant was packed with the usual Memphis mix. Old, young, hipster, geezer. Everyone laughing and smiling, everyone having a good time. Klara loved her city. The people here knew how to have fun. The struggles of day-to-day living were relatable to them all. And they all had the frame of mind to say screw it and have a good time in life despite all the bullshit life threw at them. She observed Chris as he took in the surroundings. His face alight as he soaked up the tattered walls, the worn-out bar, the advertisements tacked on the windows. Party here and party there.

  “Well, what do you think?” Klara said, taking a bite of her greasy burger. She was going to regret eating this. She’d skipped her run this morning because she had exercised all night. Wink, wink. But this burger was going to make her run … to the restroom. She could basically swim in the grease. It was as if she were lubing her insides, preparing for … tentacle porn? Why was she thinking about porn still? Was it because Chris was sitting in front of her and doing that thing? You know, that thing he did—living, breathing, anything he did. Because it all sent her into a state of bedroom bliss.

  “I think it’s fascinating! Can you imagine the stories in these walls?” he said, taking in his surroundings.

  “I know! If these walls could talk, what do you think they would say?”

  “Clean me. I’ve been a dirty whore.”

  “Ha! I see what you did there!” Klara laughed.

  He was right though. The walls were caked in grime and grease and probably many other things from way back when.

  “It’s all part of that Southern charm. Dirty South, right?” Klara continued. “Anyway, what’s island life like? Where is your island again? Do y’all have these kinds of places down there?”

  “We have a few beach shacks that I guess you could call dive bars but nothing like this,” he said, motioning around the crowded room. “Captiva is in South Florida,” Chris continued. “It’s very small and very slow. There isn’t much to do there, except bike, fish, boat. For nightlife, we have to head into Florida, the Fort Myers area. It’s a great place to write because there isn’t much else to do. And, plus, you have the beach, which is always nice and inspiring.”

  “South Florida! I’ve never heard of Captiva. I thought you lived in the Bahamas or something,” Klara said, breathing a sigh of relief.

  South Florida wasn’t too far, and it was drivable. It wouldn’t be like she would have to take a boat across the ocean. So, he wouldn’t be long, long-distance at least. She let this sink in her mind as he rambled on about life at the beach.

  “It’s a great getaway, but sometimes, it does get boring, and that’s when my love of travel comes in. I think you would like it though. You should come down sometime.” The words escaped Chris’s mouth before he had a chance to think about what he was asking. It must have been his damn heart talking again.

  He really did want her to come see his place though. The beach and Klara in an itty-bitty bikini? Damn right! He wondered what kind of bikini she would wear. Black? White? Red? He was imagining a type of floral pattern, surely. He was going to have to backtrack on this somehow before she thought he wanted to walk down the aisle.

  “The beach, huh?” Klara smiled. She was pretty sure her heart was in her throat, or it was that last bit of burger she’d finished. That wouldn’t be good.

  “Well, yeah. Maybe you could get some work done. I’m hardly ever there. You’d have the place to yourself!”

  What the heck? Klara thought.

  She could have sworn he was asking her to go with him to the beach, not stay at his house when he wasn’t even there. Maybe he was just being friendly then. She was going to have to set some boundaries and guard herself before this got any deeper.

  “I could use some peace and quiet. I’ll keep that in mind. Thanks!”

  “Anytime, Klara.”

  They both finished their food, and Klara grabbed the check before Chris could get out his wallet. She was adamant on treating him today. She was the one who’d wanted to take him here. She didn’t need a white knight. Chris didn’t seem too happy about her paying the check, but his chivalry was going to have to wait. He could see Klara’s stubbornness wouldn’t budge.

  “Fine. You paid for lunch; I got dinner. But you’ll have to wait. I’ve got just the place in mind, but I’ll need reservations. You free on Friday?” Chris’s voice was a little too high as he asked. Why does this woman make me so damn nervous? I just had my head between this woman’s legs. Why am I all of a sudden stammering like a terrified child?

  “Are you asking me on a real date?” Klara intently looked at Chris. As if she was trying to read his thoughts and what he was up to.

  What kind of joke is this? Is this just some observing session? Is he just horny? Am I supposed to wait until Friday to get in his pants again? That’s not going to work.

  “As a matter of fact, yes. I would love to take you on a real date.”

  And he had done it again. He’d said the L-word this time. No way he could be in love. It wasn’t possible to have love at first sight. He wrote about all that stuff, but he didn’t believe in it. Besides, she was a student with a big future blah, blah, blah. He was an old man with a questionable future in writing at the moment. Maybe his Memphis book would pull him out of the slump. Especially if he channeled some of this—whatever this was—into it.

  Limerence? Yes! It’s just limerence! Chris congratulated himself on coming to that conclusion. No crazy love eyes here. Just some good old-fashioned limerence. That was why he couldn’t get enough of Klara. What a relief that was to have passed on all those feels! Now, he could enjoy her without that nagging feeling that he was falling too deep. You couldn’t fall too deep with limerence. It was just a science thing in the brain. Chemicals or some crap. Not the real deal. He was all good. Phew.

  “I would love to!” And, now … she’d said it.

  Klara, Klara.

  Klara could picture her mom wagging her finger in her face. What a fool she was being. Giving up the milk. Being a cow. Being free? Something like that. She had let her guard down, and now, she was going on a real date. That hadn’t happened in what seemed like forever. If he was asking her out, that meant he liked her, right? Maybe she wasn’t just a plaything. Maybe he was willing to put in some work to make this happen. How would they? How could they?

  “So, where are you taking me?” she said. She knew it must be a historical place. Somewhere he probably wanted to go anyway for some research.

  “It’s a surprise! Wear something dressy. I’ll handle the rest.”

  “Oou, Mr. Big Shot. Okay.”

  “Is that my nickname? Mr. Big Shot?” Chris teased. “You promised you would give me one. Let’s hear it.”

  “No, it’s not Mr. Big Shot. I actually don’t have one for you. I really don’t. Which is super odd because they usually come easy to me. So, I guess you’ll just have to be a regular ole Chris to me!” Klara said, shrugging her shoulders.

  She had tried t
o come up with something that wasn’t cheesy, but Crude Chris, Filthy-Mouthed Chris, Cutie Chris, Chris in My Mouth. None of those worked. McChris, Chris McMuffin, Christo-fiend. She was at a loss for words. He was just going to have to be her Chris.

  “I’ll just wait. I’m sure something will come to you.” He winked at her.

  Didn’t he know that, when a man winked at a woman, it automatically made her panties drop a lil’ bit? Just a smidge. She wanted him to wink again. Get them down around her ankles.

  Why did men ever quit winking in the first place?

  Klara hadn’t had anyone wink at her in years. Men her age preferred the chin-up nod that looked like a quick sniff of the air, as if to say, Your pheromones are making my balls tingle. But, in actuality, these “men” probably had no idea what a pheromone was, and the tingles were probably from something they should talk to their doctor about. Just one of the many reasons she gravitated toward the older fellows.

  “Oh, wait! We didn’t go check out the upstairs. That’s where the rooms are!” She remembered as they stood to leave.

  “Rooms?” Chris said, dazed from either a food coma or the hustle and bustle of the downtown lunch hour.

  “You know … the rooms the patrons rented … by the hour,” she said, wiggling her eyebrows and sending them both into a fit of laughter.

  He flagged down the waitress and asked if they could take a quick peek upstairs.

  “Of course you can! We usually keep that area roped off, but since you’re interested, I think I can pull a few strings,” said the flirty waitress who obviously knew all too well who Christopher Kaiser was. Her hand softly patting his shoulder and staying there—for forever.

  “Is that how you flirt? The eyebrow thing?” Chris said as they made their way up the stairs.

  Klara kept climbing until she reached the top. A barely lit, narrow hallway lined with old wooden benches awaited them. She took Chris’s hand and led him to a bench.

  “No, this is how I flirt,” she said as she cradled his face with her hands and pulled his lips into hers.