“Chad!” Owen greeted his caller with the biggest grin Caitlyn had ever witnessed. “What’s up, bro?”

Caitlyn shuffled into the bathroom. She could use a potty break and a shower. And she would hate to intrude upon something as sacred as a conversation with his brother. She was, after all, just Owen’s current one-night stand.

Chapter Nine

Owen’s favorite older brother—his only one—smiled a greeting on the phone’s screen. Chad looked a little dirty and a lot weary. Owen would never get used to him with a buzz cut. When he pictured Chad in his head, he was still the seventeen-year-old in his letterman jacket. The same blue eyes, but lots more thick, curly hair.

“Let me guess,” Chad said. “You’re bored, stuck in a cushy hotel room until tonight when you have to put up with thousands of girls—who all think you’re hot for some unfathomable reason—screaming your name at the top of their lungs.”

“Wrong,” Owen said.

“Don’t have a show tonight?”

“We perform in Houston tonight.”

“Hotel not cushy enough?”

“No, it’s one of the cushiest.”

“Then why am I wrong? I know how predictable you are.”

“I’m not bored.”

“Is Kellen there with you?” Chad tilted his head as if he could see more of the room surrounding Owen.

“Nope. I brought a woman home last night. Well, not home exactly. Back to my room. She’s in the shower now.” He could hear the water running.

“You spent the night with a woman? What happened to your lame rule about not sleeping with the women you sleep with?”

“I made a concession for Josie. She’s just so lonely with you overseas.”

Chad’s nostrils flared and his blue eyes narrowed dangerously. “Not funny, assmunch. First, I know Josie would never cheat on me, especially not with a twerp like you. Second, I talked to her ten minutes ago. And third, you can’t keep a straight face when you lie. But I’m still going to hit you really hard the next time I see you, so consider wearing a mouth guard.”

“Any idea when that will be?”

“Can you keep a secret?” he asked.

“Probably not.”

“Well then, I’ll just say sooner than we thought.” Chad smiled.

“How soon?”

“I’m not telling you because you’ll ruin the surprise for everyone.”

“Six weeks?” Owen said hopefully.

“I’m not telling you.”

“I can keep a secret.”

“Yeah, like the time I told you not to tell Josephine Tulane that I had a crush on her.”

“And now she wants to marry you, so that worked out horribly, didn’t it?”

Chad grinned. “I told you because you’re predictable and I knew you couldn’t keep a secret.”

Owen had always wondered if Chad had told him about his feeling for Josie so he would break the ice. Josie had been the new girl in Owen’s senior class and Chad had already graduated, so Mr. Love-at-First-Sight didn’t have the opportunity to interact with Josie much. “You suck.”

“So who’s the woman in your shower?”

“Some hot chick I picked up at a sex club.”

“You’re still going to those things?”

“Maybe I’ll stop. If Caitlyn turns out to be someone special to me.”

“For your sake, I hope she does. Sex with a woman you love is amazing.”

“Better than sex with two women who take turns blowing you?”

Chad closed his eyes, tilted his head back, and laughed. “You’ll have to tell me, little brother. I’ve never had two women take turns blowing me.”

“It pretty much rocks.”

“So are you going to get me a backstage pass to one of your shows when I come home?”

“That depends,” Owen said.

“On what?”

“Our current tour ends in September. Should I reserve a pass for you before then?” Owen hoped his brother would fall for his attempt to milk him for information.

“Yeah, you probably should.”

“A couple of months before then?”

“Probably.”

“Yes! Are you just returning on leave or—”

“Don’t you watch the news? They’re starting to pull troops out of here.”

“No, I don’t watch the news. It’s too depressing.”

“Still living in your insular world. I’d think with as much as you travel around, you’d be a more well-rounded individual.”

“Screw you.”

Chad chuckled.

“I had dinner with Mom and Dad night before last and neither of them said anything about the possibility of you coming home soon.”

“I don’t want anyone to know. I want to show up unannounced and surprise them. So you keep your big mouth shut, got it?”

“Yeah. But I am going to tell Kelly.”

Chad rolled his eyes. “That’s a given. At least he can keep a secret. Unlike you.”

The bathroom door opened and a puff of steam preceded the sexiest woman ever to wear a hotel towel.

“What are you looking at?” Chad asked. “Pick your jaw up off the floor, bro.”

Owen switched cameras to the one on the back of his phone to give Chad a glimpse of what he was looking at and then switched back.

“Well, I see why you’re not bored.” Chad laughed. “I’ve got to go. I’m over my time limit already. Promise you won’t say anything to the folks back home.”

“I promise.”

“Take care of yourself, Owen.”

“Stay safe, Sergeant Mitchell.”

Chad saluted with two fingers. The screen went dark. Damn, those calls always went fast.

Caitlyn crossed the room to sit on the arm of the sofa next to him. She propped one foot on the coffee table, and her towel shifted enough that the delights between her legs were barely concealed.

“Is your brother well?”

Owen grinned. “I’m not supposed to tell anyone, but they’re sending him home soon.” He really couldn’t keep a secret.

“That’s great,” she said. A smile widened across her face and her eyes lit up. “You must be excited. And relieved.”

“I won’t be completely relieved until he’s home safe in his own bed, but yeah, it’s the best news I’ve heard in months.”

“I came out here with the intention of showing you my underdeveloped gag reflex, but I know for sure I can’t top your brother’s good news, so I guess…”

She started to rise from the sofa arm, but he grabbed her and tugged her onto his lap before she could get away.

“How come you haven’t mentioned this limited gag reflex before? And please, God, is it what I think it is?”

She smiled coyly. “A lady can’t reveal all her secrets in a single night.”

“Which is why you’ll be staying with me tonight as well.”

“I will?”

“But just in case I do something to fuck this up before tonight, you’d better show me what you mean.”

“On one condition,” she said.

He was pretty sure that no matter what condition she made, he’d agree to it.

“Name it.”

“Take out the barbell in your piercing. I wouldn’t want it to get stuck in my throat.”

He chuckled. “I don’t think that’ll happen, but if you’re concerned, I’ll take it out.”

She squirmed off his lap, pushed the coffee table away from the sofa, and knelt on the floor before him. Her hands gripped his thighs just above his knees and tugged his legs apart. Then Caitlyn blessed him with the most devious smile he’d ever seen. His heart suddenly thudded a rapid beat Heat and lust flooded his groin. Oh God, he was about to have the treat of his life.

Her hands slid up his thighs to his hips and then moved to unfasten the button of his jeans. She didn’t take her eyes off his while she unbuttoned his pants and slowly lowered the zipper.

He’d gone for a workout in the hotel’s gym while she’d been sleeping that morning, so his muscles were still tight. He appreciated every crunch he’d forced himself to do when her hands slid up his belly, bumping up over the six-pack he worked so hard to maintain. His chest, shoulders, and arms were treated to the same exploratory touch of her warm, soft hands.

“You’re the most beautiful man I’ve ever touched,” she said.

“Thanks,” he said lamely.

“But what is really amazing about you is that your soul is even more beautiful than all these tight muscles and bronze skin.” She grinned. “And that’s saying something.”

She lowered her head and kissed his belly. His muscles clenched involuntarily, and his cock began to rise with interest.

“You’re beau—”

Her hand shot up and covered his mouth. “No talking. It’s your turn to be flattered.”

It made him uncomfortable to accept praise without reciprocating, but he nodded slightly and allowed her to continue.

“Even your belly button is sexy,” she said.

She traced his navel with her tongue and then nipped the skin just beneath. His breath came out in an excited rush.

“I never really liked tattoos until I saw yours.” Her hands slid up his ribs to his chest. She traced the lines of a tattoo. “I would have thought the ink would detract from your gorgeous body, but it actually adds something. They make you even more alluring.” She crawled a bit closer and extended her tongue to lick his nipple.

He sucked a breath through his teeth. His cock throbbed with need.

“Are your nipples sensitive?” she asked, tracing the tiny bud with her tongue.

He nodded slightly. “They’re both pierced, but I can’t stand to wear jewelry in them very often.” He did wish he had his barbells in at the moment, however.

She latched on to his right nipple, alternately sucking and rubbing it with the flat of her tongue. He clung to the sofa cushion beneath him so he didn’t grab her head and direct her to give the same treatment to his fully engorged cock.

When she bit his chest, he gasped in surprise at how sexy he found the act. She moved to his other nipple and looked up at him as she traced it with the tip of her tongue.

“I love touching you,” she whispered. Her hands slid down his torso. “I’m really going to love sucking you. I want to watch you erupt.”

He gaped at her, his breath now coming in excited gasps. Occasionally she said something that he never expected her to say, and he wondered what went on in her head. Were these naughty thoughts of hers infrequent or just infrequently voiced?

“Will you come for me, Owen?” she whispered. “Let me see how much pleasure I give you.”

Hell to the yeah. His mouth had gone dry, so speaking wasn’t an option. He nodded instead.

Caitlyn gripped the top of his jeans and tugged them down his thighs. When he lifted his foot to help her remove them completely, she shook her head.

“I like them around your ankles,” she said.

Fuck, who was he to upset her fantasy? She grabbed his cock in both hands and tilted her head back so he could watch her trace his rim with the tip of her tongue. He was already seeping pre-cum, and she avoided the little bead of moisture glistening at the tip. Did she not like the taste? When her tongue did flick over the opening to collect his small offering, it took every shred of his willpower not to grab the back of her head and shove his cock down her throat. Could she possibly realize how sexy she looked kneeling on the floor between his thighs, her thick lashes fanned over her porcelain-white cheeks as she sampled his cum? He could see his fluids glistening on the tip of her tongue before she flicked it into her mouth and then licked her lips. Lord, he wished he’d been born with more self-discipline. He was seconds from losing all control.

“Caitlyn,” he groaned.

“I do prefer your taste over strawberries,” she said, and she opened her brown eyes to gift him with another look of deviousness.

“Do you want me to take the stud out now?” he asked, because there was nothing he wanted more than to watch Caitlyn’s mouth stretch around his thick shaft.

“I think I can figure it out. I do have master’s degrees in physics and engineering.”

“The balls unscrew,” he said. A little assistance never hurt anyone. Not even a brainiac like Caitlyn.

“So I don’t just yank it out?”

Even though her tone was teasing, Owen flinched. “God, woman. No, you don’t just yank it out.”

“I’d never hurt you,” she said. “Unless you asked me to.”

She bent to suckle the head of his cock. Her tongue flicked over the sensitive skin trapped inside her warm, moist mouth until his back arched involuntarily. She began to bob her head slightly—just enough for her plump lips to bump against one ball of his piercing each time she went down.

“God, you give good head,” he thought. Or maybe he said it. He wasn’t thinking clearly. All he could concentrate on was the pleasure she gave him with her brilliant mouth.