Walker Read online

  Back in my apartment, I hurry to get ready. I have to get to the bingo hall, where I work part time. I received a sizeable settlement from the drunk driver who killed my mom in a hit and run four years ago, which is paying for my education and living expenses. But my part time job provides guilt-free spending money for things like clothes and Rosco.

  Walker’s scent still lingers in the doorway to my bedroom, right where he pushed me up against the wall. What I wouldn’t have given for him to be off duty in that moment.

  At the bingo hall, I quickly make my way to the kitchen. I’m in charge of keeping the coffee hot and plentiful and the snacks readily available. It’s not the most glamorous job, but the people are nice and the hours work great with my class schedule.

  “Hey there, Erin.” Eddy, the elderly man with the payout money, greets me. He always stops by the kitchen first thing to swipe a cookie. It’s closed off from the main room outside of a pass-through window, allowing him to sneak one without his wife catching him. “Got to keep my blood sugar happy, right?”

  I wink at him. “I won’t tell if you don’t.”

  I busy myself with preparing the first pots of coffee and plating the desserts. I’m moving around the kitchen so quickly, that his voice almost escapes me. But I’d recognize it in a hurricane.

  “I hope you’re planning to take home the jackpot tonight.”

  Walker.

  I peek out through the window at the top of the door, and sure enough, my kitten rescuer is standing in line with an elderly woman to get coffee. He’s wearing that sexy smile that melts my panties, but he doesn’t even know I’m here.

  When his heads lifts toward the window I’ve been stalking him from, I duck.

  Of all the places Walker Stone could be tonight, the bingo hall filled with mostly senior citizens is not the place I expected to find him. He’s such a catch. He could be out at the bar picking up any woman he wanted. Instead, he’s at bingo with a woman I’d peg to be his grandma. It’s so sweet I might get a stomachache.

  After hiding too long, I have to carry more plates of cookies and bars out to the food table, as the pickings are slim out there. Everyone has grabbed snacks before the start of round one. Walker is sitting at a table now, bingo cards in front of him. His grandma is explaining how to work a dobber from the looks of it.

  I use the distraction to quickly set out the refreshments. Before I can make it back into the kitchen, I feel those intense eyes on me. He knows I’m here. The memories of that sizzling kiss take over all my thoughts.

  “Erin?”

  I don’t know when he moved across the room, but he’s standing in front of me now. “Walker, hi.”

  I lean against the door, and it falls open. He follows me into the kitchen. I’m not sure if I meant to hide from him or invite him in, but he certainly took it as an invitation. “What are you doing here?” he asks me, stalking ever closer to me until I’m backed up against the center island and he’s a mere inch away.

  I can feel the heat radiating from his body. It wraps me in a warm embrace. “I work here. What about you?”

  “Bingo with Gran. She’s been asking me to go for weeks. Since someone wasn’t interested in my dinner invitation, I figured it was time to take her up on her offer.” His hand reaches out and brushes a loose strand of hair back behind my ear. The graze of his fingers against my cheek scorches my skin.

  “I had to work.”

  Walker leans closer, his breath tickling my neck. He takes my ear lobe between his teeth. “Do you have to work tomorrow night?”

  I could lie and say yes. Or tell him I have to study for a test. But he’d see right through that. “No.”

  His lips brush a trail up my neck, causing my entire body to shiver with life. I want to lie on the island and let him take me right here in the bingo hall kitchen. “Then you’ll come to dinner with me tomorrow night?”

  I want to kiss him. I can’t keep my eyes off those lips. But he’s withholding the pleasure from me until I give him an answer. “Yes.”

  His hands shackle my hips, pulling my body into his as our lips collide. The kiss is hot enough to start a fire. Hands slide up my sides, teasing the sides of my breasts. “Good,” he says at my ear. “I’ll pick you up at six.”

  With that, he leaves me breathless in the kitchen.

  4

  WALKER

  I haven’t been able to get Erin out of my head since the moment I saw her standing beneath the tree with folded arms and that yellow sundress. I’ve thought about nothing else other than kissing her, running my fingers along her slick folds to pleasure her, then burying my cock deep inside her. I nearly took her there in the bingo hall kitchen.

  “You’re distracted.” Chase claps me on the back as we leave the station’s gym. It’s our day off, but our crew works out together regardless. He’s probably giving me shit about falling on my ass during tire flips. “She must be something, huh?”

  She’s everything. But I don’t admit that out loud. The rest of the guys would have too much fun if they overheard that sappy admission. “We’ll see.”

  “Okay, man. Go ahead and lie to yourself if it’ll make you feel better.” Chase laughs all the way to his truck. We’ve been friends since high school. He knows me better than anyone, except for maybe my sister. I couldn’t lie to him even if it meant I’d never draw a short straw again.

  I make a couple stops after I shower and change at my apartment, hoping the tasks will keep me calm and collected. I’m too old to be so nervous about taking a beautiful woman on a date. But Erin Campbell has me more riled up than a horny teenaged boy. There’s something so special about her…

  At her apartment, I wipe my sweaty palms against my jeans before I push the call button and wait for her to buzz me up.

  “Walker, you’re early.” The smile she greets me with at her front door says she doesn’t mind. She’s wearing another sundress, this one green. It brings out the milky chocolate color of her eyes. If tonight goes as planned, I’ll be slipping that dress off and letting it float to the floor.

  “I brought something for Rosco.” One of my errands included a stop at the pet store. My arm will heal, but I want to make sure he won’t try to destroy the other in the meantime. “It’s a scratching post.”

  Such gratitude fills her eyes. “Thank you. That’s so sweet.” She stretches up on her tiptoes and places a gentle, sweet kiss on my lips. The tenderness of it stirs something deep inside me.

  As I watch her set it up in the corner by a window and try to entice Rosco to come check it out, I war with the urge to forego dinner and drag her off into the bedroom instead. She looks so stunning in that dress with her makeup and hair done. I don’t know if I can stand the thought of another man’s eyes on her. Add to that she smells like a vanilla cupcake, and it makes me want to skip dinner completely and get right to dessert.

  “Where are we eating?” she asks me when she’s back on her feet. “I’m starving!”

  ERIN

  It’s a wonder we make it out of my apartment. My panties have been drenched since the moment he buzzed my door. All I’ve thought about is luring him to my bedroom, especially since he showed up with such a thoughtful gift for Rosco. I’m still a little unsure why he’s so interested in me, but I don’t want to lose an opportunity before he changes his mind. If this is a dream, no one better wake me up.

  “I hope you like seafood?” He reaches across the center console of his truck and squeezes my hand. Though he’s being polite, lust dances in his eyes when they drop to my exposed cleavage.

  “Love it, actually.”

  The restaurant is fancy, and on the edge of a lake. I feel too underdressed to step foot into such a place. I’ve seen three women in cocktail dresses enter just since we parked. Add to this that a nice restaurant was where I experienced my most humiliating moment, and I’m not crazy about this idea anymore. But before I can voice any of my objections, Walker pushes open his door.

  “Hold tight,” h
e says to me before he hurries around the side of his truck and opens my door. The gesture is so touching, I forget about feeling out of place. I can’t recall a single time any man has opened my door for me, much less offered me his hand to help me out.

  Like the graceful klutz I am when I’m nervous, I slip on the step and stumble smack dab into his arms of steel. My face is plastered up against his rock-solid chest, and I’m engulfed in a cloud of cologne. The scent is woodsy and intoxicating.

  “You okay?”

  Embarrassed, I pull back. My cheeks must be redder than one of the firetrucks he drives. “Sorry about that.”

  Walker doesn’t step away. Instead, he tilts my chin up with his index finger. “Never apologize for something like that, Erin. I’ll be here to catch you if you fall.” He leans in to kiss me, and our lips meet in a hungry frenzy. His hands scoop my round ass and yank me against him. I can feel him through his jeans. He’s huge.

  When he finally pulls back, I’m dizzy. His hand secures my own, and I’m grateful. I’m not sure I could walk a straight line without a little assistance right now.

  The table he reserved has a waterfront view, and it’s completely private from the other guests. Outside of the server, no one can see us without going out of their way. A trickle of fear seeps in, and I’m reminded of the horrid date in college that left me the center of a big joke. Setup, actually. It was no date.

  Walker squeezes my thigh. “What’s wrong, baby?”

  I try to tell him it’s nothing, but in the short time he’s known me, Walker has gotten awfully good at figuring out when I’m not being completely truthful. He doesn’t relent until I finally tell him. “It was some stupid bet, but I didn’t know that.” As we work our way through our food, I tell him about football quarterback asking me out on a date. How he seemed so genuine and kind. “He took me to a restaurant, and got us a seat in the corner.”

  I don’t realize a tear has fallen until Walker reaches up to wipe away a tear with his thumb. He kisses my cheek. “Go on. I’m listening, baby.” His arm goes around me protectively. It’s the most comforting feeling in the world.

  “Everyone showed up.” I tell him about the mean things people said. How the other football players exchanged money in front of me. How he stiffed me with the check to boot. How the pictures and a video clip were all over social media until the dean ordered him to take it down to avoid being sued. “I was just a bet.”

  WALKER

  My blood boils hotter with each second this story goes on. How anyone could be so cruel to this angel is beyond me. Erin is not only a knockout, she also has such a kind heart. I understand now why she’s living alone in an apartment.

  “You’re with me now, baby. I won’t ever let anything like that happen to you again.” I draw her into my arms, kissing her tenderly. My hands drop to her thighs. I give her a moment to tell me to stop, but she only kisses me deeper. When one finger slips under her dress, I can’t keep the others away.

  Dinner forgotten on the table, I stroke the outside of her silk panties. They’re completely drenched. “You’re so wet, Erin.” A soft moan escapes as I continue to work my fingers in a circular motion against her swollen nub. Her fingers dig into my leg as she struggles to keep quiet.

  “Walker.” My name comes out in a quiet gasp.

  I lean my lips against her ear as I quicken my fingers. “Come for me.”

  Her eyes roll back in her head, and her grip on my leg tightens. I feel her shudder against my hand as she struggles to stay quiet.

  “Wow.” It’s the only word she can whisper as she chases the breath she lost.

  “Just wait, baby.” I kiss her neck. “I have plans for you tonight.”

  5

  ERIN

  I’ve never invited anyone over to my apartment after a date. Or anyone at all, for that matter. Walker, outside of Rosco, is the first one to see my place since the movers dropped off all my things two years ago. I have a hard time trusting people. With my mom gone, it’s been lonely.

  “Do you trust me, Erin?” Walker asks inside his truck. We’re parked outside my place, and I can see Rosco sitting in the window; the crazy kitten that made this all possible.

  I owe him the truth. “I want to. I really do.”

  “If you don’t want me to come in, I don’t have to.”

  He’s sweet. Much sweeter than any man that hot should be. He’s a freaking firefighter—one that doesn’t just belong in a calendar, but should be on the damn cover. He should be arrogant and chasing skinny women in skimpy clothes. Instead, he’s here with me being a complete gentleman. “I want you to come in, Walker.”

  Heat hovers in the air between us as we walk up the stairs, holding hands. I’m so nervous I drop my keys before I can find the right one to open the deadbolt.

  “I got it, baby.” He lets us in, careful to keep Rosco from escaping. The kitten is in full play mode, attacking Walker’s leg. “So much for the scratch post.” It’s the way he says that, with light amusement and genuine softness in his eyes, that tugs at my heartstrings.

  “Let me grab him some milk. That usually knocks him right out for the night.” Walker stays at my side, keeping close as we squeeze into my small kitchen. He spins me around and presses me up against the fridge before I can open it.

  His hands go to my waist and pull my body against his as he devours my neck. When he discovers the sensitive spot right at my collarbone, my legs go instantly limp. I let out a moan, thankful we’re no longer in public. I don’t want to be quiet anymore.

  Rosco mews repeatedly until we break apart. “He just needs his bedtime snack.” Once my kitten is satisfied, I lead Walker to the bedroom. I’m done waiting to be ravished by my sexy firefighter.

  I close the door behind us, leaving Rosco to pass out on the couch when his milk coma strikes.

  “What do you want me to do, Erin?” Walker asks, his voice deep and husky. He’s asking me to take charge, making me a mixture of excited and terrified. I’ve only had sex a couple of times, and I’ve never enjoyed it. Not really. Until meeting Walker, I’d lost all hope that I ever would.

  “Take off your clothes and sit on the bed,” I tell him. I don’t know where the confidence comes from, but I roll with it.

  My eyes are glued to him as he peels off his shirt, revealing the rows of abs and hardened muscle I knew he had. His gaze never leaves me as he continues to fulfill my demands. When his fingers reach for his belt buckle, I stop him. “Let me.”

  I undo the belt, then the zipper, and slide his jeans off his hips. They drop to the floor in a thud. His boxers don’t hide much. He’s so huge. I don’t know how I’ll fit him inside me.

  “Erin.”

  “You’re—you’re so big.” My voice is much smaller now than it was when we started this. I’m nervous, yet thrilled. I don’t understand the conflicting feelings.

  “Baby, I’ll fit.”

  I wrap my hand around his hard cock through the thin fabric and give it a small squeeze. My insecurity is embarrassing, but my concerns are warranted. “Are you sure?”

  “I was made for you. You’ll see.”

  It’s too dangerous to focus on the meaning of his words. I want to believe them because I can already feel myself falling hard for this man. Fantasies of future dates and future nights together have been playing out in my mind all day. But getting my hopes up about a man has never gone well for me before.

  I slide his boxers down, freeing his shaft. “Sit,” I say. “On the edge of the bed.” I kneel between his legs.

  He cups my cheek with his hand until I meet his gaze. “You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to.”

  “I want to.” I kiss the tip of his cock, tasting the saltiness of his precum. My tongue traces a circle around the head, earning a guttural moan. Walker’s eyes are fixed on me. I should be intimidated, but instead, I’m turned on.

  I take him into my mouth, a little more with each stroke. I twist the bottom of his shaft with one hand, and
fondle his balls with the other.

  “Fuck, baby. My dick loves your mouth.”

  I quicken my pace, taking him deeper into the back of my throat.

  “I’m going to come if you don’t stop.” Walker says it as a warning, but I’m not about to quit now. I want him to come in my mouth. I want to feel that satisfaction, knowing I brought him such pleasure. It makes me feel in control. I go faster and faster, until I feel his cock pulse in my mouth. His hot seed releases in the back of my throat, and I hold him there until he’s finished.

  WALKER

  I have to catch my breath after that mind-blowing orgasm. Erin wears a satisfied smirk that is sexy as hell. “You’re next, baby.” I wink at her before helping her to stand before me. I’ve been waiting all night to peel off this dress. I’m tempted to throw it to the floor now, but I think it can wait just a little longer.

  I lift the soft fabric, seeing the lace panties I felt earlier at the restaurant for the first time. I slowly roll them down her silky legs.

  “It’s my turn to give directions,” I say.

  Erin gasps when my tongue lightly teases her swollen nub. “Okay.”

  I lie back on the bed, letting my head sink into a pillow. “I want you to crawl over me until your pussy is above my mouth.” I make sure to move close to the headboard so she has something to hang on to. She’ll need it.

  “Walker, I don’t know—”

  “I’m giving the orders, baby. Now climb on up.” She only hesitates another moment before she crawls on her knees to my face. Her dress cocoons me with her wet pussy. I cup her perfect curvy ass with my hands and pull her cunt down to my lips.

  My tongue slides back and forth along her wet folds, teasing her swollen nub. The headboard creaks from her grip as soft moans grow louder, more desperate. I suck her nub, and my tongue finds passage inside. She tastes so fucking amazing. I could eat her out for the rest of my life.