Could we be caught sneaking off to the bathroom like this? Definitely.

Are the risks worth it?

One hundred percent.

Aria doesn't seem to care about getting caught, either, which gives me a thrill I didn't realize I needed. The more time we spend together, the more I think she's getting used to the idea of us. She's letting her walls down with me one brick at a time, and each new piece of information revealed about her makes me more intrigued than I already am.

When I catch up to her in the hallway, there isn't a wait for the men's restroom, which is where Aria makes a beeline. She glances over her shoulder to ensure I'm still following, eventually grabbing my hand to pull me in behind her. She's smiling the entire time, caught up in the potential of being caught. As hot as this situation is, I'm more focused on learning about this dare-devil side of her that I didn't realize existed.

When the stall closes behind us, she pushes my back against the door, her lips crashing into mine. Lust rolls off of her body in thick waves as her hands glide down my chest. Her tongue darts into my mouth, and my heart races with anticipation when I pull her closer.

She hasn't wanted to get close like this. Not since this morning. Every inch closer she gets in my arms, the more my fear grows that she'll pull away.

I move my hand up her back and drag it through her hair, holding the back of her head as I make the kiss deeper. The moan I get in response has my dick wanting to burst out of my damn jeans.

Kissing Aria Monroe has me feeling like I'm floating on a damn cloud. Her body is fully pressed against mine but it doesn't feel close enough. I want to be consumed by her until I can't get out.

Aria breaks away from the kiss, panting heavily before she—

Oh, fuck. She sinks to her knees right on the goddamn tile.

"What are you doing?" My chest is heaving as I await her answer. The question is stupid since I obviously can piece together what she intends on doing while on her knees, but my brain is too fogged up to think of anything better.

"I told you winning that game would be worthwhile," she says, tugging my zipper down. "I'm going to give you the best blowjob of your life, and then you're going to go drink with your friends. See? The best of both worlds."

I...

Why isn't my brain working?

My desire is so thick I can't process what's about to happen, let alone respond.

"Aria Monroe..." I heave a sigh when she tugs my jeans and briefs down to spring me free. My dick bounces from how hard I already am. Aria takes me into her soft hand, stroking those red-manicured nails up my shaft, raising both brows to wait for me to finish my sentence. "I'm going to fucking marry you," I finish as my head falls back against the stall.

"You've mentioned that once or twice," she replies with a small grin.

"Because I mean it." I dip my head to stare down at her. With one hand, I gently grip her chin, stoking her bottom lip with my thumb, more than pleased when she shivers in response. "You're it for me. I'll keep telling you that until you believe it."

Our gazes hold for another five seconds or so until she snaps out of whatever trance we're in, focusing back on the task at hand. She thumbs my tip, gathering the bead of liquid already gathered, and just the touch of her races electricity up my spine. I want to close my eyes from the feeling, but they remain glued to her when she sucks on her thumb to taste me.

"You're so fucking beautiful," I praise.

The sentiment seems to have a shudder of...relief passing through her. Those eyes flutter closed for a heartbeat before they open again with a liquid sheen coating them.

"What?" I ask, stepping back slightly. "Did I say something wrong?"

"No, you didn't. I just..." With a shake of her head, she releases a breathy laugh. "You said that to me when we first slept together. A lot, actually."

"Do you not like it when I say that?"

She blinks away more tears. "I love it when you say that, Connor. You don't know... You don't know how badly I needed to hear it. Then and...and now."

As soon as she finishes her sentence, she delays me from responding when she deep throats the hell out of me. My cock hits the back of her throat, giving me fucking whiplash. I don't know how we can go from being so intimate to being so dirty in mere seconds, but I'm not complaining.

The best of both worlds, indeed.

"Fucking hell." I hiss through gritted teeth when she gags from the length of me, wrapping my hand around her ponytail to guide her even though I don't need to. She knows exactly what she's doing.

Aria hasn't wanted to have sex with attachments so far. When we had sex that night in my penthouse, she only let me take her from behind. When she's on her knees for me though? There's no choice but to maintain eye contact.

The sound of her slurping and gagging on my cock fills the tiny, enclosed space. However, this is a bar in the Bronx. It won't be the first time someone walks into a couple fucking in a stall.

Her eyes are watering as I fuck her mouth, feeling the pressure building closer and closer to my release. Aria feels too good. Too warm. Too wet.

A strangled moan comes out uncontrollably when she removes my cock from her mouth and plays with my balls. She massages each one gently before she strokes me from my base to my crown.

"Come for me," she pleads. "Tell me when and you can finish down my throat."

If I had a ring, I'd get down on one knee right fucking now.

My head flies back against the stall, hitting it with a thud as she speeds up her strokes. The pressure intensifies at the base of my spine, sending a heady rush of warmth right to—

"Fuck, I'm going to come, baby. Come here." I drag her by the ponytail and fill her mouth just as the warmth explodes up my shaft. I'm moaning excessively as she drags her tongue around my crown to get every last drop, my body jerking from being so sensitive when she continues to suck after I'm finished.

As soon as she's done, I pull her to her feet and hoist her into my arms, wrapping her legs around my waist. Her dress is above her ass now, exposing a lacy black thong. I snap it with my fingers, my eyes flicking to her mouth. "Now it's my turn."

She shakes her head and wriggles out of my grasp until I place her back on her feet. "This isn't about me. I want you to have fun tonight and drink with your friends. You deserve it. Staying in here with me all night will only raise questions."

"You think they haven't already pieced together that something is going on between us?"

"They probably have, but the other people in the bar haven't. I don't want to risk getting caught any more than we already have. Please." She bats those damn eyelashes again, turning me into utter putty. I can't refuse her.

"Okay," I concede, giving her lips a quick kiss. "Let's head back out there."

***

When I returned to the hotel room, I wasn't drunk. I had about four shots, which had me feeling slightly tipsy,  but with the hotel being within walking distance, I was sober when I reached the room.

Aria left early to try and get some sleep. I insisted on walking her back, but she declined and said she needed the walk to clear her head. What she needed to clear her head of I couldn't be certain. All I do know is I haven't been able to shake the lingering disappointment since I left the bar.

Flicking through random TV channels, my mind strays to the events of today. From our kiss in the alcove at the arena to her going down on me in the bathroom, maybe it was too much. Maybe I should have told her to stop. To think it through. Maybe I'm just too selfish when it comes to her to do the right thing. She said she wanted to take things slow, and doing what we did today isn't exactly slow.

Did I fuck this up again?

Releasing a frustrated sigh, I run my hands over my face just as knocks sound off on my door.

I swear if Matti needs me to be his wingman again, I'm going to—

"Connor?"

My body stills at the female voice. Aria's voice.

I can't get out of bed fast enough to open the door.

Trying not to look like a complete simp, I wait three seconds before I open it, attempting but failing to hide my smile at how fucking cute my future wife looks. She has a pillow tucked beneath her uninjured arm with pink fuzzy slippers on her feet. Her nightgown has polka dots on it, and she's wearing the bonnet she regretted not bringing the first time she slept with me.

"I...I texted Levi for your room number. You said if I wanted to sleep with you I could, and I tried to fall asleep in my room, but I kept tossing and turning, and—"

I give her a quick kiss to stop her from overthinking this. "I'm glad you're here, baby. Did you get the chance to clear your head earlier?"

Her lips twitch with a ghost of a smile. "I'm here, aren't I?"

Opening the door wider for her, she strides into the room with all the confidence one could have wearing fuzzy slippers. "I'm not one of those girls who wears silk pajama sets every night," she says, seeming to read my mind. "I'm not like the girls you're used to."

"Do you think silk pajama sets are part of the criteria I have for the women I choose to sleep with?"

She huffs. "Wouldn't surprise me."

"What makes you think that?"

With a high-pitched voice, she dangles the pillow in front of her as she says, "You can see me in this tonight if you want!"

"Ah." I nod in understanding. "The woman from the barricade. Good impression, by the way. You think she wore a silk pajama set based on the thong she dangled?"

"I'd prefer not to think of what she wore at all," Aria mutters under her breath. "Anyway, I can understand if this is a turn-off for you, but this isn't going to work between us if you can't accept me like this. Yeah, I put makeup on for work, but this is who I am ninety percent of the time at home."

Is this some sort of test? Does she think I wouldn't want her like this? Just how shallow does she think I am?

Pushing off the wall, I take a step closer to her, unable to hide my cheesy grin. "I'm not going to lie and tell you that women haven't worn all kinds of monstrosities to get into my bed, but this, however, is really doing it for me. What is it? A moo moo? A nightgown?" I tug on the polka-dot oversized fabric, smiling harder when she laughs.

"Be serious," she says.

"Who says I'm not? I've got a thing for grandmas. Well, one grandma in particular."

Now Aria releases a belly-gut laugh, one that's true and deep, and it fills me with an overloading sensation of pride that I was able to do that. It makes me want to do it more, so I take it a step further, hoisting her over my shoulder, careful to avoid the sling. I find myself laughing, too, at the streamline of giggles I elicit from her.

We crash down on the bed together, me hovering above her, and the longer we stare, the quicker her laughter subsides. "I'm being serious, though. Does me looking like this bother you?"

"Aria, seeing women in different lingerie sets starts to get real old after a while. They're only seeking fame, or they want to fuck me just to say they accomplished it. From day one, from the very moment we met on that beach, you were the first girl who didn't treat me like I was some hotshot player, but you also saw me. The real me. I don't know how you did that, but you were exactly what I needed. You still are. A thousand girls in lingerie couldn't compare to the feeling I get when I see you like this. Bonnet and moo moo included. You saw the real me that night in the Maldives, so I'm honored that I get to see the real you."

A single tear cascades down her cheek. "I want you to know the real me. More than you'll ever know."

"So let me in," I urge, sweeping the tear away with my thumb. "What's holding you back?"

"I'm scared, okay? Scared of getting close. Scared of giving my all to you only to have it thrown back in my face. I...I've got a lot of shit I have to work through, Connor, and I don't want to bring you into it."

"But I wouldn't be pursuing you if I thought I couldn't handle it. I want you. Just you. I'll take whatever comes with you and we'll work through it together if that's something you want, okay? Will you at least think about it before writing us off?"

She contemplates for a few seconds until she eventually nods her head, sending a rush of relief through me. Whatever happened to her in her past is a lot, but I'm willing to fight for her. I'm not going to give up on her, not when our connection and chemistry are so strong.

"Moo moo and all?" She asks, lightening the conversation.

"Oh, for sure. And these granny panties?" I run my fingers over the cotton, erupting into another fit of laughter when she smacks my chest. "They're sexy as hell."

"I'm on my period!" She shouts defensively.

"Oh, so that's why you wanted to leave the bathroom so early tonight?"

She shrugs. "Nothing like ruining the mood by saying I'm on my cycle."

I prop myself up on an elbow, continuing to hover above her on the mattress. "But fucking on your period is when it feels the best for both of us."

Her nose wrinkles up into the cutest expression of disgust. "I'm bleeding, Connor."

"Isn't that what condoms are for?"

"I'm bleeding!" She reiterates as if that'll change my mind.

"Can blood not be washed off?"

Her face blanches. "You're—"

"What? A grown man who understands that women bleed once a month? My mother educated my brother and me on the subject plenty being a doctor and all. I'm not scared of a little mess, Aria."

Huffing in defeat, she crawls out from beneath me and climbs underneath the comforter. "Well, today won't be the day we find that out. I'm cramping and feel like shit."

"Fair enough. I don't need to get lucky. I'm feeling lucky enough just to have you in my bed tonight."

"Oh, god. Is that the pickup line you used for Thong Girl? If so, you don't have as much game as I thought."

I chuckle when I climb into bed beside her, keeping my distance between us as I let her get a feel for things. I don't want to do anything that will risk her going back to her room. She said she needed me to sleep. That doesn't necessarily mean cuddle. Best to stick to what we know.

Humor.

"You're right. I should have said you should feel lucky sleeping next to the hotshot center for the California Cyclones. You're sleeping next to a god. A living, breathing—"

"I hate you," she sighs, turning her back to me, but I don't miss the hint of amusement in her tone. After a few moments of silence she says, "I like to be the little spoon, by the way."

"Thank fuck." I feel like a damn kid getting picked for gym class, hurriedly turning off the light before I drag her body against mine. I let her tiny frame be enveloped by my warmth, and the sigh she releases has me doing the same.

We fit perfectly together, whether she wants to admit it or not.

By the end of the season, I make a vow to prove it to her.

A/N:

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