“I like Connor,” he said. “Even if he is from Willington. Plus, it’s nice to see Kira so happy. She’s who she was before…”
“Before your parents died,” Grace said.
“Yeah.” He stood and rinsed his plate as Grace joined him at the sink.
“Go sit down, I’ll clean up,” she said.
“Nah, it’ll be faster if we both do it,” he said.
They worked quietly, rinsing the dishes and loading the dishwasher. She scrubbed the pots and pans clean and he dried them and put them away as she wiped down the table and counter.
They made a good team and there was something satisfying about doing these simple household tasks with Grace. He watched as Grace hung the dishcloth over the sink before crossing her arms over her torso.
“So, um, what are your plans for this evening?”
What he wanted to do was take her to his room, undress her, and finally have a taste of her pussy. His dick pressed against the zipper of his jeans and he hoped like hell she didn’t glance at his crotch. “Not much. Watch some TV, maybe.”
“No baseball tonight?”
He shook his head. “Friday night.”
“Right,” she said. “So, um…”
“TV,” he said. “Let’s watch some TV.”
He headed to the living room, adjusting his aching dick before sitting down on the couch. Grace hovered in the doorway.
“Sit down,” he said.
She sat down at the other end of the couch. Tank wandered over and pressed his forehead against her sternum. She rubbed behind his ears and kissed the top of his head. When he turned and backed up, Gideon said, “Tank, no.”
The dog stared at him before backing up again.
“Tank,” Gideon said warningly. “Don’t sit on -”
“Oof,” Grace said when Tank plopped his butt into her lap. Gideon could barely see her behind the Great Dane, and he pointed at the dog’s bed.
“Bed, Tank.”
Tank made a low huff and Gideon said, “You’re squishing her. Bed, now.”
Grumbling, the dog heaved himself to his feet. Grace patted him on the flank as he walked away and then wiped the dog hair from her leggings.
“Sorry,” Gideon said.
“You know I don’t mind.”
They sat in awkward silence for a few seconds before Grace stood up. “Listen, I’m gonna go.”
“What?” He stood as well. “Go where?”
“Addie’s apartment is empty. I can stay there until she gets back and -”
“You’re staying here,” he said. “No arguing.”
“You really think that’s going to work?” She raised her eyebrows at him.
He stayed silent and she rolled her eyes. He caught her wrist before she could walk away. Her body froze and she stared at his hand before looking up at him. “Gideon, I…”
“You need sleep,” he said. “Which means sleeping in my bed and only my bed.”
“What if I want to do something else in your bed?” Her gaze dipped to his crotch.
His cock hardened immediately, and his hand tightened around her wrist. Jesus Christ, was she deliberately trying to give him a case of blue balls?
“You know we can’t,” he rasped.
“I know you think we can’t.” She tugged at his grip. “Which is why I can’t stay with you, Gideon. I want to fuck you and you don’t want to fuck me.”
“That isn’t true,” he said.
She shrugged. “It’s close enough to the truth. Anyway, I thought I could stay here without throwing myself at you, but I can’t. So, it’s better if I leave.”
“You won’t sleep. Is that what you want?”
“I’ll take my chances,” she said.
“Grace, you need sleep.”
“I need you.”
He stared at her mouth. “You wouldn’t like what I do to you in bed.”
“You don’t know that for certain. Besides, shouldn’t I be allowed to make that choice for myself?”
“You don’t even know what I want to do to you in bed.”
“Yes, I do.” She took a step closer and he groaned when she traced one finger over the denim covered bulge at his crotch. “You told me, remember? Here in your bedroom and at Wanda’s.”
He swallowed hard. “It isn’t what you think it is, Princess.”
“Then tell me what it is.” Her fingers traced the length of his cock through his jeans.
“It isn’t just a bit of slap and tickle,” he said. “I want to spank you. I want to handcuff you to my bed or put you over my knee and spank you until your ass is red and sore and swollen. I want total control over you in bed.”
He leaned closer, using one finger under her chin to tip her head up until she was staring directly at him. “You won’t want to give that control to me, and that will only make me more determined to take it. And I will take it, Princess.”
“Gideon…”
“If you’re in my bed, you’ll do exactly what I say,” he wound his hand into her dark hair, “when I say it. Is that what you want?”
“I don’t know,” she said. “I like control.”
“I know you do,” he said. “But I need control in bed, and I won’t fuck you until you give me yours. Can you do that?”
“I can try.”
He studied her with his hand still wrapped in her hair. Could she give up control? He honestly didn’t know.
“Let me try,” she said. “I know we can’t have a relationship. I know this isn’t love, but we can’t keep living this way. Our friends, the people we love, they’re being affected by the tension and the anger between us. Maybe if we…”
“If we what?”
“Maybe if we fuck, if we get this out of our system, we can go back to how it used to be. Hell, maybe we’ll find out we’re not compatible in bed and it’ll be easy to be friends again,” she said.
Maybe she was right. Maybe if they had sex, things would go back to normal.
You know it won’t. Don’t fool yourself into -
He shut down his inner voice. Grace was offering him what he wanted most. Right or wrong, he wouldn’t turn it down. Not again.
He bent his head and kissed her hard on the mouth, taking her by surprise. He tightened his grip on her hair, pushing his tongue between her lips to take what he wanted. She clung to him, returning his kiss with an eagerness that made his cock painfully hard.
He pulled back, shaking his head when she tried to kiss him again. “No.”
She stared at him, her mouth swollen and red as she rubbed her pelvis against his erection. He wanted to take her to his bed and bury his face in her pussy. But he needed to know if she would give him what he wanted. Needed to know if she meant what she said about trying.
“On your knees, Princess.”
“What?” She blinked at him, resisting a little when he pressed on her shoulder with his free hand.
“On your knees.”
She hesitated a few more seconds before kneeling gracefully in front of him. His cock turned to absolute stone. How many times had he fantasized about Grace on her knees in front of him? Too many to count.