His cock eased into my channel, causing Eric and I to moan in unison, the sound resonating in the room.
“So good,” Eric said as his hand squeezed my ass then traveled around to rub my slit between his fingers. My hips jerked at the sensation. “I can’t get enough of you.”
The familiar buzz grew in my belly and I knew I would probably fall apart at its detonation.
Somehow, I was able to say, “I’m going to come,” but it came out a garbled mess even to my own ears. Eric must have understood because his grip on my hip tightened as his thrusts became wild and without abandon.
“Fuck, fuck fuck,” Eric repeated as my body tightened then exploded in waves of pleasure. My arms collapsed onto the bed, and had Eric not been holding my hips, I was sure my entire body would have bowed down.
His body jerked against my bottom as he filled me with his hot release, then he fell beside me, twisting me into his arms until I lay on top of his chest.
“Wow,” he whispered and I simply nodded at his assessment. It was better than I could have ever imagined, even more so than our one-night-stand over a year ago.
Warmth spread across my thigh and I realized that we hadn’t used any protection, both of us preoccupied with what was going on at that moment. Thankfully I was on birth control and clean since I hadn’t been with anyone since Eric, but fear still nipped at me. I wasn’t one to make reckless decisions and this one could be as reckless as they came.
“Eric,” I say wearily and I felt his body tense up from beneath me. “We didn’t use any protection, but I’m clean and on the pill. I just didn’t want you to think that I’m trying to trap you or anything,” I rambled.
“Willow,” he said, but I couldn’t hear him over my explanation of how often I go get checked and how I had never had sex without a condom so that we should be safe.
“Willow,” he repeated and I finally stopped talking and looked up at him. The corner of his lips lifted into a sexy smirk. “I’m clean and I haven’t been with anyone since our night together. I can show you my medical records if that would make you feel better.”
This was the trust that he was speaking about, going so far as to let me see his medical history instead of just taking him at his word.
“I believe you,” I told him as I pressed a kiss to the spot in the center of his chest.
Wrapping me in his arms, he placed his lips at the top of my head.
“That means more to me than you’ll ever know.” Now rest while I go get cleaned up.”
Eric went into the bathroom out in the hall and quickly returned with a wet cloth. Quickly he cleaned his release from between my legs before tossing the fabric on top of his discarded clothes.
“Stay with me tonight?” he asked as he climbed into the bed, opening the covers for me to join.
Smiling, I dove beneath the covers and wrapped his body with my arms and legs.
“There is nowhere else I’d rather be.”
10
Eric
If Briella had any doubts about why I hired Willow as our intern, she certainly had changed her mind at this point. Willow had worked her butt off over the last two months to help us prepare the vineyard for events and helped us with marketing around the surrounding areas. Her knowledge had been worth its weight in gold and even Briella had begun relying on Willow to handle some of the managerial tasks.
And for all of the progress Willow and I had made in a professional capacity, we had been at a stalemate personally. She had immediately moved out of her cabin and lived with me in my rental. And our nights were spent losing ourselves in each other before falling asleep in each other’s arms. But something in Willow was holding her back, and every time I questioned it, she would brush me off and tell me that it was nothing.
I didn’t have time to ponder the conclusion of her internship and whether she would accept the job offer I planned to put on the table, tomorrow was the first significant event for the vineyard. The mayor of Carson had booked the facility for a town dance and celebration. Apparently, there was no particular reason other than the locals liked to dance and have a good time. He also hadn’t spared any expense to put on the dance, opting for catering and a band to play for the evening.
Willow had been a little stressed out with the responsibility, so I had sent her to a local spa that morning for some rest and relaxation. She seemed thankful but also as if I were doing exactly what she had expected.
“Hey,” I called out to Luke, who had arrived last week to help oversee the grand opening. Sam had joined him and the three of us and Briella had put our brains together and felt that we were ready for the launch.
Our wine had been delivered to some of the local stores in the surrounding five counties and a few reviews had started rolling in. So far, everyone had been impressed with the robust flavors of the reds and the crispness of the whites. Briella was scheduled to take the wines to trade shows and wine festivals beginning next week, which would introduce the brand nationally.
We were all thrilled at how everything had come together.
I found Luke leaning against Briella’s desk as he flirted shamelessly with the California native. When I entered the office, she rolled her eyes and gestured for me to remove her distraction.
“Sorry, Briella,” I said as I smacked my friend on the shoulder, causing him to take a step away from the desk. “Everything ready for tomorrow?” I asked the duo and they both nodded, but I noticed that Briella looked back down at her computer with guilt. “Luke, why don’t you go see if CJ needs any help loading the wine in the kitchen?”
“Aye aye, captain,” he said with a flourish and a salute.
Watching him walk out of the office, I waited until he was out of earshot before I spoke to Briella. “Alright, Bri, tell me what’s going on.”
“I’m not sure if it’s my place.”
Alarms started pinging in my mind and I immediately understood that Briella was hiding something regarding Willow.
“Is something wrong with Willow?” I didn’t want to come right out and say that she had been acting strange the past few days, but I was certain that I hadn’t been the only one to notice.
“I don’t think anything is wrong, but you need to talk with her before the event tomorrow.”
“It would help if I knew what to talk to her about specifically.”
Briella seemed to wage war with herself, and then her shoulders slumped as she confessed. “I got a few calls from employers in Boston wanting a reference for Willow. I guess since I’m listed as her manager, I was the first person they wanted to speak with. I’m sorry, Eric, but it looks like she may be leaving at the end of her internship.”
That was only two days away. Her final project was this event and it would be what Briella would use to submit as her internship grade of sorts.
She had been planning on leaving all along. That explained the distance she had put between us and why she hadn’t asked about my plans after the launch.
I hadn’t been able to show her the properties around town that I had been looking at with a local realtor, places that I envisioned both of us living in.
My heart ached within my chest at the thought of her returning to Boston without me. I had found my home here in Carson and had already begun the process of selling my apartment. Luke understood the appeal that this town held for me and we were able to run most of our business remotely. Sam was the only one having a hard time, but I assured him that he would still remain on the payroll, but would work solely as Luke’s assistant.