He grinned. “There’s a price to pay for that.”
I didn’t have a chance to ask what that was. Someone bumped me and I realized it was a woman who was trying to insert herself between me and James and make it look like an accident. I was annoyed, but not jealous. Before I could react, James had shifted and cut her off. He firmly pulled me to him again.
She went right up to him and said something in his ear that I couldn’t hear.
He shook his head.
She was a pretty woman with expensive clothes and influencer-worthy makeup.
Okay, maybe I was a little jealous.
I wasn’t mad at her for throwing her hat in the ring and attempting to get his attention. As far as the world knew, JJ Beckett was single.
Would it be selfish of me to want him to go public with our relationship? Probably. The man had bought me a freaking house, now I wanted love posts on social media? That might be expecting too much.
His arm was still around me and I swayed awkwardly in our little dance floor trio.
I debated walking away to get a drink, but I didn’t want that to register as petulant.
But even though it felt like ten years, it was probably only a minute before he was pulling me away and over to the bar. “Sorry about that,” he said, brushing my hair back as he murmured in my ear. “Sometimes they catch me off guard.”
“It’s fine.” It was. He wasn’t responsible for women approaching him. I couldn’t be mad at him for that.
He cupped my cheeks and searched my expression, like he didn’t believe me. I smiled up at him. He shook his head. “You’re perfect, do you know that?”
Then he kissed me.
Which was a public declaration of sorts.
God, I didn’t just love him. I liked him.
I kissed him back with everything inside me.
There was nothing I could ask for from him that he wasn’t already doing. He was perfect. We were perfect.
When we broke apart, breathing hard, I said, “Take me home.”
* * *
JJ
* * *
Normally I wasn’t one to curse the traffic on the Strip. It was what it was. And I tended to get appreciative glances and catcalls over my car and I didn’t hate that. But now I impatiently shifted as we crawled along, wanting to get Mia home.
Especially when she put her hand on my thigh. Lightly, she brushed right over my cock. I swore. “What are you doing, trying to get me to wreck the damn car?”
“I was just checking.”
“Checking what?” I asked in disbelief. “It’s there, trust me.” And throbbing with need for her.
She laughed. “I wanted to see if you’re as turned on as I am.”
The light turned green and I sped up, glancing over at her as I shifted gears. “Are your nipples hard? Are you wet, Mia?”
She nodded. “Yes. To both.”
“Are you aching with need and contemplating pulling over so we can fuck right here in this car?”
“Aching with need, yes. I hadn’t thought about sex in the car.” She sounded intrigued by the idea.
“Then I’m definitely as turned on, if not more, than you because I can’t think of anything but you and how soon I can be inside you.”
I switched lanes, seeing an opportunity to get off the main drag and avoid some of the congestion. “Tell me your fantasy. What do you want me to do to you?”
“I… I don’t know.”
“I find that hard to believe. You seem to always know what you want.”
“That’s true,” she said, with a hint of pride in her voice. “Okay, honestly, I want the massage you mentioned the other day.”
That surprised me, but then I wasn’t sure why. She worked her ass off and was constantly tired. She wanted to relax. She didn’t need to get railed, she needed me to focus on her. The thought of that got me even harder, and I hadn’t thought that could be possible.
“I would love to rub you.”
Mia laughed. “That doesn’t even sound right.”
“Then I’ll just quit talking.”
Twenty minutes later, after we took Amelia outside as quickly as possible, I led Mia to my bedroom. Amelia gave me a sad look when I left her in the hallway, but I firmly shut the door in her face. “Sorry, kid. It’s grownup time.”
Turning, I kissed the corner of Mia’s mouth, enjoying the way she shivered. I trailed my lips over her jaw, and up to that sweet little spot behind her ear. Easing the straps down on her sundress, I gave it a little push and it fell to the floor, pooling around her ankles.
I buried my lips in her hair, breathing deep in appreciation. God, I was so in love with her. I’d never felt this way, ever. It was all-consuming. All I wanted to do was make her smile, make her life easier.
Lifting her up, I laid her out on my bed. She looked up at me with hooded eyes, her lips parting like she was going to speak. But she remained silent. I felt her vulnerability, felt her trust in me. I kissed her, teasing open her lips with my tongue, wanting to taste her.
Then I pulled back, put soft music on my phone, and kicked off my shoes. Then I opened my nightstand drawer, pulling out lotion. Squeezing the bottle, I rubbed my hands together to warm the lotion up, then ran my hands over Mia’s shoulders. She sighed. It was all the encouragement I needed. I shifted her bra straps down over her shoulders, and settled over her, one knee on either side of her as I massaged her. Her neck, her shoulders, her arms. She closed her eyes and her breathing evened out.
Mia gave occasional soft moans of pleasure and I fell into a rhythm, taking the motions all the way down to her fingertips. It was an unexpected form of satisfaction, giving her relaxing, tactile pleasure, and seeing how much she trusted me.
“Turn over,” I said, and my voice sounded raw. Commanding.
As she obeyed, I unbuttoned my shirt and peeled it off. When Mia was on her stomach, I undid her bra so that I could massage her whole back without interference. I got a refill on the lotion and eased my thumbs up her spine. “Move your hair so I don’t get lotion in it.”
She gathered it and piled it on top of her head. I loved the color of her hair. There wasn’t really a word to adequately describe it, because it changed in every light. I bent down and kissed the back of her neck, and drew her earlobe between my teeth, enjoying the gasp she gave into the pillow. I wanted to tell her that I loved her, but I didn’t want to distract her from just sinking into the bed fully, completely relaxing.
Murmuring into her ear, I said, “Do you want a glass of wine?”
She shook her head. “No, I’m good.”
“Do you want to do this forever?”
She laughed softly. “Maybe.”
I lost track of time as I eased my hands over her back, going on instinct, and listening to her responses. I was rewarded with a few deep moans and soft words of gratitude.
“James, oh my God, that feels amazing.”
When she turned her head to the opposite side, I took my T-shirt off that I had on under my dress shirt. Leaning down, I ran my fingers through her hair, drawing it out across the white pillowcase. It was like fire and ice. Red on the crisp white backdrop. I traced down over her spine, watching the goosebumps rising on her skin in my wake. Her skin was soft, the music a lilting love song, the scent of the lotion rising up into my nostrils.