But he halts and pulls his mouth from mine, staring at me, eyes sizzling with hunger. “Condoms.”
“Yes,” I huff breathlessly. “That would be good.”
Stone’s lips curl into a smile, but he shakes his head. “I mean, I don’t have any.”
“Well, I don’t have any,” I growl. “We need some now.”
“God, you’re fucking cute,” he says, bending back down and crushing his mouth to mine.
But it’s a swift kiss because he’s up and off me, and I’m left with my head spinning.
“I’ll run down to the pharmacy,” he says, nabbing his phone from the coffee table.
I scramble off the couch. “I’ll go with you.”
“You don’t have to,” he says. “Stay. Get naked.”
“No,” I insist, pulling my zipper up and buttoning my pants. I then smooth my hair and lift my chin. “We’re cohorts together in sex. I’ll make the illicit run with you.”
Stone laughs, shakes his head, and grabs my hand. “Then hurry up and let’s go.”
I can’t begin to process how his easy laugh touches me. Knowing how much this man has changed in just a few weeks, and all thanks to his brother’s journals.
We practically run out of the condo, holding hands down the stairs, and as soon as we step out onto the sidewalk, we realize the rain has restarted.
Neither one of us has a coat nor do we have an umbrella.
“Shit, that’s cold,” Stone says as he pulls me back under the awning that covers the main entrance.
“So what?” I exclaim, eager to buy the condoms so we can get back and get naked. “Let’s run. It’s only a block down.”
“And half a block over,” he points out. “Go back upstairs… I’ll go get them.”
I release his hand, step out into the cold rain, and hold my arms aloft while grinning. “Cohorts in sex, remember.”
Stone stares at me a moment, as if he doesn’t understand. I like that I confound him.
I think he needs that in his life.
Then he steps out into the rain.
Grabbing my hand, we start a brisk walk, almost a trot, staying as close to the other buildings and their awnings as we can.
“At least my hard-on will be gone by the time we get there,” Stone grumbles.
“I’ll get it back,” I promise him solemnly. “Don’t worry.”
And we both laugh as we run through the rain.
CHAPTER 20
Harlow
Condoms in hand—extra-large box—we race back to the condo, up the stairs, and when we reach Stone’s door, he pushes me against it and kisses me like a starved man. I’m soaked to the bone, and just seconds ago, I was so cold my teeth were chattering.
But the instant his mouth is on mine and his body presses into me, an inferno rages.
Lust, heat, desire. A deep yearning to get as close to him as possible.
I manage to rip my mouth from his and gasp, “My place.”
“Too far away,” he grumbles and kisses me again.
While I’m eager to get naked and learn this man inside and out, his kiss is so consuming that I want to drown in the pleasure of it.
When his mouth hits my neck, I gasp with need. “Odin.”
Stone’s head jerks up, and he looks at me with a cocked eyebrow. “You call out your dog’s name when I kiss your neck?”
Laughing, I shake my head. “I mean… if we’re going to do this, and I assume this is going to be an all-night, sleepover thing…” I stop a moment, consider what exactly this is. “Is this a sleepover thing?”
Crowding into me, Stone puts a hand at the side of my neck and dips his head close. “Once I’m in your bed, not sure I’m ever going to leave.”
Shivers run up my spine, having nothing to do with our cold, soaked clothes and everything to do with the promise of this being more than just physical attraction.
“Then we need to take it to my place because of Odin.”
“He needs a babysitter?” Stone asks, not peeved but genuinely curious.
“He needs me there.” That’s it. My dog needs me there. He shouldn’t be alone all night.
Stone accepts that without further question and once again, my hand is in his and he’s dragging me to my place. I fumble with my keys, open the door, and as soon as we’re in, he’s kissing me again.
He backs me into a wall, and there’s a slight bang of my body against it. Odin comes trotting around the corner to investigate. I twist my neck to free my lips and look down at my boy. “Go lie down. I need some privacy.”
My boy is curious, head tipped because he hears something in my voice he’s never heard before. Stone looks, and we watch Odin to see what he’ll do. He’s usually super responsive to a command, but he hesitates.
“Go lie down, buddy,” I say, gentling my tone and trying to sound as normal as possible. But it’s hard with Stone holding me so close.
Odin chuffs and turns, padding into the living room where he jumps onto the couch, spins twice, and curls himself into a doughnut. His look is a little suspicious, a little forlorn, but mostly accepting.
“Let’s go to the bedroom,” I suggest.
That’s all Stone needs to hear as he lifts me up, hands under my ass, and my legs wrap around him. He kisses me again, and I thread my fingers through his hair as he carries me through the living room and into the master suite.
He walks straight to my bed, but rather than lay me on it, he says, “Let’s get you out of those wet clothes.”
“Best idea I’ve ever heard.”
Stone tosses the box of condoms on the bedside table and then a lot of pulling and tugging ensues. We try to help each other out of our wet duds, but peeling off soaked denim isn’t easy. Still, we manage.
When we’re both naked, we end up standing there a moment, taking each other in. I’m not normally shy in my nudity, but my God… standing in front of Stone and his godlike body, all bulging muscles and, well, let’s just say, a very mighty sword… I feel shy.
Especially as I watch his gaze rove over my body ever so slowly, his eyes filled with such heat and desire, I feel it straight between my legs. “I knew you’d be perfect under those clothes,” he murmurs.
Stone steps into me, head dropping to stare at my breasts. He grazes his knuckles over my nipples, which are hard as rocks from the combination of cold rain and his hungry regard. “Now the question is… what do I do to you? What’s going to make you squirm and scream the loudest?”
“Holy shit,” I rasp, knowing that his words alone just made me wetter than I’ve ever been in my life. “Is that your normal brand of dirty bedroom talk?”
Stone smirks, bringing a hand to the back of my neck. His voice is gravelly. “There is nothing normal about what I feel for you.”
I want to melt into a puddle, but I’m not given the chance. Stone kisses me and at the same time, a warm hand covers my breast and squeezes.
A moan escapes and then turns into a groan of pure need when that hand slides from my breast down to my stomach and right between my legs where he cups me.
Lifting his head, Stone stares into my eyes. “What am I going to find down here?”