I felt him come up behind me, touching my arm, resting his chin in the crook of my neck.
“I’m glad you like it. I don’t plan to let you out very soon.”
“Oh, and what do you have in mind to make that happen?”
“I have a few ideas.” He moved his mouth up my neck, teasing the sensitive skin with his lips. When I felt the tip of his tongue, I shuddered. If there was a better feeling than being wrapped in this man, I didn’t want to know it.
“Do you want a drink?” he asked.
“Yes. First things first. You should drink tea.”
He looked perplexed. “Why?”
“Preemptive measure against a cold.”
“Babe, I’m fine.”
“I want to make sure you’re fine tomorrow too.”
His gaze softened. “Okay.”
Adrenaline pumped in my veins. When I was with him, I was able to let go in a way I never had, and just have fun.
And my belly? A crazy number of butterflies roamed around. I’d almost pushed the incident with Hank out of my mind.
“You ever work from home?” I asked him.
“Rarely.”
“If I lived here, I think I’d never leave. But I can work from anywhere.”
“You always wanted to be a reporter?”
“I’ve always wanted to write. Well, books, but you know, I got this job and sort of put everything else on the backburner.”
“You should try it,” he said with a smile that was contagious. What was it about him that made it so easy not just to voice my dream, but also imagine what it would take to go after it?
***
Ryker
“How long have you lived here?” she asked while we were waiting for the water to boil in the kitchen. I hadn’t even known I had tea, but Heather found everything in one of the drawers.
“Two years. Lived further away before, but I wanted to cut the commute as short as possible.”
“Is this one of Hunter’s buildings?”
“No. They don’t do too many residential projects. I just saw an advertisement for this. After checking it out, I came back with my siblings and Hunter to get their opinion.”
“You do everything as a group, huh?”
“A lot of things, yeah. I just trust them, so I know they’ll tell it to me straight.”
“What do they say about me?”
“That you’re just what I need.”
“And what do you think?”
“They’re right, as usual.”
She smiled brilliantly. “I like a man who’s not afraid to admit others are right too.”
I chuckled, taking the cup of tea she handed me. We went to the couch, and I pressed a button to open the doors of the dresser where the TV was hidden.
“Wow. You have one of those fancy TV sets. It’s like a home cinema.”
“It’s pretty great, yeah. Want to watch something? Here’s the remote.”
“Ha! Don’t give me control of that, or you might regret it.”
“Have at it.” I watched her flick through channels, but I could tell she was still worried about the run-in at the bar.
I pulled her into my lap. She yelped, letting go of the remote.
“I can feel you stressing,” I said.
“I don’t know how to stop.”
“I do.”
I ran my fingers from her ankle to her inner thigh, feeling her muscles tighten with tension—but a different kind than before, which was my goal. When I reached the hem of her skirt, she grinned, turning around and straddling me.
I’d gotten used to being on my own in the apartment, but I wanted this woman here, with me, and I’d never had this impulse before: to want to do everything together, even something as simple as watching TV or talking. It was the first time I was experiencing this, and I wanted to explore every facet of it with Heather.
We barely slept that night, but I figured we could just sleep in the next morning, since I didn’t have to go to work too early. Except I woke up to a thunderstorm. They weren’t common in April, so the sound startled me out of a deep sleep.
“Morning.” Heather stood in the doorway of the bedroom, hair damp, wearing my robe. Fuck, she looked good wearing that, walking barefoot around my apartment. I wanted her to feel at home here.
“Morning. Want to grab breakfast across the street? I have some time before I need to be in the office,” I said.
“I don’t know. Not really get-out-of-the-house kind of weather.”
I wiggled my eyebrows. “Are you talking dirty to me?”
“Nah, just pointing out that staying indoors is a great idea.”
“I agree. I just have one request.”
“What?”
I made a “come here” motion with my finger, and when she was close enough, I undid the tie of her robe. I pulled her closer, until her breasts were right in front of me. I captured one with my mouth, twirling my tongue around the nipple. Heather moaned, tugging at my hair, pressing herself into me. I loved how easily she responded to me. I ran my fingers up her inner thigh slowly, savoring every inch of soft skin I touched. I’d never tire of exploring her, of finding new ways to turn her on, to bring her pleasure. Her skin turned to goose bumps as I touched her further up. I smiled against her breast. Heather groaned, taking a step back, carefully tying the belt again.
I grabbed her by the waist, pulling her closer, until she toppled on the bed.
She shrieked with laughter.
“What are you doing?” she asked in between fits of laughter.
“Having my way with you.”
“Oh, I see. By all means, don’t let me deter you.”
“So you’re surrendering, just like that?”
She batted her eyelashes, pulling me closer.
“No. I’m going to use it as a negotiation point later on.”
“I see.”
“I’m redefining the parameters of staying inside. Let’s stay in bed.”
She flashed a wide smile, throwing herself on her back before turning on one side and shoving a pillow under her head.
“I can do that. I’m glad you don’t have a cold.”
“Told you I never get sick.”
“Well, since we’re staying indoors, I can make us some breakfast.”
“That can wait.”
She gave me a shrewd smile, narrowing her eyes. “If I didn’t know better, I’d say you’re enjoying this.”
I reached for her, cupping her cheek. I wasn’t sure how to put everything into words. How much I liked what we had.
“I like having you here.” In an instant, I pulled her underneath me. Her eyes widened, but her mouth tilted up at the corners.
“Heather, I like spending time with you more than anything else. No matter what we do, I always think about you. You’re always on my mind.”
“Does that scare you?”
“No. Because I know I’m exactly where I need to be.”
Her eyes widened, as if she hadn’t expected this. I hadn’t really expected it either, but it was exactly how I felt, and I wanted her to know it.
I moved my mouth on her jaw until my lips hovered just over hers. Lowering a hand between us, I went straight for the belt, undoing it, letting the robe fall to the sides, running my mouth downward in a straight path. I’d been clamoring for this skin-on-skin since I woke up. I took my time, touching every curve with my fingers before running my mouth over them too. Her skin turned to goose bumps. When I kissed a straight line between her breasts, she opened her legs wider. I was already rock-hard, but this one gesture just drove me insane.