Rubbing his tongue against hers, Levi savored the taste of Piper. Peppermint. He grinned. She’d brushed her teeth. Nice. Very nice, indeed.
“Shit,” Levi muttered when he reached for her waist only to hit his hand against the center console.
“We need a bench seat,” Piper said with a breathless laugh.
“We need a bed,” he responded. “Making out in a car seemed a lot easier when I was seventeen.”
Piper kissed the back of Levi’s neck as he reached around her, took the seatbelt, and buckled it in place.
“Agreed.” She kept his hand, linking her fingers with his. “My boyfriend at the time borrowed his father’s truck. After we parked by Lake Moore, we pushed the seat back as far as possible and—”
“No.” Shaking his head, Levi placed two fingers on her lips, sealing them shut. “While I appreciate youthful ingenuity, I don’t want to hear the details about how another man took you around the world.”
“Interesting turn of phrase. In terms of the world, we got as far as Chicago—euphemistically speaking—before he came in his pants. Since he didn’t return the favor, I ended our short but memorable romance and walked home.”
“Wow. You’re tough.” Levi started the car. Keeping hold of Piper’s hand, he exited the parking lot. “The guy was excited. Men—teenagers especially—don’t always have control. He was probably embarrassed.”
“Embarrassed? Ha!” Piper scoffed. “When he was finished twitching and gasping and making a spectacle of himself, he collapsed with a shit-assed smile on his face and said, thanks, babe. That was great.”
“And all you did was break up with him?” Knowing Piper, Levi was amazed.
“I may have taken the keys and thrown them in the lake.” She chuckled at the memory. “My friend lived nearby. My date, on the other hand, was forced to walk home. Fifteen miles in a pair of sticky underwear. I hope he suffered major dick rash.”
Now that, Levi thought as took the side street, sounded like Piper. Pulling to a stop outside her apartment building, he grinned. If he hadn’t been in love with her already, her story of revenge girl-power would have sealed the deal.
“Boys can be selfish assholes,” he said with a shrug.
“And men can’t?” Piper placed a quick kiss on his lips before opening the car door. “Don’t worry. I readily admit that women are selfish, too. Nothing wrong with looking out for yourself.”
“Drop the cynical act,” Levi said, locking the car. He took her hand as they walked into the building. “You’re the most generous person I know.”
“Me?” Piper shook her head. “Hardly. Our relationship is a perfect example.”
“How do you mean?” Levi asked.
“I’ve always taken more from you than I’ve given back.”
Levi watched while Piper mulled her words as they took a short elevator ride to the fifth floor. Walking to the end of the clean, well-lit hallway, she used the keypad and opened the door of her apartment.
Taking Piper’s coat, he hung his next to hers in the closet without thinking about how comfortable and easy they were together. Whether at his place or hers, didn’t matter.
“You’re wrong,” Levi said, following her into the living room. He tossed his suit jacket onto the arm of the sofa and loosened his tie. “Our relationship is fairly balanced. True, depending on the day or the situation, the scales will tip one way or the other. In the end, things even out.”
Piper flipped off her shoes and walked into Levi’s arms. With a sigh, she rested her head on his chest, her arms tightening around his waist. Happily, he hugged her back. She tugged his shirt from his pants, finding the skin of his lower back. Slowly, almost absently, she used the tip of her finger to draw a series of circles.
“I’d like to think you’re right.” Piper tipped her head until her eyes met his. “Football is a perfect example of what I mean. You love the game, yet I haven’t been as supportive as I should have been.”
“Until today, what was there to support?” Levi asked. He started to unbutton her shirt. “When I needed you to be there, you showed up.”
“Which was the very least I could do.” Piper’s hands moved up his back until they were splayed across the surface, massaging his muscles, drawing a moan of pleasure from his lips. “Big deal. I didn’t even pay for a ticket.”
“What about me?” Levi asked as he opened her shirt to reveal a lacy white bra. He smiled when he saw the front closure. “You’re the best accountant in town but do I take advantage of your brilliant mind? Do I support your business? Nope. I use someone else.”
“Because we agreed not to mix our personal and professional lives,” Piper reminded him. She gasped when his lips moved from the warm, sensitive curve of one breast to the other. “Money and friendship are a bad mix.”
“Maybe. Probably,” Levi conceded. He nuzzled the curve of her neck. “We, you and I, us, are a fine mix. Practically perfect.”
“Practically.” Piper tipped her head, just a bit, giving Levi an open path to her shoulder. When he used his tongue to sample the sweet flavor, her fingers tightened, gripping his arm and shooting a bolt of pleasure through his body. “Perfect would be boring. And you, my friend, are anything but that.”
“Friends.” Levi nodded. He tugged her shirt down her arms leaving a puddle of bright yellow on the floor. “Soon to be lovers?”
“Yes.” With a sultry laugh, Piper jumped, her arms twining around Levi’s neck, her legs circling his waist. “Pretty please.”
“With sugar on top,” Levi promised as he carried Piper into the bedroom.
“I like spice with my sweet,” she reminded him. “And heat. The hotter the better.”
“Your wish is my command.” Moving to the bed, Levi ripped back the covers. “Let’s burn up the sheets.”
Levi had imagined making love to Piper more times than he could count. At times, the need felt desperate, at others, hopeless. Tonight, she was finally his, but he felt no desire to rush. He’d waited too long to hurry. He would take his time and when he was done, he’d start again. Then again. And again.
“Wait.” Piper squirmed out of Levi’s arms. Reluctantly, he let her go.
“Have you changed your mind?”
Say no. Levi sent her silent plea, chanting the same words over and over in his head. Say no. Say no. Say no.
“No.”
The relief was so intense, Levi felt his knees begin to buckle. With an air of nonchalance that he didn’t feel, he gripped the wrought-iron headboard and remained upright.
“What’s going on in that complex mind of yours?” Lightly, Levi tapped her temple with his knuckle, a kiss to the same spot quickly followed. “Sex is best if you think—but not too much.”
“Are you in pain?” Piper ran her hands over his right arm. “Stiff? Sore? You just played four quarters of football. Jumping on you? I must be freaking crazy.”