Her eyes roll to the back of her head.
God, she’s beautiful.
I close my lips over hers, stroking my tongue against her as I swallow her climactic cries.
CHAPTER 30
Everly
“Ainsley, sorry I didn’t have time to call you back,” I say, picking up the phone after the first ring.
“Hi.”
“Hi,” I say. “Sorry. I forgot my manners.”
“Another busy day?” she asks.
“This is the first time I’ve been able to sit down all day,” I say, stretching out my legs on the coffee table.
“My God, you must be exhausted.”
“I can’t even put it into words.”
It was like a revolving door today. Virginia and I did a massive amount of baking just to keep up with the orders. I swear we must’ve made forty dozen donuts. Had I not set one of the new flavors aside, I would have been out of luck. We completely sold out. After closing late for the third time in a row this week, I finally slipped upstairs ready to spend the evening doing absolutely nothing. The fact Holt was at my place last night banging me against every wall in the apartment doesn’t help.
“A month and a half after the StreamTunes Awards and it’s still going strong,” Ainsley says.
“Yeah. A new roster of clients has discovered my donuts and they keep coming back. They also keep us very busy with special orders.”
“In other words, you can’t complain.”
“Amen!”
“You deserve it.”
“This is definitely a blessing.”
“Do you have time to talk or are you getting ready to spend Saturday night with your man?”
I roll my eyes into the phone.
“I’m a free agent tonight. Holt has plans with some friends and his cousins to celebrate the return of his younger brother to LA.”
“So it’s a dry night for you tonight,” Ainsley explodes in laughter.
“Since my pussy has seen more action in the last six weeks than it did in the four years I dated Dalton, a little break will do me good.”
“Ohhh! High-five, girlfriend! I didn’t think you had it in you. Great repartee!”
“I’ve learned from the best,” I grin, even though she can’t see it. “And, FYI, it’s just Holt. You need to stop it with your man nonsense.”
“Bullshit. It’s been combustive between you two.” She knows the highlights. I’ve guarded the more daring bits close to my heart. “Do you know how many women would be jealous of you? For God sakes, you’re riding a hot former rock star. And the best part is your man isn’t one of those self-conceited-selfish-rocker-pricks who thinks you should be grateful just because he allows you to spread your legs for him. Your man is a sex god and he worships your body.”
Yeah, Holt is pretty perfect.
Between you and I, he owns my body and I’m more than happy to let him use it wherever and whenever. I’m just not ready to fess up to my cousin yet.
The last three weeks have been a dream. I’ve seen Holt almost every night. It’s always a little bit of a stretch during the week because we work around Naomi’s needs, but somehow we make it work.
“Maybe, but it’s still casual,” I remind myself.
I have to.
Things are going great between us, but he hasn’t made any promises. He has a booming business and a daughter who depends on him. I’m sure he doesn’t have time to think of anything long-term.
“Not that casual since you spend weekends at his place.”
“I drop by on weekends after my work day for dinner and to hang out with him and his daughter.”
“Not true,” she retorts. “You started taking every other Sunday off to play house with him.”
“I’d hardly call it––”
“I doubt he has a lot of women dropping by to play dress-up, have tea parties or pretend Oscar parties with his daughter.”
Naomi and I get along famously. It’s easy to impress a kid at first, but you can’t fool them forever. I really enjoy playing with her and listening to her endless stories. She’s quite the entertainer. Although she’s like an armful of sunshine, she’s only four. And just like any other kid her age, she has her ups and downs. Surprisingly, I’ve rolled with them unfazed. I think Holt was also amazed.
“Every girl should spend a few hours on Sundays with a white synthetic boa wrapped around her neck, a plastic tiara studded with faux gemstones on her head, clad in glam dresses from the thrift shop, dripping in Dollar Store jewelry,” I laugh.
Ainsley joins me.
“Say what you will, but you looked like you were having the time of your life in those selfies.” It’s been a blast with him and his daughter. “Too bad you can’t share them on social media. What a perfect way to tell Dalton, Fuck you. I’ve upgraded my ride.”
I choke on a laugh.
“I’m pretty sure Adrienne would be green with envy seeing you hanging from the arm of a delicious piece of man candy. As if Dalton was a prize. Bony ghost-white asshole,” she snorts. She only reserves this level of disgust for my ex-boyfriend and my former BFF.
“You kill me, Ainsley. Mom said the same thing. Well, she might have used a few more swear words.”
“I’ve always loved your mom’s Jersey side.”
“Me too. It’s unfortunate I can’t give Dalton the middle finger from Cali. Holt is fiercely protective of his privacy. He doesn’t want photos of his daughter online. I respect that.”
“Same here,” Ainsley agrees. “He’s a good father.”
“He’s a great father,” I correct. “I have nothing to complain about––because Daddy is the best––but, I’m always taken aback by the love that floods Holt’s expression when Naomi is near. I’ve witnessed some incredibly intimate moments between them.” I pause. “I always feel like an outsider.”
“You shouldn’t,” she retorts. “He’s opened his home and his world to you.” I know sometimes she comes across like a socialite who doesn’t give a damn, but there’s a deeper side to my cousin. “Bonus, you don’t have to deal with a bitchy ex-wife-or-girlfriend like Elena McGuckin.” She’s one of her socialite friends. “After a year she called it quits because John’s ex-wife was polluting their relationship.”
“I guess that plays in my favor since Naomi’s mom doesn’t want to be in the picture.”
“One less thing to worry about,” Ainsley says. “I still think you’re wearing the wrong color lenses. It’s obvious the three of you—I guess four with Luna––mesh. And you’re not even a dog person.”
So what if I’ve taken a liking to Holt’s dog, even though I’ve never considered adopting a pet before? I have to keep my head in check because my heart is doing a terrible job of it. It’s too easy to start dreaming up crazy scenarios… especially since Holt makes it hard not to go there. You already know about the sex god part, but there’s so much more to him. What I share with Holt is comfortable, easy and fun. Maybe my view is skewed because my experience with men is laughable. That said, even in the early days, it was never this amazing with Dalton. Regardless, I have to be careful. There’s no point in wanting more just to have the rug pulled right from under my feet when reality comes slapping me in the face.