“Not even close.”
I whimpered.
He laughed.
His mouth covered my clitoris and his tongue went to god damn town on me. I writhed, out of control, but it made no difference. Hands banded around my thighs, holding me to him. There was no escaping the terrible, all-consuming overwhelming pleasure. He sucked, flicked his tongue, and generally unleashed an unsurpassed wealth of oral talent upon my unsuspecting sex.
The bastard.
Who even knew teeth could be used like that?
I came in under a minute, crying his name. My heartbeat thundered through my head and my whole body shook. I lay sprawled across the mattress, letting the aftershocks have their way with me. Endorphins had pickled my mind. Tears slid down my face, the orgasm had hit me so hard, so fast. That had never happened before. Hurriedly, I brushed them away. My heart seemed suddenly too big for my chest. The orgasm had engorged it somehow. It couldn’t be healthy.
From next door came banging on the wall. “I already knew Mal’s name, Anne. But thanks for the reminder.”
I used the last of my energy reserves to give the wall the finger. “Morning, Lauren.”
Distantly, there was laughter, male and female both. Our neighbors sucked.
“We need to kill them or move,” I said. “I’m open to either option.”
“You know, you talk tough,” said Mal, “but inside, you’re all soft and wet and really quite tasty.”
I choked back a laugh. “Glad you approve.”
Mal crawled up, pausing to wipe his mouth on the sheet. He laid his head on my shoulder, snuggling into me. That was good, I needed him near. The glut of emotions felt more manageable with him close, even if he was the cause of all the chaos.
“I think my legs are broken; they won’t work.” Not that I’d actually tried yet. My brain was too floaty for any movement.
He pressed a kiss to my cheek. “Next time, just tell me you need more.”
“You’re a monster,” I whispered.
“Okay.” He didn’t even sound the slightest bit perturbed.
“I mean it.”
“Mm-hm.”
“But the worst part is, I feel something for you,” I said, because fair was fair. Love was a stupid word. I’d heard it from various people and it rarely meant what you thought it did. Somewhere along the way, that word had turned into a pleasantry, not profound and weighty as it should have been. No, Love wasn’t what I felt. This was different, more complex. I couldn’t even think of a word for it. “I only feel it a tiny bit … probably just because of the great orgasm, so it’s not like it’s a big deal or anything. It’ll pass.”
With a sigh, he went up on one elbow and put an arm around me, pulling me up against him. When he rolled onto his back, I went too. I lay sprawled across him. There was no better thing. Apart from what he’d just done to me, of course. One hand stroked my back, while the other lay behind his head.
“A miniscule amount, really.” My thumb rubbed over his nipple, back and forth, back and forth. I seemed to have entered some stream-of-consciousness state and I didn’t have the energy to fight it. “You probably couldn’t even see it with a microscope.”
Another sigh from the man.
“Well, maybe one of those lab ones, but not a kid’s toy one. The magnification wouldn’t be–”
All of a sudden we rolled again and I was on the bottom with the weight of Mal’s body pushing me deep into the mattress.
“Hi,” I said, just a bit discombobulated by the abrupt change in position. He’d barely given my head to time to stop spinning from the previous shift.
“Been thinking.” He watched me, eyes intense. “Want you to do something for me.”
“Okay.”
“Need you to come on tour, least for a while. See what you can manage, okay?”
My engorged heart basically burst. My insides were officially a mess. “Need?”
“Yeah, need.” His forehead furrowed. “Things are happening and I know you’ve got questions but I need you to not ask them right now. I just … I need you with me. I deal with stuff better when you’re around.”
“Stuff like the other reason why you wanted me around that you wouldn’t admit to last night?”
Guilt slid across his face. “Yeah.”
“We’re going to have to talk about stuff eventually.”
“Yeah, we are. Yours and mine both.”
I froze beneath him, not answering. But he just patiently waited me out. The words were stuck inside my chest with the rest of the clutter. It was hard to find them. “You’re right. I know. And I’ll try and work something out about the tour.”
Work would survive. Reece owed me. He wasn’t going to like it, but he sure as hell owed me. Between Tara and the new guy, Alex, my shifts could be covered.
“Thanks.” He nodded, gave me a small mile. “And it’s okay about the feeling something thing. I get it.”
“You do?” What a relief, because I still wasn’t sure I did. I’d never even said anything close to resembling those words.
“Yeah. You don’t need to keep babbling about it.”
“I wasn’t babbling.”
“You were, but that’s okay.” His fingers toyed with my hair. “The timing isn’t great for me, pumpkin. I didn’t need shit getting any more complicated. But like I said last night, we see where this goes. Agreed?”
Sounded like a solid plan. “Yes.”
“You’re good for me. You take me any mood I come in. I don’t have to be always happy or on around you. You roll with any shit I say and give as good as you get. You don’t let me push you around if it doesn’t suit you and you haven’t asked me to buy you a fucking thing.”
I arched my brows and “ooh”ed. “God, I’m so slow. It hadn’t even occurred to me. Can I have a Porsche?”
“Sure. What color?”
Holy shit, he would too. If only to mess with me. I took a deep breath and let it out slowly, shook my head. “You never hesitate when I ask for something.”
“You don’t do it often. I figure if you’re asking, it’s something that matters.”
My eyes did not tear up again. I had allergies or something, probably to feelings. And you had to know, this man, he made me feel all the things all the damn time. “I don’t really need a sports car. But thanks.”
“Let me know if you change your mind.” He smirked, obviously having known full and well his agreeing would freak me out. Cunning man.
“Ev wants to organize a dinner tonight with the parents and everyone,” he said. “You good with that?”
“Sure. They’re nice and their place is beautiful.”
He stilled, studying my face. “Yeah, it is nice. Glad you like it there. They mean a lot to me.”
“They’re great people.” In my bedroom the alarm clock blared to life, belting out some long forgotten hit from the seventies. “I have to get moving.”
“Your legs working yet?” Mischief danced in his eyes.
“I think so.” I laughed.
“Call me today. I wanna know you’re okay dealing with Reece and everything.”
“I’ve been dealing with things for a long time.” My jaw tightened. “I can deal with Reece.”
“Hey, you were into him for over two years. I’m allowed to feel a little vulnerable and insecure about the fuckface. Stop trying to stunt my emotional growth, Anne.”
“I thought you were going to try to be nice to him. And stunt your emotional growth? How do you even come up with this stuff?”
“To him, not about him. And it’s a gift.” Given what was making its presence known once more against my hip, love and understanding wasn’t all he was searching for. “I have another gift for you.”
“We don’t have time for you to give me your gift. Plus, your good friend, my vagina, needs a rest.”
His mouth turned down at the edges and he rose up on his arms, sitting back on the mattress. He stood and offered me a hand. “Call me. I’m not trying to mess with your boundaries or anything. Just want to know you’re okay.”
Easily, he pulled me up onto my feet. “Alright, I’ll call.”
“Thanks.”
I cocked my head. “You going to call me if things aren’t okay with you regarding stuff?”
The little line appeared between his brows. Now maybe he appreciated how hard it could be letting someone into certain places. He looked away, jerked his chin.
What a pair we were. Sometimes it seemed we’d need a miracle to make this work. But my usually cautious heart had already committed.
“Thanks.” I placed my hand on his chest. “You don’t need to worry about Reece.”
“I know, I know. He’s nothing compared to my magnificence.” His fingers stroked mine and his eyes softened. “But just out of curiosity, how do you feel about getting my name tattooed on your forehead?