He rolled her nipples between his thumbs and forefingers as she rode him. With her hair falling around her face, she looked down at him, keeping her gaze locked with his. There was no doubt, when he looked at her like that, that he thought she was the sexiest woman he’d ever seen.
Ryan reached up and tucked her hair behind her ear before stroking a fingertip down the side of her face. “Yours. That’s the word I’d use.”
She wasn’t sure what he meant but, then again, most of her brain cells were being thoroughly distracted by the exquisite sensations going on in other parts of her body. “What do you mean?”
“If somebody wants you to pin a label on my place in your life, just tell them I’m yours. It’s that simple.”
“That simple, huh?” She ran her thumb across his lower lip and he nipped at it. “Mine?”
“Yours.” Then, in one swift movement, he rolled them so that she was on her back and he was buried deep between her thighs.
With hard, powerful thrusts he sent her over the edge and then he said her name in a low and raspy voice, his face pressed against her neck, as his orgasm racked his body. He shuddered, collapsing on top of her with a groan.
“Jesus, Lauren, you’re going to kill me.”
She chuckled and snuggled closer to him. “Have I ever told you I love the way you say my name?”
“I didn’t realize there was more than one way to say it.”
“Smart-ass.” She jabbed him lightly with her elbow. “I meant I like the way it sounds when you say it. It’s warm and sexy.”
“I’ve always thought you have the most beautiful name I ever heard.”
“My dad learned English watching Bogey and Bacall movies. It’s probably a good thing I didn’t have a brother.”
“Yeah, a name like Humphrey Dozynski wasn’t going to help in the getting laid department.” He nuzzled her hair before rolling over to dispose of the condom. Then he pulled her up against him, one arm thrown over her to hold her close. “Although you know everybody in Whitford would have just called him Little Dozer anyway.”
“Dad would have loved that. Now I’m almost sorry I don’t have a brother.”
He chuckled softly, but she could already feel the muscles in his arms going slack as he started dozing off. She closed her eyes, and without even having to work at relaxing, drifted off to sleep with a smile on her face.
Chapter Fourteen
Ryan was beat. He’d started his day with an hour-long telephone call trying to convince a homeowner she was totally in the wrong while simultaneously soothing her ruffled feathers. Then he’d spent the rest of the day laying shingles. He wasn’t in the mood to see Dean Carpenter’s truck pulling up the drive.
He dropped his hammer on the roof with a thud and made his way to the ladder.
“You want me to come down?” Josh asked.
“I’m all set.” He paused a few rungs down. “But if he starts something and it looks like he’s kicking my ass, then yeah, come down.”
Nick was picking up the ties they’d been cutting off the bundles of shingles and throwing over the side all day.
“Hey,” Ryan said. “Your dad’s here.”
“I told him I’m almost done.”
“So you knew he was coming?”
“Yeah, I called him to come get me. Mom left a message at school that she’s sick so she wanted me to come straight home from school since she couldn’t come pick me up here, but I called my dad and he said he would.”
“Your mom’s sick? What’s the matter with her?” She was fine when he’d left yesterday afternoon.
“She started getting stuffy last night and she had a sore throat this morning. Got worse, I guess. Wicked bad cold.”
“That sucks.” But nothing so bad he had to be mad she hadn’t told him. Although she could have called and asked him to drive Nick home. It bugged him she thought he wouldn’t do it. “Next time, you don’t have to call your dad. I don’t mind giving you a ride home.”
“Okay.”
“You did call your mom, right? To tell her you weren’t going straight home?”
“Yeah.”
Nick was going to be at least another ten minutes cleaning up and then he had to go inside and get his stuff. In the meantime, Dean was going to be hanging out in his driveway like the giant ex-husband elephant in the room.
Ryan walked over to where Dean was leaning against his truck, staring off into space. “Hey.”
“Just here to pick up my son.”
“He told me. I wouldn’t have minded driving him home, but he didn’t ask me. Sorry you had to drive all the way over.”
“Not a problem.”
Ryan looked at the man whose childhood was so entwined with his own that he could barely think of a memory that didn’t include Dean.
“I did a shitty thing to you,” he said, without knowing he was going to say it out loud. “I can’t honestly say I’m sorry, but I acknowledge it was shitty.”
Dean looked at him then, more resignation on his face than anger. “I loved you like a brother.”
“But I loved her.”