“Open for me, Liv.”
I spread my legs wider, feeling the head of his cock nudge at me. Trembling, I draw in a sharp breath and clutch his shoulders. He moves his hand between us and positions himself, then thrusts hard. I cry out, aware of some unidentifiable emotion coursing through me alongside the mounting urgency.
Dean pushes his hands beneath my damp thighs, spreading me farther apart as his pumping grows deeper, stronger. It’s delicious, this heavy stroking, the fullness firing my blood. I shift and writhe, matching his thrusts as best I can as the pleasure becomes all-consuming.
Sweat trickles down my neck, between my breasts. This is exactly what I need, this feeling of being taken, overwhelmed by the crackling heat of our union. I lift my legs, my knees hugging Dean’s hips, and sink into the sensations.
The tension mounts to breaking point. Stars explode. I cry out again, digging my fingernails into his back when rapture spills through my veins. Before the vibrations slow, I grip his biceps.
“Harder,” I whisper, wanting this to go on forever. “Fuck me harder…”
He plunges deep, so deep my body jerks with the impact, and then he slides out and does it again. I can hardly believe it, but I’m still convulsing around him, and then his mouth descends on mine—open, wet, hot. I grip him tighter as he crests the wave and comes down the other side.
When he slows to a stop, he eases aside and takes me with him so I’m half-lying on top of him. I press my hand against his chest and feel the strong rhythm of his heartbeat.
We’re quiet for a while. The tightness in my body has loosened, but I can still feel the rustle of disquiet, the anxiety evoked by shadows of the past.
I swipe at my damp forehead and tuck myself closer to Dean. “I didn’t even ask you about your day.”
He wraps a lock of my hair around his finger. “University business as usual.”
“The semester’s going well?”
“So far, so good. Got a journal article to edit about food served at Anglo-Saxon feasts.”
“Like baked eel and parsnip pie?”
He gives me a puzzled look. I smile.
“Remember that first time I went to your place for dinner?” I ask. “You told me we were having medieval food, and for a second I might have believed you. But you’d really gotten take-out manicotti from an Italian restaurant.”
“I did?”
“You don’t remember?”
“I just remember trying not to stare at you too much.”
“I liked it when you stared at me.” I rub my cheek against his shoulder. “I still do.”
“Even though I offered you take-out manicotti on our second date?”
“Best manicotti I’ve ever had.” I think about all the food-related things Tyler Wilkes talked about earlier this evening. “You know, by the end of this cooking class, I’m supposed to be able to make an entire menu of French cuisine classics.”
“You will.” Dean pats my hip. “Learning anything is a process, right? Julia Child wasn’t born knowing how to make coq au vin.”
I give a muffled laugh. “I don’t even know what that is.”
“Chicken cooked in red wine. You’ve never had coq au vin?”
I shake my head.
“That French restaurant over on Dandelion must have it on their menu,” Dean says. “I’ll take you there for dinner this weekend. Get you inspired.”
“Thanks, but I’m working nights at the bookstore both Friday and Saturday.”
He frowns. “Nights?”
“Allie’s going to keep the store open until midnight on weekends,” I explain. “She wants to catch some of the post-movie and theater traffic.”
“You’re going to be there until midnight?” Dean shakes his head. “No way.”
Now I frown. “What do you mean, no way? Allie will be there too.”
“It’s not safe.”
“It’s the middle of downtown! Plenty of people are out on Friday and Saturday nights.”
“I don’t like it, Liv.”
“I can’t let Allie work alone, Dean.” I try to keep my tone reasonable. “But she will if she has to because she’s already advertised the extended hours. And I’m her only employee. Her boyfriend is going to help sometimes, but he works at a hotel and can’t be there every weekend. Plus this is one of the reasons Allie hired me.”
“Why didn’t you tell me about this earlier?” Dean asks shortly.
“I didn’t think it was a big deal.”
“I wouldn’t have let you take the job if I’d known.”
I stare at him. “You wouldn’t have let me?”
He sighs. “I didn’t mean—”
“Yeah, I know what you meant.” Irritation laces my spine, and I pull away from him. “You make the decisions, right? I’m just supposed to go along with them.”
“That’s not true, Liv, and you know it.”
“Do you not remember telling me you’ll support me in whatever I want to do?”
“Of course I remember.”
“Well, I want to do this,” I persist. “I have a schedule that I intend to honor. Look, I don’t like it when you work late or when you travel, but I don’t complain about it or try to stop you.”