Chapter Twenty-Two
Little white candles flickered on the coffee table, and soft jazz floated through the air. Smith’s apartment was spotlessly clean, complete with neat rows of vacuum lines in the carpet. Two wineglasses and a bottle of chilled pinot grigio sat beside a plate holding a single slice of pound cake with fluffy whipped cream.
When Smith had invited me over tonight, I’d told him I had dinner plans with Maggie I didn’t want to break, and so he invited me for dessert instead.
“What’s all this?” My gaze cut over to Smith, who was standing beside the sofa smirking.
He shrugged. “Just a little token to say how much I’ve enjoyed spending time together.”
My real question, the one that I couldn’t voice was—is tonight the night?
After our last conversation, I wasn’t sure if Smith had talked to my brother, and honestly, I didn’t want to know. I wanted to remain blissfully in the dark. The only thing I cared about was that we were together, and the sizzle of electricity that flowed between us was swamping all my other senses.
“Sit. Make yourself comfortable,” Smith said.
I lowered myself to the sofa while he uncorked the wine and poured us each a glass.
“Cheers.” I clinked my glass to his, butterflies dancing in my belly.
“To do-overs,” he whispered, a smile playing at the edges of his full mouth.
We each took a sip, and the cool, crisp wine slid down my throat, warming my insides.
Smith leaned closer and reached out to tuck a lock of hair behind my ear. The look in his gaze was intense, heated, passionate, and I had to bite my tongue to keep from admitting how much I wanted him.
“You’re beautiful, Everleigh,” he whispered. “Always have been.”
My face heating under his careful scrutiny, I did the only thing I could think to do. I leaned into his touch, my eyes falling closed as his lips met mine.
His kiss was so careful, so controlled. He nipped at my lips, gently pressing his mouth to mine, until I took his lower lip between mine and gave it a sharp bite.
He pulled back, fire blazing in his gaze as his tongue traced the abused spot. “It’s going to be like that, huh?”
Swallowing down my nerves, I knew what I wanted tonight. We’d been building toward this moment since Paris, and only a natural disaster was going to stop me.
After setting both of our wineglasses on the table, I climbed into his lap, then brought my mouth to his neck. I didn’t need words to show him what I wanted. I rocked my hips against his, and found his cock was as hard as steel already.
Gripping my ass in his palms, Smith pulled me closer. The wine and dessert and romance were forgotten. Our rising lust demanded attention.
“What do you want?” he murmured between stolen kisses.
“Everything,” I moaned, my lips brushing his as I spoke.
“That’s a dangerous thing to say to a man.” Smith’s hands roamed up my sides until he reached my bra, his fingertips lightly teasing me.
“You’ve given me pleasure, gotten me off . . .” I licked my lips, meeting his eyes. “But I never got to return the favor.”
His eyes stayed locked on mine as I slid from the couch to my knees in front of him.
“Tonight I intend to change that.”
“Are you saying you want your mouth on my cock, Everleigh?” His tone was steady, but the deep hoarseness to his voice told me that was an idea he was very much okay with.
I reached for the button to his jeans, but he pushed my hand away.
“Put your hands behind your back. Be a good girl.” Smith’s playful side was back, and it had me clenching my thighs together.
I obeyed, lacing my fingers together behind my back, and watched in fascination as he dragged down the zipper to his pants.
Smith tugged down his pants and boxers, freeing the most beautiful male appendage I’d ever laid eyes on.
Our brief encounter in the hotel had been entirely in the dark. The desire to strip him naked and see every inch of his muscled skin raced through me. I’d never been filled with such blazing-hot desire in my entire life.
His large hand circled the base of his shaft and he stroked slowly up the length of it, stopping at the end, where his thumb captured a drop of fluid, smoothing it over the wide tip.
“Is this what you want?” he growled.
Transfixed by his erotic show, I opened my mouth to speak but nothing came out. I nodded my head instead.
“Come here, baby doll.”
Leaning in, I reached for his cock, but Smith made a noise of disapproval in his throat.
“Naughty girl. Keep your hands behind your back. You told me this was about taking me in your mouth.”
My gaze flashed on his, and the challenge I saw in his hazel eyes lit a fuse inside me.
“Open,” he said.
I did, bringing my mouth toward his lap where he placed the head of his cock against my tongue.