“Only if you want me to lie. I’ll never push you past your comfort zone again, but if we’re kissing and my hands wander, that’s out of desire, not aggression. I’ll need signals, like a flashing neon light that says, ‘Today you may not go past second base.’”
She rubbed the kitty’s back. “Bear?”
“Yeah?”
“I have no flashing lights, but please kiss me hello.”
He touched his lips to hers in a feathery kiss, and she laughed. “A big-girl kiss, please.”
His strong arms circled her, the kitten cradled between them. Her body tingled with anticipation as his mouth descended on hers in a smoldering kiss. She waited for panic to barge in, but the longer they kissed, the less she worried. Bear’s kisses knocked the strength from her knees, caressed her mouth as much as he possessed it, and just when he eased the kiss and she thought he was going to pull away—No, not yet—he took it deeper, scrambling her ability to think. She’d kissed enough men to know that there were kisses—and then there were kisses. This was different from a sweet kiss, more powerful than a hot kiss. This was an intimate kiss that evoked trust and desire.
He lavished her with a series of tantalizing, shivery kisses, making her feel light-headed and swoony.
“Hello, sweet girl,” he said in a gravelly voice that electrified her as much as their kisses did. His warm eyes moved over her face. “Was that okay?”
“Um. I’m not sure. I think we should try again.”
GEMMA WAS BUSY rolling out the red-carpet runway for the first party when Crystal arrived at the boutique. She set Harley’s cat carrier down inside the door. Another gift from Bear, which had been hiding in his truck.
“Did you see my text?” Crystal had texted to ask if it was okay if she brought a kitten into work, but Gemma hadn’t responded.
“No. Sorry. My phone must be in my bag. I was running a little late. Tru and I were deciding on paint colors for the playroom. I still can’t believe we’re getting married in less than three months. And I’m so glad we’re doing the wedding in the backyard. It feels right with the kids.” Gemma smiled as she rose on tall, knee-high black boots. A black and red bodice hugged her curves, flaring out into a short black skirt. She wore long purple gloves and a black and red cape trimmed with gold.
“Whoa, mama. The Queen of Hearts princess has never looked so hot. Want me to handle the party so you can go surprise Tru for a little playtime?”
“No, but maybe I’ll wear it home tonight.” Gemma waggled her brows. “What did you text me about?”
Crystal picked up the kitty carrier.
“You got a kitten?” She came around the benches that separated the runway from the entrance of the store and took the kitten out of the carrier. “This looks just like Harley.”
“It is Harley. Bear gave her to me.”
“Bear gave her to you? He loves that kitty as much as he loves Lincoln and Kennedy.” She gasped, her eyes wide. “Ohmygod. You’ve been holding out on me!”
“No. Maybe a little? But not on purpose.” He loved the kitty as much as he loved the babies? And he gave her to me? Her heart filled up a little more.
“Crystal Moon, I tell you everything and you’ve been hooking up with Bear and keeping me in the dark?”
“No, no, no.” Crystal waved her hand. “That’s not what I meant. We haven’t hooked up. I promise. We’ve only kissed. We’re…testing the waters.”
“Testing the waters? That sounds like something I would say. I seem to remember you teasing me about Princess Swallows and Prince Cunnilingus.”
“You have to admit, that was funny.” They’d always joked like that. Crystal had even made up jokes about the guys she’d pretended to go out with.
“It was hilarious, but come on. Bear might have a huge heart, but I cannot see him testing any waters. He’s more of a dive-in-headfirst-and-come-up-for-air-later kind of guy. There’s no way that man is going without.”
Emotions Crystal didn’t recognize pulled at her. Gemma was right. Bear was a dive-in-headfirst kind of guy. He could have any woman he wanted, and he definitely came across as too sexual to go without. The man emitted testosterone like cologne. Of course Gemma would think they were mattress bumping. Guilt wound through Crystal. Gemma deserved to know the truth about why they weren’t playing bone the biker, but she wasn’t ready to share her secret yet. Not on the heels of telling Bear. She could only handle one monumental confession at a time.
“Can we please not talk about Bear’s sexual proclivities?” She took Harley from Gemma. “Do you mind if I keep her in the office? I have a cat box and everything she needs in the car.”
“Of course. Hey.” Gemma touched her arm. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you. I thought you were pulling the wool over my eyes. Honestly, I thought you and Bear had been hooking up for a long time. I never imagined that you hadn’t been.”
“You didn’t upset me. I was just surprised that you thought we’d been hooking up. I would have told you if I’d boned the biker.” Her typical snarkiness felt wrong when tied to sleeping with Bear. The truth was, if she didn’t have the past she had, she probably would have jumped in the sack with Bear a long time ago, and she probably would have told Gemma.
She quickly added, “He’s different than we thought, Gem. But then again, aren’t we all? I’m going to put Harley in the office and get her stuff so I have time to change. I thought I’d be Pocahontas princess today.”
“The sexiest Pocahontas ever,” Gemma called after her.
As she headed toward the office, her mind slid down a dark path that led directly to a pool of awful thoughts about Bear and other women. She closed the office door behind her and sat on a chair with Harley in her lap. Anyone who knew Bear wouldn’t believe he’d go without sex.
Would he?
The kitty purred loudly. It figured Bear’s kitten had a monstrous engine. She looked down at the sweet, cuddly girl. He’d never give her away if he didn’t know he could still be part of her life. She pressed a kiss to Harley’s head, pushing away the fleeting worry.
For months Bear had been right there with her, even when she’d pushed him away. She thought about the night at Woody’s, and the worried look in his eyes when she’d pulled away from their kiss. She could still feel his arms around her when he’d held her last night, could still hear his voice when he’d told her the truth and asked for flashing lights instead of lying about what he was capable of doing—or not doing.
Bear told her he hadn’t been with another woman since the first week they’d met, and as astonishing as it might seem, she believed him.
Chapter Seven
BEAR HELD BIG Mama and peered over Dixie’s shoulder, reviewing the accounting spreadsheets from last month for Whiskey Automotive and trying like hell to keep thoughts of Crystal’s attack from consuming him. But they were as present as the fucking numbers on the computer screen.
“Earth to Bear.” Dixie waved her hand in front of his face.
“Yeah. Sorry.” He shoved those dark thoughts away and tried to focus on Dixie.