Page 108 of Beneath the Blue Moon

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Oh, fuck! I roll onto the bed, staring up at the ceiling in

complete awe.

“Wow! Ethan, that was… incredible.”

“Off-the-charts incredible.”

Scrambling on top of him again, I place a hard kiss on his

lips. I feel like I’m on speed. And I’m starving again.

“I’m hungry, are you hungry? I’m gonna make us something.”

Why do I sound like Six from Blossom? I still

remember watching that show with my mom. My words are running into each other

like I’ve never heard of a punctuation mark. I hop off the bed and drag his T-shirt

over my head before hurrying downstairs. By the time he joins me, I’ve already

made a salad and started working on a chuck roast Clara left defrosting in the

fridge. I guess I should have chosen something quicker, but I’m craving meat. I

turn to him with a smile as he enters. Lust grips my body as I take in his

naked chest, jeans hanging off his hips, button undone. I launch myself at him,

and he catches me, placing me on the counter. As I slide my hands over his hard

body, I start getting wet all over again.

“You can’t walk around here half-naked like that, or we’ll

never get out of bed.”

“Why are you talking so fast?” he asks.

“I don’t know I feel funny like I’m about to bounce off the

walls and I’m starving like I haven’t eaten in days but I just ate and I felt

full but now—”

He cradles my face, halting my rambling, and staring into my

eyes intently.

Calm down, sweetie.

Huh. I heard his voice, but his lips didn’t move. Is he in

my head? He can’t be in my head. But… I do feel the jitteriness slowly slipping

away.

“Did you say something?”

“No.”

“Huh… Thought you did. Anyway, never mind. You can help me.”

Hopping off the counter, I begin gathering ingredients.

“I am yours, my love. Use me.”

“Careful, stud. Those are loaded words.” As he moves toward

me menacingly, I point to the fridge. “Potatoes, carrots, onions, mushrooms, red

wine, beef broth.”

He chuckles and fetches the ingredients I asked for. While

he takes care of that, I work on seasoning the meat. I get the oil going on the

stove, and then wash the carrots, mushrooms, and potatoes.

“Cut the onions and mushrooms into halves. Slice the carrots

into big chunks.”

Once he’s done that, quite proficiently, I add the onions to

the pot. I brown them on both sides, remove them, and do the same with the

other vegetables. He watches me the entire time. Maybe I should say “observe.”

The look in his eyes is… evaluating. Does he doubt my cooking skills? I sear

the meat on both sides and then ask for the red wine.

“Let me.”

I watch him hungrily as he deglazes the pot.

“There’s nothing sexier than a man who knows his way around

the kitchen.”

“Guess I’ll have to start cooking more then.”

“Guess so.”

Together, we add all the ingredients back to the pot. I toss

in rosemary and thyme, and then stick it in the oven. After washing our hands,

he glances at the potatoes.

“What about those?”

“Mashed potatoes. I’ll get to it when the roast is almost

done.”

Placing his hands on my hips, he pulls me to him gently. I

wrap my arms around his waist, gazing into his chocolate eyes.

“What do you suggest we do until then?” I ask.

His hands slide down to cup my ass, and he pushes against

me, his erection prodding my stomach.

“I have a few ideas.”

“I bet you do, Sheriff.”

“First, we need to talk.”

“Uh-oh.”

What do we need to talk about? He looks so serious. Did I

upset him? He takes my hand and leads me to the huge couch in the living room,

pulling me down to lie next to him. I turn to face him, sliding my arm around

his waist.

“What’s going on?”

“I know why you left, Casey.”

“You do?”

Oh, God! Did his mother say something about me? She did.

He’s probably trying to let me down easy. Then he’s going to kick me out and

have nothing to do with me again. I can’t look at him, so I keep my eyes fixed

on his chest.

“It took some… pushing, but my mother confessed everything.”

Confessed?

“She told me about her threat and how she pushed you into… doing

what you were going to do the other day.”

“She did?” I ask, shocked she would admit it.

“You should have come to me in the beginning. I would have

dealt with it and saved us both a lot of heartache.”

“If I’d told you, would you have believed me?”

“Yes… and I would have gotten the truth out of her.”

“She said if I forced you to choose between us, you would

choose her. She’s your mother. What could I do?”

“I understand why you did it. I just don’t get why you

didn’t trust me enough to come to me.”

“I did… do trust you. I just believed I was doing

what was best for you.”

“Next time you decide to do what’s best for me, ask me what

it is first.”

I chance a look at him to see his expression. He seems a

little hurt, but I can’t read anything else.

“Are you mad at me?”

“No. I’m not mad,” he replies.

He kisses my forehead and tightens his arm around my waist.

“I’m sorry. I hurt you… and I’m so sorry.”

“I know. I know it was hard for you, too.”

“What happened with your mother?”

“I’m not sure what to do with her yet. She’s on house arrest

right now.”

“You arrested her?” I exclaim.

“Not officially. But I can.”

“I don’t want to cause trouble for you and her.”

“You didn’t. She did. I’ll take care of her. Don’t worry

about it.”

I wonder what he’s going to do. I mean, I’m not her biggest

fan, but she’s still his mother. I should just give him some time to figure out

what he wants to do. Now it’s time for me talk.

“Ethan, don’t take this the wrong way, but when can I go

home?”

“You are home.”

“This is your home. I mean—”

“It’s our home. You’re not going anywhere, Casey.”