Page 63 of Into These Eyes

I glance at Jamie, waiting as she slowly removes her hands from her face and gives me a helpless shrug.

“And how long is this cockblocking nightmare lasting?” I ask.

“Well, my first day on the job is Christmas day, which means I’ll leave Christmas eve. So, what’s that? Three nights? Should be a breeze for you, right?”

“Fine,” I grumble, already wondering how I’ll survive this new hell. After experiencing the torture of keeping my hands off Jamie when I wasn’t sure if she felt the same, now I have to do it knowing she does want me? Fucking fuck.

“Great!” Anika exclaims. “Now I can relax.”

“Not quite,” Jamie says. “Dad mentioned Mum left a letter. And that you know where it is.”

Anika slowly nods as she glances at her watch.

“I think I know where he means, but fuck, Jamie, it’s past midnight.

Not to mention I need to wrap my head around Dad’s confession …

and you having a boyfriend . That’s enough to fry my brain without adding something else right now. Can it wait until tomorrow?”

Jamie gives her an understanding nod.

Pouring the last of the wine into her glass, Anika stands and heads to the couch. “I’m gonna unwind with some TV. Feel free to join.”

The moment I enter my bedroom, I drop to the mattress, bury my head in the pillow and groan.

Just when we were getting going, her sister’s put on the brakes, wielding some sort of diabolical powerplay over us.

I can’t blame Anika, though. I understand why.

And it’s a perfectly legitimate reason. That doesn’t stop my body and soul aching for what we were meant to have.

Right about now, we should be completely satiated and fast asleep in each other’s arms.

My phone vibrates in my pocket.

Rolling onto my back, I pull it out and check the message.

Jamie: Go get in the shower. Don’t lock the door.

I sit up and swing my feet to the carpet.

Me: I just made a promise to your crazy sister.

Jamie: Neither of us will be breaking our word.

Me: I don’t know … I heard you have a boyfriend.

With a stupid grin on my face, I wait.

Jamie: If he doesn’t get in the shower now, he’s getting dumped!

After flinging off my clothes and dressing in a t-shirt and trackpants, I silently open my bedroom door and stick my head out.

The TV’s louder than usual, apparently the way Anika likes it.

I can’t see her head above the couch, so I presume she’s lying down.

Like Jamie and I were. Shaking my head, I grin to myself.

How flattered I’d been when Jamie announced she’d turned her phone off for the night.

And how that decision ruined her orgasm and my chance of sinking into her.

A chance I now won’t get for another three days.

I suppose that’s my fault for taking things slow.

The moment we walked through the door, I could have picked her up, carried her into her bedroom and fucked her senseless.

I know she wouldn’t have resisted. But when I sensed her nerves, I forgot about my own need.

And I don’t regret a moment. Taking my time exploring her, tasting her and making her come with just my touch is worth the punishment of having to wait.

Though, I could do without the ache in my balls.

Following her instructions, I silently cross the hall, step into the bathroom, shut the door and stare at the small bolt.

I’ve never considered locking it before.

After half a lifetime of conditioning, privacy seems like a privilege reserved for others.

But now that Anika’s here, I guess I’ll have to start locking it to avoid any awkward situations.

Not tonight, though.

I undress, leaving my clothes in a neat pile on the edge of the vanity, then I turn on the shower and wait for the temperature to rise.

Glancing over my shoulder at the door, my heart races with anticipation.

I know Jamie can hear the water running.

I can hear her shower from my bedroom. Anika’s right, the walls in this house are thin.

With the temperature just right, I walk into the doorless shower and brace my hands on the tiled wall in front of me, a vulnerable position I’d never put myself in on the inside. Dropping my head between my arms, I let the water cascade over my hair and run like a river from my chin.

Christ, the anticipation’s killing me. I’m not sure what Jamie has planned, but she made it clear neither of us would break our promise.

Then why does she want me naked in the shower?

My dick twitches at the thought of her eyes roaming over my body.

Sure, she saw me naked when she spied on me after I’d mown the lawn.

But that’d been from a distance. Glancing at my only tattoo, I know I won’t be able to hide it from her this time.

Of course, I knew she’d see it once we became intimate.

But for tonight, I thought our passion would spiral us into another dimension, where our bodies tangled, and questions weren’t asked.

Taking a deep breath, I let it out slowly. She can’t ask questions in here either. We’ll have to be quiet.

When a breath of cool air sends goosebumps over my wet back, I turn my head to find her at the door, her back to me as she slides the bolt home. She lingers there for a moment, still wearing that short little robe and, for a fleeting moment, I wonder if she’s naked underneath.

Finally, she turns and our eyes lock. I twist around until water thrums between my shoulder blades, matching the blood thrumming through my veins.

Placing one hand on the tiled wall, and one on the large screen, I watch through the glass as she slips off the robe and hangs it on the back of the door.

I’m not disappointed at the sight of the skintight white camisole and matching boxer briefs that are clearly her pyjamas.

Instantly transported back to the first time I found her in the kitchen, my body reacts the same way now.

Her gaze leaves mine, taking a leisurely journey down my body. I know she’s not getting a perfect view through all the water droplets on the glass screen, but I’m sure she can see my hard dick.

Lips slightly parted, she pads across the tiles, her eyes on mine again as she steps past the screen, giving herself an unobstructed view.

She explores me with her eyes, and I feel every caress.

First my lips, then the throbbing pulse in my neck.

They move from right to left over my chest, pausing for the briefest moment on my tattoo before dipping over my abs, my navel, the dark trail of hair.

I know the instant she really takes in my cock.

Her eyes grow just a little bit rounder, her lips opening slightly wider.

I’m pretty sure I’m the first man she’s ever truly seen naked. Thank God she seems … fascinated. My dick twitches under her gaze, and she gasps, bringing a hand to her mouth to muffle a giggle.

Grinning like a fool, I touch a finger to my lips, the sight of her smiling, when a moment ago she was so serious, floods warmth into my cooling chest.

She removes her hand, flashing her teeth at me before her smile fades, her gaze locking on my tattoo.

Gripping my left shoulder with my right hand, I cover it, silently telling her not to look.

Still wearing her pyjamas, she walks into the shower, right up to me, and places a kiss on the back of that hand. I think she wants me to show her, but she surprises me by gripping my shoulder and turning me until my back faces her.

Having her behind me stutters my heartrate, and I find myself locking my knees to stop the tremble that wants to reveal how much I hate and fear this vulnerable position.

The brain is a powerful conductor over the body.

Logically, I know I’m safe, but after being in this position fifteen years ago, and learning a horrific lesson, my mind has been trained too well.

Gently, she takes each of my wrists, placing one hand on the glass and the other on the tiles. As I fight every instinct to turn around, I realise she’s telling me I’m not to touch her. The way I stopped her from touching me on the couch.

She’s in control this time. And I’m to obey. I’m not sure how I feel about that.

Until her lips press a gentle kiss to the middle of my spine. With my back cooling now it’s no longer beneath the heated spray, her mouth is warm, her tongue hot when it touches my skin in a tentative lick.

While she kisses a slow descent down my spine, her fingers flutter against the outside of my thighs, delicately inching higher until they stop at my waist. I squeeze my eyes shut, hoping she doesn’t reach around and grab my cock, or this’ll be over way too soon.

And God knows, I don’t want her to stop touching me.

A second later, I suck in a breath and hold it as her mouth inches closer to the base of my spine. I tense, and I know she feels it, because she stops. Then she presses a kiss to my tailbone. And her tongue dips into the cleavage at the top of my arse ever so briefly.

Fucking fuck.

Is she showing me she’s not afraid to test boundaries?

Before my thoughts run rampant, she presses her clothed body against mine, rises on her toes and whispers in my ear, “Now who’s shaking like a leaf?”

I hadn’t even realised I was, but she’s right. They’re no longer tremors of fear, but barely restrained ripples of desire.

Like she’s rewiring me.

Christ, this woman.

When her warm body vanishes, I tilt my head, watching her pump bodywash into her palm from the bottle on the recessed shelf.