Page 37 of Moonlight & Matrimony (Oak Ridge #2)

Luca

? I Wanna Be Yours - Arctic Monkeys

T he smell of sawdust and wood stain fills the air as I work on Cade’s new bar top for The Ridge. There isn’t a place in the world where I’m more at peace than right here in my workshop, but tonight feels different, almost empty, like there’s a shadow looming and I just can’t seem to shake it.

Things have been somewhat subdued since the hearing.

Rylin’s next supervised visit is coming up in a few days, but otherwise the Taylor family has been radio silent.

We’ve spent every evening together, having dinner, watching movies, playing with the animals — all while listening to Rylin chatter away about her friends at daycare.

Even with her limited vocabulary, that girl knows how to captivate her audience.

Today was much the same, and after tucking Ry into bed, Ivy scurried off to shower, and I retreated to the safety of my workshop. Being in the same house with Ivy is agony, knowing she’s only steps away, naked and wet.

As I meticulously sand down the edges of the bar top, my mind replays images of her body beneath mine, quivering with desire as she comes undone with my name on her lips.

Working with my hands has always been my escape, but there’s nowhere in this world I could run to that would quell this insatiable desire for my wife that only grows as the days go on.

“Luca?” Her quiet approach startles me, causing me to drop the sanding block to the floor.

“Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you.” She looks effortlessly gorgeous in a crop top and shorts, freshly showered with her hair tied back in that signature braid I’ve been dreaming of wrapping around my fist. She’s braless and I can just make out the shape of her pebbled nipples beneath her shirt. Fuck me.

“Is everything okay?” I ask, bending to pick up the block and I don’t miss the hungry way her eyes track my movements. “Ivy?” I say her name with an added depth to my voice that wasn’t there earlier, snapping her out of her obvious appraisal.

“What? Oh. Yeah. I’m fine. I wanted to ask a favor.

I’ve been meaning to bring it up for a while but I keep forgetting, and it just came back to me now while I was in the shower and…

I’m rambling,” she smiles and I think it’s the first time in days it’s been directed at me.

She fidgets with the end of her braid, biting her lip and fuck if I don’t want to bite it, too.

I just shake my head, giving her a subtle smirk as I resume my task. It’s all I can do to hide the tent in my jeans that doesn’t seem to go down whenever Ivy is around. “What can I do for you?” Say the word and I’ll bend you over this table.

“I was hoping you might want to come to the fall festival with me and Rylin next week?” her voice is hesitant — so unlike the spitfire who showed up at my door on a rampage that first day. “You can say no, but Rylin is super excited and I’m not sure if I’m comfortable going alone.”

“Why do you make spending time with my favorite girl sound like such a chore? I’d love to go.”

“Ok. Great.” She exhales a long breath, taking a few tentative steps in my direction. “What are you working on?”

Resisting the urge to pull you into my arms and kiss you breathless. But I can't say that. “Cade asked me to make a new bar top for The Ridge. With everything going on, I’m a little behind schedule.”

She winces, and I instantly regret bringing up that last part. There’s guilt etched on her features and I hate that I put it there. She has nothing to feel guilty for. “It’s beautiful, Luca.”

“Thank you. It’ll look even better once it’s installed.” I make a show of flexing my muscles as I slide the block over the surface, using a gentle hand around the live edge.

“That looks hard. Don’t your arms get sore?” Something is definitely hard, but it has nothing to do with this project.

“I cover most of it with the electric sander, but I like to go over some of the more delicate areas with my hands. Do you want to try?”

“Oh no, I couldn’t…” she shakes her head but I’m not going to take no for an answer. She walked in here looking like a wet dream, and I plan to use every excuse I can find to get her within arm’s reach. One taste and I’m already addicted.

“You’ll be fine. Come here.” My voice is commanding, almost challenging. Ivy is at my side in seconds and she smells incredible. I cage her between me and the bar top, placing the sanding block in her right hand as I begin to gently guide it back and forth over the surface.

“What if I fuck it up?”

“You won’t. You’re doing great.” Her pulse picks up at my praise as my chest sinks against her back, holding her a little closer than necessary. She tilts her head to look at me over her shoulder, our lips barely a breath apart, and every bit of control I had slips right through my fingers.

Bringing my calloused hand up to cup her jaw, I watch as her eyes close, her lips ghosting over mine.

“Luca… please,” she whispers, and that’s all I need to hear. I pull her to me, taking her mouth in an all-consuming kiss, swallowing a gasp. Ivy’s ass grinds into my rock hard erection, and she lets out a needy moan.

“Sweetheart, I’m hanging on by a thread here.”

She spins in my hold, bringing us face to face, our noses brushing ever so slightly.

“Let go,” she breathes, eyes heavily lidded and filled with lust.

“I’m trying really hard to be a gentleman.”

“That’s very nice, Luca, but right now, I want you to disrespect me.”

I’m on her like a shot, hoisting her off her feet and onto the unfinished bar top, spreading her thighs as I prepare to devour every inch of her perfect body.

“I’m going to fucking ruin you, Ivy. Is that what you want?”

“Too late. You already have.” Ivy’s legs wrap around my waist, pulling me flush against her hot body. “Fuck me, Luca.”

“Oh, I will. Believe me. But first, I’m going to lick and suck and devour every inch of you, and by the time I’m finished, you’re going to be begging to come.”

“Those are some big words for a man who’s still fully clothed.”

“Brat.”

“Bossy.”

She smiles at the familiar exchange, and I wonder if she knows just what kind of effect she has on me.

I take a step away from the table. Her face is flushed and a quiet desperation flickers in her irises.

I reach behind my head, stripping off my threadbare t-shirt, then unbuckle my belt, pulling the worn leather free from the loops.

Ivy tracks my movements and her tongue dips out to lick her bottom lip.

“See something you like?”

“Mm hmm,” she says, spreading her legs further while she trails a hand down her body to reach between her thighs.

“Uh uh, that’s mine,” I command, stalking back to the table with my belt in hand. “Lay back. Arms over your head, brat.”

Her eyes are blazing as she follows my instructions like the good girl she is, laying her arms on the table above her head, palms facing up. I take them both in my grip, crossing her wrists before securing them to the bar clamp with my belt.

Stroking a hand down her arm, her skin is soft beneath my fingertips. I meet her darkened gaze, checking in to make sure she’s comfortable. “Is this okay?”

“Yes,” she breathes.

“Say red if you need to stop at any point. You’re in charge. Got it?” I’m expecting to see a little hesitation in her eyes, but when I search her face for any sign of fear, there’s nothing but pure heat and it’s fucking intoxicating. “You have to communicate with me. I don’t want to hurt you.”

“Yes,” the word comes out on a moan, sending a wave of desire straight to my cock.

“I want this, Luca.” I maintain eye contact as my hands work to unbutton my jeans, dropping them to the floor and kicking them off to the side along with my work boots, leaving me standing in only my boxer briefs, dick standing at attention, more than ready to sink into her.

Stepping between her spread thighs, I drag my hands up her body, taking her tank top with them so it’s bunched up under her chin, giving me access to her mouthwatering tits — more than a handful with perfect pink nipples just begging for my attention.

And who am I to deny them? I bend down, taking one delicious peak into my mouth, while I tweak the other between my thumb and forefinger.

Ivy lets out a breathy sigh, her body squirming underneath me as I make good on every filthy promise to devour her.

My mouth continues to trail down along her sternum, over her tight belly marked with the evidence that she brought my favorite person into this world.

She’s beautiful, and I have to stop to lay a kiss along every single mark.

Once I’m satisfied with my work, I lick a path from her navel to her waistband before I pull back just enough to tug her shorts down her legs.

“No underwear? Why did you really come in here tonight, Ivy? Were you really just here to ask for a favor?”

“No,” the word is barely above a whisper, her gaze lidded and heavy with desire. “Please, Luca.”

“Please, what?”

“I need you.”

“Where? Here?” I ask, trailing a hand up her calf, my mouth and tongue following closely behind.

“Or how about here?” I say, bringing my lips to the juncture between her thigh and her pussy.

“Or maybe you meant —” I pause, and she groans in frustration, causing me to chuckle. “Here?” I ask, trailing my fingers along her center. She nods.

“You’re soaked for me.”

“Baby…” she squirms under my palm, begging me to give her what she needs.

“Mmmm. I like it when you call me that. I think you deserve a reward.” I lean in, sucking her clit into my mouth before pushing two fingers into her tight cunt.

“Oh God,” she moans, her body writhing beneath me.

The taste of her arousal on my tongue sends a flood of desire coursing through my veins, making me absolutely ravenous. “You taste like heaven.”

I curl my fingers inward, keeping a steady pace as I feel her pussy clench around them. Her breathing is erratic and I know she’s close. “Come for me, Trouble. Come all over my face.”