Page 25

Marty

There’s nothing like a midday blow job to lift my mood.

Except maybe going down on her.

And that’s exactly what I’m going to do.

I dump Stevie on the bed while simultaneously yanking off my shirt. I stepped out of my shorts before I picked her up so now the only thing between me and her pussy is a tiny piece of pink lace. She said something about me removing it with my teeth, so I’ll start there.

I nibble my way up her right thigh, skimming my fingers along the silky skin.

Her body is absolute perfection, blemish-free and smooth, and I love touching her. Kissing her. Being inside her.

But right now, I have other things in mind.

I suck on her hip bone, teasing her, wondering if it’ll leave a mark. I’ve never been one for hickeys but a hidden one—in a place where no one else can see it—kind of turns me on.

I scrape my teeth down her side, squeezing one ass cheek, and then drag my lips along the curve of her hip. When I get to her panties, I take the end of the pink ribbon holding them together between my teeth and gently tug. The bow comes loose, and the small scrap of fabric comes apart, baring her to me even though the other side is still fastened.

Not in any rush, I move to the other side, repeating my movements, glancing up every so often to watch her watching me, eyes hooded and lust-filled.

Fuck, this is hot.

She’s hot.

Beautiful.

Sensual.

Responsive.

I can’t wait to taste her, so I slowly pull the other bow, allowing her thong to completely fall away. And the feast before me makes my eyes cross. She’s pink and wet, lower lips quivering in anticipation.

Without hesitation, I dive in, licking right up her middle. She gasps, her hips shooting up off the bed—right into my face. I use my finger to trace a trail along her labia, up to her clit, and then down to the opening of her vagina. I press just the tip inside, swirling it in the arousal pooling there.

“You’re so wet, baby.” I add a second finger and move them back and forth as I suckle her clit.

“Marty…” She whimpers, wiggling against me.

She’s tangy and sweet and better than any dessert.

I lap at her, sucking and tugging at the sensitive flesh, keeping my fingers inside her, until she’s panting and writhing and humping my face.

“Marty, please!” she cries out.

I scissor my fingers inside her and clamp her clit between my lips.

She shoots off like a firecracker, an explosion of arousal coating my face as she screams my name over and over.

Fucking music to my ears watching the most gorgeous woman I know coming for me.

“I need to be inside of you,” I growl, crawling up her body before she can move.

“Yes.” She wraps her arms around me. “Marty… I can’t get pregnant, and it’s been nearly ten months since I slept with anyone else. I’m okay if you don’t use a condom.”

I’m going to blow like I’m sixteen again, that’s how hot it is to think about fucking her bare.

I slide into her with one firm thrust that makes us both moan.

“God, that’s good,” she says, sighing, arms tightening around my neck.

“So good.” I press my lips to hers, kissing her softly. “You’re so beautiful, Stevie. I love being with you like this.”

“You make me feel…loved,” she whispers, her eyes finding mine. “And I’m not talking about being in love . I know it’s soon for that. It’s about how you treat me…how it feels when we’re together… Am I making sense?”

“Believe me, I totally get it.” I rest my forehead on hers. “I feel it too. I didn’t think I was capable of feeling like this again. Especially not this soon. But you’re…” It’s difficult to articulate what she’s come to mean to me in such a short time and I don’t want to say the wrong thing when we’re in the middle of something so intimate.

So I kiss her again, as sweetly as I know how, because I know that’s what she needs. She already knows I want to fuck her—what she doesn’t know is how much more I want.

I’m just not ready to say the words.

I don’t think she is either.

But she feels it.

She just told me so.

I pull out slowly and then glide back in, taking my time as I make love to her.

There’s plenty of time to fuck, but not this time.

She loops one leg around my back and shifts beneath me, giving me better access, so I plunge deep. She’s so damn warm and tight, trying to stay in control is the best kind of torture. But I’ll hang on for her. There isn’t a chance in hell of me coming first.

“More,” she whispers.

I thrust in and pull out, keeping my rhythm smooth and steady, the way I know she likes it.

“Harder.” Her voice is gritty, eyes closed, fingers digging into the skin of my shoulders.

“I don’t want to hurt you.”

“You won’t.”

She doesn’t have to ask twice.

I pick up speed and start pounding into her, the sound of our bodies slapping together filling the room. Her nails bite into my biceps as I move faster, hips arching up to meet mine with every thrust.

“Baby, I’m so close,” I pant.

“Right…there!” She shrieks my name a few times as we crash into nirvana together, bodies bucking, mouths locked, moans and whimpers escaping between kisses.

Finally, I collapse on top of her and pepper light kisses on her cheeks, jawline, the tip of her nose.

“That’s my girl,” I whisper.

At least, I think I whispered it.

Or did I just think it?

* * *

After our sexcapades, we must have dozed off because when I open my eyes the sun is low in the sky and my stomach is rumbling. I turn onto my side and nuzzle Stevie.

“It’s dinnertime, Sleeping Beauty,” I say softly.

“Hmmm?” She rolls into my arms. “What time is it?”

I lift my arm to check my watch. “Seven thirty.”

“We slept all afternoon,” she says with a soft laugh. “Wore each other out, I guess.”

“Can’t think of a better way to spend the afternoon,” I say.

“Same.”

“But I’m starving,” I admit.

“I could eat,” she says, sitting up.

“How about we get takeout and stay in? Then maybe just come back to bed?”

“It’s like you read my mind.” She nestles against me comfortably and I realize it’s been a long time since I felt this relaxed with a woman. Brenna never wanted to cuddle, never wanted intimacy. We had sex, of course, but in retrospect, she basically cut me off after Bradley was born. I don’t know exactly when she started sleeping with Philippe, but we only had sex once, right around the eight-week mark postpartum. And never again.

Has it been that long?

“I could go for Thai food,” she murmurs.

“Sounds good.” I reach for my phone and pull up a place I like.

I place our order and then we just settle back in bed, in no hurry to move.

“What would you think about staying here more?” I ask after a moment. “Not officially moving in together but giving it a trial run. What’s the point of me taking you home every night or us alternating sleeping here or there. Why not just be together as much as we want to be? Obviously, if you have an early appointment that’s closer to Chey’s place or whatever, you could go home, but I…” I hesitate. “I don’t want to play games, Stevie. I like you. I want to be with you. We don’t have to label it… I just want to live it.”

She doesn’t move, and she doesn’t respond right away.

“Babe, if you don’t want to, it’s okay to say no. I just thought?—”

“No, I do,” she interrupts, her voice soft. “But I usually jump into relationships headfirst, before I’ve had a chance to really get to know them, and as you know, my relationships are usually a disaster.”

“We’re not going to be a disaster. Even if things don’t work out between us long-term, I promise I will never treat you badly, cheat on you, or do anything to hurt you.”

“Somehow, I know that,” she says, lifting her head to look at me. “I trust you, Marty. I can’t explain it, but I do.”

“I’ll never break that trust. I don’t know what the future will bring, but I’m not going to hurt you, Stevie.”

She sighs and drops back down to the crook of my shoulder—still her favorite place to be. “When you called me your girl,” she says after a moment. “Was that a figure of speech in the aftermath of great sex, or…did you mean it?”

“I basically just asked you to move in with me,” I respond. “Of course, I meant it. I don’t believe in post-sex platitudes. If I don’t feel it, I won’t say it.”

“Let’s just take it slow, okay? I’ll bring over a few things every time I come over, and you’ll need time to adjust to my toiletries.”

I chuckle.” I’m good with that.”

“Things will change once hockey season starts.”

“And they’ll change again depending on what happens with my custody hearing. We’re going to need to be flexible.”

“I might start working more too. I’ve kept my schedule light because of the upcoming trial, but once that’s over, I don’t know what’s going to happen.”

“As long as we communicate, I think we’ll be fine.” I stroke her hair, loving how soft the strands are between my fingers. “The kids already love you, so I don’t think that will be an issue.”

“But what will we do?” she asks. “If you win custody and then we’re both traveling at the same time?”

“I talked to my mom before she left and she’s going to take a sabbatical this year so she can come out and help until I find a full-time nanny and get into a routine. She’d been thinking about it anyway—she wants to write a book—but this gave her the excuse she needed to pull the trigger.”

“How will she feel about me living here?”

“I’m sure it’ll be fine. She likes you and when it comes to taking care of the kids, the more the merrier.” I pause. “But I want you to know, Stevie, they’re not your responsibility. I don’t want you to feel like you have to give up your life or career to be their babysitter. That’s not why I’m asking you to be with me.”

“I know that.”

“Let’s find our footing first, then we’ll get into the details.”

She looks up, like she wants to say something, but then she just nods and rests against me again. “Okay. Yes.”

Yes?

I feel like there’s a much bigger conversation we need to have, but neither of us seems anxious to have it.

Not now.

Not yet.

If I’m honest, I don’t want to scare her off.

And I’m afraid she’s already scared.

I just don’t know what she’s afraid of.