Total pages in book: 34
Estimated words: 32155 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 161(@200wpm)___ 129(@250wpm)___ 107(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 32155 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 161(@200wpm)___ 129(@250wpm)___ 107(@300wpm)
But he isn’t. He rises and slides his lips over mine, letting me taste myself on his tongue before breaking the kiss.
“I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for a soft bed.” He shuts off the shower before facing me once more.
He grabs a towel and dries me off, then takes care of himself, quickly and efficiently. He drops the towel and swings me into his arms.
I clasp my hands around his neck and laugh. “Shane!”
He grins as he deposits me on the bed and comes down over me, his heavy erection pulsing against my belly, pressing deliciously against my clit, sending ripples of awareness through my veins. Arousal awakens inside me again, my sex wet and ready for him.
“Are you going to get a condom?” I ask.
He dips his head and lets out a groan. “We used what I had on me. Fuck.”
I blow out a shaky breath. “I get shots,” I say, meeting his gaze. “It’s just simpler for me.”
His blue eyes turn serious and intense. “You’re sure?”
“For you? Yes.” He doesn’t need to know that I’ve never had sex without a condom or that I trust he won’t do something reckless and put me at risk. His honor is one of the things I admire about him. Even after all this time, I know he won’t hurt me.
He nods, his jaw clenched, as he takes in the implications of my suggestion. This will change things between us on a deep level neither of us can take back.
“Are we good?” I ask shakily.
“Yes. Do you want to know why?”
I nod, running my hands over his damp hair.
“Because that means I’m going to feel every sweet inch of you,” he replies, bracing his arms on either side of the bed and pushing himself into me in one swift thrust.
I certainly feel every last inch of him. I arch my back, pulling him deeper, clenching around him, and delighting in the waves of desire that overtake me.
This feels different. He feels different. Raw, powerful…and meaningful, I think, and moan as he slides out, only to drive back in with a loud groan.
“God, you feel incredible,” he mutters, rocking into me, sensually, slowly, when I expect another hard, fast taking.
He places his arms on either side of me and pushes himself up as he continues his passionate assault on all of my senses.
He smells good, his skin feels hot beneath my hands, and I am lost in sensation, so when my orgasm comes, it comes differently than before. I am swept away in an incredible wave of pleasure that takes me higher and carries me over into pure bliss.
* * *
Shane
In a complete one-eighty, Talia falls fast asleep right after sex, and I lie awake, thinking. Because that…that was …something else.
Talia is something else.
I always knew she was different. And if I was a different kind of man, I’d be thinking more serious thoughts about my little brainiac.
In our short time together, she’s blasted through the wall I erected since my divorce. I’m not worried about her fragility, because she’s more than proven herself strong and capable. She doesn’t panic. She isn’t afraid. She stands up for what she worked so hard for. And she is a woman who knows her own mind, understands what she wants out of her career. Out of her life.
In another time or place, she’d be my perfect woman. But nothing can change the fact that I am a man always in dangerous situations, rarely home, and she is a woman who deserves commitment. A man who’ll be there for her at the end of the day.
Of course, she doesn’t want that kind of relationship. What was it she said?
With love comes inevitable loss. I’d like to minimize any more pain in my life. I keep my relationships light.
I can relate to the sentiment…even if, looking at her, I wish things were different. For both of us.
I shouldn’t be surprised I went from another chance to sleep with this woman to thinking such serious thoughts.
This is Talia, after all. The girl I had a thing for when I was too young and stupid to know what to do with her, how to take care of her better. I know now. And no matter how fast my heart beats around her, no matter how much I enjoy her or want her in my life, that is a lesson I learned. How to put others before myself. How to put her first.
So I’ll get her to her professor friend, figure out how to keep her formula safe, and go back to the life I know. I have no business considering relationships. At all. No matter how much a part of me wants to.
* * *
Talia
Dinner in the downstairs restaurant consists of the most delicious steak meal I’ve ever had. A juicy filet, creamed spinach, a baked potato loaded with sour cream, and I am in food heaven.