Total pages in book: 89
Estimated words: 82474 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 412(@200wpm)___ 330(@250wpm)___ 275(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 82474 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 412(@200wpm)___ 330(@250wpm)___ 275(@300wpm)
I blink, taken aback. “What for? You didn’t do anything wrong.”
“Well. Maybe.” She shakes her head. Worries at her lower lip, in a way that makes me jealous. I want to be the one biting her lip right now, damn it. “I could’ve heard you out sooner, though. Demanded the full story.”
“You did,” I point out. “I wasn’t ready to tell it yet.”
“Yeah, but…” She sighs. “I just, this could have been easier if we’d both opened up to one another fully from the start.”
“True.” I tilt my head. Slide one hand up her back to brace against her spine, right between her shoulder blades. I can feel the steady pulse of her heartbeat against my fingertips, like a drum. Steadying me. Fortifying us both. “But we’re doing that now,” I say. “We might have gone through some difficult things, but… it’s so worth it. To have you here now, to be totally open with each other.”
Her smile widens. “I’m glad I let you inside,” she says.
I let out a faint laugh of my own. “Me too.” I can’t imagine how I must have looked standing on her doorstep. Pathetic, probably. Or like a man in love.
Because…
Fuck. I think I am. In love with this woman, truly.
Then I lose that train of thought, because she kisses me again, and this time, I can’t hold myself back any longer. I grip her waist tightly and flip her around, sitting up in the same motion, and following her back down, all while she squeals against my lips, until we’ve rolled over completely and she’s pinned beneath me on the couch.
“Now,” I say, grinning down at her. I kiss her again, slower. The heat pools between us when I break away once more. “Let’s talk about getting rid of some of these damn clothes.” I reach for the top button on her shirt.
She arches her chest up to meet my fingers, lets me undo the top button, and then the next. One glimpse of her lacy bra underneath, and I groan, bending to kiss her chest, my tongue tracing her collarbone. I give up on the buttons and pull, hard. Her shirt flies open, buttons flying around the room.
She lets out a startled yelp, and then a laugh. “Shit, Lark.”
“I can’t wait any longer,” I tell her. “I’ve needed to get my hands on you for weeks now. You have no idea what it’s been like…” I dip to trail my tongue along the arch of her cleavage. Dip it between her breasts, even as I drop one hand beneath her back to undo the bra. “I’ve dreamt of you every night. I couldn’t stop feeling your body beneath mine, hearing your gasps.”
She twists beneath me, and her bra comes free. I throw it aside, already consumed by the sight of her, half-naked beneath me, her nipples hardening in the cool air of her living room. I bend to trace one with my tongue, lapping at the tip, with a smile as she shivers.
And then…
Her fucking phone starts to ring.
It’s a jarring sound. Who uses ringtones anymore? And it’s one of the loud, alarm-sounding ones too. “Shit.” Cassidy twists again, this time away from me. I lean back, and she scrambles off the couch, diving for her purse where it’s discarded by the front door. “I’m so sorry,” she mumbles as she goes, shooting me an apologetic glance. “I forgot to turn it on silent, but this is…” Her face pales as she looks at the screen. “This is… only for emergencies. One second. I have to take this.”
Before I can say another word—before I can offer to help with whatever’s wrong—she darts into the bedroom and slams the door shut behind her. I sit on the couch, staring at her bra discarded beside it, and her shirt crumpled nearby. Then I let out a sigh and lean back against the couch. I did a good job choosing it at least, if I’m allowed to say that. It’s comfortable.
But it’s hard to get comfortable anywhere with the raging goddamn hardon in my pants. I stare down at it, straining against the zipper of my jeans, and I know I’m going to lose my damn mind if I can’t take care of this soon. I wasn’t lying when I told Cassidy she’s all I could think about for weeks. All I’ve wanted since the minute I laid eyes on her.
I glance toward the bedroom door again. A low murmuring sound comes from behind it. Cassidy’s individual words are impossible to make out from here, but she sounds agitated. There are a few more long pauses and yelped responses from her, and then finally, she reemerges from the bedroom once more…
With a new shirt on.
I stare at the crop top she’s put on, confused. I get even more confused when she crosses to the door and starts to pull on boots.