by Erin Rylie
Sophie was looking over the menu, trying to decide what she wanted, when their server approached. She was stunning, with long, blonde hair loosely curled and pinned away from her face. She wore a standard uniform for a waitress: black pants, black button-down shirt, and black apron, but on her it looked incredible. Oh, and she was looking at Rafe like she wanted to eat him up.
“Good evening,” she said, eyes never leaving Rafe. “My name is Shelby and I’ll be taking care of you this evening. What can I get you to drink?” Shelby offered Rafe a dazzling smile, not once looking at Sophie.
Rafe, for his part, seemed to be completely oblivious to the attention. “I’ll take a glass of water please. What about you, Soph?” As he asked, he reached across the table, placing his hand over hers and rubbing lightly with his thumb.
The gesture did not go unnoticed by their server, and her eyes finally met Sophie’s, narrowing. Sophie shifted uncomfortably and pulled her hand out from under Rafe’s. She’d experienced this before with her exes. Charlie, for his part, had always assured Sophie that he only wanted to be with her, but she could always tell that he secretly enjoyed the attention. Feeling tense and uncomfortable again, Sophie quickly ordered her water and returned her gaze to the menu in front of her. She should have known this would happen. Dating Rafe was a terrible idea.
She knew she was being at least a little irrational. It wasn’t Rafe’s fault he was “Houston’s Hot Cop,” but when she’d brushed things like this off in the past, she had been wrong to. Charlie had cheated on her, and she’d trusted him. She guessed a guy could only get hit on by so many attractive women before succumbing.
She was pulled from her introspection by Rafe himself. “Hey,” he said softly. “Where did you go?”
He offered Sophie a warm smile and put his hand on hers again. She shook her head and smiled in return. If she was only going to let herself have a date with Rafe, she might as well enjoy it. She could ignore Shelby for now.
“Yeah, just trying to figure out what the hell to order. This menu is all in Italian, you know.”
Rafe laughed. “The descriptions of the menu items are underneath in English.”
Sophie looked down at her menu and found that he was right. She smiled sheepishly and picked up her menu to hide her blush. “Know it all,” she murmured.
Rafe laughed again and pulled her menu down with his finger. “I’ve seen that menu plenty of times. I’d prefer to look at your face, Soph.”
Before she could reply, our horny-for-Rafe waitress returned, batting her eyelashes at him as she approached. She placed Sophie’s drink down with no care, some of the water sloshing over the side of the glass. Shelby put down Rafe’s glass much more gently, leaning down and practically shoving her ample chest in his face.
Rafe didn’t so much as glance at the cleavage that was practically under his nose and continued to look at Sophie, his hand still on hers. “Do you know what you want to order, babe?” He put extra emphasis on the endearment, having finally picked up on what Shelby was laying down.
Sophie raised her eyebrows, trying to contain her smile. “Why don’t you order for me, sugar bear.”
Rafe laughed loudly, his entire face lighting up with glee. He quickly placed their order, his lips caressing the syllables to form words she would have butchered. Damn, he was sexy when he spoke a foreign language.
Shelby, not one to be deterred or ignored, leaned forward once more. “I’ll get this order placed for you, but if you need anything at all, please don’t hesitate to ask.” As she spoke, she slid a piece of receipt paper across the table at Rafe. Was this hussy slipping Rafe her number in front of his date? Sophie looked to Rafe, trying to judge his reaction, and saw his jaw clench. Oh, he was pissed.
He slowly picked the piece of paper up off of the table and, without glancing at it, crumpled it in his fist. “I’m sorry,” he gritted out, jaw still clenching. “Are you hitting on me in front of my fucking date?”
Shelby stuttered out her response, “Well I just recognized you from Instagram. You’re the hot cop. I thought you might want to have a little bit of fun after you take her home.”
Rafe was clearly fighting for control, his hand now forming a fist on the table. Sophie reached out and covered his fist with her own hand. “Rafe, it’s fine. We can go. Just take me home, okay?”
He looked up and met her eyes, his blue eyes burning. They softened when they met hers, and he took a deep breath. “Please go get your manager. I think your boss should know how you’re treating the mother of my child.”
At this, Shelby straightened. She stuttered out an apology before leaving in search of her manager. Sophie was honestly mortified and wanted nothing more than to go home. Before she could once again ask Rafe if they could leave, he picked up his chair and moved it to her side of the table. The small table was only meant to seat one person on each side, so it was a tight fit. Rafe reached up and brushed her hair off of her neck, squeezing to soothe her tense muscles. He leaned in and planted a kiss on her jaw before nibbling his way up to her ear.
“Sophie, I’m so sorry. I’ve been coming here for years and that has never happened before.”
She couldn’t think with him this close, his hand still working her neck, his breath hot in her ear. She felt a shiver work its way through her body. She shrugged her shoulders and immediately felt his other hand on her cheek.
“Soph, look at me,” he demanded quietly.
She looked up and met his gaze, his hand still gently cupping her cheek. His face was serious, but his eyes were warm on hers, the blue so deep it threatened to pull her in. He used the hand that had been rubbing her neck to gently tuck a piece of errant hair behind her ear.
“I’m here with you, only you. If tonight goes well, I plan to go home with you too. And tomorrow? I’ll be thinking of you, not her. Just you.”
He planted a tender kiss on her lips and she closed her eyes, sinking into it. She ran her tongue along the seam of his lips, looking to deepen the kiss. Instead of opening for her, Rafe offered her another gentle peck before pulling back.
“Trying to start a scene, Sophie?” He leaned in to whisper in her ear, “I’ve wanted to fuck you since I picked you up tonight. Keep kissing me like that and we won’t make it to your house. Do you want me to get arrested for indecent exposure?”
Heat rushed through Sophie’s body, her nipples tightening. His words brought to mind images of their brief encounter in the bar supply closet.
He grabbed her hand and brought it to his lap where he was hot and hard for her. His lips were still by her ear, his breath caressing her neck as he growled in her ear. “You do this to me, Sophie. Only you. When you walk into a room, I pop a boner like a fucking teenager. It’s damn inconvenient in polyester pants, let me tell you.”
She rubbed her hand over his erection and he groaned, low and husky, before he pulled her hand away, lacing his fingers through hers and placing their now joined hands on the table. Before he could say anything else the manager of the restaurant came to the table, apologizing profusely. She assured them that Shelby had been relieved of her position and offered to wait on them herself. The rest of their dinner went smoothly, and Rafe remained on her side of the table. Sophie was amused to learn that he was a food thief, sneaking bites from her plate when he thought she wasn’t looking.
When the manager offered them dessert, Rafe looked at Sophie hotly, his eyes running down her body. He politely informed her that they had dessert waiting for them at home and asked for the bill. They left the restaurant hand in hand, and Rafe once again opened her car door for her. Once in the car, Sophie pulled her phone out of her purse. She hadn’t looked at it throughout dinner and wanted to make sure that Kelsey was doing alright. She and Kyle had fought again today; he wasn’t making their divorce easy at all. She didn’t have any messages or calls from Kelsey, but she laughed at the message she saw from her dad.
It was a picture of him holding a swaddled watermelon proudly. He’d be
en practicing swaddling and diaper changing since she’d told him about the baby. After he’d gotten over the initial shock, he had been thrilled at the prospect of being a grandfather. Her dad had already bought a crib and high chair for his house. He said that he wanted grandchild time at least once per month and needed to be fully equipped.
“What’s so funny?” Rafe asked from the driver’s seat, a small smile pulling at the corner of his mouth.
“Oh, my dad is practicing diaper changing and swaddling on a watermelon apparently,” she laughed. “I forgot to ask you, what did your parents say when you told them about the baby? Are they excited to be grandparents?”
Rafe’s grip tightened on the steering wheel and he was silent for a moment before sighing. “I don’t have parents. I was a foster child.”
Sophie immediately reached across the car, wrapping his free hand around hers. “I’m so sorry, Rafe. I had no idea.”
He shrugged and squeezed her hand. “It isn’t something I like to talk about, but it doesn’t matter anymore. You’re giving me all of the family I’ll ever need, Sophie.”
Her breath caught in her chest. She’d known that he was excited about their baby, that it had meant something to him, but she never would’ve guessed how special this was for Rafe. Warmth washed over her as she thought about Rafe as a father. Before she could ask more about his family, he pulled the car into Sophie’s driveway.
Suddenly nervous all over again, Sophie unbuckled her seatbelt and got out of the car before he could open her door. She knew what he wanted, and she absolutely wanted it too, but she wasn’t exactly feeling sexy these days. The dress hid her protruding belly, but he would see it if they were naked together. Butterflies took flight in her stomach, making her almost nauseous as she approached her front door. She placed her key in the lock and turned to look at Rafe. He was standing closer than she expected, and her breath caught at the softness in his eyes.
He cupped her cheek gently and pulled her in for a kiss. His lips caressed hers softly before he deepened the kiss, his hand gliding down her side as his tongue stroked hers. She reached up and wrapped her fist around the fabric of his shirt, pulling his body into hers as she moved closer to the front door. When her back hit the door, he placed his hands on her waist, the kiss turning rougher. He ground his hips into her, his erection resting against her stomach. She was on the verge of jumping up and wrapping her legs around his waist when he pulled back with a groan.
“Shit, Sophie. Are you sure? I know what I said at the restaurant, but if you want to wait, we can wait. I’ll go home right now if you want me to. Hell, I’ll even hold you while we watch some stupid chick flick. You set the pace here.”
As he spoke, his hands moved from her waist to her belly, touching the small bump there with reverence. All of her fears fled her mind as she looked into his face. He looked so earnest, and she’d felt how excited he was, how badly he wanted her. Yet he was willing to leave if it was what she wanted. Sophie thought about sending him home—they really should take things slow. But she didn’t want slow; she wanted him. Without another word, she unlocked her front door and pulled Rafe through it.
Chapter Twenty
This hadn’t been Rafe’s plan; he’d wanted to take Sophie to dinner, get to know her better, and then bring her home. He wouldn’t lie and say he hadn’t planned to kiss her good night and cop a feel, but he’d thought he would be going home alone, maybe spending a little quality time with his dick and hand. Now, with Sophie’s soft hand in his, her mouthwatering ass leading him through the dark and quiet house, he knew he couldn’t turn back for anything.
Fuck, I should go home.
His eyes dropped from her ass to the fuck-me heels she’d worn for him, and his dick twitched in his pants. He’d been hard since he’d placed her hand on his cock in the restaurant. The way he reacted to this woman was unnatural. He could lie to himself and pretend it was just the thrill of knowing that she was carrying his child, but deep down Rafe knew that it was Sophie. She fired him up like nobody else. Just standing in a room with her got him hot.
When he’d first seen her tonight in that tight black dress, her long, blonde hair flowing around her shoulders, he’d been tempted to say fuck the date and pull her back to her bedroom. He couldn’t even count the number of times he’d come at home alone in his bed, her name a breath on his lips, as he recalled their night at the bar. It had been, without a doubt, the hottest sex of his life. He’d always been a fan of hard and rough sex, always making sure his partners got off before he did. Now, with Sophie, he had the sudden urge to savor her. Rafe wanted to take his time, learn all of the dips and curves of her delectable body.
Sophie pulled Rafe into her bedroom and closed the door. He sucked in a breath, recalling the last time he’d been in this room. He’d found out he was going to be a father here. His life had been changed irrevocably on the hardwood floor by Sophie’s bed. He took in the details of the room—the white metal frame of her bed, the plum and gray bedding, and the small bookshelf pushed against the wall. The bookshelf was full, with books stacked on top. Sophie clearly needed another shelf.
He took a steadying breath as he returned his gaze to hers. Sophie’s lips were swollen from his kiss, her eyes half lidded with lust. Using the hand he still held, he pulled her to him, her lush breasts meeting his chest as he wrapped an arm around her waist. Rafe leaned down to nuzzle her neck, planting small kisses as he worked his way up to her ear. Sophie’s breath hitched and she let out a low, breathy moan.
“Are you sure, Sophie? If we start this, it won’t end until I’m so deep inside you that you’ll be feeling me for days. I want you so fucking badly I can’t even think straight. This is your last chance to decide you want to take this slow.”
“Rafe,” Sophie moaned. “Why the fuck are you still talking? You could be inside me by now.”
At that, Rafe snapped, crashing his mouth over hers. The kiss he gave her wasn’t the slow exploration he’d planned. He kissed Sophie with all of the built-up passion he had in him. His hands worked their way into her long hair, wrapping it around his fists as he tilted her head back, giving him more access. Sophie, never one to back down, gave as good as she got, twining her tongue with his and sucking his lower lip between hers to give it a teasing nip.
Rafe backed Sophie toward the bed, his lips never leaving hers. When the backs of her knees hit the mattress, he lifted her by her ass, breaking their kiss to toss her lightly onto the bed. He unbuttoned his shirt as quickly as possible, dropping it in a careless heap on the floor. He kicked off his shoes and socks before removing his boxers and dress pants. Sophie lay in the middle of the bed, her hair spread out under her, and her eyes on Rafe as he stripped for her. He ran his eyes down her body, taking in her perfect breasts, small waist, and full, rounded hips. Though she was short, her lean legs seemed to go on for miles. He reached down and took his throbbing cock in his hand, pumping himself once, his mouth watering as he thought of all of the things he wanted to do to Sophie’s delectable body.
She began to sit up, reaching for the zipper on the back of her dress, her pretty green eyes never leaving his dick. She licked her lips as she watched him slowly stroke himself. Rafe released his dick and leaned over her on the bed, placing a hand on each side of her hips.
“Get your hands away from that zipper, Sophie. I’ll be undressing you tonight.” He stood back up and gently pushed her upper body back to the bed. “Hands above your head,” he commanded. Heat flared in Sophie’s eyes as she followed his orders, her back arching as she placed her hands above her head on the bed. Rafe reached for the bottom of her dress and she raised her hips slightly as he pushed it up, giving him a glimpse of the red lace thong she wore.
“Oh you lying minx,” he breathed, smirking at Sophie. “No fucking underwear, huh? You’re such a goddamn tease.”
Seeing her splayed out for him like this, he knew he wouldn’t last long inside of her. He needed to make her come at least once before he
took her. Rafe hooked his arms under each of her legs and spread them, pulling her toward the edge of the bed as he got on his knees. He left her heels on and put one leg over each of his shoulders.
Rafe planted teasing kisses on the inside of her thighs, slowly working his way up. Sophie groaned through gritted teeth, “Rafe, stop fucking teasing me.”
He laughed and ran his tongue up her slit through her underwear, soaking the material. “Is this where you want me, Sophie? You want my tongue here? My fingers? My cock?” Before she had a chance to respond, Rafe pushed aside her panties and ran his tongue over her clit.
“Fuck, you’re so goddamn wet for me right now,” he groaned.
Sophie let out a long moan as he returned to his ministrations. He feasted on her like a man starved, sucking her clit into his mouth as he filled her with his finger. Rafe licked, sucked, and fingered her until her legs began to clench around his head, her hand finding his hair and pulling. Knowing she was close to an orgasm, he slowed down and looked up at her. Her greedy green gaze drank him in as he licked her, and he stopped, pulling his finger out of her completely.
“Hands above your head, Sophie.”
She removed her hand from his hair and returned it to its place. The moment her hand hit the bed, Rafe swiped his tongue through her slit, returning his focus to her clit as he thrust two fingers into her. She let out a long moan when he curled his fingers, searching for her sweet spot. He sucked her clit into his mouth and she screamed, her taste flooding his mouth as she came. He fingered her slowly through her orgasm, her eyes closed as her head thrashed on the bed.
When she’d come down, Rafe stood and pushed her dress the rest of the way up her body, revealing the sexiest red lace bra he’d ever seen. He drank her in greedily, slowly pushing one bra strap down her arm before freeing her breast from the cup of her bra. He sucked her nipple into his mouth and felt a shudder run through her body. While he sucked and nipped her right breast, his hand freed the left, pinching her nipple lightly. He moved his mouth to her left breast and his hands circled her to undo the bra clasp. Tossing her bra to the ground, he kissed his way down her body, returning to the lace thong—the only piece of clothing that still remained.