“Now, that does sound fun.” He kissed Leanna again, and a shiver ran down her back. “Really, she has very little time with you guys. You decide. I’m easy. I’m going to run inside and grab a drink of water before we go.”
“Hear that? He’s easy.” Jenna watched him walk inside.
Leanna slapped her arm. “Hey, he’s taken.” She knew from spending time with him that he was anything but easy. Whether they were out in public or spending time in private, if he wasn’t writing, Leanna was the focus of his attention. She glanced at Pepper panting at the door, watching Kurt. Me and Pepper. Leanna had thought that her life would include only her, Pepper, and her Seaside friends for years to come, and she was so glad to have been wrong.
HAVING NEVER BEEN to the Wellfleet Drive-In, Kurt wasn’t sure what to expect, but it wasn’t kids running around on the playground equipment and families backing their trucks and vans into parking places and piling in under blankets and pillows like one big slumber party, or setting up beach chairs behind their cars with blankets spread out on the asphalt and coolers full of food.
The drive-in played a family-friendly movie at eight o’clock and a movie for adults at ten fifteen. When Leanna had first mentioned that she wanted to watch both movies, he’d questioned the decision. He wasn’t exactly a kid movie type of guy. In fact, he couldn’t remember ever being into kids’ movies, even as a boy, but she said it was part of the drive-in experience, and he’d agreed, because she was, after all, Leanna. He’d brought his computer, and if the children’s movie was too painful to watch, he could start outlining his next book while she watched the first movie. He’d sent his manuscript to Jackie earlier in the day, and he’d touched base with Blue and was happy that the work was taking shape. Now he was looking forward to relaxing and watching the second movie, Prisoners with Hugh Jackman.
Leanna drove her van so they could all ride together, and she expertly backed into a parking place; then Bella, Amy, and Jenna jumped out of the van and joined her in setting up the beach chairs, complete with pillows, blankets, and bowls of snacks. Kurt and Pepper watched them create a comfortable slumber party of their own, and the whole scene made him smile.
The couple to their right had two small children, both dressed in pajamas. He heard the father tell the children that after the movie, they would go to sleep in the van and they’d drive home after Mommy and Daddy watched their movie.
What have I been missing?
He wouldn’t have pegged himself as a guy who might enjoy this type of Brady Bunch environment, with the noise and the chaos of lines and crowds hanging out by the snack bar. Now, here with Leanna, he found himself wondering what it might be like to bring his own children there one day. Their children.
Kurt left his computer in the van and joined the others on the chairs behind the van. Pepper settled in by his feet. It was a dark night with very few stars, and when the enormous movie screen came to life, it lit up the parking lot. The din of the crowds quieted as information about the theater, including emergency exits from the parking lot and a snack bar commercial that must have been shot in the 1960s filled the screen. Leanna’s eyes were wide, and the hint of a smile played across her lips. Jenna, Bella, and Amy sat with popcorn in between them, eyes glued to the previews. The brisk night air carried the scent of popcorn, and every now and again a parent could be heard shushing their child. Kurt probably would have gone forever without seeing a drive-in movie, and it would have been a shame. This…Being with friends and family, coming together without a computer or the Internet, but in real life, in real time…This was more meaningful than the extra hours he’d spent on his manuscript throughout the years. Leanna had opened another door to the world for him. There were probably a hundred things he had scoffed at over the years that, with Leanna, he might see differently, and he couldn’t wait to try them all.
Disney’s Frozen was playing, and by the middle of the movie, Leanna had moved her blankets in front of Kurt’s chair and built herself a comforter platform so she could sit between his legs and lean back against his chest.
And he loved it.
The coconut and berry scent of her shampoo—which he now knew was Aussie Aussome Volume and came in a purple bottle—and the feel of her body pressed against him in a relaxed, completely content manner, was something he’d never forget.
He remembered the picture for Siena and pulled his phone from his pocket.
“Do you mind if I take a picture for my sister?”
Leanna climbed right up on his lap. “Bella,” she whispered, then waved her closer. “Take our picture on his phone?”
Bella wore a sweatshirt that looked two sizes too big along with a pair of jeans. Her hair fell thick and wild around her face. She squinted as she lined up the picture. “Okay, smile.”
Leanna quickly planted a kiss on Kurt’s cheek.
“Perfect!” Bella laughed.
“Sneak,” he teased.
Jenna and Amy ran behind Kurt’s chair and crouched.
“Take another,” Jenna hollered.
“Shh,” Amy chided her.
Bella snapped a few more pictures.
“Want me to take one with all of you?” the man to their left asked.
Bella handed him Kurt’s phone. “Yes, please.” Then she crouched beside Leanna, and the stranger took a few more pictures.
“Thank you.” Bella retrieved the phone, and the girls giggled at the pictures.
In each picture, except for the one with Leanna’s surprise kiss, Kurt was caught looking at Leanna, and even he could see the love in his eyes.
I’m a goner.
Bella and the girls texted the picture from his phone to each of theirs, and eventually the phone ended up back in his hand. He texted a few pictures to Siena.
“I love you,” he whispered to Leanna.
“I saw it in the pictures.” She caressed his cheek, and he leaned in to her palm. “Besides, you must to put up with my friends.”
She curled up on his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck, then rested her cheek on his shoulder.
“I could stay like this forever.”
Forever sounded pretty damn good to him.
THEY RETURNED TO the cottage after midnight, and Kurt wondered how in the hell he was supposed to accept this night as their last night together until Monday. He wanted to wrap himself around Leanna and remain there until, by some act of magic, it was Monday and the days they were apart had passed.
Leanna came out of the bathroom wearing a black lace cami and matching panties. Her hair was mussed, sexily framing her beautiful face.
Okay, maybe around and inside you until Monday.
“That movie was really kind of disturbing,” Leanna said as she climbed onto the bed beside him. “The idea of those little girls and all the children before them being abducted. It’s terrifying.”
He reached for her. “It is disturbing, but it was a movie, babe. It was supposed to be scary.”
She traced a vein on the back of his hand. “Do you ever think about having kids?”
“Until I met you, I’d never met a woman I’d want to live with, much less have children with. But yeah, I do want a family. What about you?” Kurt was surprised that he didn’t break out into a cold sweat at the mention of having children. Wasn’t that what guys were supposed to do when their girlfriends mentioned having children or settling down?
She shrugged and began drawing circles on her thigh.
He wanted to draw circles on her thigh. With his tongue.
“I’ve never really thought about it in terms of when or how many, but I do want to have children someday.” She looked up at him then, the edges of her lips barely curved and her eyes sleepily seductive. “The thought of keeping them safe is a little frightening, isn’t it?”
He pulled her close, and she ran her fingers over his bare stomach. “If I ran from things that were terrifying, I’d never have become a writer, and I might never have allowed myself to go out with you.”
“I’m frightening?”
He kissed her forehead. “No, babe. You’re perfect. The thought of anything coming between me and my writing was what terrified me. But you’ve made me realize that there’s a lot more to life than being the best thriller writer. And with you, I feel like I can enjoy both. You defied the terror, and if you want children someday, then we won’t let fear hold us back there, either.”
“You know, I came to the Cape expecting to have a fun summer and maybe find a career, but I never expected to find you. Us.”
Kurt slid the lacy strap of her cami off of her sun-bronzed shoulder and kissed her silky skin.
“I expected to finish a book in complete solitude.” He slid the lacy strap from her other shoulder, and her cami slid down her chest and came to rest on the arc of her breasts. “I never expected to find you.” He kissed her neck. “Or us.” He kissed the tender skin just below her collarbone. “And now…” He held the edge of her cami between his finger and thumb and planted a trail of kisses across the tops of her breasts. “I can’t imagine going a day without you.”
Leanna’s breath hitched, and he slid his arm around her back, drawing her body closer, her lips a breath away. Her hazel eyes narrowed, full of anticipation; his body ached with impatience. He kissed her lightly. Her tender, warm lips pressed against his; her tongue moved slowly, searching, wanting. Her hips rocked into him, pleading for more. He could feel how much she wanted him in her touch, in the cadence of her breath. He sensed her need, and even stronger, he felt his own need growing thick and hard beneath his briefs and in his heart. He held back, relishing in the desire that drew them closer and made his muscles cord tight. She kissed him harder, urgently seeking his reciprocation. He wanted to please her so badly he ached—but he held back. Kurt’s heart pounded inside his chest as he lowered her to the bed beneath him. Her fingers grazed his jawline; then she cupped the back of his head and deepened their kiss. After tonight they had three nights without each other. Seventy-two hours of remembering their last night together. Kurt intended to give Leanna a night she’d never forget.
He drew back from the kiss and looked deeply into her eyes. “Can you feel how much I want you? How much I love you?” He spread her arms out to her sides and held them there, then kissed the inside of her elbow, her forearm, and down to the very tips of her fingers. He lingered there, taking each delicate finger into his mouth and drawing it out slowly, sensually along his tongue. He felt her pulse speed up, saw it in her writhing hips.
“God, yes,” she whispered.
“Relax,” he whispered back as he moved to her other arm and dragged his tongue along her hot skin, shoulder to elbow. He licked and teased until she fought against his restraint.
“Are you okay?” he whispered.
She nodded. “You’re making me crazy.”
“I’m loving you. There’s a difference.” He turned his attention back to her sexy, delicious body. One strong hand on each of her arms held her to the mattress. “If you tell me to let go, I will.”
She shook her head. “No. No. Don’t stop.”
He licked the sensitive skin below her earlobe. “Feel my hot breath on you.” He ran his tongue down her neck to her deep cleavage, then blew lightly on her wet skin.
“Oh God,” she whispered in one long breath.
Kurt used one hand to hold her and the other to slip out of his briefs; then he pressed his hard length against her thigh. “Feel how much I want you.”
“Oh God, yes.”
He released her arms, and she remained open to him as he splayed his hands and ran them down her ribs, her hips, and over her lace panties. She fisted her hands against the sheets.
“Relax. Surrender to my touch,” he whispered. His hands grazed the front of her legs, feeling goose bumps pebble beneath his palms, and he came down on top of her, pressing his chest to hers, his hips to her center, feeling his balls against the hot, moist lace between her legs. He shuddered with need as he lifted her hands over her head. She was breathing hard, her breasts heaving against his chest as he covered her mouth with his and kissed her greedily, gyrating his hips against her wetness, her desire.
He pulled back, leaving her breathless. “Watch me as I love you.”
He slithered down her body and spread her legs, then licked her through her lace panties. Leanna closed her eyes and arched her neck back. He rolled the top of her panties down low on her beautiful, rounded hips, then followed the line of flesh against lace with his tongue.
Leanna moaned, sending a chill down his spine. He ached to be inside of her. She was beautiful, perfect, sweet. She was his.
He drew her cami down her body, gathered her panties with the cami, and tossed them away from the bed. He took her taut, pink nipples into his mouth, flicking her nipple with his tongue, and was rewarded with a litany of sexy little noises of pleasure. He loved them, hungrily sucked them and grazed her flesh with his sharp teeth. She sucked in a breath, rocking her hips into him again and again. He met her hips with his and felt her wetness teasing him, taunting him as she writhed beneath him, angling for more.
“Please. Please, Kurt.” She looked into his eyes and thrust her hips against his.
“It’ll be worth the wait. I promise.” He pressed his cheek to hers again, smelling her scent, heightening his arousal. “I’m going to lick you.” He kissed her cheek, then whispered again, “To suck you.” He buried his hands in her hair and said in a guttural voice, “To devour you.”
She whimpered a sweet, sexy, sensual noise, and he moved down her body again and spread her legs wide, then did just as he promised, holding her thighs open, her hips to the mattress, until she surrendered to the pleasure, her toes curled under, and she cried out his name.
“Oh God. Yes!”
She fought against his strength, trying to arch in to him. He knew she wanted more—needed more—as her juices flowed and her inner muscles pulsed with heat. Holding her thighs apart, he spread her lips with his thumbs and brought his mouth to her again, bringing her right up over the edge, until she was crying out again.
“Too…much.” She tossed her head from side to side, breathing hard. “You. I need you. Oh God, Kurt. Please.”
He captured her pleas with his mouth and drove into her. Hard. Over and over as another orgasm ripped through her body and she clawed his back, crying out as he moved his legs to the outside of hers, pressing her thighs together, thrusting into her tight, wet center, feeling her body grip him, swallow him.
“Oh God. Jesus.” Her eyes sprang open. “Holy. Shit. Kur…Oh…My…Go—”
A bolt of heat shot from his thighs right through his groin and pierced his chest as he followed her into the depths of ecstasy.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
THURSDAY MORNING FOUND them, despite Leanna’s wishes for a few more days with Kurt. She held Pepper’s leash so tightly that her fingernails made moon-shaped crescents in her skin as she watched Kurt put his bags in the trunk of his car. She thought she’d prepared herself for his leaving. They were going to be apart for only a few days, and hell, she hadn’t even known him a month ago. She should be fine.
She was the farthest thing from fine.
Lonesomeness coiled low in her belly, and her heart ached for him. She memorized the sound of his voice, the smell of him. She missed his touch, and he wasn’t even gone yet.
Kurt closed the trunk and hugged her for the millionth time that morning. “You’re going to do great. Daisy Chain’s execs will love your products, and they’ll love you, and…And I love you.” He kissed her softly. “I’m going to miss you so much.”
“I’m…” Oh God, really? Don’t cry. Please don’t cry. She swallowed past the lump in her throat that had swallowed her voice. “I’m going to miss you, too. I’ll call as soon as the meeting’s over and let you know how it goes. Oh wait. I can’t. You’ll be at Jack’s wedding. You should call me when you’re done. When is the wedding? What time?” She ran her finger in circles along the
door of his car as she spoke.
He pulled her close again and brought her hand to his lips, kissed it, then held it tightly in his. “Babe, take a breath.”
She did. A deep one.
And then another.
Nope. Her throat still wanted to close, and those damn tears still wanted to fall.
“The wedding is Friday at ten, and I’ll text as soon as I can break away. Then you can call when you’re free. But today’s only Thursday, so I assume we’ll talk tonight once I’m in and settled, right?”
She nodded, still untrusting of her voice.
Bella, Amy, and Jenna walked out of Amy’s cottage and joined them with solemn faces.
“Aw. It’s so sad to see lovebirds part.” Amy pulled at the hem of her sundress.
Leanna nodded.
“Don’t worry. We’ll take care of her,” Amy continued. “We’re all leaving Sunday, so you’ll only have one night to be sad, Leanna, and Tony’s here, so you can cry on his shoulder.”
Kurt shot a curious look at Leanna.
“Don’t worry. They’re just friends,” Jenna said as she patted Kurt’s arm. “Unfortunately, Tony would never fool around with a woman he’s known as long as he’s known us.”
“Or with a woman who lives so close. Trust me. I’ve tried.” Amy’s cheeks flushed pink.
“You have?” Leanna’s eyes widened.
“Once. Remember that night we each drank a bottle of Skinnygirl Margaritas?” Amy crossed her arms. “I wasn’t exactly at my best that night. Or the next morning.”
The memory of the morning after came back to Leanna, and she almost smiled, save for the sadness that gripped her emotions and tugged her smile back into a frown. “I remember.”
Kurt squeezed Leanna’s hand. “I want to grab some ice water. I’ll be right back out. You ladies hug or reminisce about making moves on Tony, or whatever.” He smiled at Amy.
Leanna watched him walk away in his jeans and white linen, button-down shirt hanging perfectly from his broad shoulders—the shoulders she’d clawed at so desperately the night before that she’d left scratches on his tanned skin.
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