It’s not a bad image to conjure up.
A set of bicycles hang from the ceiling and something that almost looks like a collapsible cage hangs next to it. I raise an eyebrow and point to it.
Walker shrugs. “Brutus likes to go on bike rides with us but his little legs can’t keep up. Well, that and he’s kinda chubby. And incredibly lazy.”
“Are you telling me you have that contraption so you can take your dog on bike rides without him having to actually run along with you? Do you pull it behind your bike or something?”
“Yes.”
“Isn’t that like what people pull their little babies in?”
He blushes.
I pinch his cheek and he looks away. “You’re blushing. Oh my gosh! That’s the cutest thing I’ve ever seen.”
“I am not. And besides, his legs are short,” he repeats in defense.
“It’s kind of hot.”
“It is? I mean,” he clears his throat and drops his voice. “Yes, of course it is.”
“Show me the rest of your home?”
“You got it.” He whistles then calls out for Brutus who comes back, ready to follow us back inside.
We walk through a door from the garage. There’s a mudroom combined with a laundry room right when we walk in. There’s two baskets full of dirty clothes on the floor. I kind of love that. It’s real.
“Sorry,” he says sheepishly when he sees me looking at the clothes.
“No way. I love it.”
“Dirty laundry?”
“Hey, we all have our dirty laundry,” I joke. He chuckles. “Honestly, though, for some reason, I love seeing this. Your home. It’s real and nothing pretend or fake.”
“I would never pretend with you,” he says carefully, the weight of his words sparking something inside me. What, I don’t know.
“I know you wouldn’t,” I whisper. He blows out a breath of… relief?
I press my lips together then turn, making myself at home as I snoop through the rest of his home. It’s an open floor plan, the kitchen enormous. The cabinets are painted a steel gray, the appliances black and countertops a bright white. There’s something oddly refreshing about his appliances compared to everyone seeming to have stainless steel lately. There’s a pot rack that hangs above a butcher-block island in the center of the kitchen. It screams masculine but sexy.
I slide onto the counter on the island and he stands in front of me, spreading my legs apart so he’s nestled between them. It’s not lost on me that I’m still not wearing any underwear because they’re still on the floor of his pickup and by the smirk on his face, I’m sure he’s thinking the same. “Do you cook?”
“I’m a thirty-five-year old single guy whose nephew practically lives with him, of course I cook.”
His fingers make a figure eight pattern on the inside of my thigh, sending a jolt of electricity through my body. “Will you cook for me some day?”
“Of course. I’ll even cook breakfast for you tomorrow morning,” he says, reminding me of his plans to keep me here for a few days.
I splay my hands behind me over the large island that has a set of four stools sitting next to it. “Is this where you eat?”
His eyes darken and he licks his lips, leans in closer.
“Yes. In fact,” his fingers flex against my skin then slide higher so he’s millimeters from where I want him most, “I’m certain it’s going to be my favorite place to eat.”
I blow out a shaky breath. “Me too.”
He hums, tracing my bottom lip with his thumb. I part my lips and he slides his thumb inside my mouth. I suck gently, my tongue swirling around his thumb.
Thunder rolls in the distance, a low rumble. Walker takes a step back and helps me down off the counter then he continues walking me through his home. The chocolate brown leather furniture in the living room looks well-worn and so cozy. There’s a stone fireplace with a large flat screen TV hanging above the mantel across from the couch. There are a few picture frames hanging on the wall. Grayson’s face smiles back at me all at varying stages of childhood. I take my time perusing through his things, unapologetic in my nosiness.
“Come here.” I spin around at the sound of Walker’s voice. His arm is outstretched and I go to him. As soon as I’m near, he tucks me close. “I like seeing you here.”
My next words come out slowly when I admit, “I’ve dreamt of this home.”
“What?”
“Your home. I’ve had this dream home in my head for almost twenty years. When I was a teenager and realized how badly my parents sucked, my nights were filled with dreams of a future.” I shift, spreading my arms out. “This is what I dreamed.”
“My house?”
“Yes. Almost down to the color of your walls and flooring. It’s…”
“Meant to be.”
I chew the inside of my cheek, feeling on the brink of tears but remembering I promised him no more tears, even if it was because of happiness. Which these definitely are.
“You fit here.”
I blink and swallow the emotion down as a loud crash of thunder booms, shaking the house. Lightning flashes just seconds later before the patter of rain starts hitting the windows.
“I’d like to see your bedroom.”
“That I can definitely do.”
He lifts me, throwing me over his shoulder and I squeal, glad he brought us back to playful again.
I don’t know how he did it. I didn’t expect to trust anyone with my heart again.
But I’m throwing it at him and hoping he’s catching it, because my heart? It’s gone for him.
“ONCE WE DO THIS, YOU’RE mine. You get that, right?”
“You say that as if I wasn’t already yours.” If I wasn’t hard already, her words would have just made me that way.
“Again.”
“I’m yours,” she answers without hesitation. I slam my mouth to hers, our tongues battling for dominance. I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of her taste or the sound she makes at the back of her throat when we kiss.
As soon as I cross the threshold into my bedroom, I waste no time in getting her to my bed. She took her time exploring part of my home but she’ll have the rest of the weekend to go through the rest of it. Right now, I have some exploring of my own I plan on doing.
I stretch my body over top of hers, careful to keep most of my weight off her. I went back and forth on what to do with her tonight for our date and was relieved when she showed me that I nailed it. When we pulled up to the drive thru taco place, she beamed. Then, she shocked me even more when I told her where we’d be eating them; on a blanket in the park around dozens of families there to watch an outdoor movie. She flew across the seat and wrapped her arms around me, hugging me so tightly.
I’ve had a lot of proud moments in my life. Graduating vet school, starting my own clinic, being there for all of Grayson’s milestones. But knowing I could make Ellie this happy simply by understanding who she is makes me feel like I could climb Everest. Without training.
I raise up on one forearm, reaching behind me to pull my shirt off. I toss it to the side. As soon as my upper body is bare, her lips are on me. Her tongue making small circles as she caresses my chest with her mouth. She sucks lightly around my nipple and I have to fight against letting my body fall on hers. I’ve been waiting my entire life for Ellie. My hunger for her will never be satisfied. It’s so much more than lust. From the moment I saw her standing along the highway, there’s been a storm brewing inside me wanting to claim her as mine. Every second I’ve spent with her has only made my need for her stronger. My desire deeper. For every part of her—heart, body and soul.
A curse explodes from my lips when her hand slides down my chest, tracing the contours of my abs before her slender fingers slip under the waist band of my shorts. My skin is heated from her touch. I don’t stop her when she shifts to slide my shorts down my thighs. How could I when my nerve endings are firing, ready to explode?
I’m com
pletely naked above her and she’s still fully clothed.
“This won’t do,” I mutter and begin to peel the dress that’s been teasing me all night from her body. Reaching behind her, I struggle with the clasp of her bra.
“It’s like these things are made to torture men,” I groan when I can’t get it unhooked. She giggles, the sound light and tinkling and a direct line making me so hard I’m worried I’m going to explode before we get to the good stuff. She helps me out, flinging her nude silky bra across my bedroom. I hope we can’t find it the rest of the weekend.
In no time, we’re both naked. I sit up, wanting to see her. Needing more than anything to see her—to know this is real. That’s she’s here with me.
Her curves are subtle. Her breasts perfectly proportioned to her body, her hips flare out from her waist. She’s feminine but not delicate. I brush my thumb over a small scar on her stomach. She has an almost matching one on her other side.
She notices me focusing on it and she explains, “When I was little, I would go to this old shed at the back of our property line. My parents never went into it so I kind of made it into my own playhouse. I would spend hours in there. It was my safe space.” Her voice is quiet and I want so badly to ask why she needed a safe space from her parents but there’s time for that.
“And the scar?”
“So stupid,” she grins. “One night I decided I was going to redecorate. I mean, I was ten so my idea of redecorating wasn’t necessarily advanced, however, I knew I wanted to have some little shelves. I found some old wood my dad wasn’t using anymore and asked a neighbor how to make a shelf. He loved wood working so he helped me get them made but I was determined to hang them by myself. Apparently, I shouldn’t be trusted with a hammer,” she rolls her eyes, looking down at me. My thumb continues to rub over the small scar. “I hung one of the shelves kind of low to the ground so it was almost like an end table hanging from the wall. Anyway, it was summertime and hot as balls, obviously, so I was in my swimsuit.”
I waggle my eyebrows then stop. “Wait. Never mind. I’m not some gross perv. You said you were only ten, right?”
She bursts out laughing and nods, eyes shining with happiness.
“Okay, ignore me. Go on.”
“I was hanging out on my hot pink bean bag and suddenly one end of the shelf came swinging down. The corner caught against my stomach, and sliced into it. I was so scared that I would be in trouble so I never told anyone.”
“You probably needed stitches.”
“Maybe, but I’m all healed now.”
I wonder what she’s talking about being healed. Her injury… or her heart? Or maybe her childhood. I have so many questions but the look in her eyes tells me that she doesn’t want story time to continue.
I kiss the small scar, dragging my tongue over the pink skin. “I’m sorry for what happened to you.”
“It wasn’t your fault.”
“And the other one?”
“My appendix burst.” She says it simply, but I can tell there’s probably more to that story. My guess is that it took her shitty parents a while to get her to the hospital. The thought of her almost dying because of infection spreading in her body due to her parents not taking care of her the way they should makes my blood boil.
Resting my chin on her stomach, I meet her eyes. “I know you didn’t have a great upbringing and when you’re ready to talk about it, I’m all ears. I want you to tell me everything because there’s not a single part of you I don’t want to understand better so don’t take this wrong when I say that right now, we’re going to focus on us and the way we make each other feel, that you’re in my bed and how right it is, and… the fact that we found each other.”
She bites her bottom lip and nods. “I wish we’d found each other sooner.”
“Me too, but I’m grateful we’re here now. Remember, we’re only looking forward.”
“No rearview mirror, right?”
“Only if I’m behind you,” I wink suggestively then wonder what the hell I just said and why I thought it was sexy in the first place. I shake my head and blink. She bursts out laughing at me. I need to get us back to where we were before I brought the whole evening to a lull by having to talk about the past.
My palms flatten against her hips, holding her still as I continue to use my mouth to taste every inch of her, recreating everything that I told her I would do to her when we were on the phone two nights ago. Wedging my shoulders between her thighs, I graze her center with the tip of my tongue. The taste of her on my fingers was nothing in comparison and I groan, a guttural noise coming out of my throat.
“Walker,” she pants.
“Yeah,” I grunt into her folds.
She tosses her head back, jamming it into the pillow and moans loudly. She fists a hand in my hair, pulling and tugging on the strands of my thick hair.
She squirms beneath me and I have to work to keep her settled. Her heels dig into the mattress beside me as she pushes herself deeper against my mouth. I skim my hands up her stomach to her breast, squeezing and feeling the weight of it in my palm.
“Walker,” she shouts, her hips bucking up into me as I suck on her clit.
I hum against her, sending a jolt directly to her core and her fist tightens, keeping my face planted firmly against her. Like I had any plans of moving.
She cries out again, this time her breath stutters as she whimpers, thrashing her head from side to side. I ease up slowly, letting her come down from her high and crawl up her body, kissing my way up to her mouth. She grabs my face, plunging her tongue into my mouth, tasting herself. The heat between us intensifies and soon we’re grinding against each other.
I roll us over and she slowly crawls up my body, her breasts rubbing against my chest until they’re in my face. She leans over me and I press them together. I take her in my mouth, sucking on both of her nipples at the same time. Ellie cries out, pushing her body farther into me. I flick my tongue and we both moan. Her body is so responsive, my own answers back by raising up, begging for some sort of contact with her.
I lick and suck until she soars, her heat grinding against my stomach as she rides out the waves of another orgasm.
“There is nothing sexier in the world than watching you come undone.”
“You’ve seen it a few times now, so I guess it’s a good thing you enjoy watching it.”
“Enjoy? No. I plan to experience this multiples times every single day for the rest of our lives,” I tell her and the words are barely out of my mouth before I realize what I’ve just said.
I still beneath her and take a risk, flipping us over again. I press her hands into the mattress above us, bending low to kiss her.
“I didn’t mean to freak you out.”
“You didn’t.” The smile she gives me is all the proof I need that she’s telling the truth. “Don’t think I haven’t thought about how crazy this is. It wasn’t that long ago I was wearing a wedding dress the same day I met you.”
I flinch and can’t stop the sneer that takes over my face. “Sorry, I know I have no right but I hate the thought of you with anyone, especially him.”
“Why don’t you have the right to hate that? You said I was yours,” she reminds me.
“Damn right you are,” I growl. “Ellie, I need to…” my voice trails off as I swivel my hips.
“Well then, what are you waiting for?”
“Absolutely nothing.” Then I pause, poised at her entrance.
“What’s wrong?”
“Do I need to grab a condom?”
Her eyes widen in understanding. “Well, this is awkward. I’m clean. In fact, I was tested recently and we always used condoms.”
“Pill?”
“I’m covered.”
“You trust me?” I ask because I need her to say the words.
“I trust you, Walker. Please. I want to feel you and I really need you to fuck me now.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
In one hard thrust,
I’m buried deep inside her.
“Holy shit, Ellie. You’re tight.”
“It’s um, been a while,” she admits sheepishly. “Even before, like a few months.”
“Well, it’s been longer than that for me so I apologize now if this goes quicker than either of us want it to but fuck you feel amazing. Better than my imagination.”
“Better than phone sex?”
“Phone sex was hot but this… unexplainable,” I tell her, continuing to push into her, swiveling my hips slightly so I hit her g-spot. She starts squirming and I continue to drive deep, pulling out slowly so just the tip is in before slamming back into her again.
She cries out, raising her own hips up to meet mine. I slide an arm under her left leg and throw it over my shoulder. Her fingernails no doubt leave marks as they dig into my back.
The room smells and sounds of sex and it’s the best combination that’s ever graced this home. I’m never letting her leave.
“You’re mine, Ellie. You know that?” I grunt, through my harsh breathing.
“I’m yours, Walker. You’re mine.”
“Yes. Fuck yes.” Hearing her say that sends me almost over the edge. I have to actually flex my ass cheeks together so I don’t come before her.
“Play with your clit,” I demand and her hand slides down, pinching her nipple once before rubbing a small circle against herself.
Before long, she’s squeezing me so tightly and I can’t stop myself from what’s next.
“I’m coming,” she screams out and I follow her over the edge, coming so hard that I wonder if my balls just exploded.
I drop half on her and half off as I suck in air, fighting for every breath.
“Wow.”
“You can say that again,” I say.
“Wow.”
I chuckle and the movement causes her to moan.
“I can’t wait to do that again,” she says.
“Give me a few minutes first then I’ll be ready to go.”
“Just a few?”
All I Need Page 21