Twice Cherished

by Ava Branson

  “Ah yes, back to Edith.” He pulled his chair closer to the table and copied my posture, bringing his face inches from mine. “Have I told you recently how incredibly easy it would be to spend an entire day just looking at you?”

  Normally my automatic response to a cotton candy line like that would be to scoff it off and move on, but something in his face told me he was only teasing a little bit. Between his piercing blue eyes, those beyond sexy lips, and pretty much everything he ever said, kept knocking me for a loop and it had become increasingly hard to keep my equilibrium.

  I had to struggle to clear my throat. “Edith?” I asked, pointedly.

  He gave me a look that let me know I was glossing over his comment. “Yes, so back to Edith. Unfortunately, the elderly gentleman died of a heart attack, and even more unfortunate was that it was at the house. Edith found him the next day.”

  “Oh, my God, how awful for her.” I could only imagine how horrible that would’ve been for anyone to go through, and Edith, despite Devin’s trying to portray her as a tyrant, was anything but and probably a very deeply caring person.

  “Yeah, it wasn’t too great for him either—what?” He complained when I scowled. “It was a joke! Just a—” He held up his hands in surrender. “Okay, okay, tacky, I know. I’m sorry. Anyway, when the house came on the market, I flew in to see it and she was there, dogging my every step. She didn’t talk much while I toured the property, but she didn’t miss a single move I made. At first, I thought it was a little odd, you know? Every corner I turned, there she was, either sizing me up or keeping tabs on me. I couldn’t tell which. But, I liked the house and I must have passed whatever test she was giving me because—and you’ll appreciate this—when I told the realtor I wanted to put in a bid, she stood in the corner of the living room, arms crossed, and a part of me wondered if I shouldn’t have asked her first.” He shook his head and snorted. “I guess she’d decided I was acceptable enough to own the place. And I’m only half kidding on that score.”

  I grinned at the image of Devin walking through the house and a silent, but hawk-eyed Edith following him from room to room, making sure he didn’t break anything, take anything, or otherwise taint her domain.

  The waitress appeared to ask if we were ready to order. He looked inquiringly at me. “Would you like a few more minutes to decide?”

  “I’m in no rush.” Honestly, food was the last thing on my mind. I was still having to pinch myself to prove that I was sitting in a such a picturesque setting, across from the first man I’d ever had sex with. My first love. The one that I’d subconsciously measured all others by.

  He eyed me suspiciously. “What about the roaring beast?” He pointed to my midsection.

  “It’s sleeping for now. Ssshhh,” I urged.

  He shook his head and went ahead and ordered two shrimp cocktail appetizers.

  After she walked away, he explained, “To keep you socially acceptable, otherwise, if that thing goes off,” he pointed to my stomach again, “we’ll draw all kinds of stares.”

  I gave him a sheepish look, but conceded. “Yeah, probably a good idea. And, it’ll help soak up the alcohol. I’m not a huge drinker.”

  He wagged his brows and leered. “Are you saying I could easily get you drunk and have my way with you?”

  “I’m saying I don’t want to get drunk!”

  He lifted an eyebrow. “But what about the other part?”

  One look at the sparks flickering in his eyes and bam, just like that, my body went all warm and willing. One word, one crook of his finger, and I’d crawl across this table and into his lap. And he was worried my stomach would bring attention! Ha!

  “You make stringing two sentences together a challenge at times. Did you know that?”

  Maybe he could read my mind. His gaze drifted lower to my breasts. When he lifted those sharp, steel-blue eyes back to mine, time stood still. Voices around us faded into white noise. I no longer saw the water just beyond the deck nor the boats in the harbor. All I could process was the man sitting across from me, who could strip me naked with one look and leave me begging for more.

  He leaned over the table, taking my hands from my glass. “What I do know is I can’t wait to hold you in my arms again. To feel your mouth on mine.” My fingers began to tremble as he held them. I struggled to suck in enough air to keep the dizziness at bay.

  Whatever I’d kidded myself into thinking before tonight, I’d been wrong. Way wrong. I wasn’t going to leave this island a whole person. Devin would forever hold my heart and no matter the outcome, I no longer cared about the risk.

  The thought both thrilled and terrified.

  He slowly let go of my hands and sat back in his chair, picking up his glass and taking a long sip of his drink. Looking down at the clear liquid, he idly traced the rim of the glass with his finger. I couldn’t see his eyes until he looked up, but my heart skipped a beat when he did.

  What I saw there was raw, primitive need. Emotions stripped bare.

  And—how had he phrased it? Grim determination.

  “I want a second chance, Micki. I don’t give a shit what happened before, or since, for that matter. I don’t give a shit how long or what hoops you want me to jump through, but I want to try. Again.” He shifted in his seat, scraping his hand across his strong jaw. “If you say you don’t want this, well, I’m telling you right now I’m not going to accept that. At least, not without trying anything I can…doing anything I can to change your mind.” He pressed his lips together in a firm line, the muscles in his jaw working as he stared at me. “I fucked up not fighting for you once before.” He shook his head slowly, twice. “I’m not going to give you up without the fight of my life. Not this time.”

  I stared at him for no more than five seconds. “Why are we here?” I asked in a faint voice, so soft it barely registered in my ears.

  He looked confused for a moment. “You mean, here?” He indicated the restaurant with a jerk of this thumb.

  I nodded, never breaking eye contact.

  Tense silence filled the air between us.

  He leaned far over the table, his tall frame bringing him an inch from my face. In precise, clipped words, he told me. “We’re here because I wanted to do this the right way. To show you that you matter. What you want matters—to me. Very much. I’m not like your dickhead ex-husband who didn’t make you a priority, Micki. I recognize your value. My goal is to make you see it, too.”

  How it was possible this enigmatic man had, in one day, changed everything I wanted in my life, I didn’t know. But I did know one thing.

  I licked my bone-dry lips. “There is something I want.”

  “What do you want, Micki?” he whispered hoarsely.

  “You.”

  Chapter Twelve

  Devin

  Against any rational explanation, my life was transformed in that one, single word. Nothing was the same, yet everything carried on, untouched. The earth still in its orbit. The setting sun, like it had done for millions of years, dropped toward the horizon. But not a single cell in my body felt the same. I let the feeling of being completely and utterly seduced by the look in her eyes, the raw need in her voice, bathe over me. My body burned hotter than I’d ever felt before.

  Something in my expression must have alarmed her. “Did I make a mistake?”

  I reached over and pressed my finger to her lips to silence her. “Do you know how that makes me feel?” She looked at me with wide, questioning eyes and shook her head. “I want you more than I want my next breath.” She shook her head against my finger and I moved it to use my thumb to trace the outline of her lips. They parted slightly as I went. “I feel like I’ve been given the most precious gift I could ever have. Again. As undeserving of it as I am—” I stopped as emotion clogged my throat. “I wanted to do this so you’d have time to figure out if you’d give me a chance, but I’m human and I’m done with this slow shit.” I lowered my voice. “Know this, Micki. I want you, all of you. Lost
in me, wrapped around me until you know in every way possible that you’re loved and cherished and wanted.”

  Reaching for my wallet, I opened it and pulled out a hundred-dollar bill. Throwing it on the table, I stood and grabbed her hand. “C’mon.”

  Hauling her up none too gently, I didn’t miss the ghost of a smile on her lips. I only hoped to God I could make it home without pulling off the road and making love to her in the Jeep.

  The ride home was made in silence. The sexual tension that filled the air was more potent than any words could ever be.

  Pulling up to the house, I slammed the car in park and got out and went around to Micki’s side before she could slide all the way out of the seat. I don’t know which one of us reached for the other first, but her hands were on my chest and mine were on her arms, drawing her to me. Crushing her lips to mine, I lost any hope of making it tender. The need for her was such that it quickly became a whole lot wild. The intense connection had my blood pumping and head reeling as she pressed her body, all soft and supple, against mine. Instinctively wanting to bring her up higher and closer, I slid one knee between her legs, easing her up, her back against the Jeep. A low moan vibrated in her throat and she dug her nails into my back at the same time I buried my fingers in her hair.

  Half afraid I was suffocating her, I started to pull back, but she wouldn’t have anything to do with that. Instead, she wrapped her arms around my neck and lifted first one leg, then the next, and wrapped them around my waist.

  I was gone.

  It was nothing short of a miracle that I didn’t rip her panties off and unzip my fly right there. A low, hard growl rumbled from the center of my body. “Sweetheart, I’m about five seconds away from losing my fucking mind. Or having a stroke, I don’t know which.”

  Her laughter was musical. “Don’t think you’re the only one.”

  I moved in for another kiss, vowing it would be hard but quick, before I carried her into the house. And up to my bed, if we could make it past the couch in the living room. My best intentions flew all to hell when she softly nibbled my lips and rocked her hips against my cock. I hissed in a deep breath at the contact. “Are you trying to fucking kill me?”

  Her eyes danced. “Is that what I’m doing?”

  “You know exactly what you’re doing, my love,” I growled. Just to let her know two could play, I cupped her bottom and deliberately ground her up and down against me. She cried out as her tender flesh stroked my erection.

  Her head tilted back and her eyes drifted shut. “Surrender. I surrender.”

  My hands stilled. “I hope so,” I murmured softly. We stood like that for a bit. Two souls reconnecting as one, washing away the lost time. I nuzzled her neck with soft, nipping kisses. She tightened her grip around my neck.

  With more control than I thought possible, I turned to make our way to the house. The last vestiges of sunlight cast long, deep orange and purple fingers of light in the sky, the darkening golden hues falling on her face as we went. She turned her face to the light, a soft smile on her lips. That image burned deep into my heart. I knew I’d never forget what she looked like as long as I lived.

  “You’ve made this perfect,” she murmured.

  Yes. It was. She was. I carried her easily up the steps and fumbled with the key at the front door. “Everything is perfect right now,” I whispered against her temple. Inside, I let the keys fall to the floor. Slowly, her legs slid down mine. A fire burned inside me so hot I was afraid I’d scorch her if I touched her. We stood for no more than one full second before our mouths were on each other, our hands grasping, gripping, desperate for more contact.

  There was no way in hell we were going to make it upstairs.

  Yanking my mouth from hers, I warned her. “There’s a perfectly wide couch twenty feet from us and I want to see you naked in the last bit of sun, so it’s a yes or no, Micki.”

  She trembled against me. “How can you even ask that?”

  I shook my head. “I need to know because there’s no going back from this point.”

  She framed my face in her hands and lifted those chocolate brown eyes to mine. “Yes. Please, God, yes,” she whispered.

  Before she finished, I had her in my arms and crossed into the living room, coming to the side of the wide white sectional. Gently setting her to her feet, I kicked off my deck shoes before sliding my hands from her waist to the hem of her dress. Slowly, I pushed the material up her thighs, my eyes on her face with each inch. She tilted her head back, her eyes hooded, watching me as I moved. I reached her hips. My blood pumped hot and hard.

  I lifted higher, until I reached a thin scrap of lace. Hooking my thumbs under the elastic, I eased them down the path I’d just come until they loosened mid-thigh and dropped to the floor. Retracing the direction I’d just come, I pulled her dress back up to the tops of her thighs when she reached down and grabbed the bunched fabric and lifted the dress up and over her head, leaving her completely nude in the amber light.

  I wanted to fall to my knees and savor every inch of her, but the fire that burned in my gut exploded.

  “Christ, you…you’re—” I couldn’t find the words to describe what she did to me. I only knew to show her. Sealing my lips over hers, I let my tongue show her my need. No thought to finesse. This was about raw, primal wanting. My hands drifted down her back until I cupped her ass. I moaned against her lips until she reached between us, wrapped her fingers around my cock, and began stroking it through my pants.

  I lost my fucking mind. “We’re done talking now.”

  “Thank heavens.” Her fingers flew to the buttons on my shirt, fumbling with the cotton. I started from the bottom up to help her until we met in the middle and neither one could manage the last button. Frustrated, I yanked the shirt so hard the button popped off and rattled off on the tile floor. She was pushing the shirt from my shoulders and down my arms. My hands went to the waistband of my pants and she joined me there, pushing and tugging hard when I got the button undone and the zipper free. Not stopping to wait for me, she shoved my shorts down right behind the pants until I could kick free from them and we were both standing without a stitch of fabric between us. She gave me a look filled with carnal promise and I was lost. I’d have gone to the seventh level of hell to have her. She dropped to one knee, and positioned herself to take me in her mouth.

  “Not yet,” I rasped, lifting her firmly by her shoulders. Postponing what I’d fantasized about a million times took more strength than I knew I had. “Not yet.”

  Firmly, I held her up when she protested and would’ve dropped back to the floor. Gently, I eased her back to the sofa and reached down and pressed first one thigh open, then the next. Kneeling beside her, I trailed my hand up her lower leg as I began to kiss her thigh. Slowly inching up to where I wanted to be, loving the soft sighs and hushed gasps as I went.

  “Oh, my God,” she moaned, beginning to writhe against the cushions. Her fingers grappled for purchase somewhere before digging into my hair with an almost savage movement. It sent me over the edge. Gently spreading her soft folds, I stroked her damp flesh with my thumb, committing to memory how ready she was for me. She sucked in a quick breath as she silently mouthed my name. I ran my tongue over her clit and her hips jerked upward. Sliding my hands to cup her bottom, I lifted her and held her firmly, dipping my tongue and tasting her until she quivered against my mouth.

  A low moan drifted from deep in her throat. “Devin—”

  I lifted my head and met her eyes as panted, her luscious mouth open, her face warm with color. “Do you want me to stop?”

  “No, it’s just—it’s not—”

  When she couldn’t articulate what she wanted, I lifted up and kissed my way to the center of her belly until I levered my body higher on hers, bringing my mouth to her breasts. The soft peaks of her nipples stood hard, evidence of her arousal.

  “Sweet Jesus, you’re gorgeous,” I mumbled, taking each peak into my mouth, gently worshiping then teasing
with the rasp of my teeth. She collapsed back into the cushions, her head thrown back and her fingers ripping through my hair with wild abandon. The rawness of her reactions pushed me to the brink of orgasm.

  I pushed my hand back between her legs and this time, they fell open shamelessly. I didn’t have to coax her. First one finger, then a second. She arched her back, moaning, her head thrashing back and forth on the cushion. God, I wanted her to come with my mouth, not my fingers. After one last thorough taste of her nipple, I lowered my head between her legs, gently sucking once, then twice. She curled upward, digging her fingernails into my shoulders, begging.

  “Oh my God, oh my God…Devin. Yes, please!” she panted, pulsating against my mouth.

  Moving one hand underneath her, I gently slid one finger, then two, inside her. She rocketed upward and hissed in a breath between clenched teeth. I lifted my eyes to hers and moved only enough to slip another finger into her. She cried out and rocked her hips, setting her own pace. I grew closer to coming watching the ecstasy ripple over her. Her head dropped back, her hair moving with her body, and she gasped my name out loud. Her body tensed.

  “My mouth. I want you to come with my mouth on you.”

  She clenched around my finger and convulsed against me as her orgasm crashed through her. As her body eased, I reluctantly left her warmth and kissed my way up her body. I levered my own across her silky one, steeling a long, lush, wet kiss.

  “You taste delicious,” I murmured. She smiled, still in a haze. Lifting her legs to position herself higher on my hips, she nudged her still pulsating, soft core against the scalding hot length of my cock. I sucked in a harsh breath.

  “I need to feel you inside me,” she urged. “Now.”

  “Hold on, sweetheart.” Never resenting the need for a condom more, I left the softness of her body to retrieve my pants, wherever they’d ended up. And my wallet. I worried for a minute if I still had one in my wallet. Digging through it, I found the one and only one in there.