He moved back down and kissed me, one hand holding my breast while the other hand lined him up with my opening. I gasped when he pressed inside, feeling every single inch of him.
“Mel, you’re so tight.”
“You feel so good,” I told him, rocking my hips against him. I lifted myself up and nipped at his chest, kissing and licking him playfully, trying to get to his nipple. He tasted salty, like fresh sweat and something sweeter. He groaned and began pumping himself in and out at a steady pace, causing me to fall back onto the bed. He kissed my mouth, nipped my earlobe, then licked his way down to my breasts. He paid each nipple proper attention before returning to my mouth where he picked up the pace. “Oh, Tyler!”
“Do you like that?” he asked when his thumb found my clit, moving in a circular motion that was dizzying.
“Yes,” I panted. “I’m going to come. Don’t stop. Please, don’t stop.” He leaned in and kissed me again as he pumped harder. I called out his name as a series of tiny explosions burst from within me. My body radiated pleasure from my center all the way out to my curled toes and clenched fists. I saw stars behind my eyelids as I vibrated with my release.
His pace quickened even more before he let out a feral grow and jerked inside of me as he came. He collapsed on top of me, our sweaty messy bodies sticking to each other as we kissed, coming down from the ultimate high we’d just experienced.
“It’s never been that good,” I confessed, speaking of the orgasm that nearly blacked me out.
“For me, either,” he said, his voice muffled since his face was in the pillow over my shoulder. I laughed and pushed him off me. He got up and discarded the condom and wrapper in his small bathroom. Then he returned, lying down beside me. I snuggled up against him and closed my eyes.
***
“Wait,” I said, holding up my hand. We were lying on our backs on Tyler’s bed, our heads sharing a pillow and our legs tangled up in the sheets after round two. The sheets were damp with our sweat and the room held the musty scent of sex. We were in the middle of a deep discussion about the benefits of late-night Chinese delivery when something occurred to me. “Why haven’t you ever told Preston what a shit Roger is?”
“I keep my professional life and my personal life separate.”
I lifted my head and looked at him, a confused expression on my face. “But he makes your work life miserable, and he doesn’t do his job. You do his job.” He’d confessed that to me weeks ago after he’d had an awful day at work. I couldn’t believe that Roger got away with even more than the rumors had let on.
“He’ll get what’s coming to him eventually.”
“But someone needs to turn him in for that to happen, and you’re in the best position to do that.”
“I’m not a rat, Mel. The last thing I need is to go running to Preston to tell on my boss. That kind of thing would spread through our industry like wildfire. I’d never earn a writing job with that on my resume.”
“Don’t think of it as being a rat, Tyler. It’s your brother-in-law’s business and Roger is giving the magazine a bad name. Surely people in the industry would understand, no one likes Roger. You’d probably get job offers.” It wasn’t even a lie; people would probably praise Tyler for getting rid of Roger. I know Brianna would.
“Preston knows Roger is a dick.”
“Then why doesn’t he get rid of him?”
“It’s not that easy, I guess.”
“Because he’s so good at his job? The one you do for him? Preston doesn’t know that, does he?” I didn’t know Preston Parks well, but from what little I did know, he wouldn’t tolerate Roger taking credit for someone else’s work, whether that person was his brother-in-law or not.
“Look, I’d really rather not be talking about Roger or Preston right now. Can we just bask in the afterglow and enjoy this moment?”
I sighed, knowing he was right. I was ruining our post-coital moment. “Yes, of course. I’m sorry.”
He pulled me into his side, and I rested my head on his chest. He kissed the top of my head. “Tonight was amazing, Melanie. Thank you.”
“Thank you, Ty.”
“Go to bed,” he kissed my head again and I closed my eyes, instantly falling asleep.
13
Tyler
I hate my job. I hate my job. I hate my job.
I was sitting in a meeting, taking notes, listening to Roger blast the advertising department for their lack of productivity. Roger. Talking. About. Lack. Of. Productivity. I could count on one hand—one finger—the amount of times Roger has actually done Roger’s job. He had some audacity.
“Did you get all that, Scott?”
Patronizing mother fu-
“Yes, Mr. Hoffstadt.” I was jotting down the names of the five people he just put on warning. In front of all the other departments.
“Now, if you could all be as productive as Scott here.”
“His name is Tyler.”
Oh...no he didn’t. Poor Joe. Poor, dumb Joe. He was a new hire, worked in the mailroom. While I appreciated him having my back, he had no idea what he’d just got himself into. You didn’t correct Roger. You just didn’t. It wasn’t worth it. If Roger wanted to call me Bob, I’d let him call me Bob.
“Excuse me?” Roger glared at Joe.
Joe shifted in his seat and looked at me. I gave a quick shake of my head that Roger couldn’t see. Then he looked at Roger. “I said,” he cleared his throat, “I thought his name was Tyler.”
I rolled my eyes. Shouldn’t have said anything, Joe.
“What does it matter to you what I call him?” Roger asked Joe, hooking his thumb at me.
“N-nothing, sir.”
“That’s what I thought.” Roger looked down at the agenda on the conference table. He probably would have fired Joe, but I didn’t think he knew who he was. “If no one else has anything to add, this meeting is adjourned.”
Everyone smartly said nothing, just collected their things and left the room. I stayed behind, straightening up the room so the next group who came in didn’t have a mess. That, and I knew if I waited long enough, Roger would be gone by the time I returned to my desk.
“What an asshole, huh?” I looked up. It was Joe.
I looked around, making sure the coast was clear before I nodded. “I appreciate what you said in there, but it’s not worth it. The best way to get by working here is to keep your head down and do your job.”
Joe nodded. “Thanks for the tip. Want to grab some lunch?”
I looked at my watch. “I can’t, I’m meeting my girlfriend.” He looked dejected. It sucked being the new guy, especially in a field dominated by women. Sure, You’re the Man was a men’s magazine, but there were still more women than men behind the scenes. “Maybe tomorrow?”
“That would be cool.”
Joe helped me straighten the rest of the chairs around the large, oak conference room table. I dumped a few coffee cups in the trash, turned off the light, and said goodbye to Joe. I had a date to get to.
***
Across the table, Melanie picked at her salad. She moved the lettuce, tomatoes, and chicken around her plate, but didn’t take any bites.
The salad should have been my first clue something was wrong. My girl didn’t eat salads. She wasn’t afraid to eat real food. The second or third time we hung out, we went slice for slice on an eighteen inch pepperoni pizza. She had no shame about it either, not that she should have. I thought it was awesome. A woman who actually ate...much better than some of the women I’d dated before, especially for one who worked in the fashion industry. Those women usually ate like birds, trying to fit into the latest designer outfit.
“All right,” I said, finally breaking the silence. Her head popped up, her big hazel eyes focused on me. “What’s going on?”
“What do you mean?” I raised my eyebrows and she sighed. She was caught and she knew it. “I’m sorry, I guess I’m a little nervous.”
“Why?” What could she have t
o be nervous about? We’d only been dating a short time, but we shared pretty much everything with one another. We kept no secrets.
She shifted in her seat, nervously looking around the restaurant. Was she going to break up with me?
“Mel?” My voice actually cracked a little.
She sighed. “My parents are having a party this weekend. I was wondering if you’d like to come.” She practically mumbled the last sentence, so I leaned forward and asked her to repeat herself. “I was wondering if you’d like to come.”
I took a relieved breath. “Why would you be nervous to ask me that?” She shrugged, looking back at her salad. “Babe,” I said, reaching across the table and lifting her chin until her eyes met mine. “You have nothing to be nervous about. You’ve already met my family.”
“Yeah, but your family is normal. Mine is not.” I raised an eyebrow. My family was far from normal. She rolled her eyes. “I’m not talking about the structure of my family tree, Tyler. I’m talking about behavior. Have you ever seen My Big Fat Greek Wedding?”
“Yeah, that’s the one with the guy from Sex and the City in it.” Now it was her turn to raise a brow. “I have an older sister,” I sighed.
“Uh huh. Somehow I think your knowledge of Sex and the City has more to do with your nineties obsession than your sister.”
“It started in 1998, most of it was in the 2000s. That doesn’t exactly qualify-”
“The fact that you know the year it began is alarming,” she deadpanned.
“We’re getting off track,” I said, knowing I’d pretty much screwed myself with that one. Yeah, I watched the show. Sexy single women living it up in New York City, what wasn’t there to like? Sue me.
“The party is probably going to be massive...aunts, uncles, and cousins.”
“I’m not afraid of your family, Spice.”
“I’ve never brought anyone home before.”
Ah, and there we had it. “What are you more afraid of? My impression of them, or their impression of me?”
She covered her face with both hands. “I don’t even know. I love my family and I lo-,” she looked away. What was she about to say? “I really like you. I’m not embarrassed about either of you, but my family may do something embarrassing.”
I reached across the table and took her hand. “I’m pretty sure that’s what families are meant to do. Don’t worry about it, babe. I’m sure it will be fine.”
Suddenly, her eyes went wide, and she pulled her hand back. “I am such an ass.”
“Huh?”
“Here I am complaining about my family…”
Oh, I knew what direction she was headed in with that. “Don’t be sorry you have a family, Mel.”
“I just feel bad.”
I fucking hated pity. More than anything else. I strongly believed that some of my former girlfriends dated me because they thought I was a project. An orphaned boy who needed love and affection. My sister had given me plenty of love and affection, though. Sure, it was a different kind of love than what I would have gotten from my mother, but I never felt like I was lacking. Once I got over being pissed at the world for my parents’ deaths, I was okay.
“Don’t,” I told her. Maybe too firmly because she startled. I reached for her hand again. “I’m sorry. I just don’t want you, of all people, to pity me.”
“I don’t pity you,” she said, but I could tell by the look in her eyes that she at least felt sad for me. I supposed that was okay. Over the last several weeks, I’d learned she had a lot of feelings. Not that there was anything wrong with that. “Even though your pop culture preferences leave a lot to be desired.”
“You really want to go there now? We’re in public, Spice.”
She shrugged. “Maybe you won’t cry like a baby when you have an audience.”
“I had something in my eye!”
“Right, it had nothing to do with me winning the argument that the New Kids are a better boy band than ‘NSync and Backstreet Boys combined.” She looked so smug leaning back in her chair with her arms crossed.
I stretched my arms out in front of me, entwined my fingers, and cracked my knuckles, preparing for war. Banter with Melanie was like an aphrodisiac, and I couldn’t wait until later tonight. “Let’s do this.”
14
Melanie
The toe of my heeled strappy sandal tapped against the floor of the train car as Tyler and I sped down the tracks towards my parents’ home in Port Jefferson. He rested his warm hand on my bare knee and the movement stopped. He had that calming effect on me.
Maybe today wouldn’t be so bad after all.
I had my man by my side—I had a man, period. There was nothing fun being part of a large family and being single. Everyone was always asking “When are you going to settle down with a nice man?” or, my favorite, “You aren’t getting any younger.” I was in my early twenties, Aunt B, thanks a lot for making me feel like an old maid. At least my arrival with Tyler would keep them off my back. It was times like those when I wished I had siblings to take some of the heat, but alas, I was an only child.
Tyler popped the lid on the Tupperware and ate another chocolate chip cookie. I couldn’t even shame him for it since he made the cookies. I didn’t have a culinary bone in my body. Something else my family always had a field day with.
“It’s going to be fine,” Tyler mumbled around the cookie in his mouth. He was careful to catch the loose crumbs in his hand.
“You can’t say that. You haven’t met them yet.”
“Parents love me.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Have you ever met a girlfriend’s parents?”
He seemed to consider my question, then shook his head. “Nope. Never really had a girlfriend I wanted to take that step with.”
And just like that, I was warm all over again. I wrapped my arm around his and leaned into his side, resting my head against the sleeve of his polo shirt. He smelled like fresh linen, but he couldn’t tell me what kind of detergent he used since he always sent his laundry out.
We’d unintentionally matched today, him in a pale blue and green striped shirt and khakis and me in a pale green gingham sundress. My white strappy sandals matched the lightweight sweater I brought with me for the ride home since the late summer evening may end up chillier than the warm day. Tyler was in brown loafers. He looked like a sexy prep. I wanted to demand the conductor turn the train around so I could take him back to my tiny apartment and do things to him.
Tyler smirked. “You’ve got that look in your eyes.”
I blinked, hating how my every thought showed on my face. Shrugging, I ignored his comment. “So remember, my Uncle James-”
“Doesn’t like to be touched, but his twin brother, David, is a hugger. I can tell the difference between the two of them because David has a full beard and James wishes he did.”
I gave his firm stomach a hard pat. “That’s not nice.”
He rolled his head back and laughed. “Spice, you said your Uncle James has been trying to grow a beard for years but can only manage to get a few patches here and there. Obviously, he wishes he had the beard his brother does.”
“Yeah, well he’s sensitive about it, so don’t say anything.”
He rolled his eyes. “As if I’d use your uncles’ beards as my icebreakers. I’m more concerned about not being Greek.”
I rolled my eyes. “They wouldn’t care if you were female. They’re just thrilled I’m bringing a date.”
“But you said your family was like the one in My Big Fat Greek Wedding.”
“Yeah, as in big and Greek. They don’t care if we marry other Greeks. Not that you and I are getting married or anything.” Jesus, Melanie! How embarrassing. “I swear I didn’t tell them that.”
“Pink is such a cute color on you.” Tyler said, kissing my nose.
“Stop it,” I said, swatting him away. My cheeks were so flushed, I knew I was more than just pink. I laid my head back on his shoulder, and he ran his fingers through
my long hair.
“You know...I’m definitely not ready for marriage.” I felt his body shiver as he cringed at the words. “But if I needed to play the role of doting fiancé for one day, I’d totally do it for you.”
I closed my eyes as my heart literally melted in my chest. We were having a ridiculous, hypothetical conversation, and I was falling more in love with him with each word he spoke. We hadn’t said the words to each other—better yet, I hadn’t said them to him. It was too soon, and I’d probably send him running for the hills, but I felt it. Oh, did I feel it. How could I not? He was the sweetest man, and I knew he cared deeply for me. He didn’t say the words, but he showed them.
The train screeched to a halt at the station, and I took a deep breath.
Showtime.
I grasped Tyler’s hand as we walked down the narrow aisle to the exit. Stepping onto the station platform, the sun warmed my bare shoulders as I looked around for whichever one of my family members drew the short straw to pick me up.
“Wow, Mel. You didn’t say he was hot.”
I spun around and saw Meredith standing a few feet away by the stairs. Ignoring what she’d said—I’d get her for that later—I released Tyler’s hand and took off running. It had been far too long since I’d seen my BFF, I thought as I crashed into her. She smelled like Sunflowers, the perfume by Elizabeth Arden.
“What are you doing here?” I asked, releasing her and taking a step back.
“Your mom said someone needed to pick you up, so I volunteered.”
“I didn’t know you’d be there today.”
Meredith shrugged. “I wanted to see you. Maybe talk fabrics.”
I eyed her suspiciously. “If you wanted to meet Tyler, we could have set something up.” Her eyes focused on something over my shoulder, and I knew Tyler was near. I leaned back into his chest as he placed his hand on my shoulder. “Meredith, this is Tyler. Tyler, Meredith.”
Simply Irresistible: A Totally Sweet Love Story Page 6