“How’d you do it?”
“Propose?” He looks away. “I put the ring in her favorite book. She reads a lot. About perfect men in books who I can never be.”
“You need to stop worrying about how Layla,” I sneer her name. “Saw you. Clearly, she’s an idiot. There’s perfect, and then there’s you. I wouldn’t change a single thing about you.”
I did it again. He’s embarrassed. Confidence sweeps over me. I get up and move to sit on his lap. He’s curious but responsive as I wrap my arms around his shoulders and kiss him. He grips my waist, squeezing my ribs and leaving me breathless from both his kiss and the pain. I rub his biceps, kissing him through the pain. Julian is worth the pain. Some of it still shines through, though. I whimper when he grips me tighter.
He pulls away. “Sorry. I’m sorry.” He kisses me softly and then pushes me off his lap. “Go, or I won’t stop.”
I reclaim my seat. “I didn’t know you could stop.”
“When it’s you I don’t want to.” He pushes away from the table and situates his pants. “You want another drink? I think I’ve got some wine in the pantry.”
“Wine?” I smile at his bulge. “Sure. What the heck.” I start grabbing dishes from the table.
While he searches for the wine, I clean the dinner mess. I’m just setting the last dish to dry when he emerges with a dusty bottle of white wine. He gets down two wine glasses with gold stems from the cupboard and turns proudly to me.
“You want to go out back?”
“Are you going to be there?”
“I was thinking about it.” His playful smile is tempting me.
“Eh …” I tease.
He rolls his eyes with a smile and takes off for the back door off the kitchen.
There’s a deck the moment I step outside, leading to a large unfenced backyard. Weeds with white flowers and grass overgrow the lawn. Large trees with bright green needles border the property. At the edge of the deck, overlooking how the land dips and bows like a dragon’s back, there are two patio chairs and a cute glass table. My brain is fuzzy as I follow Julian out back. He picks the seat further away. I sink down into the cool metal chair and watch the way the sun sets behind the trees. I’ve never stopped to stare at a sunset before. I’ve seen them, countless times, but I’ve never noticed how pretty it was with Julian watching the same thing.
I peek at him. His stubble is dark and resilient, growing around his mouth and jaw. He’ll need to shave soon. I follow his features, choosing him over the sunset. His hair is wild and mussed; he never combed it after his shower. He takes a sip of his wine and licks his lips, leaving them wet and glossy. I imagine the taste of them and wish I was already healed so we could be doing something else instead of drinking wine.
I find extreme comfort in his arms that night. No one can hurt me here. The last eighteen years, the struggles, and the pains, all seem like distant memories when I’m around him.
Dreaming is not enjoyable. I keep seeing Bruce stealing me from Julian and Brady laughing from his perch as he burns my parka. Nessa prances around my body, and the Gibson’s snort lines around my birthday cake.
“Get up.” There’s a soft whisper in my ear. “Happy birthday, Kaelyn.”
That makes me wide awake. I roll over and spot Julian hovering over me. He’s wearing only his jeans and they’re unzipped. His abs shine in the sunshine from the window and his handsome face is framed in mussed brown hair. Waking up to that is by far the best alarm I’ve ever gotten.
I smile uneasily. “What is that?”
He has a tray in his hands. There’s a spread of lightly browned pancakes, crispy sausage, and fruit. There’s even orange juice and coffee.
He grins. “Breakfast in bed. You’re one today.”
I smirk and wonder how terrible I look this morning. He’s perfect and gorgeous. I know for certain I am nothing close. “Can I use the bathroom first?”
“Of course. It’s your birthday. You can do anything you want.”
I eye his body slowly. “Anything I want? What if I want you?” I meet his eyes confidently, letting him know exactly what it is I want.
His gaze is dangerous. “Go to the bathroom, Kael.”
I giggle and get up, hiding the pain from my face. On my way out I grab my makeup bag. It’s worse than I feared. I am just as purple as I was yesterday. The cut on my mouth looks better, but the purple around my jaw and eye is not healing as fast as I’d like. After peeing and brushing my teeth, I wash my face and then apply a light layer of foundation. I can’t hide my bruises, so I’m not even going to try. I want to look less purple. My clothes are wrinkled from sleep. I feel like I’m wearing a bag. I take the band out of my hair and retie my dark red hair into a bun. That’s all I can do for now.
Sighing disappointedly, I turn the bathroom light off and return to my room. Julian is sitting up in bed, legs outstretched in front of him. I sink down slowly and sit with my back against the wall like he is.
“Here you go.” He takes the tray and sets it over my lap. “Present number one? Breakfast in bed.”
“You’re not going to do this seventeen times, are you?” I pick up my fork.
“I am and you’re going to let me.”
He’s watching me intently. “Thank you.”
“You’re going to be difficult about this, aren’t you?”
I don’t answer. I cut off a piece of pancake and put it into my mouth. It’s fluffy and sweet, melting on my tongue. I moan deeply and close my eyes. “Oh man, these are so good.”
“There goes that moaning again.”
I open my eyes. I don’t comment. I take a piece of sausage and put it into my mouth, moaning the way I did when his tongue slid over me.
“Kaelyn. I swear.”
“What?” I ask innocently. “I’m enjoying your gift. It’s a great gift.” I stop teasing him and hope he can tell how thankful I am. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” He leans over and kisses my syrupy mouth, his hand settling on my thigh. “I want between your legs so bad right now.”
Heat erupts all over me. “Can’t,” I say offhandedly, kissing his mouth just as softly. “It’s off-limits until I’m better. Now stop interrupting me and let me eat my birthday breakfast.”
He smiles ruefully. “Brat.” He sits back and watches me out the corner of his eye. “You really like it?”
I drink my coffee, perfectly sweet and creamy. “I really do. I feel special.” I burrow down in my covers and eat my breakfast. “I never feel that way.”
“That’s a shame. You should feel special.” He looks contemplative. “I’m going to make you feel that way. Every day,” he promises.
A sense of something: emotion, longing, want—I can’t exactly tell what it is—moves through me. I feel it in my stomach, in my heart, all over my body. It gives me goosebumps. “I’m going to let you. Because I think maybe I need you to.”
He swallows hard and nods. “Eat. When you’re done, we’re going to the beach.”
“For what?”
“Birthday number two. Jaz is going to be on the water for the weekend so he’s letting me use his house.” He looks away. “We have to come back on Monday for the arraignment. Officer Tory called this morning.”
Just like that, the pancakes feel like rocks in my stomach. When I’m done eating I am too consumed by Nessa and what’s going to happen to register much of what’s going on around me. Julian takes advantage of it, packing a black duffle bag while I sit like a zombie.
“You need new underwear.”
I blink. “What’s wrong with my underwear?”
He picks up a plain white cotton pair of panties. “You’re sexy, but there’s nothing sexy about these.”
“How about I stop wearing panties altogether?”
“Now that’s something to think about.” But he stares at me, eyes doing that I’m up to something thing. “You don’t own a bikini either?”
“Why would I?”
He shakes his head.
“I’ll go buy you one. You need one. It’s going to be seventy this weekend. A blessing for the beach considering it’s nearing Halloween. I want to get in the water with you.”
“You just want to see me wearing practically nothing.”
He flashes me a grin. “That too.”
“We don’t have to wait for this weekend for that,” I point out.
His grin drops and his eyes smolder. “Tell me you’re not sexy again.”
Then he leaves, his muscular back rippling as he walks out of the room. I remove the tray from my lap and put it on the floor. I may as well get ready while he’s gone. I take a shower, shave, and attempt to lessen the swelling on my face by leaving the hot water on for a long time. I dress in a pair of skinny jeans and a plain black shirt when I get out. I comb my hair out until it’s long and flowing down my shoulders. Julian gets home just as I’m doing my makeup on my bedroom floor.
He enters my room with bags in his hands. His jeans are done and he’s wearing a gray shirt. He sets the bags on the bed and starts sifting through the contents. He holds up a skimpy baby blue bikini with white accents. His grin is salacious. “Sexy, right?”
My grin is embarrassed. “You’re kidding me, right? I’m not wearing that thing.”
His face falls. “It’ll only be you and me. What does it matter?”
“Do you want to see me in it?”
“Yes, but I want to take it off more.” He dares me to deny him.
I refuse. “Bring it.”
He lays it on the bed. Next, he pulls out a tiny red thong. “I got the bra to match.”
“Julian,” I mumble, as red as the thong.
“You’re going to look so fucking hot in it. I promise.”
Hearing him put it that way makes me oddly achy. “I can’t believe you bought this stuff. Weren’t you embarrassed?”
“Why should I be?” he asks honestly. “I’m the one taking them off. I’m the one who wants to see you in them. Why shouldn’t I buy them for you?” He pulls out an ivory lace thong next and the matching bra. He loves my uncomfortableness. Eats it up. “What do you think?”
“I think if I get any redder I’m going to start peeling. Just bring it all so I don’t have to see anymore.”
He laughs warmly. “That’s what I was hoping you’d say.”
I look at my face in my little mirror. The purple is fairly hidden from view. I grab my pink stain and apply to my lips, feeling his eyes on me the entire time.
“You don’t need to do that, you know? You’re as gorgeous with your bruises as you are without them.”
I look away, watching my lips smile in the mirror as I dab at them with the stain. “You have to admit it’s easier to look at me and not seeing the bruises.”
“I’ll never admit that. I’m already packed.” He grabs the makeup out of my hands and dumps it in my makeup bag. “Will you be happier if I pack this?” I nod, staring up at him from my position on the floor. He bends down and kisses my pink lips. “Put your pills in your purse and go downstairs. I’ll be down with your things in a few minutes.”
Yes, sir.
I nod again, stuck on the shiny gray of his eyes.
On my way down the stairs, I feel a glimmer of something foreign. Excitement starts to win out over my worries. An entire weekend with Julian on the beach? No distractions? It doesn’t seem true that I can have that with him. I fear my smile as I grab my pills and take one, and then I drop the bottle into my purse and wait for him in the hall as I slip on my flats.
“Just you and me this weekend,” he says, thoughts aligned with mine as he pulls out of the driveway. “How do you feel about that?”
I smile. I can’t help myself. “Excited.”
His answering grin is glorious. “Me too.”
When it’s just us we don’t have to pretend. We don’t have to deal with our fears because together we are not afraid.
As we approach the coast, the world opens. The sun is high and golden in the sky, making the water appear crystal blue and the sand is surprisingly clean and smooth. Julian parks in Jaz’s driveway. We both get out and he shoulders our bags up the stairs. I follow behind him, watching the way his ass moves in his jeans; my teeth sink into my lip.
When we get to the top of the stairs, he fumbles with a statue of a braless mermaid perched near the door with erect nipples. He opens the seashell she holds in her hands and there’s a key inside.
“Jaz,” he mumbles in explanation.
“Jaz,” I agree.
The beach house is clean this time around. We walk past the living room and find the same hall I’d fled to, the bathroom too. Julian pushes a door open, frowns, and closes it, choosing the one across from it instead. It’s a furnished room. The bed is made up with plain white blankets and the closet is empty. He puts the things down and takes his jacket off, sitting on the end of the bed.
“We’re here. What do you want to do next? There’s a good seafood restaurant down the beach? I’m kind of hungry,” he explains, grinning easily.
I look at my feet. “I don’t want to deal with other people.”
“I’ll go pick it up.” He walks over to me, lifting my chin so I can meet his eyes. “Are you all right staying here on your own?”
“Yes, daddy.”
He touches my chin disapprovingly. He kisses me, suckling greedily on my bottom lip. His eyes hold mine the entire time he teases my mouth. “You’re lucky I don’t spank you eighteen times.”
I wrap my arms around his waist. “If you did which pair of panties would I be wearing?”
His eyes darken. They burn me with their heat. “You wouldn’t be wearing any of them. You’d be naked, on the bed, with your beautiful ass in the air. You’d like it too.”
I press myself against him as his hands continue to cup my face. “I would?”
“You would.”
I strangely want that. “Prove it.”
He caresses my face, eyes ablaze. “Don’t push me.”
I rub his back, digging my nails into him. I can smell his cologne and my middle is oddly yearning. What does that say about me, being turned on by the idea of Julian spanking me? I don’t wonder long, however, because I want it nonetheless. I reach on my tiptoes and kiss his lips. His hands slide down my body to grab my ass, picking me up so our lips are even. I bring my arms around his shoulders and lose myself in his intoxicating lips.
His fingers dig into the swell of my ass, urging me against him as I wrap my legs around his waist. We kiss fervently. I grip him as we do; fingers in his hair, rubbing his face, touching his cheeks. I can’t get enough of him.
He walks us over to the bed. As he does he reaches up to squeeze my ribs. I let him. I hide the pain from him by burying my face in his neck. His breathing is hard. He’s just as turned on as I am.
When he sits down on the bed he lies back until I’m straddling him. He pushes my hips down so I’m directly over his hard mound. Then he grabs my face and pulls me down so he can kiss me. I brace my hands on his chest, digging my nails into him as his tongue slides over mine. Our fervent kiss becomes passionate. His body is hot beneath me. His mouth tastes sweet and his tongue is silky. His lips are so soft and … damn it, I want him. I just want him.
I rise and sit back, rubbing against the hard swell between my thighs. My middle connects with him in a way that leaves me wanting. I bunch his shirt in my fists and push it up his chest. His abs peek through.
“Wait,” he says, voice hoarse and deep. He grinds against me and seems to forget for a second what he was going to say. “Never mind.”
I kiss him before he can remember. Delving my fingers in his hair, I slide my tongue against his. He is completely mine in that moment. I feel it in the way he kisses me, how desperate and passionate he is. I know it by the way he touches me, all over and yet it isn’t enough. I trust it in the way he moves his hips against me, pushing the bulge of his cock against the fire in my heat.
Julian wants me.
There
are too many clothes between us. I risk breaking our kiss to attempt to take his shirt off.
“Kael,” he moans. “I didn’t plan for this.”
“No planning,” I mumble, bending to kiss the exposed skin on his abs. “I want your shirt off.”
He pushes my hands away. “You’re hurting.”
“It’s my birthday,” I remind him crossly. “I want you naked.”
He chuckles and turns his face away when I try to kiss him. “I don’t want to make love to you like this.”
“Like what?”
“Like this.” He points at me. “I want you to remember every second we’re together. I want you to think your orgasm is never going to end. If we keep going it won’t be that way. It’ll happen too fast. It always happens too fast.”
We’re both breathing hard. We both want to keep going. But he’s right. If we do, we’ll be done before it even starts. I slide down and lie beside him on my back. He grabs my hand and we both stare at the ceiling, forcing ourselves to calm as our fingers tangle.
“Did you want to stop?”
“No. I never want to stop. I would’ve hurt you. I would have fucked you so hard you wouldn’t have had a chance to beg for anything.” He rolls to his side, smoothing the tips of his fingers over my lips as he talks. “You deserve to be loved.”
Hearing him say it that way makes me think about Brady. He’s right. I don’t want that. I want to be loved too. I kiss his fingers softly. “Thank you for stopping me.”
“You’re welcome,” he mutters dryly. He looks down at himself, at how his erection hasn’t lessened in the least. “Talk about something to take my mind off you.”
“What are you going to order?”
“I want to bury myself inside of you so deeply I can’t feel anything else. Try harder.”
I gasp. “Julian!” My hand flies to cover my mouth.
“I do,” he says, unashamed. “I haven’t had sex in a long time and you’re just so damn … you.” He sits up.
“I just touched you,” I remind him haughtily. “Wasn’t that enough?”
“No,” he answers honestly. “Was my tongue enough?”
“No,” I admit, being a brat.
“You see my point.” He stands up and starts pacing.
Under The Peaches (Teaching Love Series Book 1) Page 27