A Week for Love to Bloom

by Wolfe, Scarlet

  “I’m leaving before your extremely hot body gets me into more trouble, Mr. Boxer Briefs,” she said, circling her finger toward his underwear.

  Justin yelled at her as she turned to walk away. “Hey, woman. You were the one who seduced me in my sleep, remember?”

  Lauren turned around with her head cocked to the side. “How long are you going to call me ‘woman’?”

  “As long as you let me, baby.”

  She swatted her hand toward him, and before she could stop the words from sliding off her tongue she said, “Goodbye, Justin, I love you.”

  Lauren held the rush of breath she sucked in. The shock of what she said struck her with fear. She saw the stunned look on his face immediately. She turned and walked briskly to her truck, unsure of what to do next.

  Justin stood still for a few seconds before he ran down the drive after her. “Lauren, stop.”

  “No, I’m sorry.”

  “Why are you so hard headed? Stop, please.”

  Lauren turned around. “I’m sorry. I know things are already moving faster than either of us expected. That was not fair of me this soon. I swear it came out before I could stop it. I … I’ve never been in love before.”

  Justin put his arms around her waist. “I’m disappointed,” he said with a serious face. Lauren glanced to the ground.

  He lifted up her chin. “I’m disappointed because I wanted to say it first. I knew I loved you Friday when you told me to go away for good. It was a pain I’d never felt. If you hadn’t come found me, I would’ve beat down your door.

  “I wanted to tell you yesterday, last night, and this morning, but I didn’t know if it would scare you away due to your fear of getting hurt. I was going to tell you soon, I swear,” Justin said as he enveloped her inside his powerful, warm chest.

  “I realized it Friday, too. My heart shattered when you left. I can still see the anguish on your face when I told you to go. It was horrible.” Huge tears trickled down her cheeks as she recalled how Justin pleaded with her not to walk away.

  Justin pulled his body away from her. “Shit, Lauren, I can’t stand to see you cry. This should be a happy moment. Look at me. I love you, Lauren Evans. In only seven days, I loved you.”

  “I love you, too, Justin. In one week I loved you, too.” She smiled up at him as she wiped away a tear.

  Lauren started giggling. “Do you realize you’re standing in your driveway hugging me in your underwear?”

  It was not the way either envisioned saying those three words for the first time, but it was their cherished moment, and it was perfect.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Before knocking on Justin’s door, Lauren took a deep breath to calm the knot of anticipation that simmered in her stomach. When he opened the door to her standing in front of him, wearing a green halter top matched with white shorts, she watched his gaze go to her chest. She wasn’t wearing a bra, and she could clearly see from his expression that he noticed.

  “This is an awesome surprise, and damn you look smokin hot. Please tell me you’re not leaving anytime soon.”

  “Actually, I’m all yours for twenty-four hours ... that’s if you want me.” Lauren revealed an overnight bag she was hiding behind her back. She seriously doubted he’d turn her away.

  Justin grabbed her wrist and pulled her inside as he took her bag and dropped it to the floor. She felt his hands on her waist as he picked her up. Instinctively, she wrapped her legs around him and pushed her hips forward as she kissed him ferociously.

  He carried her over to the bed and climbed on it, sitting back onto his legs. “Lauren, I could never get enough of you,” he groaned.

  Straddling his lap, she looked up and saw the same predatory craving in his deep blue eyes; the look when he’s lost control and desperately needs to devour every inch of her. Lauren didn’t care. She loved when he went there. It was as if she was all he needed for his survival.

  His gaze never strayed from her eyes as he slowly untied her halter top. The straps fell as he placed his hands around her neck and slid them down to her flushed, voluptuous breasts. He cradled and massaged them as he stared at her. “Shit, Lauren. Seeing the look of pleasure on your face makes me want to explode. I have to devour you, baby—all of you.”

  She threw her head back and clenched his waist. He leaned down and sucked on one of her nipples while twisting the other between his fingers.

  “Ahh, Justin that feels so good.”

  He leaned over and lowered her onto the bed. Standing at the edge, he unbuttoned her shorts and slid them to the floor. Placing his finger on her stomach, he glided it slowly down between her legs.

  She saw his voracious, glazed eyes staring at her wet, satin panties before he slid his fingers inside them and into her.

  “I want to pleasure you and taste you, Lauren. Do you want me to?”

  “Yes,” she said, taking short, raspy breaths.

  “Then it’s time for some exploring.” She didn’t hear any playfulness to his voice and could clearly see he was on a lust filled mission.

  Justin lowered to his knees and grabbed the sides of Lauren’s thighs, pulling her swiftly to the edge of the bed. He slowly inched her panties down her legs, causing every one of her nerves to dance.

  An icy tingle crawled its way over her entire body, causing her head to spin with stinging anticipation. She hadn’t thought of it happening. Lauren wanted it, but her curiosity and fear were all wrapped into one, causing her to quake. She closed her eyes and tried to relax as the chills encompassed her entire being.

  Spreading her legs apart, Justin grazed his lips up and down her inner thighs as her scrumptious scent lured him along. Her legs trembled from the taunting encounter of his hot breath on her delicate folds as her candy wetness felt the swirl of his tongue. Lauren became numbingly lightheaded as she felt incessant delight throbbing in her most sensitive spots of pleasure. Her knuckles turned white from the firm hold she had on the sheets while she moaned and whimpered. Lauren didn’t think she could take more of the irrefutable pleasure, splendid yet painfully teasing.

  “I swear I could erupt this second from your sweet taste and moaning, but I want to wait to be inside you,” Justin said before he continued his vigorous onslaught. He sucked, licked and swirled her hot flesh before he thrust his tongue inside her. Digging his fingers into the top of her hips, he yanked her further against his scorching mouth and held her down to writhe in epic rapture.

  Lauren lost control and cried out as she convulsed and climaxed. She felt as if all the blood had escaped her, leaving her weak and barely able to gain control of her exertive breaths. Justin lay next to her on the bed. She didn’t open her eyes or say a word for several minutes.

  “Baby, are you OK?” he asked while moving wayward strands of hair from her face.

  She opened her eyes and looked over at him.

  “I ... I had no idea.” She rolled up against him and buried herself into his chest. “Thank you. I had no idea it would feel that amazing.”

  “I can’t begin to describe how erotic it was to watch you. I need to be inside of you, Lauren.”

  “I want you there,” she whispered.

  ***

  Justin watched her breathe and sleep for close to an hour. He was her pawn, defenseless against her captivating qualities, waiting every minute of the day to see her next move so he could follow.

  If only you knew the strength of the spell you hold over me, an intoxicating spell.

  He lightly ran his fingers through her hair, unable to resist touching her any longer. He grazed his nose along her neck, breathing in her floral scent.

  Lauren awoke from his touch. The only light was from the lamp on the nightstand.

  “I’m sorry I woke you.”

  “How long have I been asleep?”

  “You’ve been out about an hour. You pretty much passed out after … well, after what I would call the most amazing sex ever.” He kissed her forehead, her ear, and then her neck. “You
’re so sweet and beautiful,” Justin said solemnly.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “I was watching you sleep, thinking of what your father did.”

  “Yes, about that, I don’t appreciate my mother telling you.”

  “She didn’t say much ... but enough. I want you to know you can talk to me about it. I can tell that you take on the world alone and keep things bottled up. It appears we’re a lot alike and have been alone because of it. From what I’ve discovered about you this last week, I’m actually shocked you’ve opened up to me as much as you have.”

  “When my dad, Tom, left us it was like a death. I didn’t have time to grieve because of our business, so I had to suck it up.”

  “This is definitely new terrain for me, but I think when two people love each other, they’re supposed to lean on each other for support. Lean on me, Lauren. I want you to.”

  “You’re incredibly sweet. I’ve never dated a man who wanted to make my life easier or better. They only had one thing on their mind, so they didn’t get far. I’ve really let my guard down with you physically, and I’m working on the emotional side of it. It’s just going to take time for me to get use to talking about things. I’ll tell you what happened with my dad.”

  “I can’t stand the thought of anyone else trying to get into your pants, but now that you said that it makes me feel a little shitty. I mean, I was in them in a short amount of time. I know I was terrible at showing it, but I honestly did want to wait.”

  “Why did it affect you so much that I was a virgin?”

  “To elaborate on that I’d have to talk about other women, and I don’t want to.”

  “You just said you want me to open up, so now you need to spill it. I can take it.”

  Justin put his hands behind his head and stretched out his defined body that was only covered by a sheet draped across his mid-section. He fought a smile when he noticed Lauren’s steady gaze move along the length of his body.

  “My first time was with a girl that lived next door to me. We grew up together but were never in the same circle of friends at school. We were fifteen and curious, so we decided to give it a try. We were just experimenting, and it wasn’t special, whatsoever. Then came Beth. Are you sure you want to hear this?”

  “Yes, go on.”

  “Beth was a virgin when we started dating. She wanted to please me, so we did it. All was good until I ended it with her. She thought we would get married. I think that’s the only reason she had sex with me. She took it hard when I broke it off, and she threw the virginity thing in my face. I felt horrible about it. I swore then I’d never take that from another girl, and I didn’t, that is until you came along.

  “You’re so gorgeous, Lauren. I assumed you had boyfriends before I met you. If I couldn’t keep my hands off of you, I figured a serious boyfriend hadn’t. Things would’ve been different had I known up front I’d be your first, but by the time I found out, I’d already touched your soft skin and had a taste of that sweet mouth. I still tried, but someone became obsessed with seducing me.”

  “I’m sorry. I had no idea you were made to feel guilt over that,” Lauren said, running her fingers between the planes of his chest. “I want you to know I’d never throw that in your face. I don’t want to think about it, but if this didn’t work out, I wouldn’t regret it. You know why?”

  “No, why?”

  “Because I loved you when we did it. My first time was with love. Yes, there was lust thrown in there, too, but definitely love,” Lauren said, grinning. “And speaking of lust, you lying here with that sheet draped just so is really turning me on.”

  Justin threw the sheet aside and rolled onto her naked body. “You took all that so well. I figured I’d mention her name and you’d want to leave. You’re special, Lauren.” He held her head and ran his thumbs along her temples as he showed her the love he felt for her through his enchanting blue eyes.

  “I’m not threatened by her anymore. You’ve made it abundantly clear that I have no reason to be. You know, your naked body is lying on top of me, and you’re saying sweet nothings in my ear. Do we need to have the man card talk?” Lauren asked, snickering.

  Justin grabbed each of her wrists and held them up near her head, pinning her to the bed. “You’re going to get it now, woman, and you’re being very greedy tonight. What will this make, orgasm number three? I’m running out of condoms.”

  Chapter Twenty

  Jeffrey Garrison walked to his son’s office at their law firm. “Jonathan, a truck was parked near the guest house all night. I’m pretty sure a woman stayed with Justin. I was curious if you know who that might be?”

  “I imagine it’s Lauren Evans—as in Evans Garden and Nursery. Dad, this is not good. We have to tell Justin.”

  “We can’t. Until she gets served the papers, we can’t tell him.”

  “Dad, he’s going to blame us for this and then leave again. I don’t want that. I think it’s reasonable to give him some warning.”

  “No, Jonathan. It’s her personal business, and if there’s a chance she knows, then she might not want to share that with him. Justin has never had a serious girlfriend, so I believe it’ll blow over in time.”

  “Fine, but let’s face it, eventually, he’s going to fall for someone. I have a terrible feeling this is going to blow up in our face. I better go there and check it out.”

  Chapter Twenty-One

  “Wake up, beautiful.” Justin swatted her backside.

  She let out a yawn and a groan as she rolled over toward him. “I get a day off, and you wake me up early? What kind of boyfriend are you?”

  “The kind that doesn’t let you sleep past ten o’clock, and I loved the sound of that word rolling off your tongue.”

  “What?” Lauren sat up. “I can’t remember the last time I slept this late.”

  “You must’ve needed it, we were up late. Come take a shower with me.”

  She gave him an alluring look. “As long as I get to be pressed up against you again.”

  “Do you honestly think I’d say no to that?”

  Lauren raised her brow and pursed her lips.

  “You did say no, repeatedly.” She hit him playfully with her pillow.

  “Baby, those days are over.” He swatted her butt again on the way to the shower.

  Justin ran his hands through her wet hair as steam billowed around them. “Do you know the difference between this shower and the first one we took together?”

  “No, enlighten me.” Lauren couldn’t hide her smile. She knew a flirty, playful response was on its way, and Justin’s charm was one of her favorite qualities about him.

  “I can have my way with you,” he said before displaying a wicked grin.

  Lauren looked into Justin’s blue eyes that were glistening from the water and saw his desire calling her.

  “That’s if you’ll let me.” He pulled her close and slipped his tongue inside her mouth, leaving none of it unattended.

  After sharing a passionate kiss, Lauren pulled back and looked at his hot—wet—yummy—body.

  “I’m all yours,” she said slyly.

  The shower … this should be quite a learning experience.

  ***

  Justin heard a knock at the door after turning off the shower. He grabbed a towel and wrapped it around his waist before going to open it.

  “Bro, is everything OK? Why are you not at work?”

  “Can I come in a minute?” Jonathan asked.

  Justin looked back toward the bathroom to see if Lauren came out. “Sure, but I’m not alone, so wait here.”

  Justin opened the bathroom door and saw Lauren drying off. “Baby, my brother showed up, so stay in here, and I’m not trying to hide you. I just don’t want Jonathan seeing any naked part of your hot body,” he said with a cheesy grin.

  Justin walked back to the door and let him in. “What’s up?”

  “I was just checking on you. Dad said they’ve barely seen you over the last week,
and you haven’t been back over to our house since you left a week ago.”

  “I’m fine, and I’m not leaving anytime soon. We have plenty of time to hang out. Let’s plan a fishing trip.”

  “Sounds good. So, whose truck?”

  “It’s Lauren’s, but I’m sure you’re here because you suspected as much.”

  Lauren heard her name, so she cracked the door open to listen.

  “You’ve always been respectful to women. I’m just surprised you have her in your bed so soon and obviously your shower.”

  “I don’t think you want to go there with me. You’ve obviously forgotten about all the girls you fucked before Emily. I wouldn’t expect you to understand, but I’m not using Lauren. It’s really none of your business. If that’s what you came here to discuss then we’re finished with our conversation.”

  “That was out of line, and this isn’t about me. Just remember you have a family that’s hardly seen you in years,” Jonathan said, glaring. He went out the door, slamming it behind him.

  “You can come out. My asshole brother is gone,” Justin yelled.

  Lauren heard the rest of their conversation. It made her happy to hear Justin take up for their relationship, but she didn’t want to be another source to the problems he had with his family, either.

  “What did he want?” Lauren walked out with a towel tucked around her chest.

  “He was being nosy. I imagine my dad sent him because of your truck.”

  Lauren covered her mouth as panic washed over her. “How did I not think of that? I feel like such a fool.”

  “Whoa, what?”

  “I never considered the first impression I’m giving your parents by sleeping over here so soon.”

  He pulled her close and tilted up her chin.

  “Look at me. It’s not the sixty’s. My parents are old, but they understand that times have changed.

  “Trust me. Jonathan broke them in when it came to dating. Let’s just say he was a certified man whore without payment until Emily came along. Then he wanted someone he couldn’t have unless he changed his ways. Anyway, once my family gets to know you, they’ll be like me, unable to resist your sweetness.”