by Jaci Burton
"Something calling to you back there?"
"I love books. There's something about rare editions that I find so mesmerizing."
He came over to her and laid his hand on the small of her back to urge her back toward the room. "Well, come on."
She half turned to look at him. "Seriously? You don't mind?"
"I don't mind."
"I wonder if the homeowners would mind."
"I'll bet if the homeowners didn't want anyone in their library, they'd have put a sign up or locked the room."
She chewed on her lower lip. "You might be right."
"Okay, then, Belle, let's go explore the library."
Her lips tipped up. "Did I ever tell you that if I ever have a daughter I want to name her Annabelle?"
"No."
"One, because I'm crazy about the name Belle from Beauty and the Beast, and two, I fell in love with the name Annabelle the first time I read Poe's 'Annabel Lee.'"
He cocked his head to the side. "Those are total opposite ends of the Belle spectrum."
She laughed. "I know. But I still love them."
He took a seat in one of the comfortable wingback chairs in the library. "You're just full of interesting tidbits, Amber Sloane."
"Why, thank you, Will Madigan."
He sat back, sipped his beer and watched as she wandered the bookshelves. She occasionally exclaimed or murmured when she found some rare or first edition.
"Oh. The Great Gatsby. Wow, Faulkner. Oh, my God a signed Virginia Woolf. I might faint."
"Let me know if I need to catch you."
"Shut up," she said. "There are some magnificent works here. Who are these people?"
He shrugged. "People who love books would be my guess."
She swiveled to face him. "You don't like books?"
"I love to read. On my phone."
"I do that, too, but there's nothing like the smell of a book. Especially an old book. The pages have all that history in them."
"Yeah. Musty history and coffee stains and folded pages that sometimes fall out. I'll take a good book on my phone any day."
She wrinkled her nose. "Technology nerd."
"Thank you."
She had a book in her hand and sat in the wingback chair across from him. "What does it take to insult you?"
"Tell me I suck at playing hockey."
She laughed. "Can't do that, since you seem to excel in that particular area."
Of course he did. "Then I can't be insulted. Unless you tell me I'm bad at sex."
"Oh. Well, so far you're pretty good at that, too."
He arched a brow. "Pretty good?"
She lifted a shoulder while paging through the book in her hand. "I might need to be reminded."
He got up and took the book from her hand and carefully laid it back on its rightful spot on the shelf before coming back to Amber. He swept his hand over her face, cupped her neck and drew her close. He kissed her thoroughly, following the trail of satiny skin. Hell, her entire body was satiny skin. He kissed her jaw, nibbled on her earlobe, then trailed his tongue along the column of her neck, feeling the slight tremble in her body.
When he ran into clothes, he reached down to lift her sweater, sliding his hands underneath to palm her back.
"Mmm," she said. "I like your hands on me. Put your mouth on me."
He tilted her head back to search her face. "Where?"
Her eyes were pools of arousal. "Anywhere."
She lifted her sweater off, then released the clasp on her bra.
He liked that she was so open with what she needed. He cupped one breast, then fit his mouth around one pink nipple. It puckered like a soft flower against his tongue as he sucked. She moaned and tangled her fingers in his hair, letting him know she liked what he was giving her.
He wanted to give her everything, to make her moan and writhe with every flick of his tongue over her body.
He drew her pants and underwear down, then spread her legs. When he tilted his head back, she was watching him with an intent, sensual gaze.
He cupped his hands around her buttocks. "Tell me what you want, Amber."
She shuddered out a breath. "Lick me."
There she was, standing above him, legs spread, tempting him with her wicked words. His cock throbbed against the zipper of his jeans as he leaned in to swipe his tongue against the softness of her pussy.
She tasted like tart honey, her scent enveloping him in a haze of need. He'd wanted to be the one to mesmerize her, but he was the one who felt spellbound.
And the way Amber moved, undulating her sex against his face, made him want to take her right over the edge. He slid a finger inside of her, pumping faster as he sucked her clit.
"Oh, oh, I'm coming," she said, her body shuddering as she came.
Damn, it was good to feel her contract against his finger, to feel her shudder as he held onto her. When her legs quivered, he withdrew and pulled her down onto the floor, resting her head in the crook of his arm. He brushed his lips across hers.
She licked her lips. "You taste like my pussy."
Now it was his balls that quivered. "Do you always say what you're thinking?"
"Not always. Why? Shouldn't I?"
"You definitely should when we're naked together."
She raked a fingernail over his shirt. "I'm the only one naked here. And I was so lost in what you were doing that I wasn't even thinking that your friends might come home."
He hadn't been thinking about it, either. His only thought had been making her come. "You're right. Let's go upstairs."
She gathered her clothes and he grabbed his boots. He dumped his beer in the trash and they headed upstairs. Dave had told him his room would be the last one on the right. Amber, clothes piled up in her arms and seeming to not care at all that she was naked, stayed right next to him as he opened the door to the bedroom.
He flipped on the light.
"Oh, the room has a bathroom," she said, laying her clothes on the nearby chair and making her way into the bathroom. "And it has a huge tub, too."
He smiled and followed her into the bathroom, leaning against the doorway as she turned to face him.
It was a big bathroom for a guest room, with a nice-sized shower, a tub and a double vanity.
"This tub is spectacular. Want to take a bath?" she asked.
"What is it with women and bathtubs?"
She frowned. "I don't know what 'women' you're referring to, but the apartment in the village doesn't have a tub, and I love a nice warm bath."
"Then by all means, you should take a bath while we're here."
"So you don't want a bath?"
"I don't take baths. But you should go ahead."
She seemed to consider whether or not it was something she should do, but then she finally shrugged.
"I think I will." She wound her hair up in some kind of knot on top of her head, which by some miracle of gravity or geometry or something stayed put. Then she leaned over to turn on the water, giving him one nice view of her very sweet ass, which made his dick harden again.
He pulled off his shirt and undid the button and zipper of his jeans, letting them fall to the bathroom floor. His boxer briefs followed, and then his socks, until he was naked.
By then, Amber was in the tub, watching him. "What are you doing?"
He climbed into the bathtub, situating himself across from her. "Taking a bath."
"I thought you didn't take baths."
"Yeah, but then I saw your ass, and I changed my mind."
Her lips curved. "I see. Think you're going to get lucky in here?"
"I'm already lucky. I'm in the tub with you."
She raised her foot and pressed it against his chest, wriggling her toes against his pecs.
"I should get a tattoo," she said, her gaze roaming over his chest and shoulders.
"Yeah?" He picked up her foot, using his thumbs to gently massage the arch. She moaned. "And what tattoo would you get?"
"I d
on't know. Skates, probably."
"Good idea. Where?"
"On my foot." She sat up. "Could we do that here?"
"In the tub? Doubtful."
She tilted her head to the side. "Funny. You know what I mean."
"You can get tattoos almost anywhere."
"Would you go with me?"
"Sure. You should think about it, though. Tattoos are forever. I mean, sure, you can have them removed, but it's a long, painful process."
"Why would I want to have it removed?"
"You should still think about it. It also needs healing time, so don't do it while you have to tightly lace up your skates."
"Point taken. After I win gold, I'll have skates tattooed on my foot."
He could already picture that tat. "You do that. Plus, you know, it's a good goal."
"Besides winning a gold medal, you mean."
"Yeah, besides that." She swirled her foot around his chest, then lower, down his abs. When she reached his cock, she raked her toes over the shaft. He was already hard. Hell, he'd been hard ever since he'd put his mouth on her. Nothing had changed. Just looking at her gave him an erection. She looked like a water nymph leaning back in the tub, the water lapping over her breasts and nipples, reminding him what it was like to taste her.
Now he just had to bide his time until she was done tubbing, so he could slide inside of her and feel her gripping him.
Instead, she continued to rub her foot over his cock.
"I could fuck you right now," he said, leaning forward to pull her onto his lap. "But I can't put a condom on in the tub."
She reached for his cock, stroking him in a deliberately slow, torturous way. "I might still be a novice at this, but I've heard there are other ways to get off."
"Oh, you've heard, huh?"
"Yes. Like with my hand or with my mouth. Or I could even slide against you and get us both off."
Christ, she was a tease. And damn good at it, too. "Do it."
She pushed him backward and slid along his shaft, her pussy hot against his flesh as she moved back and forth over his straining flesh. She dug her nails into his chest, her gaze pinned to his, her expression one of utter pleasure.
"Oh, that feels so good," she said.
He gripped her hips as she rode his cock. The pressure of her body pressing his shaft against his stomach and the way she felt against him was all he needed. He was ready to burst.
So was Amber, because she leaned forward, let out a low moan, then rocked back and forth against him, crying out with her climax. Watching her come was a beautiful thing. He let go, spurts of come jettisoning from his cock as he shuddered through his orgasm. When Amber leaned against him, he wrapped his arms around her and smoothed his hand down her back, feeling her body tremble with the aftereffects.
Will felt Amber's heart beating against his chest. Yeah, his was rocking the beat pretty hard, too. How could it not, watching her ride him like that?
She finally sat up and smiled at him. "Well, that was fun. Now there's come in the water and I'm all sweaty."
He laughed. "Wanna take a shower?"
"Yes, let's do that."
He helped her stand, then they got out of the tub and let the water out. Will turned on the shower and they got in to do a fast wash. Will grabbed towels for them and wrapped one around Amber.
She yawned.
"Tired?"
She nodded.
"Come on." He tossed the towel on the counter, took her hand and led her to bed.
She climbed in and he wrapped himself around her. She rubbed her fingers over the "love" tattoo on his wrist.
"I like this."
"Like what?"
"This tattoo. It takes a man confident in himself to have 'love' tattooed on his body."
"I told you I believe in love, that I was surrounded by a prime example in my parents."
Amber felt the gut punch of sweet emotion. Not only had Will been nothing but nice to her since she'd met him, but he held a firm belief in love, even to go so far as to get the tattoo. She'd never known love like that, didn't have an example set before her.
"Like Telisa and Robbie," she said. "And their love story they told earlier."
Obviously, that kind of love existed.
Will tightened his hold on her. "Sweet, huh?"
She turned around to look at him. "Yes, it is. Is it like that with your parents?"
"Yeah, they're disgustingly in love, even now after all these years."
"Disgustingly?"
He laughed. "I was teasing. But yes, they kiss at the bar all the time. There isn't a day where my dad doesn't stop what he's doing to put his arm around my mom. There's never been a lack of affection. They don't hold anything back." He looked down at his wrist, where the "love" tattoo stood out. "That's why I got this. It's real and it's out there."
She sighed. "That must have been so nice, to be surrounded by all that love and affection."
"It was."
She realized how much she'd missed out on. It was hard not to feel resentful, but she couldn't blame her parents. They had to have loved each other at some point. They got married. They'd had Amber. They had stayed together. Not that being in love was necessary to continue a marriage, she supposed. Their relationship was just . . . different. Maybe her parents did love each other. They just had never shown it in a demonstrative way.
Still, how was she supposed to learn how to love romantically if it was never shown to her?
She shoved the thought aside. This wasn't the time or place to dwell on it.
Will swept his hand down her back. "What are you thinking about?"
"My parents. How they never show affection to each other."
"Maybe they just don't show it in front of you. Some people aren't comfortable with public displays of affection, even in front of their kids, so they save it for when they're alone."
"Maybe." But she knew her parents better than she knew anyone else. She just didn't think it was a "behind closed doors only" kind of relationship.
"So what's bothering you?" he asked.
"I don't know. Maybe hearing Telisa and Robbie talk about their love story, and you telling me about your parents, makes me feel that I might never know what real love is like because I never had a good example of it at home."
He played with the ends of her hair, and she realized how tactile he was. "Oh, I disagree. Despite your upbringing, and I have to admit to not knowing much about that, I think you're a woman capable of passion and a great depth of emotion."
"Really. And how would you know that?"
"Well, we've been intimate, so I know how passionate you are."
"That's just sex."
He grinned. "I've been in bed with women who aren't half as expressive as you are, Amber. You either have a loving, passionate nature or you don't. There are plenty of people out there who feel intensely, and some who don't possess the capacity for deep emotion."
She considered that. Maybe her parents were the latter. "Okay, I understand. So what you're saying is that maybe my parents just aren't the kind of people who demonstrate love in that way."
"Right. Which doesn't mean they don't feel love. You, on the other hand, are incredibly sensual and tactile and emotional. When you fall in love, Amber, it's gonna be epic."
She smiled. "Or it'll be a total hot mess since I'll have no idea what I'm doing."
"Most people who fall in love don't know what they're doing. There's no road map for it. You just . . . do it."
She studied him. "Have you ever been in love?"
He waited before answering. "Yeah. Once. Several years ago."
"And how did that go?"
His lips curved. "In the beginning, it was amazing. All these emotions boiling to the surface. Lots of passion. We couldn't get enough of each other, and not just the sex, ya know? We'd spend hours talking. We had a lot in common. We grew up in the same area; we knew a lot of the same people. We just clicked. I thought she was it for me."
&
nbsp; "So what happened?"
He reached out to take her hand, entwining his fingers with hers. "My career was taking off. I got called up by St. Louis and had to move there. She was firmly planted in Chicago and building her career. She was a lawyer, working her way up at a prestigious law firm. We tried the long distance thing for a while, but after a year or so it became clear it wasn't going to work out. I wanted her in St. Louis with me, she wanted me in Chicago, and neither one of us would give, career-wise."
"She couldn't find an equally awesome job in St. Louis?"
Will shook her head. "It wouldn't be fair for me to ask her to give up her job. She was on the partner track, and she was bringing in clients worth serious money to her firm. To ask her to start over in a city where she didn't know anyone would mean taking a pay cut. Not that I couldn't afford to support both of us, but she had a pretty kick-ass job."
"And so did you."
He nodded. "Yeah. So our personal relationship suffered. In the end, we both decided it was in our best interests to cut the relationship cord."
She couldn't imagine how awful that must have been--for both of them. "That was probably really hard."
"It was. She was an amazing woman. Ending it wasn't easy on either of us, but we both felt like we were spinning our wheels."
She nodded. "That is sad. I'm sure you missed her."
"For a while, I did. I moped for a long time, until a teammate told me I needed to get off my ass and get out there again, because that relationship was over."
"Ouch. Harsh."
"But true. So I started dating my ass off. I heard from friends in Chicago she had done the same thing. It was like we had been holding on to something that wasn't there anymore just because we thought it was the right thing to do, when in reality we'd been over for a long time."
"Huh."
"Yeah. It was great when we were in love. But once we realized we weren't meant to be together, it was over. To be honest, we probably lingered too long because neither of us wanted to be the one to end it."
She flipped over onto her back and stared up at the ceiling. "Well now I'm confused."
"About what?"
"About how you know when you've found the one? How will I ever know? You thought you knew, and look what happened."
He teased his fingers over her stomach, unable to get enough of touching her skin. "I don't know if anyone knows, babe. My guess is when you find that right person, it all clicks and falls into place, and then no matter what happens, you're confident it'll all work out okay."
"I guess so." She rolled over to face him. "I do know this. I'm having a great time with you. And I don't think I want to fall in love, ever."