He gives me a cocky smile. “You let me believe Lilly was trying to set you up with her.”
“You believed what you wanted to.”
I hate it when he’s right. “But you didn’t say otherwise.”
“And miss witnessing you panic over being jealous? Never.”
Lilly retrieves some of the supplies and passes by us on her way out, a satisfied smile on her face. “You’ve always set your own traps.”
“You enjoy this way too much.”
She doesn’t deny it.
Groaning, I reject Kip’s attempt to wrap his arms around me. “Go away so I can get ready.”
“I have to shave,” he says, following me to the bathroom.
I slam the door in his face. “Too bad.”
By the time I finish getting dressed and make it down stairs, Kip is dressed, shaved, and already greeting people coming in through the door. Half the shop is partitioned off with drapes, leaving the front open for the party. Local businesses are set up around the perimeter of the room, and people are already taking advantage of the bartender centered in the middle.
Kip is shaking hands with a middle-aged couple coming in when I place a hand on his shoulder. He smiles at my arrival, eyes lingering on my dress a moment too long. It’s the dress. At first, I couldn’t stomach the sight of it. Everything about it made me sick, from the color, to the fabric and smell. I was going to throw it away when I found it packing, but something stopped me. Something resistant. This dress was meant for Kip, and I’m going to wear it for him.
I hold my breath as I wait for him to speak.
He smiles only through his eyes. “You’re so beautiful.”
Relief floods my lungs because he gets it.
“I’m sorry,” Kip says, turning his attention back to the couple he’s all but forgotten about. “This is Marty and Julie. They own Royal Flush Plumbing next door. Marty, Julie, this is Kaley. She organized tonight’s event.”
“Thank you for coming,” I greet them.
“Good job on marketing,” Marty says, shaking my hand. “You reeled me in the minute I heard there was going to be an open bar.”
We all laugh and his wife rolls her eyes. “He failed to mention our daughter, Anna, is manning a table for us. She’s a huge car fanatic.”
At the mention of their daughter, Kip points in the direction of a girl talking animatedly with Lilly. “They’ve been talking nonstop for forty-five minutes.”
I laugh, remembering all the times I had to endure Lilly rambling about torque and valves. Marty and Julie excuse themselves to exploit the free alcohol. Kip continues to greet people as they enter and I stand with Cal to the side, handing people their tickets. He blushes when I compliment him on his tie.
He manages to break free of his hosting duties, whispering in my ear as he guides me to the bar. “You’re making it very difficult to concentrate.”
“You’re welcome?” I say.
“This dress,” he says, pulling the fabric at the small of my back.
Suddenly unsure I might have misread his reaction earlier, I have to ask, “Is it okay?”
His smile pulls up to one side. “It’s perfect. The color suits you.” He flattens his hand over the material covering my backside as he positions me against the bar. He orders a glass of wine. “It’s so soft. What’s it made of?”
“Challis.”
He hands me the glass of wine. “Never heard of it.”
“I bought it for you.”
His thumb strokes the curve of my hip. “I love it.”
A gagging sound breaks us apart. “This is way grosser than I imagined it would be,” Lilly says.
Kip wipes a hand across his mouth to hide his smile. “Can I help you with something?”
“Actually, I was hoping I could talk with Kaley for a minute.”
They both look to me. “Yeah, sure,” I say, finishing off the remainder of my drink.
Kip motions for the bartender again. “Can I get a refill?”
“I’ll take a glass as well,” Lilly says, leaning next to me.
Kip shakes his head. “I’m not going to get through the night without drinking.” He kisses me on the cheek before departing, shooting Lilly a warning as he passes by her.
Lilly smirks at his retreating back. “He’s so cute in love.”
I’m slightly taken back by her open observation, but can’t help but agree. “He is, isn’t he?”
We watch as he peruses the tables, a surprisingly personable host. “He’s happy,” she says.
I don’t know what to say in reply, so I nod and drink more wine. When in doubt, drink all the wine. It can literally do no wrong.
“I’m not going to apologize for wanting to protect my brother.”
“I would never expect less and I told Kip the same.”
“He’s an amazing person and he deserves someone just as amazing.”
I swallow, nodding. “I agree.”
“But I can’t argue with his happiness. As long as he’s happy, I’m happy.”
“I appreciate that.”
We sip our wine in silence and pretend this isn’t the most awkward conversation we’ve ever had.
“So…where’s Justin?”
“Outside, pretending he had a phone call to take but really smoking.”
“You sound like you disapprove.”
“Nah,” she says, making a face into her glass. “It’s his vice, he can have it. I’m more aggravated by the fact he tries to hide it after all these years.”
“He didn’t used to. When did it start to become a secret?”
“He tried quitting a couple of years ago when I was in 2L, but he never truly gave it up.”
I nod like I understand, but I don’t really. I wasn’t there to get a play-by-play of her relationship like I should have been. Not that Lilly would’ve been particularly open, but I would have a better understanding as to what happened in her second semester of law school that made her boyfriend want to quit smoking.
Lilly sighs loudly. “This is dumb. We’ve never had a problem with our friendship before.”
“I’m sorry for kind of dropping off the face of the Earth.”
She smiles. “It’s okay. Really. I’m not mad. I was, for the sake of honesty, but not anymore. And I’m okay with Kip and you, you know, together. It’s still hard for me to wrap my head around, but I’ll get there.”
I pretend to pretty-cry. “Does this mean we’re best friends again?”
She nods, swallowing a sip of wine. “I think so.”
“Cool,” I say, clinking my glass against hers.
Drinking the last swallow of my drink, I spot Kip looking at us across the room. He’s not listening to the conversation he’s supposed to be participating in, his eyes locked on mine. There’s a heat in them I haven’t seen in the weeks since everything happened with Peter. I’ve been beyond sexually frustrated, but I don’t think I accurately predicted how much tension could build over time.
“Oh my God. I can’t.” Lilly turns and walks away. “I just can’t.”
I smile, and when I look back at Kip, he’s engrossed in the person talking to him. I make my way outside, wanting to know if Lilly’s suspicions are true. It doesn’t take me long, as I follow the trail of cigarette smoke around the side of the building.
Justin’s head snaps up and I smile. “Don’t worry. It’s just me.”
He releases a cloud of smoke. “I’ve tried so many times to quit.”
“Can I bum one?”
He digs in his pocket, producing a pack and holding it open for me to pull a cigarette free. “I didn’t know you smoked.”
I shrug, taking the lighter from his outstretched hand. I inhale one good time, coughing once as I exhale. “I haven’t had one in years, but I’ve dropped enough bad habits lately I figured I could pick up an old one.”
“There’s a good turnout tonight. Good job.”
“It’s the free booze.”
He smiles,
taking one last drag. “I better get inside and keep an eye on Cal. God knows what he’s pilfered already.”
“No wonder why you can’t quit smoking. You’ve got two authentic kleptomaniacs to keep in line.”
He shakes his head, sighing a dramatized breath. “Someone should give me a medal.”
Exhaling, I smile. “Not all habits are worth breaking.”
I eventually make my way back inside and turn down the air because it begins to get stuffy with the amount of people crammed in the space. Cal helps me draw tickets for the prizes, and I’m pleased with the donations from the participating businesses, as are the winners. Marty and Julie stay late to help pick up once people start piling out, and Kip breaks his rule of unprofessionalism and drinks a Jack and Coke with Marty before the night is over, tinting his cheeks the perfect shade of pink. His normal six-pack of beer doesn’t hold a candle to a double of Jack.
Justin is walking Cal out the door, the last two to leave, when Kip places a hand on Cal’s chest. Kip holds his hand out, palm up in front of him.
“What?” Cal says, staring at Kip’s hand innocently.
“You know what. Give it to me.”
He grumbles, removing a silver bottle opener from his pocket into Kip’s palm.
“What do you even need this for?” Kip says, shaking it.
“I don’t know. I could use it as a bookmark?”
“I’m cutting a portion of your wages for stealing.”
Cal doesn’t argue, slouching as he leaves. Justin shakes his head in disbelief. “It’s getting worse.”
“I’m working on it. Your fiancé doesn’t help. Tell Lilly to quit coddling him.”
Justin’s smile grows as he shakes his head. “You’re not getting me murdered today, tell her yourself.”
Kip doesn’t argue, but doesn’t look happy about it, locking the door behind them.
“Tonight went well,” I say, using his arm for balance as I slip off my heels, moaning in relief. “You were great.”
Kip’s fingers brush mine as he takes the shoes from my hand and the sensation makes me look up at him. The fire in his eyes has returned, but now it’s intensified without other people present. He cups my cheek and bends the few-inch difference in our height to kiss me. My mouth opens of its own accord, and he takes full advantage.
We’ve done a lot of kissing these past few weeks. A lot. But none of them were like this. This kiss would have been too dangerous to tempt.
I say his name, not sure if it’s a question or a plea. I’m nervous in a way I’ve never been with him.
His eyes implore mine. “Let me show you how different it can be.”
My shaky breath is my reply.
I let him lead me up the stairs. I’m expecting him to take me to the bed, but am shocked when he stops at the couch. Dropping back into the cushions, he slowly releases my hand and kicks off his shoes and socks. There’s something sexy about a man dressed with bare feet.
“Take off your dress.” It’s not a demand or a question, just words put together for my benefit.
I reach for the hem, fidgeting with the material. This is so different from all of our other times. I know how sex with Kip can push me to a limit I’m not sure of. It’s not about taking off my clothes, because I’ve never been shy about being naked around people. I have a nice body—genetics have been good to me—but I’m suddenly struck with a sense of…fear.
“I’m scared,” I admit out loud.
He shakes his head, face calm. “Don’t be. You know me. You know I won’t ever hurt you.”
“It’s not that. It’s…” I say, trying to find the right words. “Irrational.”
He sits up, framing my outer thighs with his hands. “Is it though?” He doesn’t bother to wait for an answer as he bunches the fabric of my dress up to my waist, holding it in one hand, exposing my underwear. “Technically, you know the mechanics,” he says, trailing his mouth at the juncture of my thigh. “You’re highly experienced in the act of having sex.”
He cups his spare hand between my legs, putting the exact amount of pressure to make me squirm, and I place a hand on his shoulder for balance.
“But you don’t know what it’s like to love someone you’re doing it with.” He moves the fabric of my underwear aside and pushes a finger in. “To know the person you’re with will do just about anything to get you there first.”
The movement of his hand combined with the huskiness of his voice makes the ground beneath me tilt, and I think it’s my own form of vertigo. The two measly glasses of wine I had couldn’t possibly be enough to make the world tilt on its axis like this.
Unexpectedly, he retreats, taking his hand with him, and he looks up at me from his relaxed position on the couch. “Now undress so I can show you.”
With unsteady hands, I pull the material up over my head and toss it to him. He catches it, tossing it over the arm of the couch, a look of reverence in his eyes. His chest rises and falls marginally more quickly, but it’s noticeable in the quiet of the shop.
“You know you’re beautiful. You don’t need me to tell you something you already know,” he says. “What you don’t know, is how I can never stop thinking about touching you. All the time, all day, even when you’re not near. But I also know you don’t care for being overly affectionate, so I limit myself to three true touches an hour.”
I feel like I can and can’t breathe all at once. Drowning and floating. Living and dying. I slide the lacy underwear off and toss it to him as well. “Keep going.”
He holds the underwear in his fist, smiling behind it. “You don’t know how much I get turned on when we argue. I can’t think of anything I want to do more than fuck some sense into you.”
The words are naughty, but his expression behind them shows nothing but admiration. A part of me wants to close my eyes so I can focus on his words and the way he says them without being distracted by the way he’s looking at me. It’s conflicting in the best way.
“Kip, I need you to touch me.”
“If you insist,” he says, placing both hands behind each thigh, making me straddle his lap.
He lets me take his shirt off, pressing his bare chest against mine, his head tilted back as he kisses me. I run my fingers up the stubble of his throat, over his chin, tracing the outline of our mouths. I need more. He grinds into me, not caring about the layer of clothes he still has on.
“Bed,” I demand against his lips.
“Be patient,” he says, cupping my breast.
“Are you trying to start an argument with me on purpose?”
He smiles, placing his mouth on the same breast he’s holding, and I no longer care about the bed.
“You’re right. Here’s fine.” Without removing his mouth, he picks me up and carries me to the bed. “Oh, now you’re just being ridiculous.”
It’s like my words land on deaf ears as he switches to the other breast. I run my hands through his hair, aching to get closer. Just when I don’t think I can take any more, he begins making his way south. I’ve never liked it when someone goes down on me. There’s something intimate about it, something vulnerable that I could never get past. But he doesn’t stop between my legs like I’m expecting him to. He stands and removes his clothes, then kneels on the foot of the bed, staring down at me as he holds my ankle in his hand.
“You don’t know how I’ve watched you. Even years ago, I knew you were worthwhile.” He places a kiss on the inside on my ankle, and says, “One.”
I’m confused as he moves on to the inside of my knee.
Kissing that spot as well, his eyes meet mine as he says, “Two.”
It’s when he reaches for my hand I begin to understand as I watch him place another kiss to the spot between my index and middle finger.
“Three.”
He’s counting my freckles.
He reaches my collarbone, this time placing an open-mouth kiss to my most prominent birthmark. “Four.” Flipping me over, he places his lips to the
underside of my right ass cheek. “Five.” And finally, making his way back up, he kisses the underside of my ear. “Six,” he says, breath warm against my neck.
It’s a freckle I hadn’t known about.
He stretches his body over mine, and I can feel his arousal between us. He tugs my hair to one side, kissing me as he presses his hips into my backside. “You don’t know what it feels like to have complete control of the situation and still relax enough to enjoy it.”
Reaching between my legs, he dips a couple of fingers in, pulling back to tease in just the right spot before pushing back in. I lean back into his hand, loving his more than my own. And that’s really saying something.
Then, slowly, I feel him guide himself inside me and I moan into the bedding. He grinds one time, making us both moan at the sensation, before retreating. His breath is hot at my ear, his chest against my back, and he takes the hands I’m using to grip the sheets and pins them over my head with one of his. The other, he leverages under my waist, creating the most agonizing angle.
“Thank you for allowing me the chance to feel you,” he says, right before pushing back in.
Each thrust feels better than the last. With every in and out, Kip’s breaths and sounds echo through me. I have no control in this position as his body moves over mine. My hands are pinned, and when he pushes my legs together, bracketing them with his, I’m completely at his will. It elicits a brand new sensation and I squirm, overwhelmed by it and unsure how I feel about not being able to move.
“You can say stop at any point,” he says, pulling out and easing back in. “But you won’t, because you know I’ll get you there.”
And he’s right. He has my body strung beneath his from head to toe. Every time he pushes in, I feel a renewed flush flood my veins. It’s almost too much. It feels so good it hurts. Even if I wanted to say stop, I couldn’t. I come, harder than I honestly, truly ever believe I have before.
“That’s my girl,” he says, reverent.
He pulls out and flips me over, and it’s then I realize I’m crying. The wetness of my cheeks are cold against the air. But Kip knows what I need and doesn’t stop, entering me as he kisses me like I’m everything he’s ever wanted.
I’m pretty sure he’s mine.
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