Blocked

by Lisa N. Paul

  With the phone to his ear, Decker walked through his home, putting away Charlie’s toys and turning off lights. They were typical things he’d been doing for more than six years, but tonight, he had April’s voice in his ear, and for the first time, he had her scent on his clothes and her taste on his tongue. All of his senses had been affected by her, and he wanted more. He needed more. “So tell me, what was the reason for the call if it wasn’t Eli?”

  April snorted. “Oh, you’ll love this—she was trying to save my virtue. Seriously, Decker. Does she forget that I was married? I have a four-year-old child, hence the reason she was at my house babysitting. I don’t have any virtue!”

  Decker could practically see the dimples forming in her cheeks as her giggle tickled him through the line. “Well…” He cleared his throat. “I hate to admit this, but your mother wasn’t altogether wrong, babe. I had no intentions at stopping with just one kiss.” Even though they’d been flirting and chatting for weeks, tonight was their first official date. While it was obvious that April was as attracted to him as he to her, he didn’t want to scare her off, but he also wanted her to know he was no Boy Scout. The way she had his blood churning… mmm, one kiss would have been a mere appetizer.

  “I’m glad to hear that, big guy,” April cooed, her voice honey smooth but sinfully sexy, “because I would have been disappointed if one kiss was all you had to offer.”

  Decker pulled the phone from his ear and looked at the screen. Yeah, it was still lit and connected to April Maddox. No, he wasn’t dreaming. The woman was sexy as sin. He closed his bedroom door, kicked off his shoes, and sauntered over to his bed. “April”—gravel and heat filled his tone—“will you let me kiss you now?”

  Brief silence met his ear—no words, no breath—until she answered in a whisper, “Yes, Decker, I’d love for you to kiss me now. How do you plan to do that?”

  The certainty in her answer, mixed with the innocence of her question, had Decker’s cock hard as steel and begging to be released from its confines. “Do you trust me, April?”

  A moment of time passed before she stammered, “I-I don’t know.”

  Her honest response came as a bit of surprise. He’d never asked that question and received an answer other than “yes.” The truth had him grinning; Ms. Maddox was a smart, sincere woman who told it like it was. He hadn’t earned her trust yet, but he was going to.

  “Deck, I didn’t mean—”

  “No, April, your answer was honest, and I respect that. So here’s my honest answer—I like you, a lot. I’m not a liar, a cheater, or any of the things that fathers pray their daughters stay away from. I have no intentions of hurting you, and right now, in this moment, I just wanna make you feel good. Now, will you allow me to do that?”

  “Yes,” she murmured.

  “Go to your bedroom, beautiful,” he ordered.

  “I’m already there, big guy.”

  While he couldn’t picture the room, having never been to her house, the thought of her surrounded by a huge bed and her flawless skin draped on smooth sheets had him unbuttoning his jeans as he spoke his next demand. “Perfect. Now peel off that sexy top of yours. Just the hot little V-neck, honey. Leave the bra alone, and lie down. And April, keep those incredibly long fingers off your body until I say otherwise.” The sharp intake of breath he heard followed by the soft hum gave him the incentive to continue their game. “Are you lying back?”

  “Yes, Decker,” her voice turned husky as she responded. “My shirt is rumpled on the floor, my head’s resting on the pillow, and I’m laying here wearing just a lacy green bra and my jeans.”

  “Mmm,” Decker rumbled while he removed his shirt and edged back on his mattress. Her breasts, so firm and round, had teased him all through dinner in that tight black top, and now imagining them in nothing but green lace… his hand grazed over his denim-clad dick. First her, then you, he thought, repeating his motto over in his head. “Close your eyes, April.”

  “Decker—” His name wasn’t a question but a plea.

  He knew she was letting him in, and he wasn’t going to let her down. “Shh, you said you’d let me kiss you. Now, trust me and close your eyes.”

  “Okay,” she murmured, “they’re closed.”

  His voice thick with desire, Decker closed his eyes as well and began to instruct April through the most erotic kiss of his life. “Good. Now imagine me beside you, our bodies so close, the heat of my skin warming yours as I lift your chin so I can look into your eyes.

  “Imagine my breath, April, a hint of chocolate, sweet and close, caressing your skin with a promise of things yet to come.” With each word Decker’s heart skipped faster, but when he heard her shallow breath, his pulse began to race.

  “Keep your eyes closed, beautiful, and lift your left hand to your face. Just before you touch your cheek, rotate your wrist so it’s your knuckles that stroke your skin. Start by your ear, and slowly drag your hand down your jawline. That’s my touch you feel on your soft skin, my knuckles that are making your breaths quicken.”

  “Now, move the index finger of that same hand across your silky-soft bottom lip. Do you remember how it felt when my mouth claimed yours? When my tongue breached your lips and slid into your warmth? Fuck.” Decker groaned as the images he painted came alive in his head. “Let me feel your tongue, beautiful. Lick your finger for me.”

  “Oh, Decker,” she whimpered, “Christ, how the hell did you do that?”

  * * *

  HIS GRAVELLY LAUGH reverberated through the phone, making her insides clench with desire she’d never before known. April resisted lifting her lids, not wanting to end the magnificent dream he created in her mind’s eye.

  “I have no idea,” he admitted, his voice sounding as rough with need as she felt.

  Inhaling deeply, April forced her eyes open and looked down at her body. Her lace covered nipples stood in erect peaks, begging to be touched, while her stocking-covered feet rubbed together anxiously, like a cricket sending out a mating call. “Come on, Deck, I know you aren’t a virgin any more than I am. It’s okay. I just wanna know how you learned to have phone sex like that?”

  Another deep chuckle infiltrated her ear. “Oh, sweet woman, that was not phone sex. That was… fuck.” April could hear the exasperation in his tone. “Frankly, that was something I’ve never experienced in my life. To be honest, I wasn’t certain how that was going to play out, but I just closed my eyes and pictured what you were doing and… it was like I could touch you, April. I could actually fucking taste your lips. That was phone-kissing and it was… mmm.”

  The timbre of his deep voice felt like his hands, thick and calloused. She’d only felt them a couple of times at the gym when he touched her shoulder or held her hand, but when he’d caressed her cheeks while kissing her at the restaurant, she nearly melted on contact. It was the thought of his rough on her soft that swept her away in his fantasy just moments earlier.

  “It was absolutely ‘mmm’,” she teased. Having never experienced phone sex before, neither the full-fledged kind nor the type they’d just engaged in, April knew without a doubt if it was something that could make her feel that good, hell, she’d do it every damn day. “Deck?” She swallowed hard, summoning the courage to say what her mind was shouting.

  “What do you need, beautiful?” There was a smile in his question, nothing cocky or crude, but it was as if he asked while fully knowing what she was going to say.

  “Your kisses,” she started slowly, “both in person and over the phone, made me feel things.” She brought her hand over her breast and rolled her tightened nipple between her finger and her thumb, pinching the nub until small sparks lit in her core. “Things I haven’t felt in a long, long time. I really liked it, Decker… I like you. And I need… more. I want more.” She switched to her other breast, kneading the sensitive flesh, pulling at her nipple as she continued to talk to the man who’d lit her up more than once that evening.

  “Are you touching yourself
, April?”

  “Yes.” She heard the quiver in her voice, but she didn’t have it in her to be ashamed.

  “Good. Where are you touching, honey?” There was no hiding his desire. It was clear as day in each throaty question.

  “Umm—” Shit, she had to answer him. She was a grown damn woman, and she could perform without a problem, but when it came to talking about sex in a sexy way… well, apparently she was missing that quality—at least according to her ex-husband.

  “Do you trust me?” Decker asked for the second time that night.

  “Okay…”

  Chuckling, he repeated her answer. “‘Okay’ is better than no, so we’re getting somewhere. April, feel free to stop me if I ever make you feel uncomfortable, okay?”

  “That I can promise,” she answered confidently.

  “Perfect. Now, where are you touching yourself, babe?”

  April sighed.

  “April, are you touching your breasts? Christ, I hope you are. I’ve thought about your perfect tits for months, each time I watched you on the treadmill.”

  Oh my God, his words were like jolts of electricity zinging to the very center of her.

  “Are you pinching your nipples, beautiful? Making them pebble beneath your long, delicate fingers? Are they begging for my mouth?”

  April swallowed. Her breaths were shallow as liquid heat pooled between her thighs. “Mmm, yes, they’re so sensitive, Decker.”

  She heard his muffled groan before he said, “Fuck, what I wouldn’t do to sweep my tongue over those hardened points and suck until you screamed my name. But…” His words stopped.

  Confused, April pulled the phone from her ear to make sure the call hadn’t dropped. “But what? But what, Decker?” The high pitch of her voice would have been amusing had it not sounded so pathetic to her own ears.

  “But…” Decker sounded strained but more composed than her. “I asked you to kiss me tonight, and you agreed. But more importantly, I asked for your trust, and you gave it to me.”

  There was so much conviction in his words, so much intensity, April felt as if she could see him, touch him… trust him. She shook her head. No, not yet.

  “I intend to keep that trust. So as much as it pains me to say this, this is where we need to get off.”

  “That’s what I was trying to do before you so rudely interrupted me, Mr. Brand,” April needled.

  “Ms. Maddox,” Decker mock-scolded, “are you trying to corrupt my morals? Because I will not allow it.”

  Unable to remember the last time her cheeks ached from smiling, April giggled into the phone. “I won’t try to corrupt you, you sweet innocent man, but I will thank you for everything. I had a great time tonight, Deck.”

  “Me too, April. I know our schedules are crazy, but I look forward to seeing you again, outside of the gym,” he qualified. “Sleep well, beautiful. I’ll call you tomorrow.”

  Staring up at the ceiling, April replayed the evening in her head. Disregarding her mother’s stunt, it was the best night she’d had in years. Decker’s seductive voice massaged her memory—his sexy smile, kind disposition, dirty words… his coaxing ways—her body yearned for more. Then he’d given it when he kissed her. Oh God, that kiss. The way he ate at her mouth as though she was the richest chocolate and the finest wine. She’d never had a more amazing kiss until he managed to blow her mind yet again by recreating the embrace a second time, without even laying a finger on her hypersensitive skin.

  Thousands of goose bumps blanketed her flesh as visions of Decker saturated her mind. For months she’d observed as he lifted weights. She watched as his biceps curled and his triceps flexed. She found herself practically drooling over the ripples in his abs, the muscles in his back, and the incredible form of his legs, but nothing had prepared her for what he would look like freshly showered and fully dressed. She’d locked on him immediately upon entering the bar and drunk him in, from his clean-shaven face that showcased his chiseled square jaw, to his strong bare neck, and the way his Adam’s apple bobbed as he took a pull from his cocktail. Her gaze had continued its downward journey, reveling in the peek-a-boo patch of chest revealed where the top two buttons of his shirt remained open. The man was breathtaking, and after spending the evening in his company, tasting his erotic kiss and hearing his spicy words, April was aroused and wanton.

  How had he affected her so profoundly with little more than a hot kiss and provocative words? How was it possible that he’d left her body coiled so tightly, there was no doubt with just a couple more touches, a few more thoughts … she’d shatter into tiny pieces of pleasure. Her middle finger swiped over her clit as her other hand went to her lips. After sucking on the finger she’d had in her mouth while on the phone with Decker, April moved her hand down to her breast. She pushed the lace cup down, exposing the firm mound, and traced the moist digit over her puckered nipple.

  It had been a long time since someone spoken to her as he had, so fucking long since she heard hunger in a man’s voice. Like a fog covering up her beautiful fantasy, reflections of her ex-husband rolled into her consciousness. Realizations of how, after all of the years she’d been with Ben and thought they were happy—thought she was happy—not once had he ever taken the time to see to her pleasure if his was not included as well. Never once had he taken the time to call her when he was out of town, especially in the last two years of their marriage; he certainly hadn’t taken the time to make love to her over the phone. And never was their relationship built on trust—obviously, since the man cheated on her. Suddenly, the fire that had been raging in her body was extinguished, leaving nothing more of her arousal than smoke, soot, ash, and the longing for the release that wasn’t going to happen. Goddamn, Ben—gone all these years, and he was still a selfish asshole.

  Chapter Ten

  You Talk, and I’ll Listen

  Dimples: Eli is feeling much better. I was grateful that the pediatrician saw him today on a Sunday.

  Even though he hadn’t met April’s little boy, Decker’s blood had still boiled when she called him two days before to report that Elijah was bitten by another little boy in daycare. Not just a nibble either—the little cannibal had broken skin on April’s son, requiring a trip to the emergency room. Had it been his daughter, he would have gone apeshit on the biter, then he would have demanded a pound of flesh from the brat’s father. Not April. While he’d heard the worry in her voice when he listened to the message she’d left, she had calmly left work, picked her baby up from day care, and taken him for treatment. When Decker received the message during his lunch break, he immediately tried to contact her, only to get her voice mail. He left a message then worried for the couple of hours until she returned his call.

  Decker: The doctor doesn’t think the redness is anything to worry about?

  Dimples: No, Eli is on antibiotics so as long I keep the area around the wound clean, he should be fine.

  Decker: I’m so sorry, babe. I hate that Eli got hurt and I hate that you had to deal with it alone. I wish you would have let me come by on Friday night or even yesterday to check on you guys.

  That was the part that was beginning to wear on Decker. It had been three weeks since their “first” date, and while they talked and texted multiple times a day, their schedules made it nearly impossible for them to see each other. Sure, they could get together if it was all four of them, but April refused to introduce him to her son, claiming she didn’t want Elijah to get attached to people who may be temporary. There were so many things about that statement that bugged him, but the fact was, it had been only one date. He knew there were more dates to come, so he couldn’t fault her.

  Dimples: Aww, Big Guy, thank you for worrying about me.

  Decker: I worried about you both.

  He wondered if she could sense the intensity in his text. He didn’t want to be the Sunday morning quarterback when it came to April and Elijah—he wanted to be part of their lives. As the seconds passed, he wondered if he’d come on t
oo strong.

  Dimples: *sigh* Thank you, Deck. But honestly, just like you, I’ve been going this journey alone for a long time.

  Decker: But you don’t have to be alone. I’m here.

  Her response shot back quickly.

  Dimples: Besides, August came by as soon as he got home from work and Ember and my parents brought pizza and ice cream over last night. Eli is good to go.

  Decker: And you?

  Dimples: I may need to color my hair I think I found 15 new grays this morning. Lol, but I’ll be fine too.

  She was more than fine, Decker thought to himself. She was an incredibly strong, albeit stubborn woman, and he found himself falling for her more each day. He knew he wasn’t falling alone, but the question was, would she open her world up to him and Charlie, or would she keep it on lock down indefinitely?

  “Hey, Deck, you gonna stand out here all day, or are you coming in to eat dinner? We’re fucking starving.” Ford stood with his arms crossed over his chest and a scowl marring his face.

  Anyone else in the world would have seen his glare and cowered in fear, but not Decker. No, Decker always searched his brother’s eyes, and in those dark orbs, all he saw was laughter. “Starving my ass. Why don’t you call your secretary and have her swing by with a sandwich? I’m sure she’d get right on you… err, it.”

  Ford flashed a devilish grin. “Vanna would happily bring me anything I wanted.” His smooth, slow tone did nothing to hide his innuendo. He flipped Decker the finger and disappeared back into the house.

  Decker: I’ve gotta go. At my mom’s for dinner. Call you tonight?