My Father's Best Friend

by Ali Parker

Yet now here I was. Awake once more. Life was beyond amazing. I didn’t want to so much as blink. Not a half second was worth missing.

  “What about you?” Lanie asked as if reading my thoughts.

  A slow grin pulled at my lips. “I’d have to say that life is pretty damn amazing. So how about we toast to all of it?”

  “Good for me.” She raised her champagne flute, and I tapped mine against it.

  I kept my eyes on Lanie’s glass, watching as it met her lips and then went to the shelf next to the hot tub. With her hands free, I scooted forward and kissed her long and deep.

  “Hi,” she whispered as I pulled back.

  I found her leg in the water and rested my hand on it. “Are you having a good time?”

  “I’m having an amazing time.” She sighed in pleasure and sank further into the water. “Can we move here?”

  “To the resort?” I chuckled.

  “I was being more specific than that. I meant into this hot tub.”

  I sipped my champagne, watching her the whole time. “Let me make some calls. I’ll see what I can do.”

  Without warning, her face became more serious. “Do you think Raven is all right?”

  “Why wouldn’t she be? You think she’s lonely?”

  “I-I don’t know.” She looked over at the harbor’s lights.

  “It’s sweet that you’re worried about her.”

  “I can’t help it.”

  “She needs that.”

  I pressed my lips together, wondering if I’d said too much. Lanie and I had never discussed exactly what we were looking for in a relationship. I didn’t know what her long-term desires were. I only knew I wanted them all to include me.

  Slowly, I trailed my fingers up Lanie’s thigh and to her hip. Her lashes danced across her cheekbones.

  “How is it that you get sexier each day?” I asked.

  Lanie’s laugh was a sputtering one. “That’s quite the line.”

  “It’s not a line,” I seriously said, lowering my face to hers. “It’s the truth.”

  Lanie exhaled long, her breath grazing my lips. Shivers ran up my back and across my shoulders. This woman.

  Hooking my thumb under her chin, I tilted Lanie’s face up and claimed her lips. They parted right away, sweet and ready for me. Those lips belonged to me, and they knew it.

  I took my time, savoring each second Lanie allowed me to kiss her. With each pass of my lips against hers, she opened up more, her whole mouth loosening. I explored every inch I could get to. Teeth. Tongue. Lips. No part was ignored.

  Underwater, my hands moved as well, one of them wrapping around Lanie’s waist while the other stroked up and down her leg. The familiar fire burned deep in my core, the ache a wild, painful one.

  Breaking my mouth from hers, I exhaled heavily. “Is it just me, or is it hot in this tub?”

  Lanie burst into laughter. “Wow.”

  “At least you laughed.”

  “That was pretty bad.”

  “Mm. You like it.” I nipped her earlobe, and she squirmed against me.

  “Andrew?”

  “Uh-huh?”

  “Take me inside. Please.”

  A deep, animalistic growl flew from my lips. I didn’t need to be told twice. Climbing from the hot tub, I reached over and helped Lanie out before sweeping her up in my arms.

  “Wait!” she shrieked. “The champagne!”

  I paused, letting her grab the whole bottle before I carried her inside and straight to the bedroom.

  Chapter 43

  Lanie

  “Where to, ma’am?” Andrew asked, kicking the door to the porch closed behind him.

  “That way!” I pointed at the bedroom with the champagne bottle.

  Nipping at my neck, Andrew carried me across the living room and into the suite’s bedroom, where he set me on the edge of the bed before standing back and looking down at me. Water ran in little rivulets down his neck and chest, making the already delicious muscles that much more lickable.

  “Anything else your heart currently desires?” he asked.

  “Hm. Let me think.” I dramatically leaned back against my elbows, taking my time appraising his nearly-naked form. “How about you dance for me?”

  Andrew’s jaw fell. “Dance?”

  “Yep.” Setting the champagne bottle on the floor, I made a big scene of crawling across the bed, shaking my rear as I went. Andrew growled, but I ignored him, grabbing my phone from the bed stand and putting on the first upbeat pop song I came to.

  “Dance,” I repeated, settling against the pillows. I knew I was dripping water onto the comforter, but I was having way too much fun to care.

  Andrew bit down on his lip, a look of disbelief painting his features. “I …”

  “Dance,” I said again, more sternly this time. “If you want me, you’ll do what I say.”

  Eyes on Andrew, I crossed my legs and ran my fingers across the top of my bathing suit. It was the most ballsy I’d probably ever been with him, sexually speaking, and it had the intended effect.

  Andrew swallowed hard, nodding slowly, looking like he was in a trance. Lifting his arms, he slowly began to dance, shaking back in forth in the most awkward way imaginable.

  “You call that dancing?” I laughed.

  “Yeah.” He turned around, shaking his rear. “You like it?”

  “I … love … it,” I sputtered in between giggles.

  “It’s all for you, baby.” His previous resistance gone, Andrew propped his leg on the end of the bed and began thrusting into the air.

  “Okay, you can stop.” I clutched at my side, the extreme laughter becoming painful.

  “Nope. I’m just getting started.” Lacing his fingers together, he pressed his hands into the back of his head and switched from hip thrusts to hip rotations.

  “You’re really getting a workout there.”

  “Just getting warmed up for you.”

  “Stop!” I screeched. “I can’t laugh anymore!”

  Choking on my own laughter, I rolled over and buried my face in a pillow. The bed bounced as Andrew landed next to me.

  “Okay. I stopped.” His warm palm pressed against my back. “Maybe next time, you’ll think your demands through a little more first.”

  “Definitely.” I rolled over to face him, noticing the big damp spot our presence had created. “Wow, we’ve made this bed really wet.”

  Andrew’s eyebrows rose. “I love it when you talk dirty.”

  “That’s not what I was talking about.”

  “No?”

  Before I could answer, his hand was between my thighs, fingers gently grazing the bathing suit fabric. I sucked in a breath, my whole body curling against the sudden and intense pleasure.

  As he continued to tease me, Andrew buried his face in my neck. Gentle sucks sent electricity through my veins, and I wiggled sideways, eager to get my hands on his smooth chest.

  Our lips found each other, and as we slowly kissed, Andrew pushed my bathing suit to the side. His gentle touch graced my throbbing spots, his thumb running up the length of my folds before settling on my swollen nub. Lethargic strokes made me jerk, and I kissed Andrew deeper.

  His jaw loosened, his tongue drawing me further in. Heat burned my palms, and I ran them lower. Fingers trembling, I pushed at Andrew’s bathing suit.

  He did the same with mine, helping me tug off my bikini bottom. While we continued to kiss, he found the strings on my bikini top and fluidly pulled them loose. Cold air pricked at my damp breasts, making my already aroused nipples that much harder.

  Andrew broke off the kiss, his gaze falling to my naked chest. With a little murmur of pleasure, he took both breasts in his hands. They were small, filling up his broad palms, but he made me feel like they were the most perfect set in the whole world. Lovingly, he kneaded them, taking his time and slowly licking first one nipple and then the other.

  I worked my hands through his thick hair as he kissed and sucked. The attention mad
e my toes curl, my stomach flutter. No one had ever touched me like Andrew did. Each time his hands fell on me—or his eyes, for that matter—the rest of the world disappeared.

  Andrew continued sucking and massaging, taking me to an ecstatic level I’d never been before. It was more than the physical sensations. There was something new rushing through me. I felt wild. Free. At peace.

  My eyes drifted closed, and I gave myself over to him completely, riding the waves and needing nothing more than exactly what was happening. Andrew’s lips trailed lower, giving attention to my belly before settling between my thighs.

  Softly, tenderly, he licked me. My hands went to his hair again, my hips bucking of their own accord. I was gasping, shaking, not having any say over what my body was doing.

  “Andrew,” I gasped, nails piercing his scalp. “I need you.”

  The licks stopped, and Andrew looked at me over my stomach. “You have me,” he rumbled.

  The words, the promise, only increased my desire.

  “Now,” I cried, tugging on his shoulders.

  “No.” He smiled, lowering his face once more. A finger wiggled its way between my folds, doubling the sensations Andrew’s licks were creating.

  The pleasure increased, and I burst with a loud cry. Andrew held my thighs open, continuing to lick through my release. Even after I finished, he kept going, gently laying a kiss on my mound before sitting up.

  “You still want me?” he asked.

  I pierced his gaze with mine. “More than ever.”

  Andrew’s lips parted, and his breathing quickened. We continued to stare at each other, lust and admiration filling the air till it seemed as if the room would explode from the force of it all.

  “Wait here,” Andrew huskily said.

  “I wasn’t planning on going anywhere.”

  Jumping from the bed, he rummaged through his bag and pulled out a condom. I watched him hungrily, my fingertips itching to get a hold of him. Andrew came toward the bed, but before he got the chance to put the condom on, I shimmied over and kissed the tip of his length.

  “Lanie,” Andrew murmured.

  How did he do that—turn my name into music? I wanted to hear it again and again. Lightly stroking the base of his dick, I swiveled my tongue over the tip. A bit of pre-come leaked out, and I swallowed it down. I wanted to taste everything he had to offer me. Nothing could go to waste.

  Opening my mouth wide, I swallowed him down, not stopping until his tip hit the back of my throat. Slowly, I bobbed my head, using my hands to increase the pressure.

  Andrew lightly massaged my shoulders, fingertips kissing the sides of my neck.

  “Lanie,” he moaned, making the muscles between my legs tightly clench.

  With a pop, he pulled away from me. His eyes were hooded, lips swollen and parted. “I just can’t stop looking at you. I can’t tell you how much ...” Andrew swallowed.

  I blinked up at him. What had he been about to say?

  “Show me,” I whispered, taking his hand.

  Andrew nodded and rolled on the condom. Scooting back, I pulled him with me. We landed on the dry side of the bed, Andrew nestled between my arms and legs. His lips brushed against my chin, and I closed my eyes with a sigh.

  Kisses peppered my face. Lips. Eyelids. Nose. Forehead. Andrew didn’t miss a spot.

  I tilted my face up, silently asking for his lips against my mouth. He complied, laying his lips on mine as his arms snaked under my back.

  Opening my eyes, I looked back at him as he gently entered me. My whole body pulsed, ready and begging for the one man who made it come alive.

  Lips sweeping against each other, Andrew plunged all the way into me. We groaned at the same time, losing all our inhibitions together.

  Kissing desperately, I wrapped my arms and legs around his back. I needed him closer, needed his body to meld into mine, to become a part of who I was.

  “Lanie,” he whispered into my ear.

  “Yes,” I gasped.

  Andrew said my name again—and again, each stroke being accompanied by a lust-filled murmur. I arched my back, driving my hips into his.

  The heat spun through me, collecting in my core. I exploded for the second time, my tongue thrashing against Andrew’s. He held me tighter, keeping me safe, making me feel loved. Deeper into me he went, making me his over and over again.

  But I’d been that all along, hadn’t I? From the moment I first saw Andrew, I knew something was going to be different. We belonged together. It didn’t matter what the world threw at us. As we’d already proven, Andrew and I could persevere.

  “Baby,” he whispered, so much sweetness in the one word.

  I pressed my fingers against the back of his head, burrowing my face into his neck. I could feel his own release coming as if it were my own. It gathered speed, ripping through his cells, and Andrew burst as we kissed for all we were worth.

  With a huff, he dropped his face against the side of my neck. I closed my eyes again, listening to his heavy breathing and the pounding in my ears. My whole body tingled, and my heart swelled. Outside, the rain picked up again, making little pings against the windows.

  Andrew kissed the side of my neck, and I smiled. Our arms were still wrapped around each other, and I felt no desire at all to move. Not for a hundred years.

  “I could lie like this forever,” Andrew murmured, making the skin on my neck tingle.

  “You read my mind.”

  “Actually.” He gently slipped away from me and climbed out of bed.

  “Where are you going?” I asked, stifling a yawn.

  “One second,” Andrew’s voice came from the bathroom.

  I blinked and rubbed my eyes. The heavy dinner combined with hot tub time and the way Andrew had just rocked my world must have been making me sleepy. Without much warning, I felt like I could drift off within a minute.

  The bathroom door creaked, and Andrew appeared wearing a fluffy bathrobe, another one in his hands. “We can’t let these go to waste.”

  I laughed and sat up. “We can’t?”

  “Not according to Saxton. This is weird, maybe, but the bathrobes were one of the things he raved about the most when he told me about this place.”

  “That is weird. Does he have some kind of robe fetish?”

  “Saxton?” Andrew sat on the edge of the bed and wrinkled his nose. “You know, with him, there’s very little that would surprise me.”

  “That settles it. I need to get to know him.”

  “I’m sure you will. Be careful what you wish for, though. He’s a handful. Get your fine butt over here.”

  I crawled over to the edge of the bed, where Andrew wrapped the other fluffy robe around me.

  “Mm.” I snuggled my nose into the collar. “It is nice.”

  “Yeah, I’ll have to send him a fruit basket or something.”

  “Do people still do that?”

  “Ooh.” Andrew grabbed his chest like he was in pain. “Way to make me feel old.”

  “You know that’s not what I was doing!” I cried.

  “I know.” He grinned. “Let’s lie back down.”

  I was on my back in a flash, cradled against Andrew’s chest, his arm around me. The sleepiness I felt before came back, washing over me warmer than the hot tub.

  “Mm,” I sighed, snuggling closer against Andrew’s robe. His familiar smell combined with the robe’s filled my nose, calming me further.

  Andrew squeezed my shoulder and kissed the top of my head. Meanwhile, the rain continued to kiss the windowpanes. With each rise of Andrew’s chest under my cheek, I slipped a little closer toward unconsciousness. Everything slowed down: the sounds of the rain outside, Andrew’s breathing pattern. Time seemed to unroll itself, each second becoming twice as long as I’d previously thought they were.

  At the moment, nothing else was needed. Beyond a doubt, I knew I was right where I needed to be. There was no more trying, no frantic striving. I’d arrived.

  “I’m in
love with you,” I sighed.

  “What was that?” Andrew asked.

  Should I have been embarrassed? I couldn’t remember. Everything was soft and warm, thoughts becoming harder to come by.

  “Never mind,” I murmured.

  If he answered, I didn’t hear him. Sleep had already taken me.

  Chapter 44

  Andrew

  I stretched on the bed, my feet meeting a crisp spot in the sheets. My eyes were still heavy, sealed tight after what felt like a decade-long sleep.

  Rubbing my face, I forced my eyes open. Sunlight was coming through the open curtains, but I must have been really tired because it hadn’t woken me up. Instead, I’d slowly come back to consciousness, embracing the morning only when I finally felt like it.

  On the left side of the bed, Lanie stirred. She lay on her stomach, hands curled under her chin. Reaching over, I ran my palm down the length of her back. She looked so pristine and angelic sleeping there. For as long as we’d been dating, it was a shame this was only our second time waking up together.

  I wanted her by my side every morning. In my bed. My kitchen. My office. I wanted her filling up every corner of my life.

  Feeling my touch, she licked her lips and sleepily blinked her eyes open. I stayed where I was, head propped in my hand and watching her.

  “Hi,” she whispered.

  “Hey there.”

  She squinted against the light. “Were you watching me sleep?”

  “Just for a minute. That’s short enough for it to not be creepy, right?”

  Lanie giggled and bit down on her bottom lip in that oh-so-delicious way. “If you’re doing it, it’s never creepy.”

  I ran my hand up her arm. “Were you dreaming?”

  Her face scrunched up as she thought about it. “I don’t think so. Maybe because my dreams couldn’t get any better than reality right now.”

  My first instinct was to laugh and call her out on the cheesy statement, but after everything we’d said and done the night before, I knew she told the truth.

  “You’re right about that,” I softly answered, lowering myself down so our faces were even.

  “I don’t even remember falling asleep last night.”