“As I did with your brother.” He cracked a smile. “I think we need to talk.”
They needed to talk, but now that she knew she’d wrongly assumed he’d slept with Shira . . .
“I really wish you’d said kiss.”
He chuckled and carried her over to the couch with Dahlia on his heels.
“You could change your mind,” she suggested. “Try it. We need to kiss. It’s easy—you just swap your four letters for mine.”
He set her on the couch and sank down beside her. Dahlia nosed between his legs, pushing her big head toward his chest. He took the pup’s face in his hands as he’d done to Bridgette. “I love you, but you need to lie down.”
Melt. Melt. Melt. She tried to remember what the saying was about how a man treats his dog. Or maybe it was his mother. She looked around at the tarps and paint, and realized she was safe. Bodhi obviously treated both just fine.
He kissed the top of Dahlia’s head. “Bed.”
Dahlia seemed to frown as she lumbered off to the cushion across the room.
Bodhi stretched his arm across the back of the couch, settling his hand on Bridgette’s shoulder, and turned so his whole body faced her. He laced their fingers together in another unexpected moment of tenderness. “Hi, beautiful.”
She felt herself smiling, but her insides were whirling. “Hi.”
“Let’s get a few things out of the way. I am not the kind of guy who sleeps with random women.”
“Aren’t I a random woman?”
He shook his head. “Am I a random guy?”
She thought about that for a minute. She’d spent weeks secretly lusting after him, and in the week since he’d moved in, she’d learned a few things about him. Mainly that he looked amazing without his shirt on and had the power to weaken her knees with a single glance. But other important things, too, like knowing he was there to help his mother and that he took extra care thinking about Louie.
“Not random, no,” she answered. “You’re more than that.”
He cocked a brow.
“Point taken,” she admitted. “I don’t sleep around, either. Honestly, I haven’t been with a guy in years.”
“Years? You don’t have to make yourself out to be innocent. You’re a sexy, smart woman. I imagine you’ve had plenty of boyfriends.”
“Not for a very long time.” She focused on his thumb, rubbing slow circles on her hand as she mustered the courage to tell him the truth. When she met his gaze, genuine interest looked back at her. “I was married.”
“I assumed so,” he said.
“I . . . we lost Jerry, my husband, to a car accident when Louie was four months old.”
He squeezed her shoulder. “I’m sorry. That must have been awful.”
She nodded, not wanting to get lost in a dark conversation. “It was. Jerry was the drummer for the band Sunderbolt.”
“That’s why he looked familiar when I saw the picture in your hallway.”
“That’s my Jerry.” She smiled, and then her expression turned sorrowful.
“Were you married long?”
“Not that long. I was a rebellious nineteen-year-old when we met backstage at a concert, and he was as wild as they came. Like with you and me, sparks flew from the very first moment I saw him. I quit college, against my family’s wishes, and we got married. We spent most of the next two years on the road, touring. He was leaving an after-party when it happened. He ran a red light, and a truck hit him.” She swallowed past her thickening throat. “The media was all over me and Louie, so I laid low for a few months, changed our names back to Dalton, and started a new life here, near my family.”
He lifted her chin with their joined hands, sorrow brimming in his eyes. “There are no words . . .”
“I don’t need them. We’re okay. We weren’t for a while, but my family made sure we found our way.”
“You’re lucky to be close to your family, and you’re clearly an excellent mother. Louie seems happy and well adjusted.”
“Thank you. He’s my heart and soul.”
“That’s evident in everything you do. I admire the strength it takes to be a single mother, and I don’t want whatever this is between us to interfere with that.”
What happened to Mr. Silent Brooder? She liked this sensitive side of him, and understood now why he kept it so well hidden. She’d seen lots of women gawking over him at the bar, and they’d fawn over him even more if they had any idea how thoughtful he was.
“Thank you. I don’t want to turn tonight into a total downer, but you should know where I’m coming from. I haven’t been with a man since I lost Jerry. I haven’t even wanted to, and then you showed up in the bakery, and suddenly I’m like a groupie. I can’t get enough of you.”
He smiled. “That makes two of us. I haven’t had a relationship since I was in college. My work is too dangerous to leave anyone at home waiting for me.”
“What is it that you do?”
“I was Special Forces. Now I work for a civilian operation and handle covert rescue missions, and when I’m not away on an assignment, I help train others.”
“Wow. That’s impressive, and it explains your rough and rugged demeanor.”
“You’ve got to be hard and be able to keep from getting emotionally involved to do what I do. I’ve seen too many worst-case scenarios play out not to be vigilant.”
“I can see that. And by the looks of things, you’re also a mama’s boy, seeing as you bought her a house in our sweet little town. What about your father? Are you close to him, too?”
His expression hardened. “We lost him when I was eight.”
“I’m sorry.” She ached for him. “You must miss him very much.”
“Not a day goes by that I don’t. What about you and Jerry? You must miss him, too. Real love never leaves you.”
She wasn’t expecting such a bold question, or such an insightful comment. Usually people danced around the topic of her husband. But Bodhi obviously wasn’t an insecure guy who needed to feel like he was the only man she’d ever set her eyes on. He seemed as grounded in reality, and as deeply rooted in family, as she was.
“You have no idea how nice it is to hear you say that,” she admitted. “Most guys don’t understand that just because a person is gone doesn’t mean your love dies with them. We had a wild, crazy love, and I don’t know if I’ll ever love anyone in the same way I loved Jerry, but I hope one day I’ll fall in love as deeply, even if it’s different.”
“I’m sure you will. Honestly, I’m surprised some guy hasn’t already swept you off your feet.”
“I wasn’t exactly sweepable. Like I said, before you I never gave any guy a second thought. But time does heal all wounds. At first I thought about Jerry every minute. I saw him in Louie’s facial expressions. I would have sworn I heard him playing the drums in the wind. The heart’s a funny thing. It doesn’t like to let go. But over time Louie became his own person, and now I see only glimpses of Jerry in him. And I don’t know when or how, but at some point I went from being Jerry’s widow to being Bridgette Dalton, mother, florist, sister, friend . . .”
She gazed into his eyes, feeling lighter with her confession, and foolish, because she’d just lost her chance at making out with the only man who had sparked her body to life in years. “Not exactly the hookup you thought you were getting, huh? You must want to run in the opposite direction now.”
MAYBE HER CONFESSION would make a typical guy do exactly what she worried about, but Bodhi had never been typical. “I’m a rescuer, remember? My instinct is to take you in my arms and never let you go. To make yours and Louie’s lives as full, and safe, and happy as they can possibly be. But I can’t offer you that, and I won’t even try.”
She straightened her spine, and a forced smile appeared on her beautiful face. “I’m not looking for that, but I understand it’s too much. I have a lot of baggage.”
“First, please don’t refer to what you’ve gone through as baggage. I know you did
n’t mean it negatively, but your past and Louie are a part of you, and anyone who would see Louie, your husband, or your past as baggage isn’t worth a second look.” That earned a genuine smile. “But you don’t need rescuing, Bridgette. I was raised by a single mother. I know the strength and devotion it takes. Your parenting abilities make you all that much more attractive.”
He pulled her closer. “With my career, I can’t make any commitments, or even promise you tomorrow. They can call me in at any time and I’ll have to drop everything and leave. And as I said, I’m going back to the city in two weeks. But I’m here now, and no part of me wants to run away.”
“Bodhi,” she whispered wantingly.
“I love hearing you say my name. But you need to make it clear if you want this, because once I get my mouth on you, I’m not going to stop. And I’ll never forgive myself if I misread you.”
She gripped his thigh, her fingers curling around his muscles. “You make me feel more than I have in years. Even if tonight is all we have, I don’t want to miss it. Kiss me, Bodhi. Kiss me, and don’t stop until you have no kisses left to give.”
He wasted no time drawing her closer and urgently claiming her mouth. He deepened the kiss, passion and greed driving him to take more as she groped his arms and neck, back and head. He caressed her thigh, following her curves over her hip and beneath her shirt, feeling the heat of her skin and craving so much more. His thumb grazed her bare breast, whipping his insides into a flurry of heat and desire. He palmed her breast, and she moaned. He pressed a series of feathery kisses along her lips as he brushed his thumb over her taut nipple. She shuddered against him, and the sexiest sighing, needful sound fell from her lips.
“I need more of you, beautiful.” He lifted the hem of her shirt, and she bit her lower lip, giving him the sweetest, most vulnerable look.
“Hurry,” she whispered.
Thank fucking God. He tore her blouse over her head and tossed it onto the other side of the couch. “Christ, you’re gorgeous.”
She tugged at his shirt, and he tore it off and dropped it to the floor, kissing her as she groped him. He kissed her neck, working his way down and teasing over her breast with kisses and slow licks. She dug her fingers into his hair, arching and moaning as he sealed his mouth over her breast and sucked hard.
“Ah,” she cried. “So good. Geez—”
He teased and taunted, and gave her other breast the same sensual attention. She rocked her hips, and he pushed his hand beneath her skirt, seeking silk or lace—and finding the sexiest bare hip he could have ever imagined. His fingertips grazed the thin strap of a thong, ripping a greedy sound from his lungs.
“Expecting mom panties?” she said heatedly.
“I don’t know what mom panties are, but I’m sure you’d look amazing in them.”
She laughed, and he kissed her again, deep and possessively.
“We need more room.” He rose to his feet with her in his arms and her legs circling his waist. He carried her downstairs with Dahlia on their heels and headed toward the bedroom.
“I’m getting a little addicted to the feel of your legs around me.”
“Good.”
“Bed,” he said to Dahlia. The pup obediently lay down on her cushion.
“I thought that command was meant for me,” Bridgette said.
“Disappointed?”
“Wouldn’t you like to know?” She touched her lips to his. “Why are we downstairs? Isn’t the master bedroom upstairs?”
“There’s no way I’m going to do all the dirty things I want to do to you in the bed my mother is going to be sleeping in.”
“I like you, Bodhi Booker,” she said breathily. “You’re thoughtful even when you’re hot and bothered.”
“You haven’t seen hot and bothered.” He toed off his shoes and set her on her feet in the dark bedroom. “You have no idea how many fantasies I’ve had about you in my bedroom.”
“Maybe as many as I’ve had about you?” She dragged her finger down the center of his chest all the way to the button on his jeans.
He’d fought his desires for weeks, and now she was here, his for the night. He wanted to savor her, to cherish this night and make it one she would never forget. He took her face in his hands and gazed into her eyes. “You’re messing with my head, beautiful.”
He gathered her hair over one shoulder and kissed the skin he’d exposed, following the sleek ridge of her shoulder, down her arm, memorizing the feel of her trembling against his lips. He lifted her hand and pressed a kiss to the center of her palm. Her breath rushed from her lungs.
“Mm. My beautiful girl likes that.” With a hand on her hip, he moved behind her, kissing the back of her shoulder, along the nape of her neck, and grazed his teeth over the shell of her ear. She reached behind her, gripping his thighs, and he began to sway. There was no music, no sounds in the room beside her seductive moans as their bodies moved to a secret beat.
He reached around her, filling his hands with her breasts, teasing the taut peaks between his finger and thumb.
“Bodhi,” she panted out.
He sank his teeth into the curve of her neck and sucked.
“Oh. My. Lord.”
He unzipped her skirt, bathing her neck and shoulders in kisses. Her skirt fell to her feet, and she leaned her head back against his chest with another needful sound. He quickly stepped out of his jeans and tugged off his socks, leaving on only his briefs. He brushed his cock sensually against her ass, and she met each slow grind with one of her own. He loved hearing her ragged breathing turn shallow as his hand moved down her belly and beneath her thong.
“Yes,” she said.
His fingers moved over her damp curls, to the slick heat between her legs. She rocked against his hand. He dragged his tongue along her neck and whispered heatedly in her ear, “You feel so good, baby. I’m going to make you come so many times, you won’t remember what the word need means.”
He kissed a path down her spine and used his teeth and hand to remove her thong, leaving her in only her high heels. Dragging his hand over her hips, he moved in front of her. Her eyes were closed, her lips parted. He lowered his mouth to hers and traced her lips with his tongue. She panted harder, and he did it again, loving the flush of her skin, the taste of her desire. He cradled her face with one hand, kissing her deeply as his other hand sought the tight heat between her legs. It didn’t take long to learn her pleasure points. Her shallow breathing and sultry noises gave them away with each stroke of his fingers.
“Come for me.” He claimed her mouth again as he took her up, up, up and over the edge.
“Bodhi—”
Her body pulsed hot and tight. She was beyond sexy, standing next to the bed in her high heels, her thighs slick with her arousal, breathing heavily. And he was nowhere near done.
He continued his pursuit of driving her out of her mind, kissing the swell of her breasts, circling the tight peaks with his tongue. She clung to his shoulders, her body trembling.
“Still with me, beautiful girl?”
“Yes,” she whispered.
“Cold?” He kissed his way down the center of her belly.
“Hot. So hot.”
When he reached the juncture of her thighs, he held her hips and pressed a kiss to her curls, inhaling the intoxicating scent of her arousal. When he took his first taste of her, she made a breathy sound that slithered beneath his skin, all the way down to his eager cock.
“So sweet, beautiful girl.”
He licked and tasted, teasing until she was so wet and needy he couldn’t resist devouring her sex. She rocked against his mouth, and when he teased his fingers over her most sensitive area, she held her breath. Her thighs flexed, and she tugged his hair to the point of pain, but he didn’t relent. He thrust his tongue in deep, wanting to feel her lose control.
“Oh God. Yes. Don’t stop. Bodhi—”
Her pleas and indiscernible noises filled the room as she shattered against his mouth. He stay
ed with her through the very last shudder of her climax, and when her body went slack, he carried her to the bed and took off her heels.
He held her as her breathing calmed. She blinked up at him with the hazy eyes of a sated lover, and he lowered his mouth to hers, testing her boundaries. He still tasted of her arousal, but she kissed him hungrily, bowing off the mattress. She palmed him through his briefs, squeezing tight enough to make him lose his mind.
“One night will never be enough, Bridgette,” he said between kisses.
“I know.”
They kissed again, a slow, exploratory kiss that went on and on. Her hand moved tight and hot along his shaft, and when she slipped her hand inside his briefs, he groaned again, breaking the kiss.
“Christ. Eight months, Bridge. That’s how long it’s been for me. I’m not going to last if you do that.”
Her eyes flamed, and she scooted lower on the bed, tugging at his briefs. “You realize that makes you all the more appealing.”
“Because if you put your sexy mouth on me I’ll come?”
She laughed and touched her lips to his stomach. “No, because it’ll be a challenge to get you aroused again after you come.”
“Oh, like that’s going to be a problem with you lying naked beneath me?” He lifted her up beside him, and she squealed with delight. Her golden hair swept across the pillow. “Your smile kills me.”
“What does this do?” She wiggled her hips beneath him.
“Definitely doesn’t kill me.” He pinned her hands to the mattress as he lowered his face near hers. “I can’t remember the last time I smiled this much.”
“Eight months ago. Duh!” Laughter burst from her lungs, and he kissed her hard, turning those giggles into hot, hungry moans.
A phone rang, and they stilled, eyes wide open.
“Louie,” she said at the same time he said, “Louie?”
CHAPTER SEVEN
BRIDGETTE WRESTLED WITH guilt as she washed up and dressed after learning that Louie had a bellyache and had just thrown up. She’d been having the most magnificent night she’d had in years when she should have been with her son.
Only for You (Sugar Lake Book 2) Page 8