Explosion of Love (The Armstrongs Book 6)

by Gray, Jessica

  Samantha rolled her eyes at him. “You are. What is there to talk about?”

  “I was,” Grant corrected her. “You seem to think that you would just be another conquest in a long series of women. That’s not true.”

  “It’s not?” Samantha looked up at him, hope in her trusting eyes that maybe he was telling her the truth.

  Grant nodded his head. “No, it isn’t. I stopped dating over a year ago.” When she looked at him with skepticism in her eyes, he continued, “I haven’t slept with anyone since the last time we saw each other.”

  “Why?” she asked.

  “Because I realized that you are the only woman I want.”

  “Why me?”

  “Because you’re special. You’re funny, intelligent, good-looking, always up for anything, have shared good and bad times with me, know me better than I know myself…”

  “You’ve seen me at my worst. My outbursts of temper have hurt you on more than one occasion.”

  Grant grinned at her. “Perhaps that’s why I became an expert with explosives? So I would know how to handle you?”

  She broke out in laughter and he joined her. “Seriously. You make me want to become a better man. You’ve motivated me on more than one occasion to strive for doing the best I can, and you weren’t even here.”

  “Grant…you know I love coming home to visit. I love being around you. You’re the only man I feel safe with. It’s always been that way. You’re my best friend, but now I have all these emotions and feelings to deal with, and I’m scared as hell.”

  Grant crossed the few feet that separated them and pulled her into his arms. “It’s okay to be nervous and confused. But don’t ignore what you’re feeling. I sure can’t. And don’t be scared. Never be scared to be with me.” He lowered his voice, hoping to ease her concerns with his touch and the love he was sending out to her.

  She leaned into him, and Grant knew there was no way she could miss his body’s response to her nearness. Since their first kiss, he hadn’t even been able to look at her without getting hard.

  “Grant?”

  He covered her mouth with his own, taking her on a journey with lips, tongue, and teeth. “No more talking for tonight. Let me show you how much I love you.”

  He kissed her eyelids closed and then swept her up into his arms and carried her across the threshold and into the small house. He headed straight for his bedroom and his king-sized bed, where he gently laid her down and, piece by piece, removed her clothing until she was bare before him. God, she is so gorgeous! And I am one lucky son of a gun.

  He pushed back away from the bed and removed his clothes as well, joining her on the bed after grabbing protection from his wallet. When she raised an eyebrow at the condoms, he told her, “They were for you. Just in case.”

  Samantha grinned up at him and then things got serious. He pushed his large hands through her auburn hair, watching as her blue eyes darkened with desire and her lips opened for his next kiss. He moved his mouth over hers, devouring its softness. Feelings exploded and his heart raced, when she returned each movement of his tongue with a lap of her own. Samantha is mine. At last!

  He kissed and caressed her entire body, and she squirmed on the covers. Fueled by her sexy little sounds, he licked down her neck, nipping the pulse point, before laving it with his tongue. Another moan. He continued down her body, using his hands first, and then his lips to map her body. It was toned and fit, and his hands molded and squeezed her curvy breasts before skimming down her flat stomach and below.

  His hands explored her body, loving the little sounds she made in the back of her throat when he found a sensitive spot. When her hands found his nipples and tweaked them, he knew his control was almost at an end.

  “Grant, don’t keep me waiting any longer,” she told him.

  He reached for a condom with one hand; his other hand ventured between her thighs, where he found her hot and ready for him. When he encountered her scalding wet heat, he slid the condom on and eased himself into her without a second thought.

  Grant took his time learning her body, stopping her when her caresses threatened to end their joining prematurely. He promised her time to explore his body more thoroughly. Later. When he had more self-control.

  Samantha grinned at him and then bit his earlobe. “Count on it.”

  Once he felt her body tighten around him, he levered himself up and thrust harder into her, watching her face all the while. When she gasped his name and arched her hips into his thrust, he increased his tempo and the depth of his thrusts.

  He soon drove her over the edge, calling out his name in ecstasy as she reached her climax with rhythmic convulsions. Grant couldn’t hold back any longer and followed her, exploding inside her with one final hard thrust, his lips forming her name.

  As their breathing returned to normal, Samantha surprised him with a sensual backrub while he recovered enough for round two. Her fingers on his back sent pulsating waves of pleasure through him. Her thumbs found all of the tight spots along his spine, and the sensual caresses did nothing but stoke the embers of his desire to a raging fire once again.

  She turned the tables and straddled him, exploring every inch of his naked body. He lay against the sheets, watching her through lidded eyes as she stroked his hard length in her hands and then took him into her mouth. She licked and probed and teased him with her lips and tongue. She succeeded beautifully, making him come undone, taking him to even greater heights of pleasure than their first time together – something he hadn’t thought possible.

  Grant couldn’t stop at that and had to give her back the pleasure. He eased her down on her back and licked his way down her flat stomach to her core. Her staccato breathing propelled him to keep teasing her nipples with his thumbs while his tongue found her most sensitive spot. He licked her, slow and gentle, but she soon arched her hips into him, pleading for more. Grant gave what she asked for and sucked her harder, pushing her up the peak of pleasure again until her muscles convulsed in another earth-shattering climax.

  Somewhere in the wee hours of the morning, they collapsed against each other in exhaustion. Snuggled up together, his arms wrapped around her, one of her thighs lying across his own, her hand tucked round his side to hold him close.

  I love that woman.

  Chapter 15

  Late the next morning, Samantha woke up, cuddled up against Grant much in the same position as she’d fallen asleep the night before. She turned her head and then smiled at how handsome he looked, even early in the morning with a scruffy face.

  She scooted out from under his arm and headed to the kitchen to start the coffee machine. The moment Grant had seen the coffee maker came to her mind. The way his eyes had brightened at the sight of it had made her heart jump and a peculiar feeling take over her body, making her all wobbly and nervous.

  When coffee was ready, she poured two cups and carried them back to the bedroom.

  He was just waking up and gave her a sleepy smile. “Good morning, sweetie.”

  “Good morning,” she said, offering him one of the cups. She sat down on the end of the bed and watched him over the rim.

  He took a sip of the coffee and made a humming sound with his throat before saying, “This must be the happiest morning of my life.”

  “Why?” she asked him, sipping her own steaming brew and trying to gauge his mood.

  He glanced at her and asked, “Do you have to ask? You make me happy.”

  Samantha chose her words carefully. “Grant, we need to slow down and think about this first.”

  Grant ignored her insecurities and instead changed the subject. “I’m supposed to have dinner with my parents tonight. Would you like to come with me?”

  She sighed, knowing they wouldn’t discuss their relationship until he was ready to do so. Fine. “I’m not sure if that’s such a good idea.”

  “Why not? You like my parents and they’ve always liked you.”

  “I do like your parents. It�
�s just…I’m not ready for anyone to know that we’ve moved beyond best friends into lover territory. Not yet.”

  Grant laughed at her. “Fine. We don’t have to say anything to them.” But you’re kidding yourself if you think for one minute my mom won’t find out. She’s like Sherlock Holmes when it comes to uncovering things her kids are trying to cover up.

  “Okay then.”

  Grant snagged his shorts from the floor and pulled them on. “I need to buy more supplies over in the next town. Want to come with me?”

  She shook her head. “I’d rather stay here and relax or read a book on the beach, if you don’t mind.”

  “That’s sounds like a plan. I’ll be back later, sweetie.”

  He grabbed the rest of his clothes and his wallet, and then dropped a sweet kiss on her lips before leaving the bedroom and waving her a goodbye. “Until later.”

  Samantha blew him a kiss before grabbing a book, some sunscreen, and a beach towel. The sun was up, a refreshing breeze blew from the lake, and she wanted nothing more than to laze the day away next to the water.

  She found the perfect spot, but before long, she let her book drop unheeded to her lap and closed her eyes. Her mind wandered, back to Grant and his parents. How long had it been since she’d seen them? Five years? Or more?

  Bridget Paxton was a warm-hearted woman, but she could be fiercer than a lioness protecting her cub. Everyone who hurt her kids had to take it up against her.

  Grant’s mother had been exhilarated to move to Sandy Beach, a dream she and her husband had shared for a long time. But the fact that Grant and his two older brothers Ethan and Chase had preferred to stay in Chicago had been a constant thorn in her side.

  Samantha recalled one conversation where her brother Patrick had asked Grant and his older siblings why they hadn’t moved to Sandy Beach with their parents. The reply was something along the lines about them preferring the exciting city life, and joking that the beach was a place for old people and kids.

  Grant might have felt that way during his wild years, but she knew he now thought different. They’d often discussed how cool it would be to live at Sandy Beach full-time. And now he’d bought the beach house.

  Her thoughts drifted further off, and the lack of sleep and the stress from the grueling pace she’d kept in New York caught up to her. The warmth of the sun shining down on her and the sound of the waves lulled her into a place where she was floating along, not asleep, but not awake either.

  How long she was in that state, she didn’t know. The unmistakable chirping of her phone startled her from her peaceful place. Her initial reaction was to ignore it, and then it stopped. Great! Now I can… It has stopped only to start right back up. When that cycle continued for the third time, she sighed and reached into her bag for her phone.

  “Hello?”

  “It’s about time you answered the phone. Where in the hell are you?”

  Samantha’s calmness fled. Madison Delacrux’s grating voice told her the woman was on a tear and Samantha was firmly in her sights.

  “Good afternoon, Madison.”

  “Don’t good afternoon me! Where are you?”

  “I’m out of town,” Samantha replied, not wanting to give her agent her exact location. Madison wasn’t above hopping on a plane and making Samantha’s life miserable.

  “Out of town. Well, that’s just great, Sam. You had an important photo shoot that started, oh…about thirty minutes ago!”

  Samantha froze, having totally forgotten about the shoot in her anger at Craig and the need to get away from New York. “Oh my gosh. I completely forgot about it.”

  “Well, get your ass back to New York now. I’ll see if I can…”

  “Madison, I’m not anywhere close to New York.”

  The line fell silent with a lengthy pause and she could almost see Madison counting to ten, and then twenty, in her head. The woman’s face would be red by now, heading towards purple, and Samantha cringed when she heard her deadly quiet voice ask, “Where are you, exactly?”

  Samantha thought about not answering, but knew she owed her talent agent more consideration than that. Sighing, she told her, “Sandy Beach. Outside Chicago.”

  “Illinois? You’re in Illinois?”

  Make it Wisconsin. But who cares?

  “Sam, get your ass back here immediately. These people do not take being stood up lightly.”

  Samantha knew that, but after the little episode she’d had at the Silueta event, she was as good as dead anyways.

  “Sam? Do you hear me?” Madison screamed through the phone. “When are you going to be here? I can claim you were ill or something, but I need to tell them when to reschedule the shoot.”

  Samantha didn’t want to leave Sandy Beach. It was the perfect getaway and for the first time in a long while, she actually felt good. Physically. Emotionally. Mentally. I don’t want to leave my little paradise. Not just yet.

  With Grant by her side, and their lovemaking the night before, her life was perfect. But then reality reared its ugly head and if she wanted any chance of salvaging her career, she needed to leave for New York. Now.

  She felt an acute sense of loss when she told Madison, “I’m on my way. I’ll hop on the first flight back.” After a glance down at her watch she said, “I’ll be back tonight. Tell them I can shoot first thing in the morning.”

  “Fine. Text me your flight number and I’ll pick you up from the airport.”

  “Okay.” Samantha waited to see if Madison would say anything else, perhaps some scathing remark about how she’d blown it with Silueta, but all she heard was an empty line.

  While she sat there for several minutes, thinking about the phone call from Madison, her mood veered to anger. In a few short seconds, she was fuming about the mess Craig had created in her life.

  Her ability to think reasonably had long gone up in smoke when Grant appeared at her side and leaned over, intending to kiss her. Samantha shied away from him. “Not now!”

  Grant gave her a puzzled look and tried to take her into his arms, but she shoved against him, acting as if he was responsible for whatever had her temper up.

  Another man might have been intimidated by her behavior, but not Grant. He’d known her bad moods for far too long. “Getting ready to explode again, Firecracker?”

  Her temper flared up; rounding on him with fists clenched tight, she said, “It’s all his fault. I’m going to kill that man the next time I see him.”

  “Whoa now. Craig’s a douche, but killing him might be a little extreme. What’s happened since I left you this morning?”

  Samantha gave a roar of anger and launched herself at Grant. “Don’t take his side!” She beat her fists against his chest, but he easily fended her off, trapping her clenched fists against his chest as he wrapped his strong arms tight around her.

  Stifling her only fueled her rage, and she attempted to head-butt him before he squeezed her hard enough to make breathing difficult.

  “Stop it.”

  “Let me go, you Neanderthal!”

  “Sammie, you need to learn to deal with your temper. Grown-up women do not act like this. Look at the mess your temper got you into back in New York.”

  “Arghh.” She shoved against him with her entire body, telling him between clenched teeth, “Let me go. You’re just like every other man out there, trying to control me and telling me what to do.”

  “Calm down, sweetie. You’re upset.”

  She struggled against him some more. “I’m done with you. Let me go.”

  “Sammie, you need to calm down.” He kept his voice low, but it wasn’t having the desired effect on her at all. Samantha was in a rage, and usually that meant she would need a cooling-off period, with no additional aggravation, before she could regain her control and think straight again.”

  “I don’t have to listen to anything you have to say. Let go of me. Now.”

  Grant released his hold on her, keeping himself ready in case she attacked him
again. “Fine. You’re free. Care to tell me what has you so upset?”

  “No. God, all you men are alike. Trying to ruin my career and control my every movement. I’m out of here. I have a job to return to. ”

  She grabbed her pack and ran towards the beach house without looking back to see if he was following her. I don’t care if he does. I have to rush to New York and try to salvage my career.

  She called a taxi and haphazardly tossed her stuff into her suitcase. It would cost an arm and a leg to take a taxi all the way back into Chicago, but right now she didn’t care.

  As the taxi pulled away from the beach house, she was glad Grant hadn’t tried to follow her or reason with her. She didn’t want to hear it. He’d had the guts to tell her everything that was happening had been her own responsibility. He’d blamed her lack of self-control, and not Craig’s betrayal for her misery.

  No, she didn’t want to hear from Mr. Grant Paxton. Not now. Maybe never again.

  Chapter 16

  Grant knew better than to follow her when she was in that mood, but turned towards the water, shoving his hands deep into his pockets. He tried not to take her outburst personally, nor her accusations. For as long as he’d known Samantha, this was how she reacted when things went wrong. She blew up, ran off to calm down, and then came back with her tail between her legs and apologized. He’d watched her go through the same routine for years. I can’t believe she’s not tired of this yet. When is she going to learn some self-control?

  Part of him waited to see if she would come back, but the other part knew the chances of that happening any time soon were slim to none. She’d been as mad as he’d ever seen her.

  After what seemed like an eternity he returned to the house and busied himself outside until he couldn’t put off going indoors any longer. It was nearing time for them to leave for his parents’ house. He knocked on her bedroom door, but she refused to answer him.

  He shoved his hands through his hair in frustration. “Sam, I’m going to take a shower. We need to leave when I get out.”

  The shower would give both of them a little more time to cool off. He was now outright mad at her. Why won’t she talk to me about what happened?