Truly, Madly, Sweetly (Sweet Love)

by Kira Archer

  “No need,” Eric said, coming up behind Nat. “How about we head to my place for a bit?”

  Nat hesitated and Eric reached up to play with one of her curls. “Come on. Jared’s going to some all-night World of Warcraft marathon…”

  Gina snorted and rolled her eyes but Eric ignored her.

  “So we’ll have the whole place to ourselves. We can put Die Hard on the surround sound and really live it up.”

  Nat laughed. “Okay, let me grab my shoes.”

  Within thirty minutes, they were at Eric’s, snuggled up in his bed. Suddenly, she could think of a lot better things to do in bed than watch a movie. Still, that was supposedly why he’d invited her over.

  “Ready for the movie?” she asked, her voice low, hesitant.

  Eric stretched out beside her again, bringing one hand up to brush her curls from her face.

  “Hmm,” he murmured, leaning over to trail his lips up her neck. “Maybe not just yet.”

  He pressed her back into the pillows and she had a sudden vision of how she must look after hanging out in her pajamas for the last day or so.

  “Why don’t you just let me…freshen up a bit?”

  Eric shook his head and kissed her cheek. “That’s girl code for ‘let me go doll myself up for the next two hours.’ And I can’t wait that long.”

  He kissed the other cheek. Then lightly brushed his lips against hers.

  “You can’t?” she whispered.

  He moaned against her neck, nuzzled against the pulse throbbing there, his lips kissing a trail of fire up her jawline. “No,” he breathed into her ear before sucking her earlobe into his mouth.

  Nat gasped and arched against him, pressing her hips against the thigh he’d wedged between her legs as he lay over her.

  “Besides, you’re wearing sweats. I really don’t think you can get any more comfortable than that.”

  Nat aimed a mock glare in his direction. “You know what I meant.”

  “Yeah, I do.” Eric looked down into her eyes, smoothing her hair back from her face. He cupped her cheek, his thumb delicately tracing her eyebrow. “But you don’t need to.”

  A small frown creased Nat’s brow. Why was the nice stuff so hard to believe? Eric’s thumb moved up to sweetly caress it away. “I mean it, Nat. You are so unbelievably beautiful. You take my breath away every time you walk in the room.”

  “Eric,” Nat whispered, reaching a hand up to stroke his face.

  She’d wanted to kiss him for many reasons over the past couple of months. But this was the first time the desire to touch him was a near physical pain. No man had ever said anything like that to her in her life. Yes, other men had told her she was beautiful. They’d told her they wanted her. But until now, Nat hadn’t truly understood that none of them had ever really meant it. Not until she heard the words from a man who really did mean it, did she understand the difference. Eric meant it.

  And it scared the hell out of her. But in a good way. In a way that made her want to laugh and cry and wrap her arms around him and never let him go. Nothing else going on in their lives mattered. Just him, just them, just this moment.

  She leaned up, pulling on his neck to bring him down to her. She kissed him, slow and deep, her hands guiding him where she wanted him. They stripped each other, throwing their clothing away in a mindless need to feel skin on skin. Eric wrapped his arms around her waist and rolled over so she straddled him. Nat threw her head back, gasping as she rocked against him. She leaned forward, rubbing against the hard length of him from root to tip. A moan escaped her lips when he nearly slipped inside her.

  “Wait…hang on…we need…in the nightstand…”

  “Got it,” Nat said, yanking the nightstand drawer open and handing him a condom.

  Eric had it on in record time and then he reached up to pull her mouth back to his. His tongue caressed the contours of her mouth and she began to move, teasing him for a moment until she finally guided him inside her, taking him in deeper, an inch at a time.

  She let out a sigh and closed her eyes as she rocked against him, her hands on his chest for support. His heart pounded against her fingers and the knowledge that it was pounding for her filled her with an indescribable emotion. Pleasure and sheer joy blended into something that bordered on ecstasy. Something that wasn’t only happening because of the fire he was igniting in her body. But also because of the one he’d awakened in her heart.

  The force of the sensation pulsing through her was nearly frightening in its intensity. If she thought too hard about what it meant, the fear might get the best of her. So she pushed it away. Tried to shut her brain off and just let herself feel. Feel Eric’s hands on her body, his lips on her skin, feel the hot, solid length of him in her body.

  Eric groaned and grabbed her hips, thrusting completely inside. Nat froze for a second, all thoughts banished from her mind. She luxuriated in the heat that filled her, reveled in the waves of pleasure rolling through her. Then she leaned over and trailed her lips across his skin, sucking at his earlobe, biting his neck, kissing his chest until she reached the small pebbles of his nipples. Her tongue and teeth grazed the sensitive peaks until he cried out and bucked under her.

  She brought her mouth back to his, tangling one hand in his hair, forcing his tongue deeper inside her. Then she began to move, sliding up and down.

  Nat threw her head back, her cries growing louder as he filled her again and again. She leaned forward so he could take her nipple in his mouth. Eric’s hands moved up to her waist and she rode him, building toward a climax that hit her in pulsating waves that left her limp and drained. She collapsed on his chest, pressing a kiss to the hollow above his collarbone.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Eric could feel Nat’s muscles clamping around him as she came, and he exploded inside her, his hands grabbing her ass as the waves of his pleasure pumped into her. She lay on him, her sweat-soaked hair covering his chest, and he rolled to his side, taking her with him. He cradled her into his side, wrapping his arms around her. The words to tell her what she meant to him trembled on his lips. Words he’d never said to another woman in his life. Words he never thought he’d say.

  But something held him back. He didn’t want her to totally freak out. If she didn’t feel the same way, he’d ruin what they had going for them. And he didn’t want the memory of the first time they said I love you to each other to come on the heels of seeing her jerk-off ex. He could wait until the right moment. As long as he could go on holding her in his arms.

  Drowsy as they both were, he didn’t want them to wake up glued to each other or the sheets, so he rolled out of bed, ignoring Nat’s protests, and went to draw them a bath.

  Once he had the oversize tub filled with hot, sudsy water, he went and roused her. She glared a bit, but the promise of a hot soak, with the jets on, got her out of bed. She grabbed the sheet off the bed and wound it around herself. He cocked an eyebrow.

  “Don’t you think I’ve seen everything?”

  She blushed at the reminder and he made another mental notch on the Reasons Why I Love Her list. How she could still be shy after the time they’d just had in bed together was beyond him. But it was also fucking adorable.

  When she got to the tub she dropped the sheet and climbed in, sliding down with a happy sigh.

  “Okay, so this wasn’t such a bad idea,” she said, laying her head back against the edge of the tub.

  “Told you. Scootch over.”

  Nat sat up long enough for Eric to slip in behind her, then lay back against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her and leaned his head back, letting his eyes close.

  “So, how often do you have girls staying over?” she asked.

  Eric cracked open an eye, frowning down at her. “The last girl to spend the night was my ex and that was…over a year ago, I think. Why?”

  Nat shrugged, a smile tugging at her lips. “You have an impressive range of bubble bath for a guy.”

  Eric was glad the hea
t of the water already had his cheeks flushed or he probably would have blushed. He did actually have an impressive collection. Though they were all what he considered manly scents. Or at least not overly feminine. It wasn’t like he sat around in bubblegum or berry scented bubbles all day. Eucalyptus and sandalwood were masculine enough scents, weren’t they? The lavender they were sitting in was just for when he’d had a particularly stressful day.

  He shrugged. “It’s relaxing.”

  “Sure. Sure. And makes you smell very pretty, too.”

  He splashed her a little and she giggled, nestling in closer to him. “Well, whatever your reasons, I’m glad you have it. You’re right,” she said, sliding down deeper into the water. “It is very relaxing.”

  “Well, don’t get too comfortable. Don’t want you falling asleep in here.”

  “Hmmm no, that would be bad,” she murmured.

  They relaxed in heat-soaked silence, just enjoying the feel of the water and each other. Nat’s breathing grew increasingly steady and Eric grinned. If she wasn’t asleep yet, she was close. Better get her out of the tub.

  “Nat. Natalie.” He peeked down at her. Her eyes were closed, but he didn’t think she was truly asleep just yet. “Cupcake!”

  One eye cracked open. “Hush. You’re disturbing me.”

  He chuckled and held up her hand to examine their level of prune-ishness. “I think it’s about time to get out. Any longer and you might shrivel away into nothing.”

  She sighed. “Maybe. But it’d be a great way to go.”

  Eric set her away from him and stood up. Nat’s mouth quirked into a small, appreciative smile as he stepped from the tub. He took his time toweling off, liking the way she watched him.

  “There’re fresh towels over there,” he said, gesturing to them. “Take your time getting out. I’ll be right back.”

  Nat nodded and he left her to soak. He went back into the bedroom, threw on a pair of sweatpants, and grabbed a fresh sheet from his closet. By the time Nat wandered out of the bathroom, he had the bed freshly made and had laid out a T-shirt for her to sleep in. If he’d had any doubts about his feelings for her, he would have known right then. He rarely changed the sheets for himself. But he wanted her to have a clean bed to sleep in.

  She changed and slipped into bed beside him. Eric wrapped himself around her and settled down with a sigh.

  “Eric,” she murmured, rousing him from the brink of sleep.

  “Hmm?”

  “Thank you.”

  He chuckled. “I should probably be thanking you.”

  She laughed with him. “Not for that. Well, not just for that,” she said with a shy smile. “I meant for everything. For last night. And today. For taking care of me.”

  “It was my very great pleasure.” He pulled her back against him and kissed her on the temple. “Hey, would you like to go to a ball?”

  “A what?” Nat asked, craning her neck so she could look up at him.

  “A ball.”

  “Like a Cinderella ball?”

  “Sort of,” Eric said, grinning. “I have to go to this big charity fundraiser. Black tie. Dancing. Champagne.”

  “I don’t have anything to wear.”

  “No worries about that.” He kissed the tip of her nose. “I’ll be your fairy godmother.”

  Nat laughed. “If you do the whole tiara and tutu thing while you’re dressing me up, I’m in.”

  “Sorry, the tutu is at the cleaners.”

  “Ah, too bad,” she said, little giggles still erupting from her.

  “So, is it a date?” he asked, oddly nervous while he waited for her answer. He could see how the whole idea of a big, fancy ball, surrounded by his family and stuck-up friends, might be a little daunting. But he was surprised at how much he wanted her to go. How much he wanted to show her off to everyone in his life.

  “Yes,” she said. “I’d love to go to the ball.”

  “Thank you,” he whispered, kissing her shoulder.

  “No tiara?”

  Eric laughed and pulled her closer. “No. Now go to sleep.”

  “Yes, Mr. Gelato.”

  He grinned and rested his cheek against her head. “Good night, Cupcake.”

  Chapter Twenty

  Nat stretched, feeling a pleasant pull in muscles that ached in a wonderful way. She rolled over. Eric still slept, his face smooth and peaceful. A soft snore escaped his lips every few seconds and Nat turned into her pillow to hide a smile he couldn’t see anyway. Her bladder would force her to get up in a moment, but she wanted to stare at him for just a little longer.

  He’d been so unbelievably sweet over the last couple days. She had never felt so pampered and cherished in her whole life. She didn’t know where they were headed and of course they still needed to resolve things with the bakery, but for the first time, a flickering of hope that they might be able to…at the risk of sounding completely sappy…live happily ever after, filled her. Especially with a real-life fairy tale ball to get ready for.

  First up, though, they needed some food. Nat eased out of bed and took care of business in the bathroom, then headed to the kitchen to see what she could whip up.

  She stood in front of the open fridge, perusing the contents. Eggs, cheese, peppers, even some ham cubes. She’d never seen a guy’s fridge so well stocked. They’d have some scrumptious omelets in no time. And then, they’d unfortunately have to go to work. With the bakery opening in a few days they needed to make sure everything was ready to go.

  A buzzing noise sounded from the vicinity of the toaster. It had to be Gina calling to see where she was. Nat grabbed the phone and flipped it over, her thumb swiping across the screen automatically. She realized two things mid-swipe that had her heart pounding so hard it must have bruised her chest. One, she’d just answered Eric’s phone, not hers. And two, the person calling was his mother. He must have put the damn thing on vibrate so “Mamma Mia” wouldn’t interrupt them.

  Nat stood frozen in the middle of the kitchen, his phone in her hand, not sure what to do. She couldn’t just hang up. It was his mother. Then again, she couldn’t really talk either. That would probably not go over really well.

  Hi, yes, I’m the girl that’s been in bed with your son for the last twenty-four hours. Thanks for calling.

  Yeah. Not going to happen. But she needed to do something quick. She could hear his mother (damn the woman was loud) calling Eric’s name through the phone. She’d better run it in to him.

  Mrs. Schneider’s next words froze her in her tracks.

  “Eric, can you hear me? Did I get your voicemail again? I didn’t hear a beep. Well, look darling, I’m late for an appointment and I’ve only got a second. I just wanted to tell you that I’m transferring over the funds we discussed to cover the rest of your start-up costs. I ran into Courtney the other day and she’s filled me in on all the details. Your father is quite adamant about buying out this food truck woman if we are going to be funding your initial costs, though. It’s too much of a risk otherwise. Between what Courtney has told us and what we’ve found out happened with her ex-fiancé, it really would be best to wrap up whatever loose ends there are in that department as soon as possible. A hundred grand should be more than sufficient. If she refuses, offer her up to five hundred thousand. We know she can be bought, so find her price. We don’t want her claiming some sort of ownership on your business. It needs to be taken care of now, before it becomes an issue. We’ll send John over tomorrow morning to take care of the deed transfer and all the other paperwork. I don’t want to leave matters up to that night school ninny your aunt hired. Oh, and be sure to clear your calendar for next weekend. I’ve invited Courtney and her parents up to the beach house for a nice little getaway.”

  “Nat?” Eric stood a few feet in front of her. She hadn’t even heard him come in. He frowned in concern and she handed him the phone.

  “It’s your mother.” She slapped the phone into his hand and marched back to the bedroom.

&nbs
p; She stood trembling in the middle of Eric’s room, her blood thundering in her ears. If she gave in to the anger and misery raging through her she’d smash everything in the place. She needed to remain calm. Figure out what she was going to do.

  The sight of the rumpled bed they’d just left made her pause. Maybe she was overreacting. It hadn’t been Eric saying those things, it had been his mother. He might be telling her off right now, defending Natalie. She should at least talk to him, find out what was going on. She pulled on her yoga pants and sweatshirt and padded quietly back to the kitchen.

  She heard Eric’s voice before she entered and froze.

  “No, Mom, I’ve already asked Natalie to come with me.”

  Pause. Natalie could hear a raised voice from the other end of the line but couldn’t make out what she was saying. Only Eric’s responses.

  “That’s ridiculous, she’ll be perfectly comfortable there.”

  Nat wasn’t sure if she should be flattered or offended. She leaned toward offended. At least he was finally disagreeing with the woman. For her.

  “I seriously doubt she’s only been dating me on the off chance that I’ll make her a partner,” he snapped. Nat’s temperature rose another few degrees.

  “I don’t care what you told her father, I already have a date!”

  Nat’s breathing grew shallow. It sounded very much like Eric’s mother wanted him to escort someone else to the ball. And it really wasn’t too hard to guess who.

  “I don’t see what Dad’s merger has to do with who I date,” he said. But his voice had lost some of the heat behind it. Natalie’s stomach dropped.

  “That’s not fair. Just because you’re funding my start-up expenses shouldn’t mean—”

  He blew out a frustrated breath of air and jammed his fingers through his hair. “I can’t believe you’re making me do this.”

  Natalie closed her eyes against the tears that threatened. It couldn’t be happening again. Not after everything they’d just shared.