“Sorry about your day. Did you get it worked out?” she asked with a smile as she held out the bottle. “This should help.”
The beer would definitely help, but at the moment, he was eyeing something that would improve his mood so much better than alcohol.
She’d turned back to chopping tomatoes on the cutting board.
“Do you want to talk about it?” she offered. Talk? No.
He glanced over at the oven timer, which displayed twenty-three minutes until dinner. More than enough time. Since he knew her so well, sex could be both satisfying and quick.
“I’ve wanted you all day,” he whispered at her ear as he took her hand, sucking the tomato juice from her fingertips.
The smile she gave him was full of sin and good things as she worked the buttons of his shirt open and slid it off his shoulders.
He tossed his wallet on the counter before picking her up and setting her on the island to begin the frenzy of getting inside her.
He rolled up the tank top, exposing her perfect breasts. He took a moment to suck on each nipple before tugging off the shorts and her leopard print panties at the same time.
Her breath caught as she struggled with the button and zipper on his pants, pulling them down only far enough to gain access. Her fingers gripped him tightly and his head fell back for a moment, accepting the pleasure.
He still needed to be with her. Nothing else would get rid of the tension.
She dug through his wallet, finding the condom and rolled it on him with a skill that had him twitching.
Her skin made a small squeak as he slid her across the counter top to the edge. With one single movement he pushed the whole way inside her. The groan that escaped him expelled all the pent-up annoyance from the day. The air he pulled in was all Alyssa. The vanilla scent from her hair, the smell of her skin. The spicy scent of dinner in the oven.
“Grayson,” she breathed against his bare chest as he shoved into her again and again. He had told her he liked to hear his name, but this wasn’t just her following instructions. She said his name like she was his and knew it.
“Liss,” he gasped for another reason. He was close. Too close to stop. For a second, he was irritated that he hadn’t satisfied her, but then he felt her muscles clenching and pulling him deeper into his release. “Alyssa,” he groaned out once more.
The bad part about doing it on the kitchen counter was there was no place to go when his legs were unable to hold him up. He leaned against her heavily as she placed tender kisses on his neck and shoulders.
“Feel better?” she asked with shaky breath.
“God. You have no idea.” He raised his head to smile at her. At the same time, they looked over to the oven. Three minutes to spare. “Dinner is underwear formal,” he announced with a crooked grin. “Leopards are welcome.”
In the past, they’d eaten pizza after sex in just their underwear, but they’d never eaten an actual meal at the table together just the two of them.
He smacked her ass lightly when she tugged up the boy shorts and returned to making the salad. Soon they were sitting down topless.
“To better days ahead,” Alyssa said, holding up her glass of wine.
“It couldn’t get much worse,” he joked and touched his glass to hers. “How was your day?”
His attention was derailed for a moment, as Alyssa cut her enchilada, making her breasts jiggle in a very appealing way. What was it about boobs that made them so fantastic?
“…it’s a small account, but it’s mine.” He heard the last part and his brows rose in surprise.
“You got the Pinehurst account?” he all but yelled, while hoping he wasn’t asking a question she had already covered when he was hypnotized by her breasts.
“Yeah.” She nodded and shrugged it off like it was insignificant, but he could see the happiness beaming out of her.
“Liss, that is great. Congratulations.”
“Thank you for helping me with it.”
“That is awesome,” he said more emphatically, not taking any credit.
“It means I’ll probably be as stressed as you are,” she said, still trying to depreciate the event.
“This is a huge accomplishment. You’re going to stun them and this will only be the start. I know it.” He was so happy for her. “I’m sorry, we should be out celebrating. I came home with my bad day and completely ruined your good one,” he realized as the guilt settled in.
“Trust me.” She nodded over her shoulder toward the counter. “That did not ruin my day at all.” She winked as she took a bite of her food.
Some emotion caught him up like a wave, his stomach fluttered at the strange sensation. He put his silverware down and slid his chair back.
“Come here,” he said, holding out his arms, welcoming her onto his lap. She nestled against him, her breasts near his face. Concentrate, he told himself.
He kissed her softly, the spices on her tongue mixing with his. He would have been happy to kiss her for the rest of his life. Eventually, he pulled away and smiled at her slowly.
“When we’re done with dinner, I’m at least going to take you down to the bar so I can buy you a drink.”
“Not too many, we have a train to catch in the morning.” She looked nervous.
“That’s tomorrow. This is tonight. Your night.” He brushed his fingertips through her hair, down to her shoulder and, of course, trailed along her chest until he was holding her breast in his hand. He stroked her nipple with his thumb and heard her suck in a breath. He stirred against her leg and a smile spread across her face.
He stood up from his chair, with her in his arms and took her straight back to his room to start the celebration properly.
Chapter 18
Gray was singing in the shower, which always made Alyssa laugh.
Not that he had a bad singing voice, but the songs he chose to sing were amusing. Not many guys felt comfortable singing Adele at the top of their lungs, but Grayson was quite secure with his masculinity. And rightfully so.
He had insisted on taking her out for a drink, but she wasn’t really in the mood to worry with hair and makeup. She just wanted to be with Gray.
She had an idea, and quickly ran to the kitchen so she could get back to the bathroom before he finished the next verse of “Set Fire to the Rain.”
He jumped when she opened the shower curtain with two glasses of wine, and the singing abruptly cut off.
“What’s this?” He looked down at the drinks as her hair grew heavy with water.
“You wanted to celebrate by getting a drink, and I’d rather stay here, so it’s a compromise.”
With a big, beautiful grin he took his glass and held it up ceremoniously.
“To Alyssa Nicole Sinclair and her first account. May it be the first of many.”
They clicked their glasses together and drank down the wine.
“Drinking in the shower?” He chuckled as she took his glass and set them out on the vanity. “People might say we have a problem.”
She stepped closer letting her fingers trace the path of the water as it ran over his collarbone and continued down his chiseled abdomen.
“We might have a problem,” she said as her hand reached even lower. He began to stiffen in her grasp and she grinned. “Nope. We’re all good.”
He laughed and pulled her closer, pressing her back against the wall and leaning down to take her mouth captive. After a second of intense kissing he pulled back and looked down at her, his hair plastered to his head.
“Thank you for moving in with me, Liss.”
“Thanks for asking.”
He let out a sniff and ran his hand through his hair tossing extra water around the shower.
“I didn’t just ask. I begged you.”
“Same thing,” she said, giving him a naughty look. �
�Be careful or I’ll make you beg for something else.”
“I would gladly beg.” He stepped closer, pressing his lips to hers in a way that made her moan. “But something tells me I won’t have to.”
He was right.
They ended up oversleeping the next morning and had to throw their stuff in their suitcases and run out to the cab.
They boarded the train in silence. She took the seat by the window so he could hang one of his long legs out in the aisle. The other leg encroached over into her space, but she didn’t complain. He was definitely not a one-size-fits-all kind of guy, and for that she was glad.
She tapped her leg without realizing it until Gray laced his fingers through hers and pulled her hand to his lips, placing a light kiss on the back.
“You okay?” he asked.
“Sure. Why wouldn’t I be? I mean, I’m going to another state to have a picnic with people who aren’t going to understand who the hell I am, and we’re not going to be able to explain it.”
“This again?” he sighed.
“I’m okay with not having a name for whatever this is, but I’m guessing your family is going to want more specifics,” she explained.
He let his head fall in her direction with a frown.
“You’re right. Do you want to ditch?” He was giving her an out, which was one of the reasons she wanted to do this for him more than anything. Because he never expected anything from her.
“No.” She shook her head and looked out the window. The truth was she wanted to meet his family. She wanted to meet the parents that had raised a guy who was so secure with who he was and what he wanted. She wondered if nurturing dripped off them.
Gray leaned down in his seat so he could kiss her cheek and speak softly into her ear.
“I would never ask you to lie, but I’m just saying it might be easier to let my mother assume whatever it is she wants rather than trying to explain it.”
“You’re probably right. Especially since, after adequate research, I’m still unable to find a suitable label.”
“Me either. What’s up with that?” He pulled away a little to look at her.
“I don’t know. Apparently, we are the only two people on the planet who have ever been content to enjoy friendship and sex without forcing it to be more.”
He nodded as he looked at the seat in front of him.
“I do worry I’m the weakest link. I’ve never done anything like this before. I’ve always ended up in a committed relationship. I had good role models in that department, which you’ll see this weekend. My parents have always been happy together. I always assumed it was easy because they made it seem that way. I thought I’d get married and have a family—complete with the dog. I didn’t even consider another way. Not until you. I’m happy with you, Liss. I’m trying my best not to mess up what we have because it’s better than any of the actual relationships I’ve ever had. Even though we refuse to call it a relationship.”
“I think awareness is the key.” As it is for most things. “I’m nervous about meeting your family, even though I’ve been pretending it’s not a big deal. I want them to like me.” The truth just blurted out of her mouth.
“No pressure from me.”
“I know, but I still want them to like me. And if I were being honest, part of it is because I don’t want to make things difficult for you.”
“I appreciate that. My concern is more about them liking you more than me. Then at some point, when I show up alone or with someone else, I’ll be lectured for letting you get away.”
“Should I not be lovable?” She grinned at him innocently.
“Do you think you could manage that?” He looked down at her and laughed.
“Probably not. I’m afraid it’s not something I can control.”
“Just be yourself and I’ll deal with the fallout if it ever comes to that.”
“If?” Her brows creased.
“We have a pretty good thing going here, Liss. Haven’t you ever considered the possibility that we could just continue on indefinitely, growing old in this arrangement?”
“I guess I never thought about long term. That was kind of the whole point. That there was no pressure to make it work.”
“What do you think now?” he asked, his tone turning extremely serious.
“I assumed at some point, one of us would want more, and would move on in search of someone who could give them that.”
“Did you assume the person who would be moving on would be me?”
“Yeah.”
“Because you’re not able to heal?” he asked quietly. She nodded without looking at him. “I hope that’s not true. I can’t imagine how it was for you. I think about Jade, my last girlfriend, and I try to think of how it would feel to find out she’d committed some heinous crime. Even my girlfriend and best friend fooling around behind my back for years was not on that level of betrayal. I wish I could help.”
“Believe it or not, you are. You haven’t tried to push me into more than I was willing to give. It was the main reason I was reluctant to move in. But it’s working. At least it is for me.” She glanced up at him asking a silent question. Maybe this wasn’t working for him.
“I’m not looking to make any changes. I know it’s weird, but I feel safer with you than anyone else I’ve been in an official committed relationship with. Maybe it’s like you said, there’s no pressure in having to keep it together.” He laughed as if surprised by this information. Alyssa felt herself relax. He wasn’t holding out hope that she’d wake up and ask him to go steady.
“Then there’s nothing to worry about,” she said with a little snort. Ever since that icy afternoon when the cops shoved Donnie up against the cruiser and cuffed him, she had done nothing but worry. She hadn’t realized it had gone on so long.
“Nothing at all.”
They spent the rest of the trip sharing ear buds and listening to Alyssa’s iPod. Occasionally, Gray would sing to her, making her giggle. She smacked him in the shoulder to make him quiet down before the other passengers complained.
He kept hold of her hand the whole time. She loved the way his thumb moved absently against her skin, and how he put the back of her hand to his lips every once in a while. He probably didn’t even realize he was doing it.
At some point, she dozed off and woke with her head on Gray’s shoulder as the train slowed and pulled into a station.
“We’re the next stop. You might want to gather up your stuff,” he suggested. “Make sure to pack your things safely. I’m not liable for anything broken or damaged when my mother grabs hold of you in a big hug and won’t let go.”
“How will I breathe?” she played along.
“I’ll give you mouth-to-mouth.” He threw her his sexy wink, which never ceased to make her heart skip a beat.
When they pulled into the next station, Alyssa immediately surveyed the crowd, hoping to pick them out so she could mentally prepare.
“Over here,” Gray said, pointing to a graying woman with a happy face.
“Grayson!” she yelled, as they walked down the steps from the train platform toward the waving woman. “You must be Alyssa! Grayson has told us so much about you.” Alyssa wasn’t sure when this big information download had occurred, since she rarely heard Gray on the phone with his mother.
The woman latched on and squeezed. When Alyssa first saw Mrs. Hollinger, she was sure she’d be able to fend the woman off if need be. Gray’s mother was in her fifties. Not frail by any means, but not huge either. From behind his mother’s back, she gave Grayson a worried glance. Fortunately, Mrs. Hollinger released Alyssa before the lack of air could become a serious issue.
“It’s so nice to meet you, Mrs. Hollinger, Mr. Hollinger.” Alyssa nodded to each of them.
“Please. Call me Linda and everyone calls him Holly,” she gestured toward th
e more reserved Mr. Grayson Hollinger II. “Let’s get you home and unpacked. Then we’ll have dinner,” Mrs. Hollinger went on as they all walked to their SUV. “Izabelle isn’t here yet. She was going to stay tonight, but she had an emergency with a patient so she’s coming home tomorrow afternoon. Alyssa, do you have any food allergies, hon?”
“No, ma’am.”
“That’s good. Remember that guy Izzy brought to the picnic last year who couldn’t be near peanuts?” Gray’s mother twisted around in her seat to keep talking as Mr. Hollinger pulled out of the parking lot.
Alyssa reached across the seat and took Gray’s hand. Whether it was meant to mislead the woman who was yammering on, or for comfort, Alyssa just knew she felt better when she was holding his hand.
“Mom, lots of people have peanut allergies. It’s not that uncommon.”
“But we had to tell great Aunt Rita she couldn’t bring her peanut butter pie and then two months later, she was dead.”
“Linda, I don’t think it had anything to with the pie. It was probably the pack-a-day habit she’d had for the last forty-some years that did it. People can’t die from an insult,” Mr. Hollinger said giving Alyssa a wink in the rear view mirror.
“So, Grayson said you aren’t dating,” Mrs. Hollinger changed the subject while glancing at their fingers laced together on the seat between them. “Will you want separate rooms or how does this work? Back when I was dating your father, we called it dating so no one got confused. Now there are all these other levels that I just don’t have time to decipher.”
“We’ll share my room,” Gray said easily while Alyssa looked anywhere but at Mrs. Hollinger as her cheeks flushed.
“Maybe your sister will be able to make me one of her flow charts or something so I can tell how many steps away I am from having grandchildren,” she said while shaking her head.
“Linda,” Mr. Hollinger said, frowning at her.
“Sorry. No pressure. I’m not supposed to put pressure on anyone,” she said with a bit of a huff. “No one cares about the pressure I’m under.” The last sentence was muttered more to herself.
Getting Down to Business Page 17