“Are you sure that’s what you want?”
“It’s what I’ve always wanted, Adam,” she replied. She stepped away from him, took his hand, and led him off the dance floor. When they got to the table, Ashley quickly looked to Amy. “Can you give Dillon a lift home?”
Amy and Dillon looked at each other. “Yeah…sure…is everything okay?”
“It is now,” Ashley said as she looked up at Adam and smiled.
“ I’ll see you later, bro,” Adam said.
“Or not,” Dillon replied with a deep chuckle as he fished his key from his pocket and handed it to Adam.
Chapter Nine
Adam leaned down to kiss her when they reached Dillon’s truck and as she melted into his arms, she moaned.
“Get in the truck,” he whispered. “Quick.”
Quietly she obeyed. As she buckled her seat belt, he slid in behind the wheel on the driver’s side. She placed her hand on his thigh and he looked over at her before putting the key in the ignition. “I’m going to ask you one more time. Are you sure this is what you want?”
“Do you even need to ask?” She leaned over and kissed him on the lips again.
He started the truck and backed out of the parking space, wheeling it onto the road as he sighed. “Baby, I can’t wait to get you behind closed doors. It’s been far too long.”
“You’re telling me,” she replied as she ran her hand up the length of his thigh.
When he pulled into the driveway, she hurriedly unfastened her seat belt and got out of the truck without waiting for her husband to open her door. They walked hand-in-hand up the walk and he quickly put his key in the front lock. Letting her walk in ahead of him, Adam pulled her into his arms as he kicked the door shut.
Leaning his face down to her level, he looked into her eyes before devouring her parted lips in a heated kiss. As she responded to the kiss, he pulled her even closer, caressing her back.
“Oh, Adam,” she said in a low voice when he finally broke away from the kiss.
He turned to lock the door. Turning back to her, he softly kissed her forehead, her cheek, nose, and finally her neck. Ashley closed her eyes and pulled him back to her lips.
She fumbled with the buttons on his shirt until she’d it completely undone. He shrugged it off, letting it fall to the floor. As they moved a few steps closer to the bedroom, he pulled her shirt over her head and buried his head between her breasts, softly kissing her skin. His touch scorched her sensitive skin and as he unfastened her bra and threw it on the floor with their shirts, he moved her a few more steps before kissing her again.
Bringing his face down to the rock hard bud on her left breast, he took it into his mouth and sucked gently. Ashley cried out and moved her hands to his belt buckle. As she slid the leather belt through the loops of his jeans, he moved to the other breast. She clumsily unbuttoned and unzipped his jeans. When she drew away from him, she pulled them down and he stepped out of them, leaving them on the floor. They were leaving a trail of clothing behind them as they inched nearer to the bedroom. Her jeans followed his and soon clad only in her lace panties, she led him into the room. He removed his boxers and immediately pulled her panties down. She stepped out of them and the minute they hit the floor, she was in his arms as he hauled her to the bed. As he joined her, he kissed her again, leaving a trail of kisses from her lips to her neck before he began to travel downward. When his lips touched her navel, she gasped. He grinned as he looked up at her.
“Don’t…stop…Adam,” she begged.
He did as he was told and trailed his tongue down her thigh before finally reaching his destination. As he tortured her with his tongue, she wound her fingers through his hair, writhing and moaning. “Adam…oh…”
“Baby…I’ve missed you so much,” he whispered in a hoarse voice before returning to his torture of her senses. Her body was on fire with each stroke of his expert tongue and she felt as if she would explode into a million pieces. Finally, when she couldn’t hold back any longer, she gave in to the sensations he was stirring, crying out as her world exploded.
“Ash, oh baby, yes, let it go…” He raised himself back up to eye level and kissed her again, holding her as she shuddered in delight, still reeling from the intense orgasm.
“Adam, please…I need you…”
“You don’t have to ask me twice,” he replied as he positioned himself above her. Entering slowly at first, his gaze never left hers as the exquisite sensations overtook them both. “Ash…oh my God, Ash…I’ve missed you.”
He began moving inside her, building a rhythm which she quickly matched. They moved together, the heat building with each thrust until the fire between them was white-hot and flaming out of control. Her senses swirling, her body was responding to his every move. “I love you, Adam.”
Her hands caressed his butt and as her nails dug into his back, he moaned. “Ash, I can’t hold back…”
“Now, Adam…” She cried out in rapturous delight as the ecstasy enveloped her once again. Shuddering, oblivious to anything but the feel of her husband inside her, she surrendered to him completely, body and soul.
As he joined her in oblivion, he whispered in her ear. “I love you, too.”
When the shudders of delight finally subsided, he rolled off her and pulled her close, kissing the top of her head. “That’s the best it’s been in a long time.”
“I know, honey, and I’m so sorry I was such a bitch the past few months. I’ve needed to show you how I really feel about you. I…I…didn’t know if I’d ever get the chance again.” A tear rolled down her cheek as she looked up at him.
“Don’t cry, baby.” He leaned down to kiss her.
They cuddled quietly before falling asleep. In the middle of the night, she woke and began fondling him. His eyes flew open and he was ready to go again. Pulling her on top of him, they had another mind-blowing sensual experience before finally falling asleep in each other’s arms again.
When Ashley awoke, Adam was sleeping soundly. She gently caressed his face before she quietly crept out of bed and headed for the bathroom. After a hot, steamy shower, she dried herself with a soft, fluffy towel and donned the robe hanging on the back of the bathroom door. She padded softly through the bedroom, toward the kitchen. Stopping along the way to pick up the clothes strewn on the floor, she smiled as she remembered how they’d gotten there the night before. She put her own clothes in the hamper and neatly folded Adam’s things before setting them on the chair in the bedroom. When she had the coffee going, she searched for the ingredients for strawberry waffles, Adam’s favorite breakfast. Finding everything she needed, she took the waffle iron from the cabinet and was just mixing the batter when Adam appeared in the doorway.
“Do I smell coffee?” he asked, grinning as he stood and watched her.
“Of course, you know me and my morning caffeine,” she replied with a giggle.
“Oh, boy, do I ever. What are you mixing up over there? Not waffles?” he asked as he walked to her. Standing behind her, he kissed her neck before pulling two mugs out of the cabinet and pouring coffee for both of them.
“I even have the strawberry topping and the whipped cream you like so much,” she said as she poured the first batch of batter onto the hot iron.
“I could think of other things to do with the whipped cream, you know,” he teased.
“I know you could,” she laughed.
“I’ll set the table,” he offered.
As her eyebrows shot up in surprise, she bit her tongue.
“No comment?” he asked.
“No comment,” she replied.
After breakfast, he took a shower while she cleaned up the kitchen. When he walked back in, she handed him another mug of coffee. “Do you want me to go over to Dillon’s with you and help you pack?”
“Ash…about that…sit down, baby. We need to talk,” he said in a serious tone.
“What is it?” she asked warily as she sat at the kitchen table.
> He sat down in the chair across from her so he was facing her as he spoke. “I’m going back to Dillon’s, but I’m not packing my things and moving back in here…at least not yet.”
“What…what…do you mean?” she asked in a shaky voice. Her lower lip was trembling and her palms suddenly became moist. She fought to fight the tears that threatened to flow.
Adam took her hand in his and caressed it with his thumb. “One night of sizzling make-up sex doesn’t repair a damaged marriage. You have to admit when I moved out, we were pretty damn damaged.”
“But…I never wanted you to move out. I was ready to apologize for my behavior and make it up to you the morning after that last awful fight. But when I got up, you were gone.”
“Baby, listen to me. I know you want to work things out. I realized that last night when you walked away from Ross. I didn’t run out like I did the last time I saw the two of you together. I decided to stay and see what you’d do. When you went back to your table, I asked Robin to dance. That was also to see what you’d do. I wondered if you’d run back to Ross or come to me. I got my answer.”
“You know that girl? You know her name?”
“She introduced herself to Dillon and me when we first got there.”
“You say you got your answer…I don’t understand…why are you going back to Dillon’s?”
“Because we both need some more time to think about this. I don’t want a divorce, Ash. As far as I’m concerned, that’s on hold. But I do think we need to take some more time and think about everything that’s wrong with us. I believe you when you say you didn’t contact Ross to come back to town. It just happened like you said it did. Maybe it was a good thing he came back now. It gave you a chance to see, once and for all, what you really want.”
“I still don’t get why you won’t come home…I need you, Adam.”
“I need you too, baby. But if I come back, I’m never leaving you again. That’s why we have to take things slow. If you love me, you’ll do this for me, Ash.”
“If you come back?” she asked. “Does that mean you think there’s a chance you won’t?”
“I don’t know. I guess it depends on how things go from now on. I can’t come back to the fighting and anger. Things have to change. You surely see that, don’t you? I know we won’t always agree on everything, but you have to admit, things were pretty bad between us when I left.”
“I do love you, Adam, and I want things to be good between us again. If this is what it takes for us to get back to where we need to be, I’ll agree to it. But…I…want you back…I never wanted you to leave in the first place. And I sure as hell never wanted a divorce.”
He got up and put his coffee mug in the sink. Walking over to her, he pulled her out of her chair, holding her close. He kissed the top of her head and cupped her chin in his strong hands. “I love you, Ashley. Don’t ever forget that.” He kissed her goodbye. When he released her, he walked out the front door and got into the truck, leaving his wife standing in the middle of their kitchen, crying like a baby.
Chapter Ten
The days went by slowly for Ashley as she tried to maintain a normal routine. She went about her daily chores at home and at work, in an attempt not to pick up the phone and call Adam. Determined to let him make the first move, she was surprised when a dozen red roses were delivered to the office one afternoon.
As she read the card she smiled to herself. So he thinks he’s courting me now. I could get used to this.
Two days later, she baked his favorite cookies and had a messenger deliver them to him at work. He replied with a text message, telling her if she was trying to seduce him with food, it was working.
A week later, he still hadn’t called. He’d sent text messages and emails, sexy, suggestive messages, tantalizing her senses, driving her nearly mad with desire for him.
Finally, one night he called. “Ash, are you awake?”
“Yes, I’m in bed reading a book since I don’t have anyone here with me to distract me,” she teased.
“You’d better not have anyone in there distracting you,” he teased back.
“Well, I could be distracting you…”
“Ash, behave yourself. I was wondering if you’d like to have dinner with me Saturday night.”
“Are you asking me out on a date?”
“I guess I am. That’s taking it slow, isn’t it?”
“But how’s the evening going to end, Adam? I can’t guarantee I’ll be able to keep my hands off you.”
“You’re worried about that? I’d think it would be the other way around.”
“So you admit you can’t keep your hands off me? This could turn out to be an interesting date.”
“It might, baby. It just might.”
“I’ll have dinner with you. Pick me up at seven,” she said, smiling to herself.
“I’ll be there. Wear something sexy for me,” he added with a chuckle.
“Goodnight, Mr. Brant.”
“Goodnight, Mrs. Brant. Sleep tight.”
She hung up the phone and laughed. Oh, Adam, I’m going to knock your socks off Saturday night.
She walked around for the next few days with a grin on her face. So evident was her joy, Carrie finally asked if she and Adam were back together.
“Not yet, Carrie, but we’re working on it. We’re having dinner together Saturday night.”
“That’s a step in the right direction. I’ve felt so bad for you the past few months. I didn’t know what to say to make you feel better.”
“Thanks, but I know something you can do for me.”
“What’s that, Ashley?” Carrie asked curiously.
“Go shopping with me at lunchtime. I need to find an outfit that will really get Adam’s blood boiling…in a good way.”
“Now that I can do. You know I love to shop.”
“Yes, I do. That’s why you’re the perfect person to come with me. Amy just doesn’t get the whole shopping thing.”
“She doesn’t like to shop? How can that be?” Carrie asked in a shocked tone.
“She shops for the essentials but she doesn’t get the joy out of it that you and I do.” Ashley giggled.
“That woman just isn’t right in the head,” Carrie said, shaking her head in disbelief.
“I’ve been telling her that for years, believe me.”
“I’d be happy to help you pick something out for your date with that hunk of a husband of yours.”
“I’ll meet you out in the lobby at one. Will that work for you?”
“I’ll see you then.”
At one o’clock on the dot, Ashley was in the lobby waiting for Carrie as she finished a phone call with a client. Once she’d finished, they headed for the Circle Centre Mall down the street from the office.
After trying on several outfits, Ashley decided on a short black dress with a low cut neckline. A little royal blue sequined jacket finished it off perfectly.
“Black heels and you’re all set. Do you have a little black purse? If you don’t, I have one you can borrow,” Carrie said, nodding in approval.
“I do have one, but thanks for the offer. Now we’d better grab some salads and head back to the office.”
The rest of the week flew by as Ashley tried to concentrate on work instead of her date with her husband. Thoughts of his hands caressing her body invaded her mind at the most inopportune moments. She shook her head to clear her mind but found it nearly impossible as she pictured his reddish-brown hair, his muscular frame, and his sexy voice. And when thoughts of his piercing, midnight blue eyes crept into her thoughts, she just about lost it completely.
On Friday evening, she was just settling down to watch a movie when the doorbell rang. Thinking it might be Adam, she jumped up and sprinted to the door. But when she opened the door, her smile faded quickly. “Ross…what are you doing here? How did you know where I live?”
“I told you I have my ways, babe. Aren’t you going to ask me to come in?”
&n
bsp; “What do you want? I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
“Is he here?”
“No, not at the moment, but you shouldn’t be here, Ross.”
“I’d like to talk to you before I leave town, Ashley. Please, let me in. I promise I’ll only stay long enough to say what I came to say.”
She sighed and stepped aside to let him enter. Leading him into the living room, she offered him a chair. Sitting on the sofa, she said, “Say what you came to say.”
“I’ve been thinking a lot since I came back to town. I came back to see if you were happy, to see if there was a chance I could persuade you to leave what’s his name. You’ve made it pretty clear you want no part of me. I can’t say as I blame you. I did treat you pretty badly all those years ago. I saw you leave the bar with him that night, a few weeks ago, so I’m assuming you’re not getting a divorce, now.”
“No, we’re not getting a divorce,” she replied softly.
Ross hung his head. When he looked up, he said, “I’m leaving town in the morning. This visit is my last ditch effort to get you to leave with me.”
Ashley shook her head. “I would have given my eye teeth for you to say that all those years ago, Ross. I’ll admit that. But I can’t…I won’t go with you.”
“And if I told you I was willing to settle down, do the whole nine-to-five, marriage, kids, white picket fence gig, would it make a difference?”
“Are you ready, Ross?” Ashley asked in surprise.
“For you, yes, I’d do it in a heartbeat. I wasn’t ready back then, but after seeing you again, I realize what I gave up.”
Ashley shook her head again. “I’m sorry, Ross. I love my husband. I guess you and I just weren’t meant to be. You need to find someone else. I wish you the best and I hope someday you’ll find someone special.”
“I figured that would be your answer but I had to know. I couldn’t leave town without asking. Good luck, Ashley. I hope you and the lucky bastard you married have many years of happiness. I really do mean that.”
“Thank you, Ross, we’re working on that.”
If You Love Me Page 5