by Vivian Arend
Janey’s smile grew with each step as the rest of his brothers rushed back to their tasks. “What a sensation of power,” she teased. “I’d hate to actually catch you up to no good, and see how fast you move then.”
Len didn’t pause to think about it. He caught hold of her belt, tugging her close to kiss her. Maybe that’s all they were doing yet—kissing—but hell if he wanted to miss any opportunity.
Like always she cuddled against him willingly as he took her lips, all soft and warm and eager, and far too…inspiring, considering he had another three hours of work still to go.
It was also far too much of a public display of affection for his family as wolf whistles broke loose from all quadrants of the garage.
Janey stepped away from him, both hands shooting into the air with middle fingers raised high. But she smiled good-naturedly.
“What can I do for you?” Len asked.
“You so sure I need something? What if I came to get today’s quota of kisses?” she teased.
He leaned against a workbench, his legs on either side of hers as he kept her close. “If that’s the case, cover your ears and pucker up.”
Janey laughed as she pressed a hand to his chest. “Actually, I do need something. One of you has your welder’s ticket, right? How about gas-fitting?”
Len nodded. “Gage has his A card, and I’ve got apprentice papers. You have something that needs welding?”
She nodded. “I know how to do it, but this is one of those ‘more than a repair job’. I’ll need someone to pull a permit for me, as well.”
That didn’t sound too complicated. “I don’t mind helping you. You want to show me what you’re doing?”
“Would you?” She glanced around the garage. “I don’t want to drag you away from work, but I need it done sooner than later. I can’t finish the final installation on the kitchen cupboards until this is out of the way.”
Len straightened, enjoying the brief moment of their bodies brushing together. “No problem. Let me tell Clay I’ll be gone for the afternoon.”
She hesitated. “I didn’t mean for you to drop everything on a moment’s notice. It can wait until tonight.”
“Not a problem,” Len insisted. He lowered his volume and gave her a wink. “I have no objections to cutting out of work early, especially if it means I get to spend some time with you.”
Her face lit up. “Meet you at the house?”
He nodded. “Let me get the gear in the back of my truck, and I should be there within fifteen.”
It was more like thirty before he had finished the one task Clay needed completed, but then his big brother surprised him and let him go without too much teasing.
The job itself took only a little time. Janey had arranged all of the prep work, and done it well.
Len hesitated before turning the equipment on. Instead of handling it himself, he held out the torch. “Why don’t you do it? I’ll supervise.”
He’d guessed right. Her eyes got brighter as she reached for her safety goggles and got herself into position, sturdy leather gloves protecting her hands as she turned on the torch and made quick work of the connection.
She’d have no problems getting this passed during an inspection. “Nice job.”
Janey finished putting the torch away, laying her safety gear aside before rejoining him. “It’s not my favourite task, but I don’t mind it every now and then.”
“You did great, and I’ll make sure Gage gets you the paperwork.”
Then she was no longer all the way across the room from him, but into his personal space, smiling up suggestively. “I should give you a proper thank-you.”
Warning signals went off. “You don’t have to.”
Her smile faded. She paused for a beat, but it was obvious she wasn’t going to let the topic go. “Len. Is there a reason why you’re avoiding me?”
“I’m not avoiding you.” Not in the strictest sense, he wasn’t.
One of her brows rose slightly. “You did say we were boyfriend and girlfriend, correct?”
He nodded.
Janey hesitated for the longest time before finally spitting it out. “Okay, when I call us that, it kind of sounds like we’re back in fifth grade, which if we were in fifth grade? The fact we’ve done nothing but kiss would totally make sense.”
She’d rested her hands lightly on his chest. Her lips were pulled into the familiar almost pout, and he wondered if she knew exactly how much that got to him.
“I just don’t see a reason to rush into anything.”
Her response was instant amusement. “Oh, Len. It’s not rushing for us to do more than kiss.”
Her palms moved over his chest, and he caught hold of her waist to keep her tight to his body. His erection had to be very obvious between them.
“In one way, I’m damn impressed,” she admitted. “I kind of thought we’d end up in bed that first night.”
Len swallowed hard, images flooding his brain.
Janey continued, her hands skimming around the back of his body, sneaking under his shirt until her palms were pressed to his bare skin. “But now I’m wondering if there’s a problem.”
“What kind of problem?” Len asked, the words improbably low and barely coherent as he fought for control.
“Do you not find me attractive?”
“Jeez, Janey.” He caught her around the waist and lifted her on the counter, stepping between her legs and moving until their torsos were connected. Every possible inch pressed tight together. “Trust me, it’s not that at all.”
“So you say, but…” She shrugged.
He grabbed her hand and pressed it against the raging erection attempting to escape from his jeans. “Does that feel like I’m not attracted to you?”
It was an exquisite torture to allow her fingers to drift freely over him.
“Then why aren’t we doing more than kissing?” she asked. “Honest, Len. You don’t have to hold back for my sake. It’s not like I’m a virgin, or anything.”
He couldn’t stop the tension from flooding in. The worst thing was she picked up on it, catching hold of his face and forcing him to turn until their eyes met. She had the cutest little frown as she attempted to puzzle it out.
Hell if he was going to help her by actually saying the words.
Her gaze narrowed. “Len. Is there something…?” She bit into her bottom lip momentarily before taking a deep breath and barreling forward. “Tell me I’m insane, but either you are extraordinarily shy, which you have nothing to be worried about, my fine man. Or, you’re a…”
Dammit. At this point he wanted her to say it.
Because if she did, he wouldn’t have to.
“Yes,” he forced out.
Confusion hit. “Yes, you’re shy. Or yes, you’ve never had sex?”
He never thought about that. “Both.”
A brief flash of disbelief shot over her face along with bewilderment. He was pretty sure she trusted him not to be lying about something this big, but she was still staring as if he had three heads.
“Really? Really?”
He let out a massive sigh. “Why is that so hard to believe?”
“Because at least a half dozen women in town all confessed to me at one point or another that they’d slept with you.”
Good grief. “You know better than to believe small-town rumor.”
She nodded, slightly distracted. “I should’ve known they were trying to jerk me around. And yet that makes no sense.”
“That I’ve never had sex?”
“Yes!”
“Sorry. It’s true.” He reached up to play with her hair. If they had to have this conversation at least he could enjoy touching her at the same time.
“It doesn’t make sense that you’re a virgin,” she insisted.
“You’re starting to piss me off,” Len warned. “It just is. Why is that so hard to believe?”
She snorted. “Because you’re a guy.”
“Right, so
I’m supposed to be happy to stick my dick anywhere just because I’m a guy?”
She snapped her mouth closed and hesitated for long enough to think about her response, which he appreciated, all things considered.
“Okay, so it’s totally sexist and totally wrong, but—yeah. That’s exactly what most people would assume.”
“Bullshit. Maybe some guys are more particular about where we stick our dicks than others.”
She still looked unconvinced and completely perplexed. “Just…” She shook her head. “Okay, this makes me a total asshole, but really?”
“You say that again, and I’ll make you regret it.”
“I’m not trying to be rude. I’m flat-out surprised. I mean, does that mean you’ve never—”
Her question cut off abruptly as her eyes widened and her cheeks flushed red.
Len knew exactly where her mind had gone. He would have laughed, only the moment was too full of sexual expectations to be something to joke about. “I’ve never—what? You’re wondering if I’ve never even jerked off? Trust me, the equipment works just fine.”
It was impossible to stop images from flashing into her brain. Len’s fingers wrapped around his cock. Long slow strokes following as he worked his shaft, his abdominal muscles growing tighter until he hit the moment of release. Janey couldn’t wait to see it in real life.
Maybe they weren’t the words she should have spoken, but they were real, and honest, and they burst free before she could stop them.
“Show me.”
“Jeez, Janey…”
She should have felt shame at her breathless demand, but all that remained was rising heat between her legs and the nearly violent urge to rub one off herself. “I can help you. Or we can do it at the same time. That’s still together.”
His eyes grew dark, and his breathing increased in tempo.
She lifted her chin, meeting his gaze. Let him see the desire she felt. “I’m not saying your virginity is something special we should save.”
He snorted.
There was no way to stop smiling, even with desire dancing through her veins. “But we don’t have to rush into anything. You must’ve had a reason why you waited, and it’s up to you when you tell me why, or if you even want to tell me why. But I’ve honestly wanted more than kisses from you for such a long time. So unless you don’t want to do this, let me make you feel good. Or let me watch. Whatever you feel the most comfortable with, I am more than interested.”
She thought he might have to consider his options for a while, but before she finished speaking he was already reaching for the button on his jeans.
“Take off your top,” he ordered.
So. It wasn’t that he was saving himself forever. Or that he had taken a permanent vow of chastity, which would’ve been a dreadful waste—at least in her opinion.
But…
Janey glanced out the kitchen window, the one with no curtains and a wide-open view into the backyard. “You mind if we take this somewhere else?”
“Right here,” Len demanded. “Face me. No one can see anything anyway. Not unless they’re sitting in the top branches of your apple tree.”
He was lowering his zipper, the sound of the metal rasping loudly in the suddenly quiet room. She undid the work belt around her hips, laying it on the counter before turning back. She caught him in the process of shedding his T-shirt, reaching over his head to jerk the fabric forward and off his arms, revealing his massive chest. His biceps were like bricks, and his abdomen so structured she couldn’t wait to run her fingers over the muscles to prove they were real. “How did you get such a gorgeous body?”
His grin widened, but he snapped his finger at her. “I don’t see a hell of a lot of stripping going on.”
“You want to help me?” she asked.
He shook his head. “You do this my way. I want your shirt off. Now.”
A delicious shiver went up her spine as she tugged her T-shirt out of her work pants. His eyes locked on her fingers, and she took the time to inch the fabric upward. Moving slowly to reveal her bra before taking the shirt off over her head.
His breathing had increased in tempo as he stared in admiration at her chest. “Nice.”
Janey licked her lips. “What now?”
Staring at him was a delicious experience. His broad chest and arms and shoulders were full of flexing muscles as he eased his jeans open, lowering them far enough the lovely band muscles that wrapped from his groin around his hips grew more visible.
A little sound of need escaped her. She wanted to touch so badly.
“Take off your pants,” he demanded.
This time she didn’t bother to tease. She dropped her pants and her drawers all in one motion, so eager to obey she forgot she still had work boots on. Everything became trapped at her ankles.
Len didn’t seem to care. He closed the short distance between them and picked her up, placing her on the countertop next to her work belt. His strong hands rested on the naked swells of her butt.
He rested their foreheads together, both of them breathing shakily as they stared into each other’s eyes. “You’re killing me,” Len confessed.
“Don’t stop now.” Janey was ready for anything except him stopping.
Only he did stop. Sort of. Stepped away and left her with nothing but the faint memory of his hands on her body and an aching need inside.
“Open your knees and let me see your pussy.” Len’s voice broke as she rushed to obey him. Rewarded by his groan of pleasure, she looked into his eyes as he dragged his gaze up her body.
“Let me see you too,” she begged.
He had reached into his briefs, hand curling around his cock to stroke it. His hands were hidden from her sight under the fabric, but she knew exactly what he was doing. She slipped her own hands downward without any orders on his part. No way could she stop because joining in was too damn hot to miss.
She’d done this often enough to be a pro. The masturbating, not the doing it in front of another person—that part was brand new. Opening herself to his view as she dipped her fingers into the moisture he’d gotten started with just a kiss. Fingertips wet, she moved back to her clit and circled slowly with enough pressure to tease as she waited eagerly for him to do the next thing.
“God.” Len squeezed his eyes shut, his hand motion stilling as he grimaced.
She couldn’t decide if she should jump off the counter and rip down his pants so she could actually see what was happening like she wanted, or if she should just enjoy the show like it was, because while he might not believe it, she’d never seen anything so sexy in her life.
Him fighting so hard for control, striving to hold back his body’s response made her that much hotter, that much quicker.
“Feels so good. Oh, Len. It feels so good. I can’t wait until it’s you actually touching me. Or licking me.”
A feral growl escaped him. Len stopped what he was doing for long enough to shove his pants off his hips, his cock leaping free of his briefs. The long, thick length rebounded towards his rock-hard abdomen, his jeans hanging at mid-thigh. Janey whimpered and increased her tempo as he leaned against the counter opposite her and wrapped his fingers around the heavy shaft. His eyes were fixed on her fingers as she rubbed them over her clit.
He stroked, slowly but with a firm grip. She watched him rock his hips forward, fucking his hand with growing speed as she gasped in pleasure. Increasing the pressure she applied as she imagined every time he rocked forward, his cock brushed her clit.
No dirty words filled her ears—not from her soft-spoken Len. No commands to get herself off with her fingers, or suggestions about how he was going to shove his cock into her and fuck her until she couldn’t walk. But what they were doing was so seriously filthy without any words, she was glad for the silence. The quiet broken only by heavy breathing, little moans of pleasure from her, and deep groans escaping his lips. Add in the wet sounds of her fingers and the slap of skin on skin from his fist—
oh, yeah, it was hotter than hell.
Four feet separated them, but the setting was as intimate as if they’d been touching. His eyes never left her pussy except to feast on the rest of her body. She wasn’t even completely naked, and he was looking at her as if he’d never seen anything so beautiful.
And she didn’t know what to look at as he handled himself. His chest? His abs? His cock? The way his thighs tightened on every forward motion? Or the way his breathing made his entire body move, desperate need in every rock.
“Oh!”
Her climax hit, the tingling sensation that had been building changed so rapidly from nearly there to overwhelming, she gasped. Her gaze remained fixed on Len as his body shuddered, and he came. A strong stream shot upward against his belly as he pumped again and again until shuddering forward, curling around himself. He sucked in a deep breath, cursing lightly as he exhaled.
Janey was covered with sweat, Len’s upper body as well. They both had their pants partway on, partway off, and she still wore her bra.
Amusement rolled through her along with satisfaction. “Well now, that was a first.”
He turned his head toward her, his body still bent over as he braced himself with a hand on one knee. His grin twisted wryly. “Smartass.”
Laughter bubbled up. “I didn’t mean that way, but…yeah. I guess.”
He grabbed his T-shirt and used it to wipe off his belly, hauling his jeans over his hips before moving toward her. She was still splayed bonelessly over the counter by the time he reached her.
Len caught her by the chin and kissed her tenderly. She resisted the temptation to tease or to get him heated up. It was time to savour the moment of closeness. A different kind of intimacy now than before.
It certainly wasn’t what she had expected that afternoon, and it wasn’t where she wanted them to end up, but the journey was sure turning out to be a whole hell of a lot of fun.
Chapter Six
Suddenly it seemed as if the entire world was conspiring against them. Len had barely had time to talk to Janey on the telephone, let alone get a chance to be alone with her.
Some of it was her fault. She’d realized she needed some supplies, and made a trip to Calgary. She stayed the night with her parents, then brought home an enormous load of material in the back of the truck.