Only for You

by Jacquelin Thomas

  Ethan bent his head and captured her lips in a demanding kiss. Locking her hands behind his neck, Jordin returned his kiss, matching passion for passion.

  Her desire soaring, she eased away from him and removed her shirt. Ethan helped her undress. His breath seemed to catch when he glimpsed her in her underwear.

  “You are so beautiful,” he told her in a husky voice.

  Ethan undressed himself and joined her in the bed, his mouth covering hers again hungrily.

  Holding her close, he rolled her across the bed and she went with him willingly and eagerly. Moaning, Jordin drew herself closer to him as his hands explored her body.

  He slipped on a condom to protect them both.

  Jordin offered him her lips once more while offering Ethan her body as well, entangling her legs with his.

  * * *

  Jordin hummed softly as she walked toward her office the next day. Her sister was in the hallway talking to Austin.

  “Good morning, siblings.”

  Jadin surveyed her face. “Why are you so happy this morning?”

  “It’s a beautiful day.”

  “Naaah...it’s more than that.”

  Austin agreed. “Anything you need to tell us?”

  Jordin smiled. “No, not really.”

  They followed her into her office.

  She sank down in her chair, asking, “Why are you two following me? There’s nothing to tell.”

  “Liar...” Jadin uttered.

  “What she said,” Austin stated. “I told you that you wear your feelings on your face.”

  Her brother was right. Jordin decided it was best to tell them or she would never be able to get any work done.

  “Okay... Ethan and I are officially dating,” she announced. “We love each other and we’re finally ready to move forward.”

  “It certainly took him long enough,” Jadin stated.

  “I love him so much.”

  “I know,” Austin and Jadin said in unison.

  “Oh, and we did notice your glow, but I prefer not to discuss it.” Austin headed to the door. “Congratulations.”

  Jadin stayed behind. “So was it all you dreamed it would be?”

  Jordin broke into a grin. “He is truly the other part of my being.”

  “I know I’ve had my doubts, but I’m happy for you, sis. I know you’ve dreamed of being with Ethan since we were teens. I’m glad it’s worked out for you.”

  “Thanks.”

  “I’m at the courthouse most of the morning, but do you want to get together for lunch?”

  “Sure,” Jordin responded. “I’ll meet you over there.”

  She watched her sister leave before turning on her computer.

  Jordin could not help smiling as she recalled the events of the night before. Making love to Ethan was everything she’d dreamed of and more. Her eyes grew wet at the memory of Ethan declaring his love for her. She loved him so much that it defied reason.

  Jadin entered the office carrying a bouquet of red roses. “These just came for you.”

  He sent me flowers, she thought with a smile. “They’re beautiful.”

  Her sister agreed. “They smell heavenly too.”

  Jordin made space for the vase on her desk. “Ethan is such a sweetheart.” She glanced over at her sister. “It can only get better from here.”

  * * *

  Ethan was in such a good mood, a few of his employees commented on it. The truth was that it had been a long time since he’d been this happy. A lot of it had to do with Jordin. He did not regret telling her the truth, which was that he had fallen in love with Jordin the very first time he saw her all those years ago. It was freeing to be able to share his true feelings with her.

  They were officially a couple now.

  He was finally able to envision a future with the only woman he’d ever loved. It was the beginning of a new life—one he had longed for but was afraid would never come to pass.

  The phone rang.

  “Ethan Holbrooke speaking,” he said in greeting.

  “Thank you for the roses.”

  He smiled. “I hope they were the perfect color.”

  Jordin chuckled. “You can never go wrong with red. They are beautiful and in full bloom.”

  “I want to see you tonight,” Ethan stated.

  “That’s great,” she responded, “because I want to see you too.”

  “My house or yours?”

  “I’ll come to you,” Jordin replied. “We can pick up dinner from one of the nearby restaurants.”

  “Sounds like a plan. Oh, and you might want to bring an overnight bag. I’m just saying.”

  She laughed. “I’ll think about it.”

  They ended the call a few minutes later.

  Ethan returned his attention to the mountain of work on his desk. Much of it was most likely invoices. He would go through them before sending them over to accounting.

  Later that evening, Jordin showed up at his house around seven. She had already picked up dinner for them.

  “I keep thinking about your mom,” she said as they settled down at the dining room table.

  He did not respond.

  Jordin placed a napkin in her lap. “Ethan...”

  “What do you want me to say?”

  “Aren’t you at least worried about her?”

  Ethan shook his head. “Why should I be? She’s fine.”

  “I know that you don’t want to have anything to do with her, but do you know what’s going on with her? Where she lives or where she is working? That doesn’t bother you?”

  “I know that she is staying with a friend of hers, Jordin. I guess she has a job doing something. What do you want me to do?” Ethan wiped his mouth on a napkin.

  Jordin reached over and covered his hand with her own. “I think you should make sure that she is fine—she’s your mother...”

  He sliced off a piece of chicken and stuck it in his mouth, chewing slowly.

  Jordin let the subject of Lydia die as they finished their meal. She hated this distance between Ethan and his mother.

  She tried to bring the topic up once more after they got settled on the couch, but Ethan interjected, “I don’t want to spend our time discussing Lydia. Instead I’d rather be kissing you.”

  Her eyes strayed to his lips.

  “We’ve been talking about her for almost an hour now. I don’t know about you, but I’m sure we could be doing something much more enjoyable.”

  Jordin made a small gasping sound when his mouth drifted across hers. “Isn’t this better?”

  He pulled away and looked down at her, as if expecting her to protest. When she did not, Ethan reclaimed her lips, deepening the kiss.

  He hungered for the feel of her lips against his. Kissing Jordin was like adding oxygen to a fire that had been smoldering, unseen for years. The heat had overcome the ice and was soon a blazing wildfire.

  His desire for her took over, and Ethan led her to the bedroom, all thoughts of his mother dissipated as they removed their clothes and climbed into bed. All that existed was skin-on-skin contact, the soft sighs of their heightened breathing, heartbeats thundering in a raging sea of desire. Each breath they took became a sigh sifting into the quiet.

  Chapter 15

  “What’s this?” Jordin asked when Ethan handed her an odd-shaped gift the next morning after breakfast. They had been dating for a couple of months and things between them were great.

  “Open it,” he prompted.

  “It’s a tennis racket.”

  “I wanted to get you a new one,” Ethan stated. “You took really good care of my old one, but I think it’s time you had a much nicer racket.”

  She
smiled. “Thank you, Ethan. This is really sweet.”

  He kissed her. “These past three months have been so amazing with you. I can’t remember being so happy.”

  Smiling, Jordin murmured, “Same here.”

  “I’m crazy about you, babe.”

  She touched her lips to his. “I can’t put into words how much I love you, Ethan.”

  The telephone rang.

  He glanced at the number, but did not answer.

  “Is that your mother?”

  “No. It’s been a while since I’ve heard anything from her. That was a toll-free number. I figured it was a telemarketer.”

  Although Jordin did not completely agree with Ethan on the subject of his mother, she had to admit that he was in a much better frame of mind since he started seeing Bree. It helped that Lydia had not been calling or sending letters.

  Since they started dating, Ethan was much more relaxed as well. They spent a lot of time together when he was not traveling.

  “Are you in the mood to try out your new racket?” he asked.

  “Maybe later,” Jordin stated. “Right now, I just want to cuddle with you on this incredibly comfortable couch and watch TV with you.”

  “I’m warning you if we cuddle, we may not leave this house at all.”

  She grinned. “That’s fine with me.”

  Jordin clutched at him, pressing close even as Ethan pulled her closer still.

  It wasn’t enough for either of them.

  “I love you so much,” he managed between breaths.

  Jordin’s body was still on fire and humming with sensation from their last lovemaking session. Heart racing, breath ragged, she couldn’t think of anything other than physically connecting with her soul mate.

  “Let’s go to the bedroom,” Ethan whispered.

  * * *

  Replete from another round of lovemaking, Ethan held Jordin captive in his arms.

  “What are you thinking about?” she whispered.

  “You,” he responded. “I never thought I could love someone as much as I love you, sweetheart. You own my soul.”

  “I know,” she responded tenderly. “When you make love to me, it’s with deep emotion. What you don’t say with your mouth—you tell me with your body.”

  “We’ve come a long way to get to this point. All this time...”

  “Wasted,” Jordin finished for him. “But that’s all over. You’ve finally come to your senses.”

  He chuckled.

  She turned in his arms, facing him.

  “No more talking,” Jordin whispered sleepily. “I just want to savor this moment.”

  She was sleeping soundly a few minutes later.

  When Jordin woke up, she found herself in bed all alone. She called out for Ethan, but received no response.

  She glanced at her phone. There was a text from him.

  Went to grab something for us to eat. Luv you much.

  Jordin swung her legs out of bed. She padded naked into the bathroom to take a shower.

  She was dressed in jeans and tank top by the time Ethan returned with food.

  He smiled. “I thought you’d still be sleeping.”

  “Maybe if you were still in bed with me,” she responded. “I missed you.”

  Ethan kissed her. “I’m here now.”

  She sniffed. “Something smells delicious.”

  “I picked up some barbecue chicken, macaroni and cheese, turnip greens and fresh baked bread.”

  “Ooooh,” she said.

  “I figured I’d grab this since we will probably eat a really late dinner.”

  “This is pretty much all I’ll need,” Jordin said.

  They sat down at the table to eat.

  “My parents invited us over on Sunday,” Jordin announced. “Do you want to go?”

  “Is your aunt going to be there?”

  “She might.”

  Ethan shook his head no. “I think I’ll pass.”

  “Don’t let Aunt Rochelle get to you,” Jordin said.

  “She’s a little more than I really want to deal with right now,” Ethan confessed. “I especially don’t want her questioning me about my mother.”

  Jordin nodded in understanding. “I get it.”

  “You’re not disappointed, are you?”

  “No,” she responded. “I’ve been wanting to spend time with the girls, so it’s perfect.”

  Ethan smiled. “Give Kai and Amya a hug from me.”

  “You know you’ve been upgraded to best-friend status.”

  He laughed. “What did I do to deserve that?”

  “Gifts from the Disney Store and ice cream,” Jordin reminded him. “Then there was the day at the movies and dinner after.”

  “You planned all those things.”

  “But you were there. I think they just adore you.”

  He met her gaze. “Jealous?”

  “No, I think it’s cute. Besides, I’m the only woman for you.”

  “That you are,” Ethan confirmed. “I’ve never met anyone to make me feel what you do. There was a time when I wanted to forget you, but I could not. You kept popping into my mind.”

  “I’ve never been one to take no for an answer,” she said with a grin.

  Laughing, he agreed.

  Chapter 16

  “Do you have any plans for the weekend after next?” Ethan inquired a few days later when they walked out of the movie theater.

  Jordin shook her head no. “What’s up?”

  “I was thinking that we could use a few days away from Charleston. We could take a long weekend and go somewhere romantic.”

  She broke into a smile. “Sounds wonderful.”

  “Anyplace special you’d like to go?” he asked.

  She gave him a sidelong glance. “Why don’t you surprise me, Ethan?”

  His brows rose in surprise. “You would just up and go with me like that?”

  Jordin nodded. “I trust you, Ethan. I know that you wouldn’t do anything crazy.”

  Ethan chuckled. “Hmmmm... Maybe I’ll take you to Utah or Montana. We can go work a ranch or something.”

  She paused in her tracks. “I don’t think so. For the record, I would like to go somewhere tropical—not a dude ranch.”

  “Montana has some cool ranches.”

  “Not interested,” Jordin murmured.

  “You’re sure?”

  She nodded. “I’m positive, Ethan. I don’t want anything to do with horses, cows, sheep...anything close to that.”

  He wrapped an arm around her. “Okay, we’ll go someplace tropical.”

  They walked to his car.

  Ethan opened the door to the passenger side for Jordin.

  He walked around to the other side of the vehicle and got in. “Are we going back to your place or mine?”

  “I’m working from home tomorrow,” Jordin announced, “so why don’t we stay at my house?” She could not wipe the grin off her face. She was blissfully happy. She and Ethan were closer than ever—things were perfect.

  * * *

  After their walk along the sandy shoreline, she and Ethan sat down on a huge beach towel that he had pulled out of the trunk of his car, talking as they watched the waves tossing back and forth.

  He’d surprised her with a trip to Martinique in the French West Indies. Jordin loved everything about the island...the food, the culture and the scenery. That was not Ethan’s only surprise. He owned the house they were currently staying in—she did not find out until they arrived.

  “What would you like to talk about now?” Jordin asked.

  “How about this?” Ethan leaned forward and kissed her.

  His k
iss was slow, thoughtful and sent spirals of desire racing through Jordin. “Mmmm... I love the subject matter.”

  “Why don’t we head back to the house?” Ethan suggested. “I know that you’re cold.”

  “Thank you,” she said with a chuckle.

  They left the beach and went back to his home.

  Jordin loved the design of Ethan’s house and the amazing ocean, mountain and city-lights views from every room. He had given her a tour of the five-bedroom house with fabulous West Indies decor throughout.

  From where she was standing, she had a fantastic view of the colorful flower garden, the ocean and the sprawling deck out back. Ethan was having an outdoor kitchen installed. Grilling was one of his favorite pastimes.

  Jordin turned away from the window.

  This area is so beautiful, she thought. Her eyes traveled from the faux-finished stucco walls to the hand-painted furniture to the huge overstuffed sofas. She’d asked him why he had so many bedrooms and Ethan responded that they came with the house. Then he’d told her that he wanted to marry and settle down, so he kept that in mind while he was searching for a home.

  She glanced down at the marbled floor throughout the first level. Jordin loved hardwoods, but she had to admit Ethan’s flooring was nice.

  Ethan walked into the bedroom that evening shortly after nine o’clock. He had been in the living room checking voice mail messages while Jordin showered. She was sitting in bed reading a book with the pillows propped behind her back.

  He slid in beside her and laced his fingers through her curls, before leaning closer to the warm skin of her neck to trace a pattern of kisses to her jawline. “What are you reading?” he whispered against her cheek.

  “Ummm...” Jordin’s thoughts were no longer on the book in her hands.

  “I guess it’s not that interesting,” Ethan stated as he reached over and closed her book, then put it on the nightstand on her side of the bed.

  “It’s not,” she responded softly.

  “You have no idea how long I’ve wanted to spend time with you in a romantic setting.”

  Jordin met his gaze. “This place is perfect and being here with you, Ethan... It feels right.”

  He kissed her softly on her lips. “There has never been any other woman for me—not one who makes me feel the way you do.” When he held her, she felt like no other female. It felt like Jordin was made for him, made to fit him like a glove. Ethan could not seem to get close enough to her.