by Mari Carr
He suspected she was trying to find her way as well. She’d admitted last night she hadn’t had sex in years, hadn’t seen a naked man. In some small way, he thought she was trying to reacquaint herself with all the particulars of the male figure. He grinned, aware he was an all-too-willing model.
Her hand stroked his flesh and he gritted his teeth in a fight to stave off the inevitable explosion. He’d been rock hard and hurting since fucking her with the vibrator before dinner. He hadn’t taken his own pleasure then, foolishly thinking it would be better to let the anticipation build. Now he was seriously struggling to keep from blowing over a simple hand job.
“Get undressed, Grace. I want to touch you. See you.”
She smiled and obeyed, removing each piece of clothing leisurely, seducing his senses until he felt the urge to growl like a wolf and claim her as his mate. Once she was naked, he decided it was time to take over. Expand on Grace’s limited experiences. Let her see what it would mean to be involved with him.
Gripping her hands, he pulled her until her back rested against the upright corner post of his footboard. Leaning into her, he kissed her as he positioned her hands behind her back, around the post. “Don’t move,” he murmured as he broke the kiss.
Her eyes, which had been closed, opened slowly and he could see she was lost in a haze of desire. He retrieved the handcuffs and other toys he’d discovered under her mattress and her lips parted with a gasp. Tossing the massage oils, dildo and his tube of lubrication on the bed, he opened the package containing the cuffs.
“You said you trusted me.” He’d cherished those words since she’d uttered them. She nodded, reaffirming them and he grinned.
Wrapping his arms around her once more, he reclaimed her lips as he snapped the fur-lined cuffs onto her wrists, binding her against the corner post.
“Don’t move,” he teased and she laughed quietly.
“How do you do that?” she whispered.
He gave her a curious look. “Do what?”
“Make everything fun. You’ve got me handcuffed to your bed and I’m laughing, happier than I’ve ever been.”
His heart nearly burst at her admission. He made her happy. “You’re easy to please, Grace.” He ran his hand along her arm, down her waist until he gripped her hip. “Open your legs.”
She obeyed without question or comment and again he was overcome by her innate trust. She didn’t realize how much her confidence in him meant.
He placed his forehead against hers. “It’s gonna get serious now. If I do anything you don’t like, just tell me to stop and I will. Okay?”
She nodded and he smiled when he noticed her nipples peaking, growing tighter under his gaze. He bent down to lift her left leg, propping her foot on the edge of the bed. The position left her wide open to his touch.
Kneeling before her, he gave into the hunger she inspired, taking her clit into his mouth and sucking lightly. She responded instantly, her soft mewling cries driving him on. He pushed two fingers into her wet pussy, savoring the chance to return to her sweetness so soon. He’d known last night he needed more, wanted more. One lifetime wouldn’t be enough for him and he was already regretting wasting so much time. He’d let years go by without claiming her. As he fucked her with his fingers, his mouth, he was determined to see the lonely days and nights end. By the end of this weekend, he swore to himself she would be his.
She was moving restlessly against the post, trying to thrust her cunt closer to his lips. Each time, he moved away, keeping her on the edge, building her hunger. He planned to feed her cravings, increasing her addiction to him until she wouldn’t be able to consider a life without him in it.
“God, Jamie. Please.”
She wanted to come. He knew it. He also knew he’d been too easy on her last night. Tonight, the rules were different. He softened his thrusts and leaned back, looking up into her lust-dazed face. “You can come, Grace, but only when I give you permission. Tonight’s not a free-for-all like last night. Tonight, you belong to me. Every inch of your gorgeous body is mine to command, to possess. Do you understand?”
She was breathing harshly, the air leaving her lungs in gasping pants. Her eyes were narrowed and for a moment, he silently prayed she’d pick a fight. Give him a reason to untie her, throw her facedown on his bed, and spank her sexy ass. Sadly, her anger passed with a shudder and he watched as his words penetrated her consciousness, driving her lust even higher.
He pushed her, his voice harsher when he repeated his previous question. “I said do you understand, Grace? Answer me.”
She nodded. “I understand.” He winked and she grinned. “I’m about to explode,” she admitted.
He laughed. “That makes two of us. You’re just going to have to believe that I know what I’m doing. As much as we both want to come right now, I can guarantee you it will be twenty times better if we wait. Let the pressure build to boiling.”
“Sounds painful,” she joked.
He leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on her engorged clit. “No pain. All pleasure. I promise.”
Reaching up, he grasped the lube and dildo as she watched. “You liked having your ass fucked. Didn’t you?”
She swallowed heavily, and then shook her head. He froze until she spoke. “I loved having my ass fucked.”
He grinned, running his tongue along her slit, enjoying her playfulness. “Touché. Keep your foot on the bed.” He opened the lubrication. Squeezing a large dollop on his fingers, he slowly worked them into her ass. She winced slightly and he worried she was sore from the previous night. His hand stilled.
“Does it hurt?”
She shook her head and he narrowed his eyes. “Don’t lie to me, Grace. Not about this.”
“It hurts a little, but not enough that I want to stop.” When he didn’t move again, she added, “Don’t you dare stop,” in a strong voice that put his fears to rest. When he’d worked three fingers in easily, he removed them, squeezing more lube onto his palm. He quickly and efficiently covered the dildo, marveling at the size of it. His astonishment must have shown on his face because Grace addressed it.
“Cheryl talked me into buying it at one of those sex-toy parties. Let’s just say I’d had a few glasses of wine and my vision was clearly impaired.”
He chuckled. “I think last night should have proven to you that you’re more than capable of—” He paused and waved the large dildo around until she giggled.
“What exactly do you plan to do with that?”
“You liked being filled in both places at once. Since my capacity for sharing you ran out at dawn this morning, I thought I’d try to prove to you I can offer the same forbidden pleasure alone.”
Her smile gave way to a quiet moan.
“You like that idea.” His words weren’t a question and she didn’t need to answer.
Placing the well-lubed dildo at her anus, he watched her face as he unhurriedly pushed the toy inside. The process took several minutes and Jamie fought back the pain of his throbbing erection as he watched the myriad of looks cross Grace’s beautiful face—intense concentration, unbridled lust, unbearable need. Her eyes never left his and it felt as if the connection between them was being forged, cemented with each glorious inch of the toy breaching her body.
When she was filled to the hilt, he rose, reaching behind her to release the handcuffs. Lifting her gently, he laid her in the center of the bed, crawling between her legs. “I need you, angel.”
“I’m yours.” She raised her arms and pulled him toward her.
He placed his cock at the tight opening of her cunt, gritting his teeth at the snug fit. Pushing in slowly, it was only once he’d fully entered her that he remembered what he’d forgotten.
“Condom.”
Her hands tightened around his neck. “Tubes tied. It’s okay.”
He closed his eyes, marveling once more at her trust in him. “Thank God. I’m clean, Grace.”
She nodded. “I know.”
; “Holy shit, you have no idea how good this feels.”
She grinned. “Actually, I think I have a pretty good idea. Jamie?”
He looked at her. “Yeah?”
“Fuck me.”
“Yes ma’am, Ms. Wright.” He retreated from her body until just the head of his cock remained and then he began his slow journey back into heaven. Over and over, he filled her, loving the tautness of her cunt. Soon, they were both crying out their climaxes as Jamie pumped his seed deep inside her.
Falling to her side, he pulled her with him, keeping his cock lodged within her warmth. He slowly pulled the dildo out of her ass, dropping it to the floor as she grinned.
“How untidy of you,” she teased.
“I’ll get it later. Promise,” he replied, mimicking Trey’s words from the previous night. Then, he pressed a quick kiss on her forehead and they fell asleep arm in arm, still connected…and smiling.
Chapter Eight
Sunday passed as quickly as Saturday and Jamie watched Grace glance at the clock for the third time in an hour. They’d gone out for breakfast again, stopping by Grace’s house to pick up her car before returning to his house, neither of them willing to part. They’d filled every hour since then with as much kissing, touching and sex as they could and Jamie was reminded of Trey’s jest on Friday night. They were behaving like a couple of horny teens.
“I really have to leave,” she said at last. He’d been expecting—dreading—those words. “Maddie’s going to be home in an hour and I haven’t done a single one of my weekend chores. Not to mention the stack of essays I still need to grade.”
He nodded, though there was an insecure part of him that wanted to demand she stay here permanently. “You gonna be at Maddie’s softball game tomorrow? Last one of the season.”
She smiled and he sensed she was relieved by his easy acquiescence to her leaving. “Have I missed a game yet?”
“No, of course you haven’t. So, what are you doing next Friday?” He had no choice in letting her leave right now, but he’d be damned if she’d step a foot out the door without the two of them reaching some sort of understanding. They’d spent the day in bed, taking turns using her massage oils on each other and making love until his cock was actually sore. He’d spent every spare minute of the day giving into his immediate physical desires rather than thinking of the future. Now she was leaving and he’d failed to say anything to her about what he wanted from her, for them.
She laughed. “Next Friday? You already need another happy hour?”
He shook his head. “No. Actually I was thinking we could do dinner and a movie.”
“You mean like a date?”
He narrowed his eyes, slightly angered by her shocked tone. “Yeah, like a date, Grace. What did you think?”
She bit her lip. “I—” she stumbled for a moment and he didn’t like the expression on her face.
“You didn’t think this was going to end here, did you?”
She shrugged. “I didn’t really know what was going on.”
He couldn’t blame her for being surprised. Trey had been the only one smart enough to talk about time limits and expectations. Jamie had been an idiot, thinking with his dick rather than his brain, leaving too many things unsaid. Time to come clean. “This weekend has been one of the best of my life. So great, in fact, I’d like to expand on the concept. See if we can’t turn this thing between us into something solid.”
“Solid. Dating?”
“People date in order to get to know one another, Grace. We’re beyond that. I want to see you. Seriously see you, as in exclusively.”
Her face lost all expression. Hell, it seemed to lose all color with his admission. “Oh.”
He sighed. He was fucking it all up. “I want to go out with you, Grace. And I don’t mean casual dating. I want a relationship with you. I want a future—a long future—together.”
She blinked rapidly and he tried to still the panic clawing its way through his chest. He’d thought she was ready to date again, ready to open herself and her life to a man, to him. Now he was wondering if he’d read her wrong.
“I want that too.” Her words were spoken softly, but firmly and he grinned.
“Thank God. For a minute there, I thought—”
“It’s just—I need some time to break this to Maddie.”
He frowned. “Time? She’s eighteen years old, angel. Why would it take more than a few minutes to explain to her that we’re seeing each other?”
“It’s not as easy as that, Jamie.”
His temper flared. “Of course it is, Grace, it’s only going to be as hard as you make it.”
“Well then, I guess you’ll have to forgive me because I think this is going to be hard.”
“Why?”
“Do you want me to make you a list? Jamie, you’re Maddie’s softball coach.”
“The season ends with tomorrow’s game and she graduates in a month. That’s not a problem.”
“You were her teacher.”
“In tenth grade. So what?” he asked, still confused by her reluctance to tell Maddie about them.
“You’re considerably younger than me. What will she think?”
Jamie nodded. Her first two excuses had been lame attempts at a smoke screen. Now they were getting to the heart of the matter. He wondered if it wasn’t what Maddie thought about their age difference as much as how it made Grace feel.
“I’m not going to wake up tomorrow morning, miraculously eight years older, Grace. I’m always going to be younger. I would have thought this weekend would have proven to you that those years don’t make a damn bit of difference. We’re compatible in every way, as far as I can see.”
She sighed. “You’re right. Absolutely. Unequivocally. I’m being a coward and a fool.”
He gripped her upper arms, pulling her toward him. He kissed her before responding. “You’re not a coward or a fool, Grace. Trust me on that. You’re one of the strongest women I’ve ever met.”
“Can I ask you for something?” She’d taken a step away and her face was far too serious.
He nodded. “Anything, angel. I’ll give you anything.”
“Time. I need a few days to figure out all of this and to square it away with Maddie.”
“I think I can wait a few days before shouting out to every available man within a thousand-mile radius that you’re taken.”
She laughed. “I hardly think you need to go to such extremes.”
“Oh yes I do. You’re going to be mine, Grace. Make no mistake.”
She shuddered slightly at his warning, but she didn’t look upset by the thought as much as intrigued. “You know we still have about a million things to discuss if you’re serious about this relationship.”
He nodded. “I know that. What do you say we knock them off one by one? First step is Maddie. After that, we can figure out the rest.”
She sighed, bending down to pick up her overnight bag. “Speaking of Maddie, I really do need to leave.”
“I’ll see you at work tomorrow.” He leaned toward her and kissed her lightly. Neither of them tried to deepen the kiss and Jamie suspected she was worried about what came next. “It will all be fine, Grace. Promise.”
It wasn’t until she had pulled out of the driveway that he remembered he’d forgotten to tell her the most important thing. Three damn words.
Grace dragged herself to the back of her classroom late Friday afternoon to grab a resource book off her bookshelf for a lesson she planned to teach next week. She’d spent the entire week replaying the weekend and Jamie’s words from Sunday. He wanted a relationship. With her. Several times she’d started to tell Maddie about him, but every time she opened her mouth, the words failed her.
Jamie had been extremely patient, maintaining a professional distance at work, careful not to give them away until she was ready. She’d been grateful for the time, but now she’d worked herself up into a state of constant anxiety. Her head was pounding, she hadn’t b
een able to eat. She was acting like the world’s biggest idiot. She may work in a high school, but that didn’t mean she had to act like a teenager. She’d counseled her daughter and students through new love, always managing to speak with wisdom and so-called experience. Now the shoe was on the other foot and she was building mountains out of molehills.
Maddie would be okay with this relationship. Deep inside, Grace knew that. The problem wasn’t with her daughter’s acceptance as much as it was about how Grace felt. Was she okay with this? She adored Jamie. No, more than that. She loved him.
But she’d loved and lost before and she knew, regardless of Jamie’s assurances to the contrary, she wasn’t strong enough to survive another loss. She sank down into one of the students’ desks and put her head in her hands.
What the hell was she going to do? She’d centered her concerns about entering a relationship with Jamie around their age difference. However, last weekend had dispelled all those worries. They were compatible, they were well-suited.
“Grace.”
She lifted her head, found Jamie leaning in the doorway, concern written on his face.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
She nodded once, then shrugged. “I haven’t told Maddie about us.”
He gave her a sad smile that proved he knew that fact. “Why not?”
“I don’t know why not.”
“Have you changed your mind about pursuing this?” He gestured his hand between them, pointing at her and at him.
“No.” She shook her head.
“You think Maddie will be upset, disapprove?”
“No.” She closed her eyes, aware she was repeating herself, offering him no answers. Hell, she didn’t have any answers.
“Jesus, Grace. You gotta give me something here. I’ve missed you this week. Tell me what’s wrong. Let’s look for an answer.”
“I care for you,” she said, standing slowly. She knew the answer was vague and didn’t even touch on the depths of her feelings for him.
He narrowed his eyes and she could see him waiting for the other shoe to drop. “That’s good. I care for you too.”