by Lynn LaFleur
Dax shrugged. “Just because I don’t believe in one woman for me doesn’t mean I can’t be happy for other couples.”
“Emma never believed in one man for her until she met Griff.”
He looked at her, a frown wrinkling his eyebrows. “Kelcey—”
“I’m not pushing you, Dax. I don’t expect more from you than what we had last night. It was amazing and I loved it, but I’m not holding my breath for it to happen again.”
His frown disappeared. A wicked grin turned up one corner of his mouth and he bobbled his eyebrows. “It could happen again. I wouldn’t mind.”
Kelcey struggled not to laugh. “You want to be used like some sex toy?”
“I could live with that.”
“Sorry to disappoint you, but no.”
“Damn it.”
He recovered her leg, walked to the head of the table. A chair’s wheels squeaked as he rolled it into position behind her head. Slipping his hands beneath her neck, he rubbed it gently with his fingers. “Here comes the part where you can go to sleep. Close your eyes and relax.”
She closed her eyes, breathed in and blew out a deep breath. Even though the massage on her neck felt incredible, she wouldn’t possibly fall asleep…
Chapter Eleven
Kelcey’s parted lips and even breaths proved to Dax that she’d fallen asleep. He kept up the gentle massage on her scalp for a few more moments to be sure she wouldn’t wake, then left the room, quietly closing the door behind him.
Walker jumped up from the floor. Dax shushed him before the dog could bark. “She’s asleep, Walker. Leave her alone.”
He whined, dropped back down on the floor and stared at the door. Chuckling, Dax shook his head. His dog had definitely fallen in love with Kelcey. Not that he could blame Walker. It wouldn’t be hard for anyone to fall for Kelcey.
Dax wandered to the kitchen, thinking he should find something to fix for supper. The thought of taking something out of the freezer didn’t appeal to him, even though he loved his mother’s cooking. He knew how to cook, but wished he could be better at it. He’d like to prepare something special for Kelcey.
Maybe she wouldn’t want to stay for supper. Maybe she’d want to leave as soon as she woke up. He hoped not. He wanted more time with her.
That shocked him. He’d never cared about spending time with a woman outside of a bedroom. While he’d teased with her about him being a sex toy, last night hadn’t been all about sex. He’d truly enjoyed their evening together. It had been fun to sit at his computer and listen to Kelcey’s comments about his photographs. She’d been honest with him about ones she liked and ones she didn’t. She had a great eye for color and offered suggestions on how he might set up a shot differently should he take a similar picture in the future. Every suggestion had been perfect.
So had the lovemaking.
She’d surprised him when she came into his bedroom. Although he didn’t doubt for a moment that she wanted him, he could feel the fine trembling of her body, see the trepidation in her eyes. She hadn’t been intimate with a man since the asshole raped her, however long that had been. He’d wanted so much to please her, to make her first time with a man erase the memory of the pain she’d suffered. He hoped he’d done that.
His growling stomach turned his attention back to supper. His cell phone rang as he crossed the floor to the refrigerator. Slipping the phone out of his pants pocket, he saw Griff’s picture on the display.
“Hey, bro.”
“Hey. You still working on Kelcey?”
“I finished a few minutes ago. She’s asleep.”
“No, I’m not,” she said from behind him.
Dax turned to see Kelcey standing two feet away, Walker by her side. Her hair was mussed, her skin flushed, her eyelids slumbrous. She looked like a woman who had crawled from bed after hours of hot sex.
His cock immediately responded to that thought, quickly growing thicker and longer. Thankful he wore loose sweatpants that would hide his condition, he smiled at her. “I thought you were asleep.”
“I was for a little bit. I woke up when you shut the door.” She gestured toward his phone. “Go ahead and finish your conversation.”
He opened the refrigerator and peered inside for something to cook. “I lied. She isn’t asleep.”
“Good. Emma left work a little early today so she could roast a pork loin. She wants to give some to you to thank you for helping Kelcey.”
Since he now knew what to do for supper, Dax shut the refrigerator. “I won’t ever turn down Emma’s cooking.”
“You’ll have to do your own vegetables,” he heard Emma say in the background.
Dax chuckled. “Tell her I can do that.”
“Okay. We’ll be over in a few minutes.”
Dax slipped the phone back in his pocket and faced Kelcey again. “Emma and Griff are bringing over roast pork loin.”
Her eyes widened and a smile lit up her face. “Oh wow. Emma makes the best pork loin you’ll ever eat.”
“Does that mean you’ll stay for supper?”
“Well, yeah. I’m not giving up the chance to eat Emma’s cooking.”
“Great.” He clapped his hands together. “Now what to go with it? Baked potato?”
“Definitely.”
“I think I’m out of salad stuff, but I have canned and frozen vegetables.”
“You pick out the vegetable and I’ll get the potatoes ready for the microwave.”
Dax smiled. “Deal.”
* * * * *
Dax loved food. He never had any trouble packing it away and enjoyed every bite. Eating with Kelcey made everything taste better than usual. Even a baked potato seemed more fluffy with Kelcey sitting across the kitchen table from him.
Emma and Griff had stayed only long enough to drop off the food before they left. Dax invited them to stay for a glass of tea or wine, but they’d refused his offer. Emma claimed she wanted to restock the cookies at the B-and-B, so had a lot of baking to do tonight. They left after being there barely ten minutes.
Dax couldn’t say he minded. It gave him more alone time with Kelcey.
He pretended he didn’t see her sneak bites of the meat to Walker, who hadn’t left her side since she came out of the massage room. Walker rarely took to a person as quickly as he had Kelcey. Dax still couldn’t understand why his dog seemed so protective of her. He didn’t normally take to strangers, but he’d loved Kelcey right away.
Kelcey laid her fork on her empty plate. “I am stuffed.”
“So is my dog.”
Dax chuckled as a guilty blush turned her cheeks pink. “I only gave him a few bites.”
“You gave him half the meat on your plate.”
“He was hungry.”
“Did he tell you that?”
That cute little nose of hers went up an inch. “I could tell.”
It took all his willpower not to laugh. “You’re a dog psychic?”
“Oh hush.”
She stood and gathered up her dirty dishes. Grinning, Dax gathered up his too and followed her. “I just want to make sure I understand what you’re telling me.”
After setting her dishes in the sink, she turned to him, one hand on her hip. “Are you purposely being a jerk?”
Setting his dishes on the countertop, he gave her his best little-boy grin. “Yeah.”
She laughed, which Dax wanted her to do. “I’m really good at being a jerk. Ask anyone in town.”
“I’ll take your word for it.” She turned on the water and rinsed her plate. “Bring me the rest of the stuff from the table and I’ll load the dishwasher.”
“You don’t have to do that.” He turned off the water and took her hand. “Come with me. I want to show you something.”
“Wait! My hands are wet.”
He waited long enough for her to grab a paper towel before he led her from the kitchen to his office. After she’d settled in the chair where she’d sat last night, he pressed the keyboard’s sp
acebar to wake up his computer.
“I took more pictures for Mom this morning, so came home at lunch and downloaded all the pictures I’ve taken the last couple of days. I have some great ones of Alaina and Emma that should make you smile.” He opened his photo program. “These are the raw pictures without any kind of adjusting. I usually tweak them a little before I send them to Mom.”
He highlighted a picture of Emma and pressed the spacebar to enlarge it. She looked up at something above her head, intense concentration spread over her face. Kelcey leaned closer to the monitor. “What’s she looking at?”
“She was watching Jerry and Dusty working like hell to get the roof finished before the rain started.”
“Did they?”
“Yeah, but barely, since the rain got here quicker than we expected.” He brought up another picture of Alaina and Emma laughing. “I took this after Alaina fired a nail gun for the first time. I wish I’d caught Alaina’s expression when she pressed the trigger, but I walked in after she’d already done it.”
Kelcey giggled. “I’m surprised Alaina hadn’t already used one in the B-and-B.”
“She refused to. Said it scared her. I guess she figured if Emma could do it, so could she.”
“I’ll let them play with tools. I’ll stick to the office stuff.”
Dax chuckled. “You’re probably wise.” He scrolled down the page to the next picture he wanted to show her. “Now this picture I like a lot.”
He pressed the spacebar. Kelcey’s smiling face filled the screen. He watched her as she studied her image. Surprise filled her eyes, her lips parted. Her expression clearly said she didn’t believe she could be the lovely lady on the screen.
“This is the one I took when I told you to smile for me.”
“You did something to it,” she said, still staring at herself. “I’m not that pretty.”
“I did nothing to it, and you’re definitely that pretty. Why would you think you aren’t?”
She switched her gaze to him. “Look who I’ve lived with the last four years. Emma is stunning and oozes sex appeal. And Alaina is so gorgeous with that voluptuous body and long auburn hair.”
“Emma and Alaina are both beautiful ladies.” He reached over and ran one fingertip down her cheek. “That doesn’t mean you aren’t too.”
She snorted out a laugh, which he thought very cute. “I’m not beautiful, Dax. I know that.”
“There are all levels of beauty, Kelcey. Maybe your looks don’t kick a guy in the gut like Emma, or you don’t have all the curves Alaina has. That doesn’t mean you aren’t lovely.” He tilted up her face, his thumb slowly rubbing her chin. “You have the most incredible blue eyes. They make a guy feel as if you can look all the way into his soul.”
He saw her throat work as she swallowed.
“You have beautiful blonde hair and a creamy complexion. You’re tall and slim with gentle curves. So your breasts aren’t as big as Alaina’s. Not every guy wants a gal with double Ds.”
“Do you?”
Dax shook his head. “Breast size doesn’t matter to me. I love them, I’ll admit that. I love touching them, squeezing them.” His gaze dropped to her chest. “Licking and sucking the nipples.”
He looked back into her eyes, which now almost glowed with heat. “I didn’t pay nearly enough attention to your breasts last night.”
“You didn’t?” Her voice came out in a husky whisper.
“No.” Still staring into her eyes, he let his fingers drift down her neck to the top button of her blouse. “There are a lot of things I didn’t do last night that I want to do.”
“Like what?”
He released the top button. “Sucking your nipples.”
“What else?”
He liked the breathless tone in her voice. Another button slipped from the buttonhole. “Trying some different positions.”
“Wh-what kind of positions?”
“I have a fantasy about you in the shower.” Leaning forward, he dropped a kiss between her breasts. Her little gasp traveled straight to his cock. Dax rolled his chair closer to hers, slipped one arm around her waist while he released another button. “I think about soap suds sliding down your wet skin.” The last button slipped through its hole. He spread her blouse open as he kissed the sensitive spot below her ear. “I think about pressing you up against the shower wall and hooking your legs over my arms.” Pulling back a few inches, he looked into her eyes. “Can you imagine what happens next?”
“I think so.”
“Would you like to see if your imagination matches mine?”
She nodded.
Dax covered her lips with his, pouring all the desire he felt into the kiss. Holding her neck, he tilted his head and deepened the kiss, sweeping his tongue across her lips. Her lips softened beneath his, parted to allow him entrance. Dax accepted her offer, his tongue darting into her mouth to glide against hers.
She melted against him. Lips parting wider, she clutched his T-shirt in her fists and returned his kiss as if she wanted to absorb him right into her body.
That worked for him.
He needed more…more kisses, more caresses, more of her body against his. He needed to be buried so deep inside her, he wouldn’t be able to tell they were two separate people.
“I want you,” he whispered in her ear.
She pulled back and looked into his face. Her hand trembled as she touched his lips. “I want you too.”
Taking her hand away from his mouth, he pressed a kiss in her palm. “Shower with me?”
She nodded.
Kelcey had a moment of disbelief when Dax took her hand and tugged her from the chair. Although she would’ve been happy to make love with him again, she’d accepted that last night had been the only time she’d ever be intimate with Dax.
Everything had changed with his three little words—“I want you.”
He led her through his bedroom to the master bath. She stood next to the sink while he started the shower running, unsure whether to take off her clothes or wait for him to make the first move. Since she’d never been in this situation where she showered with a man, she didn’t know the rules.
Turning to face her again, he pulled his T-shirt over his head, dropped it on the floor. She waited for him to remove the rest of his clothes, but he stood still, watching her. Heat rushed to her cheeks when she realized he wanted her to remove some of her clothes. Hands trembling once more from desire and a touch of nervousness, she let her blouse slip down her arms. She reached behind her and unhooked her bra. It joined her blouse on the floor.
She stood before him, naked from the waist up, deciding she’d removed enough until he took off something else.
His gaze swept over her breasts, down to her low-riding jeans, back to her breasts. She clearly saw the outline of his erection through his sweatpants. It made her wonder if he wore a pair of those tiny briefs.
He answered her silent question when he pushed his pants down his legs. She saw no briefs…just an amazing, hard cock.
After removing his pants and socks, Dax stepped closer to her. “Want some help?”
Kelcey nodded. Help would be appreciated since she didn’t know if her fingers would work to unfasten her jeans. Dax unsnapped them and slowly lowered the zipper. Hooking his thumbs in the waistband, he pushed them past her hips. Pausing long enough to hook her panties too, he slid them down her legs. She held his shoulders as he knelt before her and removed her clothing.
He slid his hands up her legs as he stood again. His touch released the scent of the massage oil.
“Your skin is so soft.”
“It’s the oil.”
Dax shook his head. “It was soft before your massage. You’re soft everywhere.” He cradled her breasts, whisked his thumbs across her nipples. They immediately peaked. “Well, except here.”
His playful teasing eased her nervousness. She pointedly looked at his cock. “You aren’t exactly soft in places either.”
“
I’m thankful for that.”
Reluctantly, she dragged her gaze away from his enticing flesh. “So am I.”
He drew her into his arms and kissed her. Kelcey wrapped her arms around him, splayed her hands over his back. This time she took control of the kiss, licking across his lips before she thrust her tongue into his mouth. Dax groaned, dropped his hands to her ass and pulled her tighter against him. His cock felt like a hot brand against her mound.
Kelcey willingly followed him to the shower’s entrance. So many emotions pinged around inside her, the strongest one desire. But beneath that desire lay common sense. She stopped before stepping into the shower with him.
He looked at her over his shoulder. “What’s wrong?”
She gestured toward his shaft with her free hand. “Can you wear a condom in the shower?”
He cradled her cheek in his palm. “Remember when I told you I had my eyes checked last month?”
She didn’t understand what that had to do with her question, but answered honestly. “Yes.”
“I had a full physical too. I’m clean, Kelcey.” He caressed her cheek with his thumb. “Do you believe me?”
“Yes.”
“I hear a ‘but’ in there.”
“Dax, I’m not… What happened to me…” She didn’t quite know how to talk about this, or the right words to say. “I haven’t been with anyone besides you in a long time, so I’m not…protected.”
She could tell by the comprehension in his eyes that he knew what she meant. “You don’t use birth control.”
Kelcey shook her head. “I’m sorry. It’s probably a safe time, but—”
He gave her a gentle kiss. “It isn’t a problem. We’ll take a shower now and make love later.”
“But you said you have a fantasy—”
“I have a lot of fantasies about you, Kelcey.” He kissed her again, then grinned. “Some of them might curl your toes.”
His teasing made her chuckle. When he gently tugged on her hand, she didn’t hesitate to follow him beneath the warm water.
Pouring a generous amount of liquid soap into his palm, Dax rubbed his hands together to make a thick lather. He wrapped his arms around her from behind and began to spread it over her body. Kelcey closed her eyes and rested her head on his shoulder, content to let him touch her however he wanted.