He hoped he delivered enough silliness in his words for her to think he was joking. And while he was, in a way he wasn’t.
The woman in front of him tied him up in so many emotional and physical knots that he didn’t think he’d ever untie them. Wasn’t sure he wanted to.
They’d spent a lot of time together over the last two weeks. He’d been the only one to help her with herspring cleanof the base, not because he wanted to clean shit up but because he wanted to spend every second he could with her.
They’d talked about everything and nothing. He still didn’t know if she was seeing anyone and he’d come to the conclusion she wasn’t, except he could be wrong.
The fact she’d moved here from LA and there didn’t appear to be anything in the house that pointed to her having a man in her life, Rylan was confident he’d gotten that right.
Fuck, hewantedto be right.
“Um, should we get going?” Mazey asked as she finally gave in and reached up to place her fingers over his dog tags.
“Sure. If you’re ready.”
He rinsed off his plate, then left it in the sink when he didn’t see a dishwasher. When he turned back to face her, he found her tucking his tags beneath the collar of her shirt and wished with every fiber of his being it was his hands slipping those metal discs under that soft-looking fabric.
Clearing his throat, he said, “I’ll carry the pies.”
“Thanks. I’ll grab the ice cream.”
“Wait. There’s ice cream?” Damn. He wished he’d known that before he’d eaten the pie.
Grinning, she pulled two tubs from the freezer. “Can’t have pie without ice cream.”
“Ha. I think I just proved you can, but if I’d known ice cream was on the menu too, I’d have convinced you to serve me up some.”
“You can have some at the barbecue.”
“We can start with dessert, right?” he asked as he lifted the box of pies from the counter. With his arms full, he followed Mazey to the door. “My keys are in the front pocket of my shorts. Can you grab them out and unlock my truck?”
They were on the porch now, and she spun around to stare at him with her mouth open. Snapping it shut she stuttered a bit before turning back to her door and locking up. She was mumbling under her breath so quietly that he couldn’t hear whatever she was saying despite how close he stood.
He leaned in. “Sorry, what? I didn’t catch that.”
“Nothing. Left or right?”
She’d lost him. “Left or right what?”
“Pocket. Keys. Left or right pocket for your keys?”
Was she clenching her teeth? “Right. They’re in my right pocket.”
When she stepped closer and shoved her hand tentatively into his pants, he worked out what her problem was.
Of course, now he had a problem too.
With her hand right near his dick, the erection he’d managed to get rid of when he’d first arrived was back bigger than ever. Somehow she managed to fish out his keys without touching his cock. How was one of the great mysteries of the universe because he was packing to the right, and he was pretty sure his crown had wedged itself into the space between his pocket and the front panel of his shorts.
Yeah, he was commando, hard as stone and on full display, and if it wasn’t for the box of pies in his arms, she’d be getting a good look at what he had to offer and a really good clue about what he was thinking.
Although, the flush in her cheeks suggested she was just as affected by their close contact. His cock twitched and pulsed, as blood pumped through his veins like bullets from a semi-automatic weapon.
Before he could say something embarrassing or drop the box and yank Mazey into his arms, she jogged down the two porch steps and raced across her lawn to the curb where he’d parked his truck.
Resigned to spending the day in sexual torture, Rylan followed. He tried to remember if he had a spare pair of briefs in the gym bag he kept in his truck. Walking around commando with a hard-on all day did not appeal. Besides, this get-together was all ages. He’d better pray he could keep things PG, or he’d be hiding in a corner.
Neither of them spoke while he put the box behind the front seat of the extended cab. Once he was satisfied it wasn’t going anywhere, he walked around to the driver’s side while Mazey climbed into the passenger seat.
