My mind had been teasing me with that powerful four-letter word all week. Logically I knew there was no other way to describe what I was feeling. I thought about her all the time. I missed her like crazy. I fell asleep and woke up with her on my mind. Got off to thoughts of her in the shower. Hadn’t even looked twice at another woman all week. If that wasn’t love, I wasn’t sure I could handle the real thing.
She led me in through the front door, dropping her purse in the small foyer before tugging on my hand while she stepped out of her heels and slammed the door.
“Hi,” she whispered, tipping her head back to look me in the eye.
I smirked, closing my hands around her waist. “Hi, gorgeous.” Lowering my head, I whispered in her ear, “Now that you’ve got me here, what do you intend to do with me?”
“Hmmm…” She was slowly releasing the buttons on my shirt, tugging the fabric out of my pants when she said, “There are so many things I want to do to you, I don’t even know where to start.”
I loved that Briar wasn’t shy or bashful. She gave as good as she got in the bedroom and wasn’t afraid to talk dirty or demand what she wanted. She got off watching the pendulum of control shift as she brought me to my knees. And I enjoyed letting her have her way with me when she demanded it. I’d never been with a woman so sure of herself and Briar’s confidence was one of the many things that kept me coming back for more, year after year.
She was smoothing her hands over my chest, pushing the shirt over my shoulders as she caught the glint of her ring in the reflection of the dim light she’d left on in the hallway.
“I have to admit,” she said with a sigh. “I do love the way that looks.”
“I do too.”
I curled my hand around her left wrist as our eyes locked.Looks like it was meant to be there.But I couldn’t say that. Yet. I knew the day would come when I’d have to admit I saw a future with her, but tonight wasn’t the night for heavy conversation. It was about letting our bodies do the talking for us.
I wanted her to feel in my kiss how much I missed her. Remind her with my tongue how much she’d missed me. See the love in my eyes when I penetrated her. Experience how incredible it could be to surrender to what we felt with her arms pinned above her head while my name fell from her lips like a prayer and a plea.
“Rhett, this isn’t going away, is it?” I could see the fear in her eyes as her hands worked my belt buckle. She was afraid of what she was feeling for me, but at least she wasn’t running from it anymore. That was progress. And with her I’d gotten used to taking baby steps.
“No, it’s not.” I’d been waiting fifteen years for the squeeze she had on my heart to weaken, but the opposite had happened. Spending all those nights under her roof and in her bed intensified everything. Now I didn’t think I could escape even if I wanted to. And I wasn’t sure I wanted to.
“So, what are we going to do about it?”
I reached for the hem of her fitted red cross over top, hauling it over her head before she shook her long blonde hair out. She was wearing a red lacy bra, making it hard to focus on words when my mouth was watering, eager for a taste.
“Good question.”
I lowered my head, zeroing in on the spot that always reduced her to a malleable state, where her brain shut down and let her body call all the shots. There would be time for talking tomorrow. Tonight, I wanted to taste and caress every inch of her body. To remind her I was the only man who could ever make her believe she’d never need another.
“Ah…” She tipped her head back, inviting my exploration while she slipped her hand inside my black jeans, cupping my hard length. “Is that your not-so-subtle way of telling me you’re all talked out, Lennox?”
“I am.” I let my hands graze her ribs on the path to her button and fly. “Can we just shut it down the rest of the night, baby? Just… feel.”
“Hmmm, I think I like the sound of that.”
I inched her snug black pants over her hips, smiling when I caught sight of her red lace panties. Few things could slay me like the sight of Briar in a thong.
“You like?” she asked, biting her lip.
“You know I do.”
She pushed my jeans down before whispering, “I wore it just for you. I was hoping you’d be the one un-dressing me tonight.”
I frowned. “You hopedI’dbe the one undressing you? Baby, I’m the only guy allowed to undress you. Remember that.”
She flashed a grin. “I just meant I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to lure you home with me.”
I kicked off my jeans before she walked me backwards down the hall. “If you were so anxious to get me back here, why’d you decline my offer to drive you home?”
She shrugged. “I can’t make it too easy for you, can I? This dance we do is what keeps you coming back, isn’t it, Rhett?”
I considered her claim, unable to believe she still thought this was some kind of a game to me. “Are you saying you’re playing hard to get because you think that’s the only way I’ll keep chasing you… wanting you?”
It hit me hard. Briar’s confidence was a mask she wore to hide some deep-seated insecurities. Was that the real obstacle keeping us apart… her insecurity? And if it was, how the hell was I supposed to conquer her own tortured thoughts?
