“I need to take him out, actually,” I said, nodding at my dog. “You tired from our walk over here, or are you up for another lap around the block?”
“I’m not tired at all,” he said. Maybe he was secretly as keyed up as I was.
We headed back out, walking in silence. I felt it again, that tension between us. Like a taut wire, just waiting to snap. I had to quit stalling. It was now or never.
Time to make my move.
“So. The real stuff and the fake stuff you talked about,” I began. “What was tonight?”
“What do you mean?”
I shrugged. “When you offered to help with the charity, and the funding, or when you mentioned finding jobs for the women…was any of that real for you? Or did you just get carried away with the fantasy of being the perfect fake fiancé? And the dinner date—was that real?”
Ford stopped, turning to face me.
“It was real, Em,” he said. “Everything tonight was real. And my feelings about the charity, too—about the photos you described Galina shooting—all of it. I really was moved by the whole thing and I’m glad to be a part of it in any way I can. Now and always.”
As he was speaking, Munchkin, who had already finished his business, was leaning up against Ford’s leg, getting scritched into full submission.
Okay. Done deal. I was his.
Ford’s words were exactly what I needed to hear. All my hesitations, my nerves, were washed away. He was a good man, the right man. And I trusted him like nobody else.
“How about a proper nightcap?” I said. I wasn’t ready to let him go. Neither was Munchkin, clearly.
“I’d love that,” he said, but I could tell by the look in his eyes that he knew a drink wasn’t the real reason I was inviting him up.
My hands started shaking again as we reached my front door for the second time in less than twenty minutes, but the moment we stepped inside, Ford was on me.
He pinned me against the door, his mouth hot and hard against mine.
I sighed with pleasure, dropping Munchkin’s leash. Vaguely I heard the sound of the dog’s nails tapping across the kitchen floor and disappearing into the plush living room where I was certain that he was settling down in his bed. It was late, so he would likely curl up and go right to sleep.
But I wasn’t tired at all. I’d never felt more alive.
With Ford’s lips against mine, I felt like I was waking up…like my body was waking up.
Ford’s hands were everywhere—in my hair, against my hips, sliding down to grip my ass. He was firm and confident and I loved it. Loved that he knew exactly what he was doing and that I had no doubts about what I was doing. I wanted him so bad I could hardly stand it.
His mouth moved from my lips, down my throat, kissing and nipping as he went, leaving little sparks of pleasure as I gasped. His grip was tight in my hair and it hurt a little, but in the best possible way. I’d never known kissing could be like this.
It wasn’t that I had zero experience, of course, but I knew without a doubt that Ford was different from the other men I’d hooked up with. That this would be a world apart.
It would be better. It would be incredible. We were already so connected.
I knew I’d made the right choice before our clothes had even begun to come off.
Ford and I stumbled down the hallway, kissing even more deeply as we went, his tongue exploring every corner of my mouth as his hands stroked every part of my body through my dress. I was on fire, and I could feel exactly how much he wanted me, too.
His cock was straining against his pants, pressing against my belly. I could tell he was huge, and I silently prayed that he would feel good to me, that we would fit together just right.
With complete ease, Ford lifted me up, my arms circling his neck, my legs wrapping around his hips. His hardness pushed even more firmly against me, and I couldn’t help grinding my hips into him, drunk on the feeling of his cock, so ready for me and so close. Despite my anxiety, the pleasure I felt being near him, his body against mine, overrode everything else.
“I want you,” I panted into his mouth.
Groaning, Ford carried me, never breaking our kiss, into my bedroom.
It was dark, the only illumination being the moonlight streaming in through my window. It made the whole thing seem romantic and dreamlike, much like the whole evening had been.
