I took it, following him inside.
He shut down the house as I headed for the bedroom, eyeing my open suitcases against the far wall. I’d unpacked my toiletries and makeup but had held off on the rest.
I was brushing out my hair in the bathroom, wearing one of his tees and nothing more when I felt his presence at my back.
“Let me,” he offered as he took the brush from me, his green eyes heated when they met mine in the mirror. “You walked into my world tonight. Didn’t know how fucking right it would feel until it happened,” he shared, using slow, gentle strokes with the brush with one hand while the other slid over my belly, pulling me back into his hardness. “I don’t how the fuck I’ll get anything done with you near, but it’s all I want.”
I gasped as his hand moved lower, sliding underneath the tee and cupping me intimately.
He placed the brush on the counter, his eyes still locked with mine. “I’ll just imagine being able to do this,” he rasped, his fingers dancing over my clit making me shudder in anticipation. “Or this,” he continued, his other hand sliding up to cup my breast.
“Jump in with me, baby. Both feet. Unpack your shit. Get a job if you need one. I’ll buy you a bright pink car with sparkles if it makes you happy. I can’t fucking relax until you say you will. I can tell you’re still holding back. I need to know you’re in this the way I am. I promise I’ll spend my life making you glad you did,” he vowed, sliding two fingers inside me as I let out a gasp. “Say it.”
“Okay,” I gasped, desperate for him to keep doing what he was doing and meaning every word. I needed the push. It all felt so fast, so insane, but also so right. I needed him to force the hand I didn’t realize I was holding.
I heard him unbuckle his jeans, the sound of his zipper an erotic promise. A moment later he was inside me, his eyes still on me in the mirror as his hands continued to play me like an instrument.
I grasped the counter, my fingers splayed wide as I met his wild thrusts, wanting everything he had to give, in every way. He spun me, planting my backside on the counter as I wrapped my legs around his thighs, as his mouth took mine in a kiss that conveyed his intent without words.
When I cried out, his low groan was quick to follow, his forehead pressed to my chest as we both struggled for breath.
“Next time we’re at the club, we’re doing this on my desk,” he murmured, kissing me gently as he pulled back, helping me off the counter. “Long as I can muffle that mouth of yours.” He grinned playfully. “Only one who hears you come is me.”
I narrowed my eyes at him as he shucked the rest of his clothes and turned on the shower. “I’m not that loud.”
He laughed far too hard for my liking as he stepped under the spray. “Baby, I swear you could break glass. Now, come in here with me. I promise your hair won’t get wet.”
“Oh, fine,” I agreed, pulling off my tee and following him into the shower. “Since you promised.”
He pulled me in close, his eyes impossibly tender as he smiled down at me. “That I did, ladybug, that I did.”
Chapter 17
GRACE
The dogs alerted me to Dallas’s arrival the next afternoon. Ruston had left an hour before to meet Cason, after showing me again how to work the ridiculous number of alarms he had the house rigged with. Then, with a tender kiss and encouragement to have fun, he’d gone.
I’d used the time alone to unpack my clothes, smiling as my things joined Ruston’s in the closet. I’d still need to sort the rest of my stuff and the house in Hawthorne, but that could happen in time.
By the time Dallas arrived, I’d put everything away, feeling a weight I hadn’t realized was there lift from my shoulders.
No grand gesture was complete without a leap of faith, and I’d never been one to do anything partway.
I walked out to greet Dallas, calming the dogs so they knew she was friendly. Ruston had mentioned she’d only been to the house a time or two with Tank.
“Wow, he’s made so many changes,” Dallas marveled when she followed me in through the front door. “It looks amazing.” She eyed the kitchen I knew he’d recently updated, the floors and wall he’d removed in the main room. The fact that so much of it had been for me still stunned me.
“Obviously I don’t know what it looked like before, but I agree. Coffee?” I offered.
She nodded, and I poured her a cup. “I thought we’d do your cut in the guest bath down here, if that sounds all right,” I suggested. I’d had fun setting up my supplies. I already missed cutting hair after only a short time.
“Girl, wherever you want to cut this mane is fine by me.” She laughed.
I grinned as she followed me into the bathroom. “Okay, so no going super short—other than that, any ideas on what you’d like me to do?”
She rolled her eyes. “Tank is way too protective of my hair. But yeah, he’d probably flip if I went short. So, other than that, whatever you think will look good.”
Her easy trust wasn’t lost on me as I nodded and set to work washing her hair.
