I walked backward towards the bed, arms crossed. I relaxed them down and then crossed them again. I never worried about being good before. I just had to be present and sexy and easy. But this was Ford. I wanted to please him. What if I wasn’t what he wanted? What if I was too used up? What if—
“I lost you.” Ford lifted my chin to his face.
“I’m nervous.”
“You’re nervous?” His eyebrows lifted in surprise.
I played with the ends of my hair. I wondered if I should take it down. Did he like it better up? Some guys like the ponytail for when they—
“Hey.” He prompted me to look at him again. “We don’t have to do anything.”
“I want to.” The words came out on a rush. So much for playing it cool. “If you want to?” Who was this person? I was Suzie frickin’ Samuels. I should be blowing his mind by now.
“Oh, I want to.” His mouth quirked. “Since the moment I saw you.”
“What?” This had me baffled. He never showed interest, just annoyance and disapproval of my lifestyle.
“It’s taken every ounce of self-control to…” He started then took a deep breath. Normally, he’d start counting but now I only witnessed his resolve. He stepped toward me. “I’m showing you.”
“Oh.” I swallowed.
He pushed me softly onto the bed and slid off my leggings.
“God bless leggings,” he mumbled against the skin of my thighs.
I squirmed as chills spread over my legs. He lavished kisses up my ankles. He cherished every inch of my legs with his mouth and hands and breath as he worked his way up from my feet, past my ankles, and calves and thighs.
“Oh, sweet Jesus.” The zings were everywhere.
He chuckled a hot laugh over the core of me, through my panties. I shuddered in uncontrolled delight. I squirmed, desperate for more. His beard tickled against my thighs as he slowly slid the panties down my legs. Every inch the fabric grazed was alive with nerves. I studied the ceiling before closing my eyes.
“Shouldn’t I be helping you?”
“Shhh.” He kissed me lightly once. Right on the core of me.
“Oh-okay.”
“Suzie. Relax.”
I did. I closed my eyes and focused on feeling. I let him show me everything.
Chapter 24
Clifford
My head rested on Suzie's flat stomach, rising and falling to the gentle rhythm of her slowing breathes. I smelled her, tasted her, felt her. My senses were overrun by her. To be honest, I was a little in shock that I could bring her that amount of pleasure. My inflated ego was as big as my—
“Why did you start laughing earlier?” she asked breaking through my thoughts.
I waited a beat. That felt like a lifetime ago. A person ago. I was a changed man. Being with Suzie had changed me. I was sure of it. It felt crucial to only give her pleasure. To show her that not all men take and take. I wanted to give. To show her.
“I think I was relieved. You’ve been so out of sorts lately. I thought maybe I did something or said something. Or that living here had changed you.”
My head shook when she laughed. “The whole point of this was to change me.”
I lifted up to look at her before making my way toward her. “There was and is nothing wrong with you.” In my mind, it had never been about changing her. It was about showing her she was capable of growth. There was a difference there that I had never been able to express accurately.
“I wish you wouldn’t say stuff like that.” Her eyes grew distant.
