Page 88 of Dandelion Sighs

She wanted to forget, but I wanted to solve her problems and save the world for her. That was how it was between us. Sometimes, she thought my presence was just another sign that she was incapable and incompetent, but she didn’t see what she did for me. She had seen more in me and hadn’t written me off when she learned I didn’t have a job and the most use I was to the community was being Uncle Jasper.

“Yeah, Sheridan. I’ll help you forget about everything.”

Sheridan

After we finished eating and cleaning up, Jasper didn’t waste time sweeping me away from all my worries. He lifted me onto the kitchen counter and claimed my mouth.

My hands were stuffed into his hair, and my legs were wrapped around him. He held me, and I was secure. There was nothing in this moment I had to be concerned about. No REG. No accounts nearing the red. And no one quitting on me.

He left my mouth to kiss his way down my neck. I tipped my head back to give him more access.

“Jasper.” The word was reverent. A wish. A question. Filled with the need for more that was growing inside me.

“I’ve got you.”

“In the kitchen?”

“Right on this fucking counter.” He dug a condom out and set it on the counter next to me. Then he pushed the skirt of my new dress up.

Oh yes. That would keep all thoughts away. Heat flushed my body, and the throb between my thighs grew stronger.

I placed my hands on the counter behind me and leaned back. When Jasper sank to his knees, I slid to the edge, eager to have him carry me away, higher than the clouds.

He kissed the inside of my thigh. “Your underwear is still on.”

“I can take care of that.”

“I’m trying to decide if I want you to.” Another kiss landed on my other leg, getting closer to my sex. “It’s like looking at a present wrapped just for me.”

“I picked out the underwear just for you.” They were pink lace and a little uncomfortable, but that was all worth it now.

“Ah, Sheridan. You make me a happy man.”

That filled every empty space inside me. I glowed from the inside out. He pushed my legs farther open, and I relaxed even more. The corner of the counter cut into my legs, but he lifted my feet to his shoulders like he knew.

The way this man could read me was like nothing I’d ever experienced. Others acted like they knew me, but Jasper had gotten me from the beginning. He hadn’t assumed. He’d read me. He did the same in and out of the bedroom. Or in the kitchen, as we were.

He hooked his fingers under the hem of my panties and tugged them to the side. Daylight poured through the window, but I wasn’t self-conscious. He had made me comfortable from the beginning. Comfortable with myself and now with us. I wasn’t questioning everything.

When he lapped through my seam, I arched into him, pleasure ricocheting through my core. He wrapped his arms under my thighs and settled in. I writhed against him, taking everything he gave me—ecstasy, acceptance, and support. All mixed together.

“Jasper,” I gasped. I fought off my climax. Could I stay here? Could I live in this moment forever? Everything was going to change again, and the fear and exhaustion that came with it hovered at the edge of my consciousness.

He growled and increased the pressure of his tongue. I was a goner. He didn’t have to do more. All the energy and anxiety swirled into one and erupted.

There was no stopping it. No slowing. I came hard. “Yes!”

He continued licking me up.

“Yes,” I hissed. Wait—I didn’t have to be quiet here. So when he pushed two fingers inside me, propelling me higher, I didn’t hold back. “Jasper!”

I could be blissfully loud, and I was. The orgasm finished sweeping me away until I scooted back out of his reach.

He didn’t rise right away but stayed between my legs. “You make me feel like a lucky goddamn man.”

“I’m the one who came,” I said, still trying to catch my breath.

“Coming is your reward for being so irresistible and sexy. Watching you shatter, having you in my mouth when you do? That’s my reward.”