Page 95
“I can tell. What else?”
“I worry for our employees. Sometimes I think we should just scrap it. Other times, I want to go down to California, find the douche in charge of Pacific Rim, and beat the shit out of him.”
“But?”
“I want to catch them in the act so we can press charges and they go to prison. But that means more time where people are at risk. But at the same time, I believe in this project, and I don’t want to stop building it.”
I loved that he was talking to me so much. “So, what’s your decision?”
“It’s not going to be my decision alone, but…” He looked at me. “But talking this out with you has made it a lot easier for me to discuss it with the men tomorrow.”
“So this leaning thing? You’re liking it?” I didn’t smile, but I knew my eyes were sparkling.
“Yes, smartass, it’s a good thing.”
Then he reached over and cupped the back of my neck the way that made everything else quiet down, and he kissed me. Slow and certain, with the lamp low and James asleep upstairs.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
As I lay in bed, Zoe in my arms, I thought about our conversation on the couch. It had been transformative. Zoe had burst through all of my barriers that I never knew I had. My marriage to Marie had been good. Great even. It was perfect for the man I had been, and I probably would have been happy the rest of my life with Marie if she hadn’t died. And, the man I was would’ve been happy with the same type of marriage with Zoe.
But of course, there was no way that Zoe Avery would ever put up with that.
Maybe the man I was becoming now wouldn’t either.
I traced lazy patterns along the soft skin of her back and smiled. The idea of having a granite foundation with someone, where I knew without a doubt I could count on her to listen to me, and lift me up when needed, was incredible. It broke something open inside of me, and made it easier to breathe.
Imagining the kind of mother she would be to our children, the way she already interacted with James, made my heart turn over in my chest. She would be fearless in protecting them. The things they could learn from her would be invaluable. How to be bold and assertive, while still being kind and caring. How to be witty and sarcastic, while never being mean or demeaning. How to live with joy and spread love. It would be up to me to make sure that they established boundaries so they didn’t give away too much of themselves while helping others. Zoe didn’t see it; she saw herself as a hardass, but I knew that she was the softest touch in the world for someone in need.
“You’re thinking way too hard. I would have thought what we did earlier tonight would have had you sleeping through your alarm.”
Zoe’s quiet words wafted against my chest.
“You’re awake, this is good,” I murmured.
She lifted her head, and I could see flecks of gold in her brown eyes, because we had left the lamp on when we’d finally fallen asleep wrapped in one another’s arms.
“Why is that good?”
I moved my hand from where it had been stroking circles on her back, so that it cupped the lush curve of her ass. “Because earlier was just round one.”
Her eyes darkened, and she lowered her head and licked around my nipple. I gripped her butt tightly in reflex. She scraped her teeth against my sensitive flesh and I shifted and moved her, so that her legs straddled my hips.
“Ooooh, I like it up here.”
“It sure has opened up some possibilities,” I agreed.
She continued to lick and scrape against my nipple, and my fingers dipped past the crease of her ass, into the wet channel of her pussy. She moaned. I pressed in deep, and she nipped my nipple. It burned as I thrust even deeper, and she moved against the pressure that I was building.
She began to kiss her way up to my jaw, occasionally interspersing bites. When she got to my ear, she sucked my lobe into her mouth, then bit down hard. I went rock-hard and jerked upwards, almost bucking her off my body. She let go and whispered in my ear.
“Easy, Cowboy. I need you to fuck me.”
She was singing my tune. But still, I needed to drive her as crazy as she was driving me. I moved my fingers again, then pinched her clit.
“Adam!” Her voice was shrill. I quickly covered her mouth.
“Shhhh, baby, you need to be quiet.” Even though the master bedroom was on the first floor and my son’s room was on the second, I didn’t want her to wake him up.
