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Suddenly I was able to move again. “Yeah, we get tested every year at work as part of our annual physical,” I said cautiously. “Why?”

“I got tested during my pre-employment physical for the hospital,” she said. “I haven’t been with anyone except you since then. And I have an IUD.”

I turned to meet her hot gaze.

“What are you saying, darlin’?” I needed to hear her say it.

“I’m saying that I always wanted to have sex in a hot tub.”

She gave me the impish smile I hadn’t seen since Hurricane Rita. And just like that, I was hard again.

Growling, I reached over and grabbed her waist, bringing her back to my lap. My tongue thrust into her mouth, mimicking what I wanted to do with other parts of my body. Clara writhed on top of me, rubbing her pussy against my cock while she kissed me back. I pulled away, my eyes bouncing between hers.

“Are you sure?”

“I’m sure.”

I didn’t ask any more questions, just plunged her down onto my already-hard cock. I lifted my hips as Clara began bouncing herself up and down, setting a fast pace that had us both hurtling towards orgasm faster than I could have ever imagined. I loved the feeling of her tight heat squeezing my cock and without the barrier of latex, I swear I could feel every ripple of her internal muscles in a way I’d never imagined possible.

“You feel so good,” she gasped.

I leaned forward to give her a long kiss, bobbing my head up and down to follow her lips until she pulled away and threw her head back, letting loose with a low moan. Then Clara was shaking with the force of her orgasm, her nails digging into my shoulders as she rode through her release. She sagged against me, her head coming to my shoulder, just as, for the first time since I was in my twenties, I came again for the second time in less than half an hour.

After I’d emptied myself deep inside her, I held Clara close, rubbing her back as we both recovered.

“Will you stay over?” I asked, my lips against her temple.

She hesitated for so long I thought she would say no, but then I felt her lips curve against my chest.

“On one condition.”

“Name it.”

“You share your mama’s leftovers with me later.”

Clara

Despite my best efforts to keep him at bay, I was going steady with Allen Jeffers. I just couldn’t seem to keep away from him. Some days I had a hard time remembering why I wanted to. Then I’d remind myself that I’d learned long ago that ‘happily ever after’ was a myth. Even if it wasn’t, I’d violated my Hippocratic Oath to save my own life. I didn’t deserve to be happy.

But maybe just for a little while, I could be.

Between Allen’s job at the police station and mine at the hospital, our schedules didn’t always mesh. We were both prone to late night shifts and emergencies pulling us away. Even still, we managed to spend a few nights a week together, and most weekends.

We threw ourselves into having fun like it was our job. We went horseback riding at his family’s ranch, attended street fairs, and walked around the Farmer’s Market laughing as we picked out produce. A couple of times we went dirt biking, and once we went to an old-fashioned roller rink. And some days we hunkered down at one of our houses, watching movies, reading, or soaking in Allen’s hot tub.

It all felt very comfortable and easy and before I knew it, four months had passed. We hadn’t put a label on it, but I knew Allen considered me his girlfriend. I wasn’t sure how I felt about that. I was getting complacent, and I knew it. I could sense Allen getting deeper and deeper and I was powerless to stop it. If I was being totally honest, I was just as deep as he was.

“Good morning. What did y’all do this weekend?”

I looked up as Adie stuck her head in my office. We’d hung out together after work a couple of times with Allen and Adie’s boyfriend, and now I considered her a friend, despite her penchant for gossip.

I rolled my eyes. “Allen taught me to bake cookies.”

One of the things that had surprised me about Allen was how much he loved to bake. He used to help his mama bake when he was younger, and after he left the military, he’d started doing it as a stress reliever. I could always tell when he’d had a particularly hard day at work when he plied me with some fancy baked goods.

“Aw, that’s so cute. How much did you burn?” she teased. Adie knew me well enough to know I was a disaster in the kitchen.

“Well, Allen did most of the baking, but I helped decorate.”