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I held the door open and Zane knew what to do. He stepped outside and didn't even bother to say goodbye.
“You'll see, Zane,” I said. “She's special. She really is.”
“For your sake, I hope so, man,” he called over his shoulder to me.
I closed the door a little too hard. Knots were tight in my back in shoulders, and I could really use a massage. I'd promised Ember dinner tonight, however, and I was always a man of my word. Besides, a date night would be appreciated. Might do us both some good. We'd been intimate, sure, but as far as getting to know each other outside of the bedroom, well, that had been limited. Very limited. I mostly knew what her mother had said about her, and as I was learning, not all of that was factual.
Ember's soft voice came from the hallway. “Jude? Everything okay?”
As soon as she stepped into the foyer, wearing a gorgeous green sundress with a bow at the waist, my heart stopped. My body relaxed as I took her in. Every inch of her was perfection. From her ballet flats to the top of her auburn head, she was my dream girl. Zane had a point, this did feel like it was too good to be true at times, but I wasn't about to throw it away just because Zane had been fucked over hard and it had left him a cynic. Had it been anyone but Ember, maybe I would have stopped twice to think about it, but I owed her so much for her honesty.
“Everything is fine,” I said. “Zane is just, well – Zane. I'm sorry if he upset you.”
I chuckled, and she smiled at me, but there was something in her eyes. Something was wrong. I pushed away from the door and walked over to her. I stood before her, looking down, and our eyes locked on one another.
“Did he upset you?” I asked.
I reached out and stroked her cheek, and she leaned into my touch. Her eyes closed, and she looked content. Truly content.
“A little,” she said, her eyes popping open and meeting mine. “But only because I fear that deep down, you think the same thing. I know our situation is unique, Jude. But, I hope you know I didn't come here with an ulterior motive. I hope you believe that.”
“I know,” I said. “Of course, I believe it.”
“You do?” she asked, her voice sounding uncertain. “Because everything happened so fast. I mean, I was literally sleeping with you moments after you let me inside, and I wouldn't blame you if you thought –”
I kissed the tip of her perfect little nose. “What happened between us happened because we're attracted to each other, Ember. Nothing more. Nothing less,” I said. “I don't think you slept with me because I was giving you a place to stay or because you want my money – and I didn't pursue you because I thought you owed me anything. You do know that, right?”
“That you're not using me for sex?” An amused grin spread across her face. “Yeah, I know, Jude. I know you're a good man. It's why I couldn't let my mom use you like that, you deserve better.”
“And I got better,” I whispered, pressing my lips against her forehead.
Her breath caught in her throat as she stared up at me
.
“I'm yours, Jude Calloway,” she said, relaxing into me. “If you'll have me.”
“Does this mean it's official then?” I teased.
“As in going steady?” she laughed. “Sounds like we're back in high school.”
He shrugged. “Whatever you want to call it, I just want to make sure we're on the same page here.”
She nodded, without hesitation, and stood on her tip-toes to press those lips to mine.
“It's official,” she said. “Good,” I said. “Now how about we finish what we started earlier?”
“In the bath tub, you mean?” Her eyes sparkled.
“A nice, warm bath does sound nice,” I said – the knots in my neck agreed with me. “Then we can grab some dinner.”
“Sounds like a plan,” she said, patting my ass playfully as she turned toward the stairs, and shot me a glance over her shoulder. “You coming with me?”
Hell yeah. No way in the world would I miss that. Her tight little ass shimmied as she walked up the stairs in front of me. I couldn't keep my eyes off the curve of her hips, and that tiny little waist. I knew she was sore from yesterday, but damn, what I wouldn't give to fuck her again.
Tonight, however, I was going to try something completely different. I was going to ignore my urges, not bend her over and fuck her madly like I wanted to. No, I was going to get to know her.
She shot me a devious look over her shoulder as we reached the stop of the stairs, and I swallowed – hard. It was clear she had other plans in mind. Sore or not, she was going to make it nearly impossible for me to resist my urges. Ember pulled on my tie, yanking me closer to her and pressed those ruby red lips to mine. Her hands were on my chest, working their way down through the buttons of my shirt.
