Chapter 7
7
NORA
D uring all those days when I was fighting my attraction to Eli, I never let myself believe that I would find myself here—in his bed, with his muscular body wrapped around mine…after he had taken my virginity. If I had, I wouldn’t have been able to resist him, and this would have happened much sooner.
But I wasn’t going to dwell on the extra time we could’ve had together. In the grand scheme of things, a couple of weeks wasn’t worth beating myself up over. Especially when I had been standing up for myself and what I wanted in a relationship.
Instead, I was going to focus on where we were at now. Which was a really freaking good place.
Twisting in his embrace, I took a moment to appreciate how his expression softened in sleep. Eli was an intense guy and thirteen years older than me, but something was boyish about him when he was vulnerable like this. His long lashes rested against his cheeks, and his kissable lips were slightly parted as puffs of air blew through them.
I would’ve happily stared at him while he slept—like a creepy fangirl—for longer than I wanted to admit, except his eyes opened. There was no haziness in his eyes. It was just my luck that he was more alert than anyone should be upon first waking.
“Good morning,” I murmured, my cheeks filling with heat at being caught gawking at him while he slept.
Luckily, Eli didn’t seem to mind. His palm pressed against my lower back, bringing me flush against his body. “That’s not how you say good morning to your man, baby girl.”
“It isn’t?” I asked, lifting my hand to rake my fingernails over the buzzed hair at the back of his head.
“Not even close.”
That was all the warning I got before he claimed my mouth in a deep kiss. Any worry I had about not brushing my teeth yet was lost to the passion that quickly built between us. There was a dull throb in my core from him taking me last night, but that did nothing to tamp down the desire I felt.
When he finally ended the kiss, I let out a little whimper of protest. His lips curved into a smirk before he rasped, “Gonna take that sweet sound you just made as confirmation that you agree with how we should say good morning to each other from now on.”
There was no point in denying it when I was pressing my thighs together to ease the ache between them that his kiss had created. “You sure can.”
“That’s my good baby girl.”
I shivered at the praise, and his smirk widened at my reaction. Narrowing my eyes, I dug my nails into his shoulders. “You need to be careful with that voice of yours. It should be classified as a lethal weapon.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.” He brushed his lips against mine again. “And use it more often if that’s the kind of reaction I get outta you.”
I wasn’t surprised by his response since he was the kind of guy to use every tool at his disposal. Something he’d had to learn when he broke away from his family—which I respected. And I appreciated that he always had the perfect comeback when I verbally poked at him. Intelligence was definitely a turn-on for me. “Good, my evil plan worked then.”
“You’re gonna keep me on my toes, aren’t you?” he asked, stroking his palm down my side to cup my butt through the sheet covering me.
“Hopefully.” I waggled my brows. “I have a feeling it’s the only way to keep you in line.”
Brushing light kisses across my jawline and down my neck to my pulse point, he murmured, “You sure that’s what you really want, baby girl?”
“Nope, definitely not.” I tilted my head to the side to give him better access, and his deep chuckle sent a sensual shiver down my spine.
“That’s what I thought.” He brushed my hair to the side to kiss down my shoulder, giving my butt a gentle squeeze. “Just like I’m hoping you earn yourself more punishments in the future because I discovered last night that I fucking love the sight of my handprint on your perfect ass.”
I wasn’t sure what had surprised me more…that his spanking had turned me on or that I’d let him take me without anything between us. I couldn’t imagine that many virgins did something like their first time having sex. And as a medical professional, I knew the risks I’d been taking when I hadn’t insisted on Eli wearing a condom. But none of that had mattered to me in the heat of the moment, and I was less worried about it this morning than I probably should be.
Even after the bad first impression Eli had made—and the hurt he’d caused when he’d had to cancel our date—I trusted him. It was just that simple.
Beaming a mischievous smile his way, I teased, “With how stubborn I can be, I’m fairly confident that’ll happen sooner than I might like.”
His fingertips traced the curve of my butt. “I’ll keep a tally until you’re fully recovered.”
“Aw, gee…thanks.” I rolled my eyes. “That’s so sweet of you.”
He shook his head with a chuckle. “Not sure anyone’s ever called me sweet, even when they were being sarcastic.”
“Oooh, another first for us.”
This time, he rolled his eyes, making me giggle. Unfortunately, our little bubble was burst by the ringing of his cell. Twisting around, he snagged the phone from the bedside table and glanced at the screen. “Sorry, gotta take this.”
“Go ahead.” I pressed a quick kiss against his shoulder before crawling off the bed, grabbing his discarded shirt from last night to tug it over my head. “I need to use the bathroom anyway.”
“There should be an extra toothbrush under the sink if you want it.”
Remembering what he’d told me about not being into hookups, I glared at him over my shoulder. “Oh really?”
He flashed me a knowing grin. “Relax, killer. It’s only because the kind I like are easier to find in two packs.”
“Good.”
His answering laughter only lasted a moment before I heard him say, “Hello.”
After using the toilet and washing my hands and face, I discovered he’d been right about the toothbrush. Sadly, I discovered he’d also been right about needing to take that call when I was done.
Eli was perched on the edge of the mattress, waiting for me with a disappointed expression. “C’mere, baby girl.”
I padded over to stand between his legs. “What’s wrong?”
“I know I said I didn’t have anywhere I needed to be today, but it turns out I have to head to court.”
I puffed out my bottom lip in an exaggerated pout. “I was looking forward to spending the day with you. It was the best part of having a couple of days off in a row.”
“Me too, baby girl.” He brushed his lips against mine in a quick kiss. “But this isn’t the kind of request I can turn down.”
I understood what it was like when duty called, so I wasn’t going to give him too hard of a time. “Rain check?”
“As many as you want. My free time is yours.“
“There you go, being a silver-tongued devil again.” I stroked his bearded cheek, the bristles scraping my palm. “I’m going to have to work hard to hold my own with you.”
His hazel eyes were filled with mirth as he replied, “You more than kept up with me last night.”
I swatted at his bare chest, laughing softly. “You know that’s not what I meant.”
“True,” he conceded. “But that doesn’t make it any less funny.”
“You better get going or you’re going to be late for court.”
“Then quit making it so damn hard.” He climbed off the mattress and gestured at his erection. “Literally and figuratively.”
My giggles dried up as I watched him dress in a three-piece suit that had to have been custom-made for his muscular body. As amazing as he looked naked, he was somehow even sexier when he dressed in his designer armor for court. It made me want to jump his bones, but I kept my reaction to myself so that I didn’t really end up making him late.
He grabbed something from his closet and tossed it onto the bed, then came to stand in front of me. After bending down and kissing me senseless, he jerked his chin to what turned out to be his cut. “Wear that today.”
“Why?” I asked curiously. Wasn’t it a big deal for MC guys to have a woman wear their vest?
“So everyone knows you’re mine.”
He kissed me one more time, then reluctantly walked away.
The sight of him walking out the door was just as good, so I fanned myself with my hand before getting up to start my day. One that would be much less fun since I couldn’t spend it with Eli.