32
They didn’t even pretend that they had come back to his house for any reason other than this one thing.
The moment they crossed the threshold, clothes began flying. Thad didn’t think about where the dogs were or if his grandmother’s nosy-ass neighbor was looking through the window, seeing him toss his T-shirt across the living room. His sole focus was getting Ashanti in his bed and getting inside of her as quickly as possible.
“This way,” he said, leading her to his room. He toed off his tennis shoes and shucked his sweats and underwear down his legs. Then he helped Ashanti with hers, peeling the jeans from her hips, traveling down with them as he made his way to the floor.
Thad brushed a kiss against her stomach, just above her belly button. He moved lower, trailing kisses along her skin, adding his tongue once he reached the spot between her legs. He groaned against her.
“Sit down,” Thad whispered.
When she did, he pulled her to the edge of the mattress and lifted both her legs, placing her thighs on his shoulders. Then he dipped his head and spread her open with his tongue.
She gasped, and the sound sent a jolt of sensation straight to his dick.
Fuck!
He knew she would taste good, but this was so much better than good.
He stroked her with his tongue, dragging slow, firm licks from her clit on down, and then back up again. Ashanti lifted her hips, grinding against his mouth as he continued to lap at her.
Her cries filled the room, hesitant as they were. Thad wanted to tell her to let go, to just give in and not hold back. But he didn’t want to stop what he was doing long enough to speak.
He caught her by the waist and held her down while he wedged his tongue inside her, driving in and out. Her legs moved restlessly against his shoulders, as if she didn’t know what to do with herself. He tried to make out what she was saying between her breathy pants and realized it was his name. She was calling his name over and over again.
Thad had never heard anything sexier in his entire life. It drove him to keep going until he felt her legs shake and tense.
She came against his tongue. But instead of stopping, he ramped up the intensity, closing his mouth over her clit and sucking until she came again and again and again.
Her body was limp by the time he lifted her legs and set them back on the bed. He stood. As he stared down at Ashanti completely spent on his mattress, Thad realized his ego would never need stroking again.
“Are you okay?” he asked her.
“I’m a puddle,” she said. “Don’t ask me to move, because I can’t.”
Nope. No ego stroking necessary for the newly crowned king of cunnilingus.
He went around to the side of the bed and lifted her up, placing her head on one of his pillows. The picture she created made his chest grow tight. It was so perfect, so right seeing her relaxed and satiated in his bed. Thad slipped in beside her, doing his best to tamp down the need throbbing in his dick. She was too weak to do anything right now.
“We’re not finished, are we?” she asked, as if she’d just read his mind.
“Hell no,” Thad said. “But you look as if you can use some recovery time.”
“Please.” She turned into him, resting her head against his chest. “Just a few minutes.”
Thank God. Because that’s about all the wait he had in him. The need to be inside of her was so immense, it took his breath away.
When had he ever experienced anything like this?
“So,” Ashanti said. “If I tell you something, will you promise not to judge?”
Shit. He hated questions like that, especially during situations like this.
“Do I want to hear this?” Thad asked.
She hunched her shoulders, then looked up at him, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth.
No, he probably didn’t want to hear this, but he asked anyway. “Okay, what is it?”
“That was the first time anyone has ever, you know, performed oral sex on me.”
He jerked his head back. “What?”
“You said you wouldn’t judge me!”
“I’m not judging you. I’m judging the assholes you’ve slept with. What the hell, Ashanti?”
“Well, there haven’t been that many,” she said. “And they weren’t very adventurous.”
He looked down at her. “For the record, if given the chance, I will eat you out every single day for the rest of my life. First thing in the morning. You would be my breakfast.”
Her face turned so red that it had to be hot to the touch.
“That doesn’t sound very nutritious, but I wouldn’t be opposed to it,” she said with a laugh. “Uh, I’m ready to do it the regular way now. Grab a condom.”
Thad held up a finger. “Wait exactly one minute,” he said before climbing out of the bed and making his way across the hall to the bathroom where he’d stashed the box of condoms he’d picked up when he got back from New York. He needed to get a nightstand with a drawer. That little side table next to the bed wouldn’t cut it.
When he returned to his room, he found Ashanti lying on her back, the covers pulled up to just above her breasts.
He thought about what she’d just told him, about her other boyfriends—the sad sacks of shit they were—not being adventurous.
Thad ripped open a condom wrapper and rolled one on, then he grabbed the edge of the covers and jerked them off the bed.
“Thad!” she screeched. “What are you doing?”
“It’s time for some adventure,” he said. “Roll over.”
Her eyes narrowed, then brightened as understanding set in. She scrambled onto all fours, then looked back over her shoulder. “Before you even ask, no I’ve never done it this way either.”
“Assholes,” Thad muttered. “But that’s enough talk about your old boyfriends. I promise you won’t remember their names after tonight.”
By the time they were done, they were both too weak to move. The most strength Thad could muster was reaching over and picking the covers up from the floor.
“What time is it?” Ashanti asked.
He summoned enough energy to reach over to the side table and grab a phone. A picture of Duchess and a text message notification popped up when he touched the screen. He couldn’t help but read the Where R U text from Kara.
“It’s just after eleven,” Thad said, already anticipating and dreading what her reaction would be.
“Oh, shoot! I have to go.”
Shit.He knew she would say that. He handed her the phone.
“There’s a text from your sister,” he said.
She took the phone from him and sat up, her thumbs flying across the screen. It dinged with two back-to-back text messages moments after she finished typing.
“These girls. I swear,” Ashanti said.
“What?”
“I told them not to worry about me, that I was on my way home. These are the replies I got.” She turned the phone to face him.
The first one was from Kara: If ur with Thad stay the night.
The other was labeled Ken: The week. You need it.
“Sounds to me like you and Duchess are staying awhile,” Thad said.
She rolled her eyes, but then—thank you, God—she reached across him and set her phone back on the table. She once again settled against his chest like it was the most natural thing in the world.
“This feels weird,” she said.
Or, maybe not the most natural thing.
“Simon was the last person I was with, and once I ended things with him, I didn’t even consider bringing another man around my sisters,” she continued. “For them to know where I am and what we’re doing?”
“Actually, they encouraged you to do what we’re doing.”
Thad debated saying more, recognizing that he was probably crossing a line. But she needed to hear this. In just the short time he’d known her, it had become more than obvious that she put herself dead last.
“Maybe the twins realize their big sister deserves to have a life outside of her work and the job of raising them,” Thad said. “It’s too bad your aunt doesn’t see that.”
“Anita isn’t my aunt,” she said. “Lincoln was my dad in every way that counts, but that woman was never an aunt to me. And if you can find me another five hours in the day, then maybe I can think about having a life outside of the daycare, baking dog biscuits, and raising the girls,” Ashanti said. “Or, give me a couple of years, once Kara and Kendra are off to college. I’ll get a life then.”
Thad clenched his teeth in frustration, hating what he was about to do. He had to remind himself that the fact that she had come home with him was a gift she hadn’t even considered giving to any other man in years.
“Look, Ashanti, as much as I want you to, you don’t have to stay if it will cause trouble.”
“Well, since the girls already figured it out and seem to be okay with it, I guess one night won’t hurt. It’s not as if they will run and tell Anita.” She paused and frowned, then reached for her phone. “I’m texting them, just in case, because I can totally see Kara casually letting it slip just for the shock factor.”
Once she was done texting her sisters, she settled more securely against Thad’s chest and brought his arm across her waist. He pressed a kiss to her bare shoulder because it was right there, looking as delicious as a piece of candy.
“Have I thanked you yet for taking my mind off that email?” Thad asked.
“It was my pleasure. Literally,” she answered. “Actually, you did the same for me. I got one of those kinds of emails myself this week.”
“Wait. What?”
“Not someone saying that my stepdad had another family stashed away somewhere,” she clarified. “I mean one of those emails with the potential to knock your world off kilter.”
Thad repositioned them, laying alongside her and perching himself up on his elbow.
“What are you talking about?” he asked.
She closed her eyes and blew out a weary breath. “One of the country’s largest pet food companies contacted me. They want to buy Duchess Delights.”
That wasn’t what he had been expecting.
“Um, how do you feel about that?”
“About as confused as I have ever felt about anything,” she said. “It’s wild because Duchess Delights wasn’t even a thing a year ago, and now the thought of selling it makes my chest hurt.” She peered up at him. “Did I ever tell you that your grandmother is the reason behind why I started selling them commercially?”
“No. But I’m not surprised.” Thad chuckled. “That woman has a mind for business.”
“She is as sharp as anyone I have ever met. And she is the best cheerleader. She put it in my head that I could make an actual business out of this. I only started making the treats for Duchess because the brand I used to give her changed their ingredients. It was never supposed to grow into anything. Now look at it.”
“Is their offer worth entertaining?”
“They didn’t provide any numbers. It was only the initial email, stating their interest. I told them I would get back to them.” She expelled another weighty breath. “I’m not sure if I want to entertain any offers. It’s too much to even think about right now.
“What about you and your email?” She brought her hand up to his cheek and stroked it. Her simple, gentle gesture caused a lump to form in his throat. “What are you going to do?”
“It’s not my decision to make alone,” Thad said. “My sister will be in town next week for her best friend’s wedding. I’ll tell her then and we’ll decide what to do about it.”
Before he could give himself a chance to talk himself out of it, Thad asked, “Would you like to join me at the wedding?”
Her shoulders stiffened in surprise.
“It’s at the Four Seasons,” Thad added, hoping to entice her with fancy food. “I’m not sure if there will be an open bar or not, but—”
“Thad,” she cut him off. Her eyes softened, the corners tipping up with her smile. “I would love to join you.”