That One Summer: A Collection of Steamy Contemporary Romance

Chapter 9

James

”Just give me a minuteto catch my breath,” Emma panted, her body soft beside me.

”Can”t wait,” I said, standing up and pulling her hand up to sit. When she reluctantly sat up, I scooped her into my arms.

”What are you doing?” she shrieked, flailing before going still.

”I”m carrying you upstairs. I”m hard and incredibly turned on and I don”t have a minute.”

”You can”t carry me,” she protested, clenched fist pressed against my chest.

”I think I can.” I turned toward the stairs, carrying her up.

”I can walk. I don”t get manhandled.” She shimmied in my arms. I tightened my grip and pushed back a wave of arousal.

”Nope, I”m manhandling you,” I said with a grin as I reached the top of the stairs.

”So, your place or mine?” She raised an eyebrow, giving in to being carried.

”Unless you want to attempt sex on a bunk bed, we”re going to your room.”

”A bunk bed?” Her forest green eyes narrowed and her cheeks went red as she collapsed her forehead onto my chest. ”Why aren”t you in the guest room?”

”I was feeling nostalgic.”

”You heard me last night.”

”These walls are pretty thin.”

”You should have told me.”

”I thought I did,” I said, kicking open the door to her bedroom and setting her down on the bed.

”I meant this morning. If you really wanted to get rid of me, that would have been the perfect way to do it.”

”Good thing I was feeling charitable.”

She rolled her eyes and then shifted onto her side toward the nightstand. She picked up a book on the side table, opening it up to reveal a strip of condoms keeping her place.

I raised an eyebrow as she turned back around. ”Really?”

”I ran out of bookmarks during a doctor”s appointment.” She flipped the strip over, narrowing her eyes to read the side. ”They”re not expired and I obviously haven”t used them for anything but book-keeping purposes.”

I grabbed the strip and pulled one off. ”We”ll make it work, I suppose.”

”Or we can just go to sleep,” she teased, her fingertips slipping down my stomach, grazing my lower belly. ”Get lots of sleep so we can tan on the beach tomorrow.”

She gripped my dick firm in her palm, stroking it slowly. I struggled to concentrate on her words, burrowing my face into the crook of her neck and sucking on the sensitive place behind her ear, making her squirm underneath me.

”So, early bedtime is out?”

”Unless you”re planning to kick me out.”

”Kick you out? I”m all ready for round two.”

I grinned. ”I like the sound of that.”

Reluctantly, I removed her hand from my dick and rolled the condom over it. She opened her arms. I slid over her, my hard cock pressed between her thighs. Raking a hand down my back, she opened her legs.

“It’s been a while,” she said almost apologetically, her bottom lip escaping into her mouth.

I leaned down, kissing her while my other hand gripped the base of my dick, sliding it up and down her wet slit. She bucked her hips, fighting back a moan as I entered her, releasing my hold to circle my thumb over her clit.

I shifted away from her lips, catching the shell of her ear with my tongue. “Same. If I don’t last long, it’s only because I’ve been so fucking horny for you since I met you. And I have every intention of keeping you up all night to make up for it.”

“I think I can live with that,” she purred, back arching so my dick deeper sank into her.

I growled against her ear, thumb strumming against her clit in rhythm with my thrusts. “You’re so much better than I dreamed.”

The sexual frustration that built over the last twenty-four hours overflowed into pleasure as her legs wrapped around my waist, pulling me closer as she tightened around me, her panting turning to soft murmurs of pleasure. I drove into her, coming hard and collapsing onto the bed.

“So much better,” I murmured, my fingers tracing the curves of her body.

Stubborn and soft and sexy. A siren. My siren.

* * *

I woke up with Emmanestled in my arms, her arm thrown over my chest and sunlight streaming through the window. Nearly nine, but she barely moved as I slipped out of the bed. I grabbed my boxers off the floor, pulling them on and heading downstairs to make breakfast while she slept.

With the coffee maker brewing, I made my way into the living room to clean up after the night before. The checkers” pieces lay on the coffee table and I scooped them up, chucking them back into their box.

”Good morning,” Emma said, sauntering downstairs in a loose robe that gaped at her neckline, exposing her breasts when she moved. ”What are you doing?”

”Cleaning,” I said, abandoning the cards to pull her into my arms. Her body fit perfectly against mine and my hands were desperate to feel bare skin. I slipped one palm between the folds of my robe, gripping her hips.

”Mmm,” she moaned into my lips as I kissed her, running her fingernails down my chest. The hair on my arms stood up and my cock snapped to attention. ”What do you think about playing more poker tonight? I”m willing to bet breakfast in bed.”

”Think you can beat me this time?” I teased, pulling away to read the mischievous expression on her face. ”Wait, what was in your hand last night?”

She pursed her lips as I disentangled my hands from her and grabbed the two cards on her side of the table.

King-Queen pair.

”Wasn”t there a Jack in the flop? Did you just let me win?”

She pressed her palms to my back and I dropped the cards, turning to circle my arms around her.

”It”ll make tonight”s win that much sweeter,” she teased.

”Were you sandbagging me?”

”I prefer to think I was taking it easy on you.” Her long eyelashes fluttered as she gazed up at me. ”I”m pretty good, you know.”

”Sounds like I have a lot to learn,” I murmured into her ear as I looped a hand around her waist and pulled her flush with my rapidly hardening dick. ”And I don”t think I”ll learn everything I need to this week.”

She stilled in my arms, regarding me with guarded eyes. ”What are you suggesting?”

I shrugged, forcing nonchalance into my voice even as my stomach knotted. ”I travel a lot for work. A lot. I could fly to Chicago, take you out to dinner, maybe a movie.”

”Like a date?” She asked with a shy smile.

”Yeah,” I drawled, swaying with her. ”A date, to start.”

”To start?”

”And then we”ll see where it goes.” I dipped my head, pressing my forehead to hers. ”Because, if I”m being honest, I don”t think a couple of days or an occasional trip is going to be enough for me.”

”You”re that bad of a student?” She blushed.

I shook my head. ”Sort of obsessed with my teacher.”

She pulled us to a stop, fingers drawing circles on my chest. ”Only one problem with that plan.”

My stomach dropped. ”What”s that?”

The faint scent of lavender that wrapped around her invaded my nostrils as she leaned in closer. ”I don”t live in Chicago anymore.”

I frowned. Chicago was a convenient hub from my place in Norwalk, but there were dozens of cities I could easily hop on a plane to visit on a Friday. Hell, for Emma, I”d drive into the country if needed. ”Where do you live, then? Short of running away to Alaska, I”ll make it work.”

”You”ll make it work? We”ll make it work.”

I liked the sound of ”we” on her lips. Wanted to hear it more.

”Norwalk,” she said.

I pulled back slightly, holding her back and searching her eyes. ”You”re joking.”

She shook her head, red hair cascading around her shoulders. ”No. It”s not exactly Chicago or New York, but the city seems nice enough. A little small, all things considered, but cozy. Why? Please don”t tell me you live in L.A. or something.”

“No.” I shook my head with a laugh. “Norwalk, actually.”

”Really?”

I grimaced. ”It”s starting to make sense why Jackie gave you the cabin this weekend.”

A wave of confusion passed over her face. ”You don”t think...”

”That Jackie set us up? Oh, she definitely set us up.”

Emma tilted her head, mulling over the idea before nodding. ”So, we got set up. Does that freak you out?”

”That you”re moving to my town?” I tightened my grip on her. ”Hell no. I was already trying to figure out how often I could travel to you without coming on too strong.”

She laughed. ”And now you have no reason not to see me every weekend.”

I fought back a grin. ”Or every day.”

She bit back a smile. ”Every day. I like that.”

* * *

Continue the Norwalk Breakers Series, Sidelined.

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