The Cuddle Code
. . .
Ellie
I stood in front of the closet mirror, fidgeting in a tiny black chemise Dr. Lovejoy had snuck to me this morning.
I hadn’t expected to get sex clothes from our retreat leader, but at least she had good taste.
A delicate lace hem landed very high on my thigh, while the thin silk hugged my curves and had me feeling extra playful. I wiggled a bit, then stopped, suddenly very aware I was braless.
“It’s too much, isn’t it?” I whispered to Whiskey.
His big blue eyes blinked back at me from his spot on the closet’s built-in vanity, no idea of what I was saying penetrating his little kitty brain.
“I mean, it’s cute. Really cute. And I feel hot in it.
That’s good. But it’s also like… something you’d wear for an anniversary?
Or a nonvirgin sacrifice. Maybe a demon sacrifice. Or one of those underground—”
A soft knock on the closet door made me jump, and I snapped my mouth shut.
“Ellie?” Amusement laced Cade’s voice. “You’ve been quiet for a while. It’s not like you. Everything good?”
I huffed, but his teasing eased some of the butterflies in my stomach. “All good in here! I’m just… stretching.”
“… Stretching?”
A familiar prickle crept up my neck, and I did a quick lunge so it wouldn’t be a complete lie—immediately regretting the move when my calf twinged sharply.
“Yeah, stretching,” I said brightly, stretching my arms while Whiskey flicked his tail. “You know, just warming up the body and getting everything limber. Don’t want to pull a muscle.”
Cringing, I wished I could stuff the words back in my mouth as soon as they escaped, but it was too late.
Before Cade could respond and make things even worse, I cleared my throat. “Go get comfortable on the bed, please! And close your eyes. Remember, this is a surprise.”
When he didn’t respond, I really hoped it was because he was doing as I asked instead of fleeing for the hills.
“No use worrying about it now,” I whispered, switching my focus back to Whiskey. I grabbed his cute orange life jacket, and he reluctantly allowed me to clip it around him. “Look at you. All handsome in your little life jacket.”
His sour face was grumpier than usual as I scooped him up and carried him out of our cabin. Setting his velvet pillow down in the hallway, I placed him on top and booped his nose.
“Hang out here for a while, buddy,” I said, then paused. “… Maybe more than a while. Or go explore, but stay in well-lit areas. You know you can’t see as well in the dark anymore.”
If anything, Whiskey’s eyes narrowed at me for even daring to give him suggestions. So, I planted a big kiss on his furry head before carefully shutting the door in his face.
Taking a deep breath, I turned back to our room and walked further inside until I could see Cade waiting on the bed.
He leaned against the headboard with the grace of a patient predator, legs stretched out and crossed at the ankles.
Eyes closed. Hands in the pockets of his sleep pants.
And not a shirt in sight.
Not one to turn down a good opportunity, I soaked him in while tiptoeing closer. His lithe swimmer’s build really wasn’t fair. Who had the energy to navigate big shot business meetings and still work out enough to have a toned chest I wanted to spend all night licking?
I might’ve spent a bit too long staring by the time I reached his side of the bed.
Checking that his eyes were still closed, I eased one knee next to him on the bed, resting both hands on his broad chest.
Touching the chest was a signature cuddle move to help someone feel calm, but it had the opposite effect when I was about to jump the man.
Cade’s skin warmed beneath my touch as he took a deep breath, chest expanding against my palms. I swallowed before slowly swinging my other leg over until I was straddling him.
He dutifully kept his eyes closed, which only made the subtle curve to his lips all the more inviting.
Giving in to the pull, I cupped his strong, stubbled jaw with both hands and pressed my lips to his in the softest of kisses. Cade’s hands found my hips—along with the silk covering them—and a low groan rolled out of him.
“Okay,” I breathed, not wanting to disturb the charged air in the room as I pulled back. “You can open your eyes.”
He immediately complied, dark pupils dilating as soon as he saw the outfit’s plunging neckline.
“Surprise,” I whispered, settling on his lap.
Cade’s nostrils flared as he took me in. The hunger that lit his eyes as his gaze devoured every inch of my tiny chemise sent an answering bolt of desire straight through me.
He’d barely touched me, but the grip of his fingers burned like a brand on my hips. I wanted to feel them everywhere, and without the scrap of silk between us.
Cade’s fingers bunched the fabric at my hips, his gaze still roving over the little nightgown. “This is the same one Lovejoy put in the tent for us.”
I wet my lips. “She slipped it to me after our couples massage earlier.”
He gave it another slow, appreciative look while one of his hands slid up to the back of my neck, and he dragged his gaze up to mine. “Come here.”
The gruffness in his voice did something illegal to my insides. He drew me closer, and I parted my lips just in time to meet his.
It was more of a conquering than a kiss. Cade wasted no time deepening it, and I raked my fingers into his hair to hold on for the ride, drawing a groan from him. We jumped straight into the deep end, a battle of push and pull and chasing and goading, before I came up for much-needed air.
Cade’s hooded gaze dropped to my parted lips.
“I haven’t stopped thinking about you all day.
” He used his hands to guide my hips—grinding me against his lap before I happily took over.
A breathy, way-too-needy gasp tore from my throat.
“Every minute of those damn activities, I’ve thought about you writhing against my hand on that table.
And all the other things I’ve imagined doing to you in this bed. ”
My breathing grew embarrassingly choppy. “Like what?”
Cade’s mouth curved into a wicked grin. “It usually starts with this.”
He leaned down, licking up along my throat, followed by open-mouthed kisses while his hand scorched a trail up my side. He skimmed over my ribs before cupping my breast, and his thumb easily found my tightened nipple—immediately lighting a fire low in my belly as I arched into his touch.
I kept grinding against him, feeling his excitement, which only further fueled my own.
“Cade, please,” I breathed, beyond desperate for him to tear the nightgown down its seam, rip my panties off, and do anything he wanted to me.
But instead of hurrying, Cade took his time sliding my nightgown up, like he had to appreciate every inch of skin he uncovered. Cool air met my bared skin, popping goose bumps up along the searing path of his hands.
I moved to help him pull the silky fabric up, but Cade gently nudged my hands away and nipped my lower lip in warning. “Patience, Darling. You’ve been teasing me for a lot longer.”
A shiver danced down my spine, but I scoffed at the injustice. “What do you mean? I haven’t teased you at all!”
He nipped at my neck, making me grab his shoulders before he soothed the sting with his tongue.
“What would you call your little moans during the massage?” he murmured. “Or that happy little sigh every time you eat chocolate? Cuddling up against me during the night, all soft and sweet? Should I go on?”
“That’s not fair,” I tried to grumble, but my voice came out too breathy to sell it. “You can’t use the chocolate against me.”
“Against you? No, it wasn’t a complaint. Far from it,” he murmured before shutting me up with another kiss.
His hand finally moved south, Cade sliding his fingers into the waist of my panties and making me lose the ability to speak. My hips rotated faster in anticipation, needing more—
Deafening alarm bells blared through the room’s speakers, startling me into biting Cade’s tongue before we both jerked back.
“What—?” I choked out as Cade dropped the chemise to fall back in place. He held me tight, pulling us both up and off the bed. It took longer than it should’ve for my brain to catch on to reality, but the sirens scrambled everything.
“What’s the alarm mean?” I called over the endless screeching, clinging to his shoulders. My brain had frozen somewhere between fight and flight. “A fire?”
A grim edge crept into Cade’s voice. “Man overboard.”