CHAPTER SIXTEEN #3
“Like the rest of us, her story is pretty crazy. However, unlike the rest of us, she’s okay letting the world know all the dirty, sordid details of her past. Even though I’m not ashamed of what happened to me, because I was a victim, the idea of having it turned into a book or movie and the whole world finding out just makes my skin feel like fire ants are doing the cha-cha on it. ”
“Yeah, I’m not sure there are enough zeroes you could put behind a number on a check that would convince me to sign off on a book or movie about my life either.
” I let out a long, slow sigh and stared up at the cloudless sky.
It was a watercolor mix of pinks, purples, yellows, and oranges.
“I know they say overcoming adversity creates strong adults, but I sincerely hope my kid never has to go through the kind of shit I did to become a strong person.”
“She’s already ridiculously strong, Lennox. You have nothing to worry about. But I understand where you’re coming from. I’ve already vowed to never let what happened to me happen to my kids. I’d kill the man before I let Honor’s partner hurt her.” She glanced at me. “Austin’s too.”
The fire in her eyes told me she wasn’t joking and made me think back to the wolfsbane growing behind the barn.
Did she kill her husband? Was that part of the reason she had no interest in pursuing a book or movie deal for her life?
Because it could dredge up parts of her past that would paint her in a less than heroic light?
I made a little cracker sandwich with some salami, cheese, and a grape, then popped it into my mouth. With a twinkle in her eye, she watched me struggle to get it into my mouth and chew the oversized bite.
“Took a little bit too much?” she asked, chuckling.
I shook my head. “I’m fine.”
That made her chortle. “Sure.”
She sipped her wine and snuggled deep into the cozy nest I’d made for us. “This is a really great date. Thank you.”
I swallowed the enormous glob down my throat, wincing slightly, then taking a sip of my wine to wash it all down. “I owed this to you at the least. You were—are—so good with Mabel. And I want to do this properly.”
“Do what?”
“Date you. Court you. Woo you.”
Amusement flickered across her face. “Are you wooing me?”
“I’m trying.”
“Then where the hell’s my sonnet? My rhyming couplet and iambic pentameter.
How come you haven’t compared me to a summer’s day yet?
Isn’t that a big part of the wooing? Sweet nothings and cryptic words from the heart.
” Her full lips curled into a wide smile.
“I’ve yet to see you drape your coat across a puddle for me, good sir. ”
All I could do at this point was wrap my hand around the back of her neck and pull her in for a kiss. She opened her mouth for me willingly and cupped my jaw, her thumb rhythmically rubbing my cheek as I deepened the kiss.
Groaning, I tore my mouth away from hers and moved the containers of food out from between us. Then I pushed her onto her back and covered her body, taking her mouth again and helping her recline into the bed of the truck.
Her legs parted so I could settle between them, and I was sure she felt my erection against her inner thigh, but she didn’t seem to mind.
I found the fingers of her left hand and laced the fingers of my right hand through them, pinning her beneath me and plunging my tongue between her lips.
She twirled her tongue around mine and rocked her hips into me.
I paused.
Froze, actually.
I lifted my face away from hers, staring down into her jade-green eyes. My throat was tight—so were my pants.
“What’s wrong?” she asked, blinking up at me.
Rolling off her, I collapsed onto my back and sighed. “I really like you.”
“I can tell …”
That made me cover my lap with my hands.
“I’m not upset about that, just so you know.
It’s perfectly normal … and if I’m being honest, gives me a bit of an ego boost that I can excite you that easily.
” She reached for one of my hands that I had covering my jeans, but she didn’t place it over my lap; she laced her fingers through mine and brought our hands down between us.
“I’m also okay going slow. I just … you came in with that kiss and pushed me to my back. I was just following your lead.”
“I know,” I said on a big exhale. “This is all really new to me. And I hate that it’s new. I’m twenty-six-year’s old. I’ve been sexually active for over half my life, and yet—”
“Don’t use that as a reason.” She untangled our hands and rolled onto her side, propping her head in her hand.
“You shouldn’t have been sexually active since you were twelve.
That’s fucked up.” She grimaced. “I mean, if you consented to it, and it was with someone your own age, maybe not.” Then she shook her head.
“No, you know what? Twelve-year-olds should not be having sex. Period. They’re not nearly mature enough for the emotional and physical consequences.
I don’t care if it’s two twelve-year-olds, or a twelve-year-old and a twenty-something-year-old.
They’re still children, and that’s fucked up. ”
All I could do was glance over at her.
“There’s more to being in a relationship than just sex, and you’re new at the relationship thing.
Of course the sex thing is going to come with concerns.
And I’m okay with that. I’m not exactly an expert on either front myself.
” With her free hand, she cupped my jaw. “I’m cool letting you set the pace.”
Her soft skin against my stubble only galvanized my desire for her more, and I rolled onto my side to face her, hauling her against me so there wasn’t even room for air between us.
“I’ve never felt like this about anybody before.
And I think that also scares me,” I murmured, that spiky ball at the back of my throat making my words come out hoarse. “I want you, Naomi.”
Her smile was small, and her eyes narrowed in thought. “Is there anything that you and … she who will not be named, didn’t do? Are you still a virgin in any way?”
My head bobbed softly. “I’ve never gone down on a woman.”
Her mouth opened slightly. “She never made you do that?”
“She tried. But I refused, and I guess she was worried I’d bite her or something, so she didn’t push it.
” I could see the cogs spinning in her brain, and that made some of the tension strung tight inside my body loosen.
Licking my lips, I slowly dragged my hand from where I held her hip, around to the front of her jeans.
I popped the button and watched the pulse in her neck pick up speed.
“You … you don’t have to if you’re not ready,” she whispered.
“I want to make a woman come because I want to,” I said, dragging down the zipper.
She adjusted her position a little, and when I glanced up into her beautiful face, her eyes were sexy and hooded.
I went in for another kiss as my hand worked its way beneath the waistband of her panties and lower.
There was a soft, thin dusting of curls, and when I navigated a little lower, I found her wet.
My middle finger brushed her clit, and she gasped against my mouth.
“You okay?” I asked, breaking the kiss. “Did I hurt you?”
“No.” She wrapped her hand around my neck and pulled me back down for a kiss. I rolled her onto her back, but remained on my side beside her, hovering over her as my hand made some more room in her pants and panties.
Using two fingers, I began to rub circles around her clit, dipping those fingers lower to gather more of her arousal. Her hips lifted, and she moaned into my mouth as her fingers curled into the hair at the nape of my neck and tugged. I welcomed that snap of pain. It made me feel alive.
Lifting my head and breaking the kiss again, I stared down into her face. A dreamy look claimed her features. I continued to rub her clit and loved it when she bit her lip. “Can I?” I asked, my heart threatening to beat clean out of my chest.
“Y-you don’t have to.”
“I want to. I really want to.”
She nodded stiffly, and I removed my fingers from inside her pants and moved down to the other end of the truck bed before helping her shimmy out of her jeans.
“You’re not going to be too cold?” I asked her, realizing she was now bare from the waist down and it was getting dark outside.
“I’ll be okay.” Something slid out of the pocket of her jeans and onto the blanket beside my knee. My brows shot up when I realized it was two condoms. It was hard to tell in the diminishing daylight, but I could see a little bit of color filled her cheeks. “Best to be prepared.”
“Dawn always said, ‘It’s better to bring a coat and not need it, than need it and not have it.’”
Even her smirk was adorable.
“I’m sorry if I’m not very good at this,” I said, my pulse going even wilder now than before, and that cheese and cracker with grape creating a bouncy ball among the sloshing nerves in my stomach.
“You don’t—”
“I want to,” I assured her. “I’m consenting to this, Naomi. I’m asking you if I can please pleasure you this way.”
She swallowed and nodded. “Okay.”
The tailgate was down, so I was able to slink down onto my belly, my legs hanging over the end of the truck, as I brought my face between her thighs.
She bent her knees and planted her feet on the blanket and I inched up closer, the scent of her arousal hitting my nostrils and making my cock stir beneath me.