Chapter 11 #2
I had already made that quip about moaning his name. I couldn’t possibly be more forward than that. I was the one who scooted closer to him. The one who casually brushed our arms together.
But he followed me back into my office.
“You look displeased with that answer.” Drew’s lips smirked before throwing me a glance out of the corner of his eye.
“I feel confused, I guess. I can’t tell if you’re interested in me or if I’m completely misreading these signals.”
He turned to face me, saying earnestly, “I am very interested, Vanessa.”
The sound of my name on his lips made chills erupt down my spine, and goosebumps pebble on my arms. God, what was it like having this much sex appeal without having to try?
I pulled my lips back in a grin. It wasn’t a sexy grin by any means, but it was a grin that usually made men drop to their knees in front of me. The way his gaze lowered to my lips, while parting his own, made me hopeful that Drew would be there soon.
“You like that answer,” Drew murmured to my lips as he moistened his own.
“I do. I’m glad we’re on the same page.” I set my glass down so I could lean back on my palms, casually showing off my body. I loved a good tank top. Most of my wardrobe was tank tops at this point. My cutoff jean shorts were a little higher than usual, showcasing my toned legs.
Thank god I decided to shave this morning. Leaning back like this also popped my chest out a bit. I wasn’t wearing a bra, because fuck bras.
I felt it when Drew’s eyes lowered to my chest in appreciation.
My nipples stiffened under his attention, which made him grumble something low in his throat.
He leaned closer, brushing his knuckles down my arm, sending goosebumps all over my body.
Noticing my physical reaction to his gentle touch, he grinned and stood up from his seat on the edge of my desk.
I frowned at his back as he strolled across the small room, studying the pictures and clutter on my shelves. He knocked back the rest of his vodka in one sip, keeping the cup in his hands.
“So…” I stood from my desk too, folding both of my arms over my chest again.
“I don’t think I wish to rush things with you, Vanessa,” Drew announced with a sigh as he turned to face me from the other side of the small room. “Which is a shame.” He quirked his lips at that. “Because while I would deeply enjoy our carnal—”
I snorted. “Carnal?”
He raised an eyebrow at me in a challenge. “Do you not want a carnal relationship?”
“I mean,” I lifted a shoulder as I elaborated. “I enjoy sex as much as any other woman. I’m not opposed to casual relationships.”
Drew nodded with a grin that practically made my clothes want to burn off my body. “Are you so desperate for my touch that you can’t wait for me to learn your mind as well?”
I raised my eyebrows at him as I replied, “I—I guess I’m not used to a man being interested in anything more than physical touch.”
Drew frowned at that, confused. “You are not used to men showing interest in you?”
I smirked. “I never said that. Men just aren’t usually interested in anything that isn’t purely…carnal.” I used his weird word back at him.
He pressed his lips together as he glared at his glass, pondering my response.
Part of me hoped that he was upset that men only seemed to be interested in me for their pleasure, but another part of me was worried that he was upset over the idea of me being sexually experienced.
“I’m thirty years old,” I reminded him. “I’m not ashamed of the fact that I have needs. If a man is interested in meeting my needs, I’m going to take him up on it.”
A pinch formed between his brows as he glanced up at me. “What?”
“If you’re getting uncomfortable over the fact that I have a sexual history…
” I crossed my arms, not in a protective stance, but in a secure one.
“You need to get over it if you want to explore anything between us.” The pinch in his brow smoothed, and a smirk pulled at his lips as he raised his glass to brush his thumb against his bottom lip.
Even though my underwear was getting more damp by the second, I held my ground, waiting for him to respond before I said anything more. No matter how delicious he looked casually dragging his thumb over his lower lip in thought.
“I’m not a man who gets jealous, Vanessa,” Drew muttered. His tone sent chills down my spine. “I’m not worried about any potential competition.” He smiled again as he lowered his hand, as if the idea truly amused him.
“Okay,” I replied, surprised at his confidence. “So what was your weird look about?”
He chuckled to himself before setting the empty glass on the shelf. Drew shoved his hands in his pockets as he approached, a signal that things weren’t about to get sexy even though I was desperate for them to.
“You may not be used to it, but I think the idea of a man trying to earn your affections excites you,” Drew spoke with a low clarity, and his dark eyes bounced between the two of mine.
“I’m simply wondering if I have it within me to play this game without needing to satiate my own, overwhelming, need. ”
I scoffed and turned away, trying to shake off the way his words made something flutter in my chest. “You don’t want to just get to the fun stuff?”
“Oh, I have every intention to have fun with you, Vanessa.” From the way his gaze trailed over my body again, focusing on my legs, I believed his sensual threat.
“But I also find myself wondering what drives you. I want to learn what ignites your passion. What do you enjoy?” He tucked his lips between his teeth for a brief moment as he scanned my body head to toe, making every muscle in me melt, before he continued, “I have a feeling that once my curiosity is satisfied, it will make learning how you like to be touched, and where you are most sensitive, that much more thrilling.”
I studied him, unfolding my arms and resting my hands on the edge of my desk. He let me, completely at ease under my attempted scrutiny, as he stood tall and assured. As if his words didn’t just send a fire throughout every vein in my body.
“…You’re right,” I finally admitted, attempting to control my breathing.
“I’m not used to taking things slow.” I gnawed on the inside of my cheek.
“Though, I’m intrigued that you want to.
” Drew’s chest puffed as he inhaled deeply.
His eyes lifted to the ceiling as he blew the air out of his lungs in thought.
“Perhaps, I’m a romantic.”
I snorted. “You’d be the first man I’ve met that is.”
Minus Fergus, if my suspicion about the nereid was correct.
He chuckled at that before removing his hands from his pockets and resting his large palms on either side of me. Hands flat on the table, letting him both tower over me and engage in direct eye contact.
“I’m honored to be the first romantic you’ve met.” Drew’s eyes softened a little as he studied me, and I found myself eyeing the almost invisible line of his contacts. “Are we in agreement?”
I pressed my lips together. The way he spoke was so formal, I just wasn’t used to it.
“Almost.” I nodded once, trying to ignore the delicious masculine scent that was enveloping me with his proximity. “I have some questions.” I needed to turn the tables, to not end the conversation like some simpering woman.
Drew nodded, looking way too serious about this conversation.
“Number one.” I lifted a finger between us, the tip brushed against his chest. “How flirty can I be with you?”
He grinned at that. “Flirty?”
“If we aren’t getting to the fun stuff, what are we doing?
” I asked, trailing my finger up his chest. The divot between his firm pecks made heat scorch my cheeks.
“How much touch is too much?” The next breath Drew released was a little shakier, and I got a thrill from being able to make a man like him weak kneed.
“That’s acceptable,” Drew whispered.
I grinned wider, trailing my finger across his collar bones, dipping my finger under the hem of his shirt briefly. “And this?”
All he did was nod.
His eyes were getting hooded, and all I had done was rest my fingertip on him.
“…This?” I asked, feeling a little bolder.
I rested both of my hands on his wide shoulders, slowly dragging my palms closer to his neck.
Touching his skin was electrifying; it sent a sensation down my limbs that I wasn’t used to feeling.
A specific type of awareness that made the hairs on my arms rise with my pebbled skin.
I wanted to rub all over him, feel every part of him on every part of me.
It was significantly harder to keep my cool.
“Acceptable,” Drew barely whispered the word.
I bit my lip, loving when his eyes lowered to the movement and stayed there.
Wrapping one hand around the back of his neck, I gently pulled him closer to me.
He allowed me to, closer, closer, until my lips ghosted over the skin at the base of his throat.
A low moan escaped his mouth, and I smiled against him. I wasn’t kissing him, just teasing him with my lips as I gently trailed up his neck, along the sharp line of his jaw. Right when my lips started to travel toward his, he shifted away just enough to avoid a real kiss.
“That’s the boundary, then,” I whispered to him.
He looked ragged. The calm, cool, collected Drew was gone. Simple, gentle touches from me made him look undone. His eyes were hooded, and his eye color was too dark for me to see if his pupils were wide in the dim light of my office, but I assumed they were.
Even though he leaned away to avoid a kiss, he lifted his hands to rest them on the tops of my thighs. Engaging in contact in a different, less intimate way.
“Are—” He stopped to clear his throat, and I threw him a wide smile as he did. “Are these terms acceptable to you?”
I nodded once. “I find these terms acceptable.” He didn’t seem to pick up on the fact that I was teasing his formal language, or maybe he just didn’t care. Drew’s hands gently squeezed my thighs.
“So…” I was reluctant to say this, but I had to. “I should probably get back to work.”
Drew nodded. “I shouldn’t keep you, but I want to.”
“That doesn’t sound horrible.” I placed my hands on top of his and squeezed, enjoying the feel of his touch.
“But it sounds like you have to start planning fun dates and stuff to properly court me.” I smiled at my clever formal terminology, but he didn’t react to it.
He just threw me a charming smirk as he stood tall and gave me space to stand as well.
“I look forward to courting you, Vanessa.”
I snorted, blushing from his words, but tried to play it cool by patting his cheek and leading him out of my office. The noise from karaoke night was loud, but instead of joining everyone, Drew ducked out of my shop and into the night as I stepped behind the counter.
“You good?” Emma asked as she glanced toward where Drew had left.
I grinned at her and replied, “Really good.”
There was a presence behind me as I slept in my bed that night, but I was so deep in my slumber that I couldn’t come out of it.
I was vaguely aware of movement. Of warmth.
I wanted to startle away, but my mind was so heavy with exhaustion that I couldn’t do it.
The gummy I took kept me under, just like it was supposed to.
It was as if there was a weighted blanket on each one of my limbs, keeping me in place.
The presence shifted, and I sighed in surprised relief when heat coated my back, my butt, and the backs of my thighs.
The presence was safe.
I allowed my mind to drift off into a deeper sleep.