15. Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Fifteen
M arcus
I woke slowly, and my arms were empty. I reached across the bed, but the sheets were cool to my touch. I laid still and listened. No water running, so she wasn’t in the shower. Turning my head, I gazed around the room.
The candle was barely giving off any light now, but the sun had come up. There she was. Curled up on the window seat, staring out at the sunrise. A beautiful woman silhouetted by the outside light behind her. I wanted to drink it in, to just watch her.
I glanced at the clock—seven. After giving her two mind-blowing orgasms, we’d gone to sleep around three-thirty. Ready to call her back to me, I noticed her trembling.
Sliding out of bed in my underwear, I pulled the quilt off the bed and joined her. I settled the fabric around her shoulders, tucking it in before sitting near her feet. “How long have you been up?”
“What time is it?”
“Seven.” I kept my gaze on her.
“A little over an hour.” She snuggled into the quilt. “I don’t sleep very well.”
“Why not?” At least she was talking to me. I was afraid she’d retreat behind that brick wall of hers. This was a good start.
“Not sure.” She shrugged. “The doctors tell me there’s nothing wrong, but after about five hours, I wake up, and my mind refuses to shut back down.”
“But you only slept about three hours.” I wanted to reach out and pull her into my arms, but she looked so closed off that I held back.
“I napped earlier. It really doesn’t matter.” She shook her head.
“I’ll have to see what I can do to wear you out so you’ll sleep more.” Leaning forward, I brushed my lips over hers.
I fully expected her to push me away, but instead her arms twined around my neck, and the quilt fell from her shoulders.
I fought to keep the kiss soft, tracing the seam of her lips with my tongue, feeling their smoothness, but also tasting her undeniable sweetness.
I broke the kiss and gazed down at her. “Now that was a good morning kiss.”
“There are different kinds?” She tilted her head, a glint of amusement overshadowing the melancholy I saw in her eyes, and a small smile played around her lips.
She was joking with me—a very good sign. “You bet there are.” I brushed a kiss across her cheek until my lips nibbled at her ear. “I’m going to show you each and every one.”
“I can’t wait.”
My dick jumped, and I forced myself to pull back from her delicious lips and her alluring scent. “Breakfast first and then we’ll discuss our day.”
Her nose scrunched up, and she made a face at me. I laughed, dropped a kiss on her nose, and stood.
Cassie let out a small gasp, and I looked down to see my boxers had slid down, revealing my hard cock. “Later, he’s all yours.” Without a backward glance, I grabbed a pair of fresh briefs and running shorts out of the dresser and headed for the bathroom.
After a quick brush of my teeth, a shave, and masturbating—necessary if I wanted to give Cassie time to get used to us as an us—I felt better. Leaving the bathroom, I found Cassie in the walk-in closet, sorting through her clothes.
“I’m going to start coffee,” I said. “Come downstairs when you’re ready.” Unable to help myself, I brushed another kiss over her lips. “I’d tell you to leave your clothes off, but I want you to be comfortable, so wear whatever you want.”
Whistling, I walked out of the room and down the stairs. In the kitchen, I glanced out the window. The sun was shining. It was going to be a very nice, sunny spring day. Maybe later, I could convince Cassie to go skinny dipping in the pool, since it was heated and usable year-round.
After putting the coffee on, I turned to find Cassie standing in the doorway, wearing the teddy I’d sent her earlier in the week. I’d found it in the drawer and left it hanging in the bathroom where she was sure to find it. My dick hardened, and my mouth went dry.
The midnight blue fabric hugged her figure.
Her breasts threatened to spill out from the lacy bodice; the fabric was so sheer, I could see her nipples.
My gaze traveled over her body, and I swallowed hard.
The lace did nothing to hide the outline of her pussy from me, and her legs seemed to go on forever.
“Can I help you get breakfast ready?” Her voice was soft.
Why couldn’t I breathe? Without a word, I crossed over to her, tugged her into my arms, and covered her lips with mine.
The minty toothpaste she used burst upon my taste buds as our tongues dueled for dominance. My tongue retreated, and hers followed. Cassie deepened the kiss, and I let her, my arms tightening around her.
Passion. She vibrated with it, was on fire with it, and I wanted to stoke the flames until they were out of control, but at the same time, I knew I needed some answers.
Her fear appeared to be muted this morning, since she wasn’t shying away from me as she had last night. My hands moved over her semi-bare back to her ass. I cupped those luscious ass cheeks in my palms as I pressed my hips to hers.
I broke the kiss, and my lips trailed across her cheek, to her ear. “What’s changed?”
She tensed for a second then relaxed back into my embrace. “I don’t know what you mean.”
Squeezing her ass, I rotated my hips, letting her feel my hard cock. I leaned back to stare into her eyes. “Last night you were nervous and so wound up that I was afraid you’d snap like a dry twig.”
“It had been a stressful day, and I didn’t know what to expect.”
“And today you do?” I didn’t think I was that predictable.
“Well…” As she shifted, my cock rubbed against her pussy through the fabric. “You took care of me last night without any expectations. Plus I’ve known you want me.”
I nodded. Of course, I wanted her. I hadn’t made a secret of that.
“And I want you.”
That was obvious, since she was here in my home. If she didn’t want me, she wouldn’t be here. I waited, watching her face for any signs of distress or fear, but I didn’t see any. “Fear doesn’t disappear overnight.”
Her blue eyes widened. “It wasn’t fear of you.”
“Wasn’t it?” I needed to know about her fear.
She licked her lips, and I fought my own urges to swoop down and take her rosy mouth in a deep hard kiss.
“I needed some time to deal with what I was feeling, what you made me feel.” Her gaze skittered away before returning. “I rarely climax with a man, let alone have multiple orgasms.”
I barely prevented my mouth from dropping open. I shook my head. “You’ve been with the wrong men.” That was the only explanation.
“Apparently.”
Taking a deep breath, I loosened my hold on her. “You put the teddy on to make a statement.” I liked how relaxed and playful she was this morning, and I wanted to keep her that way. But I wanted to make sure her fear didn’t overwhelm her either.
“Yes. I found it hanging behind the door this morning. Otherwise, I’d have worn it last night.” She gripped my shoulders. “I want this weekend with you.”
“Good. I want it too.” I truly believed what she said. Cassie was a strong woman. She’d have told me to go to hell.
“You’re right. I would have told you to go to hell, probably should have,” she said.
Had I spoken the words out loud? Apparently so.
I hid my surprise at her admission. Would I ever get to the real Cassie? I suspected I was seeing her now, at least, a small part of what lay behind the curtain she used like a shield. Her stomach growled. I laughed and forced myself to release her.
“I better feed you breakfast, then we can play.” Moving to the fridge, I pulled out ham, eggs, and cheese before looking over my shoulder at her. “If you want to help, you can chop the ham while I get the eggs ready.”
“You got it.” She smiled, and the whole room lit up.
We worked together in silence, and I found I liked having her here.
A first for me. I usually hated having anyone else in my kitchen, but with Cassie, it was different.
She didn’t try to carry on a conversation or get in my way.
It was as if we were in total sync with each other, no matter who was doing what.
I slid the finished omelets onto the plates and carried them to the breakfast bar while Cassie refilled our coffee cups. She slid onto the stool and picked up her fork, cut a piece, and lifted it to her mouth. “ Mmmm .” She hummed as she swallowed. “That’s good. Talk about melt in your mouth.”
“I have other delicacies that will melt in your mouth.” Lord, this woman turned me on with her pleasure at eating good food.
“Oh.” She peeked at me from beneath her lashes, and the heat from her gaze made my dick stiffen.
“Yep.” I grinned. It had been a long time since I’d had a lover I could have fun with. I’d been right to follow my gut about Cassie.
Silence fell as we ate, and when she was done, she slipped from the stool and carried her plate and cup to the sink. I followed, and when she turned, it was right into my arms. I pressed her ass against the sink.
“I want you to be yourself this weekend.”
“Huh?” She tilted her head and confusion made her wrinkle her nose. So cute.
“I told you last night this weekend is about pleasure.” I took her in my arms and trailed my fingers trailed up her spine, tunneling under her hair, my nails tracing the nape of her neck. “Pleasure can be fun.”
“I’m sure it can be.”
“It will be.” I lowered my forehead to hers. “What is your middle name?”
“Michelle. Why?”
“If I do anything you don’t want me to do, or if you start feeling uncomfortable at all, I want you to say Michelle, and I’ll stop. That’s your safe word.”
“Will you stop?”
Her breathless question hit me in the stomach like a sucker punch. Shit, had some man not stopped when she told him to? Had that man hurt her so bad that she was still struggling with it? Was that why she hid her sensuality? So many questions and no answers.
“Yes, I will stop, no matter what we’re doing. You have my word on it, Cassie.”
I didn’t know what else I could say to reassure her I would stop. Because I would. I meant what I said, and maybe it was time to show her.
“Why don’t we take this upstairs to the bedroom?” Taking her hand, I guided her out of the kitchen and up the curved staircase. When we entered the room, Cassie tugged her hand away, hurried to the bed, and started making it.
“You don’t need to do that.” I lounged against the wall, watching the way her pert ass wiggled as she bent over, tucking in the sheet.
How the teddy she wore shifted up. My dick reacted; I liked the view.
Cassie flittered around, straightening the sheets and covers.
What was going through her head? We were just going to mess the bed up again.