9. Sullivan
Chapter 9
Sullivan
Having Nora at the table with my family was not what I’d envisioned for the end of my day.
Neither had the kiss.
Kisses , plural.
I could still taste her on my tongue, even over my mom’s intensely garlic-heavy sauce and garlic bread. And I wanted to do it again, maybe after I brushed my teeth.
Maybe after my kid went to bed.
I only needed to get through another two hours.
Thankfully, Danny still needed that twelve hours down. And I really needed to check on my job listings, but all I could think about was her soft skin and getting my hands on her. The gauzy material of her dress didn’t hide a single curve.
She was talking to my mother at the sink, while they packed up To Go containers for us. Anna Murdock never let anyone leave her house hungry.
Stuffed to the eyeballs, more like it.
“Want to run off some of this pasta?” I asked Danny.
“Can I go get Trouble?”
“Sure can.”
Before the words were out of my mouth, he was taking his plate to the sink and detouring out the door.
Nora appeared in front of me, holding two containers. “He’s a really sweet boy.”
“Finally coming out of his shell.”
“Especially when it comes to the dog.”
“You got him pegged.” I stood up and crowded into her. “Want to go outside and play?” I dropped my voice so my mother couldn’t hear.
“I could be persuaded.”
I glanced down at her pink lips, then up to her hazel eyes. “And I would definitely like to persuade.”
“Get out of my kitchen.” My mom’s voice had us breaking apart.
“We can help clean up.” Nora turned toward my mom.
“Nope. First dinner is on me. Next time, you can get into the clean-up rotation.”
Nora laughed. “Okay, deal.”
“Go on outside. It’s too nice to be inside. I’ll send Danny out back with you guys.”
“Thanks, Ma.” I led Nora through the back door to the backyard.
“I was just thinking earlier how we used to spend lazy days back here.”
I grinned at her. “Cash tried to convince my dad to put a pool in, but he told him how much it would take and asked if he’d like to sacrifice his allowance. He changed his mind quick.”
“Allowance? With all of you guys?”
I laughed. “Only until we could get jobs or work with my dad. I was definitely working illegally at fifteen, but I loved making my own money. I knew ball wasn’t in my future like it was for Booker.”
She became quiet. “Is that why you guys drifted apart?”
I lifted a shoulder in a half shrug. “Some of it was for sure. But, in all honesty, my future was with Murdock Brothers. I made a go at college, but it wasn’t for me. I was good at the trade stuff for certification and that was good enough for me.”
“And look what you’ve built.”
I huffed out a laugh as I grabbed a towel from the stack beside the loungers. “Things were looking pretty dire until a certain someone caught me on video.”
“It was a bit of kismet, I think.”
“Kinda like you coming back to the valley,” I said quietly. “Are you sticking around?”
My heart pounded in my chest at the question as I paused at the yard. A stolen kiss or two was nothing—and could stay nothing—if she was only here as a stopgap.
While she thought it over, I snapped out the huge towel with turtles on it.
She settled on the center of it, tucking the skirt of her dress around her. “The minute I crossed the town line, the last of the sadness I’d been carrying around dropped away.” She leaned back on her forearms. “I’m not quite sure what I’m going to do yet, but I know I like this. I like reconnecting with my old friends.”
“Is that what we are?”
I’d tried so damn hard to be friends with her when we were kids and deluded myself into believing it. I didn’t want to be friends now.
Not at all.
“What if I said no?”
I swallowed. “Because you want something else? Or want me to kick rocks.”
Her lips twitched. “Kicking rocks is not part of the equation, Sullivan.”
“That’s good to hear.” I leaned into her. “Because I’m not feeling at all friendly.”
To hell with the garlic breath.
I brushed her lips with mine. I could feel the smile in her kiss and while the sun streamed through the canopy of leaves overhead, I let myself enjoy her. Let myself not worry about my business, Danny, my parents, or the fact that she used to be married to my high school best friend.
I cupped her cheek and tipped her head to go deeper.
The soft moan nearly undid me.
It had been a damn long time since I’d touched anyone, let alone the woman who had sneaked into my dreams as a teen. And here she was on a blanket under the same trees from all those years ago.
Only this time she wasn’t kissing Booker.
And I didn’t have to pretend I wasn’t into her.
She brought her hand up to cover mine. “I’m a bit rusty,” she said against my mouth. “I’ve only been with one man.”
I growled into her mouth. I hadn’t meant to kick it up a notch. Not here, where anyone could see, but knowing that made something rise up inside of me—and not just my rapidly hardening cock.
The sounds of running feet and Trouble’s bark made me pull back.
She opened heavy-lidded eyes. “More, please.”
She was going to actively kill me.
And there was no way I’d ever say no.
“Stay after I put Danny to bed.”
With a blink, her hazel eyes cleared, and she nibbled on her lower lip. “I’m seriously rusty and know nothing about children,” she whispered, then she looked over her shoulder at Danny and Trouble tripping over one another on the patchy grass. “And should we talk about this in front of him?”
I grinned. “Number one, he sleeps like the dead.” I eased around to kiss her neck. “Handily.”
A soft smile spread across her face.
“Number two, I’m very, very patient.”
Her breath hitched and I willed my far too happy dick to take a chill pill.
“Dad! I think Trouble ate another daffodil.”
I laughed. “I’m going to owe my mother a full week’s pay in flowers.” I rolled up onto my knees and dragged her up with me. “Time to tire out Danny.”
Her eyes sparkled as she kicked off her heels and ran ahead to help Danny get the bulb out of the happily munching Trouble’s mouth.
We traded a flower bulb for his favorite squeaker ball, and we played fetch with Trouble and it ended up with me and Danny sweaty and dirty by the end of it.
But I did, in fact, tire him out.
Nora ended up back on the blanket, watching us with pure happiness in her eyes.
It was one of the best days I’d had in years.
As the sun dipped lower in the trees and the chill of impending night hit, I packed them both up. My mom sent us over to my place with leftovers for both of us, as well as a pint of ice cream.
Nora followed me over to the house. Together, we went up the back steps to the deck and in through the sliding glass doors.
“Sorry, the place is...”
“Where two males live?”
I sighed. “I hate to be a stereotype, and yet here we are.”
“I’ll survive.” She looked around and I groaned inwardly at just how cluttered the table was. My laptop had been moved up here to do bills and now I had a bunch of things to look at before tomorrow.
It was a good problem to have—especially after the last few months, but not exactly the kind of seduction scene I would usually bring a woman in to.
“I have to make sure he takes a shower.”
“I can handle poking around your house.” She laughed at what must have been my shocked face. “I wouldn’t be that rude. Probably.”
Danny and Trouble thundered through the living room and down the hallway. “Taking a shower!” he yelled.
“Guess we have the shower part going pretty well, which lets me do this.” I caught her hand and pulled her into me. Her eyes went wide when I swooped in and took her mouth in a hot, hard kiss. I pulled away after my brains started to misfire. “I also don’t want to hear you’re rusty again. It just means I get to show you just how much I will worship this delicious body.”
I coasted my hands down her hips to cup her ass. The gauzy material making it abundantly clear that there was very little under that damn dress. I ground against her to let her know just how into her I was.
Hot breath hit my shin and I looked down to find Trouble staring at us, his tongue rolled out in his goofy way. His golden eyes were happy, and I wasn’t sure much else was going on behind them.
She laughed. “Will he be joining us later?”
“Nope. He sleeps with Danny.”
“Good.” She patted my chest. “I don’t think I’m into someone watching us. At least I don’t think I am. Guess we’ll see.”
I groaned and tipped my head back. “Killing me.”
She slipped a hand between us and cupped my shaft and blew out a breath. “Hope that patient part was true.”
I met her gaze. “It is. And if you don’t want?—”
She put her finger over my lips. “I want. Very much.”
I nipped at her finger. “Good.”
And before I couldn’t leave her, I stepped away. I patted Trouble’s head. “Keep her company, buddy.”
He licked my arm, and I took that as an affirmative.
“I’ll be back in a little bit.”
She nodded. “Take your time.”
I didn’t want to take any more damn time. It felt as if I’d waited a lifetime for her.
Possibly more.