Chapter Nineteen
S trolling through the Garden of Lights with Liam was the most romantic thing Val had ever experienced. The weather was frosty, though not snowy yet. Liam bought her a hot chocolate before they started, and she wore her ski parka, gloves, and hat. Liam wore his sheepskin jacket and his cowboy hat, but the cold weather didn’t seem to bother him. Liam took her gloved hand in his as they started their walk. She could almost believe they were a normal married couple who’d gotten married because they loved each other. Almost.
Val felt like she was in fairyland. The lights were multicolored, with heavy pockets of blue, green, and purple lighting the trees. There was a Santa exhibit, with Santa, his elves, and his reindeer outlined in twinkling lights of white, green, and red. Quite a few people had the same idea, some with kids who were running a little wild. She almost stepped on one who was standing dumbstruck looking at Santa. Luckily, Liam noticed and steered her clear before she tripped.
The displays of flowers, outlined in myriad colors, were beautiful. She wondered what it would be like to take her own child to the Garden of Lights one day. The baby was becoming a bit more real to her. She didn’t know about Liam. She wished for about the thousandth time that Liam had married her because he’d fallen in love with her. Even so, she knew she was lucky. He acted as if they had a real marriage. She supposed in a way they did. He would say something that made her heart sigh because it was so sweet and then the next moment they’d be making crazy love. She’d only been with a couple of other men, and she’d had no idea making love could be so…fun. So amazing.
“What are you thinking about?” Liam asked.
She flushed but she didn’t think Liam could see. She decided to answer him truthfully. “I was thinking I didn’t know sex could be so fun before you.”
He grinned. “You shouldn’t tell me things like that in public. Now I’ll be thinking about how soon I can get you home rather than enjoying the lights.”
“We are almost to the end of the exhibit.”
“You’re a devil, you know that?”
Liam might not love her, but it was clear he liked the sex. They’d made love nearly every night since Thanksgiving. For now that was great. But she had no idea how he’d react when she started showing.
Still, she wasn’t going to worry about that now. Time enough to worry later.
*
“Are you tired?” Liam asked Val after they got home. They’d both taken off their coats and boots in the mudroom.
“A little. But I’m not too tired.”
He grinned and reached for her. She came willingly, putting her arms around his neck. He kissed her slowly, taking his time to taste her, to sweep his tongue into her mouth and explore it. She tasted of hot chocolate and Val. That spicy sweetness that was the taste unique to her.
With his mouth still fused to hers, he walked her backward until the back of her knees bumped against the bed. He stopped kissing her long enough to begin stripping off her clothes. First, he pushed her sweater and T-shirt off over her head, then unhooked her bra and threw it aside. He palmed her breasts and said, “I swear your breasts are bigger.”
“That happens when you’re pregnant. They’re more sensitive too.” She sucked in a breath when he rolled her nipples between his fingers. Then she began unbuttoning his flannel shirt, helping him shrug out of it when she reached the last button.
“I’ve been thinking about this for days,” he said. He unbuttoned and unzipped her jeans, and started to push them down her legs but she stopped him.
“Let me. They’re getting tight and hard to get out of.” She shimmied out of them.
If his cock hadn’t been hard already it sure as hell would have been after watching her wiggle out of those jeans.
“How long?” she asked.
He stripped off his jeans and boxers. “How long have I been thinking about getting you naked? Since the last time we made love.”
“Which wasn’t that long ago.”
“No? Seems like it was.”
“You seem a bit obsessed. But that’s okay because I am too.”
“In that case.” He tossed her on the bed and followed her down. “These have to go,” he said, hooking his fingers in her panties and pulling them down her legs to fling them aside.
If he didn’t slow down it was all going to be over far too soon. He took one of her nipples in his mouth and sucked until it was a hard point before moving to the other one and giving it the same treatment.
Val moaned and put her hands in his hair. “Liam.”
He raised his head and looked at her. Her lips were moist, her eyes hazy with desire. He slid a hand down to play with her, to slide a finger inside her, then two. Her hips bucked and she reached for his cock but he moved away.
“If you touch me—”
“I want to touch you.”
“Next time,” he said, and kissed his way down her body to the juncture of her thighs. She gave a strangled scream when he licked her, sucked her. Kept it up until he felt her shatter. She was still in the throes of her orgasm when he entered her in a deep thrust. Her legs wrapped around his hips, taking him deeper. He drove inside her and pulled out almost all the way before plunging back in. Once, twice, long waves of pleasure battering him until he came for what seemed like hours.
Val came again, her hips rising to meet him as she tightened around him. They finally stilled and he rolled to his back, taking her with him.
“Liam.” She ran her hands through his hair, stroked his cheek and kissed him.
“What?”
“Nothing. Just Liam.”
“Val.”
She looked at him with the smile it seemed like was only for him. Man, he had it bad.
Oh, hell. He’d done the one thing he’d sworn not to do. He’d fallen in love with his wife.