Chapter 14
CHAPTER
FOURTEEN
Skye
“Do you want a robe, or are you good with a towel?” I asked.
“Towel’s good.”
We’d showered quickly, and I’d fastened my bathrobe as usual before realizing I hadn’t laid out a towel for Rob. I whisked one quickly from the rack and regretfully watched as he wrapped it around his lower body, covering himself up.
“I can leave it off, if you prefer,” he said with a wink.
I shrugged one shoulder. “I get to choose? Then I vote no towel.”
He tilted his head, laughing… but also dropped the towel the next second. Now that was a treat.
When we returned to the bedroom, he looked around, frowning.
“Our clothes are downstairs,” I reminded him.
“That’s right.”
I led him back to the living room, and only when I saw his clothes lying all around the place and my silk robe in a pile next to the kitchen counter did the events of the evening sink in.
Wow, that had escalated quickly. I grinned. Lately, I was all for that.
I felt Rob behind me. He hooked an arm around my waist. Oh, how I loved feeling that muscular arm around me, keeping me hostage against an equally muscular chest.
“Get dressed,” he murmured in my ear.
“What?”
“We’re going to my house.”
“Why?”
“That was the plan before you seduced me, remember?”
I turned around. “ I seduced you ?”
“Did you or did you not open the door wearing a robe?”
“Why were you knocking at my door in the first place?”
“Details.”
I pushed him away playfully. “I can’t decide what to wear.”
“I’ll help you decide. Try clothes on in front of me.”
I glanced at him speculatively. “Why?”
“How else should I make up my mind?”
“Why do I feel like we might not leave after all?”
“You don’t trust me much, huh?”
“Considering you attacked me because I was wearing a robe?”
“Attacked you? That’s what we’re calling it?”
He braced his palms on either side of me on the counter. I couldn’t get away from him if I wanted to… not that I did.
Instead, I used the one weapon I had: wiggling against him.
His eyes darkened almost instantly. I just loved this, especially when he flattened himself against me. His cock pressed against my belly. Wow. He was semi-hard, and I was certain it wouldn’t take much for him to have a full hard-on.
Licking my lips, I squeezed his ass.
“Woman, you want to test me?”
“Damn, thought I already was. Mental note: must improve my seduction skills.”
Rob chuckled, leaning forward and biting my neck lightly. I shrieked, getting away from him.
“So let me get this straight,” he said. “You feeling up my ass is seduction, but me kissing you in your robe is an attack?”
“Hmmm… you’re right. That was a little judgy of me. I’ll consider upgrading that to seduction too.”
He smacked my ass lightly.
“Hey, that’s no way to earn that upgrade.”
Amusement played on his lips. Next thing I knew, he sat on the couch, pulling me in his lap. Yeah, right on his erection.
“This is more like it.” Without taking his eyes off me, he held up the black lace lingerie. “Put this on. Then get dressed.”
I wiggled my eyebrows, laughing. Rob slipped his free hand in my robe, palming my breast. Pushing down my robe, he kissed the other breast, teasing my nipple with his tongue.
I tugged at his hair greedily, wanting more of whatever he planned to do. I didn’t even need to know. I was on board with everything. Except with the fact that he stopped kissing and touching the very next second.
I pouted. “What are you doing?”
“Put them on,” he said. “Or we’ll never eat.”
“Fine, I’ll be ready in a few minutes.”
Gathering the dress too, I headed upstairs.
“Why don’t you change here?” Rob asked.
“My clothes are upstairs.”
“I’ll come with you.”
I waggled a finger. “No, no. You stay here.”
Rob grinned from ear to ear. “Still don’t trust me?”
“Nah, just don’t trust myself right now.”
I noticed Rob’s grin widen before I raced up the stairs. In my room, I glanced at the sheets once and felt my face explode in a grin.
Alone in my bathroom, I had to make a concerted effort not to grin.
How was I supposed to apply lipstick this way?
After dabbing some on my lips, I pressed them together, forcing my mouth in a serious expression.
Bingo! To my dismay, the second I parted my lips, I discovered I’d transferred half the lipstick to my teeth.
Oh my God, and it was the waterproof type, which meant my teeth needed a vigorous brushing before it would come off. Then I decided I wasn’t going to apply lipstick again. I put on a simple black dress and black flats.
Back downstairs, Rob was buttoning up his shirt. Ah, it was slightly crumpled, since I’d tugged at it like a madwoman, but I was surprised his pants were still barely wrinkled. All in all, he had a just-fucked look about him. I loved it.
My purse clinked against the railing, and Rob looked up. His eyes darkened. Mission accomplished. Entering the room, I twirled once, slowly. His eyes were even darker when I faced him again. I picked up his tie from the couch, tying it around his neck.
“It’s not a very formal place, my house,” he said.
“Hey. I want the tie.”
He curled his lips in a smile. I would have thought nothing about it… except it had a dangerous edge to it.
“What?” I asked.
“Imagining how it would look wrapped around your wrists.”
Holy shit. The visual caused heat to curl through me. Even my fingers prickled on the fabric of the tie.
“Shall we?” I batted my eyelashes, taking a step back and dangling my purse in front of me.
“Show me what you’ve got,” I teased once we were inside his house. His eyes flashed. Oh, heavens.
“After you.”
Rob placed his hands on my shoulders, leading me to the barstool at the kitchen island.
“What are you doing?” I inquired.
“Making sure you have a great time.”
“Oohh… I like the sound of that. Are you going to feed me?”
“And show you my… methods.”
“I thought you already did that.”
He grinned. “That was my secret weapon. Would’ve been smarter to keep the best for last, but….”
“So what’s the rest entail?” I asked eagerly. Rob bent under the island, retrieving a bottle of Malbec. I threw my head back, laughing. “Wine, of course. Did I mention I like you?”
“Not explicitly, but I’ll take my cues from earlier,” he answered, looking me right in the eyes.
I blushed, patting the granite counter. “I’ll have a full glass, please.”
“Right away.”
He poured wine for both of us, and we clinked glasses.
“Wow, this is amazing,” I said after the first sip. I appreciated fine wine, but any would do for me, honestly. I’d gotten used to the cheap stuff in college, and it tasted good enough, so I usually grabbed what was on sale out of habit.
“It’s a Malbec from vineyards at a high altitude in Argentina. It’s heavier than the usual wine.”
I licked my lips, humming a little. “It’s just perfect. Are you trying to get me drunk and take advantage of me? Oh, wait, you already did that.”
His eyes glinted with amusement as he retrieved a platter with canapes from the fridge, placing it between us.
“Oh, you’re not cooking.” I pouted but immediately shoved two in my mouth. They were a mix of smoked salmon and ricotta, as far as I could tell. I might not be a wine connoisseur, but I’d always been a foodie.
“No, I had these delivered,” he said in between bites.
“Hmm… don’t know how I feel about that.”
He cocked a brow. “Why?”
I bought myself time by eating two more canapes, but Rob was looking at me intently.
“You look super sexy cooking. Flexing muscles when you reach for stuff, things like that.”
He burst out laughing. I looked at my glass. “What’s in this? I’ve just had two sips and my tongue is already loose.”
“Told you it’s a little stronger than the usual stuff.”
Since I was already on a slippery slope, I could also voice the rest of my thoughts.
“But since you can’t delight me with your sexy moves, maybe you can find something different?”
Rounding the corner, he came up behind me. He skimmed his thumbs up the sides of my neck. Heat speared me from the point of contact right down between my thighs. My nipples tightened. I moaned at the unexpected sensation, and Rob stepped closer, bringing his mouth to my ear.
“Or we can just do this,” he said.
“Ha! I knew it. You lured me here for more sexy times.”
He spun me around the next second, until I was face-to-face with him. His eyes were hard, his mouth set in a firm line. He pressed his thumb on the bow of my upper lip, and I was on fire. It was all I could do not to squirm in my chair.
Next thing I knew, he lifted me up. I hung tight to him with one hand and held my glass precariously in the other.
“Hey, don’t make me spill my wine.”
“You can just leave the glass there and I’ll bring it to you.”
I tilted my head back as if I was considering it, then shook it vigorously. “Nah, don’t want to be apart from it. Not even if it means I could fondle you with both hands.”
“One glass and you’re already preferring Malbec over me?”
I wiggled my eyebrows. “What can I say? I’m easily swayed.”
He brought me to an armchair. At first, I wondered if we’d both fit on it, but we did. Well… almost. I had to half straddle him, but I wasn’t complaining.
“I’ll see how I can sway things back in my favor,” he murmured.
I took another sip from my glass before putting it on the small side table next to us.
“I can give you a few tips.” I rested my head on his chest, playing my fingers down that gorgeous six-pack.
Then, suddenly, I remembered a detail.
“When are you going for your run?”
“I’ll skip it tonight.”
“Want to do Pilates with me tomorrow morning? You still haven’t said anything about that deal.”
“Skye, no way in hell am I doing Pilates. That was just a ruse.”
“To get in my pants?”
“To spend time with you… and yes, get in your pants.”
“I appreciate your honesty,” I said, just before I burst out laughing. Rob chuckled.
We just sat there, entwined, except for the few minutes in which he went to the kitchen, bringing the bottle and his glass back with him.
“You’re great at this. I haven’t been so relaxed in a long while,” I said after a bit. It wasn’t the wine, it was him, just him. “Almost forgot about that stupid text.”
Rob groaned. “Almost isn’t good enough.”
“Well, honestly, I just remembered because I was thinking hard about why I was pissed off in the first place.”
“How long did you date him?”
“About two months.”
“So not a long-term thing.”
“No, honestly… my last long-term relationship was in college. Afterward, it was mostly dating, not relationships, you know?”
“Was that something you wanted or just the way things worked out?”
“Both, I guess. There was rarely a guy who stuck around for too long or didn’t try to pull one over me. Once, I discovered that a coworker who was flirting with me had a long-term girlfriend.”
“Shit.”
“Yeah… that felt just like that. Like I was shit.”
“You’re an amazing woman, Skye. Don’t let anyone’s actions make you think otherwise.”
God, his words were so kind and sincere.
“Thank you. Anyway, all in all, I actually embraced the single life. I like it. Did that sound weird?”
He laughed, kissing my neck. “No, just honest. And I understand where you’re coming from. Haven’t had a long-term relationship in years either.”
I was happy we were having this conversation, that we were both so relaxed about sharing everything.
“What time is it? I should probably go home,” I murmured.
“No you don’t. I told you I didn’t get enough of you today, and I meant it.” He drew his thumb over my lips, watching me intently. “Do you have to be at the store tomorrow?”
“No. Tess and I are trying this new thing where we take off the entire weekend and are leaving our sales associates in charge.”
“Good. Then we can stay up late and be up to no good.”
“That’s right.”