16. Zoe
SIXTEEN
ZOE
I could barely finish my dinner.
The grilled chicken was delicious, and the summer salad had the perfect mix of sweet strawberries and crunchy walnuts, but all I could do during the meal was sneak looks at Josh down at the end of the table.
That kiss .
It was all the permission I needed to let the fantasies I’d been suppressing take over. And now they were making me lose my appetite. The only thing I wanted to consume was Josh.
Shannon seemed oblivious and filled the silence with talk about the latest breeding program gossip. The world of horse breeding appeared to be part science and part equine matchmaking, and I had no idea how my BFF knew so much.
“I told that guy that we specialize in light horses for cutting, roping, and reining lines, but he insisted we also breed western pleasure mares, which we’ve never done.
Can you even imagine? I mean, way to mansplain my own business to me!
” she fumed as she ran her hand along the back of her hair, smoothing the auburn ringlets that had sprung out of her bun.
“I tell you, it’s not easy being a woman in this business. ”
“Is this the same guy who called you, ‘little lady?’” I asked her.
“Oh no, different one. The older ones are all like that. It’s incredibly frustrating and I didn’t dare chew him out because I knew it’d make things worse.”
“Are you sure you don’t want me to step in and handle it?” Josh asked in his big brother way. I knew Shannon would say no before she started shaking her head.
“Nope, I’ve got it. No offense, big brother, but having you jump in to speak on my behalf would only reaffirm that jerk’s belief that women don’t belong in this industry. But I appreciate the offer anyway.”
“I totally understand the mansplaining thing,” I agreed. “Being a woman in computer science can be tough.”
“I bet!” Shannon exclaimed. “Speaking of, how’s the website coming along? I’m so excited for the launch.”
“Getting closer every day. I just need a few more photos and I’ll be ready.”
I could feel Josh’s eyes on me, but I refused to look at him. I couldn’t, because locking eyes with him would turn the pleasant family meal into foreplay.
“Josh said something about helping you out with some horse pictures today. Did you get everything you needed?”
Josh coughed to stifle a laugh, then quickly picked up his beer to hide his smile.
“Um,” I said, squirming in my seat. I couldn’t resist playing with him a little. “Almost. I came really close to getting what I wanted. Let’s just say I got a taste of the finished product.”
“What are you trying to capture?” Shannon asked.
His heart?
“She’s trying to get a photo that sums everything up,” Josh jumped in. “One that takes the past into consideration as well as where we are now.”
I swallowed hard. Was he saying what I thought he was saying?
Shannon squinted and looked from me to Josh. “Wait…I’m confused. Are you talking about horses ?”
“Yes, but also the spirit of the ranch,” I said quickly. “It’s a lot.”
Shannon kicked her leg up on her chair and leaned back. “You two are a good team.”
I finally managed to look over at Josh. His eyes were boring into me with an unmistakable intensity. And the look on his face was one I remembered well.
It was the one that said “I want you” in no uncertain terms.
I shivered. What was he doing to me?
I realized that I needed to say something back to Shannon, but I was having a hard time forming words. All I could think about was what I was going to do to him once the sun went down.
“We are a good team,” Josh finally said, breaking the awkward silence. “In so many ways.”
I glanced at Shannon to see how the comment landed, but she was already standing up to clear the table.
“Josh, you’re up on dish duty tonight,” she said. “Get to it. ”
“Okay, guys,” I said as I stood up. “I’m uh, I’m going to take a shower.”
“Enjoy!” Shannon chirped as she clattered near the sink.
I headed out of the kitchen and threw a last glance over my shoulder at Josh. He looked like he wanted to personally scrub me down from head to toe, and I shivered again.
Was he going to join me?
I flipped my pillow to the cool side for the millionth time that night. I was hot, and it had nothing to do with the temperature outside.
I’d lingered in the shower for way longer than I normally would, letting my hands explore my body, pretending it was Josh dipping between my legs and grazing my breasts.
I’d stopped just short of letting myself teeter over the brink into the release of an orgasm, hoping that he’d stride into the room and take me there in the steam-filled room himself, but he’d never appeared.
Now, I was frustrated, horny, and nowhere near sleepy.
I thought about my battery-operated friend hiding in the drawer by my bed. I started to reach for it but then shot up in the bed in shock.
No.
I had a real, live, flesh and blood man who clearly wanted me at the other end of the house. We were both consenting adults who had made our desires perfectly clear. There was no reason for batteries when I could have Josh.
This time I wasn’t going to wait for him to be the instigator. I was taking charge .
I crept out of my bed and looked down to consider what I was wearing. A white cropped tank top that showed off my flat stomach and black undies. Yes, fine, it was sexy enough.
I tiptoed down the hall, moving in slow motion as I passed by Shannon’s door so as not to make the floor squeak. When I got to Josh’s room, I took a deep breath and paused before pushing it open.
His room was dark, the only light coming from his phone’s sleep screen on the table across the room.
I stopped to plan my next move. Should I wake him up with a kiss? Slip under the sheet and wake him in a more creative way? I was so up in my head that I didn’t realize that Josh had flipped onto his side and was staring at me.
“Hey, you,” he whispered.
“Eep!” I let out a muffled shriek, then slapped one hand over my mouth. “You’re awake.”
“Couldn’t sleep.”
“Same,” I answered.
The silence hung between us, everything that was both unspoken and understood. I couldn’t wait another moment to feel him again, so I crossed the room quickly and climbed into bed on top of him. I leaned down and kissed him before he could say anything more.
Josh met the kiss like he was starving and the only thing that would satisfy him was me. The kiss stoked the fire that had been smoldering all day, and I felt arousal winding itself tight inside as I sat on top of him. I ground my hips against him, enjoying the sensation, as our lips slid together.
When Josh pulled back abruptly, I almost cried out in frustration .
“What’s wrong?” I asked. Now that my eyes had adjusted to the darkness, I could see the concern creasing his brow.
“Zo, we don’t have to do this. Just because I kissed you today doesn’t mean I’m owed this.”
Owed? Oh no. “This isn’t about owing anyone anything. However, you also have to know that you can’t kiss a girl like that and not expect her to get ideas.”
I was hovering above him with my elbows on the pillow on either side of his head. He was basically trapped.
“So you’re okay with…us?”
I wiggled on top of him, smiling when he groaned. “I am very okay with this, Josh Cafferty.”
Apparently, that was all he needed to hear. Josh wrapped one arm around my shoulders and the other around my waist and flipped me over so that he was on top of me. He gazed down at me, his eyes searching my face.
“What are you waiting for?” I whispered.
Josh dropped his mouth on top of mine and kissed me deeply.
I arched into him, and he responded by pushing his hard length against me.
I scrambled to pull down the sheet separating our bodies without stopping the kiss.
It turned into a frantic, fumbling moment that had us both laughing with our mouths pressed together until the sheet was down and our bodies could finally touch.
His shirt was off, so I let my hands travel down the sides of his body, relishing in the feel of his skin and the way he responded to my touch.
The tensing of his abs, the shiver as my fingertips danced along his hip bone.
Was his skin always so smooth? Josh worked his hand between our bodies and slid down until he slipped his fingers under the thin fabric of my undies.
I ground against his hand as he started stroking my warmth.
He groaned when I slid my mouth away from his to nibble on his earlobe.
I could feel the waves of pleasure building within me as he slid his thumb over my slick nub.
I closed my eyes and pressed my forehead into Josh’s neck as his stroking brought me closer to the edge.
I wanted to scream out as he inched me toward the brink.
Josh alternated between slipping his fingers inside me and teasing the center of my pleasure until the sensations twisted and it was all I could do to keep from crying out.
“Josh, I’m close. So very close.”
He quickened his pace, in and out of my soft folds, until the climax ripped through me. I bit my lip to quiet my cries as my whole body shuddered. Josh held still against me as I rode out the last spasms.
“I’m not done with you,” I whispered, my lips pressed against his ear. “I need you inside of me.”
He didn’t say a word as he slid off the end of the bed and gently pulled me to the edge. I arched my back and shrugged off my tank top while Josh pulled down my undies, then stripped his boxer briefs off.
His erection popped up, looking painful it was so hard, and I practically licked my lips at the sight. I started to sit up and reach for him, but he gently pushed me back down, shaking his head. He gazed at my naked body with the naughtiest smile I’d ever seen playing on his lips.
“I forgot how perfect you are, Zo,” he said as he took me in. “Oh, the things I’m going to do to you.”
He dropped to his knees and pushed his way between my legs.
“Josh!” I said in a loud whisper as I felt his warm breath teasing me. “No fair. ”
“Just a little kiss hello, that’s all.”
He placed his lips against my seam and my entire body trembled. Josh paused, holding the kiss, then let his tongue dart into me. I felt need waking up in my body again.
“I want you, Josh. Now,” I whispered. It was torture to stop him, but I wasn’t sure if I’d be coherent after two pre-sex orgasms.
Josh stood up and reached for the nightstand drawer. He opened the condom wrapper and slipped it on, and the next thing I knew, he was hovering at my entrance, the tip of his cock teasing me.
“Please, Josh.”
“Are you begging me, Zoe Wilson?”
I bit my lip and nodded.
It was all the invitation he needed. He gradually slid inside me and his head fell back in ecstasy and he moaned my name. I pushed my hips against him and he came back to life, slowly working in and out of me in a tantalizing rhythm that lit me up inside.
The angle at the edge of the bed put me exactly where I wanted to be, each stroke teasing me closer to another orgasm.
I felt the tension coiling inside me again, and the climax that ripped through me was even better than the first. I couldn’t stop my little moans and sighs although I tried to keep them softer than normal, for Shannon’s sake.
My noises had always driven him crazy, and a few seconds later, Josh was bucking against me, fighting back his own sounds of pleasure.
Once he’d disposed of the condom, he collapsed on top of me, panting, and I wrapped my legs around his waist and squeezed him closer.
“Holy moly, I’ve missed that,” he panted. “I’ve missed you .”
“Same,” I breathed, and tried not to think about how perfect everything felt at that moment .
I lay there in his arms wondering if I should return to my room, but I didn’t want to move.
When it came to sex and lovemaking, we were always good together.
Even with all the fumbling when we were younger, once we got into the rhythm, everything just felt right.
No matter what happened between us, sex with Josh was something I would never regret.