Chapter 4
CHAPTER FOUR
Delilah
Once we lit the match, the fuse didn’t just spark. It exploded like fireworks.
All rational thought flew out the window. “Take me home tonight.” I demanded, still unable to catch my breath. The skin on my knees and elbows stung like a bitch, and I needed something to take away the pain.
“Are you sure?” Banks growled, his hands white knuckling the steering wheel. “Because…fuck…” His voice trailed off, and I watched him like an animal watched its prey, hanging on every damn word he was about to utter.
“Because what?”
He turned his head and locked eyes with me, his piercing gaze turning my blood into molten lava, my heart a volcano in full-blown eruption.
“Because once I have you in my bed, I don’t plan on ever letting you go.”
My heart pounded so hard, I swore my rib cage would crack wide open.
His words scared the shit out of me.
What if I ruined everything, I set up for myself here because of what I thought was the real thing but only turned out to be pretend?
What if he broke my heart and left me running back to my parent’s house and hiding out in my childhood bedroom?
I never let these questions deter me before and I certainly wasn’t going to now.
“What if I told you I would like that?”
Banks’s eyes flashed, and he sat up straighter in his seat. “Hold on tight. We’ll be there in five minutes.”
It felt like the longest five minutes of my life, but when he finally pulled into a long-paved driveway and parked in front of a small, cozy cabin, his place even more excluded than mine. I liked how far back he was from the main road, only the sounds of nature echoing through the mountain.
Before cutting the engine, Banks turned and looked at me. “Okay, I need to confess.”
“What? This isn’t really your place but your parents and they’re waiting inside?”
Banks threw his head back in laughter, the loud sound echoing around the cab of the truck. “Nope. Sounds like something a shitty date told you.”
“More like a Lifetime movie I watched last week.”
“I’m not surprised. The drama in those is insane.”
“Confess already.”
“I think it’s rude to sleep with a woman without at least buying her dinner first.”
I eyed him suspiciously.
“I know. I sound corny, but my parents raised me with manners. And you, pretty lady, need to be treated with the utmost respect.”
“Wow, a true gentleman. Be still my heart.” I clapped a hand over my chest and failed miserably at holding back my laughter. “My mama didn’t raise a fool. I’d love some dinner.”
Banks laughed more. “How’s takeout sound?”
“Perfect.”
After feasting on a veggie pizza and BBQ chicken wings, Banks showed me around his cabin, the one-bedroom space tight but enough to make it work.
He had a large living room and eat-in kitchen spread out together in an open room concept, with a half bathroom, and far in the back, a master suite bedroom complete with a full bathroom.
A set of sliding glass doors led out to the backyard, complete with a fence and patio area.
“I like it. Reminds me of the cabin I rented.”
“In Appleridge?”
I nodded. “About a five-minute drive up the mountain. I enjoy being secluded, away from all the noise.”
“Me too. My parents and my sister, Lori, think I’m crazy. She moved to the city after marrying her lawyer husband and my parents live a few towns over, in a more developed small town, preferring it to the hustle and bustle of the city.”
“My parents and my younger brother are the same way. But we all end up where we’re supposed to in the end. I truly believe that.”
We talked about our childhoods, both of us raised by strong, loving parents, but in different sibling roles. My younger brother followed me around and copied me, while he barely paid any attention to his older sister, only growing closer to her as they got older.
“Did you always like doing massages?” Banks handed me an ice cream cone before licking his.
“Yes. the human body has always fascinated me, especially with how the muscles work. I studied it all the time, choosing classes that focused on the specific systems I liked. I practiced on fake mannequins until my technique got better.”
Banks listened and hung on to every word like I was the best storyteller in all the land.
“What about you?”
“The whole lumberjack thing kind of fell into my lap. I had been doing odd jobs here and there around town, but nothing special. Then Clay’s crew came to town, and I applied, not knowing what to expect.
He brought me on as an apprentice. But I got all of my training from him and soon, I was hired as a full-time employee. ”
After finishing our cones, Banks took me by the hand and led me to his bedroom. “Can I ask for a slow dance?”
“Sure,” I said, my curiosity piqued.
Inside his room, Banks picked up a remote and pressed a couple of buttons, one dimming the lights, while the other turned on soft music.
Then he took me in his arms and spun me around in a circle, my wounds from earlier forgotten.
I laughed, my head spinning as he slowed me down and kissed my forehead.
We took our time, staying embraced in the song, our hands beginning to explore where our mouths have yet to taste.
Soon his hands found my hair and worked themselves around to the back of my neck, making a fist with my soft tendrils as he yanked my head back, gentle yet demanding at the same time.
It wasn’t long before his mouth found my neck and latched onto my sweet spot below my ear, his tongue swirling on the skin before sucking hard. When he lifted his mouth, he blew on the wet skin, his hot breath on my cool skin sending shivers from my head to my toes.
“Can I have my way with you now, Delilah?”
His voice, nothing but a growl full of hot desire and need, went straight to between my legs, the need for friction there multiplying by the second.
“As long as you promise to make me come.”
“Oh baby, I don’t need to promise. It will happen. It’s only a matter of time.”