16
Rowan
Counter Offer
“Yes, I can change my mind,” said Vivian, as if she was slightly offended that he thought she needed the reminder. “But I haven’t. I’m just wondering if there’s going to be food.”
“Before, after, or during?” he asked, trying to figure out what he would serve in each scenario. Vivian giggled, and he swung her car door closed as he leaned down to kiss her. Her lips were so soft that he almost forgot that they’d been speaking about something.
“I have food. But I will order you whatever you want,” Rowan said, trying to answer her immediate needs.
“It is Tuesday,” she said.
He stared at her blankly, unsure of what Tuesday had to do with anything.
“So, I’m asking for tacos.”
“Ah. Sorry. I’m not opposed to tacos,” he said, taking out his phone.
“But I think somewhere along the way, I didn’t get the memo.
I got back from Afghanistan, and suddenly, everyone knew what Tuesday was for.
There was a tidal taco shift in society, and no one told me.
” He punched in what he wanted and then handed her the phone.
“The Lego movie probably came out. It nationalized the awareness of Tuesday’s taco compatibility.”
Rowan chuckled. “Possibly. I never saw it. Give me just a second.”
He opened the door to the house and turned on the lights, checking the pathways to the livable portion of the house. She followed behind him, putting in her meal selection.
“Just hit order when you’re done.”
“OK, here is... Oh, you live in a construction zone.”
“Yeah, sorry. They say it will be done next month, and the parts that are done are comfortable. We just have to navigate through the mess.”
“OK, but here’s your phone.”
“Oh, hold onto it for a second.” He walked through, secured any loose material, and pinned back the hanging clear tarp for her. She came after him, still holding out his phone. “You can put it on the counter. I’m just going to take my jacket off.”
“Rowan!” she protested, laughing.
“What?”
“You can’t leave your phone with a girl!”
“Why not?”
“They’ll go through it!”
“And see what? My email thread on contracting, or the fifty million photos of my nephew? Or the drunk text from Teddy telling me the company should buy a horse? I saved that one for the company Christmas party.”
Vivian laughed harder.
“Girls will look for photos of other girls.”
“Yeah, I’m old enough and just that single that I don’t do naughty things with my phone.” He hung up his jacket and shoved the phone in his back pocket.
“What? Nothing naughty? Nothing at all?” She looked skeptical. “All that time being deployed, and it never occurred to you to send naked anything to anyone?”
“Operational security says destroy all evidence after the mission is complete.”
And the last time Rowan had done any sexting was when he was with Melissa, and he’d deleted every photo of her he could find.
“A reasonable policy,” agreed Vivian, still looking amused.
He couldn’t believe that he’d just admitted to how single and old he actually was. Shouldn’t he be trying to minimize that? On the other hand, she ought to know what she was in for. He was a dumb jarhead who got lucky and knew how to manage people. He would never be that cool.
“I am going to go turn on the front door lights and turn off the security system on the gate for the delivery guy. I will be right back.”
He walked toward the front door and had just finished punching in the code when his phone chirped.
He took it out and saw a text from Vivian.
Confused, he opened it and immediately gasped at the photo of Vivian sitting on his kitchen island with her top unbuttoned. The granite had never looked so good.
“Vivian!” he yelled down the hall, kicking off his shoes.
“Your phone needed some love!” she yelled back.
He turned on the sound system from his phone and walked back into the kitchen, unbuttoning his shirt as Marvin Gaye started to play.
“What can I say? I’m a little bit naughty.” She had removed her shoes, and her stocking-clad feet kicked playfully as she unbuttoned a few more buttons on her dress.
“I think I like naughty girls,” he said.
“Are you going to spank me?” she asked innocently, but her eyes sparkled with mischief as she nibbled at one of her fingertips.
“Baby, I will bend you over whatever you want.”
It was like she couldn’t stop the giggle that burst out of her, and it made her breasts bounce. If delight could be personified, it would look like Vivian.
“Come here,” he growled, burying one hand in her hair and pulling her close.
Her lips were fire against his. Soft, hot, and divine.
In contrast, her cool fingers finished unbuttoning his shirt and pushed it off his shoulders, trailing gorgeous shivering lines down his chest. He returned the favor until she was as naked as she had been on his desk.
Her lingerie was more extensive than he usually dealt with, but having had a previous look, he was pretty sure he knew how to get her out of it.
First up was the garter belt. The little clips went ping, and with a simple slide of his hand, more of her silky thighs became available.
She gave a little moan as he used his teeth to drag her bra straps off her shoulders.
He was a little torn on the bra. The damn bow cutouts over her nipples made him crazy, but he wanted all of her with nothing in the way.
He pushed her dress off, then reached around and undid the bra.
“Rowan?” she moaned as he tossed her bra over his shoulder.
“Mm,” he murmured between kisses.
“I think you’re giving me a furniture fetish. I really want…”
Her hands fumbled for his belt buckle.
“Mm,” he said, pulling back and grabbing her hand to stop her before she sent his pants toward the floor at warp speed. She looked up at him, tensing at his unexpected halt. He reached back and pulled out first his phone and then his pistol, set them down on the counter.
“My lingerie is less fun,” he said. “And doesn’t like being dropped.”
“Forgot about that,” she said breathlessly. Then she glanced at the gun. “Beretta? Just couldn’t make the switch to the M18?” Her roguish expression told him she knew damn well he would have an opinion about the Marines switching the standard sidearm.
“Shut your filthy mouth,” he growled, pulling her off the counter.
He silenced her giggle with a kiss as he worked her panties off.
The little wisp of silk and lace slid down and onto the floor, and he was about to put her back on the counter when he pulled back and looked down into her beautiful gray eyes.
Her lips were plump from his kisses, and he couldn’t wait to taste them again, but she had said…
He flicked one hand and made a resounding smack against her ass. She gave a gasp and pressed herself against him.
“Naughty girl,” he whispered as she sank her teeth into his chest in tiny nibbles.
“Do it again,” she whispered back.
One more smack on her ass made her wriggle against him and him rock hard. It was possible he shared her furniture fetish. He put his hands around her waist and lifted her back onto the island. She made a little surprised noise.
“Cold,” she said to his questioning noise.
She fumbled for his belt again, and this time, he let her continue.
He hadn’t been aware at the time it had been installed, but this portion of the counter was precisely the right height.
He would have to ask Forest how to send the installers a tip—they’d been very insistent about having the correct counter levels.
He groaned as she pushed his pants and then his boxers off his hips. A quick assist to free his legs, and they were both buck ass naked in his kitchen. It wasn’t the weirdest place he’d ever had sex, but he suspected it was about to skyrocket into his top ten favorites.
Vivian’s arms wrapped around his neck, luring him in closer. Then she grazed his leg with her foot, bringing it up along his thigh in a sensual, insistent point of contact. He sank into her kiss again as she wrapped her legs around his waist.
She tried to pull him into her, and he resisted for no other reason than he liked to feel the strength of her legs.
“Rowan!” she complained as he cupped her breast, teasing the nipple with his fingers and her pussy with his cock.
“Rowan,” she moaned.
Finally, he gave in and rocked his hips forward, pushing inside her.
“Oh, fuck me,” gasped Vivian, and Rowan couldn’t help laughing, although it was breathless.
“Yes, ma’am,” he said, although he didn’t think she’d meant it as an order.
Her head fell back as he thrust into her again, arching and holding herself up with her hands on his shoulders. It was a goddamn gorgeous view, and she felt even better.
He ran his hand down her torso. From the glorious handful of her breasts, her tiny waist, and soft belly that flowed into the hips and legs that were wrapped around him, she curved in all the right places. He took a firmer grip on her hips, which made her moan and cling to him tighter.
He felt lost in the sensation of being with her.
The sound of her voice. The sensation of being inside her.
The heat of her skin against his. He curled his hand around the back of her neck, bringing her closer so he could taste her lips again.
With each thrust, it was as if they moved nearer to finding their own unique rhythm until they moved together in a perfect synchronization of push and pull, and they were both gasping at the rising sense of urgency.
Her eyes closed, her bottom lip quivering as she made the tiniest whimper.
“Rowan, please,” she whispered, her tone fragile with longing.
Nothing was better than this. Vivian was another word for heaven.
He thrust harder, and she gasped. “Yes! Oh, please, yes!”
Her fingers dug into his shoulders, and she arched, her legs spreading wider, silently inviting him to take her. He gave up and gave in, driving into her until she reached up and her hand clenched into his hair.
“Oh, God, yes!”
He came a moment later, pleasure searing down his spine, muscles tightening across his chest.
She nuzzled into his neck, panting, and he held her tight. He felt hot, empty, and gloriously electrified all at once.
His phone had three alerts in a row, dinging with what felt like overly loud insistence, and Vivian squeaked in panic and clung to him tighter.
“I am not getting in a cupboard!”
“Doors are locked,” he said, trying to keep from laughing. “You’re not going anywhere.”
He grabbed his phone while maintaining his hold on Vivian. He had no intention of letting her go.
“That was the app, a text, and another text, all telling me that tacos are on the porch. No emergency. Just food.”
Vivian giggled breathlessly and buried her face in the crook of his neck. He put his face into her hair and inhaled, wanting to memorize the scent of her and the feeling of her in his arms.