Chapter Five
Neal
After Will charged out, Penelope and I were both restless. It was a day off, but I knew that wouldn’t really apply to someone in her position, and I was right. We sat on the L-shaped sofa in her living room, meaningless TV droning on as she scrolled her phone, answering messages left and right. One or two episodes into a medical drama, I could feel her attention on me.
“You want to ask me something.”
“Again with the no-small-talk thing,” Penelope said with a smile. “I love that. And yes, I guess I do.”
I twisted on the sofa to face her, careful not to rub my stitches against the plush cushions. “Well, what is it?”
Were her cheeks a little pink? She was definitely fiddling with her phone. “Did you have someone else? You know, before you came here?”
“Are you worried you stole me away?” I grinned at her, and I knew she was surprised because a soft giggle left her. My heart skittered. That noise… Fuck, that noise. I wanted to hear it a hundred times a day.
Penelope blinked rapidly, looking down at her phone. “I guess I was a little. We’ve been consuming so much of your time. If there’s someone else, we need to make sure they know you’re okay. I would be so worried if…”
“There’s no one else. There hasn’t been for years.”
I could feel the couch cushions dip as Penelope moved towards me. Her voice was soft when she continued. “You had a wife, though?”
“She died, a little over five years ago now.”
“I’m so sorry.”
“Thank you. I didn’t think I’d ever find someone; we married later in life. But…” I hesitated, unsure how much information to give out. “I loved her more than she loved me. Or perhaps I loved the idea of her. I was obsessed with the idea of getting married, having a family. It clouded my perspective.”
Penelope snorted a soft laugh. “I can understand that. It’s a powerful motivator.” She curled her feet on the cushion, pulling herself into a tighter ball. Before I thought too much of it, I tugged a blanket off the arm of the sofa nearest to me and tossed it over her, letting my arms gather her close.
Pleasure surged through me as she let me touch her, tucking her in close until her feet were pressed against my thigh, her shoulder tucked under mine.
“You’re warm.”
“My finest quality,” I said but let my lips curl a little as she settled against me.
She hummed, her petite body fitting against mine with an ease that made my cock throb. I hadn’t felt this way towards anyone in so long. But what she was doing to me… I needed to get control over it. In a few minutes, I promised myself. In a few minutes, I would push her away. But for now, I would allow myself this tiny pleasure.
An hour later, I had her delicate little foot in my hand as I gently massaged the arch. “Why do you wear them if they make your feet so sore?”
“Because they look pretty, Neal.”
I chuckled, releasing her foot. “The fact that you limped across the room is enough reason to burn them all to ashes.”
She rolled her eyes good-naturedly. “No one other than you is worried about how my ankles are doing.”
My body heated as she bit into her bottom lip. I was desperate to soothe that little habit with my thumb, or better yet my mouth. It would be so easy, so simple to tug it above her, to find the other and hold them together so that she was completely under my control. When we kissed, she could curl her fingers with mine, but what I held, what I wanted to touch, it would be mine for the taking.
Fuck me. I nearly flinched as my thoughts ran away with me. I needed to get distance between us but still couldn’t make myself move away from her. Penelope was proving to be the ultimate temptation—brains, beauty, and a laugh that made me want to hold her in my arms and never let her go.
“Someone should look after you.”
Penelope's half-turned pretty face was bemused as she regarded me. “I have a company full of people who look after me.”
“No, I mean really look after you.” I brushed a hand over her thigh. The pajama pants she’d thrown on were so thin I could feel the warmth of her skin right through them. Her muscles trembled, and I felt her breath rush out.
“Neal…”
“Someone who knows what you need, want you really want,” I murmured, my fingers tracing designs against her inner thighs. She parted them with a rattling sigh.
“No one will want to do that for me.”
I groaned, turning my head so that my nose pressed against her hair. “I would sell my soul to the devil himself for the chance to take care of you.”
She shivered against me. “You want that? What would you do?”
My mind filled with need as my cock ached. Her hands, so close already, might brush across me at any moment. Then she would know just how badly I wished it would happen. The fear and joy at that thought nearly undid me. The chance to finally destroy this charade that I had been playing at. There was no denying the connection between us. It was a constant burning need to be close, stronger than anything I’d ever experienced. And I knew that while I was keeping my distance, she still was too.
I didn’t want to scare her away. Even if it might be better for both of us. I didn’t deserve someone like her.
“What would I do? I would support you every step of the way, but when you came home, when you came to me…” My breath hitched as her hand gripped my thigh, her fingers dangerously close to my erection. “When you came to me, you’d be mine. Mine to touch, mine to care for, mine to pleasure. All you’d have to worry about was just how many times you wanted to come before I—”
My words were cut off as Penelope suddenly shifted, her leg going across my lap until her body was pressed against my cock, her lips cutting off the ragged moan that the movement stole from me.
She tasted like cinnamon from her cereal, and her weight over me was heavenly. My hands found her hips, stilling the pulsing movements she was inevitably making against my cock.
“Penny, baby…” I pulled away, her face so close to mine I could see her eyes darken even further. “We don’t have to do anything right now. I’m in no rush.”
I’d waited my whole life to feel this way about a woman, and while I knew I couldn’t keep her, that didn’t stop me from wanting her. And maybe just for the shortest time, I could let that selfish part of me rule my actions. But I would wait until she surrendered completely. My cock might protest, but we could wait.
To my surprise, Penelope smiled at me, her fingers running over my lips. “Two.”
I tilted my head. “Two?”
“You told me all I had to worry about was how many times…”
My mouth was on hers in an instant, her hands in my overgrown hair, tugging me closer as I guided her hips along my length. She was so eager, her movements quick as she ground herself down on me.
I wasn’t going to be able to manage in this position. Her hot thighs against my needy cock were going to make me explode before I even got her undressed. With utmost care, I shifted us, falling sideways onto the couch so that she was under me, her legs twining around mine as we continued to kiss.
My cock notched against the heat of her pussy, the thin fabric of our sleepwear the only thing keeping us apart. Penelope groaned as my cockhead pushed at the fabric of her clothes, no doubt rubbing against her clit.
“Do you like that spot, little girl?” I asked, tearing my mouth off hers so that I could drag it down her throat. “I think I want to feel you come on my fingers first. Then I’ll taste you.”
Penelope groaned, sharp nails digging into my scalp as I pressed my cock against her once more. “Right there. Oh fuck, yes.”
I moved my hips against, riding her even through our clothes as I stared down at her in wonder. She was going to come, just like this, with our clothes on. My cock ached with the idea of this sensitive, eager pussy against me.
“Is that it?” I reached a hand into the back of her pants, cupping her ass so that I could thrust against her even harder. My shoulder twinged, but I ignored it. “Is that what you need?”
Penelope’s head pushed into the cushions as her hips worked up against mine. Carefully, I slipped a finger down the crease of her ass and grazed her pussy with a fingertip. She was soaked, her panties wet and the silken skin slick from her need.
“Fuck, little girl, look at you,” I moaned, clamping my jaw down in an attempt to hold myself back as she went off around me.
“Oh,” she cried out, her body rolling against me. “Daddy!”
I couldn’t stop it; not the moan that tore from my throat at the name on her lips, not the wave of hot cum that pulsed from me. She had completely undone me. And as she slowly relaxed, her chest heaving as I pressed lazy kisses against her collarbone and removed my hand from her pants.
“Wow, I…” She flushed bright pink. “I don’t think I’ve ever called anyone that.” She covered her face. “I’m so sorry if I freaked you out.”
I halted her words with a soft kiss. “I’ve never been called that, but it was hot, Penny. So fucking hot.” I brushed her hair back from her forehead, pleased that she relaxed further at my words. “You made me come in my pants, little girl. I can’t remember the last time that happened.”
Penelope’s eyes went wide as I pulled away and sat back on the couch before standing. “Are you…are you leaving?”
I froze, turning to look back at her. “Honey, I’m just changing clothes. That was only one, and I believe you requested two.”
Her jaw actually dropped, and I didn’t stop the roar of laughter that slipped free. I walked fast, entering my suite and dropping my clothes quickly in the hamper while I snatched a nearly identical set from the drawer. Her older brother might be an ass, but he was right. I did need something else to wear. Maybe I could talk about me paying her back after I drove her to another orgasm.
I charged back into the room, stopping short when I saw Madeline perched on the kitchen breakfast bar, her phone in hand.
“Hello,” I said, hoping to God she didn’t know what I'd just done to her mother.
Madeline’s eyes darted to me then over to where her mother sat, suddenly fascinated by the television. “What’s up?”
“Not much,” I stuttered out, taking a tub of leftovers out of the fridge and beginning to open it, adrenaline still flooding my system. Thankfully my cock was just as terrified as I was and had immediately gone soft.
“Still good to shop tomorrow, right?”
I didn’t dare turn around even now. “Yeah, sure. Sorry the other day didn’t work out. Physical therapy and stuff.”
Madeline snorted. “Don’t sound so excited.”
I got a fork out of the drawer. My hands still smelled like her mother. Fuck. I put the fork down, turning to offer her my most civil smile. “I'm excited, just nervous.”
Madeline’s glee did nothing to ease my fears or the anxious excitement that I felt when Penelope and I made eye contact across the room. Slowly, my fear eased, replaced by something I hadn’t experienced in a very long time.
And as I watched Madeline wander down the hall to her room. I realized how easy it was to be here. How good it felt to be a part of something again.
Another set of nerves swept over me. But that wasn’t the fear of being caught. It was the fear of losing everything. Again.