17. Chapter 17
Chapter 17
B ailey shifted her body and moved her legs slightly further apart as she stood at the mirror doing her hair the following morning. Her body protested the movement. She was sore in the best possible way. Yesterday, after their breakfast out, they’d rushed back to the apartment and barely left the bedroom for the rest of the day. She’d never had this much sex in her life. Now she knew how the women in her smutty books felt. Bloody amazing!
“Bay,” Gonzo called from her bedroom.
“In here, I’m just about ready.”
Gonzo wandered into the bathroom. His gaze slid slowly down her body, then back up.
Bailey paused mid-curl. “Uh-uh, mister, stop looking at me like that.”
He stalked closer to her. “Like what?”
“You know what. Don’t even think about it.” She held out her curling iron and pointed it at him. “I have to get you to the airport. We don’t have time for that, and I’m way too sore for what you’re thinking.”
He pulled up short and winced. “Did I hurt you?”
Bailey rolled her eyes. “You didn’t hurt me. I’m just a little tender, that’s all.”
Gonzo grinned. “Want me to kiss it better?”
Bailey laughed. “No. What I want you to do is let me finish getting ready so I don’t make you late.”
“You don’t have to take me to the airport, Bay.”
“I want to.” When Gonzo had mentioned he’d never had a woman drive him to the airport before, she’d immediately offered. It surprised her how much she wanted to take him. She didn’t just want to be the first woman to take him, she wanted to be the only woman.
He grinned. “Good.” Gonzo leaned against the wall and crossed one foot over the other like he was settling in.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
He shrugged. “I don’t know, watching you get ready.”
“Don’t you have better things to do than watch me curl my hair and do my makeup?”
“Nope. I’m a seasoned traveler. I’m all set.”
“You’re so weird.” She picked up the curling iron and grabbed a chunk of hair. Why did she feel nervous? She’d curled her hair a million times. This was nothing new. Except she’d never had a man watch her before. Suddenly, something so mundane felt intimate in a way she’d never expected. She glanced over at him as she twisted the curling iron. Gonzo watched her intently. The way his nostrils flared reminded her of what he looked like during sex, and suddenly her nipples tightened. Good lord, the man was potent. How could one little nothing look have that effect on her?
“I like your hair like that.” He pushed off the wall and walked toward her.
Bailey’s breath hitched. What was he doing?
Gonzo picked up a curl and twisted it around his finger. Their eyes met in the mirror. He groaned, dropped her hair, and stepped back. “Yeah, I’m gonna fuck you if I stay in here any longer. I’ll wait for you out there.” He flicked his thumb toward the door.
Bailey swallowed past the lump of lust she was feeling. Unable to speak, she nodded.
Alone, she slumped against the counter. How was it possible to still want him this badly? As sore as she was, if he’d asked, she wouldn’t have said no. She couldn’t. Need coursed through her. This wasn’t normal, was it? To want someone this badly?
It was probably a good thing that he was going on the road for a few days. It would give her a chance to get her emotions back under control because this was ridiculous.
Shaking it off, she picked up her curling iron and curled the last two pieces of hair. She fluffed it out, then began her makeup.
Fifteen minutes later, Bailey walked into the living room. Gonzo’s eyes flared when he saw her and she bit back a grin. It had definitely been worth it to take the extra five minutes on her face.
“Jesus, you look hot,” Gonzo muttered as he stepped toward her. His gaze dragged down her body, then back up to linger on her face. “All that just to drive me to the airport?”
“Well, you know.” She flicked her hair over her shoulder. “Gotta look good to drop off my man.”
Gonzo wrapped his arms around her waist. “Your man, huh?” His mouth curled up in a cocky grin. “I like it.”
Bailey smoothed her hand down his chest. “Me too.”
His brown eyes narrowed as he looked at her mouth. “You put that lipstick on just so I wouldn’t fuck up your makeup, didn’t you?”
Bailey laughed. “I put it on because I like it.” Honestly, the idea of him wanting her so badly she needed a barrier in place to hold him off had never occurred to her. It was a heady feeling, knowing he wanted her that much. No one had ever made her feel as desirable as Gonzo did. A little surge of feminine power swept through her, and she liked it.
“Oh no, I’ve created a monster.” Gonzo chuckled.
She smacked him on the chest. “Shut up.”
He grabbed her hand and placed a kiss against her palm. “I appreciate you going to all this effort for me, Bay. It means a lot.”
“Of course.”
Gonzo stepped back. “Alright, let’s get out of here, so I don’t catch shit for being late.”
They rode the elevator to the basement parking garage. At Gonzo’s SUV, Bailey paused. “Do you want to drive?”
“Heck no. If my girl’s driving me to the airport, then she’s driving.” He threw his bags in the trunk, then walked to the passenger side and climbed in.
Bailey slid behind the driver’s seat. It was a little strange driving Gonzo’s vehicle with him in it. Normally, when they went anywhere together, he drove. She hit program two on the door panel and the mirrors and seat slid into her programmed position. After checking to make sure everything was in place, she glanced over at Gonzo. He sat there watching her with an amused smile on his face.
“What?” she asked.
“Nothing. It’s just kind of nice having you chauffeur me.”
“Chauffeur?” She pretended to be offended.
Gonzo chuckled. “Just saying you look good behind the wheel.”
“Mmm-hmm.” She turned the car on and backed out of the parking space.
Gonzo leaned forward and was just about to punch a button on the stereo when he paused. “I’m guessing you don’t want to listen to the sports channel.”
“Not even a little bit.” She flicked the blinker and changed lanes.
Gonzo pushed a button and classic rock pumped through the speakers. He adjusted the volume to a level that was conducive to having a conversation, then turned to her. “So, what are your plans this week while I’m away?”
“I need to start planning out my classes for September. I haven’t taught first year since I was in grad school, so I need to update a few things.”
“I thought you were teaching your gender-based stuff.”
“I am, but in order to be full time, I had to pick up an extra class and that was all that was available.” She glanced in the rearview mirror. “I’m hoping next year to be exclusively upper-level classes, more in line with my specialty once they’ve seen for themselves what I can do.”
“I have no doubt you’ll knock ‘em on their ass.”
She glanced at him. He’d always had so much faith in her. Even when she hadn’t had it in herself. “Thanks, Gonz.”
“For what?”
“Believing in me.”
“Always.” He winked at her.
She flicked on her blinker and followed the signs for airport departures.
“Just park in the drop off area,” Gonzo told her. “Not much point in coming inside since I’ve got my ticket. I just need to dump my stuff and head to security.”
“You sure?”
“Yep.”
She pulled the car up to the curb behind the line of other cars dropping off.
He leaned over and kissed her. “Just cuz I said you didn’t have to come inside doesn’t mean you don’t have to get out of the car,” Gonzo told her. He pushed open the passenger door.
Bailey hopped out of the car and met him on the sidewalk.
Gonzo set his bag down, then wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her against him. “That’s better,” he said. His hands trailed down her sides until he cupped her ass. “Mmm, couldn’t do that in the car.”
“I had to get out of the car so you could grab my ass?” She laughed.
“Absolutely.” He squeezed her ass again. The way he touched her made her feel like there wasn’t a damn thing wrong with the size of her butt. Quite the opposite, in fact.
“Well, well, what do we have here?” a male voice said.
Gonzo glanced toward the newcomer. “Sims,” he said, but didn’t unwrap himself from Bailey.
Bailey looked over at the amused look on Brandon’s face. “Hi, Brandon.”
“Hey Bailey. Looks like you two finally figured your shit out,” Brandon mumbled. “See you inside, Gonz. I’ll let you get back to it.”
Bailey buried her face in Gonzo’s chest and giggled.
“What’s so funny?” Gonzo asked.
“You didn’t let go of my ass the entire time he stood there.” Even now, his fingers clamped around her butt cheeks.
“Yeah, so?” He kissed the side of her neck. “I’m not going to see you for a couple of days. I gotta fill up the bank.”
“Oh my god, you’re filling up the spank bank here?” she screeched.
Gonzo snorted. “Bailey I’m appalled. I was talking about getting my fill of touching you.” He sounded scandalized, but the amusement twinkling in his eyes gave him away.
“Haha,” she mumbled.
“But yeah, filling the spank bank works, too.” He chuckled and squeezed her ass again. “Okay, I think I’m good.”
“You’re a pervert,” she told him.
“Yep.” He pressed a kiss against her lips. “Do you want to cop a feel before I go? Don’t want to leave your spank bank empty.” He waggled his eyebrows at her.
Bailey snickered. “I’m good, thanks.”
“Your loss,” he joked. He threaded his fingers through her hair and cupped the back of her head. “Thanks for driving me.”
“Anytime,” she mumbled as she waited anxiously for him to kiss her. His lips touched hers, softly at first, then he deepened the kiss. Bailey moaned and wrapped her arms around him tightly as she fell into the kiss. When they finally broke apart, they were both breathing hard.
“That’ll have to hold me over,” he said, then pressed one more firm peck against her mouth. “Gotta go.” He dropped his arms from around her and stepped back. “See you in a few days.”
“Good luck,” she told him.
“Thanks, I’ll call you later.” Gonzo grabbed his bag and slung it over his shoulder. With the other hand, he grabbed his suitcase and wheeled it behind him.
A feeling of ease settled over her as she watched him walk toward the entrance. For the first time in longer than she cared to admit, she felt happy. Truly happy. She tossed the car keys up in the air and caught them. Today was going to be a good day.