Chapter Twenty-Two
Tabitha
After the phone call with his sister, Spencer and I get dressed and walk back to my parents” house. They offered to cook dinner for all of us. We let them and Sabrina know that Spencer”s brother is having some sort of anxiety attack, but we didn”t share all the details. I know Spencer would like to go home to England and help his brother, but like he told Bindy, he has a job here in America. A job he just started.
He must feel so torn right now. I”ve listened to him talk about his family, and he clearly loves them very much, especially Kendall. I”m sure he feels guilty for not being there. The wedding is in ten days. Maybe he could get time off work to support his brother. Well, probably not. Then again, Spencer has been doing an amazing job.
I”ll broach that subject later. Not in front of my family.
The conversation has moved on while I was lost in thought.
”Your job sounds complicated,” Mom says to Spencer. ”Must take a lot of hard work to do that sort of thing and wrangle an entire group of analysts.”
Spencer makes a noncommittal noise. ”It takes practice, that”s all.”
As usual, he”s downplaying his smarts and his skills just a little. He”s humble, and I love that about him.
”Connie, I”ve been meaning to ask you,” Spencer says. ”What do you and Barry do every day?”
Dad clasps Mom”s hand. ”We”ve been running a business together for thirty-two years.”
”That”s wonderful. What sort of business?”
”We run an antiques shop in Asheville, in Biltmore Park.”
My dad launches into a monologue about the joys of restoring abandoned treasures and turning them into valuable antiques that brighten people”s lives. I”ve heard that spiel before. Dad is a great salesman, though he never uses pressure tactics or tries to trick anybody. That”s why everyone loves the shop. They know Connie and Barry Remington would never cheat them.
”I would love to see your shop before Tabitha and I head back to Arlington,” Spencer tells my dad. ”Will it be open in the morning?”
”Open seven days a week. We”d love to show you the shop tomorrow.”
Spencer”s brows wrinkle. ”But it”s Saturday, and you”re here, not at the shop.”
Dad chuckles. ”We have eight employees. Four of them are manning the shop today, the other four will take over tomorrow. Connie and I like to have weekends off to relax and do some target shooting.”
”I never imagined I would think of shooting as relaxation. But after spending the day with you lot, I”ve realized it can be both fun and relaxing to see how close I can get to hitting the center of the target.”
Dad slaps my boyfriend”s arm. ”You”re a good kid, Spence. We”ll be happy to welcome you into the family when you and Tabby get hitched.”
I smack my fork down hard enough that my plate wobbles. ”For heaven”s sake, Dad, I met Spencer a few weeks ago. Don”t go hiring a wedding planner yet.”
”Yet?” Mom says, and her eyes light up. ”That means you will tie the knot eventually.”
”Why don”t you harass Bree about why she doesn”t have a boyfriend?”
”Oh, don”t worry, we will do that. Lovingly. We adore our beautiful, sweet, smart daughters and only want you both to be happy and give us plenty of grandbabies.”
I sigh in resignation. No point in arguing. I think all parents pester their children this way, and it”s just part of life. I know my mother means well. When I glance at Spencer, I expect to see him checking for the nearest escape route. Instead, he”s smiling at me with genuine affection and happiness.
No, I wouldn”t mind marrying Spencer at all.
Sabrina leans toward me, whispering in a barely audible voice. ”Kendall might not be anxious anymore if it”s a double wedding.”
My sister can”t actually be suggesting that I should marry Spencer just to make his brother feel better. A moment ago, I mused that I wouldn”t mind marrying him. Did Sabrina read my mind?
I can”t get hitched in ten days. It”s crazy.
But I am a proud free spirit.
Sabrina is still leaning close, and she murmurs to me again. ”You”re thinking about it, I can tell. Don”t let practical stuff get in the way of your heart. I predict wedding bells for two couples coming soon.”
Now my sister has become a soothsayer and an advice columnist. This could only get weirder if Spencer announced that he wants to quit his job and become an exotic dancer like his brother used to be.
After dinner, we all gather to watch a movie. We let Sabrina pick the title, and she chose Sense Sensibility. I love Jane Austen adaptations, but Bree has an ulterior motive. I know that, but I can”t figure out exactly what she”s up to this time. Some kind of meddling, for sure.
When the movie ends, I find out what she”s plotting.
Sabrina smiles with saccharine sweetness. ”Isn”t that just the most romantic movie? And it”s British, like Spencer.”
I lift my brows. ”What”s your point, Bree?”
”You”ve always loved Jane Austen. Now you can marry your very own British hunk.”
”Honestly, you are as subtle as a hurricane.”
Spencer yawns and stretches his arms above his head. Then he hops off the futon and holds out his hands to me. ”Shall we retire to your tiny house, darling?”
That”s the second time he”s called me ”darling” since the day we met. I like it even more this evening. His deep, sensual voice gives me a warm shiver.
Sabrina slaps both hands over her eyes. ”Can”t look. You”re about to get smoochy.”
”Are you regressing into first-grade behavior? I”ve never seen you act quite like this before. You”re thirty-four, Bree, but you act like a seven-year-old.”
My sister lowers her hands and smirks. ”I”ve been teasing you all day. Haven”t you figured out why yet?”
”Haven”t got a clue.”
Spencer kisses the top of my head. ”Isn”t it obvious, love? Sabrina is happy for you.”
”Why?”
My sister tips her head back, rolling her eyes at the ceiling. ”Duh, Tabby.”
Spencer takes hold of both my hands, urging me to stand. Then he brushes his fingertips across my cheek. ”She”s happy for you, darling. Happy for us.”
I am such an idiot. Maybe I”ve been a little anxious, just like Spencer”s brother, and that”s why Bree”s attitude flew right over my head. I”ve never felt this way about any man before. Spencer is different, and he makes me feel so...satisfied with my life. That happened because of the British hunk standing in front of me.
The room spins a little, only for a second or two. But I love that feeling.
I grab Spencer”s hand, dragging him toward the door. And I shout over my shoulder, ”Good night, Mom. Good night, Dad. Good night, Bree. Spencer and I need some alone time in my little yellow house. See you in the morning.”
Not the subtlest exit. My family doesn”t care.
Spencer and I run across the clearing to my house. He sweeps me up into his arms and opens the door without releasing me. Then he carries me across the threshold, into the entryway, straight to the bed. Once he drops me on the mattress, making it bounce, he starts undressing. ”Unless I”ve misunderstood the concept of alone time, you should be getting naked right now, Ms. Remington.”
”Yes, sir, Mr. Halfenaked.”
I strip so fast that I might have ripped my panties, but I don”t take the time to find out. Spencer whips his clothes off only a little bit slower than I had gotten rid of mine. I fling the covers away. He gestures for me to lie down. I do that, and he crawls up the bed until he”s crouching over me.
Spencer grasps one of my legs and urges me to bend it. ”Your family created a delicious meal for us, but the only dessert I need to devour is you.”
”Maybe you”ll let me finish devouring you afterward. We got interrupted earlier.”
”Nothing short of a nuclear explosion will interrupt us this time.”
Spencer hooks my leg over his shoulder and dives right in with no foreplay. He can, I”m sure, smell how aroused I am, and I”m in no mood for taking it slow. I need him inside me, but first, I want him to consume me. He slants downward inch by inch, licking his lips as if he can”t wait to taste me. I let my other leg fall to the side. My breathing has become harder and faster, and he hasn”t even touched me yet.
Just as his lips brush my mound, he closes his eyes halfway and smiles. ”You smell so fucking good, Tabby. You always do. But tonight, you”re so much slicker and ready for my cock. Not quite yet, though.”
He carefully spreads my outer folds, inhaling deeply. Then he lowers his head, dragging his tongue up one side of my cleft almost to my clit. My pulse revs up. But he stops short of teasing my nub and instead drags his tongue down the other side. When he thrusts his tongue inside my opening, I let out a sharp cry. My back arches too. Nonsense babbles out of me as he flicks his tongue every which way inside me, driving me so crazy that I”m almost hyperventilating.
”Need a break, love?”
”Don”t you dare stop. You”re driving me insane, and I love it.”
His naughty smile makes my clit throb. But when he scrapes his tongue up the middle of my cleft and latches on to my nub at last, I fist my hands in the sheets, and my body folds in on itself. He suckles my clit fiercely, grunting and groaning.
And I come. The orgasm hits me so fast and so hard that I can”t speak or breathe. My ears begin to ring. My mouth falls open. He thrusts his whole hand inside me, pumping swiftly while my body milks his fingers. That just makes me come harder. A strangled gasp erupts out of me.
Even after the orgasm softens, winding down, he keeps fucking me with his hand and nibbles on my clit until I”m done. Then he sits back on his heels and wipes his fingers clean with his tongue, clearly savoring every bit of my cream.
”Holy shit, Spence. You get better at this every time.”
”Naturally. I have the best source of inspiration in the world---your body.”
I sit up and wrap my arms around his neck. ”You give me more varieties of pleasure than I could count. And I don”t just mean the sexual kind. Cuddling with you is my favorite.”
”We haven”t known each other that long, but already I feel as if I could spend the rest of my life with you.”
I stare into his eyes, trying to measure how serious he is about what he said. Spencer is dead serious. His expression tells me so. ”I would love to be with you forever. You”re the first man who ever wanted to come to my family”s odd little homestead. Other men would date me and might even want to take the relationship to the next level. But they all ran away when I explained about my family background. You have never even flinched.”
He pulls me onto his lap, now sitting cross-legged. ”You know full well that my family is hardly ordinary either. But I”ve been married to my job for so long that I”d almost forgotten what dating felt like. Falling in love is definitely new to me.”
”For me too.”
”Are you saying you, ah, are...”
”Falling in love with you? Yes, I am.”
He smiles. ”Glad you feel that way because I”m falling for you too.”
Since I doubt he would bring up the subject that I need to discuss with him, I decide to just lay all my cards on the table. ”I realize this isn”t really my business. But I care about you so much, and I don”t want you to regret anything later on.”
”I could never regret being with you, Tabby.”
”That”s not what I meant.” I crush my lips between my front teeth for a few seconds while I struggle with how to explain this to him in a way that won”t seem like I”m meddling in his life. ”I don”t want you to regret not being there for your brother. Bindy called to tell you Kendall is freaking out over the wedding stuff. Don”t you think that means it”s important? That your brother needs you right away?”