Chapter 39
LANEY
S terling’s lips moved against mine with a burning passion that was so intense, so comforting, and so all-consuming that I allowed it raze all the worries still churning around inside. I’d meant it when I told him not to go, but I hadn’t been sure that he would stay until right this very minute.
All I needed from him tonight was to be with me, and miraculously, it looked like I was going to get that.
Forgetting about the smear campaign and even the fact that his dad used to have a thing for my mom—which was a massive piece of news I was going to need a lot of time and a lot of wine to process—I kissed him back with everything I had, needing to let him know that despite everything I was still right here.
He groaned into my mouth as if he’d received the message loud and clear.
One of his arms snaked around my hips before he started walking us deeper into the house.
Another house. On the same property. One I hadn’t even known existed but that looked like the modern version of a cozy cottage on the water, all glass-walled front instead of stone and immaculately tended greenery instead of woods.
He swept his leg out and I heard a door bang against a wall, but I didn’t stop kissing him.
Instead, I smiled against his lips and reached for the hem of his shirt.
Deep inside, I wondered if I was crazy for wanting him so badly even after the day we’d had, but the magic of having been with him in Napa and the spell of forging a connection with him hadn’t worn off.
Now that we were alone together again, I found it easier than it should’ve been to lose myself in him. Or maybe I was just allowing him to distract me because I so desperately needed to get out of my head. Whatever it was, I had no intention of fighting it.
Today had been one of the worst days of my life, and if Sterling was willing to offer me a reprieve from the hurt, the fear, and the rage, then I would take it.
As if he’d heard the thought, he slid his hands under my shirt and lifted it over my head.
The sound of our heavy breathing echoed through the room as our lips parted for the fabric to pass between us.
My bra was gone only seconds after the shirt hit the floor. Then Sterling’s fingers were on my breasts, rolling my nipples between them. He started walking me backward again. As soon as the backs of my knees touched the mattress I moaned and sat down on the bed, bringing him with me.
As I lay back, I finally tugged his shirt over his head, loving the sensation of his hot skin pressed against mine.
He kissed me deeply, but I felt his feet move as he kicked off the shoes.
I did the same, both of us shedding our pants and underwear in frantic movements without once breaking the kiss.
When we were finally naked, he banded an arm around me and moved me up on the bed. His lips devoured mine like he would never get enough. Desire coursed through my veins and I wrapped my legs around his hips. Cool air brushed the overheated, sensitive space between my legs.
He was hard and ready against me as he settled into position between my thighs. As if he sensed that this was all I needed tonight, he didn’t try to kiss a path down or even bring his fingers into the mix.
He simply lined himself up and kept kissing me. Then he thrust inside and growled. “Shit, Laney, you’re so wet. I could live here. You feel so fucking good.”
He whispered the words between fervent kisses and I moaned in response, tightening the muscles in my legs to bring him even closer.
Physically, Sterling and I seemed to fit together as if we’d been made for each other, and once again, he stroked all the right parts of me simply by being him.
His hips rolled on every thrust to give me the friction I needed at the same time.
Pushing my hands into his hair, I moved with him, keeping up with the pace he set and losing myself in the rhythm. Much too soon, I felt pleasure starting to coil in my belly, wisps of it winding like tendrils around my insides until it caught me completely in its grip.
Sterling moaned and my walls clenched around him. The low, needy sound gave me the last bit I needed to find my release. The orgasm swept through me like a riptide, shattering my thoughts and body and flinging them to the four corners of the globe.
Somewhere in the back of my mind, I vaguely registered the sensation of him swelling inside me, followed by a rush of heat that told me he’d been right there with me—as always.
The knowledge triggered an aftershock that made me squirm under him a little bit more.
Then our bodies finally stilled and he smiled against my lips.
“You know, they say that sex only gets better with time, as you get to know your partner, but I have no idea if I’ll survive it getting any better than this.”
I let out a husky chuckle, my eyes sliding shut. I gulped in air to catch my breath. “If it keeps getting better, I’m never letting you leave the house. We’ll both just retire, move to Napa where there’s no one else around for miles, and spend the rest of our lives in bed.”
Breathing hard, he finally withdrew and settled beside me, and I felt him grin in the crook of my neck.
“Fuck waiting to see if it gets better. Let’s just go with your plan.
We’ve got bags packed with enough clothes to last us the rest of our lives if we’re only ever dressed when we’re receiving deliveries. ”
“Who needs food?” I teased, but then I let out a happy exhale as I cuddled into him.
For a long time, we just lay there, holding each other as we waited for our bodies to calm and our brains to come back online. Personally, I could’ve gone without that happening, but as Sterling’s breathing got back to normal, it was almost like I could feel it when he started thinking again.
Not a minute later, he lifted himself up on one elbow and smiled at me, his head only inches above my own. He brushed a lock of hair behind my ear. “Stay in bed and get some rest. I’ll have someone bring over some food in case you get hungry later.”
“Where are you going?” I murmured, sliding my fingers to the nape of his neck and toying with the thick hair there. “You must be pretty darn tired yourself.”
Something unreadable passed behind his eyes before he shook his head and kissed me one more time.
His lips pressed to mine, so soft and firm, in a claiming yet strangely reassuring kiss that he broke long before I was ready.
“I’m going to handle things, baby. That’s what I do and I doubt I’ll be able to get any sleep if I don’t even try. ”
I looked into those blue eyes I’d once thought of as icy. Seeing nothing but determination staring back at me, I decided not to argue. I didn’t think my body could even if I tried, so I just nodded and flashed him a tired smile in return.
“Don’t stay up too late. You’re not a superhero, Westwood. Eventually, you’re going to need to sleep.”
He sat upright and clutched his chest as if he’d been mortally wounded. “Ouch. Insinuating that I’m human. That hurts.”
To my surprise, I chuckled and he winked at me before sliding his legs off the bed and getting up.
Around us, the room was dark except for one standing lamp in the corner that had been left on.
It gave just enough of a muted orange glow for me to see his body when he stood and strode over to his bag.
Someone must’ve brought them here from his car because my overnight case was sitting next to his gleaming leather weekender. His muscles tensed and released as he walked bare-ass naked to grab some sweats.
I let my gaze run over his back, starting at the nape of his neck where dark hair feathered across the very top of his spine. My eyes skimmed across his broad shoulders, tracing the ridges of muscle and the curves of his shoulder blades.
From there, his waist tapered down to narrower hips and of course that delectable, tight butt that gave way to long, strong legs.
The man was built like a god, but he worked hard for that body.
Just like he worked hard at everything else—including our marriage these days, which I realized now shouldn’t have surprised me as much as it did.
As he stepped into his sweats and slipped on a shirt, I lay back on the bed, dropping an arm over my eyes and wondering, not for the first time, what had become of my life.
I heard the soft padding of his footsteps when he left the room and I expected to lie there, obsessing about all the weird twists and turns my path had been taking recently.
The sheets were still warm from where we’d been tangled together though and sleep ended up coming for me faster than I’d thought. Almost like my body finally just gave up trying after such a brutally emotional day.
I woke up with a start to a dark room and an empty bed. Blinking hard, I groaned and sat up, instantly remembering where I was and what had happened yesterday. Or maybe it was still today. I didn’t know.
The air was still and soft but only for a second until I heard his voice. Sterling must still be in the living room.
It took me a minute to wake up enough to realize that a light was on in the hallway outside, filtering softly into the room. I glanced at the window to get an idea of the time, but there was no trace of gray or sunlight breaking through the inky black anytime soon.
Sterling’s tone was low and measured but sharp, sort of like he was using his words to slice through the air with a scalpel instead of a sword. I rubbed my eyes, my body slightly tender in all the right places but also still heavy with sleep.