It wasn’t just a veggie tray. He’d made a beautiful cheese board, complete with little hand made paper flags that named all of the cheese.
“Artisanal store-bought cheddar,” she read out loud. “Artisanal farmer’s market fresh goat. Artisanal Brie…”
He cracked her up and pleased her so very much in equal measure. This was the dinner she didn’t know she’d wanted, but now couldn’t wait to gobble up. In between the cheeses were veggies, crackers, and grapes. He poured her a glass of wine, which also had a made-up label on it to match the cheese.Artisanal White. They picked at the cutting board until they were stuffed, with just enough room for cookies, then they cleaned up together.
Dessert was had standing next to the kitchen counter. Owen fed her a cookie, catching the crumbs that tumbled off her lower lip.
Then he kissed her, kept kissing her, until the cookies were forgotten. She peeled off her shirt and he chased her to the shower.
She loved Owen’s bathroom. A big tub, extra deep and extra wide, with a convenient ledge at one end. He cranked up the steam, then knelt, sweeping a soapy washcloth down her leg. She sighed and leaned back against the tiles as he lifted her foot into his hand, carefully scrubbing every inch before switching to the other leg.
“You’re spoiling me.”
“I like taking care of the people in my life.”
“I’ve noticed.” She ignored the way her heart pitter-pattered at being included in that select group.
“Can I take care of you tonight, Kerry?”
How could she say no to that? Heat swirled through her, nothing to do with the steamy shower, as she slowly slid her legs apart.
Owen’s gaze flashed dark, hungry. His shoulders pressed against her thighs and he braced his hands on her hips, curving around so his fingers cradled her bottom.
He moved his face against her, not quite kissing her. The barest of breaths, a tease, and then firmer touches. His nose against the dip between her leg and her sex, then his lips against the curls covering her pussy.
She breathed his name, and her body bloomed for him. Wet, slick, ready.
When his tongue finally slid into her inner folds, where he’d so carefully touched her before with his fingers, she nearly came undone. Jumping, she trembled as he caught her and pressed her hips firmly back against the tiles. She was his now, because he’d promised to take care of her, and he wasn’t going to stop until she came for him.
He murmured for her to let go, to feel good. “You’re so hot,” he whispered up at her, and the compliment fed her soul. He would fuck her next, and she would love that, too.
Because she loved Owen. Because their connection was so much more than anything she’d had before, and that was both scary and wonderful.
A hot tear threatened behind her eyelid as a tsunami of sensation rolled over her. And then joyous laughter followed as he sat her down on the ledge, as he got out of the tub and found them towels.
On his bed, she pushed him onto his back. He sheathed up, then pulled her onto his cock. She rode him slowly, then faster. His hands squeezed her hips, then her breasts, her shoulders, before tangling in her hair and pulling her in close. Their foreheads pressed together. Their breaths synched up, slowing, as if their pulses aligned. And then, suddenly, as everything got hotter and needier, tighter, he shuddered, and her breath caught in her chest.There.He surged into her, tensing, every muscle in his body turning to granite beneath her. His thumb fell to her clit, and she followed him, that firm pressure the final stimulus she needed to get there with him.
The aftershocks rippled through her as she caught her breath, still on top of him. It was so good, she thought. So damn good.
Until she went to climb off him.
“Shit.” Panic raced over her as a slick mess slid between her legs. “Owen, the condom broke.”
“Oh!” He scrambled up and grabbed a towel hanging on a hook on the back of his door. “Here.”
Fingers shaking, she took it and shoved it between her legs. Words failed her as her brain raced to find the right way to reassure him that the second layer of protection probably wasn’t necessary. But she felt sick that it was the condoms she had bought that broke. Usually they used ones he had, and were they better? Had she not bought the right brand? Weren’t all condoms equally good, as long as the size was right?
“Hey,” Owen said, getting in front of her face. “Are you okay?”
She blinked at him. “Are you?”
“Sure.” He shrugged. “It happens. It’s been a while since I’ve had to have this conversation, but if you want me to get tested, I will. I don’t think you have anything to worry about, though.”
“I’m not worried about you,” she whispered. She was shaking. Great. Why was she shaking? She took a deep breath, then another. “I’m on the pill. You know that, right? I take it religiously. It’s in my purse so I can take it in the morning. You don’t have anything to worry about.”
Owen squeezed her hands. “It’s okay. I’m not worried about that.”
She looked up at him. “I thought you might…you know, because of…”
