Her eyes were closed, her face turned up to him like she trusted him implicitly. Heat rushed through Ryan's veins, and when his heels brushed her bedding, he tugged her down to the floor with him. They kneeled on the mattress, and Aelin finally surfaced, blinking as if she only then realized they had practical matters to attend to.
She grazed her teeth over his shoulder and slipped her fingers under the strap of the singlet. “I like it. I just decided.”
Ryan laughed. “On or off?”
“I like taking it off. I should’ve clarified.” She slid the pink spandex over his shoulders and dropped her head, layering kisses across his collarbone. Her breath whispered against his skin, and he needed to get that damn fabric off faster.
He tore it off his hips and pushed it down his thighs, then lifted his knees to slide it off his legs.
Aelin’s eyes dragged over him. “I only ever felt you in the dark.”
Ryan’s voice was raw. “Is this different than you expected?”
She shook her head, then trailed her fingers over his chest. He reached up and unbuttoned her shirt, pulling it off her shoulders and slipping it over her hands. Her eyelids fluttered closed, and together they sank down onto the mattress, hands roaming, mouths seeking skin.
Ryan tested each kiss and touch, collecting data as she tensed and arched, as her breath left in a rush, or she sucked in air and held it.
Liquid fire rushed through his veins, his body desperate for her. He hadn’t made love to a woman since the last night he’d been with his wife. He paused with his mouth over Aelin’s stomach, bracing himself for hurt or grief to taint the moment, but just like when he’d been lying next to her, it didn’t come. Instead, a rush of gratitude flooded him.
He thought he would never have this again. That he would never love again. That he would never get the chance to make a woman feel like this again.
His voice broke. “I’m so damn lucky.”
Aelin pulled him back up, wrapping her legs around his hips as she reached up, her fingers desperately working at the elastic in his hair. She finally pulled it free, and his hair fell to his shoulders.
“Every time I’ve seen you, I’ve wanted to do this.” Aelin dragged her hands through his hair, her heart speeding against his chest.
“Even that first day on your porch?”
She nodded, her breath hitching. “Especially that first day on my porch. If you hadn’t been such a jerk, maybe I would’ve done something about it.”
He laughed, nipping at her skin. “Liar.”
She let out a small gasp. “Ryan, your hair makes me insane.”
He chuckled, replaying the moments he’d seen her watching him from the window or from the bleachers at the rink.
“When I saw you in that towel at the door?—”
“You thought I was the nanny.” She slid her hand between them, down his stomach, toying with the hair below his navel.
“Turned out I was right.” Ryan rolled to his back, tugging Aelin on top of him. She straddled his hips, rolling against him. His eyes glazed, his fingers hooking in the belt loops of her jeans. “Why the hell are you still wearing these?”
She laughed, and her ponytail dropped over her ear. “Just a second.” Aelin stood and undid the button, then pulled down the zipper as he watched. “I’m not going to lose my job, am I?”
He panted. “You can’t quit even if you wanted to.”
Aelin let out a breathy laugh. “You were right, you know.”
He panted. “About what?”
She grinned down at him as she pulled her jeans over her hips, then let them fall to her ankles and stepped out of them. “Fun Aelin is only for you.”
She dropped back down to her knees, pressing tight against him. “And this one, too.”
Ryan groaned, his head falling back against the pillow as his hands curled around her backside. “This is so much better than learning dance moves in Polk’s garage.”
Aelin laughed, dipping her head to nip at his jaw. She trailed her fingertips lightly down his chest and stomach, making his abdominal muscles clench in their wake.
