I tossed my head back and laughed as I climbed out of the truck.
Still starry-eyed, she nodded and climbed out of the passenger side and grabbed my outstretched hand in front of the grill.
It was a fairly decent day with minimal clouds, lots of blue sky, and a cheeky sun that kept peeking out.A great day to be outside fixing things and bonding with the animals.
But for now, all of that would have to wait.
I had something much more important to take care of at the moment.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Danica
Afull-bodytrembleofexcitement coursed through me as Tom led me across the gravel toward the front steps of the porch.Portia burst through the dog door, her little curly tail wagging furiously as she snuffled and snorted at us in greeting.
He was great with her though.Giving her the necessary attention she demanded, but never letting go of my hand.Until we got to the kitchen, however, then he let me go.
“Two minutes,bella.She needs to be distracted.”
He grabbed a few animal enrichment toys that I recognized from online shopping and the pet aisles the grocery store, and he filled them full of apple slices, grapes, and some carrot pieces, then he took them over to her princess bed in front of the fireplace and told her to be good.
Portia seemed pleased and got down to business right away.
He reached for my hand again.“Come.”
I followed, my palm probably a little sweaty in his, due to the mounting nerves.I didn’t think it was because I was scared though.I knew the difference between excitement nerves and fear nerves, and these were definitely excitement nerves.
We passed two closed doors down the hallway before he turned the knob for the one at the end.It was exactly as I had pictured it in my mind.Floor-to-ceiling windows with a sliding door took up one wall, while the rest were painted a light-tan shade.Dark-blues and browns made up the bedspread and pillows, and there was only a farm in the mist painting over his headboard.
Closing the bedroom door behind us, with his eyes hooded and a flush of pink in his cheeks, he took me by the waist and met my gaze.“Danica,” he said softly, “you are …” The way his thumbs rubbed my hipbones was making it hard for me to concentrate on anything else.“You are …entitledto pleasure.If at any point you want to stop, or something doesn’t bring you joy, say so.I will not get offended or upset.I want topleaseyou.I want to watch you come undone.And do not feel like you will bruise my ego if you do not find your release.We will make that happen for you, one way or another.”A small, coy smile tugged at his mouth.“I promise.”
Nodding, I forced out a timid smile.“I want you.”
“Bella, I have not wanted anything—or anyone—quite like this in a very long time.It is a different kind of nervous from yours, but know that I, too, feel nervous.I do not want to disappoint you.”
That made me smile wider.“You’re already taking my pleasure into consideration, which is so much more than my ex.So I don’t think we have to worry about you disappointing me at all.I’mchoosingyou.Because I want you.”
One hand came up from my waist, and he cradled my face, his thumb gently caressing my cheek.“I want you too.”Then he leaned in and pressed his mouth to mine, deepening the kiss at an almost torturously slow pace, but one that had me going weak in the knees and my entire lower belly and between my legs throbbing.
He broke our lip-lock a moment later and carefully reached for the hem of my black long-sleeve shirt with the V-neck.I lifted my arms so he could peel the fabric over my head, leaving me in just my black bra.His eyes roamed across my face, down my neck, and to my chest.“You are …bella.”
Heat crept up my chest and neck, and then my body caught fire when he dropped to a crouch and began pressing warm, damp kisses across my collarbone, up my neck and back down, over the tops of my breasts and further south, along my belly.I wore dark boot-cut jeans, and black Chelsea boots with zippers on the sides.On his knees now, he first removed my boots—since I forgot to take them off when we entered the house—and tossed them to the side.Then came my socks, and I giggled when he tickled my instep.Running his hands up my calves and the backs of my thighs, he circled them around and unbuttoned my jeans, then dragged down the zipper and helped me shimmy out of them.
Now, I was in just my black bra and panties, standing in his bedroom, while he kneeled in front of me, entirely dressed.I had to admit, the image of this did all kinds of things to my brain—and my body.He was there, before me, literally kneeling and asking if he could pleasure me.This was the kind of thing Raina and Gabrielle said they read about in those romance novels, but I never believed could be true.Surely no man in real life wouldactuallydrop to his knees andaskto selflessly give a woman pleasure.
But there we were.Elbow deep in reality and Tom was on his knees in front of me.
“Bella, on the bed.”He stood up, and with a gentle hand on my lower back, he guided me to the bed.
I lay there, shivering, not because the room was cool, but out of sheer anticipation, as he removed his gray zip-up hoodie and boots, leaving him drool-worthy in a thin, white T-shirt and jeans.With one knee on the bed, he lifted my left foot and kissed my ankle, then swirled his tongue around the same spot and up toward the back of my knee.My body gave a little jolt, and our eyes locked.
“Okay?”he asked.
I nodded.Had I even blinked yet?
He continued further north with his tongue and kisses, hitting erogenous zones I didn’t even know I possessed and waking them up from their thirty-two-year slumber.He reached the top of my inner thigh, and I’m pretty sure my pussy sighed, only for her to grumble in frustration when he switched to the other leg and made his way back down.
“Patience,bella.It is not just about thewham,thebam,and thethank you, ma’am.It is about all the other things leading up to that.Foreplay has ‘play’ in it for a reason.”His smile was enough to melt my panties right off me.
