“I can relate. I’ve had similar thoughts. I don’t know what I’ll do when my time is my own and I’m in full control of my own destiny. I want it, but I’m terrified at the same time.”
“Yeah.” I kiss the top of her head, holding her closer. “I get that. It’s the same for me.”
Silence descends for a few minutes, but it’s not awkward. Her touch on my skin feels so incredibly good, and I could stay like this for eternity and die happy.
Her lips brush against the underside of my jaw as her arm slides across my stomach. “Drew,” she whispers before dragging her hot mouth along my jawline.
“Yeah,” I croak, trying to control my natural urges, which are tempting me to strip her out of that shirt, pin her underneath me, and drive my aching cock into her warm heat.
“You make me feel alive in a way I haven’t felt in years.” Her arm curls around my side as her lips continue their exploration, and my entire body feels like it’s on fire.
I should lie and shut this down, but I can’t lie to her when she’s giving me her truths. And I’m sick of running. Tired of fighting emotions I think I shouldn’t feel. “I feel the same way about you.”
My head tips down as hers tips up and our mouths meet in a soft, sensual caress. I move on my side, keeping her flush against me as I angle my head and deepen our kiss.
And it’s everything.
Everything I have been denying myself for fifteen years.
Everything I am done denying I need.
My inner beast is dying to be set free, but this isn’t what this moment is about, so I restrain him and kiss this woman the way she deserves to be kissed. Worshipping her mouth before gliding my tongue between her lips and savoring the taste and feel of her. Athena’s leg slides between mine, and I know she feels my erection straining against my boxers, but she makes no move to touch me there, and I’m purposely restricting this to kissing.
Because right now, despite how my body is reacting, this is what I need. What I think she needs, and I want to take care of her. To make her feel loved and wanted because I think that’s been sorely lacking in her life, and her happiness is important to me.
We kiss slowly, deeply, intensely. My hands roam her back over her shirt, and her hands cup my face and brush my neck.
Eventually, we break apart, and she smiles before resting her head on my chest and closing her eyes.
My eyelids shutter, and I follow her into sleep.
When I wake the next day, Athena is still in my arms, awake and staring up at me. We’re wrapped around one another, our legs entangled in each other and the sheets. The comforter has moved down, showcasing the boner tenting my boxers and openly saluting her.
“Morning,” she says in a sleep-drenched tone. “We appear to have slept through the alarm, and we’re late for work.”
My fingers thread through her messy hair as I smirk. “Lucky I’m the boss.” Her eyes seem different today, conveying a mix of vulnerability and trust. “How about we take the day off and spend it together?” I say before I can talk myself out of it.
“That sounds good. Got any ideas?”
“We could workout, swim, go for a walk, watch movies, read, cook. Take your pick. I’m open to other options too.”
“I’m down for that.” She props up and briefly brushes her lips against mine before easing back and peering deep into my eyes. “I don’t want anything to be awkward between us because of last night.”
“Nothing feels awkward to me.”
The smile that appears on her face makes me feel like I’ve won the lottery. “Nor me. I like you, Drew. I like you a lot.”
I clasp her face in my hands. “I like you too. It terrifies me, but I’m not running away from it.”
Her smile grows wider, and while I don’t want to diminish it, I promised her honesty, and I intend to stick to it. “I can’t promise you anything, Athena, except to follow this road and see where it leads.”
“That’s enough for me,” she says, and I sincerely hope she means it.
* * *
Athena and I are glued at the hip the next few days, and I’m surprised how much I’m loving doing mundane shit with her. We workout, swim, cook and watch back-to-back gangster and action movies. Neither of us has gone into the office since Tuesday, taking Wednesday off and working from the house yesterday and today.
I lean back in my office chair, pressing send on the message to cancel my session with Vixen tonight. I need to end things properly with her, but I don’t want to do that by text. She’s different than the other women I’ve entered into arrangements with at the club, and she deserves more respect.
