With no scruples left to hold her back, she gave in to the pleasure, running her hands up his torso and kissing his neck. As he rolled onto her, she spread her legs to make room for him. He pinned her arms above her head and kissed his way down her body, torturing each breast with his tongue until she begged him to get inside her. As he inched into her, she moaned, taking his length slowly but surely.
She ran her hands down his back and cupped his ass, pulling him in. His slow in-and-out rhythm picked up, and she arched into him, taking every thrust with a low hum. Pleasure built and built until it finally exploded into a cascade of throbbing, sinuous wonder. Every muscle, every nerve, sung with joy.
They were breathing heavily, taking each other in, and after a few more thrusts, his body went rigid. She gripped him tight as he let out a long groan of his own.
Without leaving her, he rolled them onto their sides and wrapped her in his arms, kissing her tenderly. “Holy shit,” he said, still panting. “And I thought fires were hot.”
She didn’t realize how much she’d missed sex. While on her quest for a husband, she’d put it on the back burner, thinking she could do without. But the last ten minutes shot that theory to hell.
Maybe it was because she’d gone without for so long, but sex with Alex felt like the best she’d ever had. And now that he’d proved it could be even more amazing than she remembered, she worried no one would live up to his capabilities.
He jumped up to take care of the condom. When he returned, he pulled the blanket up to cover them. As they lay together, his arm around her, her head on his chest, and wrapped in his warmth, she began to wonder. Could she find all she needed without settling for a loveless relationship? Was the perfect package attainable?
That was a big leap, and maybe Alex wasn’t the one to fill the role, but he was making her think it waspossible. He also made the decision to leave sex out of her equation seem like a terrible, misguided idea.
While she relished the feeling of being in a man’s strong warm arms, it wasn’t long before the high wore off and regret set in. She had responsibilities now. Casual sex wasn’t an option for her, and that was all Alex offered.
“We can’t keep doing this,” she said. “I have to protect Calvin, and I’m only in the market for something permanent.”
“I know,” he agreed. “I can’t commit the way you need, and it’s not fair of me to take up your time.”
“So, this is the last time we do this.” It sucked, but she didn’t have a choice. She had her list and her priorities, and Alex didn’t fit either.
“Okay.” He sounded as disappointed as she felt.
She thought that had settled it, but it turned out to be the second to last time. Somehow, saying goodbye included climbing on top of him and riding him into oblivion before dressing hastily and leaving.
One convenient thing about doing the neighbor was that the walk of shame was short and anonymous. She re-entered her condo with her lady bits still tingling. What a way to spend a morning.
After a quick shower, she got down to business—a business that had exploded overnight and would now require a lot more time and energy. The trade-off was worth it. Working harder was a small price to pay for peace of mind. Thanks to Alex and his brother, she could lay down her money burden and rest easy for a while.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
After a jam-packed week of work, Alex was ready for a few days off. He slept in, worked out, and took a long, hot shower. While trying to make a sandwich, he realized he was out of lunch meat. And cheese. And bread. In the lobby, on his way to the bodega, he ran into Julia and Calvin.
“Hi, Mr. Alex. We’re going to get a Christmas tree,” Calvin said, full of the youthful exuberance Christmas brought to kids.
“Cool. Where are you going?”
“Oh, um, just down to the corner,” Julia said.
“You wanna come with us?” Calvin asked. Julia’s eyes popped open.
“Honey, I’m sure Mr. Alex has other things to do. Sorry,” she said to Alex.
“Actually, sounds fun. But what do you say I drive, and we find a place out of town? Maybe even cut it down ourselves. We can bring it home tonight, and you can get a jump on decorating it.”
Calvin tugged on Julia’s hand. “Can we, Mom? Can we?”
Julia gave Alex a stern glare as if to say, “Now look what you’ve done.”
Alex shrugged. “I just need a minute to change. Wait here?”
He shot Mitch a quick text to ask for a recommendation. Mitch answered right away with an address in the suburbs, saying that’s where he and Maggie had gotten theirs.
Alex returned to find Julia and Calvin talking with Kenneth, the super. Calvin was excitedly explaining how they were going to cut down the biggest tree they could find and decorate it.
Julia cornered him a few feet away. “I thought we weren’t doing this,” she whispered.
