This man's a fucking tease and a half if I've ever seen one.
I fold my arms and look to the side, watching amusedly as Jerome joins in on our chuckling from the living room. "I think bed-breaking is one of the better parts of being able to live life," I say simply, bringing my eyes back to hers and giving her a wink. "Being completely transparent, I might've broken a few in my day."
Her mouth drops open, and her eyes go wide, causing me to chuckle even harder.
“Ugh!’’Sarah says, stomping her foot and throwing her hands in the air dramatically. “You guys are suchmen. I don’t even know why I put up with you, honestly,” she tisks, walking to the balcony door and sliding it open.
She steps out before almost toppling over, and I see her high heel caught between the planks.
I'm up and out there in a flash, squatting down beside her, grabbing her ankle, and firmly plucking it out before removing her cream-colored high-heeled shoe, and seeing her pretty toes appear. I tap her other ankle, looking up at her.
“You're so interesting. We say one word about breaking stuff, and the first thing you do is try and break your ankle?"
"Well." She bites her lip before swallowing hard. "I think you three are trouble. You're enough to make a girl want to jump off a balcony with all the testosterone floating around and choking a girl out."
I arch my brow at her use of words. "Can’t have you throwing yourself from the balcony the first ten minutes now, can we?Then how're you supposed to find someone to help you break your bed in?”
She blushes a deep red, the sight filling me up with so much satisfaction, and her breath hitches as she looks away, back to being shy. "I don't think bed-breaking's my thing. But you all tease me all you want to."
"Hmm," I hum, tapping her foot again. We'd been so lost in each other, flirting, that she hadn't even lifted her foot for me.
I wrap my hand around her delicate ankle, feeling along the skin there. She's got blue-green veins that rope up her ankles and feet, and my mouth waters at wanting to trace their path with my tongue. "Come on," I say quietly, "Be a good girl and give me your foot." My breath burns in my lungs as she bends forward to steady herself on my shoulders while I get her other shoe off.
Standing up, I look into her eyes just as Jerome yells out the food has arrived.
A wary look passes over Sarah’s features as she gently takes her shoes from me and turns to walk back into the apartment with me following close behind. I close the door shut, watching the gentle sway in her hips as she walks. That and the heady smell of spices makes my mouth water.
We spend the next two hours polishing off the Indian food and not one, butthreebottles of wine between the four of us. I don't know how Sarah's disposition was when she was in her old home with her ex, but I can't imagine it was the same vibe she’s exhibiting right now. Not under the same roof with an abuser.
The Sarah I see now is enjoying abandon, and I wonder when the last time was that she felt like this. This free. She's curled up on her knees in front of the wooden living room table, laughing at Jerome’s college story of how he got locked out of some guy’s apartment one time naked in the dead of winter, and therefore she needs to find a hiding spot for a spare key just in case.
I also notice with much pleasure that she’s eaten almost her entire cartoon of food.
“Oh! Gifts! SJ!We got you gifts!”Christopher claps, dropping heavily onto the couch next to Jerome and putting his arm around him. He points to a spot next to the couch, showing her a big, plastic, clear see-through bag with dark blue bedding peeking through.
Sarah drags it to her and pulls it out. "Oohhh it has shams and everything." Her eyes flicker to his, and she smiles warmly. "And it's such a good thread count too, Chris.Aww,"she tilts her head, reaching out to touch his knee lightly. So she isn't scared of touching. "You didn't have to."
“And a spare set of sheets, for when all that squeaking gets too intense, you feel me?” Christopher teases, giving her a raunchy wink.
I can't help the chuckle that erupts from me as Sarah leans forward and slaps his arm playfully.
“Christopher!” she sputters, turning fire-engine red and pressing her hands to her cheeks. “I’m not even interested inthat. Andit wasn’t good when I had it—trust me.”She rolls her eyes.
I clench my jaw as her words process, and my heart skips a beat as I suddenly imagine myself laying my body on hers.
Chapter twenty-eight
Letting Me In
It’dbegoodwithme; it’d be amazing, in fact.
The hairs on the back of my neck and arms stand at attention, and my lungs constrict as the room suddenly feels like it's losingair. But Jerome interjects, saving me from feeling like I have to speak.
“I tried to tell you back in the day, remember? I said that fucker’shipsweren’t hipping. He just didn’t have that swagger that’s needed to be able to tell if a man is good in bed. He was seriously lacking,” Jerome leans forward with a small piece of paper. “There you go, baby girl, a couple of massages for you. We need to get you healed up so you can start making the bedrockrock,baby girl." Sarah squeals and puts her hands over her face, giggling. "Hey, just promise me that the first time you break that bed in, you play Aliyah’s Rock The Boat, okay? Promise me?” Jerome teases, chuckling harder as Christopher begins singing the chorus.
I let out a chuckle of my own, pressing my fist to my mouth to stem the sound and clear my throat. She's just too cute when she's embarrassed.
“No, I think I’ll play that song by Queen B. I’m going to ride him with my surfboard instead of rocking the boat,” she jests back at Jerome, pulling herself up on her knees and swaying her hips, tossing back her wine.
