Chapter 9: DIEGO
Theconversationwasflirtier,lighter for the rest of the meal, and by the time we got home, we were back in our usual banter mode.Shortcake hopped up on the arm of the couch—facing away, so she could be with us but still acknowledge that I’d been gone an unacceptable amount of time today.Taran took the other arm, leaning into it, and I leaned against him and stretched my legs over the remaining cushion.
I buried my face in his neck and breathed deeply.He was just a little sweaty and grassy from being outside all day, a smell like summer sunshine.All fucking week, I’d been deliciously tortured by memories of his hands on my skin and his lips against mine; the way he played me like we’d never stopped hooking up, like we’d been at this for nine years instead of a month and some change.
He took a long, deep breath, almost a sigh but not quite, and I rose and fell with his chest.I kissed his neck, then his broad shoulder through the tight-stretched fabric of his t-shirt.“You okay, babe?”
“Very.Thanks for coming today.”He kissed my temple and slid his arm around my shoulders, pulling me against him even tighter.“You were a big hit.”
Not gonna lie, I’d loved every fucking minute.At first, I tried not to enjoy the attention it got from his co-workers, seeing us together.But they turned out to be cool as hell—especially in Bettina’s case; what a fucking character—so I just gave in and enjoyed myself all day.
Dinner had gotten a little emotional.I felt bad about digging that hard into his scars—no, wounds, since they clearly hadn’t healed.But it had also made me feel a lot better about some things, important things, and he seemed okay with it…
Except now I had my hand on his belly and he wasn’t responding the way he usually did when I snuggled up close and started sniffing him like a dog in heat.
“I like Bettina,” I said.
“She likes you too.She’s probably an actual friend, at this point.”
“Those boudoir photos of hers…” I fanned myself with my free hand.
He laughed.“You saw them?”
“You haven’t?She acted like you had!”
“No!”I laughed even harder.“That’d be—weird.We work together!”
“She didn’t wanna see the one of you in your sweats, either,” I admitted.“I did show her mine in the skirt though.”
“Okay, so I’m officially friends with Bettina then.”
“Kyle seems cool too, in that straight white way.”
“Yeah, exactly.”He squeezed me tight and kissed my forehead.
I pulled back, sliding my hand up to his chest, and watched his eyes.“You tired?”
He nodded.“You mind if we just stay like this a while?Maybe watch something?”
I kept watching for a long, quiet moment, wondering if he was lying to save my feelings.If I’d really upset him or hurt him or just dug too deep into things he wasn’t ready to unearth.It was fucking unfair that a man could be that beautiful andalsohave layers and layers of fascinating personality, frankly.
I’d promised Toni I’d take it slow and easy.For my own sake.But every goddamn time I saw him made it harder and harder not to just… jump.
When he didn’t break the silence, I leaned up, kissed him quickly, and grabbed the remote off the end table.“What should we watch?Do we wanna marathon something this weekend?”
Not gonna lie, I wasreallylooking forward to having an actual weekend with him.Two nights where neither of us had to get up and go anywhere in the morning?What fucking luxury.
“Hitchcock?”he asked.
“No, let’s do something less harrowing.What aboutThe Lord of the Rings?”I suggested.He’d been appalled that I’d never seen all three of the extended cuts back-to-back.
“Really?”He quirked a smile.
“Yes, really, you nerd.Are they streaming somewhere?”
“For sure.”
I found them quickly, and as I was queueing up the first one, he said, “Can we lay down?Just here, not in bed.”
