Her words imply she understands why this can’t come to anything. But she’s offering herself anyway. She wants me as much as I want her.
The thought fills me with joy, and even though I know I’m being foolish, and I know I should think with my head and not my heart—or another organ farther south—I wrap my arms around her and give myself over to the kiss.
Chapter Thirteen
Maddie
Joy floods me as Caesar finally casts off his misgivings and kisses me properly.
I know he has doubts. I understand them, and I have a few myself. But when he said,This is very, very impressive, I was lost.
In my heart, I felt that my work was exciting and had such potential, but nobody else has ever been interested. And not just that. Deep down, I know it’s all tied up with the way people look at me. I’ve always been an oddball, physically and in every other way. And Caesar… he looks at me as if he truly sees me, not just as a white-haired maverick, but as a woman who’s smart and beautiful in her own right.
I know I’m not beautiful, not in the traditional sense, but he looks at me as if I am, and that’s all that matters.
I can’t have him forever. He’d never allow it. He doesn’t want the Rutherfords within an inch of Ashford AgriTech. But I can have him here, tonight, in the storm, and I’m happy to take it.
I don’t think we’ll be able to have sex on the sofa; I’d never be able to get my jeans off without knocking him onto the floor. But there’s something hot about making out like this, as if we’re fourteen and this is all we’re allowed to do before he has to go home. I don’t want to rush it. I really like this guy, and I don’t want to let him go until I absolutely have to.
So I settle back, as much as I can, and he props his head on his hand and makes himself comfortable, and I let myself drift away on a sea of warm deliciousness as he takes his time to kiss me.
Ohhh… the bliss of being with a man… of feeling his warm skin beneath your fingertips… of having his lips and tongue tease yours, starting off a firework display at the base of your spine. Rockets shoot up my back, and Catherine wheels spin in my stomach, and sparklers go off in my fingers and lips and between my legs until I feel more alive than I’ve ever been before.
Mmm… he kisses like a god. I could do this forever. The rain hammering on the roof and windows only adds to the feeling that we’ve somehow stopped time, and we’re existing in an isolated bubble that has nothing to do with the real world.
At that moment, the room flares with light. Caesar lifts his head, and four or five seconds later, a low rumble of thunder rolls across the landscape.
We’ve left off the main light and turned on a couple of lamps, and they flicker briefly before returning to a steady glow… maybe a little dimmer than they were before.
“It’s been cloudy today,” I say, “so the battery’s going to be low. There’s a backup generator, though. The switch is by the door.”
His gaze comes back to me. “You’ve stayed here a lot, haven’t you, over the last two years?”
“Yeah. I love it here.”
He nods. Then he says, “Can you take your hair down?”
Surprised, I lift a hand to the elastic that’s barely holding the ends up in a scruffy bun and slide it out. I run my hand through the strands to separate them. “Sorry, it’s a bit of a mess.”
“It’s beautiful.” He caresses it, his fingers sliding through it. Then his gaze comes back to me. “You’re stunning.” His eyes sparkle. “Mon Petit Gâteau.”
My immediate instinct is to make a joke in return, but he doesn’t give me time. He kisses me, going straight to eleven, plunging his tongue into my mouth, and I moan and slide my hand under his polo top again. Somehow, we’ve twisted a little,and I’m almost on my back, while he’s half on top of me. One of his arms is beneath me, but his other hand is free, and he slips his fingers beneath my tee and strokes up the side of my ribs.
I shiver in response, my nipples tightening beneath my bra, and he obviously senses it because he brushes his thumb across one of them, then teases the tip with the pad of his thumb.
I moan against his mouth, and his lips leave mine and kiss down my neck while at the same time he pushes up my top to reveal my bra. I’m trapped, so I can’t help him out, but he seems to be coping quite well on his own. He takes the bra cup and tugs it down beneath my breast, revealing the nipple, then covers it with his mouth and sucks.
“Fuck.” I close my eyes and arch my back as pleasure spikes inside me. He groans, pushing my breast up to lift the nipple to his mouth, and he teases it with his lips, tongue, and teeth until I’m writhing beneath him.
When he eventually returns to my lips, our mouths slant across one another, hot and demanding. He takes my breath away with his deep, searching kisses, and I can’t help but rock my hips against him, aching for release.
He lifts his head, bringing his hand up to cup my face. “How are you feeling?”
I blink. “Fine.”
“Is your head okay?”
“Oh. Yes, it’s… um… better, thank you.”
