And then she eased up, a slow release of those fingers as they gently pulled back. My dick pulsed, my balls were high and tight, and God, the pleasure of the aching need was the most intense thing I’d felt in years. It was so sweet, and I hadn’t even released. “Clear enough?” she asked.
It took me a minute to process her words. I had trouble hearing them through the pounding in my ears. And when they finally made it through, I realized nothing on earth would keep me from her now. I took a breath, my entire body still throbbing.
“Clear. Help me walk. We’re going over there.”
Chapter Seven
Ellie
He didn’t need help walking. Or at least, no more than I did in my heels. Plus, every part of me was hot and hungry, so I had my own wobbly knees to contend with. Fortunately, we made it the couple of blocks with startling speed. But then I paused while looking at the hotel front. It was an older place, several stories tall, and not at all the glamorous location I was expecting.
“Is this where the team is staying?”
“Nah,” he said as he drew me close and pressed his head to my temple. “God, you smell good.”
I grinned. I smelled like tonight’s dinner, so I had to agree. Definitely good.
“You don’t like hanging out with your teammates?” I asked.
He chuckled. “I don’t like the press finding me everywhere I go. I don’t want to worry about being perfectly groomed when I go down to breakfast. It’s easier to make my own reservations privately.”
“Please,” I drawled. “You are not camera-shy.”
He chuckled. “Definitely not. But there’s a time and a place for everything.”
Apparently, the time was the moment the elevator doors closed. I’d barely leaned back against the paneling when he pressed himself flush against my body. I felt the heat of him against my skin, and the hard planes of his torso and hips. His hands were large where they cupped my face and tunneled into my hair. I thought he would kiss me then. God, I ached for him to kiss me, but his gaze went to his fingers and my hair as he stroked through the strands.
“So silky,” he said.
It was an odd feeling to have him brush his fingers through my hair, his eyes soft as he watched the strands fall across his wrists and my vision. I was so absorbed in watching the fascination in his gaze that at first, I didn’t appreciate the tingling sensation on my scalp as he lifted my hair and then let it fall. But the more times he stroked, the more I settled into the moment. Into the tingle and soft brush, into the gentle pressure and the heat of his breath.
I wanted to ask him so many questions. Was this a seduction technique? Did other girls melt at his feet as easily as I was doing? Fleeting thoughts disappeared before they fully formed. I was getting swept up in his touch, lost in the light green intensity in his eyes.
And then the elevator opened.
He was beside me in a flash, his expression almost bored as he scanned the hallway. I was still looking at his face, wondering how he could appear so put-together when every cell in my body was caught up in riding the waves of heat and desire.
He held out his hand and escorted me down the hall to his room. I stood there as he pulled out his key card. I couldn’t move. I could barely breathe. Butterflies were careening throughout my body, and I just started laughing, a little giggle that grew in strength and volume.
He looked at me, his green eyes sparkling. “What’s so funny?”
I shook my head. “Absolutely nothing.”
“Nervous?”
“I get nervous every time I have to speak to more than two people at a time. This is like standing up in front of an auditorium.”
He pushed open the door. “It’s just me.”
“You’re a lot of guy.”
He tugged me into his hotel room. “Just one guy who thinks you’re terrific.”
I went easily, my resistance completely gone. This had been a fantasy night from the beginning. An impossible date, an over-the-top restaurant, and I’d finally gotten to practice one of those techniques I’d been reading about since the onset of puberty. Fantasy on top of fantasy was coming true, simply because I’d decided to be bold. To say “yes” instead of “maybe someday.”
And now he was leading me to his balcony where—to the left—the city of Chicago stretched out before us in a stunning display of lights. And then to the right, Lake Michigan shimmered, inky dark except for boats here and there. And all of it magical.
He opened the sliding door and I stepped out, my head spinning almost as much as my body tingled. It was a windy night, and the breeze blew cold against my overheated skin, but I didn’t care. It was beautiful here as I looked out at the glorious vista. But despite where my gaze landed, my body knew exactly where he was as he followed me out onto the balcony, stepping up behind me and tugging me gently back into his arms. I felt the solidity of his body and the caress of his hands.
