I give him a warning rumble. “This had better not be a pity hug, Bates Kelly.”
He leans back, his lips curling just a little on one side. “What kind of hug do you want it to be?”
“Could it multi-task and be a ‘Lana, I forgive you for upsetting me; I can’t stay mad at you; I’m glad you swung by; I feel validated and supported by you, and I honestly just feel better when you’re near me; gosh-darn you’re adorable, and I still want to fuck you’ hug?”
His gray gaze washes over me, leaving me warm and hungry.
“It’s definitely all of those things, Lana.”
I whimper softly at the sound of my name rolling from his lips in a low rumble.
“I appreciate your agreeable efficiency,” I whisper, suddenly breathless.
His gaze drops to where I’m shifting against his lap. “I believe you.”
My face flushes with warmth as I realize I’ve been riding him in a slow grind. I try to stay still, but there’s no place to rest that doesn’t make me squirm with delight.
“I know this is inappropriate, but I’m not sure I can stop,” I gush apologetically. “Should I sit in the other chair?”
“Fuck no.” Bates grips my hips and keeps me hard against him. “Despite a responsibility to encourage the opposite, this is right where I want you. Don’t you move any different from what you’re doing.”
I couldn’t stop if I tried. He does things to me. Having him say he’d rather have me ride him than do what’s socially acceptable only adds fuel to the very real fire in my core. A fire that could easily rage out of control before we can have any deeper discussion — especially when I can feel his cock large and hard beneath me. It jerks against the crotch of my jeans as I try to map the shape of it with my pussy.
“Mm. Just like that, Lana.”
Panting now, I try to catch my breath. “But… I want to ask you things.”
“Then ask.”
I shake my head. “Serious things.”
“Sounds intense.” His eyebrow hitches up, and he starts undoing my shirt buttons. “Not sure I’ll handle that without some encouragement.” He spreads my shirt wide open, tugs down my bra until my tits pop out over the top, then he gives a satisfied grunt. “What do you want to know, Lana?”
“Lots of things. Everything. I want to know where you’re coming from and where you’re headed. I want to know what risks you’re willing to take to get there. I want to know all the things you wantandthe ones you don’t. There are things I want to know, but it’s not the right time to ask when you’re distracting yourself from sadness by sucking on my tits like that.Fuuuuuck.”
The swirling pressure tugging at my nipple eases as Bates lets it slip from his mouth. I suddenly feel like a balloon that’s been let go in the wind. I want my anchor back. My huge sexy anchor with his gifted mouth that makes my body do things like nothing and nobody else. His eyes meet mine.
“These things you want to talk about…” he says slowly as his thumb and fingers tease my nipple. “I want to talk about them too, but I don’t want to scare you.”
“I feel the same way,” I admit with a gasp. “I know what it’ll sound like when I say the stuff in my head, and I don’t want you to think I’m being stupid and crazy.”
His hands drop from my breasts, and he folds them over his chest as he gives me a stern look. “I won’t ever think you’re stupid, crazy, weird, or any other thing you want to call yourself in that tone you have for bad things. You tell me whatever you want, and I will hear it from a place of love and acceptance. Is that understood?”
A little breathless, I nod.
“Good. Can I expect the same from you?”
I nod again.
“Then it’s settled. We’ll speak freely.”
I open my mouth, but no words come out.
“How about I go first?” he suggests. “Age before beauty. Lana?”
Still a little shell-shocked at hearing theLword from his lips, I try to remind myself that it hadn’t really meant what I wanted in that context, but my heart keeps doing flips. It’s going to crash so hard when reality hits. If I’d have known I’d meet Bates and that he would be here for the season, I might’ve made the recommendation that the emergency defibrillation kit be set up outside his trailer instead of situated with the other first-aid gear in the more central communal hub.
I gasp when he tweaks and tugs at my nipples.
