“Hands off man,” Xander warned. “She’s taken.”
I blushed as Drew looked down at me. “Really? Do I need to check him out? Make sure he’s good enough for you?”
I laughed, imagining Drew trying to intimidate Brady. Xander answered before I could. “Mandy already did that. She tried to scare him off the other night, but he didn’t back down. He’s a good guy. He’ll be here today though, if you’re feeling frisky,” he teased his friend.
“Is Brandi coming?”
Xander snorted. “Do you really think Mandy would allow her to be here?”
“You really need to find someone better if she’s that horrible,” I told him. “Mandy gets along with everyone.”
Drew sighed. “I know. But Xander just said you’re taken so I’m out of options.”
I laughed and winked at him. “Lucky for you I met a couple new friends. Mandy invited them. Maybe you can hook up with one of them, they’re both really nice.”
Xander laughed at my pathetic matchmaking attempt. I knew Drew wouldn’t actually go for it when he had a girlfriend, even if she did sound like a horrendous bitch.
“Thanks, but I think I’ll just wait for you to realize we’re destined to be together.”
I laughed as the minister walked in the room. “Are you ready?”
Xander grinned. “Absolutely.”
~*~
The wedding was short and sweet. Xander’s eyes bugged out of his head when he saw Mandy in her dress. His hazel eyes, reminding me too much of Brady’s, raked over her body, making Mandy flush. When she finally reached him at the altar he barely contained his desire to drag her into his arms. She just grinned knowingly.
When they were announced man and wife, Xander kissed her with more than his fair share of church tongue. I caught the kiss, all twenty-seven seconds of it. Yes, I counted. I always did because I snapped pictures continuously and I wondered how many I took of the first kiss. It was one of those magical moments that every couple loved to see.
The reception was at Winterville Park. Being mid-July the weather was warm but still comfortable enough to be outside. Mandy didn’t care where the reception was as long as they got married at her parents’ church, and Xander wanted to be outside. It worked for both of them.
A large tent was set up in the park, near the bridge where I’d photographed the Alexander family a month earlier. It was the perfect backdrop for more shots of Mandy and Xander and their families. I took advantage of their distraction, watching Mandy and Xander, and took picture after picture.
I was so focused on my job that I almost forgot about Brady being there. When he stepped up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist I squeaked before relaxing into him. “You’re amazing to watch,” he whispered, kissing my neck.
I smiled and turned in his arms, letting my camera dangle around my neck so I could reach up and kiss him. “It’s really not that exciting. I told you that.”
“Oh, but you’re wrong. See I get to sit back and watch you move, in this little dress, and it’s amazing to watch. This dress is going to make me crazy.”
I grinned and tickled the stubble along the back of his neck. “Maybe that’s why I wore it,” I teased.
Brady groaned. “Oh, you’re evil.” He leaned down and kissed me, hard and fast. His tongue plunged into my mouth and his hands squeezed my sides, pulling me to him. I gasped at the feel of him against me, heating my skin and making me wish we could duck into a private spot just like Mandy and Claire teased about earlier.
Brady pulled away abruptly and removed his hands from my side. “Shit, did I hurt you?”
“Huh?” I asked, genuinely confused and more than a little turned on.
His hands ghosted over my sides as though he could feel if I was in pain, then it clicked. “You didn’t hurt me. Well, maybe a little when you pulled back, but that was just because I didn’t want you to stop.”
A smile drifted over his face, leaving him looking boyish and handsome. He had such a hard, serious look about him all the time that whenever he smiled he seemed so much younger, handsome instead of scorching.
“I don’t ever want to stop kissing you, Sam, but I don’t want to ruin Mandy’s wedding. I think she might kick my ass if you miss a shot.”
I threw my head back and laughed, but Brady was completely serious. He was scared of my beautiful, red-headed friend. Then again, she was probably the one most likely to kick his ass. Mandy earned her red hair.
“I think you’ll be fine, but I do have to get a few more shots before I can relax. I’ll be able to sit for dinner and can even dance a little, if you’re up to it.”
Brady nodded once then kissed me quickly. He disappeared into the crowd and I focused on my job.
Three hours later I was finally able to kick off my sandals and enjoy the night. Tea lights twinkled in mason jars strung all around the tent, giving off an ethereal feel. The dance floor was crowded and the tables were empty. All the food was packed up and the caterers were gone, leaving only Charlie’s cupcakes for hungry guests.
I’d finished my duties. Mandy made sure to tell me after they’d cut the cake, had their first dance, and tossed the garter and bouquet that she wanted to me have some fun. I was grateful, but I was also exhausted. I was disappointed that Drew left shortly after dinner, but he said Brandi was having a fit and he needed to get home. I made sure to take a few shots of Drew with Xander and Mandy before he vanished, but I knew they’d always remember that he left early to get home to her.
I flexed my toes, digging them into the grass under the table, and wished I could massage my feet without flashing the entire reception. My other friends were on the dance floor, including Riley and Carrie who were fitting right in with everyone else. I wanted to be out there with them, but I needed a few minutes to stretch my toes, and maybe my back.
Strong hands came down on my shoulders, rubbing slow circles in my back. I moaned, half not caring who was standing behind me, and dropped my head forward. My hair fell over my shoulders and my glasses slid down my nose. It felt amazing, and I was pretty sure I was going to marry whoever was attached to those amazing hands.
“You looked like you needed to relax,” Brady said softly in my ear.
“That feels so good.”
I could hear the smile in his next words. “Your skin is so soft. I couldn’t resist touching you. Your feet have got to be killing you.”
I groaned. “You have no idea.”
“What do you say we dance a little then head back to your place and I can give you a massage?”
I tilted my head back to look at him. “Really?” I asked, tears filling my eyes. He had no idea what he was saying, or why it would mean so much to me, but emotions choked me as I imagined his hands all over my body.
“I can’t wait to get my hands on all of you, Sam. If it’ll help you relax,” he sounded unsure, like me questioning him meant he was doing something wrong.
I smiled up at him and said, “Thank you.”
Nineteen
Since I met Brady at the wedding we had separate cars to leave. He followed me back to my house and grasped my hand as we headed up the walk to the front door. I let us in and tossed my keys and purse on the table then untied my sandals and tossed them in the closet.
“Let me put my camera up. I need to plug it in so I can start editing tomorrow.”
“You work all the time, don’t you?” Brady asked, following me through the living room, past the bathroom, and into my home office.
I shrugged. “Not all the time, but I like to go through pictures from an event or a shoot as quickly as possible so it’s not hanging over me. I don’t like having a long to do list.”
I plugged in my camera so my computer would capture all the shots and I’d have a back-up to work from. When I turned, Brady was leaning against the door frame, looking more delectable than Charlie’s cupcakes.
“You can’t look at me like that, Sam,” he growled.
“Why not?”
“I won’t be able to control myself around you,” he said simply, as if that would explain everything. “Come on, I owe you a massage.”
“You don’t have to, Brady. If you don’t want to, it’s okay.”
Brady narrowed his eyes at me, trying to figure out the hidden meaning behind my words, but he didn’t push. “I want to, Sam. More than you can imagine.”
I nodded and let him lead me to my bedroom. My heart rate kicked up. We’d never been in either of our bedrooms before. Sure, he’d seen me half naked, but we were in his office. The other times we’d kissed we’d both been fully clothed. Being in my bedroom invoked a sense of intimacy that made me nervous. We were crossing a new line, one I wanted to run over, but one that I knew would change things.
Brady hadn’t said anything about sex. The possibility was there, but I hadn’t even gotten my hands on him. I knew he wasn’t small if the bulge in his pants was any indication, but he wouldn’t let me touch him, which worried me.
“Stop thinking, Sam. There’s nothing to figure out here. I want to make you feel good. That’s all that’s going on. I’m not ready for more yet. I’m not sure I could handle more tonight. Not after seeing you in this dress all day.”
“Then how about you help me out of it.”
I walked toward him, feeling anxious and terrified. His eyes held mine as I moved closer to him, close enough that I could hear him swallow. When I stopped in front of him his eyes trailed over me. He gulped again then nodded. I turned so he could unzip me and pulled my long hair to the side.
Brady’s fingers trembled against my bare skin. Slowly he slid the zipper down my back. When it reached the end his lips touched my back, following the same path. “You taste like heaven,” he murmured against my flesh, drawing out goosebumps.
Brady’s hands went to my shoulders and slid the capped sleeves down, his hands following the fabric the length of my arms. He glided his palms back up then trailed them down my back to my waist where the dress got hung up. He gave it a gentle tug and it fell at my feet.
With my back to him, I couldn’t see the expression on his face. Tension ramped up within me, unsure if he was going to continue or make a run for it now that he’d basically seen all of me. Sure I still had on my black bra and panties, but those didn’t cover up the jiggly parts.
“You’re absolutely gorgeous Sam. The sexiest woman I’ve ever seen. I’d say you’re fine, but I know you don’t like that word.”
I laughed at his joke, letting the anxiety I’d been feeling slip away. He wasn’t about to run. He wasn’t teasing me. He wasn’t leaving.
And just like that, I fell a little bit in love with Brady Wright.
“Do you want to take off the rest or stay like that?” he asked, his voice deep and husky. I could hear the desire in his tone, but I wanted to push him. Brady said he wasn’t ready for sex, but I was. And I was starting to wonder how he could resist if he really liked me as much as he said he did.
It was time to test that resistance.
“I’d rather take it all off, if that’s okay with you,” I whispered, peering over my shoulder at him.
He gulped again, his Adam’s apple bobbing in his throat. “You or me?” he asked.
Only one answer for that question. I smiled at him and said, “You.”
His eyes held mine, passion firing through the hazel orbs. I knew he wanted me. But I wanted him unable to resist me.
His hands drifted over my back before settling at the strap that rested across the center. He fumbled for a minute before pulling the two sides apart. He ran the straps down my shoulders then lifted my breasts into his hands so my bra could fall to the floor.
Brady’s mouth suckled at the skin on my neck. His hands supported my breasts, his fingers playing with my nipples. I tilted my head to the side, making sure he had enough room to kiss my neck, and he laughed softly against my overheated skin.
“You like that,” he said, not asking, telling. “You skin is so soft and perfect. Makes me want to find out what other parts of you are this soft, this sweet.”
I groaned and rolled my hips back against him, nudging my ass against his enormous erection. He hissed in a breath then closed his teeth over the tendon on my neck. His tongue darted out and soothed the bite before he asked, “Did I hurt you?”
“I told you, Brady, I’m not made of glass. I can take a whole lot more than that.”
“Good,” he said before spinning me in his arms and pulling me tight to him. In one move his lips came down on mine, his tongue pried my mouth open, and he searched my mouth. His hands grasped my ass, kneading my flesh beneath the black satin panties I’d been dripping into all day. I wanted him to move lower, work his fingers beneath the fabric, and touch me, skin to skin, but he didn’t. Instead he tortured me with his tongue against mine, his fingers achingly close to where I needed them, but too far away.
Brady broke our kiss and trailed his lips down my neck, over my collarbone, and straight to my nipples. I clutched his head, holding him in place, the rasp of his shaved hair pricking my fingers. My head fell back as he moved to the other nipple.
Then his hands ran down my sides and paused at the edge of my panties. I could tell he was working up the nerve by the way he slowed his kisses on my nipples, going from devouring me to simply enjoying me. I cupped his chin and he looked up at me. With our eyes locked, he hooked his fingers around the waistband and slid my panties down my legs. He lifted each of my feet to slide them out from beneath me, then looked up at me from where he knelt on the floor in front of me.
“Finest woman ever,” he said firmly, his eyes locked on mine.
When he finally released me, his eyes went straight between my legs. I wanted a few others things to go there, but I’d settle for his gaze.
“I think I promised you a massage,” he forced out, his jaw twitching with the effort. “Why don’t you lie down?”
I walked backward toward my bed, watching Brady the whole time. His eyes never left me and when I sat on the bed and pushed back to rest my head on a pillow he sucked in a breath that told me he’d gotten a peek as I’d shifted.
Not that it was on purpose. Of course not.
“On your stomach, Sam,” Brady ordered as he stood and stalked toward me. “I need to get to your back.”
I did as I was told, knowing Brady’s control was slipping further and further from his grasp. When his palms brushed my skin I forgot all about Brady’s control, and my desire to snap it, and melted into his touch. I groaned, reveling in the feel of him, eliminating the tension and aches in my back. Long, even strokes eased the soreness and direct contact obliterated the knots that littered my muscles.
He worked down to my legs once my back felt like he’d replaced my spine with jelly. He skated over my ass, palming the globes before continuing seamlessly down the length of my legs, relieving the same tension the coiled those muscles.
When he finally reached my feet I thought I was going to wake the dead with how loudly I moaned. Dear god the man was good with his hands. He tugged my toes, rubbed between each of them, dug his thumbs into the balls of my feet, and then used his thumbs to ease my arches and heels.
“That feels so good,” I told him, wiping the drool from my chin. If Brady was going to stick around I was going to have to have him give me more massages.
I couldn’t think about that though. The guy wouldn’t even sleep with me. It was only a matter of time before he found someone he would be willing to jump into bed with on sight.
“I’m glad you’re enjoying yourself,” he said, sounding pained. I smirked to myself, knowing he was faltering, but I was too relaxed to do anything about it.
“I could enjoy myself a lot more if you’d crawl into bed with me,” I teased, wondering what he would say.
I heard the rustle of fabric then felt the bed dip beside me. Holy fuck, he actually got in bed with me!
I rolled over to face him and looked up into the sexiest expression I’d ever
seen. His lids were half-closed in that sexy, too much to take sort of way. His eyes were shining like he couldn’t wait to get his hands back on me. His lips were plump and pink and wet. His breath throbbed out of him as though he was on the verge of hyperventilating.
And his shirt was gone.
Jesus, the man was beautiful. Scars and all.
My eyes ran over his naked torso, wishing he’d let me see the rest of him. His muscles stretched and bulged with every move he made. I couldn’t stop myself from touching him, from tracing his muscles, his scars, my hands memorizing his every dip and curve for when he inevitably left.
“Can I touch you, Sam? Will you come for me?”
I throbbed at his words, heat and desire and need pooling between my legs. I bit my lip and nodded, suddenly feeling crazy shy. He was going to watch me. I could see it in his eyes. He wanted to see me. And I wanted him to do anything he wanted. Even if he wouldn’t let me see him or touch him, he was going to do those things to me.
And I knew it was going to be the most amazing feeling in my entire life.
Brady’s hand slid over me, heat licking a path over my skin as his fingertips trailed across me. He was propped up on one elbow, watching me, his eyes following his hand. He tweaked my nipples, circled my belly button, and tickled my inner thigh. Then he leaned forward and kissed me softly as his finger dipped between my legs.
My hips surged off the bed, needing more and needing him to stop. That one brush was too much. It wasn’t enough. Dear god, Brady was going to kill me.
“I’m not gonna last, Brady. I’m about to come.”
“Then come, baby. I want to watch you, hear you.” Brady kissed my bare skin with each word, letting his tongue brush against me for just a second before his lips puckered against my flesh. The sensation of his lips and his fingers, one slow and sweet, one fast and lascivious, drove me faster and higher than I’d ever been. I knew when my body finally released that I was going to completely lose control.
It was rare that I let a man see me that mindless. Few had ever gotten me to where Brady held me. Somehow I knew it would change the way I felt about Brady. That it would push me over the imaginary edge of my feelings for him. I was already falling for him, even though I knew it wasn’t the smartest thing to do. But I couldn’t stop my feelings for him any more than I could stop the orgasm rushing toward me like a speeding train.
Fat & Fine (Big & Beautiful Book 5) Page 15
