She’d slipped him a note with the security code for the garage and the number of the space to park in. Then, Abby being Abby, she re-sent the information by text. The numbers mixed with his memories of the pantry and clouded in his brain, but he managed to get inside the gate.
The elevator turned out to be tougher because it required the guy at the desk to call up and get permission from Abby to let him in. For one tense second, he worried she’d changed her mind and would say no, but the guy waved him up.
That was five minutes ago. Now he got off the elevator and shot Jackson’s front door a quick look. Having him so close by rattled Spence but he pretended it wasn’t a big thing.
He raised his hand to knock on Abby’s door right as it opened. She stood there, hair falling over her shoulders and a welcoming smile on her face.
He almost lost it.
Somehow he managed to lean in for a quick kiss. Even the slight touch of their lips had his heart racing until the echo of it thumped in his ears. He stepped inside the condo and closed the door behind him. After turning the lock, he followed her inside the open space.
The condo was new, with top-end everything. Her bedroom sat shadowed off to the right. He tried not to think about that room. Keeping his mind off the floor plan proved easy because he had something else—something much more interesting—to focus on right now.
Abby walked from the entryway through to the living room with those impressive hips swaying as she stepped. The drapes were drawn on the floor-to-ceiling windows behind her couch. Lamps lit the area in a soft glow. And she was wearing a dress. She’d been in a suit all day. He remembered because he’d thought about her skirt and the way it rode up her thighs, just a touch, as she walked.
The dress was solid red and bold. It wrapped around her with a same-color tie at her waist. He’d never seen it before but he was a fan.
As she stood there, her head tilted to the side and her hair cascaded over her shoulder. “Are you hungry?”
“Starving.” He wasn’t even sure if he could choke down food right now, but it seemed like a good answer. Logical in light of the time of night and the agreement they had to find food.
She made a humming sound. “That’s a shame.”
The list of take-out restaurants running through his brain slammed to a halt. “Excuse me?”
That smile, wide and inviting. Man, there was no way he was going to survive that. The seductive curve of her lips promised excitement. Or maybe he was still daydreaming. He honestly couldn’t tell.
Reality blended with fantasy when he looked at her. Long legs and that face. Big eyes, full lips...yeah, he was lost. He had no defense against her.
She kept her hands at her side as she walked over to him. He would have moved but he was pretty sure his feet were welded to the floor. No part of him even flinched except the growing bulge in his pants. He really hoped that didn’t make her twitchy. Another few minutes of her staring and she would notice. She couldn’t not notice.
After a few yanks, she undid his tie and slipped it off his neck. Her fingers went to the buttons at the very top and opened two. When she slipped her hands inside the opening and placed her warm palm against his chest, he jumped. Couldn’t help it.
“Are we eating?” The question sat out there. He sounded like he’d never had sex before, and he had. Plenty of times. But he didn’t want to take a wrong turn here. He really wanted her to lead and take them down that hallway to her bedroom.
“You did say you were starving.” She slipped her thumb up his throat to the bottom of his chin. Brushed it back and forth.
That touch fueled him. Spun him up and readied him for more.
“I can’t remember what I said.” He wasn’t sure how he drove there without crashing the car.
“When?”
“Ever.”
“That thing you do where you lose your speech when you touch me?” She leaned in and ran her tongue along the top of his ear then whispered, “Very sexy.”
His cells caught on fire. He could smell her shampoo and feel her soft hair skim over his cheek. And that body. She leaned in, pressing her chest against his and his brain misfired.
“I don’t want to misread...”
“I like when you’re careful but you need to catch up here.” She bit down on his earlobe as she talked. Not hard but enough to get his attention.
The whisper of her voice echoed around him. He pulled back and looked at her. His gaze traveled over her face, looking for any sign of hesitancy. The blush on her cheeks and heat of her skin said yes. When her tongue peeked out, licked over his bottom lip, he may have said something. Who knew?
She shifted slightly and got a hand between them. With her fingers on that tie around her waist, she tugged. The belt came undone and the material keeping the dress closed slid open, revealing miles of perfect skin. She wore a pink bra that pushed her breasts up until they spilled over the tops of the cups and a tiny scrap that he guessed qualified as bikini bottoms.
It was a miracle his legs held him. Every thought about taking it slow left his head. Ran right out of there.
“I’m going to dream about this dress.” He really wanted to buy her a thousand more like it. She could pick the colors. He did not care.
“About getting me out of it, I hope.” With a shrug of her shoulders, she let the material slide off and fall to the floor with a swish. It pooled around her bare feet. Covered the soft purple polish covering her toes.
That choking sensation? He was pretty sure he swallowed his tongue. “Most definitely.”
His words sounded garbled and a strange layer of fuzziness clogged his head. Whatever control he normally had he’d forfeited when he walked in the door.
A deep inhale didn’t help. Neither did a silent count to ten. So, he gave in and touched her. Reached out and wrapped his arms around her. Lifted her off the floor and sighed in relief when her thighs clamped down against the outsides of his legs.
“It is unreal how sexy you are.” Babble filled his brain, so he wasn’t a hundred percent sure what he’d said, but she smiled.
Fingers slipped through his hair as her other hand skimmed down his back. “Still hungry?”
The light bulb clicked on in his mind. He finally figured out she wasn’t talking about food. “I’ll show you in the bedroom.”
Somehow he got them there. Walked backward for part of it. Knocked his arm against the door frame and bit back a curse. Once he righted himself, he started moving again. His elbow slammed into the wall as he searched for the light switch. Then it was on and all he could see was her face above him and the bedroom right behind her.
He didn’t waste any time. He stepped up to the edge of the mattress and lowered her. Let her slip down his legs. As soon as she sat down, her fingers went to work on his belt then his zipper. He tried to breathe in, rushed to get air in his lungs as she lowered her head and took him in her mouth.
One swipe of her tongue. One press of her hand against him, fingers around him, and his control snapped. As gently as possible, he pulled her away from him. His hands shook with the need to throw her back on the bed, but she did it for him. With excruciating slowness, she leaned back. Pressed her back on the mattress and flung her arms out to her sides.
She winked at him. “Why are you still dressed?”
Good question. He nearly ripped his shirt off then yanked his pants down. Probably set a speed record in getting naked. Then he crawled up her body, rubbing against her, over her. The resulting friction had him gasping.
“Condom.” He couldn’t forget this time. He’d never gone without protection before her. Before Abby and that pantry.
He didn’t regret it, but he could do better. He owed her that along with so many other things.
He scrambled off the bed as she called out his name. Man, he loved the sound of his full name on her lips.
>
“Spencer, what are you...” She smiled when she saw the condom in his hand. “Yes.”
“We’ll be more careful this time.” While she was sick, he’d texted her about birth control and their failure to use any. She assured him she was on the Pill, but they’d agreed a repeat of that move was not smart.
“Why are you still talking?” she asked as she reached up and pulled him back on top of her.
He kissed her then. Let out all the pent-up need and desire and plowed them both under. Kissed her until the blood ran from his head and his lower half pulsed with the need to strip her underwear off and throw it on the floor.
When he lifted his head, she looked dazed. Smiling with swollen lips and big watchful eyes.
“You are so beautiful.” He meant it. Every word.
He’d never had any woman break through his defenses and reach inside him like she had. Through everything, all the pain and distrust, he could never wipe her from his mind. Now he knew he didn’t have to.
His hand slipped behind her back to unclip her bra. Peeling it off her was like unwrapping the best present. His breath caught in his throat as his mouth dipped to kiss her. He ran his tongue over her, around her nipples, and felt her fingers clench in his hair.
Slow. She deserved all of his attention for as long as he could handle it. But then her hand snaked down his body. Those fingers wrapped around his length. He had to rest his forehead against hers as he gulped in air and wrestled for control.
“Spencer.” She brought her knees up until the inside of her thighs pressed against his sides. “Go faster.”
The words pummeled him and the urge to give in grabbed him. But this was for her. Tonight, and for as many nights as she would give him. “Soon.”
He moved down her body, kissing a trail over her bare skin. Loving every inch of her softness, each curve. He reached her stomach and pressed a kiss on the slight bump he found so sexy. When she gasped, he did it again.
Turning his head to the side, he rubbed his cheek against her bare skin. “You are perfect.”
“You...” Her back arched off the bed and those heels dug into the mattress.
There, sprawled out with her chest rising and falling on harsh breaths, she silently called out to him. Looked so inviting.
His mouth dipped lower. A finger slipped inside her as she shifted on the bed. He circled and caressed until her thighs clenched against his shoulders. He would never get a clearer sign of how ready she was, and he didn’t wait for one.
Up on his knees, he rolled on the condom. Then his body slid over hers again. He pressed inside. Keeping his thrust slow and steady, he pushed until her body tightened around his. His brain, his muscles—every part of him—begged for release. But he held back. He needed to know she’d gotten there before he let go.
Her breaths came in pants now. Her exposed neck enticed him as her head pressed deep into the pillows. She grabbed the comforter, balling it in her fists. With every second, her control slipped further away and it was amazing to watch.
Her skin glowed as sweat gathered on his forehead. Pressure built inside him, clawing at him. Still, he didn’t give in. He slipped his hand between their bodies. Touched her as he pumped in and out.
The trembling started in her legs. He could feel the muscles vibrate against him as the pulses started moving through her. Her hips lifted and her hands grabbed on to his shoulder. He waited until the last second, until she gasped and her body bucked, before he gave in to his own orgasm. It rolled through him, wiping everything else out.
For those few minutes, it was just him and her and the rhythm pounding in his head as he pushed into her. When the explosion came, all he could do was ride it out. Hold on to her, wrap his body around hers and give himself over to it.
It took a bit more time for his body to calm and the pulsing to stop. Reality came back to him in pieces. Her fingers brushing over his shoulder lured him in. He buried his face in her shoulder and inhaled. He’d get up, move—do something. Soon. But not yet...
* * *
He didn’t know how long he rested with her on the bed with his eyes closed. It really didn’t matter since she’d curled into his side with her hand on his chest. He slipped his palm up and down the soft skin of her arm, loving the feel of her.
This felt right. He’d ached for this, dreamed about it, got angry that he couldn’t stop thinking about what this might feel like when he left. Being away from her and adrift, not having any real direction, was the answer then. He’d needed to clear his head. Yeah, he got the facts wrong and blamed her instead of dumping it all on his father where it belonged. After those few stunned seconds, he’d been so willing to believe the man who raised him and always disappointed him. Spence knew now that he needed to break the habit.
He was about to drift off to sleep when she started talking. She leaned up on her elbow and stared down at him. “May I ask you a question?”
And that destroyed any chance of him sleeping, possibly ever. He couldn’t think of a time when that question ended well. “Why do I think I should say no? I mean, I can only mess up from here, right?”
She smiled as her fingertip traced his lips. “You’re not going to mess up.”
“I like how much faith you have in me.” He folded the arm that wasn’t holding her behind his head. “Go ahead.”
“What are we?”
The wording was strange but he knew exactly what she meant. They’d spent every evening together since she got over being sick. He planned to repeat that pattern next week and for many after that. “You sure know how to lead with the big questions.”
“There’s gossip at work and—”
“Does that bother you?” Maybe he’d been too casual about the boss thing. He’d taken himself off all of her projects. He would be there if she needed to consult but they restored Derrick as her direct line of supervision. It was neater that way. A separation of work and private life. Better for her in case she did have an issue.
“Not if whatever is between us is real.”
The words beat back the anxiety welling inside of him. He had an easy answer for this. “It’s real.”
“Are you just saying that?” Her eyes narrowed but amusement still lingered in her voice.
Despite her light tone, he took the question very seriously. “Because we’re naked and in your bed and I’m hoping I get to stay here? No. I’m saying the words because they’re true. Because they’ve been true and probably were even back when I messed up and pushed you away.”
She blew out a long breath as her hand came to rest on his chest again. “I hate what happened to us back then.”
Now was the right time for the apology. Nothing fancy. Just the truth.
“I’m sorry. Sorry I didn’t listen or trust you.” He brushed her hair off her cheek. “Sorry I didn’t punch my dad in the face.”
“I don’t want to come between you.”
Spence almost laughed at that. Might have if she didn’t look so serious. “Not possible. There’s no relationship to ruin. Not anything meaningful.”
“Don’t say that.”
Spence refused to get into that argument now. She was decent and loving and probably thought Eldrick might have some good hidden down deep inside him. Spence knew better. Even with Beth’s coaxing, Eldrick would never be a guy Spence trusted around Abby. Not again.
He needed her to understand Eldrick wasn’t between them. “But this—us—it is worth saving.”
Her eyes got all shiny. “So, we’re in this.”
A lump clogged his throat, but he swallowed it down. “We’re in it.”
Her mood switched again. This time to playful as she climbed on top of him. Straddled his hips.
“Good. Now we can have dinner.” She poked him in the chest. “I seem to remember you owing me a burger.”
“At your servi
ce, ma’am.”
Twelve
The next week passed in a haze of happiness. A voice in Abby’s head told her to be careful, not to let herself enjoy it too much because it could be snatched away so quickly.
She’d never gone for long stretches without something going wrong. Like, spectacularly wrong. A bad boyfriend, a huge problem at work. Having to move. A huge expense she hadn’t prepared for. Running out of money. Until she’d found stability with her job at Jameson, the last two years had been a constant strain.
Just to be safe, the only thing she’d spent any money on since she started receiving the big paycheck was her condo. She figured she always could sell it if finances grew tight again. It was her rainy-day fund, in a way.
Looking around the dining room table now, she couldn’t call up any of those bad memories or nagging worries. Probably had something to do with how loud the Jameson family was. Man, they could talk about anything. Carter, specifically, was a pro at talking.
They’d all gathered to celebrate the news from Ellie’s doctor that she could move around a bit more. She came back from her appointment two days ago and declared a family dinner was in order. Verbally walked all over Derrick’s objections and made it happen. To make her happy, and everyone seemed determined to do that, they gathered.
Even now they passed a roast, vegetables and potatoes around the long rectangle table in Derrick and Ellie’s dining room. Dishes clanked as Carter and Jackson argued about the benefits of mashed potatoes over all other potato dishes. Jackson’s sister and Ellie’s best friend, Vanessa, couldn’t make it on short notice, and Ellie’s brother was away at some computer seminar, but everyone else was there.
“Are you okay?” Spence whispered the question in Abby’s ear as he leaned in closer.
She reached out and slid her hand over his thigh. Gave it a little squeeze. It was tempting to drive him a little mad under the table, but really, she wanted to keep the connection. After their week together, she’d been spoiled. She hated any distance between them outside of work.
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