Decidedly With Love

by Stina Lindenblatt

  Welcome to my dream bedroom…if I ever lived in a place like this.

  I opened the balcony door and stepped out. The balcony, with its wicker patio furniture, stretched between my room and the neighboring one. I paused at the black metal railing and took in the incredible view: the peaceful, well-maintained gardens leading up to the house, the vineyards, and the gentle rolling hills in the distance.

  In all the years I’d lived in foster care, not once had I imagined being in a location like this. Of course, I also never imagined pretending to be Travis’s girlfriend back then either, so clearly I was on a roll.

  “So what do you think?” Travis asked behind me.

  I glanced over my shoulder, smiled at him, then went back to appreciating the scenery. “It’s breathtaking. Could you imagine living out here all the time?”

  “Probably not. I’m used to living in the city.”

  “Me, too.” But I was also used to living in foster care and I got over that soon enough.

  A bird chirped from the nearby tree. Another one answered it. Travis placed his hands on the railing, caging me in. A combination of his man scent and aftershave wrapped around me, and I leaned back against him. Oops. Hadn’t meant to do that.

  Not at all.

  We stood still for a few minutes, looking at the surrounding grounds. You’d never guess the battle waging inside me at his close proximity. Part of me wished to see if Travis would open up to me some more. The horny part just craved to drag him to bed and have wild sex with him.

  Was Travis facing the same battle? If he was, the horny side of him was winning. Big surprise there. He was a man after all.

  His hand covered mine and drifted up my arm, slowly igniting each and every nerve.

  At my elbow, his hand moved to my ribs. My girls, their nipples now perky, silently begged for his hand to move up slightly. As if heeding their needy pleas, Travis caressed my side for a moment with his fingertips, then shifted one hand to cup my breast.

  Oh, God, I whispered in my head. At least I hoped it was in my head.

  “Christ, I want to be inside you so badly, Emma,” he murmured in my ear, the sound so low it was almost a growl.

  My body screamed out, Give the man what he wants.

  I turned around in his arms and gazed into his beautiful hazel eyes for a heartbeat. “I want that too,” I whispered.

  And with that, his mouth was on mine, and we began savoring each other with our eager tongues. At some point, Travis dipped down, grabbed the backs of my thighs, and lifted me up. My legs instantly wrapped around his hips. My dress bunched up around my hips. The only things between his thickening length and my throbbing core were his jeans and my panties.

  If he hadn’t been stepping into my room, I would’ve been dry humping him.

  Oh, what the heck. I did it anyway.

  He swallowed my moan and placed me on the bed so I was sitting.

  Our lips still attached, I started unfastening his shirt buttons. His shirt was already untucked from his jeans, and I slid my hand through the newly created opening and trace my fingers along the ridges of his abs.

  Not wishing to miss out on the fun, Travis trailed his fingertip along the pink lace edging of my demi-bra. The cream satin material with small pink roses pushed up my breasts, giving him quite the view. “I swear this is my new all-time favorite bra.” His finger slipped under the lace and shoved the fabric down, revealing the taut nipple. “Definitely my new favorite bra.”

  His teasing finger brushed against it and I whimpered. Wetness rushed to my core. I squirmed on the bed, my clit pleading for his finger to brush against it next.

  He bent down and took the greedy bud into his mouth. My fingers knotted in his hair. I might have even gently yanked the soft strands.

  A moment later, his skilled fingers had removed the bra, and the other breast was appreciating his lavish attention. My hands slipped between his collar and the skin of his neck. I needed to touch him all over, and I needed to do it now.

  Luckily for me, Travis could read my mind—or so it seemed. He quickly removed the offending shirt and tossed it to the side.

  Ooh, that was more like it.

  I stood up and let my dress fall to the floor, leaving me in nothing but matching panties.

  Travis’s eyes adopted a heated look. A volcano couldn’t have gotten any hotter than the way his gaze was taking me in. A level of confidence I’d never had before with men glowed inside me, and suddenly I wanted to be the one calling the shots.

  “Remove your jeans,” I said, my voice rough and sexy and demanding.

  At least I hoped it was all of that.

  Travis’s mouth curled up to one side. “As you wish.” He removed a condom wrapper from his back pocket and set it on the bedside table. Then he slowly unzipped his jeans and pushed them down his legs. His cock strained against the fabric of his boxer briefs and I licked my lips in anticipation.

  “Now the underwear.”

  He did as I said, and then to tease me further, he took his cock in his hand and pumped his fist along the length.

  And I’d be lying if I said it didn’t make me wetter.

  I shimmied my panties down my legs and kicked them to the side. Then I knelt in front of him and wrapped my fingers around his hard length. Pre-cum leaked from the opening, and I licked him like he was a lollipop.

  That primal growl? Definitely him.

  Which only made me feel more confident. Nothing said you were driving a man crazy in a good way than when he made that sound.

  I slipped his cock into my mouth and gently grabbed his balls. I’d read somewhere that men loved it when you did that. Might as well see if it was true.

  And…it was.

  “Christ, Emma. You’re going to be the death of me.”

  Did it sound like I would be the death of him?

  Maybe if death and orgasm were the same.

  Let me point out here that I’d never gone down on a guy before…not even with my ex-boyfriend. Couldn’t say with him I’d even been curious or interested. But it was different with Travis.

  The way I felt with Travis was different—even though he didn’t feel the same way about me.

  Taking him as far as I could, I cupped myself and brushed my finger against my clit. I released a strangled sound that was a cross between a hum and Oh, God.

  Needing to see his reaction to what I was doing to him, I peered up. What I hadn’t expected was to find him looking at me. If I was to rate the level of heat and lust and want in his eyes from one to a hundred, it would be a definite one thousand.

  Hello, girl power!

  “Keep touching yourself like that, Emma,” he said, voice rough. “Keep touching yourself and let me know how much you enjoy it.”

  The low growl of his voice caused a new rush of moisture to my core. I’d never realized before this just how much of a turn-on dirty talk could be.

  With my gaze still on Travis, I let his noises guide me as I moved my mouth along his length. Well, as far as I could go. I hadn’t yet mastered the fine art of taking him deeper without annoying my gag reflex.

  “I’m going to come,” he said after a few minutes, voice strained.

  I slipped his cock out of my mouth. “Thought that was the general idea.”

  “It is…if I didn’t want to come inside you. But I do—more than you could possibly know.” His gaze dropped to my hand still pleasuring myself. Or rather that had been pleasuring myself. I had to stop a moment ago because I’d been so close to coming, I was afraid of biting Travis’s cock off.

  I pushed myself to my feet and climbed onto the bed. Travis followed.

  “Bring your knees to your chest and open yourself up to me, Emma.”

  I did as he asked. Instead of feeling vulnerable and exposed as I would have expected, I was even more turned on.

  Travis touched my sex and I came close to launching off the bed. That smug, satisfied smile of his grew, and he grabbed the condom wrapper from the be
dside table. After he slipped the condom on, he positioned himself against my entrance, and with a quick thrust, buried himself inside me.

  It didn’t take long for us to fall off the edge of ecstasy together and letting everyone in the mansion know exactly what we were doing.

  Oops.

  That hadn’t exactly been on my agenda for this trip, especially since Josh and Trent were aware that our relationship was fake. But since we were two consenting, horny adults, what else did they expect?

  After he had dealt with the condom, Travis returned to the bed and kissed me. But unlike the hungry kisses of a few minutes ago, this kiss was tender and sweet.

  This was the kiss of happily ever after—if I had been living in a different fairy tale.

  27

  Travis

  What’s the golden rule of flings and one-night stands?

  Don’t stick around—because the girl will always want more than you are willing to give. If not now, then soon enough.

  But somehow that rule with Emma never seemed to apply. Why? Because it was me who longed for more than I was willing to give. But in the end, love only resulted in pain.

  Too melodramatic for you?

  Let me explain. My parents were the greatest. When most teens were rebelling against their parents’ rules, I worshiped Mom and Dad. They respected me and I respected them. They had sacrificed everything for me and my hockey. They came to every game. They took turns driving me to my super early morning practices without complaint…which was more than I could say about myself.

  Was Dad one of those scary hockey fathers who yelled at everyone—the coaches, the other players, the refs, and even his own kid? A few of my old childhood teammates had fathers like that. The men had aspirations for their kids. Aspirations that involved not only playing in the NHL but also winning the Stanley Cup. Aspirations that involved hefty several-million-dollars-a-year salaries. Aspirations that involved the father’s own failed ambitions. They drove their kids hard—preventing the kid from truly loving the sport.

  But hockey dads weren’t the only ones who were terrifying. Hockey moms could be just as bad, if not worse.

  My parents had been the complete opposite. They always had a kind word to say about my games, even if I had screwed up and accidentally scored on my own goal. Yes, it sucked the big one whenever the puck bounced off your body or skate and landed in your own net. Some dads would’ve chewed their kid a new one. My parents always had milk and cookies and a warm smile no matter what happened. They always dwelled on the positives.

  They made me feel like there was nothing I couldn’t do. They made me feel proud to be their son. So when I lost them, it had almost killed me.

  You know the story about Granny and how she had helped me get through my parents’ deaths—even when I was acting like a piece of shit. She never gave up on me. And like my parents, she sacrificed everything to make sure I could keep playing the sport I loved, the sport that helped me get through my loss.

  And I almost lost her because of the stroke.

  And then a few years later, I did lose my best friend and teammate in college. He always had my back like I always had his…until I was no longer able to watch his back and he died of cancer.

  So, to sum it all up—loving someone came with risks. The kind of risks that involved you losing the person—and subsequently, a piece of your soul.

  Why am I telling you this?

  Because I was starting to feel things for Emma that I shouldn’t.

  Things that scared me.

  And what did guys who were afraid of falling in love excel at? That’s right—running.

  I knew what Emma really wanted to happen next. It was what ninety percent of girls desired after a good fuck—to cuddle.

  But I couldn’t do that. Not this time.

  “I should go and get changed so we can join everyone by the pool.” I scrambled from the bed as if I had been lying with a rattlesnake instead of the freshly fucked, hot redhead who was staring at me in confusion. “I’ll see you downstairs.”

  I didn’t bother to wait around to witness the hurt on her face. I shoved on my jeans, grabbed the rest of my clothes from the floor, and bailed the room, shutting the door behind me.

  Naturally, I couldn’t have a smooth escape, with no one witnessing my assholiness. I bumped into Holly and Josh in the hallway. Well, more like plowed into them.

  If they were surprised to see me practically naked and escaping from Emma’s room, they didn’t show it. But given how noisy she and I had just been, I’d be surprised if even the neighbors hadn’t heard us.

  “I’ll be down in a minute,” I said to the pair, then pretty much hurled myself into my bedroom.

  I didn’t exactly rush to join everyone downstairs. I cleaned up and changed into my swim trunks.

  Josh and Holly were sitting on a pair of recliners, watching Trent and Kelsey in the pool, when I walked out the patio door. Trent grabbed Kelsey around the waist from behind. She gave a little shriek, then giggled as she squirmed to get away…just not very hard. Her blonde hair had been pulled into a high ponytail, which Trent was making the most of. He nibbled on her exposed neck.

  I might have been watching Trent and Kelsey, but that didn’t mean I failed to notice the moment Emma stepped from the house to join us. I turned around—and I wouldn’t be surprised if my jaw hit the ground.

  She was wearing a black one-piece swimsuit. The front scooped down to an inch above her belly button, revealing her cleavage. What kept her breasts from falling out? The ties that zigzagged from the bottom of the opening to just below the top of the tempting mounds of flesh.

  Sure—it was sexy as all hell. But that wasn’t what completely did me in and caused my dick to react. Her curls were loosely piled on her head, with strands framing her face. She reminded me of the fountain in her store. If I was asked to describe the goddess of love, this woman in front of me would be it.

  “I love your swimsuit, Emma,” Holly said as I continued staring at her, my heart thumping harder in my chest than it had been while we’d been having sex.

  She smiled at Holly, either oblivious to how I was looking at her or choosing to ignore me after I’d pulled the fuck-and-dash a few minutes ago. “Thanks. How’s the water?”

  “I haven’t been in yet,” Holly said, “but those two”—she indicated Trent and Kelsey—“claim it’s warm.”

  That was too bad because the way my cock was responding to Emma, I needed to jump in a freezing pool to deal with my dilemma.

  As if privy to my thoughts, Emma’s gaze dropped to my swim trunks and her eyes widened. She then tore her gaze away and walked toward the steps leading into the pool.

  And like a puppy eager to play with his owner, I followed after her. The only difference between me and a puppy was that I didn’t bound after her and I didn’t nip at her heels—but I only came within an inch of not doing that.

  She tested the water’s temperature with her toes and continued down the steps until her body was submerged enough to cover her tits.

  I entered the water after her. Kelsey laughed and squirmed out of Trent’s reach. She managed to run a yard or two before Trent easily caught up with her. She splashed him, but it wasn’t enough to deter him—not that it looked like she wanted to deter him. He grabbed around her waist and pulled her to him.

  Kelsey wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him in a way that I was surprised didn’t heat the pool another ten degrees.

  Okaaay. I knew from experience they’d be busy for a while. Holly and Josh were also preoccupied. Josh had abandoned his recliner and had joined his wife on hers. From the way they were leaning toward each other, it was clear they would be making out shortly.

  And the prize for the most awkward couples weekend went to…

  But it wasn’t awkward because Emma and I weren’t a real couple. It just felt that way because of how I’d acted after she and I had fucked.

  I approached her the same way you would a live w
ire—very cautiously. But like a kid who was tempted to stick a fork in an electrical socket after being told not to, I couldn’t control myself. And yes—I would swear that till my dying day.

  Emma watched me walk closer to her but didn’t move. The same heat I’d seen in her eyes before, along with a dose of self-preservation, glared back at me.

  I slowly reached out to her. When she didn’t flinch or scowl at me, I caressed the soft skin of her shoulder. “I’m sorry about earlier. I didn’t mean to leave like that.”

  She shrugged and for the first time I noticed the smattering of freckles on her shoulder.

  “I don’t really expect much else from you,” she said. Or at least I think that’s what she’d said. I was too mesmerized by her freckles.

  I ran the pad of my thumb across them. “You know, if you joined these with a sharpie, you’d get a heart shape.” I traced the pattern with my fingertip.

  She turned her head to see. “Guess I’ve never noticed. Must mean I was always fated to have a career in romance. My calling was in my freckles.” She smiled but it never made it to her eyes.

  It didn’t take a fucking genius to figure out why. “Someday a man’s gonna fall in love with you, Emma, and he won’t want to let you go. He’ll never let you down.” Not like you’ve been let down in the past.

  My words were supposed to reassure her, but they had the opposite effect.

  Instead of the smile I’d expected, she looked away.

  But not before I noticed how her eyes glistened with unshed tears.

  Unshed tears that almost gutted me.

  28

  Dear Dr. Lovejoy,

  The guy I’m seeing couldn’t get out of the room fast enough the last time we had sex. Do you think he has commitment issues or was the sex really that bad?

  Sincerely,

  What Did I Do Wrong?

  * * *

  Dear What Did I Do Wrong,

  The first thing you need to ask yourself is, what did you think of the sex? The fact that you are asking makes me think it wasn’t all fireworks for you, either. My recommendation is to at least read some erotic romances. You’ll get some great ideas there for spicing up your sex life. And don’t forget the guides on different positions for enhancing your sexual pleasure. There are plenty of great ones available.