by J. H. Croix
He shifted his shoulders and rolled his head side to side before taking a deep breath and turning to stride out of his office. Roughly an hour later, he was in the middle of sautéing vegetables when the doorbell chimed. He turned the flame on the burner down and wiped his hands quickly before walking to the door.
He swung it open. Ivy stood there, her amber hair falling in loose waves around her shoulders. She so often had it tied back that every time he saw it loose, he had to fight not to run his hands through the silky locks. She lifted her head and smiled, a hint of uncertainty flashing in the depths of her eyes.
Ivy looked up at Owen, his jet back hair gleaming under the light from inside and his bright blue eyes catching hers and sending a jolt of heat through her center. She smiled, warmth blossoming when the corner of his mouth hitched up. He was so often somber, any smile felt like a surprise gift. “Come on in,” he said, turning to the side and gesturing her in.
She looked around as she followed him inside. From the outside, his home was gorgeous—a three-story circular house with light gray siding. It was tucked into the hillside above Diamond Creek, built partially into the hill, which she would bet had been the plan as a way to use the natural protection of the earth to minimize energy consumption. The entry to the home was on the middle floor. She glanced around, noticing the entire floor was mostly open with only one door to the side of the kitchen. A massive soapstone fireplace anchored the center of the area with an open kitchen to one side, a dining room table roughly in the center on the back, and couches and chairs with tables scattered amongst them to the other side of the fireplace. The space was open and inviting with a modern feel.
She followed Owen toward the kitchen area, which had a counter against the wall and an island with stools where the stove was. It was obvious he was already cooking something. She didn’t know why but it surprised her he’d offered to cook. He was clearly comfortable in the kitchen as he spun a spice rack and added some to the vegetables he was sautéing. He gestured for her to have a seat across from where he was stationed.
“What are you making?” she asked as she slipped her coat off and hung it on the back of the stool before sitting down. She rested her elbows on the counter and watched as he added yet another spice to whatever he was making.
“I realized I probably should’ve asked what you wanted for dinner. Since I didn’t, I went with something simple. Veggie and chicken stir-fry. I know you’re not a vegetarian because you had some of the buffalo chicken pizza at lunch last week, so I figured this would be safe.”
“It smells amazing. Do you cook much?”
He shrugged, those muscled shoulders of his rising and falling. She couldn’t help but stare. She rarely had a chance to look at him because, well, it wouldn’t do for her to stare when they were at work together. At the moment, he was occupied looking at what he was doing, so she had more free rein than normal. He wore a bright blue long-sleeved t-shirt, which just happened to bring out his eyes. Not as if they needed help being brought out. Ridiculous as it was, a simple t-shirt emphasized his cut body. She figured he must work out because hours in front of a computer didn’t give him the sculpted body he had. Her belly tightened just looking at him, and she tore her eyes away.
“Not as much as I’d like, actually. As you know, I work a lot. Doesn’t leave much time for cooking. When I get the chance, I do.” The low timbre of his voice sent a prickle over her skin.
“Not to ask the obvious, but where’d you learn to cook? Not many guys spend much time on cooking.”
His eyes flicked up to meet hers, a flash of pain in their depths that disappeared as quickly as it came. “My mom taught me. She loved to cook, so that’s what we did together a lot.”
Ivy’s heart squeezed, and she felt her own twinge of pain for his loss. She was relieved Derek had shared the story of Owen’s parents, or she might have stumbled here. What she didn’t know was how to navigate whether Owen knew what she knew. While she was considering what to say, he filled in the blank for her.
“My parents died when I was in college. Cooking is one of my best memories of my mom.”
His openness surprised her. “I’m so sorry. That must’ve been difficult.”
That flash of pain came and went again in his gaze when he nodded. “It was. You get used to it eventually though.”
“You do. My older brother died a few years ago. It was really hard on our family.”
His eyes flicked up again, this time holding hers. For a long moment, he simply stared at her and then nodded. “I’m sorry about your brother. Cam mentioned him to me.”
After another beat, he turned off the burner and looked away. Ivy didn’t want to dwell on a painful topic, so she waited to see what he might say next. As he added chicken he must’ve cooked before her arrival to the vegetables, he moved on to talking about the data from the modified design on the battery project.
A while later, she leaned over to look at the computer tablet Owen was holding. They’d had dinner, which was absolutely delicious. They’d relocated into the living room and were seated on the couch, which she discovered was ridiculously comfortable with its luxurious pillows. She’d had a few glasses of wine and managed to relax. They still hadn’t talked about anything to do with them. Unfortunately, she was awash in the bubble of desire that hovered around them whenever they happened to be alone. She’d like to think focusing on research with him would get her mind off of the raw longing he elicited, but it was so rare to find a man with the same level of passion she felt for her research and be physically attractive to her, it only made it worse.
As it was, she was sitting beside him, her breathing shallow and her pulse skittering wildly while he tapped a few icons on the screen and asked her what she thought about the possible output. She could feel the heat of him beside her, and she had to force her mind to focus. He’d just asked her a question and all she’d heard was the low rumble of his sexy voice. She’d never considered anyone’s voice sexy and never even thought of the possibility. Owen’s was somehow gruff and warm at once, sending hot shivers over her skin.
He cleared his throat. “Ivy?”
She whipped her head up from where she’d been blankly staring at the tablet screen. “Huh?”
“You with me here?” The dark slash of a brow arched up.
“Oh, right. Sorry, got a little distracted,” she managed to reply with only a slight hitch in her breathing.
He slowly lowered the computer tablet and set it on the coffee table in front of them. “Maybe we should talk.”
Anxiety raced through her, butterflies twirling in her belly. “About what?”
That brow arched again, and he crossed his feet, which were propped on the coffee table. “About us.”
“Oh.” She bit her lip and tried to casually take a breath. She was short on air and nearly lightheaded as a result.
“Since it doesn’t seem like this…” With a pause, he gestured between them. “…thing with us is going away, I think maybe we should do what we said and get it out of our systems.”
She was nearly frozen in place, but she somehow managed to nod. Her mind was racing in fits and starts, spinning over the implication of what he’d said.
He searched her face, his eyes dipping down and back up again, her nipples tightening at the feel of his heated gaze. “Just to make it clear, you didn’t weird me out the other night. I just wasn’t expecting you to announce you were a virgin. No good reason, other than you surprised me. It sounds like you’re pretty practical about the whole thing. If you weren’t, I’d say trying to get this out of our systems would be a really bad plan. Did I understand you right?”
She swallowed, her heart beating like a bird fluttering wildly in its cage. “Right. It’s an inconvenient detail. Between my graduate program, my doctoral program and my brother dying, well, there’s hasn’t been much time for me to think about dating. I just didn’t want to go into this thing without you knowing that.”
She shocked
herself yet again by being so blunt with him.
He nodded, his eyes still locked to hers. He really needed to stop that because it made her body go crazy. Heat suffused her and she could feel the moisture building between her thighs.
“Right then,” he finally said. “In that case…”
He moved swiftly, pulling her into his lap where her knees fell to either side. They were right back where they’d been that night in her office. She could feel the hard, hot ridge of him against her core, and she felt a sense of relief to know he was as affected by her as she was him.
Chapter 9
Owen was at the end of his restraint. His hold on control had vacillated all evening. Some moments he managed to distract himself, but they were fleeting. He felt her hips settle down against him and could feel the moist heat of her through her leggings. She wore a loose flowing white blouse over leggings and boots, which she’d kicked off by the door. Her blouse should have concealed her curves, but not for him. His eyes kept falling to the shadowed valley between her breasts. Just now, having her this close, he latched onto his restraint. He was finally going to give into what he wanted. Yet, he wouldn’t let himself lose control because that would be too much right now. With a gulp of air, he sifted a hand through her hair, the silky threads sliding through his fingers. He scanned her face, his eyes catching on her full lips before he finally dipped his head and kissed her.
Each kiss with her only hammered home the reality he barely had control when it came to Ivy. Kissing her was like a drug. He devoured her mouth, sweeping his tongue inside and glorying in her response. She kissed with wild abandon, her tongue stroking against his and soft moans coming from her throat. Lust tightened like a coil within him. She flexed closer to him when he dragged his hand out of her hair and slid it down her back to curl over her bottom—all lush softness. When she arched against him, her hips rolling over his cock, he growled into her mouth before tearing his lips free. A heated look in her eyes—warm amber flashing with fire—and he tore at her shirt, swearing when one of the buttons caught.
Ivy leaned back and shook her shoulders, her blouse falling down her arms. She wore another ridiculously feminine bra—this one sheer cream lace. Her nipples were taut and pink, easily visible through the flimsy excuse for fabric. He didn’t wait and leaned forward to swirl his tongue over the lace, drenching it as he drew the hard nub in his mouth, smiling against her skin when she gripped his hair and moaned. He turned his attention to her other nipple until the lace was damp. Leaning back, he gave himself a moment to savor the rapid rise and fall of her breath with her nipples outlined under the drenched fabric. He could only wait so long before he flicked his thumb under the clasp and her breasts tumbled free. Catching her lips in another kiss, he cupped his hands around her breasts, the skin so soft he groaned into her mouth.
In a blur of need with the whip of lust lashing at him, Owen poured himself into the moment—scalding hot kisses, Ivy arching and flexing in his arms, the blistering need clawing at him—as they yanked and tugged at each other’s clothes. Somewhere along the way, he paused and leaned back. She was almost bare, save a pair of panties that matched her bra. Her skin was so silky, glinted with gold in the flickering firelight. Her hair was a tangled mess on the cushions behind her, and he wanted her with a ferocity he’d never experienced. He’d had this idea that once he could let his desire room free, it would ease. Yet, he was finding the opposite, the more he got to taste and experience her, the higher and hotter his need burned.
“Ivy.”
Her eyes opened and amber fire looked back at him. With his eyes on her, he hooked a finger over the edge of her panties and slowly dragged them down. She kicked them loose and they joined the clothes scattered on the floor. He stroked a finger through her folds, almost groaning at how wet she was. He’d done a bit of thinking about this whole virginity thing and determined the only way he’d get through this without backing out was to focus entirely on making sure her pleasure was paramount. That was usually his focus when it came to sex, yet he kept things so casual with women, it was more of a goal to make sure no woman walked away unsatisfied. With Ivy, it was that he was determined to make sure she found nothing but pure pleasure.
Her eyes fell closed on a low moan as he slowly eased a finger into her channel. When her hips arched into his touch, he slid another finger inside. With one hand gripping the soft curve of her hip and the other plunging into her channel, he brought his mouth to her. He was lost—lost in the sound of her rough cries, the roll of her hips against his mouth and the clench of her channel around his fingers. She tasted salty and sweet, and he’d barely had enough when she cried out, her body stiffening and her channel tightening around his fingers. She slowly relaxed, and he eased back. Keeping an iron grip on his control—and damn was it hard when he looked at her and saw her gaze hazy with passion and the firelight flickering on her dewy skin—he snagged the condom he’d tucked into his pocket hours ago. Back when he was still wondering if he’d be insane enough to go through with this, back when he’d conveniently forgotten how wildly tempting she was. When they were together and there was nothing other than his own discipline to hold him back, well, that’s when he discovered how weak he was.
He stood, regretting the brief moment he wasn’t touching her, kicked his briefs off, and rolled the condom on in record time. When he stretched out over her, she opened her eyes again, and he couldn’t look away. Her skin was damp with the sheen of her passion, as was his. His heart was pounding so hard, he was surprised he didn’t crack a rib. In this moment, he felt spun tight inside a shimmering connection. He’d never experienced a flicker of doubt in a moment such as this. Then, he’d never been with a virgin, Yet, he knew that wasn’t what this was. It was Ivy and this nearly overpowering link between them. He eased his weight against her, hanging onto his control when he felt her slick heat. Much as he wanted to surge inside right now, he needed to move slowly. He closed his eyes for a moment, savoring the feel of her luscious body. When he opened them, he reached up and brushed her tangled hair out of her eyes.
“You sure about this?” he asked. He needed to make sure she wasn’t having second thoughts. They’d already blown through so many barriers he normally kept firmly in place, he didn’t know how they’d roll back to where they’d been before. Yet, he wasn’t about to blow through this last one without confirming she was certain.
She bit her lip—lashing the whip of lust within him—and nodded. The head of his cock rested at her entrance already, and he could feel the pulse of her channel. He eased inside just barely. She curled her legs around his hips, inviting him in further. He moved another fraction. She was tight, so damned tight. With his body screaming for more, he held on and forced himself to be still. She flexed against him. He could feel the tension running through her. “You okay?” he managed to ask, his voice rough.
He felt her nod. She shocked him by arching swiftly and spurring him with her heels. His body reacted reflexively and he surged into her, seating himself fully. He felt her go taut under him, and he started to pull back, but she gripped him tighter. “No! Just stay there.”
Owen wasn’t much for following instructions, but right now, he did precisely as she requested and held completely still. His heart was still banging away, and he could feel hers against his skin. The moment was so intimate, he was too stunned to consider the implications. He felt her channel slowly ease around him. Only when her legs loosened and her palm slid down his back did he get up the nerve to meet her eyes again.
Her gaze was almost contemplative. She was quiet and lifted a hand to trace one of his brows. As her fingertip traced along his cheekbone, she leaned up and caught his lips in a kiss. They eased into motion. He moved slowly, rocking into her creamy clench. He was still trying to hold onto some restraint, but it was about the most difficult thing he’d ever done. Her soft pants and moans came in between his own broken breathing and rough groans. Her channel clenched around him, tremors rolling through he
r body. He reached between them and dragged his thumb across her clit. A sharp cry broke and her channel throbbed around him. He unraveled and finally let go, surging deeply within her once more as his release rolled through him in a crashing wave.
Ivy drifted down from the head-spinning, body-melting moments that had just passed. Owen eased away from her, the air cool against her skin when he stepped away. She managed to open her eyes to see him toss his condom in the trashcan by the kitchen counter before striding quickly back to the couch, snagging a fleece throw on the way. He paused by the couch and looked down at her, his blue eyes bright in the dim light. He appeared to be considering something. He nodded, as if to himself, and leaned over, draping the blanket around her and lifting her into his arms.
Her body was still reverberating from what had just happened—the most intense experience of her life. She’d been so casual about getting rid of her inconvenient virginity. She’d treated it as if it was like learning to drive, or something along those lines. She hadn’t expected this—this incandescent experience. Even now, it felt as if they were in a shimmering web together. The fleece blanket was soft against her skin, and his body was hard. His muscles flexed as he walked across the room.
“Where are we going?” she finally thought to ask.
He glanced down, and her breath caught. Just that—a passing glance at his chiseled features and need flashed inside again, rising out of the embers of her last climax.
“To bed,” he said simply.
“What about the fire?” she asked. She had no idea why her mind went there, but when she was off kilter, her mind went to details.
His mouth curled at the corner. “It’s already dying out. I adjusted the damper earlier, so it’ll burn down.”
Owen reached the bottom of the spiral staircase and adjusted her in his arms. In moments, he reached the top, nudging a light switch with his elbow. Low lights came on overhead. Ivy glanced around, taking in the room. His bedroom occupied most of the floor up here. A large bed was built into the curved wall on one side with a fluffy down quilt and mounds of pillows. A dresser curved along another part of the wall with two inviting chairs in dove gray fabric facing the windows. It was dark outside, so she couldn’t see, but she guessed the windows offered a view of the bay. He walked past the bed and to a door on the other side. Lights came on automatically as he shouldered through. The bathroom had a massive tiled shower in the corner and a lovely oval shaped tub on the other side with sinks in between.
