Best of My Love (Fool's Gold)

by Susan Mallery

  “What are you thinking?” she asked when she’d put her arms at her side.

  “About how you stalked me back in January.”

  “I didn’t stalk you. I considered you a good candidate and I was right. We’re good together.”

  “We are.”

  He wouldn’t have guessed that they would become such good friends. When the six months were over, he knew things would change between them, but he hoped they would still spend time together. He liked being with her.

  But wanting it might not be enough. She would be busy with her new business and he would be in the high summer season. Plus they would probably each be looking for a relationship. Shelby had been very clear about what she wanted. A man she could fall in love with. While he was looking for—

  “Okay, that’s a serious expression,” she said. “What?”

  “I don’t know what I want.”

  “In life?”

  “When this is over. You and me. You’re going to go find Mr. Right, get married and have four kids. What am I going to do?”

  “What do you want to do?” She raised a hand. “No, that’s the wrong question. Does being in love still mean you’re stuck?”

  A question he hadn’t considered in a long time. When he’d been a kid, he’d seen his mother’s devotion to her husband as a bad thing. Now he was less sure. He didn’t agree with her choices, but he thought maybe he understood them more.

  Shelby sat next to him on the sofa. She angled toward him and took his hand in hers.

  “She could have stood between you and Ceallach, but she didn’t. That was her decision. That decision speaks to her and not to the entirety of being in love.”

  “You’re saying I learned the wrong lesson?”

  Her blue eyes were wide and filled with compassion. “Yes. Love simply is. Each of us reacts differently to the feeling. Your mom and my mom are a lot alike. They both fell in love with difficult men. They both chose to sacrifice their children in the name of that love. We saw what happened and made connections. You learned that love makes you stuck. I learned that love makes you weak. We’ve been unable to trust in love ever since. At least not romantic love.”

  “And now?” he asked.

  She smiled. “I trust you.”

  “I trust you, too.”

  Simple words. Easy words, yet they hit him like a freight train. He was momentarily immobilized by their impact. He trusted her. Wholly and without reservation. He’d never trusted a woman before. Not that way. In fact, outside of his brothers, he wasn’t sure he’d ever trusted anyone as much.

  He reached for her just as she leaned into him. She went into his arms as if she’d always belonged in them. In the second before their lips touched, he felt desire mingle with certainty. This was right. Being with Shelby was right. He wasn’t sure why he’d resisted for so long.

  At the first brush of his mouth against hers—

  “Ha! I knew it.” Destiny walked into the living room with her baby on her shoulder. “All this we’re-just-friends crap. You’re not just friends. You were kissing!”

  Shelby scrambled to the other side of the sofa. “We weren’t.”

  Destiny’s smug expression never changed. “Really? Did Aidan faint and you were giving him mouth-to-mouth?”

  “It was an accident,” Shelby amended. “We really aren’t together.”

  “It’s my fault,” Aidan said. “Leave her alone.”

  Destiny stared at him. “Is that how it is?”

  “Yes.”

  She studied him for a second. “All right. Let’s talk about the party.”

  Shelby looked between them. “What just happened?”

  “Aidan won’t let me tease you,” Destiny said. “He’s being protective.”

  Shelby relaxed. “He does that all the time.”

  “Interesting,” her sister-in-law said. “Now, about the party.”

  Shelby pulled a notepad from her bag. “We’re still thinking about a 1950s-music-themed party. I saw the most creative cupcakes online. There were a couple of ideas that I really liked. My favorite was cupcakes in the shape of a guitar. They were iced to look like one, too.”

  Destiny grinned. “Starr would totally love that.”

  “We’d have music from the fifties,” Aidan told her. “There are plenty of playlists we can buy. For games, we’ll do old-fashioned board games like Scrabble and Candyland. Along with Twister.”

  “It’s girls only, right?” Shelby asked.

  “That’s what she says she wants,” Destiny told them. “Kipling and I are so grateful. I didn’t want to have to sweat that much supervision.”

  “You could also do fun manicures.” Aidan took the notepad and read from the list he and Shelby had put together. “The supplies would be easy to assemble and then the whole kit could be put in some kind of pretty bag. That could be the party favor.”

  Destiny’s mouth dropped open. “You know about parties like this having a favor?”

  “I was at your baby shower.”

  “I know, but...” She looked at Shelby, then back at him. “Um, sure. The manicure kits are a great idea.”

  They talked about the party for another few minutes. When it was time for Destiny to put Tonya down for her nap, they said their goodbyes and left.

  “The party is going to be so much fun,” Shelby said as they got in his truck. “Starr is going to love it.”

  “I hope so. Plus we’ll enjoy putting it together.”

  “I’m very excited about the cupcakes.”

  He wasn’t surprised. Shelby would enjoy the challenge of creating something that special.

  “You could play around with different kinds of cupcake cakes,” he said. “Take pictures and offer them to your customers. Especially for kids’ parties. Cupcakes are easier than having to cut up a cake. You could make some kind of template for the design. Like if somebody ordered a dinosaur cake. You make it out of cupcakes, then number the individual cupcakes on the bottom so the parents can use the template to re-create that shape and design wherever they wanted it. A park or someone’s house.”

  She looked at him. “That’s a great idea. I love the template. I’ve used them myself, but I’ve never thought of offering them to customers. They would be easy to do on the computer and then print out.” She laughed. “You’re so much more than a pretty face.”

  “Thanks.”

  He drove without thinking and found himself pulling into his driveway rather than the office, where he’d left Charlie and she’d left her car. She looked around.

  “I thought you were taking me home. Did you want to do something instead?”

  An innocent question. He knew how she meant. He also knew exactly what he wanted to do.

  “I’d like you to come inside,” he told her. “Then I’d like to make love with you.”

  She swung her head back to meet his gaze. Her eyes were wide, her expression surprised. “But you said...”

  “I was wrong.”

  “About us being friends?”

  “About me being able to resist you. I can’t. But I need you to be sure. It’s going to change everything.”

  * * *

  SHELBY KNEW HE was right. That their relationship would forever shift.

  She wanted him. That much was clear. And she loved knowing he wanted her, too. But what about the risks? She liked Aidan so much—she liked how they were together. She most especially liked how he always looked out for her. Even now, he wanted her to be sure. If she said no, he would back off in a second.

  “Do you have condoms?” she asked.

  He laughed. “Yes. A large box.”

  She smiled. “Is that a large box of condoms or a box of large condoms?”

  “I guess you’re going t
o have to wait and find out.”

  He turned off the engine and they both got out of the truck. Shelby waited for him to walk around to her side. In that heartbeat of time, she poked at her emotions to make sure she was completely comfortable with her decision. There were nerves, but they were the anticipation kind. More pole-dancing butterflies than frightened ones.

  He reached her side and took her hand. Their fingers laced together with an ease that made her relax, even as his touch warmed her.

  “About my reputation,” he began as they walked to the front door. “You seem to have a certain expectation.”

  “I do,” she teased. “I’m going to see stars and touch the moon and all that stuff.”

  “I’m not sure how I feel about that.”

  “Pressure?”

  He opened the door and let her go first. “Some.”

  “So I shouldn’t expect too much?”

  He walked in behind her, then closed and locked the door. He turned to her and pulled her close.

  “I wouldn’t say that.”

  The confidence in his voice sent a shiver through her. The feel of his body against her caused her to start melting from the inside out. And when he lowered his mouth to hers...well, thinking became impossible.

  They’d kissed before. Friendly kisses, brief kisses, even a kiss or two with passionate undertones. But they’d never kissed like this. She hadn’t known what it was like to be claimed by Aidan.

  He held her firmly, yet gently. His mouth moved against hers, exploring, teasing, promising. When she parted her lips, he moved his tongue inside and brushed against hers with a rhythm designed to take her from interested to aroused to begging.

  He moved his hands down her back to settle on her hips. That was all—the possessive touch of his hands on her body. He didn’t move them, but the weight, the pressure, the firmness of the hold mesmerized her. Maybe it was the promise of what was to come. Maybe it was slight kneading of his fingers. Maybe it was all in her head, but she didn’t care.

  She rested her hands on his shoulders, then moved them to his back, where she could feel his strong muscles and the warmth of his skin below his shirt. She liked the broadness of him, the scent of him, the way he tasted.

  He drew back just enough to kiss each corner of her mouth, then her cheeks. He kissed his way along her jaw, then nibbled the lobe of her ear. The combination of warm mouth and sharp teeth had her catching her breath.

  Heat burned hot in her chest and radiated out in all directions. Her skin grew more sensitive, as if nerve endings were pushing closer to be touched by him. She wanted to crawl inside him so she could experience all of him.

  He continued to kiss his way across her neck. Her head fell back. At the same time, his hands moved up her sides, across her ribs, to her breasts. Through the layers of her T-shirt and bra, he cupped her breasts. His thumbs moved across tight nipples in a single, light touch. Pleasure shot through her and her breath caught.

  He did it again, then again. It was as if he knew the exact way to touch her. As if he was part of the feedback loop in her mind.

  He dropped his hands to the hem of her T-shirt and pulled it up and over her head, then he kissed her. His tongue plunged in deeply, and she met him with needy strokes of her own. At the same time, he reached behind her and unfastened her bra. The garment fell to the floor. She felt the cool air on her breasts seconds before his hands covered her.

  He took her curves in his large hands, pressing in slightly. Thumbs and forefingers settled on her nipples and played with the tight tips. A direct line of need and enjoyment formed between her breasts and her groin. Heat and arousal began to move back and forth, growing with each round trip. When he lowered his head, she caught her breath in anticipation. He closed his lips around her left breast and sucked deeply.

  She gasped as the sensations surged through her. Delicious wanting grew as he circled his tongue around her nipple. He flicked over the very tip and then used his teeth to gently grate against the sensitive skin.

  Down low in her belly, she felt the rising tension. Her thigh muscles were stiff in an effort to support her, while her knees threatened to give way. She was swollen and wet and desperate. When he moved to the other breast and repeated his efforts, she had to hold on to him to stay standing.

  He straightened. “Shoes. Take them off.”

  She did as he instructed. He did the same and pulled off his socks, then hers. Then he moved behind her. “Hold up your hair.”

  She complied.

  He nibbled his way from shoulder to shoulder. The light touch made her shiver. Her breathing increased. On the return trip, he moved his hands to her breasts and used just his fingertips to trace circles on her skin.

  The contrast of her paleness next to his tan was unexpectedly erotic. As was the barely there brush of his jean-clad erection against her butt. He moved his hands down to the button on her waistband and unfastened it. He pushed her jeans and her panties to the floor. She stepped out of her clothes as he eased his fingers between her thighs.

  She still had her hands holding up her hair and he continued to kiss the back of her neck. One hand teased her breasts while the other found the very center of her and began to circle her swollen clit.

  There was too much going on. She couldn’t think, couldn’t focus on any one thing. Sensations poured through her from every direction and what she knew for sure was that she didn’t want any of this to stop.

  “Take one step to the right,” he said, his breath hot against her neck.

  She did and realized that she’d just parted her thighs for him. He moved in farther, slipping a finger inside of her. Her muscles immediately clamped around him. Deep, deep inside, she felt the first whisper of her soon-to-be release.

  “Aidan,” she breathed.

  He kissed her neck, her shoulder, then right behind her ear. At the same time the movements against her breasts and between her legs continued. He withdrew and found where she was most swollen and rubbed slowly at first. Slowly enough that she involuntarily pulsed her hips. Then faster and harder.

  She groaned as her muscles tensed. The sweetness was just out of reach, just beyond grasping. She was so close that she—

  He straightened and pushed against her back. “Down the hall on the left.”

  “Wh-what?”

  He was stopping? Did the man know she was about to have an orgasm?

  “My bedroom. I want to finish there.”

  Oh, right. In a bed. That made sense.

  She took two steps, realized she was completely naked, then didn’t know what to do. Aidan gave her a gentle push. “Keep moving.”

  She reached the bedroom and walked over to the bed. Aidan was right behind her. He’d already pulled off his shirt and was working on his jeans. He got them undone and pushed down, along with his briefs. His massive erection sprang free. Her insides clenched in anticipation.

  “You have a favorite side?” he asked, his voice hoarse.

  “No. You?”

  “At this point, I don’t give a damn.”

  He sounded desperate and ready. Two excellent qualities in a lover, she thought as she pulled back the dark navy comforter. He got out a couple of condoms and tossed them on the nightstand, then slid in next to her. She was still shifting onto her side, then he pulled her close and kissed her.

  At the feel of his mouth, his tongue, his body, she relaxed into the moment. This was right, she thought happily. All of it.

  He moved his hand across her stomach, then lower. She parted her legs and he moved directly to her center, where he began to rub as he had before. At the same time, he kissed his way down to her breasts.

  She quickly returned to the breathless, on-the-edge place where she’d been before. Her breathing increased and tension filled her muscles. She moved her legs
and closed her eyes and her body spiraled higher and higher. She was so close that she—

  Her orgasm caught her by surprise. One second she was reaching and then next she found herself flung into a vortex of pulsing pleasure. She might have called out his name—she wasn’t sure. All she knew was that every cell in her body was happy to dance and sway in surrender to the wonder of her release.

  As the contractions slowed, he kept pace, slowing as well. When she was still, she opened her eyes. He watched her intently.

  “All done?” he asked.

  She nodded.

  He turned and ripped open the packet, then pulled on the condom. It was barely in place before he kissed her once, shifted between her legs and pushed all the way in.

  They both groaned. She wasn’t sure what he was thinking, but she knew that she loved the way he filled her. Deeply, completely. She shifted to draw him in deeper, then drew back her knees and wrapped her legs around his waist.

  “I’ve been waiting for this,” he told her. “You have no idea.”

  “I can guess,” she teased as she traced her fingers down his back. “It’s been a long time.”

  His dark gaze settled on her face. “This is about you, Shelby. Not about getting off. I want to be clear.”

  Because she trusted him, she believed him and smiled. “Then what are you waiting for?”

  He took her at her word, drawing out and then filling her again. The delightful friction stimulated already excited nerves into a quivering state. It didn’t take long for her breathing to match his. She gave herself over to the moment, to the feel of him going in and out, deeper and faster. The pressure built and she bore down to get as much of him inside as possible.

  She rotated her hips and pushed from the inside every time he surged in. His body tensed and she knew he was close. The thought of his release excited her and she arched her body. That brought the head of his penis in contact with some deep place that immediately began to burn with an arousing hum of want.

  She gasped and he thrust in again, just as deeply.