What Matters Most

by Longley, Barbara

  “As the best man, it’s tradition that I give a toast to the bride and groom,” he began. He glanced toward Wyatt and Kayla. “I know Mom and Dad would be so proud of the man my baby brother has become, and there’s no doubt in my mind that they’d love Kayla and Brady as much as all of us do.” His voice faltered and he cleared his throat. “Kayla, Wyatt, it’s plain to see how good you are for each other. I know I speak for everyone in this room when—”

  Whistles and whoops erupted once again, and glasses throughout the room were being tapped with utensils. Wyatt rose from his chair, grabbed Sam, and gave him a smacking kiss on the lips, eliciting raucous laughter.

  Sam swiped at his mouth and glared. “Yuck. I’m pretty sure you’re supposed to kiss the bride, idiot, not your best man,” he said into the microphone.

  Wyatt shrugged, sat back down and kissed Kayla chastely on the cheek, causing more laughter.

  “My little brother must have had a few beers between the church and the hotel,” Jo said. “Or he’d never draw attention to himself like that.” Wyatt’s face had turned a bright red, but he was grinning from ear to ear, and he couldn’t keep his eyes off Kayla.

  “I’m guessing he’s feeling pretty pumped about now, and it’s spilling over.” Will handed her the bread basket.

  She took the basket and peered at the offerings nestled inside a white linen napkin. “He’s painfully shy.”

  “Doesn’t matter. He got the girl. You have no idea what that kind of triumph does to a man.”

  She swiveled to stare at him. “Tell me.”

  “Right now I imagine your brother is feeling like he really could shoot lightning from the palms of his hands to vanquish bad guys. I’m sure he’d walk through fire for his wife and stepson, and his chest is probably about to burst with all the emotions churning through him tonight.”

  “Huh.” She studied Will. Would she someday inspire those kinds of emotions in him?

  “You going to hold onto that bread basket all night, Jo?” Jack asked.

  “Sorry.” She passed him the bread without taking a roll. Will’s words stuck inside her head, and the rest of the meal went by in a blur. Next thing she knew, the bride and groom served each other pieces of their wedding cake and the disc jockey was taking his place by the dance floor.

  “Would you like a cupcake?” Will leaned close and whispered in her ear.

  His warm breath tickled her skin. “Not now. Let’s take our dessert to our room … for later.” A flash went off, and she blinked.

  “Great shot,” Jack said. “I’m texting the picture to you.”

  “Thanks.” Her phone dinged. Jo pulled it out of her purse and opened the text. She held her phone so Will could see the screen too. He wore the same look of adoration she’d witnessed on her brother’s face as he said his vows. She went breathless.

  Will took her phone from her and forwarded the text. “This one’s a keeper,” he said.

  “Yes, she is,” Jack said, winking at Jo.

  Kayla’s father/daughter dance was announced, and guests began moving toward the dance floor. Finally. After Kayla danced with her father, Wyatt took Kayla into his arms for his turn, and once again Jo witnessed the exhilaration, love and pride pulsing from her brother.

  Dancers began filling the floor. “Shall we?” Will asked.

  “I have a better idea. What do you say we get a couple glasses of wine, grab our cupcakes and head upstairs to our room?” She gazed at him and held her breath.

  “You read my thoughts.” Will grinned and reached for one of the small dessert plates. “Chocolate or vanilla?”

  “One of each, and we can share.” A surge of anticipation and nervousness pumped through her veins. Jo grabbed her purse and her wrap. When they got their drinks at the bar, Will handed her the cupcakes, and he carried the wine glasses. She glanced around the ballroom as they headed for the lobby, and happiness fizzed through her veins.

  Jo pressed the elevator button and stepped back. Once they got into their room she just might lose control. She’d toss the cupcakes, spill the wine and tear Will’s clothes off. That wouldn’t put him off, would it? What if he didn’t like women who came on too strong? Then what?

  Great. What-to-do and how-to-proceed worries mixed with all the other emotions already roiling through her, giving her big fat case of motion sickness.

  Will’s stomach flipped as the elevator began its ascent—nerves, but mostly from the same anticipation that had plagued him all day. More like for weeks. His sexy plumber fidgeted with the paper around the chocolate cupcake. Her brow creased, and she bit her lip as if working through a puzzle. He knew enough about her history that he recognized her insecurities where men were concerned.

  More than anything he wanted to prove he wouldn’t run from her simply because she needed to be metaphorically on top. In fact, he treasured her strength and her superior skills. Nothing she could do in the bedroom would emasculate him. “Nervous?”

  “A little, but probably not in the way you’re thinking.” She cast him an uncertain smile.

  Yep. She was worrying, and he knew exactly how to give her what she needed.

  The elevator stopped at the sixth floor, and the doors opened. He gestured for her to precede him. Shifting the wine glasses so he held the stems between the fingers of one hand, he fished for the keycard in his breast pocket and handed it to her as they walked down the hall. “I’m putting myself in your hands tonight, Jo. You’re in charge.” He knew he’d said the right thing by the way she gasped and her eyes widened. “Remember that first day you came to my house?”

  “Of course I remember.” She inserted the keycard and pulled it out.

  He reached around her and opened the door. “You called me out on my bullshit.”

  She flashed him a sardonic look. “You mean when you watched my ass instead of what I was trying to teach you?”

  “Exactly.”

  “And when you doubted my credentials, and I accused you of being sexist?”

  “That too. I like how assertive you are, Jo. In fact, I find that characteristic … sexy as hell.” Will set the glasses of wine on the bar. He took the plate holding their desserts from Jo’s hands and placed them beside the wine. Then he took her purse and her wrap and deposited them on the loveseat. He stood before her, held his arms out and sent her a pent-up, lust-filled look. “Tonight, you are in charge. Do me, Jo.”

  A slow, seductive smile blossomed, and her eyes darkened. Jo sauntered toward him. “First, that tie has to go.” She reached up, unknotted his tie and slid it off slowly, tossing it over her shoulder to land on the coffee table. “Now the jacket.” Circling around to his backside, she ran her hands over his buttocks and squeezed. Then she tugged his suit coat off and tossed it over the back of the couch. Pressing herself against his back, she ran her hands over his chest, shoulders and down his sides. She put her arms around his waist and held him with her cheek against his back. “Mmm. I love the way you smell, Will.”

  Her breasts plastered against him and her hands once again on a quest of discovery, his cock hardened to the point of pain. His breathing went shallow, and his hands itched to roam all over her as well, followed by his mouth.

  He stood perfectly still as she circled around to his front and ran her palms over his belly. She nipped at his neck while unbuttoning his shirt and tugging it free of his slacks. Continuing to undress him, she nuzzled the base of his throat, inhaling deeply. Jo managed to get him out of his dress shirt and his undershirt. Of course, he cooperated fully. She traced the chest hair across his pecs, first circling and brushing over one nipple then the other. She traced a finger down his torso and brushed her knuckles over his navel. Will’s muscles leaped and twitched beneath her touch. He could hardly breathe as she unbuckled his belt.

  “Can you get your shoes off on your own?” she asked before running her tongue over one of his hardened nipples, sending currents of heat straight to his throbbing dick.

  She undid the hooks of h
is slacks and slid her hot hands under his waistband. He groaned, and his cock strained to get closer to her hands, those callused, clever hands he longed to feel on every inch of his bare flesh. Wait. She’d said something, hadn’t she? “Huh?”

  “Your shoes. Off.”

  “Ah.” He toed off his dress shoes and kicked them out of the way. “Can I touch you?”

  “In a minute.” Her tone was distracted, and her brow creased in concentration as she slid his pants down his hips. “Oh yes,” she said on a sigh.

  He nodded stupidly, perfectly willing to be driven out of his mind at her bidding. Jo removed his briefs, tossing them away. Turning to face him, she placed her hands on her hips and her gaze slid over him in a slow perusal. His balls tightened, and his dick jerked up and down in a friendly here-I-am-come-get-me wave.

  She met his stare, her face flushed. “Socks.”

  He swallowed and tried to make sense of the word she’d just uttered. Sex? Yes please! Jo moved closer, and then her hands were everywhere, leaving licks of red hot flame in their wake. She cupped his sac in one hand and stroked his shaft with the other. His knees nearly buckled. Scraping her teeth over one sensitized nipple and then the other, it was all he could do to remain upright. He was indeed a lucky man, a lucky, aroused-beyond-his-wildest-dreams man. And he hadn’t even touched her yet.

  “We’ll leave them on.”

  “Fine,” he rasped out, having no idea what the hell she was talking about.

  “Kiss me, and use your tongue,” she commanded. “And you can hold me now.”

  Gratefully, he obeyed. He kissed her with all the passion heating his blood and fogging his brain. Passion for her was like nothing he’d ever experienced before. Her tongue danced with his, and she moaned into his mouth. Cupping her firm round bottom, Will brought her tighter against his erection. His entire focus riveted on the sensations coursing through his body, he became aware of a disturbing fact. She was still dressed. That can’t be right.

  He trailed kisses down her neck, burying his face in the fragrant, tender spot beneath her ear. There the scent she wore tickled and teased his senses. He slid his hands along the curve of her waist and up to stroke her breasts. Even through her clothing he could feel her nipples had puckered to hardened buds. “Are you going to get naked?” he croaked. “Soon?”

  “Soon.” She took a step back. Her features taking on a look of intense determination, she placed both her hands on his chest and pushed him back until his legs hit the edge of the bed. “You are so, so perfect. I want to look at you. I want to touch you all over. Lie on the bed.”

  Perfect? Him? He did what he’d been told, and she crawled up after him. Again her hands and her mouth were everywhere. She ran a thumb around the head of his dick and stroked him. He came off the bed, helpless to keep from thrusting into her touch, wanting more. Damn, he loved Jo in charge, and he’d been right about those competent clever hands of hers. “You’re killing me.”

  She moaned, and then her tongue was causing a riot across his lower abdomen. It was all he could do to keep from grabbing her, ripping off her clothes and plunging into her like a sex-crazed fiend. He could hardly bear it when she ran her tongue around the head of his straining erection.

  “Ahhhh.” He cocked his hips upward, attempting to get more of himself into her mouth, and then she was gone, sliding off the bed and out of reach. Nooo!

  Grinning wickedly, she undid the zipper down her back.

  “Yes,” he eked out, watching the show. Ever so slowly she wiggled out of that hot, red dress, revealing a sexy bra of black lace and matching bikini panties. His brain hazed with wanting her, and the head of his member wept a drop to be inside her.

  Jo could be a swimsuit model on the cover of Sports Illustrated. Her toned body, her curves, that perfect skin … drove him crazy. Mine. He devoured the sight of her, counting his blessings that he’d found her at last. “Condoms are in my bag.”

  “Are you clean and disease-free, counselor? I’m trusting you to be honest.”

  He blinked, confused for a second. “Yes. I am clean and disease-free. I’ve always been careful. I’ve never—”

  “Me too, and I have an IUD.” She started to unhook her bra. “Let’s skip the polyurethane.”

  “All right.” He could definitely get behind the polyurethane ban. “Let me undo the bra; I’m begging you.” His arousal heightened to a new record-setting degree. He’d been honest about being careful. Never before had he gone unsheathed, and the thought of being inside Jo—with nothing separating them—sent him reeling. While his mind was occupied with sex without any barriers, she crawled up on the bed and straddled him. Hello!

  She slid her hands over his chest and shoulders. Raw desire smoldered in her eyes as she studied him. He took a moment to get himself under control before reaching for the black lace adorning her chest. Tracing the edges where the swell of her breasts met the bra, he reveled in the feel of her soft warmth. He ran his thumbs over her nipples, eliciting a gasp and a wiggle against his aching cock. Jo covered his hands with hers and increased the pressure. Fascinated, he watched as she helped herself to what she wanted from him.

  Her face scrunched, and she looked dazed. “Undo me.”

  Oh, he planned to. His hands shaking, Will unhooked her bra. Yes. Dusky pink areolas framed darker nipples hardened into enticing peaks. Her skin was flawless and creamy, and her breasts spilled out to fill his hands as she shrugged out of the straps and dropped the scrap of lace on the mattress. Then she rolled off him to her back and he helped her out of her panties, revealing a neatly trimmed triangle of dark curls at the apex of her shapely thighs. Exquisite.

  “I want to feel your skin against mine, Jo. I need to kiss you.” He lifted her to straddle him again and slid his palms along her waist and up to her chest. “My fantasy come true.”

  “Mmm.” She draped herself over him, tangled her fingers in his hair and kissed him.

  Will lost himself in the intensity. Jo, naked and on top of him, her tongue dueling with his, her slick cleft running over his hardness … his senses flared, and the need to be inside her became a desperate imperative.

  Will reached for her hips, moved her until the head of his penis fit against her clit. He thrust against the sensitive nub over and over, so close to coming, he had to recite legalese in his head.

  “I like that.” She cradled his face between her palms, her expression fierce. “Don’t. Stop.”

  He didn’t dare, not when he could feel her muscles gathering for a sensual storm. Not when her amazing look of rapture held him spellbound. Her mouth opened slightly. Her eyes closed. She convulsed and cried out. He was the lucky bastard who got to watch her come for him. Jo collapsed on top of him, a boneless, velvety-soft mass of hot, curvy woman. Will kissed her and rolled them over so he was on top. “My turn now?”

  “Yes.”

  Will’s chest filled with an aching tenderness … and pride. He’d put that sexy, sated look on her face. He’d been the one to bring her to a climax. Taking one of her delectable nipples into his mouth, he nipped and licked until she groaned, until she drew his head closer and held him to her. He ran a hand down her side, over the curve of her waist, across her belly, slipping to her cleft. Will slid a finger between her folds to delve into her slick heat. She was wet and hot for him. Plunging a finger inside her, he brushed her clit with his thumb while moving to lavish attention on her other breast.

  She writhed beneath him. “I want you inside me.” Jo tangled her fingers in his hair and brought his mouth up to meet hers in a demanding kiss.

  Who was he to argue with a goddess? He guided himself into her welcoming heat, heaven on earth. “So good. You feel so good.” Tight. Hot. Slick. He forced his mind on other things, boring stuff. Must make it last. Intense pleasure rolled through him as she met his thrusts, tightening around him as he withdrew again. She tilted her pelvis upward, bringing him in deeper, and he couldn’t help but increase his pace. Oh hell. I give up. He cl
osed his eyes, focusing on the erotic sensations building inside him.

  They found a perfectly synchronized rhythm, and again her muscles tensed. Jo pressed her heels into the bed and went still as his thrusting became more erratic. She spasmed around him and cried out. His name. He came inside her in a cataclysmic, ground-shaking, mindless explosion and collapsed on top of her.

  Where skin met skin, sweat formed. The room was redolent with their mixed scents, their lovemaking combined with the seductive perfume she wore and his aftershave. He drew the heady combination deep into his lungs.

  Reluctantly, he withdrew and rolled to his side, bringing her with him. Completely satiated, a sweet lassitude overtook him. He threw a leg over Jo’s and pulled her into his arms. Sighing, he closed his eyes and rested his chin atop the silky softness of her hair. As far as dominating went, Jo was more kitten than cat.

  Grinning, Will cradled her against him and closed his eyes. At some point her hair had come undone, and he toyed with the silky strands. As he’d suspected, they were perfect together, and they were bound to get even better as they became more familiar. He could hardly wait to find out if she’d grow even bolder. Visions of being tied to the headboard, his legs spread wide, his sexy plumber in complete control danced through his head.

  Then again, maybe next time he’d initiate and dominate. There were plenty of things he wanted to try with her. They had time for experimentation, and the large tub in his master bathroom would figure into his plans. But for tonight he’d be content to sleep with Jo in his arms. Snuggling is good. He hadn’t done much snuggling with other women, but with Jo, he couldn’t help himself. He wanted her close, skin touching skin.

  She patted his hip and slid out of his hold. “Let’s eat those cupcakes and drink our wine,” she chirped. “Do you want to watch a movie?”

  Will lifted one heavy eyelid in time to catch a view of Jo’s very naked, shapely backside disappearing into the bathroom. Yawning, he let the lid close again. Naked Jo was a sight to behold.

  “Hey, are you falling asleep on me?”