by Cara North
“I look like hell because it is tough to sleep around here. I’m afraid I’ll miss it if you call for me. The guest room is so far away from you. Even though Heath brought the phone things that let you call me, I keep dreaming you call, then I get here and you’re fast asleep.” She yawned. “Am I hurting you?”
“No,” he said and stroked her hair. “Hand me your glasses.”
“I can’t see without them.” She tried to protest, but he could use the tips of his right fingers. He pulled them off and placed them on the nightstand beside him.
“You’re getting better with that hand now.” She sighed. He could feel her breathing slow and knew she was fighting the sleep.
“I’m getting better at a lot of things now.” He turned his head to kiss the top of hers. She was already asleep.
Rafe had been asleep for an hour when a pain shot through his ankle, and his eyes opened stinging with unshed tears. It was Layla. She had looped her left leg over him in her sleep and kicked his ankle. He fought the urge to wake her and ask for the pain medication. He didn’t want to take it unless he needed it. The throbbing was present and burning with shooting pains up and down his right leg. He turned on the television and decided to try to block it out.
A half hour later, she was mumbling. One word he made out distinctly, his name. A grin slipped onto his face, and he hugged her closer.
As if she had an internal clock in her head, Layla woke up thirty minutes before she needed to leave to get the kids from school. Normally he would get a pain pill and wake up when she came back, but today he was not taking it. “Feel better?”
Her body tensed and then slowly relaxed. “What time is it?”
“Time to get the kiddo’s from school.” He relaxed his arm as she rolled away from him.
“I’m sorry,” she said as she put her shoes back on. “My glasses.”
“For what?” He handed her the frames.
“I thought you would fall asleep, and I would get up and get back to work. Instead I slept through the afternoon and now I’m behind.” She stood abruptly and paced to the chest of drawers.
“I’m not taking the pain pills. Can you get me some over-the-counter stuff?” He frowned at her back.
“Are you sure?” She turned and looked at him. Her sapphire blue eyes sparkled. She was behind yes, but also rested. A new energy was building in her as she completely woke up from the nap.
He nodded.
* * *
Weeks later…
“If you can get in the bathtub, I think you can wash yourself.” Layla put the plastic bag over his cast and secured it.
“My back hurts. My ribs still hurt, too,” he pouted. His stitches were gone. He moved around the house on his own for the most part, but this, this he was insistent on. “What if I slip when I step in?”
She shook her head no, but she finally said, “Okay, Rafe. I’ll do it.” He had no idea how hard this was for her. Now that he was getting better, she didn’t see an injured man. She saw a man who entered her dreams every night and relieved all of the suppressed sexual tension she built up from this very topic of discussion. It was great for Rafe. He always got to release, but for her, on the other hand, it was becoming torture. She mumbled to herself, “I must be masochistic.”
“What’s that?” he asked with a smirk of triumph.
“I’m going to end up soaking wet,” she lied.
“It’s a large Jacuzzi tub. You could make it easier and get in with me.” He waggled his eyebrows at her. The thought had not escaped her mind, but getting naked in front of Rafe, after seeing him naked so often, made her very aware of her own body, each and every flaw. She was pretty confident about her body at one point in her life, but it had been so long ago. He looked at her as if he were reading her mind. “You can wear a swimsuit if it makes you feel better.”
“I don’t own a swimsuit,” she retorted.
“Bra and panties then.” He shrugged.
She bit her lower lip and watched his face light up. He had won. She knew it, so did he. His cheek dimpled and his eyes brightened as he smiled. “So let’s get to it.”
After getting him settled in, completely naked, she moved out of his sight to undress. Thanks to the new income, she was able to buy a few clothes that actually fit her. She had also sent money to her mother to ship the things she had in storage out to Rafe’s address. The children had new fall and winter wardrobes. Bethany had been generous with the salary, and Layla would always be grateful to them.
Layla was currently wearing her favorite of the new undergarments though, a purple bra and panty set. Admittedly, it could have passed for a bathing suit if it were of another material and the panties tied at the side instead of being a thin silk ribbon.
The large tub had space to sit, more like a hot tub in her opinion, just not as tall. He watched her carefully as she stepped into the water.
“You decided to keep the bra and panty on, huh?” He looked her up and down. Heat crept from her toes to her head, and not just from the warm water. Her whole body blushed if that was possible. “Will this ruin those?”
She shook her head no and sat down in the tub with him. It was awkward. She had had sex with this man twice and had given him a blowjob almost every day for several weeks. He pushed the button on the tub, and the jets stirred the water as it shot out against them in all directions.
“Ahhhh.” He sighed and rested his casted hand on the side of the tub. “I love this tub. After a long day at work, it felt like a massage. Of course, that was before I had you here. This feels good, but you feel better.”
She stared at him. He had his eyes closed and was clearly enjoying himself. The water pressing against her back did feel good, the water on her tired legs and feet even better.
“So what did you do in New York?”
The question took her by surprise. “I, uh, I went to school there. I designed women’s clothing, and I worked at a few high-end boutiques customizing clothes for people. I interned at a few big labels, and I had one more class to complete before I could graduate.”
“How long does it take to get a degree in design?”
“Well, I didn’t just study design. I needed the last class for business. I had planned to run my own line one day.” She tried not to sound sad when she said it but couldn’t help it. “That was before… everything. I don’t want to run my own business now. I can hardly stand the thought of going back to work when…” She didn’t want to say when she left him. It was too hard to think about. “I just want to keep the relationship and time I have with the kids, you know? Maybe I can work at a school, in the office or something.”
“Just give up your dreams?” he asked quietly, but he never opened his eyes or moved from his position.
“I wouldn’t say that. I have new dreams now. I have more than I imagined, even when technically I have nothing but the kids and a few suitcases of clothes to put in an old Honda.” She laughed at herself. “God, I was so stupid then. I always thought my sister had everything. I was right. I was also right when I thought she could never have enough of anything.”
“What about you? Can you have enough of anything?”
“Almost,” she admitted quietly. The silence lingered between them; only the sound of the jets could be heard. It was getting awkward again. Time was ticking, and her to do list was resurfacing in her mind. “So let’s get you scrubbed up and out of here, shall we?”
“Suit yourself,” he said and didn’t budge one bit.
“Rafe, I need you to move a little more this way.” She tried to maneuver around him, but it was no use. The tub was big, yes, but he still dominated the space. He still had his head resting on the only bath pillow and his eyes closed. Taking advantage of his relaxed state, she moved to straddle him so that she could finish her job.
Rafe knew she didn’t mean to put herself in the position she was currently in. He knew that even though he was naked, she had become used to it. He also knew she had to get into this
position because he refused to move. Nevertheless, she was straddling his thighs and whether she was aware of it or not, he was extremely aware of her. “Move a little bit closer.”
Layla inched closer and closer until she was aware of the man under her and his unspoken need. “Rafe, I can’t do that underwater.”
He laughed. His head came up, and he unleashed the full force of his chocolate brown eyes on her. When she was this close, she could see gold flecks she hadn’t noticed before. His left arm moved, and he pulled her so close his length pressed against her panties.
The feel of him against her made all rhyme and reason fly right out the window. His face moved closer, and she had to close her eyes; his lips gently pressed against hers, questioning. She answered with instinct. Her heart raced in her chest as her body took over. She kissed him. He sat straighter, and she pressed tighter against his lap. Their mouths opened at the same time, and their tongues collided in a frenzy. She pulled her glasses off and tossed them without thinking about where they may end up.
Chapter 10
Rafe knew the moment her body took over, the moment she stopped thinking about what was right or wrong, and started thinking about what she wanted. It did him good to know she had not been oblivious through all the oral sex, and now she was ready to tear him apart; the only problem was that she could. He was vulnerable to her both physically and mentally right now.
She nibbled his lower lip as he slid his left hand down and into the back of her panties. He tried to get them off her, but she wouldn’t budge. He didn’t want to rip them, but she was rocking her hips against him and making him blind with lust.
Layla had lost her mind, she decided, as she pressed her bra-covered nipples against his chest and slid a hand between them to shift her panties before he tore them. It was bad enough he was tugging with one hand, but as the casted hand moved from the tub, she knew she had to take action or there would be some serious explaining to do. “Put that hand back on the tub, mister.”
He did so immediately. “If you would just take them off.”
She tried. She pulled at one side, but then Rafe pulled at the other, and the seam gave way. “Satisfied?”
“Almost,” he said and then pulled her close again. “Let me in.”
He then kissed her lips and she complied. Layla pulled her panties from in between them. Her hand slid down to give him access. Her hips lifted and adjusted over him. Without thinking of anything other than the need to have what she wanted, she slid down his length. He pulled away from her mouth to get air.
She gasped as his lips returned to her neck and her body adjusted to his size. Against her neck he whispered, “Can you come like this?”
“I… I don’t know.” It was an honest answer. She didn’t care if she could come, at the moment, having him inside her, being this close to him was enough.
“You can’t imagine how good you feel,” he continued. “Every day when you come in, every day since the first time you wrapped your mouth around me I wanted you to do this.”
“Why didn’t you say so?” She was being entirely too honest now.
“You would have...”
“Yes,” she said as she slid up and down his length again, relishing the feel of him, the water around them, massaging their bodies as if there were more hands than normal.
His left hand stroked up her back over her bra strap and then pulled down on her shoulder as he lifted his hips against her. He raised and lowered his right hand several times wanting to use it then remembering he couldn’t. “Rub your clit.”
“What?” She was breathless. The tub was beginning to make her knees ache, and Rafe was lifting into her sure to cause him pain later if it wasn’t already hurting him now.
“I can’t touch it with my other hand, so you have to do it. Trust me.”
Rafe kissed her lips as she slid her hand between them and rubbed. Within a matter of seconds, she needed no more encouragement. She was chasing the feeling on her own, riding him with abandon, moving her hips to her own rhythm and calling out his name. He was loving every second of it; even if he would be sore later, it was worth this moment now.
Layla made a distinct expression when she came. Her teeth bit down on her lower lip, her eyebrows drew closer together, and her cheeks and chest flushed with color. It was enough to make him want to say stupid things all over again, but he wouldn’t. Instead, he tried to focus on not coming.
When her body went limp, he turned the jets off. “Up. You gotta get up.”
“I’m sorry,” she said and moved quickly. “Did I hurt you? Of course, I hurt you. Rafe, how could you let me do this?”
“It wasn’t easy.” He laid his head back again. He was hard and his self-control was wearing thin.
Layla stepped out of the tub and found her glasses. After putting them on, removing her wet bra, and wrapping in a towel she turned to see him standing in the tub, soaking wet and hard as ever. “Rafe! Again?”
He chuckled. “No, not again, this is still the first one. Hand me a towel, will ya?”
“But…” She grabbed the towel and helped him wrap it around himself. He was more insistent these days on doing things himself.
“No condom.” He sighed. “I didn’t want to take advantage of your… moment of passion.”
She frowned at him. “I’m on birth control. I got my shot when we first got out here. I wasn’t expecting to… but…”
“Really?” He seemed more interested than she expected. “Help me out.”
She let him hold her for balance, and he put his good leg out first then his right one. “Do you want me to…?”
“Come on. You have a few minutes, and it won’t take that long, trust me.” He tugged her hand.
She followed behind him as he went right back to bed and opened the towel. “Rafe, I wasn’t expecting to do that in there… I know how you feel about me, and I don’t want to get confused.”
“How do I feel about you?” he asked.
“You’re mad. You don’t like me much, but I’m here so sex is something to… distract you.” She rubbed her temples as her glasses slid down her nose.
“I was mad. I’m not… mad anymore, so come here and distract me.” He held out his casted hand. He had removed the plastic somewhere along the line. “Or do I not distract you?”
“You’ve always distracted me.” She stepped toward him and touched the uncasted part of his fingers.
It was too easy to take off the towel and climb in bed with him. She knew it would change things, again, but she didn’t know what he wanted from her other than a distraction. He was careful not to admit how he felt though he said he wasn’t mad.
“We’re on the clock,” he reminded her.
She looked at the clock next to his bed and realized she needed to leave soon. “Then let’s get to it.”
She straddled him again except this time he was laying flat, and was clearly enjoying his relaxed position. He touched her nipples, and sparks arched through her body making her wet again. A fresh heat surged as she positioned him. He was watching her, and she was never more self-conscious in her life than in that moment. Then he whispered, “You’re beautiful, Layla.”
Her body warmed at his words and at his entry. Feeling him, flesh to flesh was so much more intense than anything she had ever imagined. At first, she was moving straight up and down. Rafe tugged and tweaked her nipples, and fresh arcs of pleasure shot through her as he did. As she grew more restless, as her body desired more, she leaned over to be closer to him. He wrapped his arms around her, cast and all and held her closer. Their lips met and their tongues danced. How could she ever get enough of him? He was like a drug, and she was already addicted. “Rafe,” she called as her body responded to the mental thoughts and physical pleasures.
“I’m almost there.” He groaned. “I can feel it. I can feel you tightening up. I love it when you come, Layla. Come with me… come with… oh God yes.”
* * *
October
“Good to see you out of the house for a change.” Bethany smiled at him then went back to typing. Once she finished, she turned to him and gave her full attention. “What’s up?”
“I’m not getting paid.” He took a seat and could have sworn she smiled.
With a more stern expression, she explained, “You quit, remember?”
“But.” It took a few minutes for it to register.
“But what? Heath had me take you off payroll that night you stormed out of here. So what, Rodeo not paying like you thought it would?” Her eyes glared at him.
“B, you too? Is everyone against me?” He sighed. “What do I have to do to be re-employed at my home?”
“Well, the only person employed at your home is Layla, and apparently you are ready to come back to work, which means that she is no longer needed to work.” He knew she spun away from him to hide her face.
“Is it like that?” he asked.
“For now it is,” she replied stiffly. “So it’s me or Layla?”
“I’d rather not choose,” she said and turned back to face him.
“Pregnancy is making you mean.” He crossed his arms and looked at Jack’s pretty little wife. Bethany was all business and balls; she always had been.
“Rejection is making you stupid,” she quipped.
