She waited a couple minutes for Bree but when she didn’t show, Mia gathered the bags and blankets and struggled down the tunnels to the dock. Over the pile of blankets, she saw Ethan resting against the back of the SUV. He must have spotted her and popped the hatch and then jogged over to help.
“Thanks,” she muttered when he took the blankets from her. He put them in trunk and she tossed the boys’ stuff on top. She got in the car and rested her head against the cool window, grateful for the frosty interior.
As he pulled out of the stadium, Ethan asked her about her cramps.
“What cramps?”
“Don’t play that game with me, Mia. I saw you flexing your hands and legs. Glove box—running gel. Now,” he ordered.
She glanced over at him and found serious eyes on her and did as he ordered. A grin played with the corners of her mouth. She liked when he took care of her like that.
“Ugh,” she said after swallowing the gross gel. “Can we stop for a burger or something? I’m starving.”
“We can do whatever you like,” he answered, a smile warming his voice.
She wanted to do her husband. Did he mean that too?
Ethan
He and Bridgette successfully put the boys to bed without waking them up. He’d said good night to her before heading to the kitchen where Mia had stayed when they’d arrived home—Luke, Allie, and Kaitlyn had been waiting for them.
After they stopped to get her a burger, her energy levels gradually ticked lower. That show had been intense.
Sometimes he forgot that she could sing. Day to day, Mia was the mother to their boys. She was his wife, his lover. But the times he got to see her perform, he was blown away. Like tonight.
It had been magical. She’d absolutely killed it. The hometown crowd spurred her on and he didn’t think the crowds at his games came close to this crowd in terms of volume. They sang along, bouncing to the music.
His awe turned to worry when he saw her over by Todd’s drum set, chugging the water and flexing her hands. Close to one hundred degrees and humid, he knew she was hurting.
As he entered the stairway, Mia’s voice drifted up to him. He slowly, and as quietly as he could in her old house, made his way down the stairs. “What did you think of the show, squirt?”
“So awesome,” Kaitlyn exclaimed excitedly. This wasn’t her first show. She’d been to many of Mia’s concerts over the years and that was Kaitlyn’s typical response.
“What about you, Miss Manager?” Mia asked Allie.
“As you know, I was very nervous about the setlist, as well as you performing in those conditions, but I really liked how it all came together. I’m so in love with ‘Crumbling.’ I know I heard it before the shows, but with the entire band and the way you performed it, so beautiful,” Allie responded and Ethan took a couple more steps.
He liked that song too … even the message.
Can you remember when life was good?
Of all the happy times that stood?
Before a moment ripped away
All of the love we had that day
Whatever happened to you and me?
How did our world start crumbling …
Away?
Our life crumbling …
Our love crumbling …
Away
He wondered too … what had happened to them—their love—that ate at their foundation? Could they fix it? He damn well was going to try.
“I’m sorry I made you nervous. I know you were only looking out for me. I kept looking over at all you guys. It was so nice to have everyone there supporting me. I loved seeing the excitement on the boys’ faces. It made me sad when I saw Ethan and Bridge leave with their little sleeping bodies.”
Ethan paused when Luke asked, “Sad it’s over?”
“No, I’m so damn glad it’s over. I need a break. Time to relax.”
She’d said that before but would she actually take a break this time? Would she take the time to work on them and their relationship?
“Any plans?” Luke pried.
“No. Nothing major. A few meetings here and there, but that’s it. Your wife is pretty good at canceling things for me.”
Ethan decided to stop eavesdropping and get down to the kitchen. When he entered the room, Mia looked up from her perch on the kitchen counter, a bowl in one hand and in the other, a spoon half-way to her parted lips.
“Ice cream?” she asked, holding up her bowl. He wasn’t hungry, but he’d eat the entire contents of the refrigerator to be near her right now. Moving further into the kitchen, he stopped in front of her.
“Just a little bite,” he replied.
By habit she lifted her spoon to his mouth. With his eyes glued to hers, he opened his mouth and let her feed him the bite. The simple act of sharing her ice cream had aroused her, lit a fire in her dark eyes. Her gaze lowered to his lips and with each second they stayed there, his cock grew harder and harder.
“Thank you, suga,” he spoke and took a step back.
“Ethan?” she called out quietly. “You have some ice cream on your …”
“Where?” he interrupted her, his gaze once again locked on her eyes.
She held out her hand in the air for a moment, hesitating before finally wiping it off with her thumb. “Here,” she said, the soft pad of her thumb brushing against his lower lip. He couldn’t stop himself. His tongue reached out and kissed the pad of her thumb, licking the ice cream off. Her eyes shot open in surprise before glazing over. His wife liked that move—a lot.
Luke cleared his throat. “Young underage girl in the room,” he pointed out, trying to cover his daughter’s eyes while Kaitlyn giggled.
Mia looked up, dazed, those chocolate eyes of hers filled with longing. Ethan really wanted to continue this. Their little interaction had aroused him quite nicely and there was no way he could hide that if he was to turn around right then. Leaning forward, he whispered to her. “You need to get off the counter now and stand in front of me.”
Quirking her head to the side, she thought about what he’d said and after a moment, the little devil smirked at him. She placed her bowl in the sink and hopped off the counter and finally stood where he could turn around.
The group of them chatted for a bit, Ethan’s eyes not leaving his wife. He wanted her and hoped she wanted the same thing.
After a few minutes of talking, Mia glanced over at him and announced she was exhausted, then reminded them all that the party started at noon, before she wished them all a good night. At the stairs, she turned back, caught his eyes, and then looked up the stairs. His invitation. She smiled and left the room. He knew where he was sleeping tonight.
“Not even going to pretend, Luke. Sorry. Going with my wife,” he said, racing after Mia. He caught up to her on the stairs to the third floor and walked by her side until they reached the landing.
“Where do you want me to stay tonight, Mia?”
At the door to their master suite, she faced him and grasped his hand, leading him into the bedroom. Once inside, she closed the door and expectantly stood in front of him.
He knew she wanted him and he felt the same, but then a cute yawn escaped from her sexy, pouty mouth.
“Get in bed. You’re exhausted.”
When she frowned at him, he knew he was right.
“Don’t go.”
“I won’t,” he replied, leading her to the bed. “Get undressed and go to sleep.”
She started to do as he said, removing one arm from a strap, but then stopped. “I still want to, Ethan.”
“So do I, but not now. You need sleep. It’s late.”
“Never stopped us before.”
“Yes, but you have never performed a concert in over one hundred degree heat. You were exhausted before the halfway point.”
“It was brutal,” she admitted, sitting down on the bed.
“Allie thought you were going to faint a time or two,” he told her. He had too, but she’d pushed through and probabl
y performed one of the best concerts he’d ever seen. She was magnificent.
Sitting on the bed, she didn’t make a move to remove her clothes. This was exhaustion. He took off his shirt and shorts and then went to take care of his wife.
“Lift your arms, Mia,” he ordered, reaching down to the hem of her short dress and pulling it up and over her head, her arms raised for him. He lightly pushed her back, leaving her in her matching aqua underwear and bra. He joined her on the bed and pulled her into his arms. She went willingly, her head finding its normal spot on his shoulder, her hand on the center of his chest. Then the sweetest, most content sigh passed her lips.
“Go to sleep, suga,” he said, kissing her head.
“Okay,” came her reply. He smiled. Three weeks since he’d held her in his arms like this. He was happy with this. Very happy indeed.
Ethan
Ethan woke to the birds chirping outside the window and his wife’s head still resting on his chest, her long fingers splayed out near his shoulder. She hadn’t left. She was still there. And that made him so happy.
He leaned his head against her and sighed. He needed her back in his life—for good. He sensed a difference in her. He hadn’t seen the constant pain in her eyes. What he saw was so much better—a whole lot of desire and a little bit of happiness. Was she finally coming around? Would she forgive him? Come back to him?
“You seem deep in thought,” her sexy, sleep-filled voice said, breaking through his thoughts. Her head was turned up, her dark chocolate eyes with those beautiful flecks of gold staring at him.
“Not so deep but definitely good thoughts.”
“Those are always pleasant first thing in the morning,” she said, her long fingers dancing across the top of his chest. “You want to know what’s unpleasant?”
“Hmm?” he asked, simply enjoying her in his arms.
“When nature’s calls and interrupts a moment. I’ll be right back,” she said, hopping out of bed and running to the bathroom.
When she returned to the bedroom, he was struck by how absolutely beautiful her hair looked. The sunlight reflected off its shininess and hypnotized him.
She glided back to the bed, standing by his side, indecision staining her face for a moment before she climbed on top of him and back to her side of the bed.
“Uh, hello?”
“Just getting back to bed.”
“You could have gone around.”
“Too far,” she said with a giggle. He rolled over on top of her, his legs between hers, careful not to put too much of his weight on her.
Speaking of weight, she looked different. Her breasts seemed larger, her cheeks weren’t sunken in. She had been way too skinny. He had a feeling she may have been under one hundred pounds. He knew it was for her movie, but her weight had concerned him. He hadn’t known how to approach her about his concerns over her weight loss and then her lack of weight gain after the movie was complete. Her weight and her appearance were always a sore spot with her and he didn’t really know why. Now, finally, she showed signs of regaining all the weight she had lost. He really liked when she had her curves.
“You look different.”
“What? What do you mean?” she stuttered nervously and her hands fell from his arms. “Have I grown a third eye or something?”
“No, your skin is glowing and you finally gained back some of the weight you lost for the movie, and your hair …” He gathered her hair in his hands like a ponytail then slid his fingers through it. “It’s so damn soft and its color … is there red in your hair?”
“Uh, yeah. There’s always been a little red, but I’ve been covering that up for years now.”
“Why?”
“Been too distracted lately to color it.”
“No, I meant why have you covered up that red? It’s like little streaks of fire in your hair. Like those gold flecks in your eyes.”
Here he was laying between her legs, running his fingers through her hair over and over and he just knew this was a moment—this intimacy between them. Her eyes had not left his. He wanted to kiss her so badly but he didn’t want to break this spell.
“Mia?” came Luke’s voice, doing what Ethan so didn’t want to do—breaking the spell. He didn’t look at Luke, and continued to hold Mia’s eyes captive, willing her to stay with him.
“Go away, Luke. I’m having a moment with my wife,” he said.
“Mia, are you okay?” Luke asked. Of course, Luke didn’t listen to him.
She tried to speak but nothing came out. She cleared her throat. “I’m fine, Luke. Go. Please,” she said, her voice hoarse … and very aroused.
“Okay,” he said, humor in his voice.
“Luke?” she called out and his footsteps stilled. “Caterers will be here at eleven. Take care of that for me. Please?” that last word hitching when Ethan adjusted his position, his cock rubbing between her legs. Luke needed to get the fuck out of there because there wasn’t much between him and her—just his boxers and her now warm and wet panties—and he wanted his dick inside of her now.
“Luke. Go away. Now,” Ethan repeated, intentionally rubbing his hard cock against her. Her eyes fluttered closed, her breathing heavy.
“Okay. Have fun,” Luke laughed, closing the door behind him.
“Mia,” Ethan whispered. “Tell me what you want.”
“Kiss me,” she said breathlessly, her eyes locked on his.
He closed the distance between their mouths, his lips caressing her top lip first before giving her fuller lower lip a little more attention, sucking and tugging on it. Her moan vibrated over her lips. As he pressed against her, his tongue pushed between her lips, willing them to part for him, and when they did, her tongue was waiting for him, greeting him like a long lost lover. He groaned as her arms wrapped around his neck, her fingers toying with his hair at the base of his skull. When he opened his eyes, he was pleasantly surprised to find her eyes smiling up at him. She actually looked happy.
“Mia,” he said.
With a smile, she pulled him to her, his chest crushing her soft breasts, his cock pressing against her moist heat. God, that felt so good. He desperately wanted to plunge inside of her, but fighting that was this tremendous urge to love her entire body until she squirmed with her need for him.
She sighed unhappily as his mouth left hers. He slid down her body until he knelt at her feet. He lightly skimmed his ring finger across each toe and over the top of her foot, slowly making his way up to her ankle. Her entire body shivered beneath his touch.
Yeah, she’d be begging before he was finished.
He pulled her up to a seated position and removed her bra, tossing it aside. He skimmed a finger down her torso, seeing a line of goosebumps follow in its wake, to the elastic of her aqua lacy panties. He hooked a finger in to pull them off. She lifted her hips and legs to assist.
And now his wife was naked before him, so utterly beautiful. He needed her to know that and he needed to show her. As he worshiped her, he made her whimper in pleasure, moan in need. His fingers covered every inch of her beautiful body, her lean, toned legs, the soft curve of her tummy, the lusciousness of her breasts, and the fullness of her lips.
He hoped she could feel how much he loved her. He poured his heart into every caress. Leaning his head down, Ethan kissed each closed eye and saw the tear escape but didn’t make a big deal out of it, knowing she’d try to push aside what it meant. He wanted her to feel and she was feeling a lot by that tear. He wanted to tell her he loved her right then, let her know that everything would be all right, but again, he held back. She needed to come to that conclusion on her own.
He didn’t touch her again until she opened her eyes, and when she finally did, her dark eyes shimmered with tears. He continued his worship of her body, this time with his lips, starting with each cheek, over the racing pulse along her throat, across her shoulders before feasting on her heavy breasts. He took one hardened nipple between his teeth, lightly grazing it before suc
king on it. Her soft moans were killing his control, but he soldiered on. Over her stomach, down and up each long leg before stopping between her legs. He heard her hushed intake of breath as his mouth hovered over her, each breath causing her to squirm, to want him. Then his mouth was on her and she cried out her favorite curse word.
“Fuck, Ethan!” she moaned as his tongue moved against and inside of her flesh. He had been undecided whether he wanted to make her come like this or with his cock buried deep inside of her warmth. Since this was about her, he’d let her decide.
“Mia, what do you want?” he asked before kissing the crease between her hip and thigh.
“You. Oh, God, you!” she gasped, pulling at him, begging him. “Please, Ethan!”
He moved his body over hers and gazed into her eyes, hypnotized by their sparkly gold flecks, and his heart stopped for a moment when he saw the love in them. He smiled. Now he wondered if she’d say the words her eyes said to him.
With their eyes still locked on each other, he pressed his lips to hers, his tongue seeking entrance right as his cock entered her. She gasped, her mouth opening to him. His tongue hurtled in, stroking her mouth, tasting her.
“Oh, God,” she murmured against his mouth as he began to move, her legs locking around his back, her fingers threading behind his neck.
He slid his hand between them, touching the little bud, and she screamed, her body caving in on itself as the orgasm rippled through her. As he continued to move against her, his hand traveled from her hip, over her stomach and found a new home on her breast. She groaned and arched her back, pushing her breast further into his hand. He rolled her nipple between his fingers.
“Ethan! Please. Oh, please, please, please!” she begged, pulling his face to hers. He could feel that she was close again. Her breath began to hitch, her fingers frantically pulling at him. He kissed her and she opened her mouth to his possession, kissing him back as fiercely as he kissed her, before breaking away.
With his face buried in her neck, he crashed against her one more time and they came like waves breaking on the shore. It seemed to go on forever.
Never Over You Page 32
