by Ava Riley
“Shower,” he quickly said. “I’ll be back in fifteen minutes.”
“You could join me,” she said as she wiggled her ass at him.
“I could, but then you’d never make it to work on time,” he gave her bottom a swat and closed the door.
Madison stumbled to the shower, turning the knobs until the spray was hard and hot. She giggled at that thought, because that’s how she liked her men, apparently. Or at least one man in particular. She stepped into the shower and let the heat from the water relax her muscles. She really did get a workout last night and, God, was she ever looking forward to their next session. She wasn’t sure if it could be any better than it had been last night, but she certainly wasn’t opposed to finding out. She snatched up the bottle of Herbal Essences Citrus Lift, lathering up the shampoo into her dark tresses. The fragrance filled the small shower, bringing her tired mind and body to life. She loved the shampoo for this very reason; it always perked her up. She massaged her scalp then rinsed the shampoo from her hair. Grabbing her purple loofa from the shower shelf, she filled it with her favorite watermelon body wash. As she washed her tired body, she felt a tingling on her skin as she imagined Rowan’s hands replacing the loofa. She shook herself from her dirty thoughts. She needed to get to work and she wasn’t helping matters by allowing her mind to go there. After a quick shower, she reached for the maroon towel that normally found its home on the hook next to the shower door. She knew she’d put a fresh one up last night before she’d made her way to Rowan’s. Peeking out the frosted glass door she saw Rowan standing there with a smile plastered on his face, her towel draped over his shoulder.
“Just thought you could use some help drying off,” he said with a deep, low growl.
“Well, now that you mention it, I could use the help as sore as I am from our workout last night.”
Rowan wrapped the towel around Madison’s shoulders, rubbing the droplets of water from her skin. She let out a sigh, as his hands massaged down her back. He leaned in gently kissing her mouth before he grabbed a droplet of water sliding down her throat with his tongue. She smelled of citrus and watermelon and he wanted to fall to his knees and eat her up. Before he could go any farther, Madison pulled away from him slightly.
“Rowan, I should probably dry myself off, otherwise, I don’t think I’ll be making it to work today.”
Giving up control of the towel, he leaned his forehead to hers, “I’m sorry, I can’t control myself when it comes to you.”
“Oh, don’t take that wrong, I’m not complaining about your lack of control. It just wouldn’t be a good idea for me to call in or be late my first week of work.” Dear God, Madison wanted the man to throw her on the floor of the tiny bathroom and make her scream until the cows came home, which in Long Beach would be never.
“Get dressed, I brought breakfast,” he said sliding a finger down her spine.
“Rowan you didn’t need...” He gave her a warning look. “Never mind, I’ll be ready in ten minutes.”
Madison pulled on a pair of tan slacks and a blue pinstriped button up as soon as she dried herself off, then quickly pulled her hair into a ponytail. Making her way down the hall of her small cottage home, she smelled the aroma whiff towards her from the cozy kitchen. Rowan’s face lit up when she walked into the room and she marveled at the realization that she caused that look. At the table in front of him sat a plate filled with what seemed to be the largest bagels she’d ever seen.
“Are you ready to eat? The bagel shop around the corner has the most amazing bagels, so I got a few different flavors. My favorite is the sun dried tomato but the cranberry is great too.”
“Thank you,” she said grabbing a cranberry bagel as she sat in the chair he’d pulled out for her. Taking a bite, she let out a groan, “Oh my, this is wonderful. I don’t remember seeing a bagel shop.”
“It’s tucked away in the strip mall, so you have to have the inside track.”
“And now I do,” she said laughing. “I have a feeling I will be frequenting this place often.”
Finishing up quickly, Madison cleaned off the table as Rowan took care of the trash. She grabbed her purse and jacket as they headed toward the door.
“Can I see you again tonight?” he asked as Madison locked the front door.
“I would love to see you tonight, but a few girls from the office invited me out for drinks. You know a welcome outing for the new girl. What about tomorrow night?”
Shaking his head, “Tonight’s the last night of my vacation. I’m back to work tomorrow night. Don’t worry, we’ll figure something out.”
Rowan opened her car door when they reached the Altima sitting in the driveway. Leaning in for one more kiss, he cupped her cheek taking his time. If he wouldn’t be seeing her for a few days, he at least wanted to make this kiss last as long as possible.
Chapter 13
Working the E.R. was very rarely uneventful. Rowan’s first week back at work proved that fact. It seemed like one patient after another made their way through the double sliding doors. Every time he heard the whoosh of wind indicating another patient, he felt his skin tighten on his knuckles. Normally, he was very relaxed, even in the midst of turmoil. His patience is what made him so great at his job. Tonight, however, he felt uptight and uneasy. It had been a week already since he’d last seen Madison. Oh, they’d been texting back and forth and even talked on the phone a couple times, but he had not physically seen or touched her. Not being able to have that time with her was causing a hollowness he’d never experienced before. These twelve hour night shifts had never bothered him before, even when he was with Erin, but suddenly he was questioning his need or desire to work them. While he finished up his shift, Madison would be driving to her job. They didn’t even cross paths in the mornings.
This week was especially difficult for Rowan. On top of it being his first week back, he volunteered to work an extra day because one of the other doctor’s had called in sick. He’d only have Thursday night off and one day with Madison was not enough for him. He definitely had some decisions to make. Did he want to continue to work the night shift, seeing Madison only when they could squeeze time in or did he want to make a career change? Cade had been trying to get him to go into practice with him for years. Rowan just wasn’t sure he could give up the excitement and adrenaline rush of working the E.R. He didn’t want to make the same mistake of jumping into a relationship again, but Madison affected him the way no one ever had.
She was an incredible woman; more beautiful on the inside than the outside and that was saying a lot because physically the woman turned him on like no other had and that was fully clothed. Seeing her nude sent him over the edge and he gladly jumped. She made him want to be a better person, to be a better man. She talked about her father often and on more than one occasion had said she wanted to marry a man that had the same traits as the man that brought her into this world. Rowan knew that marriage wasn’t something either of them had been thinking about, but he wanted to be that type of man for her. A man Madison could look at and would see the same traits as the man she thought the world of. He wanted to be the man that held the world in the palm of his hands as far as she was concerned.
Rowan caught himself laughing out loud as nurses and patients stared in his direction. He moved down the corridor, past gurneys into the physician’s break room. He definitely had a lot to sort out in regards to Madison.
Tick, tick, tick was all Madison heard as she stared at the second hand on the antique alarm clock sitting on her bedside table. When she retrieved her mail from her box at the post office earlier in the week, the small clock had been wrapped in one of her father’s old flannel shirts, packaged tightly in the shoe box her mother had shipped to her. Madison, since she was a small child, had always loved anything antique and her mother always loved taking her to garage sales. Growing up, they had spent many Saturday’s hopping from one garage sale to another, finding the most wonderful treasures in other people’s trash
. When she opened the box to find the small white clock with gold trim peeking out at her, she’d felt sad for the first time since she’d left Kansas to come out to California. So much had changed in her life. She finally had a job she loved, the people she worked with were all wonderful, and now she was in a relationship with a man who turned her world upside down. Yet, in the midst of it all, her heart ached because her daddy wasn’t here to share it with her.
Madison knew beyond a shadow of a doubt her father would approve of Rowan. He’s definitely a man her father could be confident knowing that he would treat her like a real man should treat a woman. Rowan always wanted to talk about her, soaking up all the information he could about her life. Most of the men she’d ever come in contact with always wanted to talk about how wonderful they were. Not Rowan, she had to pry information from him because the conversation always came back to focus on her. Madison didn’t like talking about herself, but her heart tightened knowing that his desire to know her on a deeper level than just the physical was first and foremost in his mind. Although, he had made her blushed on more than one occasion when he verbally detailed to the tee everything he wanted to do to her sexually and not just in her big four poster bed.
The ticking second hand on the clock brought her from her thoughts. She sucked in a breath, realizing for the first time that Rowan was a man that she would have loved to have taken home to meet her parents. As if seeing a sliver of light in a darkened cave, an idea popped into her mischievous mind. This California boy was in for the treat of his life and one he would not be expecting. The hands of the clock declared she had only four hours before she’d need to get up and start her day. Work was the last place she wanted to be tomorrow, but knowing what she was about to do made it worth getting up and enduring for the time being. Tomorrow would be the beginning of her preparations for what she had in store for Rowan. She felt giddy with excitement. Smiling as she turned onto her side, pulling up the brown comforter to just below her chin she let her eyes close, her mind shut down, and welcomed the naughty dreams that were sure to follow.
Chapter 14
Madison sat with her back to the large oak desk which had its place in the middle of her office. The files she’d thrown there an hour ago sat scattered just as she’d left them. Staring out the window at nothing in particular, she checked her watch for the hundredth time in the last five minutes. As the work day neared its completion, time ceased to move at its normal pace. She spun around in her chair, tapping her pen against the glossy desk top that was a disheveled mess. When Rowan called her an hour ago, after waking from just a few hours of sleep, she had asked him to meet her tonight. His enthusiasm made her heart swell and her nerves shoot through the roof. She wasn’t sure if he’d enjoy what she had planned, but she was excited all the same. She just needed this day to end so she could get this night going with him.
It had taken Madison all of thirty minutes to get everything packed up for her night with Rowan after she returned home from work. He had texted her several times since their phone call to try to squeeze information out of her about their night, but she hadn’t budged. She wanted it to be a complete surprise, but she did call to let him know that he should dress in old clothes and shoes that he didn’t care if they got ruined. When he’d told her okay, she could actually hear the concern in his voice. She’d laughed so hard when she hung up the phone and could picture his face with a look of fear plastered there.
Dressed in black sweat pants, an old grey t-shirt and her old blue Kansas University sweatshirt, she grabbed the backpack she’d prepared and headed out the door to Rowan’s. With a smile a mile wide, she rang his door bell and waited.
“Come on in,” Rowan yelled from the other side of the door.
Madison opened the door slowly, stepped inside and found herself greeted with the most remarkable smile, as Rowan rounded the corner from the kitchen. Decked out in black sweat pants, old running shoes and a black t-shirt that stretched tight against his chest, the man made even the most unattractive outfit look stylish. She had visions of tossing her backpack to the ground, dragging him down the hall to his bedroom and taking full advantage of the skills she apparently had of pleasing a man. Later, she thought; she’d definitely be doing those things later.
Fear shot through Rowan’s body like never before, when Madison told him to dress in clothing he didn’t mind ruining. Well, fear and excitement. His first thought, as a man of course, was that she’d planned on ripping his clothes off of him so she could have her way with him. Visions of that played over in his mind a multitude of times since he’d gotten off the phone with her, but he was certain that wasn’t why she’d told him that. Then, the fear swelled inside him and consumed him like a tidal wave hitting the shoreline because there wasn’t one thing he could think of that would warrant him wearing old clothing. Instead of putting too much time into it, he’d showered, dressed and grabbed a cup of coffee. When he heard the doorbell ring announcing her arrival, everything and, yes, everything, leapt to life. A week had already passed and he was more than ready to pull her into his arm and taste her scrumptious mouth. He wanted to run his fingers along her silk skin and soak up every moment he could with her.
When Rowan rounded the corner from the kitchen, he stopped mid-step. Madison looked even more beautiful than the last time he’d seen her. He slowly made his way over to her, the smile on her face widening with every step he took. He silently reminded himself to breathe; otherwise, he’d pass out before he reached her. Standing before her, he leaned his forehead to hers.
“Damn, I’ve missed you,” he said as he placed gentle kisses on her lips. They were even softer than the last time his lips had been on hers.
“I’ve missed you too,” she let out a sigh.
Liquid heat pooled between Madison’s thighs. Her body had a Pavlov’s affect to Rowan; it remembered and reacted to his mere presence just inches from her. Her nipples hardened underneath the confines of the red lace bra and grey t-shirt that now felt three sizes too small. Her pussy dripped with her juices, filling her matching red lace panties in anticipation of his fingers, his mouth, and his rock hard cock giving her undeniable pleasures. Madison’s body screamed at her to relinquish her control, to give into the physical urges that ran rampant throughout her being. Her pussy ached to feel his fingers caressing her wet folds, to feel his teeth clenched around her engorged clit. A tingle flowed through her body as Rowan cupped her cheek with one hand, his other hand placed on the back of her head, his fingers bunching in her long dark hair. He leaned in, gently placing his lips to hers. She parted her lips allowing his tongue access to her mouth. He tasted like mint with a touch of coffee and much to her surprise she loved the way the combination sat on her tongue. They weren’t going anywhere if he kept kissing her the way he was. She pulled away from his slightly.
“Rowan, we should get going before it gets too late.”
Seductively he said, “Are you sure, we could just hang out here a while, if you’d like?”
Laughing, “Yes, I’m sure. I have something planned for us.”
“Does it involve you ripping my clothes from my body?” He winked as he grabbed his keys.
“Possibly,” she said clutching the backpack strap on her shoulder a little tighter, holding in her laughter as Rowan froze staring at her.
“Then, we should definitely get going because I have a feeling that will be one of my favorite activities of the evening.”
They were both laughing as they stepped out on Rowan’s front porch. He turned to lock the door when the roar of a motorcycle grew louder as it approached the front lawn. Atop the black machine sat Tessa, without Cade. Fury shot through Rowan’s body. Her riding that damn thing with Cade was bad enough, but now she was driving it herself.
“What the hell are you doing?” He practical yelled at Tessa as she slid from the bike before she could even remove the helmet she wore.
“Well, that’s not quite the greeting I was expecting. I’m coming over t
o see you.”
Tessa took a quick inventory, noticing the woman that stood at Rowan’s side, dressed not quite the way she was used to seeing Rowan’s women dressed and the shocked look on her face as she stared at him. She was obliviously taken aback by his reaction.
“Hi, since Rowan is going to be rude and not introduce us, I’m Tessa, I’m his sister.” She added the sister part when the woman’s eyes widened. Most likely she thought Tessa was a girlfriend and the thought caused her to laugh.
“I’m glad you think this is funny,” Tessa heard him say in his big brother voice.
Completely ignoring him, “And you are?”
“Oh, I’m sorry. I’m Madison. Rowan’s, um, neighbor.”
Madison wasn’t sure what she was to Rowan. A neighbor with benefits, a lover, a girlfriend; they’d never really discussed what title they would place on their relationship. They were both just going with the flow, but how would he describe her to his sister?
