“I know your busy I just wanted to make sure you were ok, you seemed pretty upset when you left.” He took another step closer, putting them inches apart now.
He was close enough to feel the heat coming off of her body. She took his breath away as he looked down at her, gazing into her eyes. He felt something in his chest that he hadn’t felt in a long time, the dull ache right in the center that almost brought him to his knees.
“I’m fine, really. You are sweet to be so worried but it’s nothing I can’t deal with on my own.” Grace wanted so bad to move away and go inside but it was like her legs had stopped working because she couldn’t move. Deep down she didn’t want to move away from him, she wanted to move closer, letting him wrap her in his arms and make the pain go away. But she knew it was never going to happen, because there was no way he could possibly want that.
He looked into her eyes for another second, searching for something, but she was hiding it really well. Before he knew what he was doing, he pushed a strand of hair away from her cheek, letting the pad of this thumb slowly graze her soft skin. Grace felt a shiver go through her at his touch, and couldn’t help but stare at his mouth, wondering what it would be like to kiss him, even if it was just one time. He noticed her eyes on his mouth as he rubbed his thumb over her cheek again and he slid his fingers into her hair, moving his hand to the back of her neck, pulling her a little closer to him. He completely lost it and was going down, but he didn’t care anymore, he wanted to kiss her, he needed to kiss her and feel her soft lips on his.
She heard the hitch in his breath as his eyes found her lips and watched as her tongue slid over her bottom lip. He looked back into her eyes before lowering his lips to hers and losing himself in her.
She felt soft and he loved the way she fit perfectly up against his body, like she was meant for him. He knew that this one kiss wouldn’t be enough, but for right now he took what he could get, and slid his tongue across her soft lips, parting them, and slid his tongue into her mouth.
She felt her knees go weak as his tongue slid over hers, sending delicious waves of pleasure down her body to all the right spots. His kiss went from soft and sweet one moment to hot and sexy as he slid his hands down her body, feeling every curve and dip as he cupped her soft ass and pulled her even closer. A soft moan escaped her lips as she put her arms around his neck, sliding her fingers into his hair and tugging gently. The world around them stopped moving. The only thing on his mind at that moment was Grace, kissing her was blowing his mind and other things too if this kiss got any deeper. He wanted more and he wanted to feel her soft body underneath his, as he lost himself in her, forgetting the heartache of his past. He broke the kiss, leaning his forehead against her
“I have wanted to kiss you from the moment I first laid eyes on you. I don’t know what you’re doing to me, but you make me lose it, I can’t stop thinking about you and kissing you,” he said, his voice a harsh, ragged whisper.
His lips were still close enough to hers that if she tipped her head up an inch closer and they would be kissing again. She looked into Tyler’s eyes seeing the desire and passion mirrored in his eyes, and she knew at that moment there was no going back now, kissing him made her feel things that no other man’s kiss had, and she wanted more.
Lifting her head to close the little space between them, she pressed her body and her lips against his. He groaned and gripped her ass tightly, holding her against him and kissed her until they were both breathless. Her world was spinning, and her body was reacting to his kiss, wanting to feel his lips on her again, all over her. She knew this shouldn’t have been a thought in her mind. She was too busy still getting over Denny’s heartache to be thinking of her and Tyler naked, and in his bed. She pulled away from him, taking a step back to get some space in-between them as she ran a finger over her lower lip that was swollen and wet from their kiss. “Tyler we…”
“Grace.”
He cut her off before she could finish, he didn’t want to hear her say that the kiss shouldn’t have happened.
“Don’t say anything alright, just come have dinner with me tonight. Let’s just spend some time together.”
He took a step closer to her and slid his palm across her cheek, letting his fingers touch the soft skin on her neck as he looked into her eyes. “Please, you did walk out on me at lunch the other day, I think you at least owe me a dinner,” he said, smiling.
It was impossible to resist his sexy smile, and she knew there was no point in trying to say no, because deep down she knew that spending time with him is exactly what she wanted, she just wasn’t ready to admit it.
“My sister just got here I can’t leave her alone her first night back.”
Just then Paige opened the front door, poking her head out. “I’m a big girl Grace, I can find something to do, and don’t you dare turn down dinner with a man that looks like that.” Paige said before shutting the door and disappearing back inside.
Grace looked at the door and back at Tyler who was grinning now.
“You heard what she said; you can’t turn me down for dinner. Be at my house at eight,” he said, giving her a quick kiss before he walked away leaving her standing there still feeling the effects of his kiss.
“Ok Grace spill it, I want to know every detail what has been going on, because obviously I have missed a lot.” Paige said as she sank into the couch.
“There is nothing to tell, he just moved in a couple weeks ago. It was your sister that made me talk to him when he came into Geddys for a drink one night.” It was Autumn who started their conversation, but there was no denying the chemistry. One look at Tyler and Grace felt her stomach flip flop and her insides quiver. She couldn’t help but stare at him at the restaurant that night, and now after he just kissed her like no other man had she didn’t know how she was going to keep her hands off of him, let alone her eyes. Grace walked into the kitchen, setting her keys on the counter as she turned to look at Paige. “If someone has anything to talk about here it’s you.” She said pointing at her sister, who sank deeper into the couch.
Stretching her arms and yawing Paige looked around her old house. “All of the sudden I am so tired, I think I am going to bed.” She was getting up as Grace walked over to her. “Paige sit down, something is going on I know it.” They both sat down together and Paige shifted uncomfortably, trying to find the words to tell her sister what was going on in her life.
“It’s your turn to spill it sister.” Grace said nudging her sister’s knee with hers.
It was now or never thought Paige and she started from the beginning.
“Dominic broke up with me. He said that he needed to explore other options right now in his life, that timing was off and the relationship wasn’t working anymore.” Grace felt her heart squeeze. She knew exactly how it felt to be dumped and it was something she never wished any of her sisters had to go through.
“Was this recent?” She said as she scooted closer to Paige.
“About four months ago, I wanted to call and tell you but I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t want to tell you because…well I didn’t want to hear I told you so. Everyone that knew how we met told me it wouldn’t last. Oh but that’s not the best part of everything.” Paige took a deep breath as she thought of the last couple of weeks and the disaster her life had turned into. “My apartment building burned down and I lost everything, I have been living in a hotel room up until now.”
She heard a small gasp come from Grace and she didn’t dare look up, she could feel the shame on her face for allowing her life to fall apart. A life she worked so hard to build away from Bar Harbor Maine, but now there was no other place she would rather be.
“Paige you should have called me when this happened. I would have told you to come home that same night. There is no reason for you to be living in a hotel room! This is your home, just as much as it is Autumn’s and mine.” She hugged Paige, and her heart ached for her sister, because she knew how much she loved Dominic and h
er life in New York.
“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. I was devastated when he left. I didn’t know what to do and I didn’t want to tell anyone. I hoped he would come back, but he never did.” Paige wiped a tear from her eye as she hugged her sister a little tighter. Grace was like a mother to her, she always took care of her and made sure she and Autumn had everything they needed. But most importantly, she was always there when they needed a shoulder to cry on.
Paige wiped her tears and turned to Grace. “Enough about the mess I call my life, how are you doing? I take it Denny is out of the picture, since you were obviously tongue wrestling with Mr. McDreamy down the street!” She said in a mocking voice.
Grace could feel her face heat up from embarrassment and she grabbed the pillow behind her and threw it at her sister. “Denny has been out of the picture for a while. I don’t want to talk about him right now; it will just end up ruining my night.” That was something Paige could understand, because she was suffering from the same heartache
“Enough about men who aren’t worth our tears and heartaches Grace, we need to get you looking absolutely gorgeous for your date. Let’s go, I might have something in my suitcase that will work.” Paige said as she dragged her sister down the hallway to her bedroom.
“Sit; let me get a look at your underwear drawer. You do own at least one pair of sexy lingerie right?” Paige was the queen of sexy under garments. Her closet and credit card had exploded several times from her trips to Victoria secrets and fancy lingerie boutiques in the city. One look at her sister’s underwear drawer would send Paige into heart failure for sure because Grace did not splurge on much of anything, especially underwear.
“For the love of all panties this is not going to work Grace,” Paige said, holding up a pair of what she would have called ‘granny panties’ and shook her head.
“I haven’t had a date in a long time so there was really no need to invest in sexy panties, give me that please.”
Grace got up from the bed and snatched her ‘granny panties’ out of her sister’s hand, tossing them back into her drawer. “Let’s just forget it, I’m going to call Tyler and tell him I can’t make it that something came up.”
She was walking toward her phone when Paige pulled her back by her jeans pocket.
“No so fast lady. That man is into you! I saw the way he was kissing you and how his hands were grabbing onto your ass. You are not calling anyone. You are hot Grace, you have a great body, a very nice ass, but that has been established already by Mr. McDreamy. Now, sit down and let me work my artistic magic on you.”
After two hours of primping, and playing dress up Paige stood at the door way looking at her sister, who looked amazing.
“Perfection darling, you look like one hot sexy babe. I’d totally do you… If I was into girls and you weren’t my sister of course.”
Grace shook her head; her sister always had a way with words. Paige was the racier, lacier go get ‘em’ before someone else scoops up that sexy man kind of girl. Grace wished she could be more like that, but could never find the courage. Even as she looked at herself in the mirror she didn’t feel the same confidence Paige would have.
Grace looked beautiful, stunning and absolutely sexy. Her hair was blown out straight and full, falling around her face and down to the middle of her back. She managed to convince Paige that less was more and went for a more natural, but sexy makeup look. Keeping it to only brown eyeliner, with some mascara and a mauve pink lipstick, finishing off with some peach blush. Paige insisted on her wearing her black skinny jeans with a cream colored sheer tunic and a white camisole, finishing off the outfit with a pair of her brown leather riding boots.
“You look amazing, he is going to be eating you up in this outfit,” she said, grinning. “He is going to especially love what you are wearing under it. Why didn’t you tell me you kept a secret stash of sexy lingerie…there is hope for you yet Grace!”
After thirty minutes of arguing with Paige about why it was so wrong to even think about sharing her sister’s underwear, she gave in and let her sister have a peek at her secret lingerie drawer. She bought a few pieces after she met Denny, to keep things sexy in the bedroom. A lot of good that did her, she thought as she picked out a white lace bra with a matching white lace thong.
“You really do look beautiful Grace. Don’t let your past ruin your future happiness. You more than anyone deserves to find someone to love you and only you.”
They both stood in front of the mirror for a few more seconds looking at each other and feeling one another’s heartache.
“It’s good to have you back home Paige, don’t go rushing back to your artsy city life anytime soon.”
Grace could feel the butterflies in her stomach as she walked up to Tyler’s door. She tried to calm her nerves and just as she was about to knock, the door opened.
Tyler stood in the door way, taking in the beautiful site of Grace on his door step. He stood there, gazing at her, struggling to take his next breath. He had to fight the urge to pull her against him and kiss her, this time he knew there was no turning back if he kissed her again. He knew what her lips felt like, tasted like and he wanted more. It was going to take everything he had to keep from dragging her up to his bed to get another taste of her lips…. and the rest of her body.
“Hi Grace come in, you look beautiful.”
He couldn’t keep his eyes off of her as she walked passed him. He found himself leaning in to smell her hair, it smelled like flowers and perfume. It was intoxicating and pushing him closer to losing control again.
“Wow Tyler you really have made this place look amazing.”
She looked around, seeing everything he had changed in the house. Grace had been in the house once before. The previous owner was an elderly couple who would babysit her sisters for her when she had to work late nights. It used to be decorated with cows and antique furniture, but now it was a modern, classic clean décor. Tyler ripped out the old carpet, installing cherry hardwood floors throughout the entire house. He knocked down the wall separating the kitchen and front sitting room, giving the space a more open and flowing look. The walls had been freshly painted in cool whites and soft greys.
“Not a fan of cows and country I take it.” she looked around, loving the new look as they walked into the kitchen.
“Yeah, not really my thing, the whole cow décor,” he said, watching her walk into the kitchen. He was enjoying the view of her from behind, and couldn’t help but focus on her great ass.
He wished he could get his hands on that ass again, the way he did in front of her house when he was kissing her. It was soft and perfect, and before the night was over he was going to have to touch it again…
“I love what you have done with the place it’s amazing Tyler.” She smiled and felt her heart pounding uncontrollably in her chest as he stepped closer toward her.
His hand brushed her arm and she felt an instant shiver. “I’m glad you came tonight, I was worried about you the other day when you left so quickly.”
She felt the island on her back and couldn’t move when he took another step toward her. Standing right in front of her now she could feel the warmth coming off of his body. His eyes were burning with desire; she could almost feel it as he looked into her eyes.
“Why did you call me the other night Tyler?” she asked.
“I told you I was worried about you. Do you still have feelings for him?” He needed to know, wanted to know before he did what he was about to do.
It felt like minutes passed before she answered him. She knew that she didn’t love Denny anymore, and never would, but she felt the pain of the heartbreak every day. Some days more than others, but right now, with Tyler standing in front of her and looking at her like she was good enough to eat, the thought of Denny never once crossed her mind.
The only thing her heart was doing was beating a mile a minute and ready to jump out of her chest as Tyler took the last step and was inches from her now.
“Grace, I need to know if you still have feelings for him, because I am not going to kiss you again if you do, and right now I really want to kiss you,” he said, in a husky voice
He didn’t want to think about her having feelings for another man, because right now he wanted her and he could tell that his closeness was affecting her as well. Her lips were parted, her cheeks flushed and her eyes were going straight through him like a knife.
If her heart wasn’t jumping out of her chest before, it was ready to jump now. The only thing she could do was shake her head, because her brain lost all capacity to think after what he said… and that was all he needed. His hands were on her hips within seconds, pulling her body to his and he was lost again. His lips were on hers, his tongue in her mouth, claiming and possessing her. She made a little sound, almost a moan and it went straight through him.
This was crazy, he thought to himself but he couldn’t stop. He didn’t want to stop as his hands slid down her body and around her waist to cup her ass. He groaned in appreciation to the feeling. Her arms went around his neck, and her fingers found their way into his hair as he took a step back, moving them. They staggered further into the kitchen, mouths locked together and fumbled with a chair, knocking it over. They were both laughing as he spun her around, lifting her up and set her on the kitchen table. He took a step back, enough to see her eyes. The way she was looking at him was enough to make him lose control right at that moment. Her eyes were full of desire and need, he could see how much she wanted him. Lowering his head, he kissed the sweet spot beneath her ear, nipping her gently, causing her to moan and make that sound that drove him crazy. His lips moved along her jaw, down her neck. His hands moved up her thighs, over her jeans and slid under her shirt, feeling the warmth of her soft skin. Her entire body was like a tight ball of nerves, waiting to explode. His lips were burning into her skin with each kiss and going straight down into her belly, sending tingles down her body.
Keeping You Forever (A Harbor Love Series) Page 4
