“It’s a gift.” Billy glances over his shoulder at the stage. “I’m cutting into your time together. I’m going home to the Mrs. You two enjoy your night.”
“We will,” Dylan says quickly. “Thanks again, Billy.”
“No thanks are necessary. It’s the least I can do.” He reaches for the glass from the table, raising it in the air. “Here’s to the next great love story. I think I may be playing a small part in it as we speak.”
***
Neither of us reacted to Billy’s comment about his part in the next great love story even though we knew he was talking about the two of us.
Dylan walked Billy to the staircase and then ordered us each a glass of white wine from the bartender.
We’re on the dance floor now enjoying a slow song with a soothing melody.
I trail my fingers over the back of Dylan’s neck, loving the feeling of his hands on my waist.
I look up into his light blue eyes. They haven’t changed at all since the first time I ever saw them. If anything, they’ve become more vibrant and intense.
“What are you thinking?” Dylan asks quietly.
We move slowly in sync, keeping in perfect rhythm to the song. “That you saved someone’s marriage.”
A grin ghosts his mouth. “That shocks you.”
I tilt my head to take in the expression on his face. It’s hard to read. “It does shock me a little.”
“Why?” He smirks.
“I’m a divorce attorney too.” I let him lead me closer to the band. “At the end of the day, broken marriages pay our bills.”
“They weigh on us too.” He spins me around.
He’s right. I’ve had people come into my office in Buffalo after an argument with their spouse about something as insignificant as a wet towel left on the bathroom floor. I always give those potential clients the same advice. I tell them to go home and take some time to sort out what they’re feeling.
When I reach out a couple of weeks later, most have no need for my services anymore because they’ve kissed and made up with their partner.
In those cases, I didn’t save a marriage. I avoided a lot of paperwork that I’d never end up filing because the client would have called off the proceedings a day or two after the initial argument with their spouse.
“How did you end you being an attorney?” Dylan slows his pace.
I don’t want to talk about how my goal to be a professional dancer on Broadway fell victim to the car crash. Once I realized that I’d never take to a stage on the Great White Way, I fell back to the dream my mom gave up when she found out she was pregnant with me.
“My mom always wanted to be a lawyer.”
I smile when I think about her light brown hair and blue eyes. She was breathtakingly beautiful even when cancer caught her in its clutches.
She shaved her head the day before my tenth birthday, so I did the same.
I got in trouble for it, but that lasted less than a minute. My sacrifice meant everything to her.
She gave up law school and a career to spend her days raising me. Becoming an attorney was the greatest gift I could give to her.
“She’d be proud of you.” Dylan brushes his lips over my forehead. “Coach would be too.”
I rest my head on his chest as we dance through the end of the song and into the beginning of the next.
I haven’t had a night like this in a very long time. I never want it to end.
Chapter 26
Dylan
Guilt gnaws at me as I unlock the door to my apartment.
Somewhere in the recesses of my mind, I held firm to the notion that at some point, in this lifetime, I’d be able to apologize to Coach Conrad face-to-face and man-to-man.
When he didn’t return my calls after the accident, it felt like I’d been banished to my own personal hell.
I let him down when he needed me.
I was supposed to drive Eden home. Instead, I took off in the opposite direction to the airport and left her in the incompetent hands of her boyfriend.
I never blamed Coach for cutting off all contact with me. I deserved his silence.
“I can’t remember the last time I danced that much.” Eden tosses her purse on a chair in my living room as I lock the door behind us. “Thank you for taking me there.”
Scrubbing my hand over the back of my neck, I look over at the bottle of scotch on my home bar. “Can I get you a drink?”
Her gaze follows mine. “A glass of cold water would be perfect.”
No. She’s fucking perfect.
She talked non-stop in the taxi on the way here. She loved the band. She enjoyed the wine. She liked Billy even though her interaction with him was limited to a couple of minutes.
I want to take her back there, but we’re due in court again in a few days.
Depending on what she’s planning on her end, the case should move quickly.
She could be on a flight back to Buffalo within the next two weeks.
I knew going into this that it would run its course, but I need more time.
I stalk into the kitchen and pull a pitcher filled with filtered water out. I fill a tall glass to the brim.
She’s studying the pictures on the mantle of the fireplace when I walk back in.
“Ansley is still as gorgeous as ever.”
She’s right. My older sister is one of the most beautiful women I know. It’s not just her striking features. Her heart is made of gold.
She’s a mom to three, a wife, and a teacher.
Her students are curious seven-year-olds. She’s never short of a story or two when we talk.
Eden’s finger trails over the picture of Ansley and me. It was taken last winter in Hawaii. My sister was there with her family because her husband had business on the big island over the holidays.
I made it my business to be there to see them.
Overall, the trip was everything I hoped it would be. I left with good memories, a tan, and a promise from Ansley that she’d find her way to Manhattan when she needs a weekend break from life in Houston.
It hasn’t happened yet, but my door is always open for her.
Eden takes the glass of water. “Thank you for this.”
I watch her throat work on a swallow. As much as I want my dick back in her mouth, I want to taste her more.
“Take off your clothes.”
Her gaze skims my face. “Not so fast. We have a matter to discuss.”
The only thing I want to discuss is how badly I need her naked. “What matter?”
She places the empty glass on the mantle. “Your jersey. We need to talk terms if you want it back.”
She can keep the damn thing. It’s a piece of another life that I’m not sure I want to remember.
I play along because she’s smiling like she’s holding the pot of gold at the end of a rainbow. “I’m open to an offer. What do you propose?”
She rakes me from head-to-toe, and there’s zero chance that I’m reading the look in her eyes wrong. She wants me. She fucking wants me as desperately as I want her.
“I want to undress you.”
Her voice is bold and clear. There’s no room for misunderstanding.
I hold both my arms out to the side. “Have at it.”
Her fingers skim the bottom hem of my sweater. “It’s just a starting point. It doesn’t mean that I’ll bring the jersey back.”
“Understood.” I glance down at her hands. “Do I get to undress you once my ass is bare?”
Her head shakes slowly. “No. I’ll undress myself.”
“While I watch?” My brows perk in anticipation of that scene unfolding in front of me.
Her voice drops along with her gaze. “While you touch yourself.”
I take a half-step closer to give her easier access to my belt and the zipper of my jeans. “While I stroke my cock?”
She lifts her chin until our eyes meet. “You did it the other night. It was really hot.”
I found
something that turns her on, so I’m all in. “Let’s do it.”
“But,” she stops to chew on her bottom lip.
I want to lean forward and take over, pulling her lip between my teeth, but I stand my ground, even though my cock is as hard as steel. “But what?”
Pink blooms high on her cheeks. “When you’re ready to come, I’ll take you in my mouth.”
I’m ready right fucking now. I drop a hand to the front of my jeans to squeeze my aching dick. “Do it soon, Eden, or I’m going to blow this load in my pants.”
Her hands fall to my belt. “We’ll negotiate more after I swallow your cum.”
Fuck. Just fuck.
Please let me hold it together until her lips are wrapped around my cock.
She takes her time with my clothes, running her hands over the ridges of my abdomen and my biceps.
Once my hand wraps around my cock, I’m almost gone.
I pump again and again as she stands and watches, her gaze never leaving my dick.
“It’s so hot in here,” she whispers. “I need to do something about that.”
My hand works in long, slow strokes as I watch her undress. Each button of her blouse reveals another inch of her skin.
Her nipples are already perked into tight points when she slides the bra from her body.
I’m captivated with her every movement as the jeans come off followed by the black lace thong that I wish to fuck I was removing with my teeth.
I hiss out her name, “Eden.”
That’s all it takes to drop her to her knees.
I grab for her hair, fumbling with the long strands as I shove my cock between her pillow-soft lips.
The rush of desire is instant, violent, and almost too much.
I close my eyes against the onslaught and come hard, chanting her name as I empty every last drop into her.
Chapter 27
Eden
Words can’t describe the pleasure that pulses through me when Dylan sinks his thick cock into my pussy.
I tremble around him, wishing that I could feel him without a condom.
Flesh-to-flesh. Our raw desire not hindered by the latex that separates us now.
I moan because it’s that good. It’s so good.
I’ve never been with a man who knew how to fuck like this.
Dylan reaches beneath me to cradle my ass cheek in his hand. He tilts me up until the wide head of his cock hits that spot inside of me.
I knew it existed, but it wasn’t until the other night, in this bed, that I finally understood what it felt like to be with a man who could use his body to really and truly pleasure a woman.
I come apart when his teeth bear down on my shoulder.
My sex ripples around him, spurring him on.
“Again,” he whispers against the shell of my ear. “I want you to come again.”
I whimper because I’m still falling from the high of my climax. “I can’t.”
He slides in and out slowly. “Your cunt says otherwise. You’re so wet. You need more.”
He’s so raw and uninhibited. He doesn’t mask his need behind the pretense of flowery compliments or token terms of endearment.
His words are a reflection of his wants.
“On top,” I murmur as he plunges deeper.
“Fuck yes,” he answers with a flip of our bodies.
I whine when his cock slides out of me. “Please.”
He settles on his back in the middle of the bed. His hand is wrapped around the root of his erection. “Ride me, Eden. Take what you want.”
I crawl over him, sliding him inside of me. It’s so deep that tears well in the corners of my eyes. “It’s too much.”
“Shh, it’s good.” His voice soothes, just as his hands stroke my thighs. “Take it slow. Set the pace. Use me to get yourself off.”
I lean down to press my lips to his, whispering back what he said to me. “It’s good.”
“So fucking good.” He deepens the kiss with a lash of his tongue against mine. “Fuck me.”
I move my body slowly, adjusting to his thickness. I’ve never felt this full, or this alive.
I slide my hands over his muscular chest until I’m sitting atop him with his cock buried so deep inside of me that the sharp bite of pain is cloaked in pure pleasure.
“You’re the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.” His voice is gravelly. “Jesus, look at you.”
I look down into the face of the man I’m falling so fast and so hard for.
“Look at you,” I repeat back before I close my eyes and take what I need.
***
Glancing down at me, Dylan ties off the condom and tosses it in a wastebasket next to the bed.
His bedroom is set up for ease of pleasure.
Condoms sit in full view. A box of tissues is on the other nightstand beside a lamp that is partially shielding a tube of lube.
The wastebasket is within reach, and I’m guessing emptied every morning.
Dylan Colt was made for fucking.
I know because I just experienced it first hand. Or my pussy did. The ache deep within it will remind me of him for at least the next few days.
I’m still sore from our last time.
“What’s the next step in our negotiation?” Dylan runs his hand over his semi-hard cock.
I roll to my side. “Not what you think.”
His brows perk. “What do I think?”
“It involves my body.”
“I can go another round.” He looks down at his erection. He’s completely hard. “Here’s my proposal.”
I fight off a smile. “I can’t wait to hear this.”
“I fuck you twice a day for a year, and in exchange at the end of that time, we revisit the idea of you returning the jersey. I need a caveat in there about eating you. I retain the right to do that in addition to the twice daily fucking.”
My smile falls. “Dylan, we…”
“We can’t because Buffalo is on the horizon.” He nods. “I know.”
The moment feels awkward, so I swing my legs over the side of the bed. “I propose you give me back my blouse and skirt in exchange for the return of your jersey the next time we see each other.”
He rakes me as I stand. “When will that be? Tomorrow?”
It’s tomorrow already. It’s nearing two a.m., and I need to go.
“I can’t tomorrow.” I fold my hands together in front of me.
“Why not?” he asks, rounding the bed until he’s in front of me.
I tell him the truth. “I’m working.”
“On the Alcester case?”
“Kurt asked me to help with another client,” I say. “I’m going to handle some of that tomorrow.”
“On Sunday?”
I laugh. “You work on Sundays too.”
His hands reach for mine. “I’ll take tomorrow off if you do.”
I glance down at our fingers woven together. It’s so comfortable to touch him. Everything feels like it fits perfectly together. “I need to work.”
Resignation floats over his expression. “You’re taking off now, aren’t you?”
“I am.” I don’t explain beyond that.
“I’ll get dressed and take you back to Noelle’s place.”
I squeeze his hands in mine. “I know how to get there.”
“Understood.” Leaning forward, he kisses me softly. “I’ll grab your skirt and blouse.”
“Dylan,” I say his name just as he drops my hands. “Tonight was incredible. It was everything to me.”
His hand moves to cup my cheek. “To me too, Eden. Thank you for all of it. I mean it.”
I know he does. I see it in his eyes.
I don’t protest when he takes a step toward his walk-in closet. I watch him as he moves away from me, knowing that soon we’ll be walking away from each other for good.
Chapter 28
Dylan
I glance at the clock before I swing open the door to my apartment. It’s mi
d-afternoon on Sunday. I know it’s not Eden. She has work on her plate today. I checked in with her late this morning via text.
She told me she’d be tied up today and tomorrow.
I’m looking at a full schedule for most of the week. There’s a good chance that the next time I see Eden, we’ll be standing in Judge Mycella’s courtroom.
I swing open the door because I know whoever is standing on the other side made it past the doorman.
I didn’t order food in, so it’s someone with a face familiar enough that the doorman didn’t view their presence as deserving of a heads-up phone call to me.
“Colt,” Barrett greets me with a nod of his head. “Let me in.”
I step aside to give him room to pass. “What the hell are you doing here?”
“It’s good to see you too, bastard.” He drops his duffel bag and a briefcase at my feet. “What’s going on in your world?”
I slam the door shut and turn to face him.
“I’m about to go out for a run.”
He takes in the black shorts and white T-shirt I’m wearing. “Hold up on that. We need to talk.”
I continue the leg stretches I started before he showed up unannounced. “Let’s start with why you’re here with an overnight bag. Did I miss the text where I invited you for a visit?”
He shoves his hands into the front pocket of his jeans. “You missed a few phone calls. I was worried about my little buddy.”
I laugh aloud. “Since when am I your little buddy?”
“Stroll down memory lane with me.” He walks to the couch, planting himself in the middle of it. “I was taller than you when we were twelve. If I recall correctly, you were my little buddy for six months give or take a week.”
He’ll never let me live that down.
I caught up in height and weight during summer break, but Barrett refuses to let it go.
“Why are you in New York?” I settle back on the heels of my running shoes.
“I thought I’d drop in on my way to London.” He pats his thigh. “I’m looking for an update on you and Eden Conrad. Anything new to report on that front?”
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