by Natalie Ann
“You taste so sweet. Why do you always taste this way?”
“No clue,” she said. “Just don’t stop.”
He couldn’t even if he wanted to. She was more intoxicating than all the liquor at her place of employment.
As he pulled one nipple in his mouth, his hand slid down to the button of her jeans, undoing it, then pulling the zipper down.
He could almost feel the heat radiating off her body, sending him into overdrive. As much as he always wanted to slow down, he really struggled with her. Why Sidney and no one else in his life?
She lifted her hips up, letting him push her jeans and panties down and out of the way. They’d both toed their shoes off when they came in.
Her hands were reaching for his hips, pulling him forward, then into his back pocket. He wanted to laugh, as he knew she was going for his wallet to find a condom.
“Here,” she said. “I guess it’s kind of intrusive and I shouldn’t be looking in there.”
He took the wallet out of her hand and pulled the condom out the same time her hands slipped into his jeans and gripped his cock.
She released his button and zipper and freed him, then took the condom, opened it, and covered him. “Guess we’re good to go.”
She spread her legs wider on the counter, his eyes going to the bare flesh that she was maintaining. It was wet with dew and beckoning him in.
His hands slid under her ass and pushed her toward him, as he found her opening and slid in. The heat surrounding him almost made him come instantly.
He just wanted to hold her close to his body, but she wanted none of it, her legs coming around his hips and pulling him closer, then pushing him back, bucking back and forth.
His mouth went to hers, his hands fisted in her hair, his hips slamming into hers.
When her nails started to dig into his back he knew she was close and moved one hand down to her lower back to keep her in place while he went to work.
Her head went back, then her hands went to his ass and stopped him from moving when she started to moan and clutch his cock inside of her. It was all he needed before he let go right after her.
24
Lying To Herself
Sidney was trying to catch her breath but was struggling.
Why did it seem like whenever she and Mac got together she lost more of herself than she even started with?
The girls had asked her if she was falling in love with Mac and she said that it was too soon to know. That she wasn’t thinking about it.
But she was lying to herself because she was thinking it. She was thinking that her heart was falling for the sexy chief of police that thought he wasn’t romantic and that women complained he had no personality.
And here she was thinking he was everything she always thought she might want in a man.
“I’m going to sleep like a baby tonight,” she said. “I’m almost too worn out to even walk up the stairs.”
“I can take care of that,” he said, pulling out of her. She thought for sure he was going to put her over his shoulder again, but instead he cradled her in his arms.
“Whoa there,” she said. “What has gotten into you?”
He glanced down at her, a soft look in his eyes and her breath caught again. “It seems like you have. What? I thought most women wanted to be carried like this?”
“I never thought much of it, to be honest.”
“Neither have I,” he said.
He brought her to his room and set her on the bed. “My clothes are all downstairs.”
“I’ll get them and throw them in the washer and then dryer. A quick load. Help yourself to a T-shirt while I get cleaned up.”
She moved off the bed and opened his drawer and grabbed the first shirt at random and put it on. He came back a minute later and went to his hamper in the corner. “Might as well throw in my towel from this morning with our clothes downstairs.”
She wanted to comment about separating whites and colors, towels and socks, then bit her lip. It was sweet that at close to one in the morning he was washing her clothes. “Are you going to leave them wet all night before you put them in the dryer?”
He laughed. “This cycle will be done in thirty minutes. There is no way I’ll be sleeping by then, so I’ll flip them over and throw them in the dryer. We can run them again in the morning to get the wrinkles out. Besides, there is nothing better than warm clothes out of the dryer on a winter day.”
She shook her head as he walked out of the room. Too bad he’d stopped and grabbed shorts to put on first. The thought of him walking down the stairs and back up doing laundry naked made her want to giggle.
When he returned, she was under the covers with the TV on. “I don’t suppose you’ve got a spare toothbrush I can have.”
“I do,” he said, climbing in next to her. “Help yourself to it in the cabinet. Maybe you wouldn’t mind leaving a few things here in case we do this again last minute?”
“Sure,” she said. “I can do that. Do you wish we had more time together?”
Even though she hadn’t dated anyone in years. Not seriously. This had been an issue with her job. Working nights didn’t always coincide with the person she was dating when they worked days. It limited their time together and most got frustrated.
“I understand it doesn’t always work that way. It’s fine,” he said.
Which didn’t answer her at all. “Well, you made a comment about the chopper ride and then I got thinking there is limited time to do things like that.”
“You had to point that out thinking it might make me change my mind, but now I’m even more determined to do it.”
She figured as much. There wasn’t a lot she was afraid of in life and wasn’t sure she was with this. It’s just so much of the past few years she tried to play it safe.
Most might think moving around to find jobs in the hospitality field and working nights, living on her own in tourist areas, wasn’t playing it safe. It wasn’t stable.
But she was smart. She didn’t go home with strange men. She kept to herself. She watched over her shoulder. She deflected passes like the defensive line of the reigning Super Bowl Champs.
All but Mac though. His pass, yeah, she was jumping up and catching that one handed like Odell Beckham and running with it all the while making sure he was chasing her.
“I figured as much. And this isn’t an invitation for you to do it this soon, or not at all, but I gave my Sunday shift to Mark. I figured maybe you wouldn’t mind spending tomorrow night together and then Sunday. I won’t feel rushed to go home and get ready for work. I mean I’m not saying we have to spend the whole day together, but sometimes it’s just the mentality of knowing I don’t have to go in.”
“I’d like to spend the day with you. Even tomorrow. Though I’m sure you need to go home at some point.”
“I need more clothes,” she said. “I can’t wear the same ones to work again, even if they are clean. Then I’ll need clothes for Sunday too.”
“Okay, we can run there and get some things. Extra for you to leave here if you want,” he said.
“I can do that.”
“When is Kayla coming home?” he asked.
“I think Sunday morning. I mean it hasn’t even been twenty-four hours since she had Ben, but I know she wants to get home. I think Egan is flying them back too,” she said, grinning. “Guess there goes your tour.”
“That takes an hour round trip,” he said. “And if it’s in the morning, we’ve got all afternoon.”
Her grin dropped. “You really want to do that?”
“Most women would think it was romantic, taking a flight over the island,” he said, his hand moving under the blankets and rubbing up and down her leg.
“I’m not most women,” she said.
“I see that. I guess that works in my favor. If you really don’t want to do it, we don’t have to.”
She felt bad that he was trying and here she was raining down on his romantic parade. “I
f you want to do it and get it scheduled, I’ll try it out. But if we could avoid a windy day, that might go a long way in my tiny window of fear.”
“I wouldn’t do it if the weather wasn’t great anyway. We’ll just play it by ear. As I said, it’s not likely I’ll be able to do it this short notice. We’ll figure something else out we can do. No casino,” he said. “I’m not in the mood to lose any more money.”
“But we had such a great lunch in the VIP lounge for what you lost.”
It was then, the minute the words were out of her mouth that she remembered the Brits that Eli had comped a lunch to. That let her mind go back to the letter she’d gotten from Rod. She didn’t know how he could have found her unless maybe one of those guys recognized her?
Was it possible? None of them looked familiar to her and the truth was, she didn’t think there was anything about her that was that memorable. She could have served them in the bar one night when she was working, but she was pretty positive she’d remember if any of them were Rod’s friends. She had a good memory, especially if she was looking over her shoulder.
“What’s wrong?” Mac asked her.
“What?”
“You just paled. Are you okay? Do you feel all right?” His hand went to her forehead and she found it so endearing.
“I’m fine,” she lied. “I guess the day is catching up to me and I got a bit lightheaded.”
She heard some beeping and realized it must be the washer done already. Good timing in her mind.
He threw the covers back. “I’m going to switch the clothes over. I’ll bring you up a bottle of water and some crackers.”
She wanted to roll her eyes over that but didn’t. He was being caring and thoughtful. Sweet again. “Sounds good,” she said.
She lay back down and waited for him, breathing in and out. By the time he came back, she’d calmed down a bit. She was making a bigger deal out of this than it was. She was sure of it.
He handed her the box of crackers and she took a few even though she wasn’t hungry. He seemed to want to take care of her and she was going to let him. It’d been a long time since anyone really took care of her.
After she was done with a few crackers and half the bottle of water, she pushed the covers back and got up. “I think I’ll go get ready for bed. It’s been a long day and now you’ve worn me out good.”
“Then my work here is done.”
“You are pretty darn cute, you know that?”
He actually blushed on her. “If you say so.”
“I do.”
When she was done brushing her teeth and washing her face, she came back to bed, him getting out and going in the bathroom to get ready now. “You know, your bathroom is big enough and has double sinks. We could have gotten ready at the same time.”
“I didn’t know how you’d feel about that,” he said.
“Why?”
“Some women don’t like a man in the bathroom with them at the same time.”
She paused and then frowned. “First off. Again, I’m not like some women. Second of all, this is your house. Third, I share a bathroom at home. It’s not like I was going to drop my drawers and pee in front of you.”
He started to laugh. “You always amaze me. Well then, guess that puts me in my place for tomorrow night.”
“Yes, it does. Now shut the light off on your way back in,” she said, laughing, and lay down to get comfortable.
He came back in a few minutes later, flipped the switch, climbed into bed, shut off the TV with the remote, then pulled her close and held her.
She’d never needed to be held by a man before, but tonight, she needed it more than anything.
25
Weight of the World
Mac was sitting on the couch with his coffee and SportsCenter playing low. Sidney was still sleeping upstairs and he didn’t have the heart to wake her as he could see how exhausted she was last night.
Her clothes were now folded and at the foot of the bed for her for when she woke up and showered.
He went to take another sip and realized he’d finished off his first cup, got up and made his second. When his phone went off, he reached for it quickly hoping it wouldn’t wake Sidney.
“Hello.”
“Mac. How are you?” his mother asked. He hadn’t actually talked to her since dinner at the house a few weeks ago with his brothers. Sure, she texted him yesterday to tell him about Hunter’s baby, but not much more than that.
“I’m good. How have you been?”
“Not bad. I’m sure you know your father has been busy getting the garage ready. I know he stops in to see you and shoot the crap during the day.”
Mac laughed. “He did tell me. I asked if he needed any help, but he said he had it covered.”
“Jarrett and Alex were here last week moving the heavy stuff.”
“Why didn’t anyone call me?” he asked. Normally he was the first one called for everything, not left out of the loop. At least since he’d moved back home.
“Because it was on a Tuesday and you were working and they were both off. There was no reason for you to take the day off.”
“I guess,” he said.
His mother laughed. “Are you feeling left out? You never feel left out. Normally you have all the weight of the world on your shoulders being the oldest.”
“I do?” he asked. “That’s funny. My shoulders don’t feel sore.”
“You and that dry sense of humor. Fine. You aren’t offended. That’s good to know. Then I won’t have to say I’d make it up to you by offering dinner tomorrow when I really planned on calling to ask anyway. It’d be nice to have you boys all over again without a secret agenda.”
“Ah, I might have plans.”
“Might?” she asked.
“I’ll be doing something, but just am not sure what or when.”
“With Sidney?” his mother asked.
No reason to lie. It was a small island. His father had brought up Sidney’s name when he stopped in to chat last week. It was public knowledge he was dating her.
“Yes.”
“Bring her to dinner too. We can eat earlier if she has to work.”
“She doesn’t,” he said. “She took the day off.”
“And you want to spend it doing something with her?” his mother asked, her voice dropping. The guilt of her hurt look he could see in his mind was eating a hole in his gut. “Am I ever going to meet her or is this just a passing fling? I got the impression it was more than that.”
He sighed. “It is. I’ll let you know when I talk to her later,” he said.
“Okay,” his mother said more cheerful now.
“If we do, you better tell Alex to be on his best behavior.”
“Does Alex have a good behavior? If he does I’m still waiting to see it.”
He smiled. “It’s there somewhere down in his baby toe. Tell him to take his shoes and socks off if he has to so I don’t have to put him through the wall in front of my girlfriend.”
“Girlfriend?” his mother asked, laughing.
Shit. He put his foot in his mouth. Then he wondered why he cared because it was the truth. “Yes. If she wasn’t you wouldn’t be asking to meet her.”
“Point taken. I’ll go now. Let me know if she can make it.”
“I will.”
He hung up and picked his coffee up and turned and saw Sidney coming down the stairs in his T-shirt that she’d slept in. Her hair was all messy around her face and she was rubbing her eyes.
“What?” she asked.
“Why did you ask me that?”
“Because you’re standing there grinning at me.”
“I am?” he asked. He’d had no clue. “I can’t help it, I suppose. You just look so adorable standing there all wrinkled and messy and rubbing the sleep from your eyes.”
“Yeah, sorry I slept so late. I never sleep to ten and I feel horrible about it as I know our time is limited.”
“You were tired and needed
it.”
“What I need is coffee and my clothes,” she said. “I can get ready fast if we figure out what we are doing today.”
He handed his cup of coffee to her. She drank it with a little cream like him. “Here. I just made it. And your clothes are folded at the foot of the bed. You didn’t see them?”
“No,” she said, taking a healthy sip. “This hits the spot. Why does coffee taste better when someone else makes it?”
“No clue,” he said. “I normally make it myself.”
“I’ll have to fix that for you. And thank you for bringing my clothes upstairs. I didn’t even hear you come back in or see them. Guess I was rubbing my eyes the minute my feet hit the floor.”
He moved closer and gave her a kiss on the lips. “You are welcome. Want some breakfast?”
“Maybe after my shower. I’ll just take this upstairs with me.”
She moved away from him, her ass swishing as she was barely covered in his shirt.
He went back to the kitchen and got himself another cup of coffee and sat back on the couch to wait for her to come down. Which was barely fifteen minutes.
“I can’t tell you how much I appreciate how fast you get ready in the morning.”
“I’m pretty low maintenance.”
“No, you’re natural. A natural beauty.”
“Boy, aren’t you full of compliments today.”
He wanted to flush, but tried to stop it the best he could. “Just stating facts.”
“Did I hear you talking to someone down here this morning or was it the TV? I’m pretty good about picking out voices.”
“Sorry,” he said. “I tried to be quiet. My mother called.”
“You didn’t wake me. I was actually awake and trying to tell myself to get up, but your bed is so big and comfy and warm. I wasn’t trying to be nosy or anything.”
“Because you’re not a nosy person,” he reminded her. She’d said that to him once before.
“I’m not.”
“My mother hasn’t heard my voice in a few weeks. She misses it.”
