by Kim Karr
Slowly, I turn to see three shocked faces staring at Nick and I, wide-eyed with their mouths hanging open. And to make matters worse, they were all standing now.
“I thought you told them?” I whisper.
“I did.”
“And?”
“They said cool, and talked about the things we always do.”
“Baseball and business,” I mutter.
Not one of them has moved an inch.
“Haven’t you ever seen two people kiss before?” I shout over the music.
Ethan’s eyes are still the size of half dollars. “I can honestly say I have never seen Nick kiss a girl before.”
“Me either,” Jace says, downing the rest of my martini.
“Holy shit,” says Fiona, still staring at Nick. “You must really like her.”
They are all still staring at Nick, who seems to be at a loss of words.
Okay, he looks really adorable right now.
Ethan shakes his head and a wicked grin spreads across his lips. “Dude, what are your intentions?”
Jace chimes in. “I think this is the only woman he’s been out with that he actually knows her last name, so it should be safe to assume he plans on keeping her around for a while.”
Poor Fiona is still trying to comprehend the situation.
Slowly, Nick rises to his feet. He points his finger at Ethan. “You’re a dick,” he says, and shifts his finger a little to the left until he’s pointing it at Jace. “And you’re a dick.”
The two guys burst out laughing.
Nick shakes his head.
Just then, DJ Jazzy Jeff starts to spin, “Oops, I Did it Again,” and Fiona goes wild. “Oh, my God, I love this song,” she screams, and then offers one hand to Ethan and the other to Jace. “What do you say you two men dance with me?”
They each take her hand, like they’ve done this before. Ethan steps toward Nick though before leaving and thumps him on the shoulder. “Really dude, you know we’re just busting on you. I think it’s great. Just don’t fuck it up.”
Nick throws him the finger.
Ethan feigns a wounded a heart, and then trails behind Fiona, who is being led by Jace to the dance floor.
I sit down with a sigh and look up at Nick. “So, did I prove myself?”
Nick sits beside me. “I don’t know. Did I prove myself?”
I smile over at him and grin. “You did.”
His thigh presses mine. “So did you.”
Feeling like we just hit a milestone, I start to jiggle a little to the beat of the Britney Spears classic.
“Show me your dance moves, beautiful,” Nick whispers in my ear.
And maybe it’s the alcohol or the high on life, but I stand up and do just that. I’ve never danced for any one before like this. Sure, I’ve put on a show with Fiona, but this is different.
Nick watches me with his smile growing wider and wider. And then he claps his hands and starts to move a little too.
It’s heart-stoppingly sexy.
Just before the song ends, the lights start flickering pink and purple. And with the music pumping, and him staring at me the way he is, I can’t help but wonder if I’m not falling in love with him.
I want to dance like this forever. With him watching me and laughing, I never want this song to end. But it does, and when it does I slide onto the sofa beside him. He’s still laughing, and I struggle to find the air to laugh with him.
Before I have, he crushes his mouth over mine. With the scent of his cologne, the heat of skin, and the taste of him, hot and sharp—I know that I definitely am falling for him.
He slows the kiss, feather brushes of lip on lip, and the quick and furtive slip of his tongue inside my mouth.
Then he breaks the kiss, pulling back only an inch to gaze into my eyes. “Let’s go back to your place tonight.”
Nick hasn’t been to my place yet. Not because I didn’t want him there, but simply because it is a mess, and I have very little in terms of furniture. His place is much more comfortable. I place my palms flat on his chest. “Not tonight, tomorrow night, give me a day to get it cleaned up.”
His lashes are low-lidded with lust as he studies me. “Okay, we’ll go out on a date.”
I hold his heated gaze. “A real date?”
“Yeah,” he laughs, “I’ll pick you up at seven and we’ll have dinner at Alinea.
I lean in to place a chaste kiss on his mouth. “It sounds like fun.”
“It will be,” Nick winks.
I shake my head.
When the song changes to a slower one, Nick stands and offers me his hand. “Dance with me.”
I take his hand and our fingers lace. “I’d love to.”
Nick points to a small section of the floor that is a little less crowded. On the way, we pass Fiona, Ethan, and Jace, and I can’t help but stare. Jace is as tight against her back as Ethan is in the front. The three of them are bumping and grinding and laughing.
Nick calls out to me, obviously having noticed my head craned over my shoulder. I turn back, just as wide-eyed as they were when they saw Nick and I kissing. “Did you see that?” I ask him when he stops.
He draws me close and places a hand on my waist. “They’re just having fun.”
I put my palms on his shoulders. “How much fun?”
After a step, he slides his knee between my thighs. “It doesn’t mean anything, Tess. Leave it alone.”
I move along, following his lead, in this seductive dance he’s entangled us in. “I wouldn’t say anything to Fi. I’m just…I don’t know…curious.”
Nick put his other hand on my side, up high, just under my breast. “They did the same thing New Year’s Eve. Fiona just wants to make sure Jace has a good time. She knows he’s not looking for a woman, or to have sex. All he wants right now is to feel like he’s not alone.”
My hand slides from his shoulder to cup the back of his neck. The edges of his hair tickle my knuckles. The heat of his hand brands me through my top. And his words affect me. “I get that,” is all I say, and then I drop the subject.
It isn’t any of my business.
It has been a long time since I danced with a man and could see my own desire reflected back in his gaze. It steals my breath and I draw my tongue out to lick my lips.
Nick catches me, and slides his hand up my back to tangle in my hair, tip my head back, bare my throat to his mouth as he bends to slide his lips along my skin. “You look so fucking sexy tonight.”
I can feel myself gasp but I can’t hear it over the thumping of my heart.
The slow, sensual beat of the music has drawn a crowd, and the dance floor is packed.
Nick slides his other hand up to cup my breast through the silky fabric of my low-cut top.
Nobody is watching us.
No one cares.
His cock presses hard against my belly. The sensation parts my lips, and his gaze watches my mouth again. “The things you do to me,” he murmurs in my ear.
“Tell me,” I whisper back.
The crowd is all around us, and he splays his hand wide across my ass and presses his erection against me. “How about I show you.”
And feeling him against me, I lose myself.
In his eyes.
In his touch.
In the pounding of the music.
In him.
“I’d really like that,” I say.
His breath blows hot against my skin as he nuzzles my ear. “Let’s get out of here.”
I look up at him and nod.
Nick takes me by the elbow and steers me off the dance floor. We pass by Fiona, Ethan, and Jace who are still in the same place they were when we passed by them the first time.
Nick stops to whisper something into Ethan’s ear, and Ethan gives us a wave. Fiona is too caught up in the bump and grind to notice us. And Jace seems lost to the music.
Once we get our coats, we step out into the cold and start walking fast. Nick has to grab my hips to stop m
e from stepping into the street.
“My hero,” I tell him, as I turn and wrap my arms around him.
“I think you’ve had way too much to drink. No one has ever called me that.”
I stare into his eyes. “I’m drunk on you.”
He kisses the tip of my nose. “You’re just drunk.”
“Don’t do that.”
“Do what?”
“Play yourself down.”
He shakes his head and then turns to hail a cab.
I watch him as he opens my door, waits for me to slide inside before he gets in after me, the way he presses his knee on mine, and just before the cab pulls in front of Nick’s building, I say it again. “I really am drunk on you.”
He leans close and kisses me, his reply too low for anyone to hear but me. “Sometimes I feel like I’m drunk on you, and I haven’t even had a drop of alcohol.”
The butterflies in my belly swarmed with delight.
Maybe…just maybe…I’m not the only one falling.
28
Tess
The lobby is luxurious, the elevator equally so, with lots of stainless steel and dark wood, it catches your eye. The light inside the car is dim, and makes everything look softer than it really is. The door closes, and Nick backs me up against the mirrored wall. I can see myself in the ceiling and over his shoulder.
“Did you get my text?” he asks, looking down at me.
I shake my head. “I haven’t looked at my phone since I left my apartment to meet Fiona. What does it say?”
“Read it,” he says, and then drops his mouth to my neck.
I could argue and tell him it would be faster if just told me, but instead I play along and pull my phone from my tiny purse.
His hands are now roaming my body, never lingering in one spot for too long.
Glancing down, I open the text and read it aloud, “I have something for you.”
Nick grins against my skin and then stands straight where he proceeds to pull an envelope from his coat pocket.
“What is it?
“Open it and find out.”
I eye it suspiciously. Shake it. Turn it upside. “Can’t be another box of lubricant.”
Nick pinches my side. “Very funny.”
I giggle a little, and then run my fingers under the sealed flap. I peer inside to see folded sheets of paper. Just then the door opens to Nick’s place. I step out of the elevator at the same I pull the papers out.
There are two sheets, stapled. I move to the center of the foyer and stand beneath the crystal chandelier. I scan the first page. It is a bunch of numbers indicating his cholesterol level, weight, BMI, and blood type. These are test results from a physical.
Confused, I glance over to the edge of the stairs where Nick has already stepped down and turned toward me with his hands in his pockets. “You appear to be in very good health. Do you want me to be your baby momma or something?”
His eyes flip up. “You’re quite the comedian tonight. Try turning the page,” he directs me.
My eyes widen and a tiny gasp of surprise eeks out of me. “Oh,” I say as I read the labels beside the test results on this page. “Gonorrhea, chlamydia, HIV. All negative.”
“I thought it would make you feel better.”
I reach back and take one shoe off. “About what?”
“Us.”
I take the other shoe off and set them both down. “I’m not sure what you mean.”
But I do.
For the second time tonight, I watch the arrogant, confident man, struggle to find the right words. This time though, it really is funny. “Tess, I never asked if you were on the pill or some method of birth control.”
I drop my jacket to the ground and slink toward him with the papers still in hand. “You want to stop using condoms.”
He shrugs. “Well…yeah.”
I stop at the edge of the step, but don’t step down, this way I can remain taller than him. “As a matter of fact,” I tell him, cocking my hip, “I’m on the pill.”
He grins. “Good.”
“Not good,” I say, holding up the papers. “These results need to be discussed.”
His smile fades.
“Look at your BMI, it’s much lower than mine, something needs to be done about that, and your cholesterol is way too low. Oh, and don’t even get me started on your weight—” I can’t go on, because I’m laughing so hard.
Nick grabs me and hauls me over his shoulder, lightly tapping my bottom as he strides across the living room. “You are seriously going to pay for that, woman.”
I wiggle and giggle all the way to the table just outside his bedroom, where he flops me down on top of it to empty his wallet and keys from his pocket.
While he does that, I set the papers down and strip my top off and then make a move for his belt.
His eyes flare with heat. “What are you doing?”
I push his jacket off. “That should be pretty obvious. Getting you naked.”
He shakes his head.
I furrow my brows. “No?”
“No.”
Unwilling to accept no for an answer, I pull him in-between my legs to get at his mouth, where I punctuate every kiss with my plea. “Fuck me, fuck me, fuck me…”
Nick breaks the kiss and steps back.
“What?” I tease. “You don’t want to fuck me right here?”
With one of those infuriating nods, he walks into the bedroom leaving me sitting on the table in my sexy new bra, all alone.
I hop down and race into his room about ready to let him have it, when I come to a screeching halt. The room is dimly lit, soft music is playing, and rose petals are strewn in a path from the door to the bed. Tears well in the corners of my eyes and I can’t stop them from falling. “This is beautiful. Nobody has ever done anything like this for me before.”
“Good,” Nick says as he leans down, wiping my tears away. “What I want,” Nick says slowly, “is not to fuck you, but to make love to you. All night long.”
And if I thought just hours ago that I was falling in love with him, I now know for sure—I’ve already fallen. He is many things, but with me he is adorable and charming, and the breath leaves my lungs when I think about not being with him.
I nod. “I want that too.”
In a heartbeat, he fuses his hot mouth over mine. Our tongues meet and slide sensuously over one another. Rough then soft.
Hot.
Wet.
Electric.
I brace my palms on his shoulders and then slide them up to his neck. This way I’m able to pull him lower. To get in his mouth. To taste him.
Slowly, we strip each other naked, and then we fall to the bed in a tangle of arms of legs and mouths.
Nick kisses me. My mouth, chin, jaw, throat. He moves his mouth over my breasts, taking his time with each one. Moves down to my rib cage, over my belly, and then back to my mouth, where he pulls back. “Tess,” he whispers.
I look up at him. “Yes,” I say a little breathless.
“You’re doing something to me that scares the shit out of me. You’re making me feel things I never have, think things I never thought I would in a million years, and there are times I want to run as far away from you as I can, but then not having you with me scares me even more.”
It’s called love, I think to myself, but don’t say it out loud. Instead I palm his face and bring him closer to me. “I’m here, Nick. I’m not going anywhere. We’ll take things slow. Day by day. And see what happens,” I reassure him. “I’m not going anywhere.”
The uncertainty in his eyes seems to clear, and he gives me a nod before he covers my body with his.
He shivers a little on his first thrust, and it both charms and thrills me at the same time.
We move like we are made for each other, taking the longest time we’ve taken to reach climax. When we are both there, I wrap my arms and legs around him and hold him tight.
I never want to let go.
Nick
nuzzles his face against my neck and shudders against me. Falling beside me, Nick pulls me to him.
“Nick,” I murmur.
He makes a sleepy mumble. “Hmmm?”
“Do you think everything in life happens for a reason?”
He kisses the top of my head. “I think everything in life happens, and we deal or we don’t.”
“So, is that a yes or a no?”
“I guess if you want a definitive answer, I’d have to say yes.”
I close my eyes. “Good, because I think so too.”
Yes, everything happens for a reason.
Especially us.
29
Tess
Perhaps it is the light streaming in from the curtains that hadn’t been closed all the way last night, or maybe it is the blissful feeling of being with someone I feel so completely compatible with, but whatever it is that wakes me, I rub my eyes and look beside me.
When I do, I expect to see Nick lying on his stomach, facing toward me in sleep, but instead he’s awake with his head resting on his hand and his eyes on me. “I have to go into the office.”
I rise up on an elbow. “What time is it?”
He kisses me lightly. “It’s early. Go back to sleep.”
I stare at his scruff. “But why are you up? It’s Saturday.”
He rolls over and gets out of bed. “I know,” he chuckles.
I sigh.
He looks over his shoulder at me. “Ash called and something’s going on with the Miami deal. We need to make a call early this morning to try to get the issue ironed out.”
“Okay,” I yawn, and my eyes watch the muscles in his arms flex as he picks his pants up off the floor. And I don’t stop staring until he disappears into the bathroom.
Feeling lazy, I plop back down and snuggle into the pillow. There is no doubt that I have a lot to do today, and that I really should get up. But I don’t. Instead I close my eyes and dream about last night.
The shrill of my cell phone ringing wakes me up. “Hello,” I answer sleepily.
“Are you still sleeping?” It’s Fiona.
I glance at the time. It’s nine. “Yes, and for those of us without a little able bodied alarm clock living under our roof, it’s normal.”
