Total pages in book: 69
Estimated words: 65083 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 325(@200wpm)___ 260(@250wpm)___ 217(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 65083 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 325(@200wpm)___ 260(@250wpm)___ 217(@300wpm)
“Can I help?” As soon as the words leave my mouth, I wonder if he’ll be offended. Offering to help him prepare a meal is like offering to help Michelangelo paint a ceiling. But this is Thorn, and I should have known there wouldn’t be an ego trip.
“If you’d like.” His warm expression makes me eager to follow him into the kitchen.
He sets me up with salad ingredients, a knife, and a cutting board, while he puts on water to boil fresh ravioli he has on hand. I’m focused on the job of slicing a cucumber, until the smell of something else he’s working on at the stove draws my attention.
Once I glance up from my work, I’m immediately distracted by his back. He’s so tall and strong, and the way the thin cotton of his shirt hugs his broad shoulders as he stirs a sauce has me momentarily mesmerized.
“What are you making?” I ask, my mouth watering for more than one reason.
“Sage and browned butter sauce with toasted walnuts.”
“It smells amazing.”
He tosses a smile over his shoulder, his eyes crinkling at the edges, and it’s with a fair bit of willpower that I manage to stay at my station rather than go over and wrap my arms around him as if we were still on his bike.
The food turns out to be delicious, of course, and between bites, he and I talk and laugh, reminiscing about the past and catching up on each other’s lives. We have more wine, too, and I can’t help but think how different my life is here compared to how it was with Scott. Staying up late, having a second dinner, the motorcycle ride and moonlight picnic—it’s all so refreshing. I feel so free.
I insist on helping him clean up, and when the last dish has been washed and is in the rack, he and I are standing next to the sink, mere inches apart.
“Want me to take you back to your place?” The quieter tone of his voice makes the implications clear.
I shake my head no, taking a step closer to him.
LEXY
The invisible pull is strong, but I keep my hands to myself as I look up at him, waiting, because his eyes seem to hold other unspoken questions.
I know he wants to be with me, but something is holding him back.
“I should probably tell you … I’ve been seeing your brother and Gage,” I say.
He gives a small nod, not surprised, but still watchful.
“It’s an … open-ended situation.”
Another nod, and then his hand comes up to lightly stroke my arm, sending a warm pulse of energy to my core.
His expression poses another silent inquiry, which I answer by holding his gaze and closing the distance between us another inch.
The tips of his fingers trail up my arm, his gaze intense. I wonder what he’s thinking as his thumb traces over my lips, his eyes never leaving mine.
I’m not breathing when he finally bends to kiss me.
It’s just a dizzying brush of his lips at first, then his hand cups my face, and his mouth meets mine with more intention.
He pulls back, looking into my eyes again, as if he’s waiting for me to protest, or maybe, like me, he can’t quite believe this is real.
It’s stunning to realize that this remarkable man is the young boy I used to know. But it’s true, and it makes this moment even more meaningful.
His fingers tip my chin upward, his mouth covers mine, and then there’s no holding back. His kiss holds more than passion; there’s an eager curiosity, and the promise of what’s to come.
He turns me slightly, his body pinning mine to the counter. The desire that I was feeling in his kiss is verified as his cock hardens and presses against me.
My hands wrap around his middle, and when I moan in response to his tongue touching mine, he immediately scoops me up and carries me down the hall, still kissing me, and so distracted that he bumps into a couple of walls, making us both laugh.
There’s a dimmer switch on his bedroom’s overhead light, which for some reason makes me wonder how many women he’s entertained here; but I brush that thought away, because it doesn’t matter. Obviously someone as charming and attractive as Thorn wouldn’t be lonely if he wanted company at night.
The room is decorated in deep, rich earth tones. The comforter he lays me on is soft and luxurious on my skin.
“Lexy.” He pauses to look at me lying in the middle of his big bed. His eyes have gone dark, erasing any questions that lingered there.
“Thorn.”
“You have too many clothes on.” He descends as he says this, his teeth taking hold of the bottom of my shirt and tugging it upward. He pauses to kiss the exposed flesh of my belly, and then pulls the shirt up further, still using only his mouth.