Текст книги "Easy Charm"

Автор книги: Kristen Proby

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Текущая страница: 7 (всего у книги 14 страниц)

Chapter Nine

~Rhys~

My shoulder is improving every day. Kate was right to suggest that I come here to recover. I don’t know if it’s the quiet, the calm of this particular place, or if it’s that there is no pressure from coaches and trainers constantly breathing down my neck, watching my every move, always asking, “How do you feel now?”

Having Sam around to ask questions and be the fun, silly kid that he is has been awesome, and I admit that I miss him.

It’s probably a combination of all of the above.

I’m in the barn, working out on Friday afternoon. There is barely a hitch in my shoulder as I execute one hundred push-ups. I’m ready for more weight. Maybe I’ll have Gabby come out and sit on my shoulders.

I know that being with Gabby has been awesome. Easy, and yet one of the most complicated relationships I’ve had, which doesn’t even make sense to me. It’s easy to be with her. To talk to her, make her smile, listen to her laugh.

Make love to her. Let’s be honest, lose myself in her. She’s pushed everything around me out of focus, even baseball, and no one has ever done that for me before.

It scares me and exhilarates me at the same time. Baseball can’t shift out of focus for me. It is my life, and it’ll continue to be my life after I leave this place.

This isn’t permanent.

I need to remember that.

I’m a sweaty mess as I brush my hands off and walk toward the house. Maybe I’ll talk Gabby into a shower with me.

Probably not. She’ll be in work mode, and she’s fierce when she’s in work mode, which just makes her all the more sexy to me. Her work ethic is incredible, and whether that’s in spite of, or because of, her privileged upbringing, I don’t know.

All I know is, I admire the fuck out of her.

As I walk in the back door and into the kitchen, I can hear her voice coming from the desk where she greets guests. The voices are just murmurs, and then she laughs, and I can’t help but smile and feel a little jealous of whoever made her laugh in the first place, because they get to see her eyes shine and the way she wrinkles her nose, just a little, when her smile is wide.

Jesus, I have it bad.

I pull a bottle of water from the fridge, twist off the cap and guzzle two-thirds of it before walking down the hall toward the sound of the voices. I stop dead in my tracks when I see my teammate, Neil Miller, leaning on the desk and smiling at Gabby as she gestures with her hands, telling him something that I can’t hear over the roaring in my ears.

Neil leans in and brushes Gabby’s hair behind her ear and that’s it. I’ll be fucking damned if another man will put his hands on her while I’m still in the picture.

Hell no.

“You might want to drop that hand before I remove it from your body,” I say, surprised to hear the words come out calmly, as I approach the desk.

“Just the man I’m looking for!” Neil says as he saunters to me, but my eyes are still pinned to Gabby, who’s now frowning at me. Her cheeks are pink with anger or embarrassment, I’m not sure, and I don’t give a fuck which it is, honestly.

“What’s up, Neil?”

He glances between me and the woman he was flirting with, then tips his head back and laughs. “Was I poaching, bro?”

“I’m not your bro,” I reply and turn my gaze to my young teammate, taking in his tired eyes and rumpled clothes. “Did you say you came here looking for me?”

The humor leaves his face and he nods as he looks at the floor. “Can you take a minute?”

I nod and gesture toward the kitchen, but before following him, I pull Gabby against me, kiss her hard and murmur against her lips, “Reserve thirty minutes for me this afternoon.”

I turn and leave before she can respond, following Neil through the kitchen where I pull more water bottles out of the fridge. Then I push ahead and lead him outside, back toward the barn where I know we can talk without any guests listening that may be milling about.

We push inside the surprisingly cool barn, thanks to thick oak trees overhead. I straddle the weight bench that arrived the other day, drink water, and watch Neil as he paces back and forth, agitated.

Exhausted.

“What’s going on?” I finally ask. “Does Coach know you’re here?”

He shrugs, then stops, shoves his hands in his pockets, and stares at his feet. Neil is in his mid-twenties, tall and built, and a favorite among the female fans. He joined us last year, coming up from the minor leagues, and he’s a gifted player, but it’s no secret that he’s been struggling.

“I think I’m fucking this up,” he finally admits and reaches for one of the water bottles, tears the cap off and throws it across the room before drinking half of it in two gulps.

“Okay.”

“Coach doesn’t know I’m here, but he made me take the week off.”

I cock a brow, surprised. “Which means that you’re either about to get arrested, or kicked out of the League if you don’t get your shit together.”

He rubs the back of his hand over his mouth, and then just sits down on the floor, right where he was standing, and rests his elbows on his raised knees.

“Pretty much.”

“What have you been doing since I left?”

“Are you coming back?” he asks, his eyes on mine now, looking hopeful.

“That’s the plan.”

He nods. “I love baseball.”

“I know. You play it like you love it.” He blinks rapidly, clearly surprised by the compliment. “You’re my catcher, Neil. I watch you, all game, every game.”

“My knees hurt,” he admits. “I’m twenty-five fucking years old, and my knees are killing me all the time.”

“Are you hooked on pain pills?” I ask bluntly.

“No.” He shakes his head and sucks down more water. “The minors were very different,” he begins softly. “I mean, there were parties after games, and there was some stupid shit that went down, but that was nothing compared to this. There’s drugs and women and money being flung at me from every direction.”

“Are you in trouble?” I ask again.

“No. Coach told me to take a week to get my head on straight before I get arrested or kicked off the team.” He pushes his hands through his hair, scrubbing his scalp. “So I got in my car and drove straight here. You’re the one I’ve always been able to talk to.”

I miss this. Talking with the younger guys, giving them advice. I realize that when baseball is all over in a few years, this will be what I miss the most.

My teammates.

“So you’ve acquired a taste for hot women and money? Because if you tell me you’re doing drugs, I’ll take you down so fast you won’t wake up in time to go back next week.” I calmly drink my water, watching his face.

“I’m not doing drugs,” he replies fiercely. “That’s not me.”

“Good.”

“The women and money, I like.”

“Nothing wrong with that.”

He shrugs his shoulders, and won’t meet my gaze.

“I have two separate women claiming they’re pregnant with my kid,” he says softly. “And I don’t even remember fucking either of them.”

Ouch.

“Are you sure you did?”

He shakes his head. “Dude, I get so fucked up after a game, especially a win, I can’t be sure of anything.”

“Idiot.”

He winces and nods. “I know.”

“Obviously, there are lawyers for this, Neil. It happens in professional sports all the time.”

“Has it ever happened to you?”

“Hell no.”

He smirks. “Of course not. You’re fucking perfect.”

I shake my head and sigh. “Not even close. Do you think I wasn’t dazzled by tits and ass when I was young? Of course. I’m a red-blooded man, for fuck sake.”

“So you fucked around too.”

“For a minute, in the beginning. But I wanted baseball more. It’s not about the money or the women or the fame for me. It’s about the game. I’ve never been willing to give it up, and I’m not going into a relationship with anyone unless I can give it everything it deserves. And I don’t think I can do that while I’m still playing baseball.”

“If you try to tell me you’ve been a fucking monk for ten years, I call bullshit.”

“No.” I grin and shake my head. “But the women I choose are discreet and they know the score.”

“What about the honey inside?” he asks, and the way he calls Gabby a honey sets my teeth on edge.

“None of your motherfucking business.”

“Hey.” He leans back, hands up in the resigned position. “No offense.”

I shake my head again. “She’s spoken for.”

“Does she know the score?” he asks with a raised brow.

“Touch her and I’ll end you,” I reply with steel in my voice. “I’m not fucking with you over her. She’s off limits, and that’s the end of the story.”

“I get it.” Neil nods, then smiles. “I hope it works out for you guys.”

I stand, ignoring the statement, because I don’t even know what I want where Gabby is concerned.

Except, I know I want her naked and beneath me, right now.

“What do you need from me, Neil?”

“This.” He stands and holds his hand out for me to shake. “I needed to talk it through with someone I respect and trust.”

I nod, understanding. “Just call me if you need me. No need to drive for days for a conversation. Come on, let’s go in.”

“If I look at her, will you take my head off?”

“Probably. Don’t look at her.”

***

“Neil is staying in my room tonight,” I inform Gabby as I walk into the kitchen and find her arranging flowers from the garden in a large vase.

“Are you two typically snuggle buddies?” she asks with a sarcastic smile.

“Funny.” I walk up behind her and wrap my arms around her middle, just under her breasts because she’s so short, and bury my nose in her hair, breathing her in. “Do you mind?”

She smells better than the flowers.

“It makes sense,” she says as she pushes a sunflower in the vase. “You’ve been staying with me anyway, and Sam doesn’t get home until Monday.”

“Mmm,” I agree. When the flowers are done, I turn her in my arms and cage her in between me and the kitchen island. “We need to talk.”

“So talk.” She raises her chin, meets my gaze head-on, and can’t hide the little touch of fear in her amazing eyes.

And it’s the fear in her eyes that calms the fear in me, because it tells me that we’re on the same damn page.

“I don’t like seeing you flirt with other men.”

She raises a brow. “So?”

I tilt my head and lean in to press my lips to her ear. “It makes me crazy to see another man look at you the way that I do. To know that he wants you, naked, panting, moaning, wrapped around him, the way you were with me just this morning.”

She swallows hard and grips onto my arms, her nails barely digging into my skin. I know she’s turned on. I’m right there with her. Jesus, I can’t get within twenty feet of her without an erection. The pull she has on me is completely new to me.

“I didn’t mean to flirt with him.” Her voice is a rough whisper.

“I’m not saying you did anything wrong. It was innocent enough. But you need to know that even something that innocent makes me crazy, rational or not.” I slide my hand down her back to her ass, then around to the front and push inside her shorts, over her panties, down to her center. I can feel the heat coming off of her.

Fuck, I can smell how turned on she is.

“This is mine.” I kiss her neck and drag my nose down her jawline. “Your body, your skin, your scent, drive me wild. I crave you. And I don’t want anyone else even thinking about you.”

“That’s awfully selfish,” she replies, trying to be sassy, but she’s panting now. I push my hand farther into her pants and press my fingertips against her firmly.

“I’m a selfish bastard. I never claimed otherwise.” She’s so close to the edge. Her eyes are glassy, her lips shiny and plump from biting them. I know how delicious they are.

So I lean in, pull her bottom lip between my teeth and nibble.

Her hands clench my arms as she holds her breath to keep from crying out as she comes in my hand.

Fuck, I want to carry her up to her bedroom and sink inside her right now.

“Excuse me, Miss Boudreaux.”

She stills. I block the view of the intruder with my body, discretely pull my hand out of her shorts and smile down at her with a wink. She clears her throat.

“Yes, ma’am?”

“I’m sorry to interrupt. Would it be possible to get extra towels in our room?”

“Of course. I’ll bring them up in just a few moments.”

“Thank you.”

The guest leaves and Gabby expels a long, deep breath. “What’s up with this kitchen?”

“I’m going to fuck you in it on Sunday when we’re alone. Just out of principle alone.”

“Stop saying stuff like that,” she says with an exasperated frown. “I’m working!”

I cup her face in my hands and just take her in. “You’re beautiful.”

“Still working.”

My thumb brushes her bottom lip. “I didn’t like what I walked into this afternoon.”

“I get it,” she replies and lifts her hand to press her palm against my cheek. “It was nothing. You’re the one I’m sharing my bed with. You’re the one that can make my body explode on command, and I’m not entirely sure how you do that, by the way.”

A slow smile works its way over my face. “Damn right.”

“Laughing at something funny isn’t a big deal.”

“Walking into a room and seeing a man with his hand on my woman is a big deal.” Her eyes widen. “If there was any confusion, let’s clear it up right now. For as long as there is a physical relationship between us, no one else touches you.”

“That goes both ways.”

“Of course.” I kiss her forehead and back away. “Now, get to work. You’re incredibly lazy today, with all the kitchen shenanigans and stuff.”

“You’re nuts,” she says with a laugh.

“Nuts about you.”

***

“This is delicious,” Neil says as he inhales the fried chicken Gabby made for dinner. “There is nothing like southern fried chicken.”

“Thanks,” she replies with a smile. “It’s Sam’s favorite.”

“Sam?” Neil asks.

“My son,” she says. “He’s seven. He’s with my mom this week on vacation. He texted a little while ago. It seems that he and his cousins exhausted my mom and her sister at Disney World today.”

“Good. I’m glad he’s having fun.” I push my finished plate away and rest my arm on the backrest of Gabby’s chair, lift a lock of her hair between my fingers, and begin to mindlessly twirl the soft strands.

I can’t stop touching her damn hair.

Neil’s eyes are watching my hand as he continues to talk to Gabby.

“Sam’s a big Cubs fan,” I add.

“I have some things in my car. A few balls, and I’m pretty sure I have a jersey he can have too. I’ll be sure to give them to you before I leave.”

“Wow, thanks. He’ll be thrilled.”

Neil grins, and when Gabby stands to begin clearing the table, he joins us, insisting that he should earn his keep.

The cleanup goes quickly with the three of us pitching in.

“Do you have a girlfriend, Neil?” Gabby asks.

“No, ma’am,” he replies and then laughs. “I should steer clear of women for a while. I seem to be getting into trouble with them.”

“Why?” she asks as she folds a hand towel and hangs it in the oven door handle.

“Because I’m an idiot.”

“Well, some people are.” She nods thoughtfully.

“I thought you were going to say that some men are.” Neil crosses his arms over his chest and leans back on the counter, genuinely interested in what Gabby has to say.

And so am I.

“No, people can be idiots. Not just men.” She shrugs. “Especially when it comes to love.”

“No one said anything about love.”

“Maybe that’s the problem,” she says with a smile. “Sex and love together, that’s a powerful thing.” She seems to shake herself and offers Neil a shy smile. “Or I’ve been told.”

“I’m not ready for love.”

“You’re what, in your mid-twenties?” she asks.

“Yes.”

“So, grow up.” Both Neil and I raise our brows, him in surprise, and me in pride. “You have an amazing job that many people would kill for. You don’t have to fall in love today, but you don’t have to be a jackass either.”

“I think I did just fall in love.”

I growl, but both of them ignore me.

“Trust me when I say,” she continues, “screwing anything with boobs isn’t attractive. It doesn’t make you a hot baseball star. It makes you a pathetic athlete with less than questionable morals. And later, when you are lonely and you want to fall in love, it won’t be easy. Do your thing. Play baseball. But don’t be a jackass.”

“You’re smart,” Neil says, looking shell-shocked.

“I’ve had my share of jackasses,” she replies simply. “My brothers sometimes have jackass qualities, but we yank them back to reality quickly. My dad was no jackass. And I’m certainly not raising one. If you act respectably and respectfully, the right girl will come along.”

“You should add counseling services to your menu here,” Neil says with a laugh. “But I hear you. And I don’t disagree with you.”

“Of course you don’t disagree. I’m right.”

I can’t stand it anymore; I have to touch her. I pull her in front of me, against me, and wrap my arms around her shoulders, holding her close. Neil smiles at her thoughtfully, then raises his gaze to mine.

“I’ve never seen you like this, man, but now I know why. You’ve never met anyone like her.”

“Not even close,” I agree.

“I’m going to bed.” Neil nods at both of us and turns to leave the room. “Do you mind if I stay tomorrow night too? I’d like to see a bit of New Orleans.”

“No problem,” Gabby replies. When he leaves the room, she tilts her head back, looking up at me upside down. “Did I say too much?”

I kiss her forehead softly and rest my lips there. “No, sweetheart. I think you said exactly what he needed to hear. He’s having a rough time.”

“I could tell.” She sighs and closes her eyes, still resting her head back against my chest. “Your lips feel good.”

I grin against her skin. “Let’s go put them to use in other places.”

Chapter Ten

~Gabby~

“Here, give these to Sam.” I glance up as Neil climbs the steps of the porch with a Cubs tote bag in his hands. “I signed a couple balls. You can have Rhys sign them too. And there’s a jersey in there.”

“You really didn’t have to do that,” I say with a smile and accept the bag. Sam is going to be so excited! “But he will love it. He’ll be sad that he missed you.”

“Maybe I’ll meet him another time,” Neil says. “Gabby, thanks again for what you said the other night.”

“Look, I’m sorry if I crossed a line—”

“No. You didn’t.” He shakes his head. “I needed to hear it¸ and you were right. It’s time to grow up and enjoy this career. Who knows how much longer I’ll be able to play? Professional athletes have an expiration date, especially catchers. My knees won’t last forever.”

“Well, if you ever need advice, you know where to find me. You know, southern women aren’t exactly known for keeping their mouths shut.”

“I’ll remember that.” He grins and turns to walk away, but stops and looks back at me. “Rhys is a good man.”

“But?”

“No but. He’s a good man. Just thought I’d let you know, for what it’s worth.”

I smile, touched by the sweet baseball player. “It’s worth a lot.”

He nods, gets in his car, and pulls away, leaving just me and Rhys at the inn. The rest of the guests left earlier this morning, and given that it’s Sunday, I’m officially off duty.

I find Rhys in the kitchen, finishing a phone call. “Everyone is gone.”

“Good.” He grins and folds me into a hug. “Do you want to go somewhere today?”

“Nope.” I press my ear to his chest, enjoying the sound of his heartbeat. “I want to show you around my home.”

“I’ve been here for a few weeks, baby.” He chuckles against my hair. “I’ve seen it.”

“Not the slave quarters, or some of the other fun spots. I have stories to tell and everything.”

“I’m getting the official tour?” he asks with surprise.

“Absolutely.” I take his hand in mine and lead him outside, toward the slave quarters first. “We renovated these along with the house when I decided to move forward with the inn,” I inform him and he smiles indulgently. “What?”

“Your tour guide voice just came on.”

“Well, I am guiding.”

“It’s sexy.” He’s smiling in that way he does that’s reserved just for me, and there go the lightning bugs in my belly again.

“I’m glad you approve. As I was saying, I wanted the guests to see what the slaves lived in, and how they lived, here at the plantation back in the day.” The doors and windows of the small buildings are Plexiglas, so you can see in, and the elements don’t disturb the displays inside. “These are original slave homes that I had moved closer to the house. There is writing on the walls inside. See?”

“I didn’t think slaves were allowed to know how to read or write.” He’s not just humoring me now, he’s really interested, and it makes me proud to share this with him. “It looks like dates and names.”

“Most weren’t allowed to learn. It depended on the owner. As far as we know, my ancestors allowed the slaves to have an education, and some came here already knowing how to read and write.”

“Interesting.” He backs away and leads me to the next cabin. “What made you decide to do all of this?”

“Well, because although this isn’t a piece of our history that we’re proud of, it is a part of the plantation, and I want the guests to learn about it all. And the rest is a long story.”

“I happen to have you all to myself today,” he reminds me as he rests his hand on my neck, rubbing gently. “So, talk away, beautiful.”

“I had Sam very young. You know that.” He nods, patiently listening. “When I told my daddy that I was pregnant, well…I was so scared.” I swallow hard, thinking back on that day. “He found me over in the gardens, crying, the day I told Sam’s biological father that I was pregnant, and he told me to get rid of it.

“Dad scooped me up, sat me in his lap the way he did when I was little, and asked me what was wrong. I couldn’t make the words come. I was scared and ashamed. So ashamed.”

“Why were you ashamed? You didn’t do it alone.” Rhys takes my hand in his, links our fingers, and leads me to the gardens.

“No, but I was old enough to know better. But, I told him that I was pregnant, and that the boy wanted me to abort it. And he said, ‘What do you want, baby-doll?’”

Rhys kisses the back of my hand. “What did you want?”

“I wanted to keep the baby.” I sigh and sit on the bench next to Rhys. “I didn’t want to get rid of it. So, Daddy said what he always did when times got rough. You can’t control the wind, but you can adjust your sails. So we’re just going to adjust our sails and get on with it.” I smile sadly, wishing for the hundredth time since Dad passed that I could hear his voice say those words to me again.

“And you did.”

I nod. “We did. My family rallied around me. Sam is loved fiercely and we were very well taken care of, of course. I didn’t go to college. I’m lucky, Rhys. I come from a very influential family. A wealthy family. I’d told Dad on a few occasions that I wanted to turn the plantation into an inn. He liked the idea, and was helping me with plans. He was funding the renovations and the startup costs.

“And then he died.” The tears come the way they always do when I think about this part. “So, he didn’t get to see it when it was finished.”

“He sees it,” Rhys murmurs as he lifts me into his lap and holds me close, stroking my back and kissing my forehead. “And I’m sure he’s very proud.”

“I hope so. Everything I did to this place, I did with him in the front of my mind. I constantly asked myself, ‘Would this make him happy? What would he think about this?’ I had Beau and Eli here a lot. Beau ended up staying, living in the old caretaker’s house that we remodeled as well, as you know. They were amazing, never balking at the cost of things, because we all wanted it to be top of the line, and restored perfectly. Daddy wouldn’t have spared any expense. This place has been in our family for six generations.”

“That’s amazing,” Rhys says softly.

“Not many people can say that,” I reply. “And I’m proud of it. I always have been. This has always been where I’m happiest. So working on it, watching guests enjoy it, is such a pleasure and a privilege.”

“I’m glad that you do something that makes you so happy.” His arms tighten around me in a firm hug. “You deserve happiness, Gabrielle.”

“So do you,” I reply. “Are you happy?” He doesn’t answer me for a long minute. I finally lean back and look up into his deep green eyes. “Are you?”

“I will be, when I get your sexy ass into the house where I can spend the rest of the twenty hours we have left to ourselves lost in you.” He stands, easily carrying me toward the house. “I’m going to make you scream, baby.”

“I’m not a screamer.” And it didn’t escape me that he didn’t answer my question.

“You’re about to be.”

I press my face into his neck, smiling like a loon, clinging to him as he walks to the house. He’s not even breathing hard. I’ve always said that strength is sexy, and I just wasn’t referring to physical strength. But holy shit, that’s sexy too.

Like, really sexy.

Rhys sets me on the countertop of the kitchen and stands between my legs, lifting my maxi skirt to my waist, his green eyes on fire as he stares down at me.

“We’re not going up to the bedroom?”

“We’ll get there.” His lips tip up in a half-smile as his hands roam from my sides to my thighs, and then his thumbs work up my inner thighs to my center and make my eyes cross. “You’re not wearing underwear.”

I shake my head and lift the hem of his T-shirt, needing to get my hands on his smooth skin. The muscles twitch at my touch, making me smile, but then he groans and leans into me as my hands travel over his torso, reveling in how hard he is.

God, he feels spectacular.

Suddenly, Rhys squats before me and pushes my thighs farther apart. I have to lean back on my hands to keep from falling. He glances up at me with mischief all over his handsome face before he leans in and that mouth of his goes to work.

God, how can he do this to me, every single time? He makes my body sing.

He’s just barely brushing his tongue back and forth over my lips, gently touching me, teasing me. I plunge one hand into his hair and urge him to lick harder, suck harder, but he reaches up and takes my hand away and sets it on the countertop.

So much for being helpful.

“Rhys.”

“Patience,” he murmurs against me, then licks up to my clit, making my hips jerk, but licks back down again.

“Killing me.”

I feel him grin against me. His hands travel down my calves to my feet, and he rubs them—rubs them!—as he continues to lick me. Jesus, it’s sensory overload. My breath is heaving. Sparks of electricity are shooting through every nerve in my body.

“I want you, Rhys.”

“Right here,” he says.

“In me.”

Suddenly, he stands and boosts me off the countertop. “Not yet.”

“That was just mean.”

He chuckles and leads me to the hallway. Finally! He’s taking me to the bedroom. Thank God, because I was about to beg.

And that just won’t do.

But suddenly, I’m caged against the wall, and he’s leaning into me. I can smell myself on his mouth so I stand on tip-toe and lick him, right across his lips.

My inner flirt is very pleased.

Rhys groans and leads me to the stairs, but I stop short. He glances down at me with a raised brow. “Problem?”

“No, I just can’t wait to do this.” I unfasten his jeans, pull his pants and shorts off, tossing them to the side. “Sit.”

“Sit? On the steps?”

I nod and kneel as he complies. His cock is already at full attention. Rhys watches with wide eyes as I take him in my hand firmly and brush my thumb over the tip before licking him from his scrotum, up the underside to the head and take him in my mouth, against my tongue.

“Fucking hell, Gabby.”

I can’t believe I’ve never done this to him before. He never gives me the chance. He just takes over, and that’s fine, but I love making him crazy too.

Rhys leans back on the steps and alternates between dropping his head back and staring down at me as I work him over. His breath is choppy. His fingers are in my hair, gathering it into a ponytail to hold it out of my way as I lick, suck, and just barely skim the edge of my teeth over him.

“Jesus Christ, you’re good at that.”

I smile up at him, damn proud of myself. I don’t have a lot of practice in this area, or any area when it comes to sex really, so the fact that he’s enjoying it is a huge boost to my sexual ego.

I’m massaging his balls, which tighten, and I can tell he’s about to come.

“Stop.”

I shake my head, wanting to make him explode, but he stands suddenly and pulls me to my feet, leading me up the stairs.

“Damn it, I wasn’t done!”

“Gabby, we’re just getting started.”

I’m pouty as he leads me to the bed, but when I see the heat in his gaze as he strips my clothes from my body, I lick my lips in anticipation of what’s going to happen next.

Because knowing Rhys as well as I do now, it’s going to be fantastic.

He scoops me up and lays me on the bed, but instead of covering me with his body, he begins to massage me.

I appreciate the gesture, but I’m on fire here!

“Rhys.”

“I love your skin.”

“Seriously, I need you inside me.” He glances up at me, but continues to massage my legs.

“You have the best legs I’ve ever seen.”

“They’re short.”

“They’re perfect.”

I snort, and he narrows his eyes on me. “Are you calling me a liar?”

“Nope.” I shake my head, resigned to the massage rather than mind-blowing sex.

“Spread your legs wider.”

Now we’re getting somewhere.

I comply, but he still doesn’t move up my body to push inside me. Instead, his hands massage higher on my thighs, then he shoves his hands under my ass and lifts me to his mouth, as if I’m simply a piece of fruit.

Holy hell.

I brace my feet on his shoulders as he lowers his face to me and takes his time licking me, lightly again. Frustratingly lightly.

What’s the female version of blue balls? ‘Cause that’s what I have right now.

But then he licks my clit, just a bit harder, pulls it between his lips, and sends me right off into space.

I cry out, gripping the bedding in my fists. Rhys lowers me to the bed, then flips me to my tummy, tugs my ass up into the air, and slaps it good and hard on the right cheek.

“Do you trust me?”

“Of course,” I reply immediately.

“Good girl. Grab onto the headboard,” he instructs me, his voice harsh. I have to stretch out, flat on the bed, to reach the railings and grip them in my fists. “Don’t let go.” He rubs his palm over my bottom in slow, hypnotizing circles, then drops his fingers into my folds, sending my hips back against him, and finally I hear the tear of a foil packet and he guides himself inside me.

Oh. My. God.

He covers me completely with his long, lean body and presses his lips to my neck, then beside my ear.

“Your body makes me fucking crazy,” he whispers. “I always want to take it slow, and then I can’t.”