Total pages in book: 108
Estimated words: 106538 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 533(@200wpm)___ 426(@250wpm)___ 355(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 106538 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 533(@200wpm)___ 426(@250wpm)___ 355(@300wpm)
Proving that I am a girl, my heart skips when there’s a tap at my window. I turn on the light beside my bed, pull the blinds, and slide open the window.
Maren bites her lip for a second. “I got to thinking that maybe you’d rather sleep in,” she whispers while I help her inside and shut the window and blinds.
I slide my hands into her hair, gazing at her makeup-less face, which has a natural, beautiful glow. Her blue eyes are alight with life, and she makes it hard to breathe.
She furrows her brow. “Is your hair wet?” She touches the hair above my ear.
“I worked out and showered.”
We keep our voices just above a whisper.
Her smile fades. “So much for me climbing in bed with you, since you’re up and ready for the day.”
I gesture to my nearly naked body. “Why would you say that? I’m simply showered and ready for whatever you have to offer.”
Her fingers trace my tattoos. I’d like to say it doesn’t immediately elicit an erection, but it does. “There might not be anything sexier than a man with his daughter’s name tattooed on his body.”
I tip my chin to watch her trace it. “When Brynn was in her final month of pregnancy with Lola, she thought I needed a tattoo. It was so random and spur of the moment. We passed a tattoo parlor, and she told me I needed one. Who was I to argue with a pregnant woman? It took three visits to complete it, but it was finished two days before she went into labor with Lola. She wanted an angel tattoo. A guardian angel to symbolize I was her protector. I wasn’t feeling it, so I suggested a dragon, which she vetoed. Then, with the help of the tattoo artist, I talked her into my favorite tools spelling Lola’s name. And yes, we had a moment, after the fact, where we worried that the ultrasound was wrong, and Lola might come out with a penis.” I chuckle. “But I still think I need a dragon to symbolize protection, strength, power, and knowledge.”
Maren lifts her gaze, keeping her warm hand on my stomach. “Some Christians believe dragons are monsters of death from the chaotic sea.”
I chuckle. “You’re not a fan of dragons either. Noted.”
She shakes her head slowly. “I love dragons. Not the kind referenced in biblical times. More like Game of Thrones, Harry Potter, and The Hobbit.” She slides her hand past the tattoos to my ribs. “You have goose bumps.”
Yes. And an erection that she surely notices.
“You’re touching me,” I say with a husky tone.
She kicks off her shoes. “What time do you wake Lola?”
“In thirty minutes, because that’s when you said you’d be here,” I murmur.
“And the upstairs tenants?”
“They’ll be up in the next half hour as well.”
“Is your door locked?” she whispers before pressing her lips to my chest.
“Yes.” I close my eyes.
“And your whole fucking box of condoms?”
I softly chuckle, opening my eyes. “In the drawer.”
She flits her gaze in that direction, and from her soft smile, I know she sees the six stems of yarrow.
“I gave you the note, but not the flowers.”
“Ozzy?” She plants open-mouthed kisses up to my neck.
“Yeah?” I thread my fingers back into her hair.
“Take off my clothes.”
I moved Heaven and Earth to schedule a weekend to have sex with her, and she’s managed to show up thirty minutes early to a hair-braiding appointment with a solid plan to accomplish the same task.
But I’m not complaining.
I’m too busy removing her shirt and bra. Too busy sitting on the side of the bed while sliding her leggings and lacy underwear down her toned legs. And I’m way too busy palming her breasts and tweaking her nipples with my fingers until a half-suppressed moan vibrates her chest, and her back arches into my touch.
I lie back, legs hanging over the side of the bed, but before I can guide her to straddle my waist, she pulls down the front of my briefs. My next breath gets trapped in my chest, heavy with uncontrolled anticipation. A moan, with equal gravity, vibrates my whole body when she drags her tongue up the length of my erection.
“Maren,” I murmur, closing my eyes for a few seconds. I don’t know what I’m trying to say. Stop? Hell no. It feels too good, so I let her keep going. I’ll stop her in a few more seconds.
Maybe in a few minutes.
And then . . .
A fucking car alarm blares.
Maren leaps off me and fights with her clothes to put them back on.
It has to be my stupid neighbor. He sets that goddamn car alarm off once a week, and it’s always early in the morning. I sit up, sliding my briefs back into place and raking my hands through my hair while tugging it.