She didn’t move, didn’t touch him or try to kiss him. She just stood there, only an inch from him. It was almost as if they were held in place by magnetism alone. He knew it would require significant energy to pull away.
He could feel her soft breath on his face as he rested his forehead against hers. He could also feel his heart beating against his chest, and wondered if hers was thumping just as hard.
“Your room smells like you,” she whispered when he didn’t make a move.
“Is that good or bad?” He’d never noticed, never even considered it.
“It’s good. I like the way you smell.”
“I like the way you feel,” he said.
Rising up on tiptoe, she kissed him so gently he could tell she was afraid she’d hurt his busted lip.
“I’m fine,” he insisted. “You don’t have to be careful.”
Still, her tongue ran over the cut as though she was making a physical apology before lightly meeting his tongue, at which point every muscle in his body went rigid.
It’s just a kiss, he told himself, and yet it had such a powerful effect on him it nearly turned his knees to jelly.
He lifted the bottom of her sweatshirt, and she raised her arms so that he could pull it over her head. He tossed it on the floor as she removed his shirt, drawing out the anticipation as she took her time going from one button to the next. When they’d been in the living room, he hadn’t been able to tell whether she was wearing a bra—it hadn’t been obvious either way thanks to the thick material of her sweatshirt—but he’d guessed she wasn’t and he’d been right.
As he ran his fingers down the smooth skin on either side of her spine, she leaned forward just enough that her nipples grazed his bare chest. “That has to be one of the best things I’ve ever felt,” he said and, reaching up to cup her breast, lowered his head to take her nipple in his mouth.
The moment he heard her sigh, he knew he wouldn’t be able to continue the slow pace they’d set for much longer. Slipping his good hand inside her yoga pants, he said, “Take these off.”
After she complied, he lifted her onto his bed and spread her knees apart as he climbed on with her. She reached for his zipper, but he gently knocked her hands to the side so that he could kiss his way up her thigh.
She was quivering as he neared his target, but then her legs suddenly snapped together as though she’d deny him access. “I feel too vulnerable for that,” she said with a nervous laugh.
“Vulnerable? Or self-conscious? Because there’s no reason to be self-conscious with me. But if you really don’t want me to—”
“It’s not that I don’t want you to...”
“Then let me,” he whispered. And not only did she allow him to open her legs, her hands fisted in his hair, her back arched and he heard her groan in spite of how quiet they were trying to be when he touched her with his tongue.
14
Sunday, December 13
When Emery woke up, she felt surprisingly good, and she knew why. She hadn’t gotten a lot of sleep—it’d been four o’clock before she’d returned to her room—but the night had ended on a much more positive note than it had begun. Just remembering her time in Dallas’s bed made her smile.
He was an incredible lover.
“I must be crazy,” she whispered to her reflection as she sat up and stared at herself in the mirror over the dresser. What was she doing staying here, working in a cookie store and having sex with Aiyana’s son? She’d never imagined she wouldn’t be in LA, delivering the news. But, thanks to Ethan, her life had taken a ninety-degree turn.
Part of her thought she should leave Silver Springs right away, put a stop to the madness and quit being a burden on Aiyana and Dallas. But Aiyana had made it clear she was welcome, and Dallas insisted he wanted her to stay, too, at least through the holidays, at which point they’d both have to get back to their regular lives. Sure, she’d been recognized at the Blue Suede Shoe and in such a sensational way that word of her presence was bound to spread and spread quickly. But she’d expected the locals to become aware of the fact that she was in town eventually.
So how would that change things?
She’d face some judgment, criticism and curiosity while working at the cookie store. But at least she had a job here, was making some money, and she had a safe place to come home to at night. What would she do in LA? Sit around and feel sorry for herself? Obsess over Ethan being able to retain his job despite what he’d done to her?
A loud clang and some other noises, coming from below, trickled up to her. Someone was in the kitchen.
It had to be Aiyana. Emery had been staying in the house long enough to know the younger boys would sleep in as late as Aiyana allowed them to. And Dallas deserved to sleep, after getting banged up in that fight.
Determined to help with the wedding before she had to go to work, Emery kicked off the covers and climbed out of bed. She had to shower before heading to the store, but she didn’t want to do that now in case Aiyana needed her to do something strenuous.
After she brushed her teeth, she pulled her hair into a ponytail, donned some sweats and hurried down to see what might be on the agenda.
“You’re up early,” Aiyana commented when Emery joined her in the kitchen.
“I have to be at work at one but I was hoping there was something I could do this morning to help you get ready for the wedding. It’s the last weekend before the big event. You must be overwhelmed.”
“Oh, I’m not
