Play It Safe

My eyes drifted down to my feet.

And we both shifted to silence.

Then, it seemed liked seconds had gone by (but it was more like minutes just that I liked walking tucked to Gray in the cold) we were at my door.

Belly full of great food, beer, time spent in interesting and not demanding conversation, Gray’s eyes on me, my eyes able to take in Gray any time I wanted and Janie smiling on happily, I was lost in the night. A nice night.

No, a great night.

The best I ever had. None even came close. Not even when Casey and I scored huge with that idiot with the Rolex who bet five thousand dollars on a single game of pool.

And I’d never been on a date.

So it didn’t occur to me that we were at my hotel door and it was the end of our date.

So it also didn’t occur to me what normally happened at the end of a date.

Not even when Gray’s arm curled me to press my front to his and his other arm slid around me at my waist.

“Be back tomorrow, take you to breakfast at the diner, take you to my place, give you a ride. Does eight work for you?” he asked, his voice soft.

I smiled, liking that I got to go to sleep thinking that was going to be what I woke up to.

Liking it a whole lot.

Then I nodded.

“Good,” he muttered, his eyes dropping to my mouth and then his head dropped and then…then…

Then his beautiful lips were on mine and he was kissing me.

Kissing me!

My first kiss.

It wasn’t a stealth attack but I was still surprised and this worked in my favor because the touch of his mouth to mine, the hardness of his body against mine, his arms around me, his warmth, his smell, all that was him, I liked it. So much, I got lost in it and my body automatically melted into his, my arms around him going tight, my elbows bent, forearms running up his back either side of his spine. My hands felt leather and under that hardness and they pressed in.

Then Gray touched his tongue to my mouth.

My stomach dipped instantly, tingles shot down the fronts of my thighs and my lips opened instinctively.

His tongue slid inside.

Oh my.

That was nice.

Oh my.

That was nice.

My fingers fisted in the leather, my knees got weak, more tingles shot through my legs but these were different, stronger, racing up not down, straight between my legs as Gray’s arms got super tight and he held me super close and my tongue intuitively danced with his.

He looked good. He sounded good. He smelled good. He felt good.

And now I knew he tasted good.

Sublime.

The best taste to touch my tongue.

Absolutely.

Then it got better. His arm around my shoulders moved, his long fingers ran up the back of my neck, sifted in my hair, cupped the back of my head and that felt lovely.

Then he used his hand at my head to tip mine to the side, his slanted the other way and the kiss went deep.

Way deep.

Straight through my mouth, down my throat, through my belly to spasm between my legs even as it seared straight into my soul.

I whimpered involuntarily, that sound a sound I never made and a sound that spoke volumes.

At it, Gray moved us, shuffling me back. I hit door, Gray’s entire body pressed into mine and the kiss hit the stratosphere.

When he tore his lips from mine I found my hand had somehow made its way into his leather jacket, curled around and my fist was now in his sweater. My other hand had plunged into his soft, thick hair, holding his head to me and I was up on tiptoes, squeezing myself tight to him.

I blinked hazily into his eyes as he muttered, “Fuck.”

“What?” my mouth said without me telling it to.

“Your brother is unpredictable, Gran would lose her mind I took you home and there is no way in hell I’m movin’ somethin’ that hot and sweet forward on the bench seat of an old, cold, dirty pickup.”

I stopped breathing.

“Say goodnight, Ivey,” he growled, not letting go of me.

Something was happening and I might not have had a date and that might have been my first kiss, the greatest first kiss of all time, but I wasn’t naïve.

I knew what was happening.

My brother was my brother and he got himself laid regularly. And I spent most my time in seedy dive bars, or just bars, around men. They said things, with their mouths and with their eyes.

I knew exactly what was happening.

And I liked that it was happening between Gray and me.

I delayed too long in doing as ordered. I knew it when Gray’s arms got tight and his h*ps pressed into my belly.

“Say…goodnight…Ivey,” he growled again.

“Goodnight, Gray,” I whispered.

“Fuck,” he whispered back, touched his mouth to mine and let me go.

At the loss of his arms, his heat, his strength, the cold smacked straight through me.

“Get inside,” he demanded.

I nodded, jerked my head down, dug the key out of my purse and turned to the door. I opened it, took a half step in and turned back.

Gray was still where I left him.

“Lights on, darlin’,” he said softly.

I didn’t tear my eyes from him as I felt the wall for the switched and flipped it on.

“Right, get in, I wanna hear the chain.”

I nodded but didn’t move.

“Now, Ivey.”

I nodded again but still didn’t move.

He grinned and I saw the dimple.

And I fell, right then, right then, straight, fast and hard…in love.

“Eight, baby,” he whispered.

“Eight, Gray,” I whispered back.

“Get warm, honey.”

I nodded. “Thanks for a nice night.”

“We’ll have more.”

We’ll have more.

I felt tears sting my nose as my mind sent my gratitude heavenward.

Thank you, God.

“Eight,” Gray repeated.

I smiled.

Then, so he could get out of the cold, I scurried in, closed the door, flipped the lock and set the chain.

Then I moved to the curtain. Trying to hide, I peeked out but I didn’t need to try to hide.

He was sauntering away.

I watched, smiling.

Then, when I lost sight of him, I moved from the curtain and looked around the hotel room.

Then I wrapped my arms around my belly.

Then I smiled so big it hurt my face, I twirled around like what I didn’t know was a teenager, danced to the bed and dropped on it on my back, giggling the whole way.

Chapter Eleven

I Was Free

Twelve hours later…

Gray pulled back on the horse’s reins and although the view was stunning, the snowy plains, the flowing creek, its sides crusted with ice twinkling in the bright sun, the far off mountains blue against the skyline, I didn’t want him to.