And they
were
in his domain now.
Cole hummed, and his head bent so his mouth grazed her ear, tickling her neck. His lips trailed from her mouth to her neck, murmuring naughty things against her skin. “When you’re healed, I’m going to run my tongue over every inch of you.”
She gasped and turned to meet him mouth-to-mouth. “Bad boy.”
“Yes, I am.”
When Cole drew back, she buried her fingers in his hair. “I changed my mind. I feel so much better. Making love to you would heal what’s hurting me most right now.”
“We shouldn’t…”
“Please. I need you, Cole. We can be careful.”
“Jill—”
“I know what I want, Cole. What I need.”
He touched his forehead to hers and sighed. “God, I can’t resist you. But if I do anything that hurts you—”
“I’ll tell you. I promise.”
Cole cupped the back of her head, tilting her for better access so he could deepen the kiss. Their bodies swayed as his hands began to slowly explore. “I’m going to take care of you,” he said in a husky voice.
His tender words sent a spike of warmth pooling between her legs. Her heart raced as they took small steps toward his bedroom without letting go of each other, kissing the whole way. In his room, working around the sling, he helped her remove her shirt again. His hungry eyes and hands roved over her, and his fingers felt like electric impulses on her skin. She wanted all her clothes off, but he wouldn’t have that.
He pulled away only a moment to grab a condom from the nightstand, then he ripped his shirt over his head and dropped his jeans. She watched him undress before he reached for her pants, sliding them off inch-by-inch.
We never should’ve dressed after the shower,
she laughed to herself. He knelt in front of her, running his hands up her calves, then kissed the insides of her legs, moving up from the backs of her knees to her thighs. Her body trembled with need as her panties grew damper with every kiss.
He rested his hands on her thighs as he kissed his way up. She moaned and rocked, wanting his mouth on her, gripping his hair. She felt his tongue over her panties, his hot breath through the fabric making her scream inside. He nibbled her through the cloth, looked up at her a moment, then pushed it aside. She could hardly handle the desire. Then she could barely stand as a short but intense orgasm ripped through her!
“Oh, my God! OhmyGod! Oh…my…g…” Need washed through her as she rocked against his face.
“That sounded like a good one.” He spun them around, then fell back on the bed, taking her with him.
“Take me, Cole. I’m so wet for you,” Jill said. She wanted him now, but he
tsked.
“Not yet. I want to look at you.” He took her in with his eyes and hands. “Is your arm okay?”
“Forget about my arm. Other parts of me are about to explode.”
Cole’s hands gripped her hips, not letting her move, denying her. The small smile on his lips told her he was teasing her, making her want it, beg for it, and she made a mental note to tease him this way someday.
“Not yet…” he said, teasing himself, too.
She watched him slide the condom on. Finally, he slid his hands down to cup her backside, and she plunged over and down on him. She arched her back, eyes closed, enjoying the sensation. She moved over him, grinding her clit against the base of his cock, pressing against his hard body then deliberately easing back, wanting to prolong the heavenly sensations.
“Oh, God, Jill…” He moaned.
She smiled. Now she got to drive him crazy.
Chapter Nineteen
The next day, Jill and Cole spent a lazy morning together. After taking her to lunch at a nearby bistro, he told her he needed to leave for a few hours to see to her new security system. Now, standing by the door, she watched Cole get ready to leave.
“Make yourself at home. And call me if you need anything. Anything, Jill.” Cole lingered, patting his pockets and double checking everything.
“I’ll be fine. I’ll get some rest, listen to some music, give Liz a call…” She waved her hand around. “I’ll keep myself occupied, okay? If I get really bored, I’ll bench press.”
“Wha…?” He caught her stifling a giggle. “Oh, funny.” He leaned over for what looked like a quick peck, but he kissed her slowly and softly, his hands gentle on her body even as she wanted much more.
But she shooed him away. She didn’t want him to be late because of her.
Finally, he pulled back, laying several more soft kisses on her forehead and face, covering the bruises. It almost brought tears to her eyes, but she wanted to stay upbeat to see him off.
“You look pretty damn hot in that leather jacket,” she said, eyeing him up and down. He smelled incredible, too.
“Maybe I’ll let you take it off later on.” He flashed one last grin before shutting the door.
This domestic life wasn’t so bad, she thought with a mischievous chuckle. She could get used to it.
Though she felt stupid for doing so, she double checked the lock. Now that she was alone, it was hard to push away her anxiety. A few times, she startled at small sounds, and other times, she jumped like someone was about to tackle her. But in Cole’s apartment she felt safe, and she was determined not to let one criminal make her feel otherwise.
She refreshed her coffee and sat down to think. After Cole had been so gentle and understanding last night, she’d spent hours lying awake in his arms. The conclusion she’d come to both thrilled and scared her. He was right. They couldn’t know what the future held. What mattered was right now, and right now she was going to give them a chance. To do that, she had to tell him the truth about her health—that she might be a burden some day. She’d have to tell him about her cancer scare and her father’s early onset Alzheimer’s.
And she had to tell him the worst part—that she had a fifty percent chance of inheriting the same gene.
Or maybe she didn’t, she thought, suddenly chickening out. Maybe she should take Liz’s advice and get tested first. She just wasn’t sure.
Jill poured herself a glass of orange juice and was leaning against the counter browsing the internet on her phone searching for genetic counselors when she accidentally bumped the glass over. “Crap.” She quickly reached for some paper towels to clean it up. As she did, she saw what appeared to be an envelope torn in half. It was addressed to Cole, the handwriting a masculine slash.
She left it where it was. After all, her parents had not taught her to be a snoop, but her imagination went wild. Vaguely, she remembered Cole’s mom mentioning that his father wasn’t part of their lives. That he’d sent Cole a letter every year for the past five years, but Cole had never opened them. He hadn’t wanted to know who his father was, not after he’d abandoned them for over two decades of his life.
Was this one of those letters? She took a peek at the time stamp and saw it was a week after Stella died. Cole had torn it up. And now, here it was. And there she was, fingers and eyes itching to touch it.
* * *
While Cole was gone, Jill watched some mindless TV before making several calls. First to Liz, to make sure the daycare schedule had been arranged. They were going to open again in a few days. She checked in with police, but they still had no suspects in the break-in of her home. She hung up, set her cell phone on the counter, and thought about taking a nap. After all, she was emotionally drained, as well as physically, but then she saw she had two voice messages.
First, Cole’s smooth voice came on the line. “Hey, sweetie, just seeing how it’s going and if you need anything. Looks like you’re on the phone. Hope you’re relaxing.”
She could hear the smile in his voice. After he’d called her darlin’ that one time and she hadn’t liked it, she’d noticed he’d taken care not to use casual endearments with her. But the way he’d just called her sweetie sounded genuine. Like it was an endearment reserved for her alone. She repeated the message just so she could hear it again and again, loving the deep, rich tones in his masculine voice.
The next message surprised her. It was Jason, Stanley’s father. “Hello, um, Jill. This is Jason, Stanley’s dad. I just wanted to say I’m really sorry to hear about the break-in at the daycare. And Stanley misses you. He keeps asking how you’re doing and is looking forward to the daycare opening again. I miss you, too. And I hope you’ll reconsider going out to dinner with me sometime. Take care.”
Jill replayed that one several times too, hearing the nervous inflections in the man’s voice. She had to admit she was a little flabbergasted. He was persistent, she had to give him that, but she didn’t want his misguided feelings for her to get in the way of her relationship with Stanley. God forbid Jason pull Stanley out of her program altogether just because she wouldn’t give him the time of day.
No sooner did she have the thought than the front door opened and Cole entered, carrying several grocery bags.
“You took your sling off.” His tone was both surprised and worried.
Jill glanced down and shrugged. “My arm’s not hurting. I can move it, as long as I’m careful. That sling was getting really annoying.”
“I’ll bet.” Cole set the bags down on the counter and took her in his arms, giving her a sweet kiss. One hand gently caressed her arm where it’d been injured. “The security system has been installed. You can open the daycare again anytime, but I’d give it a few days. See if the police come up with any more leads about the break-in.
“Cole, I can’t thank you enough.” She peeked at the groceries and spied fresh fish and asparagus. “Maybe I can cook you dinner to start with?”
“I’m cooking tonight. You rest.”
“But that’s all I’ve been doing. Resting. Can I at least help, please?”
He shook his head. “I didn’t do a very good job of resisting you the last time you said please to me like that.”
She pouted and gave him puppy dog eyes. “I promise to use my power wisely.”
“I’d appreciate that.”
She started on a salad while he laid the fish out in a dish to bake. He explained the security code and how everything worked. He’d also written it down for her. Jill tucked it away in her purse to remember later, though she was sure he’d show her himself.
Soon, he had the seasoned fish in the oven and he did the same with the asparagus, using a different seasoning and putting that in the oven a few minutes later.
Done with the salad, Jill came up behind him and slipped her arms around his waist, leaning her face against his back. “So, is this the dinner you cook when you have a girl over?”
“Hmm?”
“Most men have one fancy dinner they can cook to impress girls,” she said in a teasing tone.
“Great idea, but…no, I haven’t cooked for a girl before.”
She flared her eyes and gaped. “Never?”
He was completely serious. “Never. Jill, I don’t think you realize this, but spending time with you is special. Having you here means a lot to me. I don’t do this with everyone—anyone, as a matter of fact.” He cupped her face in his hands and gave her a sweet, slow kiss that turned into a hotter one. He grabbed her by the waist and hoisted her up onto the counter in one fell swoop, as though she weighed fifty pounds.
Instinctively, she wrapped her legs around him and melted into another hot kiss.
After a while, he pulled away from her and tapped her nose. “Let’s leave that for later.”
Though a little disappointed, Jill was really impressed by the way Cole was taking care of her, the way he was determined to show her that he could be more than just a lover, a sex toy. He could care for her, and the thought made her heart swoon for him.
After the delicious dinner, Cole took all the dishes to the sink, grabbed his keys, and took her by the hand. “Let’s leave the dishes for when we get back.”
“Where are we going?”
“I thought if you’re feeling good, we could go for a ride to the beach?”
She immediately clapped her hands with excitement. “On the bike?”
He winked. “Is there any other way?”
* * *
After making sure Jill’s arm felt well enough that she could hold on to him once they got going, they took off. Cole felt an odd mixture of peace and excitement vibrating through him. Jill squealed and laughed in pleasure, clearly loving the way he tilted through the curves. It felt wild and free—one of those moments when everything in life was just right, when he wanted to stop and frame it. Not just because they were on the bike and open road, heading toward the sunset. But because of Jill.
They reached a more secluded entrance to the beach and he parked the bike sideways, so they could stare out at the ocean and setting sun. When he turned the engine off, he unbuckled his helmet and said, “I love that feeling, like I’m one with the wind. It’s like anything and everything can happen, and everything’s all right.”
“I know what you mean. I felt like we were leaving life behind. It’s just us, the bike, and the rise and fall of the pavement.”
He turned to look at her, his mouth partly agape and his eyes wide open. More open than ever. She got it. She got
him
.
Cole was amazed to see red and orange rays reflecting in Jill’s green eyes as she gazed at him. The rest of her skin was washed in warm, yellow light, and she looked like an angel. His raven-haired angel. Everything in the atmosphere felt soft around them. Maybe it was the lighting, or his mood, or just that it was a perfect evening by a gentle ocean breeze tickling his skin. Life didn’t get any better than sharing it with Jill.
He reached out to run his hand down her hair, lifted in spots because of the helmet, and he loved feeling how silky soft it was. Even with how much he’d touched her already, it didn’t feel like nearly enough. He stared at her for way too long, but he couldn’t look away. She was absolutely perfect.
She searched his eyes for a few seconds, smiling, searching for words. When she did speak, it was just to whisper his name as she reached to touch his face. He lowered his head to kiss her. It was amazing—what had started as one, wild night of passion had turned into something else—something more.