Final walk through a fla.., p.8
Cerulean Secret, page 8
He chuckled. “I don’t want to push for it, but three months together isn’t long.”
“I agree.” She bit her lip. Something told her to break it off because a few months wouldn’t change anyone’s mind about them. For a moment, she wondered if she secretly dated Bradley until she was thirty, would anyone care then? It might be a good plan. At least it would show that they were both serious. “Okay, we can go home together, and I have an idea.”
“I’m all ears.”
Stacia patted the pizza crust flatter and shaped the edges so they would be rounder. Bradley moved up behind her, allowing the front of his thigh to bump her ass. He rested his chin on her shoulder. “Can I add the pepperoni yet?”
She laughed. “Did you forget the sauce? We have to do it in order.”
“Who says?”
She pursed her lips, and he swatted her on the rear. They worked together to make homemade pizza and nachos because Bradley was in the mood for both. After they got home from the drama of meeting his family and decided for the next few months it would just be about them, their spirits lifted. Stacia enjoyed forgetting about reality and kept her mind on spending time with Bradley.
“I don’t think you added enough peppers,” he announced.
“The pizza isn’t even orange and red anymore. It’s green.”
“I love to pack on as many toppings as humanly possible.”
“You’re crazy. I’m eating the nachos, and you’re not messing them up, mister.”
“Corn and beans, right?”
“Boy.”
He laughed. “Alright, I give. The nachos are your domain, but you have to try at least one slice of my pizza.”
“Your pizza? Meanwhile, I'm the one who slaved over the crust.”
“Slaved? Interesting word.”
“Shush.” She stuck her tongue out at him, and he pretended to try to grab it.
When she placed the pizza in the oven, he clutched her around the waist and dragged her to him. She surrendered to his hungry kiss and tasted pepperoni on his breath. It was a miracle he had saved enough meat for the pizza.
They touched their foreheads together and rocked a bit in front of the stove, as if they heard music.
“I like you just the way you are,” he said.
“Hm?”
“You questioned whether you were mature enough for me. I like you as you are. Even that thing you did just now, sticking your tongue out. There’s something about you, Stacia.”
“What was she like?”
“Who?”
“Your wife.”
He hesitated. “I don’t know if we should discuss her.”
“Why not? Unless you still love her and think you can’t love anyone else.”
He ran a thumb over her lips. “I don’t think that.”
She wanted to ask him if he meant ‘no, he didn’t still love his wife’ but didn’t ask him to clarify.
“She was fun in a different way. Sweet and quiet.”
“Meaning she didn’t have a mouth on her like me.”
He grinned. “I suppose so, but I like your mouth too.”
“Uh-huh. I can tell how you like my mouth.”
“The best way I can describe her would be to say she was a lot like Isla.”
“Oh.” Isla, the mousy woman, was a far cry from Stacia’s personality. Stacia didn’t know for sure, but she could guess that Bradley’s late wife and Isla were the kind of women whose husbands were their whole worlds. She asked Bradley, and he confirmed her thoughts.
“I was devoted to her,” he said. “I would have stayed true to her until death. I took my vows seriously. After she passed, I didn’t think I could survive, but I had to for Jack’s sake. At first I believed I couldn’t love so deeply again. I don’t believe that now.”
It wasn’t the same as saying he did love that deeply. She couldn’t see Bradley loving her as much as he loved his late wife, but she wasn’t sure how devoted she would be to him either. Hours ago she had decided to break it off with him. That wasn’t lifetime devotion.
He kissed her neck and reached under her blouse to undo her bra. She tried to stop him but failed. The straps of her bra slipped off her shoulders at his coaxing.
“Bradley, we have to make the nachos. I’m hungry.”
“I’ll be glad to feed you.”
“Dirty mind.”
He laughed. “Alright. Food first, then…”
“Maybe.”
“Maybe?”
“Yes, if you behave.”
His hands slipped to her ass and squeezed. “I can’t behave. I’ll have to seduce you to get my way.”
“You’re impossible.”
“To resist, I know.”
“You have a playful side.”
“There are many sides to me, baby, and I’m going to spend the next few months showing you every one of them.”
Chapter Thirteen
Stacia sat on Bradley’s lap, enjoying the feel of his hard body beneath hers. His hand rested on her thigh, and every so often he kissed her. The man’s desire made it hard to eat her food, but she managed to scoff down half the nachos she had made.
Bradley’s appetite for food was such that he’d eaten three-quarters of the pizza. Well, he was a big man, and something had to keep those muscles fueled.
He pinched the button open on her shorts, and she smacked his hand. He groaned. “It’s been ages since you let me enjoy your body.”
“You mean since last night?”
“Ages, hours, what’s the difference?”
She laughed. “You’re in a mood tonight. No papers to grade?”
“The semester has ended.” He frowned. “Why don’t you know that?”
She looked away from him and picked at a bit of pizza crust on the plate he left on the couch. “I do.”
Of course, she lied. The fact was, she had failed the class she had taken for the second time. Why the heck couldn’t she get motivated? Maybe it was fear of facing the future. She kept telling herself she was ready to get on with her life, but for real, she wondered sometimes.
“We can talk about it,” he murmured against her ear.
She hesitated. Bradley, a college professor, would never stay with a college dropout. It didn’t make sense. Not only would he have to deal with her age but her academic failure.
“My boss offered me a managerial position,” she said. “I’ve been at that job for years, since I was a teenager. He’s talking serious money. I had no idea the manager at my restaurant makes that kind of money.”
“Is that what you want to do?”
“I don’t know.” She sighed. “I hate being in this place in my life, not sure what I want. I thought I could put off the final decision by going to college. It couldn’t hurt, right? Here I am blowing my chances.”
“Have you blown it?”
“I haven’t told him no, but I have to answer soon.”
“Does the position require a degree?”
“That’s the thing. No. I could forget about the degree and go for the job. It’s going to take a lot of time and focus anyway.”
“Don’t you think you should get your degree and not put all your eggs in one basket?”
She looked over her shoulder at him. The tone in his voice was unmistakable. He didn’t like hearing she was thinking of blowing off school. Well, he could get over it, and she told him so.
“What I do with my life is my decision.” She climbed off his lap and began cleaning up.
“Stacia.”
“Stacia, what? Go back to school whether you like it or not? Do what I expect of you?”
“That’s not what I’m saying. Who am I to ‘expect’ anything of you? I’m not your husband.”
Her eyes widened. “Yeah, you’re right. Whatever.”
She stomped into the kitchen and slammed the nacho bowl on the counter. Common sense said she was getting an attitude because she felt guilty about wimping out on school. At the same time, Bradley irritated her.
He walked into the kitchen. “Can we talk about this?”
“Talk about what? My life decisions or the fact that I’m a disappointment? All was good so long as I can stimulate your mind and body, right? If I quit school, there’s only the physical left.”
“You’re being unreasonable and irrational.”
“Go to hell.”
“Stacia!”
She turned her back on him. “Get out, Bradley. We messed up. Our worlds are far apart, and it’s stupid to think we can connect on any level. The dinner with your family proved it. Just go.”
She moved to the sink to turn on the water. He reached past her from behind to switch it off and whirled her to face him. “No.”
“No, what?” she demanded.
“I’m not leaving. I made a poor choice in words. Maybe my half-formed opinion pissed you off. Regardless, I’m not going to just go and forget about the last few months with you. If you don’t want to talk right now, fine. But I’m not leaving.”
“You can’t be serious?”
He dragged her against him. She tried to shove him off, but he was too strong. When his thighs met hers, and his chest touched her breasts, her breath grew ragged. At the end of the day, she wanted to be with him physically. She did everything she could to resist him. His mouth came down toward hers, but she turned her head.
“We can’t exist on sex alone,” she said. “It’s not what either of us is about. I can tell that much about you.”
His breath warmed her cheek, and he refused to let her go. “You’re right.”
“So?”
He drew back enough to look into her eyes. “We enjoy the sex, and if you’re in a transitional state, so what? We weather it. Is it so wrong to do nothing more than what we both want right now? Were we thinking forever yet?”
“No, we weren’t. I wasn’t.”
“Neither am I.”
He stroked her arms. She could have moved away if she wanted, but she remained close. He kissed her briefly, and she allowed it. His teeth grazed her chin, and she sucked in a breath. He whispered her name in a way that sounded tortured. His cock was hard as a rock against her belly.
“Let me stay, Stacia. I won’t push you to do what I want, but I also won’t pretend I don’t have an opinion. Can you agree to that? Can you agree to keep seeing me even when I make you mad?”
She laughed. “That should be how relationships work.”
“But you keep looking for an excuse to get yourself off the hook.”
“Now that you say it, I guess I am. I kept waiting for someone to tell me this isn’t okay, like it’s against the law or against morality.”
He nodded. “I see what you mean. I have a feeling I rushed our meeting with the families as a way to absolve myself, as if someone would tell me I’m a disgusting human being for wanting you. That way I could get you out of my system and be done.”
“Wow, we’re lame.”
He chuckled. “Perhaps we’re both weak. But again, I think we can take things slower. Over time we can come to accept our relationship between ourselves first.”
“And I can figure out what the heck I want.”
“Okay, we remain a secret, but at any time if you decide you feel used or disrespected because I’m not letting anyone know about you, tell me. I promise to make it right.”
“Agreed. And don’t send yourself on a guilt trip about it either. Can you do that?”
He stepped back and held out his hand. “I can. Shake?”
“You’re funny.” She hooked a thumb toward the sink. “If you want to seal the deal, you can do the dishes.”
“Ouch.”
She patted his shoulder and walked by him toward the living room. “Thanks.”
While the dishes clinked and pans knocked in the kitchen, she dropped onto the couch and began surfing through TV channels, looking for something to watch. Her cell phone dinged, and she looked at the screen. Her mom had texted.
“Hey, sweetie, does your friend like fried chicken?”
She winced, realizing she’d neglected to cancel Bradley coming to the family dinner.
“Um, Mom, I’m really sorry, but I’ve got disappointing news…”
Chapter Fourteen
“Bradley, my man. We’re hitting the bar tonight,” Gill announced. “I’m getting you laid, my friend, if it’s the last thing I do.”
“Sorry, Gill, I’ll have to take a rain check.” Bradley packed away the books and journals that scattered over his desk. He snapped the closures shut on his briefcase. “I’ve got something important to take care of.”
Gill frowned, disappointed. “Like what? A sewing circle? Come on, bud. You have to get back out there. I’m not going to let you rot alone. Listen, I know these two women that have legs from their ankles to their necks. Man, you won’t believe it.”
“Sounds gross.”
“I’m serious, Bradley. You’ll think you’ve died and gone to heaven. Plus, I’ve tried both girls. I can guarantee you will be satisfied. They have no problems going down on a guy, if you know what I mean.”
Bradley cringed. “You’ve slept with both of them, and you’re wanting me to go out with one?”
“Go out or stay in.” Gill elbowed him. “Dinner not required. That’s how great these girls are. But if you’re feeling generous, by all means, buy her dinner first. Let me get the number for you.”
“No, thanks. Like I said, I have something to do.” Bradley started to leave the office when Gill stopped him.
“Tell me the truth, Bradley. You’re not batting for the other side, are you? I mean, if you are, that’s fine, but…”
Bradley sighed. He shuffled Gill out of his office and locked the door then headed off down the hall. The fact that the semester was over, and most of the school’s staff had tidied up their responsibilities didn’t mean Gill wouldn’t be hanging around the campus. Bradley already knew Gill didn’t have a life, despite his claim otherwise. Normally, Bradley might have suggested a drink or something with his friend, but tonight he was seeing Stacia, and he couldn’t wait.
He reached his car and started it up then pulled off the school’s property. With the sun waning on the horizon, he made out the cars behind him. One was familiar. He tested the theory forming in his head and made a left then a random right. The car behind him followed without missing a beat. It seemed that when the driver realized he pulled too close, he dropped back, putting distance between Bradley’s car and his.
Bradley’s phone rang. He answered right away.
“Hey, sexy,” Stacia said. “On the way here?”
“Shortly.”
“You said you wouldn’t be late tonight. Dinner is ready, and I’m dishing up your plate right now.”
“I promise I’ll be there. Just have to make a detour.”
“Bradley.”
He heard her frustration and eagerness. She couldn’t know how badly he wanted to get his hands on her. Sweet and beautiful Stacia drove him nuts. Now that they had decided on the terms of their relationship, they felt freer to be open and honest about their desires. Both of them were a little manic when space separated them. Bradley enjoyed it without expectations.
“Darling, I have someone following me.”
She gasped in alarm. “Call the police!”
“It’s not like that. My follower is my friend Gill. He’s curious about why I don’t have a lot of time for him lately. I’m going to have to force myself to give up one night with you to spend time with him. Not tonight though.”
“Are you serious?”
He checked his rearview. Gill was still back there. “Yes, he can’t imagine why I haven’t taken him up on the offer for a couple of women.”
“He better stop tempting you!”
He grinned, a warm feeling coming over him at her jealousy. “I’m not tempted. Right now, all I’m thinking about is getting your thighs wrapped around my waist. Oh man, I’ve got to lose him. Be patient, my love. Gill’s proving to be a little difficult.”
“How about this?” Her voice went low and silky. “I’m serving your dinner naked.”
He swallowed as the room in his pants disappeared. “N-naked? What about an apron?”
“Not even an apron.”
“I’ll be right there!”
Bradley took the next corner so fast his tires squealed. A right, left, then another right, and Gill was no longer behind him. Just in case he shot through a light just turning red. All the way, he chided himself for letting images of Stacia’s naked body make him drive like a maniac. That didn’t mean he would stop though. She was the temptation. He couldn’t wait to get his hands on her, to listen to her sexy voice, to see those big brown eyes staring up at him, all full of desire.
He groaned and tugged his slacks with one hand. Dinner would wait. As soon as he got to her apartment, he fully intended to get her to the bedroom. In fact, he might not try for the bed but take her in the living room.
“You should calm down, Bradley. You don’t want to scare her.”
His foot mashed down on the gas pedal. He told himself to ease up, but he drove faster. Now he wasn’t thinking about Gill or anyone else. Stacia filled his thoughts. He considered whether he was just fulfilling a fantasy being with her. The thought seeped out of his mind as he drew into the lot outside her apartment.
Memory of her scent filled his nostrils. The door slammed against the wall when he wrenched it open. He took the stairs two at a time. When he raised his hand to knock, he expected to pound on it, but it flew open. There she stood. His mouth watered.
“God, you were telling the truth,” he breathed.
Not even an apron covered her small but pert breasts. Her curvy hips drew his hands, and the patch of dark hair at her center made his cock twitch.
“Get in here before the neighbors see me.” She gestured over her shoulder, half-turning. “I’ve got our plates on the table and—”
He stepped inside and slammed the door before yanking her into his arms. Her mouth opened to his invading tongue, and he crushed her small frame to him as he tasted her lips. She made a tiny sound, but he didn’t give her a chance to speak or protest.
