Total pages in book: 37
Estimated words: 35197 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 176(@200wpm)___ 141(@250wpm)___ 117(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 35197 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 176(@200wpm)___ 141(@250wpm)___ 117(@300wpm)
Theo’s eyebrow ticks up. “And will you? Give her a full rundown?”
“An abbreviated version,” I mutter, my face beginning to grow hot.
“Uh-huh.” He smirks, then—and lord, he’s so handsome with that flash of humor on his face, my toes curl on the hardwood floor. “Come here, July.”
“To you?”
“I don’t want you anywhere else.”
Is it safe to be this flushed? To have my pulse pounding for this long? I guess I’m going to find out, because I cross the living room to where he sits on the couch, allowing him to pull me down sideways into his lap. I’ve never sat in anyone’s lap before. Not since childhood, at least, but I’m only awkward for a moment before my frame molds naturally to his larger one, my legs draped over his formidable thighs, my shoulder tucked against his chest. Before I’m even settled, he’s unfurling my hair from the bun on top of my head, stroking the long strands with his big fingers, and I simply go softer than butter on a skillet.
“Do you have family in Chicago?” he asks.
“My aunt lives here. She works in real estate and helped me get a good deal on this apartment.” I’m trying not to moan over the gentle pull of my scalp and how good it feels. To be touched. To be soothed. “My parents are in Arizona, though.”
“No brothers or sisters?”
“You can’t tell by the only child energy I give off?”
He puffs a laugh. “Now that you mention it…”
I smile with my eyes closed. “What about you? Where’s your family?”
“Maine.” He’s silent for a handful of seconds. “I’ve got two sisters. They’re married with kids. My parents are divorced, but they still live in the same town. I went to see them after I came home, but…I don’t know, they couldn’t act normal around me. I could tell they wanted to ask me a million questions about being held prisoner.” He shrugged. “Thing is, I might have told my father, if he’d asked. He served in the Army, too, but I guess there’s a limit to what he can stand when it comes to his own son, because he never got the bravery. It got hard to be in a room with so many unspoken words.” He makes a grinding sound in his chest. “I told them I’d be back for Christmas. Hopefully it’ll be easier next time.”
“Maybe they needed time to recover from four years of uncertainty. If anything, it means they love you. They can’t stand having those blanks filled in. Yet.” On impulse, I lean in and kiss his scratchy jaw, watching in fascination as his breath temporarily shallows in response, his head turning, eyes scrutinizing my mouth. “In the meantime, if you want to tell me what happened over there, Theo, I’m here.”
He looks at me without speaking for so long, I start to squirm.
“What?”
“I was thinking, hell no, I don’t want anything but sunshine and rainbows in your head.” He frowns, visibly troubled. “But that’s not really possible, if you’re with me, is it?”
“Maybe I don’t want sunshine and rainbows,” I whisper, laying kisses on his jawline, listening to the increasingly heavy slam of his heart. “After all, I chose to live in Chicago and work in advertising.”
His brief laugh seems to surprise him. “That is true.” He slides his fingers into the back of my hair and cradles my skull, fisting my hair just enough to be comforting and hold my attention. “You chose to live in Chicago and be a badass with a presentation on Friday. How is that going?”
I bite my lip. “Umm.”
He lifts his eyebrows.
“It’s going fine, I guess. I have a pitch forming, but every time I try to practice the presentation, my nerves cause me to forget all the words.”
“Is that so?” His grip tightens in my hair, tipping my head back to expose my throat, his open mouth skimming very lightly over the delicate skin. “Maybe we need to put you in wartime conditions, so you’re not caught off guard in battle.”
“Excuse me?” I giggle.
“You don’t think I forgot my end of the deal, do you?” His lips roam over mine and I moan without any forethought, because it’s my most honest reaction. And he’s been steadily thickening beneath my bottom since I sat down. Knowing he wants me is the most potent aphrodisiac of all. “I’m supposed to be passing on my no-bullshit attitude to you, preparing you for this presentation.”
“And you don’t think you’ve been doing that?”
“Have I?”
“I could have easily been arrested for public indecency about an hour ago! That’s something I couldn’t have imagined a few days ago.”
“I’m the one who pulled your panties down.”
I purse my lips and notch my chin higher. “Maybe I’ll pull them down next time.”
“For me.” Before I can predict his actions, Theo is standing up with me in his arms and wrestling me down onto the couch, coming down heavy between my parted thighs, my wrists captured soundly above my head. “You’ll only pull them down for me, July.”