Bringing Home the Bad Boy (Second Chance #1)(65)

Warm hands slid over her shoulders and massaged. Her eyes closed. “Come on, beautiful. No more work today.”

He dug into a very sore muscle in her shoulder and because he’d done that earlier, she immediately thought of the amazing sex they had on this very chair. An answering heat jettisoned to her girl parts.

Pavlov would be proud.

“Don’t you have to paint?” she asked.

He sighed.

She put a hand on his. “Go. Get your work done. I need to sleep anyway.”

His lips came down to kiss the top of her head. “Don’t wanna let you sleep.”

Laughter rolled in her chest. It felt so good to be with him like this. Bubble or not, she’d take it. “A few hours of sleep, I beg you.” But she needed space for a different reason. To get used to the natural space between them when Lyon came home. She couldn’t help adding, “You can harass me tomorrow.”

“We can go out on the lake,” he said. “Asher’s been wanting to spend a day boating. You available?”

That sounded amazing. A day on a boat. Sunbathing, laughing, swimming.

“Your whole body just went pliant,” he observed. “That’s a yes.”

“I have to work.”

“Work around it.”

She could. Tami Johnson was a lawyer who kept incredibly crazy hours. Tami wouldn’t be able to meet her until the weekend anyway—if then. “Okay.”

“Gotta get up before noon.” He gathered his art supplies and paper. “Leaving the dock at ten sharp.”

She turned in her chair and watched him walk to her door.

He winked as he grabbed the knob. “ ’Night, Ace.”

“ ’Night.”

He closed the door behind him and she whispered to the room, “Love you, too.”





CHAPTER NINETEEN




Yeah?” he grunted, pushing into her deeper.

“Yeah,” she breathed, taking all of him. Her legs were wrapped around his waist and he had her ass in both hands, pulling her to him while she held on to his shoulders.

He thrust deep again, his palm wrapped around her neck, his other fingers resting between her butt cheeks and pushing her in closer.

She gasped. He dropped his mouth to her nipple and thrust again.

“Ev.”

“Let go, Ace.”

“Ev!”

“Come for me, baby.”

“Ev. Wait,” she laugh-commanded.

He halted, his lust-filled eyes hazy but coming to hers.

Smiling, she palmed his face with both hands and kissed his lips. “My calf is cramping.” Biting her lip against the pain, she attempted to straighten her leg.

“Damn. I liked that position.” He let her go so they could come apart. “Left or right?”

“Left.” She sat, grabbing her calf and pulling her knee to her chin.

They’d come back to Evan’s studio after boating. Ash and Gloria had gone out on the boat, too, and Sofie and Faith. The girls had a chance to dish while watching water sluice off the muscular, tanned backs of the men who kept cannonballing off the boat’s edge.

“Show-offs!” Gloria had called out.

They’d basked in the hot sun and over a hot grill. Evan made burgers—no turkey this time—and corn on the cob dressed in parsley, butter, salt, and pepper. Faith’s idea. Best corn on the cob ever.

Asher and Evan then had a contest to see who could chug a can of beer faster. Asher won, but Evan argued it was because Ash spilled half his beer down his chest. Charlie took the opportunity to point out the bad boys of Evergreen Cove were alive and well.

Evan had crossed over to her and kissed her lips—which drew very interested looks from Sofie and Faith—and said, “Nope. Down a musketeer.”

Asher had grunted. “Down a stooge.”

At which Evan had pointed out, “If one of us is a stooge, it’s not Donovan, it’s you.”

Charlie hadn’t missed Sofie sucking in a long, long breath and averting her eyes at the mention of Donny, proving he was missed by more than just the guys.

The moment Charlie and Evan walked into Evan’s house, he’d pushed her in the direction of the studio. Despite the fact she was exhausted, she let him. Within seconds, he had her stripped, laid flat on her back, his tongue visiting every part of her from neck to thighs. He’d allowed her to climb on top, and she produced a condom from the pocket of her discarded jean skirt.

He’d grinned his naughty grin and rolled it on. He’d also pointed out, “Need to keep a stash in here, apparently.”

About that, he was right. They did need a stash in here.

Now, he massaged her calf, laying another long, slow, warm kiss on her mouth while he was at it.

Mmm.

Cramp averted, she flopped to her back and realized she’d done so on top of something. A sheet of large, thick paper. “Oh, no, am I on your artwork?”

“Have an idea.”

She sat up. The paper was blank.

“Oh, no you don’t.” She started to stand when he came at her with a variety of colored tubes of paint. “I almost didn’t get it out of my hair last time.”

“Tie your hair up.” He pushed her shoulder until she fell backward. “You always have one of those thingies in your pocket.”