Roman (Cold Fury Hockey #7)(47)

Chapter 17


Roman


My eyes drift open, noting the bright winter sunlight filtering in through the closed blinds and casting the room in an early dawn glow. I’m on my back, in the middle of the bed, and Lexi is lying half on top of me. Her head is heavy on my chest, her arm across my stomach and her leg tucked in tight between my own. My cock is semihard and pressing against the top of her thigh, probably because it wakes up—just like me—knowing there’s a sexy woman available for the taking and very happy about it.

But I don’t do anything about it other than lie there and just feel her body weight against mine. I listen to her breathing—a soft snore, just like she emitted last night—that blows across my chest, tickling the hair. The softness of her skin as my fingers drag lightly over her hip. Even the tiny bit of drool I can feel on my chest where her mouth is open, which makes me grin up at the ceiling.

Christ…I love every bit of it.

It makes me wonder, have I missed out on this before? Have I been thinking about women and intimacy wrong all these years?

Lexi is not the first woman to stay in my bed overnight, but she is the first I’ve woken up to cuddled up against me. I’m not a back sleeper. After I fuck a woman, I usually roll right over onto my stomach, tucking a pillow underneath to cradle me from chest to cheek, and my legs sprawled to claim my territory. If a woman stays all night, she doesn’t get an inch of my space, and if all goes well, she slinks out while I’m in the shower after a curt kiss-off after I wake up.

And now it makes me just wonder, should I have tried this before? Should I have opened myself up to something more?

The answer is resoundingly clear in my mind.

I’ve absolutely never wanted this before and this isn’t something you can fake.

No, Lexi Robertson is the only woman I’ve been with where something like what I’m doing right now—morning cuddling—is even possible.

Who knows?

Maybe I’m growing up. Maybe I’m realizing there’s more.

Whatever the reason, I know it just feels right and I’m going with it to see where this will lead me. I like Lexi enough that I’m willing to open myself up to something new.

Lexi moves slightly against me and makes a cute little sound in the back of her throat. I hold perfectly still as her body stretches against me in her sleep, and then burrows in a little tighter. Her arm over my stomach curls and tightens, and she rubs her cheek against my chest.

“What the hell?” she mutters in a groggy voice as her head flies up and her arm releases its hold on me so she can swipe her hand over her mouth.

I angle my head so I can see her, and grin when I see she looks confused over the wetness there, and then her eyes slide down to my chest.

“Oh good God,” she mutters as her hand wipes her saliva away. “I freakin’ drooled on you. Can it get any sexier than that?”

I laugh and her head turns so she looks at me with a sheepish grin. And how is it possible someone can look that utterly fantastic in the morning, despite the fact she had just drooled on me in her sleep?

“Sorry about that,” she says, not really looking apologetic at all, and I love that about her. That confidence that says, “I’m a woman who can slobber on you and you’d still want me.”

“You can drool on me anytime,” I tell her honestly. “I know I most definitely have parts of me I’d love to have you drool on.”

“Mmmmmmm,” she says in contemplation, licking her lips for effect. “That could most definitely be arranged.”

My dick jumps at the thought of her mouth on me, and I’m a bit surprised it’s even got any juice left, because Lexi and I sort of went at it pretty hard last night. And multiple times. “I’ll take you up on that, but for now, how about lay your pretty head back down on me.”

“A man who wants to cuddle,” she says dreamily, although there’s a hint of exaggeration in her tone.

Lexi snuggles back down onto me, wrapping her arm tight around my stomach again and wedging her leg deeper between mine. I know she doesn’t miss my morning wood as her thigh brushes against it, and while the thought of rolling her over and taking her again is a fantastic idea, I’m actually content to lie here a bit.

“So what are your plans today?” I ask her casually, my hand back at her hip so my fingers can play along her skin. My time with her is limited, as we have an afternoon flight to catch out to the West Coast.

With an almost pained sigh, she says, “I need to talk to Gray. I’m thinking about a surprise visit to her house so she can’t avoid me.”

“About us?” I hazard a guess.

“About my decision to disregard her advice,” she clarifies. “Which obviously will include you.”

“She doesn’t like me,” I point out. “Be prepared for her to try to talk you out of it.”

“She can’t,” she maintains. “And frankly, I don’t expect her to. I’m going to give her the benefit of the doubt and think her desire for her sister to be happy will outweigh the other stuff.”

I can’t help the skeptical snort that comes out.

Lexi raises her head and looks up at me. “What? You don’t think that?”

“It doesn’t matter what I think about Gray,” I hedge, but there’s no hiding my dislike of my boss in my voice.