Awk-Weird (Ice Knights, #2)(55)

“If it’s wrong to be glad about that, then I am beyond redemption because I don’t want anyone else to say the things I want to say to you.”

Yep. He was officially that guy. He had more than two brain cells to rub together and knew exactly how much of a dickhead he sounded like, but he couldn’t help it. Standing here with her naked in his arms, everything about her from the splotchy red birthmark on her side to her different-colored eyes to the skeptical expression on her face was absolutely perfect.

She covered his hand on her breast, not pushing him aside but not allowing free motion, either. “Who gets to talk to me or touch me is not for you to decide.”

“I know, but I want it anyway.” He was fucking this all up, but the words—the truth—wouldn’t stop. “I want all of you.”

“Cole.” She lifted her hand and pressed her fingers to his mouth. “If you want this to happen, you can’t talk anymore. I’ll start to believe and we both know that can’t happen. It’s just temporary, remember?”

“Temporary.” The word left the taste of moldy gym socks in his mouth.

“Exactly.” She nodded. “Now fuck me.”

Tess may have thought he was agreeing about the whole temporary thing, but he wasn’t. He also wasn’t dumb enough to think that this was the time to argue, not when she’d made it crystal clear exactly what she wanted at the moment. As he lifted her up and sat her down on the edge of the island before spreading her legs wide, he decided the best course of action was to show her.

Watching her face as he kissed and licked his way up her inner thigh to her sweet, slick folds, he got the double treat of not only bringing her pleasure but watching her reaction to every move, letting him gauge when to slow down and when to speed up. The urge to rush in, get her off fast and hard, was like a river of lava in his veins, but he wouldn’t—not yet. Forcing himself to slow down, to draw it out and make it better. He lingered and explored, her every blissed-out groan and reaction telling him exactly how much pressure to apply, how much suction to provide, and how to get right to the edge of orgasm before pulling back so the need built until the intensity of it was palpable.

Head tossed back, one blond curl caught in her open mouth, she told him exactly what she wanted with words and encouraging moans of “fuck yes.” By the time he sucked on her clit as he circled her opening with his thumb, she was pleading with him for more.

“That’s what you want?” he asked as he stroked her, teasing her and taking her higher, closer, but not quite pushing her over the edge. “More?”

“Cole, please.” She tugged on his hair, pulling him close to her core. “Make me come.”

Any thought of skating that thin line between too much and not enough disappeared at the sound of her voice. She wanted more. He’d always give her that. He’d give her everything if she’d only let him. He had no idea how he’d gotten to that place, that understanding, but as he pulsed his tongue against her clit until her thighs shook and she came against his lips, he knew there was nothing more real than the truth that Tess Gardner had changed everything.

…

Tess lay on the kitchen island, the granite cold against her naked back and her bare legs draped over Cole’s shoulders, trying to catch her breath. She took off her glasses and laid them on the island next to her. How they’d stayed on while she was riding the wave set in motion by his mouth, she had no fucking idea. The man was going to kill her with orgasms like that. It would be days before her toes uncurled, and she was totally good with it.

Her legs shifted as he stood up, his mouth—that mouth—curled into a satisfied grin, but she wasn’t fooled. The hunger in his eyes, the dark promise of more—always more—settled against her, firm as a touch and as solid as a promise she could take to the bank.

Sitting up, she let her gaze travel the length of him, taking in the shirt hanging open, revealing the broad muscular expanse of his chest, the rolled-up sleeves showing off his sinewy forearms, and the suit pants tailored to within a millimeter of perfection so that the outline of his hard cock was impossible to miss. Not that she did. No. She wanted all of it, all of him.

“You have too many clothes on,” she said, reaching out for his belt and hesitating, her hold on the buckle loose and light. “Do you want to take them off?”

“That depends.” He didn’t move, just watched her, the heat in his eyes nearly burning her. “What happens after they’re gone?”

“I have some ideas.”

Some? More like a gazillion, in addition to the ones she could make happen tonight or tomorrow or the few days they had between now and her moving back into her apartment. Was that text she’d gotten tonight with a return date what pushed her into being here like this, demanding what she really wanted? Maybe. Life moved fast; she knew full well what happened when she blinked—everything changed and she’d be out of here for good. It would be her and the peanut but no Cole. Wasn’t that forever her lot in life? It was always a temporary home, temporary family, temporary love. But not tonight. This she could pretend would last longer—or more likely that she just didn’t care if it ended tomorrow.

“You still okay with this?” Cole asked, his hand cupping her chin, tilting it upward so she looked him in the eyes. “You can say no at any point. You can walk away.”