Holding Her Hand (Reed Brothers Book 15)(31)

“I like seeing you without gloves,” Ryan says, and he lifts my arm so he can press a quick kiss against my tender wrist. My arms are a little sore, but in a good way. “It’ll feel like a sunburn tomorrow,” he says.

“Really?”

He nods. “Probably.”

“Should I wear gloves when I meet your parents?” I watch his face closely.

He rocks his head back and forth like he’s thinking about it, and my heart clenches. Then he says, “No. Mom doesn’t mind tattoos.” He points to his own full sleeves. “Have you seen me lately?” He grins. “She’ll be fine with it.” He points to his lip. “She hates the piercings, though.”

“I like your friends.”

He kisses my lips. “They like you too. Jackson wanted to know if he could ask you out.”

“What did you tell him?”

“That you don’t date losers.”

I laugh. “Who did you tell them I am?” He had spoken to them occasionally, but I was so busy watching my cards and their faces that I missed most of their responses.

“My girlfriend,” he signs. He looks wary, though. “Is that all right?”

I nod. “Yes. It’s all right.”

He grins. “Good.” He jostles me so I look at him. “Can you stay for a while?”

I nod and scoot off his lap, my heart thundering in my chest. “I can stay all night.”

He jerks a thumb toward the door. “What about your man?”

“What about him?”

“Is he just going to sit out there?”

“Yes.”

“Yes?”

“Yes.” I laugh. “That’s his job. If he gets tired, someone will come and relieve him.”

“Seriously?”

I laugh at the stricken look on his face. “Seriously. What’s wrong?” I ask.

His brow furrows. “Kind of makes it awkward putting the moves on you while he’s outside. That’s all.”

“His job is to notice nothing,” I try to explain.

“Can you send him home?”

“For how long?” I ask.

“All night, I hope.” This time he blushes, and it’s something I didn’t expect. I love that he’s unsure. I love that he’s wondering how far we can go.

I get out of his lap and go to the door. I open it and lean out. The security guy is at the end of the hall, staring out the window. “I think you can call it quits tonight,” I call to him. He turns around. “I’m going to spend the night.”

“Is the apartment secure?” he asks.

“You can come and check it.” I motion him inside, where he checks the locks. “Go home. Get some sleep.”

He nods and says, “I’ll wait until you lock the door.”

I close the door and bolt it, and wait until I hear his footsteps retreat. “I’m all yours,” I say to Ryan.

Suddenly, he backs me up against the door and lifts me off my feet, pressing me hard against the wall. My legs lift and wrap around his waist, and I lock my feet behind his back. “All mine,” he says against my lips. It’s more like a rush of full wind than words, but I get it. “All night?”

I nod, and then he kisses me, and I lose any fears I had about whether or not he wanted me to stay, because he’s pressed hard against my belly. He rocks against me, and I grab hold of his shoulders.

He takes me to his bedroom, and I know that I will never, ever be the same. Not ever.





Ryan

She trembles in my arms and I have never felt anything as sweet as this girl feels in my arms. I’ve had girlfriends. I’ve had sex. But I’ve never had sex with a girlfriend I cared about the way I care about her. She consumes my waking moments and then she meets me in my dreams.

I lay her back on my bed, and she stares up at me, her dark hair a halo on the pillow around her. I pull my shirt over my head and lean on one knee between her spread legs, balancing myself over her.

She pulls her lower lip between her teeth and bites down. When she lets it go, I can see the imprint of her teeth in the tender skin, so I suck it into my mouth and lave it gently with my tongue.

She moans against my lips. I can feel the rumble of it in her chest.

I can’t talk to her while I’m hovering over her, so I ease down beside her. “Do you want to talk?” I ask.

She smiles and shakes her head.

I smile back. I can’t help it. “Do you want to watch a movie?”

She shakes her head again and her smile grows even wider.

“Do you want to get naked?”

She laughs against my chest and nods.

“Are you sure?”

Her hand falls in the sparse dusting of hair on my chest and she scratches me lightly, and it shoots straight to my dick. I reach down and adjust him behind my zipper. Her eyes follow my movement.

“Did you want to talk?” she asks. She grins cheekily at me.

I shake my head. She bends her head and tongues my nipple, and then catches it tightly between her teeth. I cry out and lurch back, covering it with my hand. “Sharp teeth!”

She laughs. “Sorry! You jerked!”

I grab the edge of her shirt and lift it until I expose her bra. “Let’s see how you like teeth,” I say, and I attack her nipple from outside her bra, snarfing and growling playfully as I rub my face all over it. She giggles and I can feel it move from her body into mine.