Almost Perfect (Fool's Gold #2)(79)
Wait a minute. Men in her life?
“Maybe it’s not so bad here,” Ethan said.
“Maybe not,” she admitted, turning her attention back to the stalker and away from Ethan.
She wasn’t sure what would have happened if her crazed stalker had struck in a big town. While the police would have still dragged him away, she wasn’t sure she would have been so well protected by other people who just happened to be there.
“We should stop talking about this,” he suggested. “You need to relax, not relive the event.” He rose. “I’ll leave you to your bath.”
Not sure if she wanted him to stay or not, she watched him leave. After placing her glass of wine on the tile surround, she settled back in the water and closed her eyes.
As she did, she remembered the feel of the man’s hand on her arm, the rush of air as he barreled into her, pushing her to the ground. She reached up and lightly touched the left side of her face. It was painful and swollen but not too bad. It could have been a lot worse.
She drew in a deep breath and tried to relax. This time when she closed her eyes, she saw Ethan, which was a much better picture. She smiled, thinking about him smiling. She thought about how he was with both Tyler and her nieces. How he looked after his mom and sisters. He had a strong sense of family. A need to belong to a community. He was his father’s son.
He’d gotten Rayanne pregnant and had done the right thing. That’s who he was. He would do the right thing now. She knew the character of the man and was willing to admit that twelve years ago, he’d still been a kid. Not mature enough to stand up for the woman he claimed to love. Or maybe he hadn’t loved her enough. But that was the past and if they were to work anything out, she had to be willing to let it go. The fact that he might not have cared about her as much as she’d cared about him didn’t change the fact that they had a son together and decisions had to be made.
It also didn’t change the fact that she loved him more now than ever. Time had allowed her to pretend it was over, but she’d been fooling herself. So what was it to be? A second chance with the only man she’d ever loved? Did she allow pride and mistakes to keep them apart forever? There was no guarantee that Ethan felt the same way, but maybe it was time to find out.
She pulled the plug on the tub and stood. After drying off, she wrapped herself in the bathrobe he’d left for her and walked out into the master bedroom.
Ethan stood by the fireplace, staring at the flames. He didn’t hear her, didn’t turn. She was able to study the handsome lines of his face, the stiffness in his body, as if he were forcing himself to do something he didn’t want to do.
Or preventing himself from doing something he did.
“Ethan?”
He visibly shuddered, but didn’t turn to look at her. “I’ll drive you home.”
“Isn’t your mom expecting me to stay here tonight?”
“It’s not a good idea.” He swore under his breath. “You were attacked today. Attacked. He hit you. All I can think about is how I want to beat the shit out of him. And when I’m not thinking about that, I keep seeing you in the tub. I keep wanting…”
He swallowed. “I’m sorry.”
“For what? For wanting me?”
He looked at her, then. “Doesn’t that make me the biggest jerk ever? A totally insensitive guy only interested in taking?”
“Would you only be taking?”
“You know what I mean.”
His guilt was charming, she thought. His feeling bad only made her want to be with him more.
She whispered his name. When he turned to face her, she slowly, deliberately, shrugged out of her bathrobe, letting it fall to the floor. She stood naked in front of him.
His intake of air was audible in the quiet room, then he moved toward her. Lunged was more like it. When he reached her, he touched the uninjured side of her face with one hand and placed his other hand on her waist. He didn’t have to draw her to him. She went willingly, surrendering with the first kiss.
His mouth was hot and hungry, his lips pressing against hers. Her mouth parted for him immediately. He swept into her mouth, their kisses both arousing and achingly familiar.
She felt the soft brush of his well-washed jeans against her thighs. Her br**sts flattened against his shirt. Wanting heated her blood and made her long for him to touch her everywhere. She tilted her head and wrapped her arms around his neck.
His tongue stroked against hers. She closed her lips around him and sucked gently, causing him to groan. When he did the same to her, she felt the tug clear down to her belly. Her br**sts swelled, as did that place between her legs.
He dropped both hands to her waist, then moved them lower, gliding over bare skin. He explored the curve of her hips before slipping around to graze his fingertips along the curve of her butt. The sensation was as ticklish as it was exciting and she shivered.
He kissed his way down the side of her neck. Warm, damp lips teased her skin. He licked the skin just below her earlobe, then nipped and made her gasp. Then he bent lower and took her left nipple in his mouth. He licked the tight tip, before sucking deeply, pulling her into his mouth.
The tugging sensation wove its way through her whole body. She had to hold on to Ethan to stay standing. Over and over he sucked and licked and then blew on her damp skin. She shuddered in response. As he moved to the other breast, he slipped his hand between her legs and found her damp, waiting center.