Not Safe for Work(52)

“Still…” I touched my forehead to his. “You need a Dom. I need a sub. And—”

“And tonight, I just need you.”

All the air rushed out of my lungs. “Me too.”

Our words bounced around in my head for a moment, and my stomach tightened. I broke the kiss. Our eyes met. My heart sped up. Neither of us said a word.

I could’ve sworn we were just hooking up for some kinky action. Not…

I slid my hand around the back of his neck, drew him back in and kissed him, deeper and harder than before. Fatigue weighed my body down, but my pounding heart and hardening cock were much more insistent. Breathlessly, I broke the kiss and started down his neck as I ran my hand up his thigh to his groin.

He alternated between combing his fingers through my hair and kneading my scalp, pressing harder as his cock thickened beneath my hand.

He let his head fall back against the sofa, exposing his neck to my lips.

“I thought you were tired,” he murmured.

“I am.” I started drawing his zipper down. “But you’re not. And I have a feeling you’ve been needing this as much as I have.”

“Yeah, I have.” He gasped as I unbuttoned the top of his pants. “What can I say? You’re addictive.”

“So are you.”

He put a hand over mine. “W-wait.”

I lifted my head. “Hmm?”

“Cooking. We—” He glanced over his shoulder, as if he could see the oven timer from here. “I guess... Yeah. We have a little time before dinner’s ready.”

“Do we?” I raised an eyebrow. “What if I want to take my time?”

Rick gulped.

I slid my hand up the inside of his thigh. “Tell you what. I’ll take you upstairs right now and f*ck the hell out of you. And after dinner”—I half shrugged—“we’ll play it by ear.”

“Yes, please.”

“I love it when you ask nicely. Now get upstairs.”





Chapter Eighteen


Between my fatigue and the dinner Rick had cooked—holy f*ck, he was as good in the kitchen as he was in the bedroom—neither of us had nearly enough energy to go a second round. Being tired and sluggish did give us an excuse to climb into bed together at the end of the night, though, and as I blinked against the harsh morning light, I was glad I’d stayed over.

I was also beginning to understand why Rick preferred a smaller bed to the triple California king he could have easily fit in this enormous room. Even when we separated during the night, there was only so much space. There was no canyon of cold sheets between us. No sprawling out and not brushing each other’s skin.

As we both slowly stirred, we gravitated back to each other in a series of lethargic motions that consisted of little more than me turning over and Rick sliding an inch or two toward me. Ahh. Nothing beat the feeling of being wrapped up in another person before I was even fully conscious. I’d missed waking up beside somebody. I’d missed that sleepy migration back to the middle of the bed, the drowsy mumbles of “morning,” and the careful dance of being affectionate without subjecting the other person to morning breath and killing the mood altogether.

“We should do this more often,” he murmured against my neck.

I kissed the top of his head. “I agree.”

He pressed his lips beneath my jaw. “I’d suggest staying here all day, but some of us still have to work today.”

Disappointment pressed down on my chest. “When do you have to go in?”

“Oh, I can get away with ‘telecommuting’ until about eleven. Then I have a meeting with some investors after lunch.”

“Sounds thrilling.”

“You have no idea,” he grumbled. “But there’s no rush right now. Care to join me for a shower?”

No rush, and a shower with him? Twist my arm. “I would love to.”

After we were up and moving, and the coffee was on downstairs, we stepped into the shower. Surprise, surprise—the water had barely touched us before we were wrapped up in each other. We’d just brushed our teeth, giving the kiss a strongly minty flavor, but he still tasted like him, and his kiss woke me up faster than the mint or the coffee ever would.

As hot water rushed over us, I held him closer and touched him all over. Holding him now made me all too aware of how little I’d done so recently. I didn’t feel the need to put him on his knees. I didn’t need to flog him, to growl the commands that turned us both on, to do anything besides simply feel him and taste him. Exhaustion and desperation took the place of my need for domination this time. Forget the long hours and unending work, I was worn out from not having him, and I needed him. I hadn’t realized until now, until my arms were around him beneath the hot water, how much I’d come to need him like this, and how far that need went above and beyond my craving for his submission. There would be time and energy for that later.

For now, I just needed him.

Rick broke the kiss. “You’re not making it easy to think about going into work.”

“Then don’t think about it.” I slid my hands down his back, his skin slick and hot beneath my palms. “I’m sure as hell not thinking about work.”

“What are you thinking about?”