Caged (Mastered, #4)(96)
He smiled. “True dat.” He touched her cheek. “But I will push for you moving in with me, sooner rather than later.”
“To prove that you’re serious about me.”
“I already told you I love you. Doesn’t get a whole lot more serious for me, babe.”
Molly retreated, and Deacon forced himself to let her.
“We can go out the back.”
She locked up, immediately noticing his motorcycle in the alley, and shook her head. “No way.”
“Molly—”
“No. I’ll follow you.” She paused. “Although I bet you drive this thing so fast my poor Subaru couldn’t keep up.”
He shrugged and snagged his helmet. “It’s why I bought it. This model leaves Ronin’s bike in the dirt.”
“Of course you guys race.”
“I can’t beat the hell out of him in the ring, so I gotta beat him at something.” Letting the helmet dangle in his left hand, he set his right hand in the small of her back and said, “Where’d you park?”
“Around the corner. I’ll be . . .” She looked up at him. “Oh, stop growling. I’ll be happy to have you escort me to my car so the boogeyman doesn’t get me.”
“Good answer.” When they reached the sidewalk, he said, “I’m proud as hell that you can protect yourself, Molly, but I hope you never have to prove it.”
“I know.” She stood on tiptoe and kissed him. Really kissed him like he’d been dying for all f*cking week. Although Molly hadn’t repeated the words back to him, Deacon had to have faith and patience that she would.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
DEACON beat Molly to his place by ten minutes, giving him enough time to clean up the shithole he’d been wallowing in since Tuesday night.
In an attempt to get things back to the way they were, maybe even back to normal, he ordered a healthy pizza and she picked out a movie on pay-per-view. They curled up together on the couch.
He breathed a major sigh of relief that she hadn’t pushed him to talk more. Everything Tag had reamed him about over f*cking voice mail the morning after the dinner was true—Deacon was emotionally stunted and he lacked the skills to move forward. But that didn’t mean he couldn’t learn those skills when so much was at stake. The change wouldn’t happen overnight. It’d take time for him to figure out how to open up to her. Something she seemed to understand.
When bedtime rolled around, Molly insisted on putting away all her new stuff. The woman had actually teared up while holding a bottle of her shampoo.
Fuck. He’d never understand women.
Finally, after forty-five minutes passed, he’d had enough. Just as he was about to drag her ass into his bed, she wandered into the bedroom, rubbing lotion on her hands.
“About damn time,” he groused.
“After all the crying I’ve done this week, especially tonight, I had to put cold packs on my eyes or they’d be so puffy tomorrow I wouldn’t be able to see.”
“Strip and get in here next to me.”
“Deacon—”
“I’m not gonna jump you. But sleeping naked together is our thing.”
She smirked. “It is?”
“Yeah, it is.” That wasn’t as hard to admit as he’d imagined.
She clicked off the bedside lamp.
He could barely see her getting undressed. “Babe. It’s a little late to be shy with me.”
“Not after I consoled myself with ice cream this week. And then I didn’t go to class to work it off, so I’m feeling poochy.” Molly lifted the covers and dove in.
Deacon immediately hauled her against him. “Tell me where you’re feeling poochy so I can feel you up and give you a second opinion.”
“Omigod, no, I am not telling you that.” She tried to push him away. “Geez, Deacon, it’s embarrassing enough that I even told you I wallowed in sugar.”
He rolled on top of her. “Don’t slam yourself. I hate that shit. You’re a f*cking goddess.”
“Get off me.”
“She says as she clamps her hands on my ass, holding me in place,” he said with a grin.
“I love your body.” Her hands glided up his back.
Just the body? What about the man inside it?
Deacon kissed her, trying to focus on what he could control. “You really want me to move off you?” he murmured against her lips. “Or do you want me to start moving on you and in you? Fast and hard. Or maybe slow and sweet.”
“I’m holding out for the wake-up call you promised me.”
He pressed an openmouthed kiss to his favorite spot on her neck. “Remind me again what that was?”
“Your tongue on my *, making me come twice before you f*ck me.”
“I love it when you talk dirty.” He nibbled on her earlobe. “Say something else.”
“We’re supposed to be going to sleep, not making each other horny.”
“I only have to look at you and I’m horny.”
She slapped his ass. Hard. “Off.”
Deacon rolled to his back but tucked her body against his. He’d missed this. The warm, soft comfort of her next to him.