Neighbors with Benefits (Anderson Brothers, #2)(50)
He smoothed her hair and then lightly ran his fingertips over her still sensitive nipples through the silk of the dress, then put his lips against her ear. “Well f*cked.”
And she was just that. In every sense of the word. As she looked into his eyes, she knew that she’d passed the point of no return. She was in love with Michael Anderson, and with that came the potential for the mother of all heartbreaks.
After straightening his tie, he removed her suitcase from the shelf. “What do you need to pull out to wear to breakfast? I assume Sue has your bridesmaid dress somewhere.”
She rolled the case on its side and unzipped it while he pulled some items out of his own suitcase. “Yes. I’m changing in her room tomorrow. She has an actual closet. Not a room the size of one.” She shot him a grin before pulling out a green sweater and a pair of black slacks and flats. She remembered the underwear this time. Purple. She threw her warm-ups and a T-shirt on top of the pile.
He set a pair of pants, socks, and black boxer briefs, of course, on the shelf, closed his suitcase, and then pulled a white dress shirt out of a zipper bag hanging on a hook. “And the warm-ups are for…?”
“Sleeping.”
He tossed her T-shirt and paint-splattered warm-ups back in her suitcase, zipped it, and slid it back on the shelf. Then took her hand and pulled her close enough for her to smell the familiar scent of starch and cologne, but this time, there was an overlay of sweat and sex. Delicious.
“Mia.” His voice was so quiet, she had to hold her breath to hear it. “There will be no clothes…or sleep. From here, we will go to the room and switch from French fries to steak and lobster.” He brushed his thumb over her bottom lip. “I want to give you the attention you deserve—all night long. No more fast food this evening. I want a long, leisurely five course meal.”
And with that bit of news, he opened the door and greeted Sue and Kelli, who were watching Mark try to get Jason up the stairs.
Michael passed his stack of clothes off to Mia and wrapped Jason’s other arm around his shoulder, and with Mark on the other side, they half-dragged/half-carried him up the stairs to the second floor.
“Thanks, man,” Mark said, once they deposited Jason unceremoniously on the bed face down. “Hopefully he won’t puke and cost us the deposit.”
Kelli slipped into the room and threw some things from the bathroom into a pink suitcase on the window seat, then closed it up. “I’m going to sleep in Sue’s room tonight.”
Jason rolled to his side and started snoring immediately. Michael loosened Jason’s tie and slipped it off. “I doubt he’ll be in shape for the wedding tomorrow.”
“My dad is standing in,” Mark said. “Even if he’s sober enough by then, I’d rather he not be my best man.”
“It’s for his own safety, really,” Sue said with a wink. “I’d hate to be arrested for murder on my wedding day.” She gave Kelli a squeeze. “Come on, Kel. Let’s get some sleep.”
Kelli gave one last parting glance at Jason. “I really thought he liked me.” Then she stiffened. “I hope he likes being unemployed.”
“Thanks again,” Mark said once they’d turned off the light and closed Jason’s door. “I’m glad you’re here and didn’t listen to Jason, Mia.” He shook Michael’s hand. “You guys have a good night.”
The look Michael gave Mia after Mark disappeared down the stairs took her breath away. Holy crap. And here she’d thought the time in the closet with him had taken the edge off. Instead, it had made her want more. And his look promised a whole lot more. Maybe more than she could handle. Still clutching their clothes for the morning to her chest, she waited to see what he’d do.
All he did was raise an eyebrow. Just one, but it did the trick. Warm heat flushed through her and the air left her lungs in a whoosh.
“I like what you’re thinking, Mia,” he said, relieving her of the clothes and gesturing for her to lead the way up the last flight of stairs to their room. As she took the first step, he looped his arm around her middle and pulled her back hard against him. “And the way you feel.” She gasped as he pushed against her from behind, moving his hand to cup her breast, then put his lips to her ear. “I particularly like it that you screamed when you came.”
She glanced around to find the staircase behind them empty, thank goodness.
“Just me,” he said, stroking his thumb over her taught nipple and pulling her back even tighter against him. “You and me for hours.”
“Yes.” The response came unbidden from deep inside somewhere. Yes was all she had for this man.
He released her and she straightened, reluctant to look at him for fear he’d see just how lost in him she was. How much she wanted this…him. So instead of looking back, she climbed the stairs and opened their bedroom door, only to almost be knocked backwards the minute the door bumped into the bed.
“Clancy!” she said, catching the doorframe for balance. “Glad to see you, too.”
…
It was hard to be irritated by something so obviously pleased to see him. The dog circled Michael’s legs, wagging its tail like crazy.
“I’ll take him out,” Mia said, pulling the leash off the back of the doorknob. As he studied her face, he noticed she’d lost the fire she’d had moments before. It was as if seeing the dog had reminded her of their “business only” arrangement and her commitment to not getting hurt again. He had no clue what to do. He’d thought they were past this. She took a deep, resigned breath and snapped the leash on the collar. “That was our agreement from the start. The deal was you’d give me a place to stay and would come to the wedding with me if I took care of the dog at night.”