Belle sighed happily, aware that once again, she’d woken up with a big-ass smile on her face. At this point, she wasn’t sure the muscles could even form another expression.
She held still, unwilling to leave the warmth of his bed just yet, as she replayed last night in her head. While every night had ended the same, with her in Victor’s bed, nothing else had been a repeat.
Victor was a walking, talkingKama Sutra. The man was a maestro when it came to sex. Belle’s past sexual experiences had been pretty tame. With her two high school boyfriends, everything was new and exciting, but teen hormones also ensured everything was over quick. As such, she’d never gotten beyond missionary and doggie style.
The same held true with her and Trevor, the barista, mainly because their relationship had been less about passion and more about companionship. Trevor had been a great guy with a wicked sense of humor. When they were together, they laughed all the time.
Like, all. The. Time.
And while cracking each other up in bed by acting silly was fun, it hadn’t leant itself to any burning desire or even great orgasms. Half the time they started laughing so hard, they just gave up and went to sleep.
With Victor…
Belle drew in a breath and felt her body growing hot.
Just thememoryof the things they’d done together sent her body into overdrive.
He’d introduced her to sixty-nine. Ho. Ly. Fuck. She was a fan of that position…BIG fan.
They’d also had sex up against the bedroom wall, in the shower, with her bent over the bathroom sink, and even in that reading chair in the corner of his room. According to Victor, she was a natural cowgirl—especially in reverse.
Her shoulders shook a bit as she tried not to giggle, lest she wake up Victor. It was just…she was so damn happy.
Last night, the heat of summer had truly kicked in, the humidity lingering even though it was well after sundown. Victor had suggested they go skinny-dipping, and Belle didn’t need to be asked twice. The things that man managed to do to her underwater had blown her mind. So much so, she’d asked if he was really a merman in disguise, then suggested that all thoseLittle Mermaidviewings had started to rub off on him.
The best part was, this didn’t feel like just sex to her. Probably because Victor was revealing himself to be one hell of a romantic. He’d started putting fresh flowers in her room everyfew days, playing soft music whenever they were on the patio—even pulling her up to slow dance with him a few times.
And she’d been incredibly touched when he framed a photo of the two of them with Pip, taken the day they went out for ice cream. Pip, as always, had a huge ring of chocolate around her mouth, and Victor and Belle, who’d been in silly moods that day, had imitated it. Victor had snapped the selfie of the three of them mugging for the photo with chocolate dripping down their chins. Or, in Victor’s case, coating his beard. She’d remarked it was her favorite photo ever, and he’d gone the extra mile, printing it out and framing it for her. It rested on her bedside table, the first thing she saw when she woke up…thesecondtime each day.
Apparently, Victor’s internal clock matched hers, because she felt him stir.
She lifted her head and Victor gave her a quick kiss before clearing his throat. “Good morning.”
“Good morning,” she whispered back, smiling at him.
They nuzzled for a few minutes more, stroking each other in a way that was more about comfort and warmth than arousal. Morning sex wasn’t something they’d attempted yet, neither of them wanting to run the risk of waking Pip.
When the alarm went off, Victor silenced it.
Belle twisted to her back, fighting to make herself get up and move down the hall. She hated leaving him.
“I guess I should go,” she said, turning to him and smiling, unable to resist cupping his cheek and giving him another kiss.
“You’re happy,” Victor said.
“I am,” she replied.
Her smile wavered when she caught the flicker of something in his eyes. Something she couldn’t define—maybe concern, maybe regret, maybe hope, maybe none-of-the-above.
“Good,” he said quietly.
Belle considered continuing the conversation, but she really was a coward when it came to defining this thing between them. Everything still felt so tenuous and uncertain, and she was afraid of ruining it.
She wasn’t ready to get off the Ferris wheel yet.
Especially when Victor lowered his head and kissed her.
It wasn’t his usual gentle morning kiss. This one was hungrier, and she couldn’t resist the temptation, couldn’t help responding to it.