“I think I do.”
By the time she finished telling him what had happened at Food Mart, he was clenching his jaw and holding his breath in the effort not to laugh.
“Everyone in the store heard me. I wanted to die. You’re laughing.”
“No.” He coughed, choked. “Does this mean I can expect your dad to show up at my door with a shotgun?”
She craned her head to look up at him. “How could he know you’re the one?”
He smoothed the hair from her cheek. “Half the town saw us together at Knockers, remember?”
“Oh, right. God, I’m sorry.”
“Hey, don’t apologize. People can gossip all they want. Actually, I find the whole thing kind of sweet.”
“Sweet?”
“Yeah.” He nuzzled her ear, nipped her earlobe, and felt her shiver. “It means you were thinking of me today, just like I was thinking of you.”
She smiled at this, her eyes drifting shut. “I guess it does.”
He found the side of her throat, licked that sensitive spot just below her ear, then kissed her, his lips brushing over the flutter of her pulse.
She let her head fall to the side, the wine glass tilting in her hand.
He took the glass from her and set it down on the coffee table. “Come.”
He helped her to her feet, then scooped her into his arms.
She gave a little gasp and grabbed onto him, her arms sliding behind his neck.
He kissed her forehead. “I’m not going to drop you.”
He carried her down the dark hallway to her bedroom, then lowered her to her bed and stretched himself out above her.
Everything else faded from his world as he kissed her, nothing in his mind but Ellie—her scent, her taste, the softness of her skin. He peeled off her T-shirt, unhooked her bra, then sat up and tore off his own shirt. For a moment, he stayed upright like that, letting her play, watching while the feel of his chest and abdomen turned her on.
It turned him on, too, the arousal on her face making him rock hard, his resolve not to rush this time fading fast. He reached down and cupped both of her breasts, teasing her nipples with his thumbs, watching as they puckered at his touch. Unable to stop himself, he caught her wrists in his hands, stretched her arms above her head, and lowered his mouth to taste her.
He teased first one tight crest and then the other, flicking them with his tongue, tugging on them with his lips, sucking them into his mouth.
She writhed beneath him, her eyes shut, little moans rolling from her throat with each exhalation.
He released her wrists and kissed his way down her belly to the waistband of her jeans. “These have to go.”
“Yes.” She wriggled out of her jeans and then her panties.
He yanked them over her ankles, tossed them aside, then made short work of his jeans and boxer briefs. Naked now, he let himself feast on the sight of her.
She tensed, her hands moving to shield her lower belly. She’d done that last night, too. He’d noticed but hadn’t said anything.
He stretched out beside her again, slipped his hands beneath hers, tracing her C-section scar with his fingers. “You’re beautiful, Ellie. You don’t have to hide anything from me.”
And then it struck him.
No other man had seen her scar and her stretch marks, not even the man who had caused them.
The thought brought a hitch to his chest.