She regarded him with those dark eyes of hers. He smiled fondly at the arousal he saw swimming there, the arousal that he helped create.
“Uh, yeah, there are about twenty kids downstairs, huh? I got a little carried away. Sorry.”
He laughed and chastely kissed her. “About as carried away as I, but you don’t see me complaining . . . well, I’m complaining only that we couldn’t, well, finish what we were doing.”
She laughed at that and hugged him. “We better find Luke.”
He nodded and she grabbed his hand, entwining her fingers between his. The smile she gave him was filled with so much happiness. Something he had not seen in years. Again with the years. He had to stop and think of “the years” and focus on now. The first steps had been made—they just had to keep climbing and things would work out all right. He was sure. This time he wasn’t running away and he wouldn’t let her run either. He would stay with her. Forever.
Ethan
“Where to?” Ethan asked, as he pulled the car out of Luke’s driveway. As much as he loved Kaitlyn, he desperately wanted to be alone with Mia.
“My suite,” she said simply.
“Okay,” he replied, not wanting to argue but secretly disappointed they weren’t going to his house. He wanted to get her back in his bed where she belonged, wanted her scent to cover the bed so every night when he fell asleep and every morning when he woke, he would smell her.
They drove back to downtown Indy in silence. Once off the highway, Ethan broke the quiet. “So, how long are you going to be in town?” he asked, glancing over at her. He recognized the hesitation on her face and knew her response wouldn’t make him happy.
“I’m leaving tonight actually,” she replied, staring out the window.
No. Not happy at all.
Leaving tonight?
He returned his eyes to the road, feeling the anger zoom through his body. When the hell did she plan on saying something? Ethan couldn’t believe how angry he felt at just finding this information out. Was he not important enough to know about this earlier? There had been so many opportunities for her to tell him while they were in bed together, during any of the car rides, in the shower.
“Tonight?” he asked, hoping he didn’t sound as upset as he felt, hoping he heard her wrong.
“Yeah, my flight is set for nine.”
“Heading back to California?”
“Yes,” she said, turning her head to the window. “I have some business that I couldn’t reschedule.”
“Are you coming back here?” he asked, gripping and re-gripping the steering wheel, actually afraid of what she might say.
“I’ll be back Tuesday afternoon.”
“Tuesday?” he asked, glancing over at her, relief flooding him.
“Yeah . . . I don’t know what your schedule is like, but . . . uh, I was hoping that I might be able to see you when I got back. Maybe Wednesday night for dinner at my hotel?” she asked, fiddling with her hands resting in her lap.
“Just dinner?” he said, placing his large hand over her clasped hands.
“And dessert, if you want,” she added, her voice low and purposefully seductive.
“I love your dessert.”
She leaned across the middle console and kissed his cheek, her hand on his thigh, surprising him when her hand grazed his hard cock, causing his foot to stumble off the gas pedal.
“Better be careful, suga,” he warned.
“Why’s that?” she asked, running her hand along the hidden length. His cock twitched in the direction of her touch.
Damn,
he couldn’t wait to get her back to her room. He, just like his cock, wanted to be inside of her so badly.
He didn’t speak, he acted, his hand cupping her between her legs, and rubbed his hand hard. Her surprised intake of breath followed by a soft moan against his cheek told him he was spot on.
“Listen to you with your cute, little moans,” he said, rubbing a little faster. Her head fell to her chest, her eyes closed. Ethan pressed harder and her mouth dropped open. The sweet sounds stopped and he knew she was close to coming, so he stilled his hand.
“What do you want, Mia?”
“You! Oh, God, you!” she screamed as he resumed pressure on just the right spot. He continued for a little while longer, building her desire to a peak yet again, and stopped, removing his hand before she could come.
“We’re here,” he announced, pulling into a parking spot. She slumped into the seat and let out a very frustrated sigh, followed quickly by a few choice curse words before they exited the car.
They hurried from the car into the hotel and to her room. As he pushed her into the room, talking things out was the furthest thing from his mind. She barely made it five feet into the room when he lifted her in his arms.
“Ethan!” she gasped, her arms snaking around his neck. He leaned his head in and quickly smashed her lips with his own.
“Just finishing what we started in the car, suga,” he replied, carrying her the distance to the bedroom.
Tossing her on the bed, he began to remove his clothes, hoping she would follow his lead. He needed to see her naked like his life depended on it. She hurriedly unfastened her jeans, but stopped, her eyes latched on to him as he yanked his shirt off. Grabbing the hem of her pants, Ethan pulled them right off her and joined her on the bed.
He captured her mouth in a fierce kiss while his hand traveled down her covered torso to her hip and when his fingers made contact with the thin fabric of her thong, he tugged, ripping the fabric. And with one swift thrust, he entered her. His groan mingled with her scream of pleasure.
Mia wrapped her arms and legs tightly around him as he moved explosively inside her, her nails digging deep into his bare back. It didn’t hurt. Fuck. It only drove him wilder. He rammed into her over and over, her hips matching his frenzied pace, the slap of their bodies as loud as their moans filling the room.
Her breath came in long, passion-filled whimpers as she grew closer to her release, until she finally exploded, her body spasming around him. His long, guttural groan followed as he shattered hard inside of her, one, two . . . three times.
“Wow!” she exclaimed as he collapsed on top of her. Mia cradled him in her arms, her fingers toying with his hair as she held him to her chest. He went to move but she held tight.
“No. Not yet. Don’t leave me,” she said, a touch of panic in her voice and a reminder to him that they still needed to talk. He could see that the unknown was feeding her fear.
“I’m not going anywhere, suga,” Ethan reassured her, nuzzling her slick neck.
After a few more minutes, he tried to roll over, yet she still resisted. “I must be squishing you.”
“A little,” Mia admitted and loosened her grip on him. He rolled to the side and pulled her to him. They lay silently while catching their breath. He closed his eyes and simply enjoyed her hand moving along his chest. His eyes opened when she stopped. Her hand hovered oddly over his stomach, her eyes scrunched in concentration, before it began to beat what seemed like a song on his chest.
“What’s going on in that head of yours, Mia?”
“I was trying to magically pack my bags,” she said, looking up at him, the content smile on her face making his cock come to life again. “I really like where I am right now and I don’t want to leave.”
“Then don’t.”
“I wish,” she said, brushing her lips against his.
“What’s in L.A.?”
“One of the final steps in my plan.”
“Oh really?” he said, his curiosity piqued.
“Yep.”
“You going to tell me more?”
“Nope,” she said, kissing him one more time before hopping out of bed. He watched her walk to the closet, her bare ass barely covered by her top and his dick couldn’t help but react. As much as he wanted to love her again, his body needed a rest and they needed to talk. What he needed was a fucking distraction.
“I was thinking about something,” he said from his comfy spot on the bed. “I’m not used to kissing a girl with glasses. I think I may need some practice.”
She stuck her tongue out at him.
So mature yet so very much her.
Teasing her was too much fun.
“I’m glad you finally went to get some glasses. I didn’t want you falling out a window or something.”
“Down stairs was bad enough,” she replied. “I’ve got very bad eyes and never knew it. It’s like a whole new world.”
Ethan started to laugh. He couldn’t help it. The awe in her voice did him in.
“Stop laughing at me. I still find you handsome wearing these, so be thankful.”
He grabbed an accent pillow and threw a perfect spiral right at her ass. “Touchdown,” he said, raising his hands high in the air. Her mouth dropped open in surprise.
“My ass is not a target,” she grumbled.
“If you say so.”
Mia finally came back to the bed with her suitcase and gave him a playful angry face.
“Make yourself useful and order us some dinner while I pack.”
“I like when you’re bossy.”
“I know you do,” she shot back.
He laughed deeply and picked up the phone. “What do you want?”
“A soup and salad. I had way too much dessert the past twenty-four hours.”
He chuckled at her unintended joke and placed the order. After the call, Ethan gingerly got out of the bed and searched for his clothes. He dressed and then went about helping her pack, the nice business-type outfits she was packing making him even more curious about this trip.
“This isn’t your normal kind of thing, is it? You’re being quite serious and grown up.”
“It was bound to happen at some point,” she said, raising her eyebrows.
“Tell me about this business you’ve got to take care of. Is Allie going with you?”
“She is.”
Ah-ha!
Ethan could get all his answers from Allie. He took his phone and started to text her.
“She won’t tell you. I made her promise. Top secret.”
“Damn!” he swore and slipped his phone back in his pocket. “Does it have to do with your music?”
“It does.”
“You’re not going to give me anything else, are you?”
“Nope,” she paused as she slipped a pair of turquoise underwear up her long legs. Ethan wanted to go up to her and rip those silky panties right off. “But if it goes how I want, it’ll be a good thing.”
He sure hoped so.
Mia
The pounding on the door alerted them to room service and Ethan took leave to answer the door. Mia stared after him for a long moment, her heart fighting with her brain about what actions to take. Her mind knew she had to go and take care of the contract negotiations, but her heart didn’t want to leave Ethan.
She wanted to stay in bed with him and make love over and over and over again. And when they were done with that, she wanted to do it all over again. Mia wanted to stay in his arms, feel his steady heart beat beneath her hand, to see the love in his eyes.
But she knew these negotiations would be for a better future for her . . . and ultimately, she hoped, her and Ethan together.
“Mia! Food!” Ethan’s announcement broke her reverie. She needed to finish getting ready. Going to the closet, she picked out a comfortable outfit for the flight. She loved to wear long skirts because she hated the way pants constricted her. Choosing a gray and white chevron maxi skirt, a white tank top and a fitted jean jacket, she got dressed, then placed her shoes and purse by the suitcase before heading down to the living area.
When Mia reached the bottom of the staircase, she smiled at the scene before her. Ethan was resting on the sofa, his head back and his sexy, amber eyes closed. Her poor, exhausted man. It had been a crazy twenty-four hours. They might have slept three hours last night and that was a high-end estimate.
Ethan looked so comfortable and all she could think about was joining him. She quietly crossed the room and stood in front of him. His eyes crept open and he looked up at her.
“Come here, suga,” he said, reaching for her hand, pulling her to him. Mia tugged up her skirt before sitting on his lap, cradling his legs between hers.
“Tired?” she asked, running the back of her finger along his cheek, his eyes fighting to stay open.
He shook his head slightly. “No, just thinking.”