Taking His Hand (Under His Roof #2) (16 page)

I like to remember the best, though.

“
So, Marilyn told me you two went ring shopping,” she says in a low voice so no one can overhear.

“
Did she?” I frown and look out of the kitchen, across the room. Marilyn glances up, meets my eyes, and her expression goes from happy to guilty. I glare. She shrugs.

I turn back to Mom. “She wasn’t supposed to. I wanted it to be a surprise.”

“
It’s okay. I’m glad she did. I want to show you something.” She slips her hand in mine and leads me down the hall to her bedroom. Inside, she shuts the door quietly and walks to her bureau. In the upper left drawer, she feels under the neatly folded clothing and fishes out a small box.

Opening it, she turns back to me.

“
This belonged to my grandmother. I never saw her without it on. When she died, this was the one item I asked to keep. When Marilyn told me about you and Rachel, it was the first thing I thought of. I’ll understand if you don’t like it. But if you want to give this to Rachel, it’s yours.”

It is
beautiful
.

“
Is it silver?” I ask, gingerly picking it up to take a closer look.

“
Platinum, David,” Mom replies, as though I should have known that.

It’s a thin band, perfect for Rachel’s delicate fingers. The diamond sits in prongs above the ring, sparkling at me. On either side are two small opals, ‘oval cut’, as I learned from Marilyn the other day, with flashes of blue and green and red that seem to glow. The platinum swirls over one opal and under the other, circling the diamond in a leaf pattern.

I shake my head. “Mom, this is too much. It’s too…” I don’t even know what to say.

“
Perfect? You’re right, it is perfect. It would make me so happy if Rachel wore it, David. My little way of welcoming her to the family.”

I hug her tight, not taking my eyes off the ring, and ask the question I can only ask my mom.

“
What if she says no?” I whisper.

“
Living life is facing risk,” she says, not really answering me.

I follow her back to the kitchen, the ring nestled safely in my pocket.

When we’re all crowded around Mom and Dad’s mahogany dining room table, barely squeezing in, I imagine what it’ll be like when there’s a little boy or girl sitting on Erin’s lap. Our family is about to change. We’re evolving.

I look at Rachel, her vibrant smile as she listens to some joke Ryan’s making, and I just know that she’s going to be a part of that evolution.

She has to be, because I have no idea what I’d do without her.

On the way home, Rachel talks non-stop about Aria and how excited she is, and then about the beach and how Samantha and Sam’s boyfriend (whose name I always forget) are going, and how Marilyn made this funny comment about so-and-so.

I eye her suspiciously.

“
How much wine did you have?”

“
Four glasses,” she says, smiling at me smugly. “You were with me!”

Rolling my eyes and laughing, I nod and make a note to add clauses to the rules. Like, don’t get drunk for no reason other than to spite me. However, lucky for her, I find her behavior cute. Like she’s asking for trouble, but in a very careful way.

At home, we bee-line for the bedroom after saying hello to Sparky and grabbing a glass of water. As much as I want to get the amazing red dress off Rachel’s body as fast as possible, I slip into the bathroom to get naked myself, taking care to fold my jeans and put them where Rachel won’t mess with them. I don’t want her finding the ring before the right time.

Rachel is completely irresistible ninety-nine percent of the time. Rachel, naked and tipsy, is
insanely
irresistible. She starts humming and doing a little dance for me, the dress now a heap on the floor, as she moves her hips from side to side.

“
God, you’re sexy,” I growl, picking her up and throwing her onto the bed.

She squeals and laughs as I climb on top of her. I kiss her hard and she moans into my mouth, quivering under the weight of my body. I know she can feel my erection on her thigh.

“
I love that you’re mine,” I breathe, breaking away from the kiss and sitting up long enough to ease her black panties down her long, smooth legs. Then I lay back beside her, hooking my leg over her waist, pulling her close so her body, her heat, presses against mine.

She stares up at me, into my eyes. “I love you,” she says.

“
I love you, too, baby.”

Slowly, teasingly, I touch her with the very tips of my fingers. I run my fingernails across her breasts, just flickering against her nipple, and a soft gasp escapes her lips. The movement of her hips, gyrating ever so slightly, is subtle. So subtle I doubt she even knows she’s doing it. Her thighs part when my hands make my way down, down, over her mound, between her legs…

“
Rachel, you’re so beautiful,” I whisper, pushing a finger inside her. I slide down and flick my tongue along her clit, sucking her as I take her with my finger.

She arches her back and moans quietly.

I slide another finger inside and her moans deepen, strengthen. I’m working slowly, building her up. She’s so much fun to tease, to play with.

After just a few more minutes she looks down at me, pleading with her eyes.

“
What do you want?” I ask, though I know full well what she wants.

“
Please…please fuck me,” she whispers, her voice throaty, full of lust.

When I slip inside of her, both of us gasp in pleasure. She comes almost instantly, wrapping her legs around me tight as her entire body tenses and trembles.

“
Keep going,” she begs.

I fuck her like that, through three more orgasms, before rolling over and pulling her with me. She sits on top of me, staring into my eyes, moving her hips against me.

God, nothing compares to this. Watching her body, her soul, as I’m inside her. Watching her use my erection for her pleasure…she leans back just a little and groans as another orgasm ripples through her body.

I can’t take it anymore. I grip her hips hard and explode inside her, making her cry out in raw pleasure as her orgasm rides through mine.

We collapse, our legs mingling, our arms wrapped around each other. I’m still inside her, semi-hard, and I feel her pulse around me.

I could do this every night for the rest of my life and never once get sick of it.

“
So, they’re heading to the beach, huh?” I say, bringing us both back to reality.

“
Yeah.”

“
Should we join them?”

She pulls her head from my chest and looks at me excitedly. “Seriously?”

“
Yeah. Why not? A friend of mine from college actually has a house there he rents out. I’ll see if it’s available.”

“
Sam’s gonna freak. This is exciting!”

“
His house is pretty big, too. Maybe I’ll see if Mitchell and Erin want to come. Or would that intrude on Sam’s plan?”

“
Not at all! Sam loves your family. Maybe I should call her,” she says, starting to sit up.

“
No, no, baby…” I grasp her torso and pull her back down, into my arms. “Call her tomorrow.”

I hold her until she relaxes completely. Soon, I hear her steady breathing and know she’s asleep.

Laying there, staring at her, I think about getting down on one knee and holding the ring out to her. The proposal.

I sit up straight, completely jolted out of the post-sex late-night haze I’d been in. I’m wide awake now, and I reach for my cell phone, my brain buzzing with an idea.

Creeping out of the bedroom so I don’t disturb Rachel, I call my friend, Darrell, who owns the beach-house.

“
Sure, you can use the house. Key is in the normal spot. Hey, while you’re there, will you check for flooding by the back patio? There was a huge storm a few days ago and I haven’t gotten out there to make sure there’s no damage.”

“
Of course, I’ll make sure everything’s okay,” I assure him. “Listen, Darrell…I need a favor.”

Darrell, who’s been a friend for years but whom I have barely even mentioned Rachel to, listens quietly as I explain my plan.

And of course, as I’d expect, he readily agrees to help.

~11~

Rachel

Before turning her essay in to Sandy, Aria gives it to me. I read it over my lunch break. It’s got heart, but, as I’d expect from Aria, it needs some editing.

On my way out for the day, I swing by Jeremy’s office to find her.

“
Hey, can you email me the file? If you want, I can suggest some edits. It’ll just be easier if I can type them right in.”

“
You mean change it?” She looks a bit panicked.

“
Yeah, but you’ll be able to see the changes. You’ll have to agree to them. There’s a thing you’ll click.”

“
Oh…okay. Yeah, sure. Thanks.”

I smile and turn to leave.

“
Rachel?” Aria’s soft voice calls me back.

“
Yeah?”

“
Did you hear of any other openings? For maybe…transferring me?”

“
Not yet,” I say, “but I’m keeping my eyes open.”

“
Okay.”

I really hope Aria can hang on until she finishes the design program. My new secretary, Terry, on the other hand, better not be hiding any secret ambitions, because I’d be lost without her. Since Terry’s been on board, I’ve noticed improvements everywhere: my team shows up for meetings on time; I never seem to be out of sync with my clients’ latest whims, and we even manage to get birthday cards signed and delivered to peoples’ desks on the right day.

Then again, there’s no way in hell I’d want to spill my spanking stories to Terry. No. Having Aria morph into a friend, and actually find her happy place at Lakeside, is worth way more now that I can share the truth about David a little more openly. I don’t think I want to hear the details about her getting spanked by him, and I may never get quite that comfortable. But at least I’ve got someone I can turn to, who makes me feel like a little bit less of a freak. I’m grateful for that at least.

“
What’re you up to?” David asks as I’m dutifully clicking away at my keyboard, editing Aria’s essay.

“
Scholarship essay,” I say, not looking up.

He leans over my shoulder and pecks me on the cheek.

“
For Aria? Have I told you lately how glad I am you’re helping her?” He leans in for a more lingering kiss on the lips.

“
Yeah, yeah.”

“
I mean it, babe.” He looks a little hurt. “It’s really great that you’ve found a way to be OK with all this.”

“
Sorry,” I mutter.

“
How are things with her? And her boss?”

I shrug. “Not the best. She’s surviving.”

“
Anything you can do to help?”

“
No,” I say flatly. Not that it’s any of his business.

“
Rachel…”

“
Everything set for the weekend?” I ask, changing the subject.

David takes an audibly deep breath, like he’s trying to have patience with me, and I roll my eyes.

“
Everything’s set. Darrell is giving us a huge discount. Basically he’s just charging us enough so he can pay his cleaners.”

“
Mitchell and Erin are coming?”