Taming Lo: A You and I Novel (15 page)

“
Dax.” She
moans when I pull her nipple into my mouth and roll my tongue over
the tip. Every noise she makes, every whimper and moan, makes my need
for her that much stronger.

I have never had a
woman affect me the way she does. Every touch sends heat coursing
through my body. Every kiss makes me want more. Every
moment
makes me want more. It's
exhilarating and yet terrifying at the same time. But I don't know
how much longer I can let this go on.

It was my weakness that prevented me from simply walking
away from her the first time. My selfishness that made me determined
to have her again. And now my fear that will ultimately ruin
everything.....

Because I am slowly realizing that by consuming my mind
and my body, she is also slowly consuming my heart.

Chapter
Twenty-Two

Lo

“
So the doctor
said if I don't go into labor naturally before the 10th, they are
going to induce.” Anna says, her voice both nervous and
excited.

“
Two weeks. I
can't believe it. It seems like just yesterday you found out you were
pregnant.” I say into the phone, having a hard time grasping
how quickly time seems to be flying by.

“
I know.”
She sighs. “But I am so ready for this to be over. I want my
body back.” She whines. “I want to have sex with my
husband without him worrying about hurting the baby. I just want to
feel like a woman again and not someone's living space.”

“
You are too
much.” I laugh, looking up from the couch when a knock on the
door echos through my apartment.

“
You say that,
just wait until you have a child.” She warns.

“
Well
considering I am never having children.” I remind her, peeling
myself off of the couch.

“
You say that
now. But the last time I checked, there are a lot of things happening
you said never would.” She laughs lightly. “How long have
you and Dax been hooking up now? Two weeks? Three? You went from
never sleeping with the same man twice to sleeping with one man
what..... A hundred times by now?”

“
Dear lord
woman. Do you think the only thing we do is fuck?” I laugh,
peeling the door open to find a very handsome Dax standing in my
doorway wearing dark jeans, a black jacket, and a very large boyish
grin.

“
Are you telling
me that I'm wrong?” She laughs.

“
Now, I didn't
say that.” I chuckle lightly, gesturing for Dax to come inside.
“And speaking of the devil.... I have a visitor.” I wink
at Dax and mouth
Anna
so
he knows who I am talking to.

“
Then
I guess I should let you get to it then.” She drops her voice
low. “At least one of us gets to have some fun.”

“
You're
almost done.” I remind her. “Hang in there.”

“
Yeah.
Yeah. Go. Have your wild sex you asshole. I will talk to you later.”

“
Love
you.” I chime playfully.

“
Shut
it hussy. I love you.” She laughs, disconnecting the call.

I slide the phone into the back of my jeans and turn to
find Dax leaning casually against the breakfast bar with an Apple in
his hand. Smiling widely, he takes a big bite.

“
Yes,
come in and help yourself to my food.” I joke, crossing the
space towards him.

“
You
want it back?” He asks, holding the bitten apple out to me.

“
I'm
good. Thanks.” I laugh, shaking my head. “What are you
doing here anyways?”

“
It's
amazing outside. I thought I would stop by and see if you wanted to
go on a hike with me.” He smiles, taking another bite of his
apple.

“
A
hike?” I question, gesturing to myself. “Do I look like a
hiking type of girl to you?”

“
Where's
your sense of adventure?” He laughs. “Come on. Come with
me.” He pouts out his bottom lip playfully.

“
Only
if you promise never to do that again.” I laugh, pointing at
his mouth.

“
Done.”
He turns, tossing the apple core across the kitchen. It lands
directly in the trash can before he turns back towards me, shaking
his head when he sees me slipping on my favorite pair of flip flops.
“You are probably going to want to wear tennis shoes.” He
says, gesturing to my feet.

“
Please.”
I wave my hand through the air, grabbing my hooded sweatshirt off the
back of the couch. “I can do anything in flip flops. Besides, I
have flip flop withdrawals during the winter and it's finally warm
enough to wear them.”

“
Suit
yourself.” He crosses the room and pulls open the door. “But
don't say I didn't warn you.”

****

“
Dax. Put me
down.” I laugh, smacking at his backside as he walks down a
wooded trail with me tossed over his shoulder.

“
And listen to
you complain about how bad your feet hurt for the next mile? No
thanks.” He laughs below me, shifting my weight.

“
I complained
once.” I argue, hanging behind him like a sack of potatoes.

“
Try more like
once every five minutes. I tried to tell you to wear tennis shoes.”
He jokes, laughing when I smack at him again. “Besides, it
won't be that much longer.” He reassures me.

Today has been the first really nice day of Spring and
as much as I love the sunshine and the birds chirping, hiking through
a damn forest is not really my idea of a good time. But Dax has
promised me the entire way that it will be worth it.

I hate that I love being with him like this. Truth is, I
would do anything with this man if it meant that I got to spend time
with him. Between my schedule and his, we rarely get to see each
other outside of the darkness of our bedrooms. Not that I'm
complaining. I rather enjoy our late night get togethers. But it's
times like these that I really get to see Dax for the man he is.

While he may come across as more than a little
intimidating at the club, I have learned that he is very different
from the person that he actually shows people. At the club he's all
business, all the time. Well, with the exception of when he finds
time to pay me a quick visit in my dressing room that is. He rarely
smiles and I don't think I have ever heard him have a personal
conversation with anyone outside of Bentley. But out here, that suit
wearing control freak is no where to be found. Out here, he is all
smiles and laughs. Joking and sharing playful banter with me the full
five miles up the wooded trail.

“
Here we are.”
Dax sets me to my feet just as we reach a small clearing. Grabbing my
shoulders, he turns me forward facing. The moment the lake comes into
view, I can't help but smile.

“
Wow. This is
incredible.” I say, taking a step forward to look out at the
beautiful water that is stretched out for miles in front of us. “I
mean, I've seen Lake Michigan before but not like this.”

“
This is the
best spot to get a good view from afar.” Dax says, stepping up
next to me, his hand brushing against mine. I try to ignore the way
my skin prickles and my breathing accelerates from such an innocent
touch, but there's nothing I can do to stop it.

“
I can see
that.” I say, looking at the wooded area behind us and then
back out over the water. A breeze whips around us and a cold chill
runs through my body causing me to shudder slightly.

“
You cold?”
Dax asks, not waiting for my answer before wrapping his arm around my
shoulder and pulling me into his side, the contact instantly warming
me. While the weather is nice, it is still a bit chilly, especially
with the cool breeze coming in off of the water.

“
I'm better
now.” I say, snuggling deeper into his side and wrapping my arm
around his waist, securing my body to his.

It terrifies me how easy it is to fall into this
comfortable affection with Dax. When I spend too much time thinking
about it, about how he makes me feel, I panic. But when I just let
things be what they are, I find myself happier than I think I have
ever been.

“
What are you
thinking about?” Dax asks, breaking into my thoughts. I look up
to find him staring down at me, an amused smile pulling up the
corners of his mouth.

“
You.” I
admit, nudging him with my hip.

“
What about me?”
He asks, holding my gaze.

“
Nothing.”
I shake my head, looking back out over the water.

Dax drops his arm from my shoulder and turns towards me.
I feel his eyes on the side of my face but I make no attempt to look
in his direction. That is, until he reaches out and grabs my arm,
gently spinning me towards him.

“
Why do you
always do that?” He asks, tilting my chin upwards.

“
Do what?”

“
Shut down when
I ask you something that makes you uncomfortable.” He asks, his
forehead scrunching together.

“
I don't.”
I say, shaking my head like I have no idea what he's talking about.

“
Yes you do.”
He laughs lightly. “You're doing it right now.”

“
I don't know. I
guess I just get nervous.” I admit, feeling the heat rush to my
cheeks.

“
I didn't know
you
got
nervous.” He gives me a lopsided smile.

“
You
make me nervous.” I admit, my
eyes immediately breaking away from his.

“
Hey.” He
says, pulling my gaze back to his face. “Would it make you feel
any better if I said that you make me nervous too?” He asks,
his smile remaining in tact.

“
Yeah right.”
I playfully shove him. “The only thing men get nervous about is
the first time a woman sees their junk.” I laugh when his eyes
widen.

“
Junk?” He
laughs. “Pretty sure there are better words for it than that.”

“
Fine. Dick.
Cock. Man Sword.” I laugh when he coughs playfully.

“
Man Sword?”
He laughs a deep, full belly laugh, the sound echoing around us. I
can't help the huge smile that sound brings to my face. It has
quickly become one of my favorite things to hear.

“
I have heard it
called just about everything.” I shake my head. “Anyways,
as I was saying... Men only get nervous when they are worried that
the woman will be displeased with what they have to offer.... down
below.” I laugh. “Women on the other hand, get nervous
about everything.”

“
Let me let you
in on a little secret about men.” He pulls me closer to him.
“We get nervous just as much as women do, we simply find ways
to hide it, control it. Where as women wear it for the world to see.”

“
So I really
make you nervous?” I ask jokingly, giving him a disbelieving
look as I take a step towards him, eliminating the tiny space between
us.

Leaning down, his lips brush gently against mine before
he whispers, “Extremely.”

Wrapping my hands around the back of his neck, I pull
him down further and deepen the kiss, my entire body igniting when he
wraps me in his muscular arms and pulls me tightly into his hard
frame.

It's hard to forget why I closed myself off to begin
with when I find myself in moments like this. Moments that just
seem.... Well, perfect. Moments that I never want to end. Moments
that actually take my breath away. But these moments also remind me
of an earlier time, a happier one, before everything fell apart. A
time when I was stupid enough to believe that the happy moments would
go on forever. And as easy as it would be to lose myself to Dax, to
this, to the feelings he stirs deep inside of me, I also know the
power that would give him.

I trust Dax. More than
I have trusted a person in a very long time. But that doesn't make me
blind to what he is capable of. No matter how good things seem right
now, people always find a way of hurting those who aren't expecting
it. Which is why I am
always
expecting
it. I am always waiting for the other shoe to drop. For the big
reveal of the darkness that lies within the man that I find myself
falling harder for each and every day.

I'm not blind to my feelings. I am not stupid enough to
try to convince myself that I don't feel anything for Dax. I know I
do. And I know those feelings run deep. But those feelings change
nothing. I will enjoy this time while it lasts, but I am already
preparing myself for the end.