Beautiful Dreams (The Beautiful Series) (3 page)

I had to give him props.
Identity Thief
was undeniably hilarious. In fact, we rolled with laughter throughout most of the movie.
How could someone not love Melissa McCarthy and Jason Bateman together in one movie?

Kyle and I even managed to sneak in a tender kiss and a gentle caress here and there. It was relaxing to just have some downtime. Thank goodness Kyle’s couch was extremely wide, so both of us could lie next to each other with my top leg draped over him.

After the movie was over, I lifted my head off Kyle’s chest and glanced up at him.

“I think it’s fair to say that it was definitely a great comedy,” he said.

“It was!” I grinned. “Melissa McCarthy and Jason Bateman put together on one screen is priceless.”

Kyle chuckled. “True.” He wrapped his hands around my lower back. “Want to soak in the bathtub with me before bed?”

“That. Sounds. Wonderful,” I said, emphasizing each word while staring at his delicious mouth. Unable to resist, I kissed his lips just once before I started to stand up.

He groaned, his eyes filled with heat. “One kiss? That’s it?”

“Yep.” I gave him a sexy wink. “The rest will be waiting for you in the warm bath you promised.” I extended my hand and enclosed it over his before tugging hard. “Up you go.”

I wasn’t able to budge him the slightest inch until he willingly moved. Kyle chortled, rising to his feet. He quickly gathered me in his arms and nuzzled my neck.

“What if I want one more kiss? Right. Now,” he said, his tone rough and playful.

I shook my head while his hands traveled up either side of my waist, caressing me with such tender strokes that I could feel his desire through them.

My breathing slowed while I tried to concentrate on his question. “And if I say no and make you wait?”

Kyle’s throaty chuckle made me quiver right on the spot. His lips parted, and I could feel his warm breath on my skin. He slowly skimmed his way over to my jaw, making my heart pound wildly in my chest.

“Would you be able to resist?” he asked in a husky tone.

No.

An unexplainable gravitational pull made me lean in closer. Our lips met, and I kissed him unhurriedly, feeling his tongue caress mine. His grip tightened around my waist as if he wanted no distance between us. I moaned into his mouth while meeting his tongue stroke for stroke. Need and desire stirred in my core. When our kiss finally ended, we were both panting heavily.

“Ready for that bath, beautiful?” he asked while releasing a slow smile.

I nodded, breathless.

Kyle took my hand in his and led me into his bedroom. As we entered the bathroom, he removed his T-shirt with grace. As he reached over to start the bath water, I stood perfectly still, admiring his physique. Turning to face me, his hand came to his belt buckle. I licked my upper lip while imagining him standing before me completely naked. I wanted to run my hands up and down his bare chest, feeling the hard contours of his firm muscles.

“Are you going to join me or admire me from afar?” he teased.

I lifted my gaze to meet his. “Join you, of course,” I answered quietly.

“Then, you better start undressing,” he commanded, dropping his pants to the floor.

The way his white briefs hung from his hips was so sexy. I could see his firm erection beneath the thin cotton. It was utterly distracting.

“Starting with your shirt,” he added.

I kept my eyes on his while I gradually lifted my hands to the top button of my silk shirt. Then, I opened each button, one after another. He wasted no time in ridding himself of his briefs while his eyes burned into mine. As I let my shirt fall to the floor, he took slow, deliberate steps toward me. His yearning for me was evident in his posture and intense eyes.

I was mesmerized with this beautiful man before me, and he was all mine. My pulse pumped furiously throughout my veins. I stood before him in my white lace bra and slim-fit Gap jeans, feeling exposed even though I was the one still mostly covered.

Kyle’s hands went to my hips and then slid to my stomach. “Let’s get you undressed,” he said in a raw voice.

He grasped the button on my jeans and gently tugged, jolting me forward, pressing the length of his firm erection against me. I lifted my hand to his shoulder in an effort to balance myself. Taking my panties along with my jeans, he lowered them down my legs, and I stepped out from them, one foot at a time. His hands traveled up my legs, caressing my sides, as he rose to his feet until he reached around my back to unclasp my bra. Then, he lifted his hands to my shoulders and tugged down each of the straps until I was bare before his eyes. It was such an intimate act for him to undress me so slowly and knowingly as if he was memorizing every inch of me.

Kyle ran his hand down my cheek with the backs of his fingers while gazing deep into my eyes. “You are so beautiful, Lily,” he said just above a whisper. “Every time I look at you, I think it will get easier, but your beauty continually awes me.”

I smiled at him affectionately. “The same could be said about you,” I replied quietly.

“Thank you.” He let out a low chuckle. “Ready for a bath?”

“Mmm, definitely.”

Taking my hand with his, he led me over to the bathtub. I stepped in, and then Kyle came in after me and leaned back against the side. After sitting down, he pulled me against his chest and wrapped his arms around me.

The warm water felt heavenly against my tired, aching muscles. Traveling seemed like such a simple act, yet it was so exhausting. I flipped over onto my stomach and supported myself with my hands on his chest while straddling him. The serene setting of his bathroom mixed with the warm steam from the bath was blissfully relaxing.

As I gazed into his brownish-green eyes, I once again thought about our short time together and how much he had become an enduring part of my life. We still knew so little about each other, yet we had come such a long way in our relationship. I loved the intimacy we felt for one another.

However, something was missing, causing my constant reservations. I yearned for a deeper connection with him. Kyle seemed so reserved, shielding himself with thick layers of armor. Protecting himself from what, I wasn’t sure. I believed he had dark secrets of his own. I needed to reach him on a more profound level by peeling back those sealed layers around his heart one by one.

I was unable to hold back any longer. I needed him to open up even if he just started with some small fact. “Tell me something about you that I don’t already know,” I said to him in a quiet voice.

Kyle stilled, his muscles slightly contracting with what I assumed was nervousness. “That sounds like a loaded statement,” he said hesitantly.

“It kind of is.” I smiled gently. “There is still so much about you that is a mystery to me,” I replied, placing my hand over his heart. I could feel his heart beating with force under my palm. “I need you to let me in, Kyle,” I added.

“Hmm, a mystery?” He chortled and then a shy smile tugged at the corner of his lips. “I think I like being a mystery.”

He paused for a brief moment, and I wasn’t sure if he was going to elaborate.

Then, he continued, “But I think I could enlighten you on a few parts of my past. Do you want to know about my childhood or adult years?”

I had a strong feeling that most of his internal struggles came from his Army days, so I decided to start at the beginning.

“Tell me about your first days in the Army. Did you like it right away?”

He nodded. “I did. I knew I made the right decision for me from day one. I met so many young men and women on my first day of boot camp, I could barely remember half of their names. But we were all in the same boat, trying to retain all the information they gave us while showing us around the base.”

His fingertips slowly started to make constant circles across my shoulder blades as I listened intently.

“It was where I was supposed to be in that particular moment in my life. I was a young man, and while I had guidance and discipline from my parents, I felt I needed more. I wanted to be independent and have a greater purpose. Those first few weeks of boot camp were vigorous and intense, but I loved the constant challenge, mentally and physically.”

“Was it hard to be away from your family at first?”

“Sometimes,” he answered thoughtfully. “It was new to me, and it was also a quick change of pace, but I liked it right away. It kept me busy. I had an opportunity to meet so many great men and women, who I still keep in close contact with even now.”

“Were you ever deployed?” I asked.

Kyle shifted uncomfortably. “Yes.”

I frowned, wondering about all the possibilities of what he must have been exposed to or what he had to do while serving and protecting his country. I wanted to help him by pushing all the bad memories far, far away.

“How many times?” The question was out of my mouth before I could stop it.

“Three,” he answered in a distant tone.

I couldn’t help but feel like a black cloud was looming over us. I was so eager to know more, but I debated if I should continue to pry or let the topic go for now. I did not want to push him too far on our first day of living together. He had assured me he would open up when we were in California. However, I sincerely doubted that meant during the first twenty-four hours.

“Lily…” Kyle started gently.

His eyes were plagued with sadness and so many different emotions I couldn’t place.

“I did promise you that I’d open up more about my military days…but I need more time. It’s not something I like to talk about.” He closed the gap between us and kissed me affectionately. “What other questions do you have for now?”

I pondered over what important aspects of his life I truly wanted to know more about. More than anything, I just wanted him to let me in. I remembered he’d briefly told me that he had once talked with Jeanine, the therapist, when he arrived home from the Army. I assumed that he must have had some lingering post-traumatic stress regarding his deployments. Wanting to tread lightly, I changed the topic for now, in hopes of giving him time to think about what he wanted to share with me.

“Okay, I can give you more time, but I hope that you’ll let me in sometime soon,” I said, trying to hide the hurt in my voice.

“Thank you for understanding.” Kyle tenderly kissed my cheek. “And I
will
let you in. I’m just not used to sharing that part of myself with anyone, not even my family.”

I nodded acceptingly, noting that he had never told his family about his time in the Army. I wondered how they had handled not knowing about his time spent away from them and if they had ever worried about him since he returned.

“Okay,” I breathed, smiling sincerely at him. I did not want to force him. I wanted him to be comfortable and willing when he finally did open up to me. “You have mentioned building more instead of fixing up buildings. Are you planning to start that soon?”

“Yes,” Kyle replied, a genuine smile instantly forming on his face. “Your cousins, Jason and Damon, and I talked about that a great deal.”

“I heard tidbits here and there,” I acknowledged.

“I think we could all put our minds together and build something great.”

“Would you work together on constructing commercial buildings or target more residential homes?” I asked, intrigued.

“First, we talked about building a large construction company.”

His eyes brightened with boyish excitement. It was a true sight to behold. I was momentarily distracted from my original thought.

Construction company?
“Okay…I’m lost.” I laughed.

Kyle chuckled, bending forward to kiss me. He lifted his right hand and began stroking my hair tenderly.

“Jason, Damon, and I discussed combining our businesses to make one large corporation. Between the three of us, we could increase our resources, and as a result, we would be able to offer our clients more. We could build houses for individual clients, and we’d have the resources to acquire commercial buildings for interested businesses.”

“So, are you planning to build a headquarters?” I asked. My mind was reeling, attempting to keep up. In my eavesdropping, I’d apparently missed a crucial part where the three of them discussed working together very closely.

“Something like that,” he answered.

I quirked up an eyebrow at him. “I can see that putting the three of you together in the same room was…interesting.”

His expression broke into an adorable grin. “It was productive.”

“So, when does all of this planning start?”

Kyle’s grin widened while his eyes glittered like a young boy who had just won first place in a race. “Now.”

Whoa. Now?
“I thought you had other projects starting?”

Kyle nodded in agreement. “I do. I still plan to hand over the large construction contract to Abbey since she put in all the hours and closed it. She will be able to run the job as she sees fit, and she’ll collect on the profit. She deserves the chance for all the hard work she has put in over the last couple of years.” He let out an affectionate laugh, clearly thinking of his sister. “Not to mention, if I don’t keep her busy and make it worth her while, she could just end up being my competition someday.” His eyes danced with humor. “She’s that good.”

I laughed. “Scared of a little competition, are we?”

He chuckled. “Definitely.”

“So, where will you build your main office with Jason and Damon, considering they live in Colorado?”

“We haven’t worked out all the details, but the last time the three of us talked, we were leaning toward California.”

I was positively stunned. “Here?”

“Yep.” Kyle smiled. “Jason even talked about moving here sometime in the future if things go according to plan. He said he’d love to live near the coast. Damon even kicked the idea around. He’ll at least visit frequently for the architectural aspects of the projects.”

“Huh,” I murmured.

That was news to me. Jason or Damon had never suggested the idea of relocating before.

“If everything works out, it would be really neat if your family ended up moving closer one day. That way you could see them more.”