Candlelight Conspiracy (6 page)

She did as he instructed, and he watched her eyes focus and the smile leave her face. He lined up another dessert on the counter.
What would she do if I kissed her neck right now?

“Great work,” he said when she’d heated the crème perfectly.

He turned off the torch, set it on the counter, and his hand slid around her waist. He pulled her into a side hug. He intended to let her go, but she twisted toward him. Her brown eyes sparkled in the candlelight.

His lips met hers, and it piqued urges deep down in his belly. Every touch of her finger tips excited his skin, every breath drugged him with her sweet scent, and every moan put him on the verge of losing control. Her deep kisses stirred emotions he didn’t think he was capable of having again.

But he could let himself have one night.

• • •

Marc kissed Sophie’s jawline all the way to her ear. When she reached for the waistband of his jeans she heard him groan into her neck. His hot breath on her ear combined with the want in his tone made her sizzle.

“I can’t promise you anything,” he whispered into her mouth, then kissed her top lip.

I don’t care. I’m going to enjoy you for the moment, Marc.
“Good. I don’t want anything.” Those weren’t the sexiest words to say, albeit, but they were as true as she could make them. She kissed him lightly on the ear and whispered, “Well, after tonight.”

In an instant she was off her feet, in his arms—taking the opportunity to nuzzle his neck all the way through the small apartment. He fumbled with the bedroom door handle, finally pushing through, and she heard the door bang against the wall.
Hello, mystery room
.

He laid her down on a soft comforter and wasted no time rolling with her so that she lay on top of him. The room was dark and still; they were the only two people in the world. Her hands were at the hem of her shirt to pull it over her head in a flash, and he took the cue to shed his at the same time. She could barely see his silhouette now that the bedroom door had nearly shut again. His fingertips felt their way around her body. Every caress burrowed into her skin and settled into her core, relaxing and enlivening her all at once.

He rolled them again, stripping them both of the rest of their clothes, then he was on top, kissing her neck, which—damn—sparked her sensitive pulse. Her ears started to buzz with excitement; every inch of her tingled with anticipation. Marc’s lips and palms traveled down, licking her nipples. He nibbled and sucked, and she could feel his nose push into the top of her breast. She wanted every bit of him close to her.

His kisses trailed down her belly to her swelling need for him. He licked into the center of her clit, and she moaned. He moved his hands to her hips and butt, pulling her closer as she ran her hands through his thick head of hair. She arched her back from the pleasure, moving her hands up to reach above her head. Then, without warning, he moved away from her to stand at the foot of the bed. She didn’t have time to voice a question, because he pulled her toward him to the edge, and she heard a condom wrapper ripping. He grasped her hips, and she wrapped her legs around him, pulling herself closer. He rubbed his thumb in circles on her wetness; she bit into her lower lip and felt her body flush in anticipation. He shifted away then filled her in one fluid motion. She closed her eyes at the welcome, intense sensation. Marc set their rhythm, and with every thrust he drove her wild. She could hear his breathing intensify as hers did too. Her mind shouted
more
and
faster
. Though the words never made it out of her lips, his body responded in kind.

“Oh, God, Sophie.”

The warm rumble of his voice reverberated through her body, and she nearly lost control. He leaned forward, touching their bodies, and she reached to hold him, her hands rubbing, grasping, and tightening. Their pace quickened as he kissed her with an urgency she’d never known before. Her head shot back, and he kissed her neck, then bit and circled the area with his tongue.

“Yes,” she breathed. “More.”

His lips found hers before her mind blanked and her body took over, succumbing to every ounce of pleasure Marc offered. She felt him everywhere, in all the right spots, as waves of her release started to pound in her ears and washed over her body in sweet, sweet pulses.

“Sophie,” he cried as he climaxed, holding her tighter.

They crashed into one another, and she held his back tightly, her nails digging into his skin. As the last of the satisfaction subsided, he kissed her lips, tenderly, sweetly. She opened her eyes and smiled up at him, only able to make out the chiseled shape of his face.

Amazing.

They moved on the bed, back to where his pillows lay, and he hugged her to him.

“My new favorite thing in this world is when the power goes out,” he said as he kissed her temple.

She couldn’t help but laugh. And agree. Power or no power, they were going to make love all night long.

Marc rubbed his fingertips over the ripples of Sophie’s ribs in the still darkness. He was still happily catching his breath from their incredible lovemaking. “What are some of your favorite desserts?” His favorite treat right now was skin-on-skin contact with Sophie.

She arched her head from her perch on his chest. “Dessert?”

“So I can make sure to have them made to bribe you into singing for me more often.”

She smiled lazily, and he kissed her forehead.

“You can make me dessert”—she placed a tender kiss just under his collarbone—“or whatever, anytime.”

She better be careful what she wished for because he wouldn’t mind cooking for her morning, noon, and night. There was a charm about her, a strength he’d never noticed in passing by her for months. Until now. Now, all he could see were the ways in which she was beautiful, and the ways in which he wanted to delight her and himself with her. There was no way he was letting her out of his bed anytime soon. If one night was all he was going to get, then he was going to make it the longest.

“Do you have pictures in here? I can’t tell,” she asked, as she rubbed her leg that rested on his along his thigh.

“You want to see pictures?”

“There are no personal pictures in your apartment. At all. I know you’ve sworn off Facebook, but what about your family?”

He liked his dessert talk a lot better than family questions—answering those while naked, and in bed, didn’t feel sexy. He took a deep breath before realizing she was lying on his chest and could feel his hesitation and discomfort.

“Sorry, if it’s a heavy subject … ” Her body tensed.

“No, no, I just don’t have an opportunity to talk a lot about my family.” He squeezed her closer to him, not wanting her to pull away. Her arm slid over his stomach, and he closed his eyes at the pleasure of her soft touch. “My dad and sister live in Tacoma.”

“Have they visited you out here?”

“Not yet. Maybe this year, though.”

“And your mom?” she whispered cautiously.

“Split when we were young. No idea where she is.”

“Oh. I’m sorry to hear that.”

“It’s okay. I barely remember her, and my dad did a great job raising me and Reagan. And I do have pictures of them on my dresser over there.” He pointed to the dresser even though he knew she couldn’t see.

“Do you miss them?”

He moved his free hand to intertwine his fingers with hers, which lay across his body. “I catch up here and there. Reagan’s easier because she texts.”

“Ah, yes, good old texting.”

“Not a fan?” He smiled into the darkness.

“Yes and no. It’s quicker, I will admit that, but things can get lost in translation. I like to look someone in the eyes.”

“When possible, it’s always the best.” His thumb caressed hers, and she kissed his chest again.

“What about you? Any family you keep in touch with?”

He already knew her parents were a touchy subject, one he was still surprised she shared with him, but she could have more family out there. And he didn’t want to be the only one naked and revealing.

“I have pictures of my parents up in my living room. I have an aunt, uncle, and cousin in Cheyenne.”

“Are you close?”

“Not really. I have my band and Candace. She owns Kiss From a Rose, the flower shop I work at.”

“Quality, not quantity.”

“Exactly.”

In the darkness, his other senses were heightened. He could feel her breath, he could hear her fill her lungs, he could smell her coconut conditioner.

“Alrighty, Ms. Questions, what else you got?”

“Have you dated anyone since you moved here?”

“Nope.”

Crap, now he had two choices: it would be fairly easy to hold back from her, or he could tell her the truth. There was a chance their paths would never cross like this again. He hoped it was a slim chance, though.

There was so much more to learn about Sophie and more he wanted to tell her. Sharing secrets with a near stranger was almost easier than telling the people you knew loved you. Not even his dad and sister knew the real story behind the breakup with Felicia. They assumed it was he who’d gotten cold feet, called it off, and ran away. He’d never corrected them. The fake story was simple—giving him license to move and start again without feeling bad, or them making him feel bad.

He spoke in one swift sentence, like ripping off a Band-Aid. “I was engaged once.”

“Really?”

“We dated for three years and broke up two days before the wedding.” There went another Band-Aid.

“Whoa. You don’t hear of that happening every day.” She squeezed his hand but didn’t pull away.

“Nope. And, I assure you, it’s not as awesome as it sounds.” His heartbeat was practically in her ear, so he thought of his family’s cabin in the Tacoma woods to calm himself. Felicia wasn’t exactly his favorite topic. He didn’t want Sophie to move, but he was at a distinct disadvantage.

“Sounds like a royal mess. Were you the heartbreaker or heart-breakee?”

I was the ass who didn’t pay attention to her.
He didn’t want to ever make that mistake again. Which was why he wasn’t going to date anyone until he could actually make time for them.

“Little of both, I suppose.”

“That is how those things usually go—well, that’s a best-case scenario probably. What happened?” she asked.

“She figured out there was something missing. I’d coasted, and it wasn’t fair to her.” Better to be honest with Sophie, let her know exactly what kind of guy he was and what it was like dating him rather than letting her find out the hard way later. Not that she wanted to actually date him; they’d been on that same page before the bedroom.

“So she’s the one who called off her own, probably already planned-down-to-the-last-Jordan-almond wedding? Brave.”

“I see you’ve taken her side.” He reached down and tapped Sophie’s ass with his palm.

“No.” She laughed. “Just observing that wouldn’t have been an easy call to make. It would’ve been almost easier just to go through with it at that point.”

“I’m glad she didn’t.”

Her light breath skimmed the tender skin of his chest, causing goose bumps on his arms. Even though the current topic wasn’t his favorite, he liked lying in bed talking with Sophie. He liked doing a lot of things with her and had more planned for the night. Power outage or not.

“Is that why you’re here and don’t keep in contact with people from your old life?”

Old life.
The term struck hard. She implied he’d made a new life here, in Casper, with his restaurant. And he really had. Putting his head down for so long, he’d actually created a life for himself—one where he worked all the time toward a solitary goal he was solidly achieving. The restaurant was doing well and gaining ground, and Kurt, his front-of-house manager, had everything under control.
Maybe the new life needs a little more Sophie in it.

“I didn’t have a lot of people to keep in contact with. I’m focused and don’t need a lot of distraction; some friends wouldn’t understand. And I don’t want to justify anything to anyone.”

“Can’t they see you’re living your dream and be supportive?”

He actually liked having Sophie ask him questions—maybe he’d been in his self-imposed solitude for too long. After the restaurant was at a comfortable point, he’d get back into the dating scene. “I had a restaurant in Tacoma before I left.”

“Why’d you leave that behind? I thought this was your first one.”

“This is my first place by myself. I opened the other one with my ex’s father.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah. Oh. He bought me out, and I used that money, all I have, to start Sizzo’s. I don’t want to fail. I can’t.”

This time around, he’d never have to give up his hard work. Sizzo’s was all his. If he didn’t work hard enough to make the restaurant a success then that was on him, but he’d never again have to walk away. He let his gaze wander over the curves of Sophie’s naked body. This was precisely why he’d made his no-friends and no-dating rules when he’d moved. He needed to stay on track.
Ah, hell.
He hated when what he needed and wanted were not the same.
Don’t think about the restaurant tonight.

“I thought we’d moved past that.” She playfully tapped his ribs. “I’m sure you won’t fail, but if you do it’s okay, because then you’ll learn and do better next time.”

“This is my next time.” He smelled her hair. The fruity scent relaxed his entire body, and suddenly his bed was the most comfortable it had ever been. He never wanted to leave.

“So whatever happened to Felicia?”

He laughed to himself. Women were so territorial. Also, it was a bit of a weird time to be talking about ex-lovers. Sophie was surprising—hopefully that would never change.

“I’ve not spoken to her since she called off the wedding.” He unlaced his fingers with hers, reached for a lighter on his nightstand, and lit the candle by his bedside. He wanted to see her better. “Isn’t this the point I get to ask you questions again?”

“Go for it.” She nestled back into him, pressing her skin against his side.

“How do you write a song?”

“It starts with an idea or a line or a melody. It just sort of happens. I mean, I have to make it happen. But once I get into the groove, lyrics or music usually flow.”