Fool For You (Made for Love Book 4) (27 page)

“Wherever I want.”

“And you have to read the whole book?” At this point, I’m stalling. I already know what I’m going to say. Right now, my racing heart is begging me to let him have what he wants, and I don’t think I’m strong enough to deny myself.

“Cover to cover,” he assures me.

“Okay,” I agree, my voice hardly above a whisper.

“And what do you want from me, Teddy?”

As soon as he asks, my mind goes completely blank. After what I just agreed to, I have no idea what to ask for. I never intended for our conversation to lead us here, and yet here we are. I rack my brain, trying to think of something—
anything
—and then, it hits me.

“When I’ve read your favorite book, I get to photograph you.”

He scrunches his brow in confusion, his eyes still focused on the road. It’s in this moment that I realize, I have no idea where we’re going or where we are and I don’t mind one bit—my focus entirely on him.

“You want to take my picture?” he asks.

“Mmhmm,” I hum.

“Why?”

I shrug, reaching up to twist a loose tendril of hair around my finger. “It’s just a hobby of mine, photographing people.”

“Huh,” he grunts contemplatively. “All right, then. Deal.”

As soon as he agrees, he slips his hand away from me, reaching for the button to kill the engine. I tear my eyes from him when I realize we’ve arrived at our destination. He’s brought me to The Lincoln Center Performance Hall. Now, I’m not at all worried about the silly promises we’ve just made to one another. Instead, I’m anxious to know what he’s arranged for us to see this afternoon.

“Have you ever been to the ballet?”

“No,” I breathe.

He doesn’t say anything before he climbs out of the driver’s seat and walks around to let me out. He offers me his hand, and I slide mine into his as I make my exit. After he shuts the door, he guides my fingers to the crook of his elbow before he escorts me into the building. I squeeze his arm in excitement when I see the advertisement for the ballet plastered over the front windows. Then, when we enter into the lobby, I know without a doubt that we’re about to see a matinee performance of Tchaikovsky’s
The Sleeping Beauty.

“Oh, my god, Judah!”

A lopsided smile curls his lips as he looks down at me. “Now do you appreciate the suspense of not knowing?”

I grin as a laugh bubbles out of me, and I cling to his arm, too excited to stop myself. “This is the best surprise.”

“I’m glad you think so. Come, we’re upstairs.”

We follow the crowd of people making their way toward the mezzanine. When we reach the balcony entrance, he pulls two tickets from his pocket and shows them to the attendant who leads us to our seats. We are in the front row, right in the center. It’s
perfect
and I’m in
awe
.

“How did you get these seats? You didn’t buy these tickets yesterday.”

“I called in a favor,” he says nonchalantly.

“This is quite the favor. You didn’t have to do all of this for me.”

“It was nothing.”

I shake my head at him, appalled that he could think such a thing. Our date has just begun, and it’s already the best I’ve ever been on. Without stopping to second guess myself, I lean in and kiss him on the cheek. “This isn’t nothing. This is
amazing
.”

Aunt Eddalyn is a season ticket holder to The Lincoln Center. After breakfast with Teddy yesterday morning, I knew that I wasn’t going to be able to wait another few days before I got the chance to take her out. I had already waited long enough—our
misunderstanding
preventing me from following through with our Friday night plans.

I had no idea if there was even going to be a performance this afternoon, but I figured it was worth a phone call. Honestly, when I asked Aunt Eddalyn for the tickets, I think she gave them to me out of familial pity. Eddalyn, my boss, knows that the chore I face of firing someone tomorrow is what needs to be done. Eddalyn, my mother’s only sister, knows that it’s a pain in my ass. So when I asked for her seats, she didn’t hesitate to give them to me.

Teddy was on the edge of her seat the entire performance. I could barely keep my eyes off of her, entranced by her excitement and appreciation for the art displayed on that stage. While I’m not opposed to the ballet, it’s never been something I’ve gone out of my way to experience. But the look on Teddy’s face was breathtaking, and well worth the three hours spent in that theater.

After the show, I took her out for an early dinner. I don’t know how many times she thanked me, gushing about all of her favorite parts. As I sat with her, admiring her—the stunning creature across from me—I couldn’t help but notice how fucking endearing she is. It puzzles me how she can be sexy as hell one minute, and completely
adorable
the next. Though, it doesn’t matter which version of her I see, I want her—I want
all
of her. My dick was flying at half-mast all through dinner. Now, all I can think about is how much I need to
taste
her.

“I know I keep saying this,” she begins as we reach the top of the steps leading to her apartment, “but thank you
so much
. This was the most incredible date. I had an amazing time.”

When she reaches her door, she turns around to face me. I take a step toward her and she looks up at me as I lean down, bringing my face closer to hers. I line up our lips, but I don’t kiss her. Not yet. Not
here
.

“Aren’t you going to invite me inside?” I ask, speaking softly.

Here eyes grow wide as her mouth opens in a small
O
. “You—you want to come inside?”

“Yes.”

“Oh. Um—are you sure?”

“Yes,” I whisper, leaning in a little closer. I can feel it as her breaths grow shorter, each exhalation of air kissing my face. “I’m not leaving until my tongue has been inside of your mouth. You’re welcome to keep me out here, but I assure you, this kiss will be downright indecent.”

Without another word, she spins around and unlocks her door. I reach for her waist as soon as she crosses the threshold, turning her around to face me as I kick the door shut with my foot. I hear it as her purse and her keys hit the floor, mere seconds before my mouth collides with hers. She whimpers at my contact and circles her arms around my neck. I trace my tongue along the seam of her closed lips, and she opens instantly with a sigh.

I want her closer—I want her fucking naked—but I know that won’t happen. Not tonight, anyway. Nevertheless, I need to get the hell out of this jacket. I pull away from her and the look she gives me makes me want to devour her. She’s so damn sexy—her lips red, her eyes hooded in lust. I feel myself growing hard just thinking of all the ways I plan on owning her body. She’s so fucking mine and she doesn’t even know it.

I press a quick kiss against her lips and then shrug my arms out of my jacket. As soon as I get it off, I take my first real look around the room. I remember her telling me it was small, but
shit!
We’re standing in the middle of her living room, which is only big enough to house her brown sofa—covered in an assortment of decorative pillows—her coffee table, a bookcase that doubles as a television stand, and her teal deco sitting chair. The wall behind her couch is decked out in a few pieces of art, a couple framed photographs, and a poster—the arrangement of the various sizes making the wall itself a piece of art. It’s certainly
homey
and
eclectic
, and it somehow fits Teddy in a way that I couldn’t imagine until now, but I feel like I’m in a shoebox.

“What? What are you thinking?” she asks before she pulls her bottom lip between her teeth.

“Show me the rest,” I insist.

“You want a tour? N-n-now?”

I lift an eyebrow at her, looking around the room. “Something tells me it won’t take very long.”

“True,” she says with a little nod. “Okay.”

I drape my jacket over her sitting chair as she leads me to her kitchen. It’s literally the size of my pantry, the stove and refrigerator barely fitting into the space, as if they were afterthoughts. She then leads me back across the living room and shows me her bathroom—which is practically the size of my
shower
. Then she leads me to her bedroom. It’s bigger than I guessed it would be, probably measuring only a few feet smaller than the living room. The wood floors are covered by a white and teal chevron rug. Her dark wood dresser stretches across the length of wall just beside her door, her vanity mirror resting on top. There’s a small nightstand beside her bed, with a golden lamp. Her bed is covered in a rusted yellow comforter with mismatched pillows, and there’s an abstract piece of art hanging above the iron headboard.

“Teddy?” I begin to say, my hands finding her hips.

“Hmm?” she hums as I pull her against me.

“You live in a shoebox.”

“Yes,” she replies with a giggle. “But it’s home.”

“And how’s the bed?” I murmur, turning us around before I sink down onto the edge of her mattress.

“I don’t think you’ll fit,” she says shyly, her doe eyes trained on me. “You’re so tall.”

“I think we could make it work.” Her breath hitches in her throat as I pull her between my legs. I keep my gaze locked with hers as I skim my hands up the sides of her thighs, hiking up her dress as I go.

“Jude,” she whispers, her protest barely audible.

“Come ‘ere.” I cup a hand around the back of one of her knees, forcing her to bend her leg, propping it on the bed on the outside of my leg. She falls toward me with a gasp, and I take advantage of her loss of balance, hooking my other hand behind her opposite knee, pulling her on top of me so that she’s straddling my lap.

“What are you doing?” she asks, gripping hold of my shoulders.

“Setting the stage,” I reply, sliding a hand up to the small of her back, encouraging her closer.

She draws in a shuddered breath before she asks, “Setting the stage? For what?”

An impish grin spreads across my face and I wrap my fingers around the back of her neck, drawing her closer still. “An indecent kiss,” I mutter just before I pull her bottom lip between my teeth. She whimpers as I suck, and the erection in my pants is undeniable. When I plunge my tongue into her mouth, she clings to me, and I grip her tighter as I kiss her hungrily.

She’s a tiny little thing, but her strong legs squeeze against my hips, making me all the more anxious to strip her bare and bury myself inside of her. I imagine all the ways I could fuck her with her legs wrapped around me. As my head fills with possibilities, my dick grows harder, and my lips grow more desperate. I kiss her deeper, my tongue sweeping through her mouth, my desire to taste every inch of her incredibly overwhelming. I drag my lips away from hers and dip my head before dragging my tongue up the length of her neck.

“
Shit
,” she sighs as her head falls back, her fingers inching their way up my neck and into my hair. “
Judah.
”

The sound of my name on her lips, whispered as if in reverence, is sexy as fuck. As I kiss my way down her neck, I can’t stop myself from grazing my teeth across her skin. I pinch a little bit between my teeth, biting her gently, and she moans.

“Fucking hell, Teddy—” I grumble, twisting us around so that her back is on the bed and I’m planted perfectly between her legs. Everything inside of me is
begging
for me to rub my hard-on against her panty-clad pussy, but I know she’d stop me, and I’m not ready for this to end. Alternatively, I close my mouth around hers and kiss her fiercely. She matches my ferocity with her own, hooking one of her legs around mine as she frees a hum between my lips.

I don’t know how long we stay like this, each of us memorizing the other’s mouth. What it tastes like. What it feels like. All I know is that I have never made-out with a woman for this long before, certainly not with so many clothes between us. Furthermore, I never imagined it was possible for me to enjoy it this much.

“Jude,” she whispers between kisses. “Jude—wait.”

Reluctantly, I pull away, just enough to see into her eyes.

“My lips are going numb.”

I smirk down at her before I slide my arm from beneath her to take a look at my wrist watch. My eyebrows shoot up in surprise when I read the time. “Miss Fitzpatrick,” I begin to say, grinning down at her. “You’re quite the distraction. It’s late. I should be going.”

“What time is it?”

“Ten.” Her eyes grow wide and her cheeks grow rosy as she curls her lips into her mouth. It’s so fucking cute, I can’t contain the chuckle that rises out of me. “I have an early morning,” I say as I stand. I straighten out my wrinkled clothing the best I can before I adjust myself in my pants.

I’ll have to deal with that when I get home
.

She sits up and clears her throat, sweeping a few loose curls behind her ears. “Sorry to have kept you so late.”

I reach for her chin, tipping her face up until her eyes lock with mine. “Don’t be sorry. I’m not. But I do have to go.”

She nods and stands, following me into the next room where I slide into my jacket. She then walks me to the door. I’m just getting ready to turn around to say goodbye when she stops me, grabbing my hand as I step outside.