LoveLines (18 page)

“It thickens up when I’ve had a few,” he replied.

I studied
his face. “You say ‘Yous guys,’ don’t you?”

He grinned. “When I’m drunk, yeah.”

I recapped. “So, Camden moved here, and then you moved here in June?”

“July.”

“And you basically hang out with Camden and Chris?”

“Only guys I know.”

“And your family is still in Baltimore?”

Reece averted his eyes. “Yeah.”

Sounded like a complete lie, but why would someone lie about where his family lives? It was a little weird, but I dismissed it for now.

“Sisters? Brothers?”
I couldn’t believe I was only just now asking.

“Nope.”

“Was that lonely?”

Reece shook his head. “
Okay, Nosy, my turn. How do I be a better boyfriend to you with your OCD?”

I wasn’t expecting that.

“Well?” Reece prodded.

I scratched my head. “Umm, no one’s ever asked me that.”

“Okay.” He smiled and waited.

“I . . . you . . . so you’re my boyfriend?” I asked.
“Like officially speaking?”

“Yes.
How could you not know that?” he replied. “I told you I love you. Of course I’m your boyfriend.”

The instant giddiness consumed my heart and made me feel like a seventeen-year-old all over again. It was ridiculous. And amazing. And alarming. I realized not even Brian made me feel giddy. What had I been missing? Why couldn’t this man have moved to
Wilmington twelve years ago?

“You said you love me,” I said suddenly.

Reece furrowed his brow. “I do.”

“We haven’t even done it.”

“I wasn’t aware that was a prerequisite.”

I bit my lip. “It’s not. I don’t know why I said that.”

“Yes, you do.”

“You’re right. I do,” I said. “It’s just that sex
is usually a factor in the ‘I love you’ decision-making process.”

“Is
it?”

I shrugged.

“How can you look like you jumped off the cover of some bubblegum retro teen magazine and be so jaded?”

I laughed. “Stop making me feel like a goody-goody.”

“And then you say things like ‘floosy’ and ‘goody-goody,’ and I just wanna tie you to the bed and violate you in all kinds of inappropriate ways.”

I choked on my pasta. “What?
”

“Bailey,
it’s truth time.”

“Uh oh,” I replied, wiping my mouth. I gulped down the rest of my wine. Reece poured
me another glass.

“Well, you brought up sex.” He took another bite of pasta and watched my face as he chewed.
He took his time, and once he swallowed, he brought the wine glass to his lips slowly and drank.

“Just ask me already!” I cried.

He leaned back in his chair, cradling the glass in his hand. “Have you ever been tied up?”

“Oh my God!
I’m so not telling you anything about my sex life.”

“Hey, I only ask because you look like you jumped off the cover of a
bubblegum retro teen magazine.”

“You said that already. And how far back are we talking anyway?” I asked.

“Nineteen-fifties, for sure. The ponytail—” (I immediately yanked the hairband from my head and let my hair tumble about my shoulders.) “—the pearl earrings—” (Took those out.) “—that little matchy-matchy shirt you’ve got on—” (I unbuttoned it quickly and threw it on the floor) “—that bra you’re wearing—” (My hands automatically went to the back clasp.)

“Hey, wait a minute!” I said, and threw my napkin at his head. He laughed.

“How epic would it have been to get you completely naked, huh?” he asked.

I laughed, too, and then I cleared my throat.

“I wanna know all the dirty things you’ve done,” Reece said. “Is that bad?”

I blushed and hung my head. “Reece . . .”

“Am I making you uncomfortable?”

“Why would you want to know those things? They happened with other guys.”

“So what? I have an imagination. Not hard to insert myself into the picture and knock the joker out.”

I giggled.

“You’re giggling because I used the word ‘insert,’ and that’s precisely what I meant to do,” he said, wiggling his eyebrows.

I laughed harder.

Reece sighed. “Fine. You don’t wanna tell me? Then you have to show me.”

My eyes went wide. “Really?”

“I’m ready if you are,” he replied. He watched my face carefully.

I blushed and averted my eyes. I wasn’t exactly prepared for this. I realize
d my bra and panties didn’t match. My sheets hadn’t been washed in five days. I was rocking major garlic breath.

“I ate the garlic bread, too, you know,” Reece said.

I looked at him, shocked. “How did you know I was thinking that?!”

“Had a hunch,” he replied.

“You’re amazing,” I breathed.

“So are you.”
He paused. “So what do you think?”

I
nodded consent, and he flashed a brilliant smile.

“My panties don’t match,” I blurted.

“I love that. It’s so . . . out of control.”

“My sheets are dirty.”

“I wanna smell ‘em.”

I buried my face in my hands and cracked up. And then I spread my fingers, peeking through the cracks.

“Shy?” he asked.

I nodded, still covering my face.

“I’m glad. I want you to be shy.”

I dropped my hands. “Why?”

“Because if you acted like a floosy, I just couldn’t respect you.”

I smirked. “Do you joke all the time?”

“No, not all the time,” he replied, and his face turned serious. “What’s about to happen in there?”—He pointed to the back of the house—“That’s no joke.”

I
stood up and took his hand, leading him to my bedroom. It wasn’t the first time he’d seen it, but it was the first time we’d be naked together in it. I was glad for the wine I drank. It calmed my nerves and gave me the courage to let him love me.

***

Reece sat down beside her on the edge of the bed and took her hand. It was clammy, and he moved his fingers to the inside of her wrist, feeling the rapid beating of her heart.

“It’s been a while,” she confessed. “Don’t judge me.”

He leaned over and kissed the top of her head.

“Forget about that. Forget about the past. This is us, here and now, and it’s
gonna be amazing,” Reece said.

She lifted her face to him, offering her lips, and he pressed his mouth to them, kissing her deeply, mingling their garlic tongues.

“You taste good,” he said into her mouth.

“So do you,” she replied, and climbed into his lap, straddling his hips.

She pushed him gently on his back, and it felt natural for him to take hold of her hips. He waited, anticipation coursing through his veins with the strength and pull of an undertow. She reached behind her back and unclasped her bra, pulling it away from her body. She folded it and placed it on the bed, catching sight of his smile.

“I’m nervous,” she explained
.

“Will you fold your pants, too?” he asked.

“I may. Would that be weird?” she replied.

He shook his head. “I’ll fold your pants. I’ll fold your pants
and
eat you out at the same time.”

“
Man, you’re good,” she said, as she moved his hands from her hips to her breasts.

He massaged them gently, watching her face and listening to the soft cries that escaped her lips. Her nipples grew hard under his palms, and he moved aside his hands to look at them. A rosy tan—little hard beach pebbles—and he
fantasized about making love to her on the shore, her body cradled in the soft sand where it belonged.

He needed his mouth on her
. He rolled her onto her back and kissed down her neck to the dip between her breasts. He ran the tip of his nose over her nipple and listened to her hiss. She buried her fingers in his hair, urging him to put his mouth on her, and he complied, drawing her nipple between his lips. He swirled his tongue. She moaned. He sucked gently. She bucked. He grabbed her hands and clasped them above her head, trapped in his large palm. She squirmed, trying to break free, and he bit her nipple.

“
Ow!”

“You’re not going anywhere,” he said.

She shuddered and gasped as he licked her nipples, teasing them to hard points, then drawing back to watch them turn velvety soft again.

“Pretty nipples,” he said. “Pretty breasts.”

Her breathing turned shallow.

“Pretty arms and neck and collarbone,” he went on. “Pretty little thing.”

“Reece . . .”

He cocked his head and looked into her eyes.

“I bet you have a pretty little pussy, too.”

She turned her face out of embarrassment.

“Let’s find out,” he said, and kissed the tip of her nose.

He unbuttoned her pants and slid them down, catching sight of her mismatched panties. They were green boy shorts. The bra she’d been wearing was pink.

“Green and pink complement each other,” Reece said.

She smiled. “You don’t get it.”

“Then explain it to me,” he replied, fingers hooked around the waistband of her underwear.

“It’s not a set. And it’s not just about the colors matching. The material should match, too. These are, like, everyday functional panties,” she said. “But my bra is prettier than that. It’s more elegant. Elegant and everyday don’t really go together.”

“Well, you’re elegant, and I’m everyday, and I think we go together just fine,” Reece replied.

“You always have the best lines
,” Bailey sighed.

“No, not always,” Reece said.

He paused a half second before pulling down her panties. His heart raced at the first sight of her pussy waxed into a clean, thin strip. He spread her legs to look further. Nothing. Just smooth silky skin inviting him to have a taste.

“You knew we’d be doing this,” he said suddenly.

Bailey shook her head. “I didn’t.”

“Then how does your pussy look so perfect?” he asked.

“Oh my God,” she muttered.

“I’m serious. I don’t know anything about feminine grooming. Tell me.”

Bailey laughed. She recognized the real possibility that they may never get to the sex part because Reece kept asking questions. Explain this. Explain that. He was dangerously curious, and she found it both annoying and sweet.

“I have a standing appointment,” she explained. “And I just happened to go three days ago. Now quit staring at it and do something with it.”

Reece’s eyebrows shot up.

“I mean, if you want,” she added sheepishly.

“Oh, I’m gonna do something with it, all right. And after I make you come, I’m gonna fuck you. And make you come again.”

Bailey wanted to scream “Yes!” at the top of her lungs. It had been far too long, and she was tired of getting herself off. She wanted to feel a man do it, and she silently prayed that Reece was good at it.

He dipped his head and kissed her lightly—right on her clit. She thrust her hips forward asking him to do it again. And so he did, but just a feather kiss that confused and frustrated her. And then she felt his tongue run the length of her slit until it reached her clit. She froze, waiting for the pleasure pop of his tongue on her trigger, but it never came. He ran his tongue back down instead, and she groaned.

He settled himself to torturing her
sweetly, licking and tasting her everywhere except for the one spot she wanted.

“Reece!” she cried out. He’d been expecting that.

“Yes?”

“Don’t act like you don’t know!” she huffed.

“I thought I was pleasuring you,” he said in mock confusion.

She raised her head and narrowed her eyes at him. “You’re torturing me.”

He smirked and slid his finger inside her, never taking his eyes off her face. Her head dropped backward, and he pumped her gently, feeling her muscles contract and release around his finger. He was done teasing. He continued fingering her while his mouth went directly to her clit. He kissed it, licked it, then sucked it in, swirling his tongue until he found a rhythm she liked. He knew he’d discovered it when her legs dropped open even wider and her fingers went back to his head. She twisted his hair, and he winced, but he didn’t pull away. He wanted to listen to her come for him. He wanted to taste her orgasm. The buildup was delicious. He imagined the explosion would be decadent.

He held her still as she writhed against her pleasure, trying to ease it, trying to control it.