This Time Around (Maybe) (8 page)

“Well
, you know, an orgasm is known as the little death, so…” I trail off, letting my remark hang in the air.

“Ryan.”

“Yes,” I say, unable to rein in the huskiness of my voice. She is so fucking beautiful. Even more so than I remember, if that’s even possible. How is that possible? My tongue peeks out over my bottom lip, and her eyes are glued to my mouth. I know she wants me, that has never been an issue, but I want her head and heart in the right place. I don’t want her to regret anything we ever do together.

“Ryan,” she repeats, swallowing hard. I walk over to her, closing the space between us in a few steps.

“Your hair is dripping,” I say softly, grabbing the slightly damp towel off the bed and using it to dry her hair a little more. “You’ll get sick.” As gently as I can, I rub the towel over her hair, concentrating on the dripping ends. She waits quietly, but I don’t miss the stiffness of her posture.

“Can we talk
?” I ask her, removing the towel and placing it back on the bed.

“What about
?” she says, tilting her head back to look at me. Her wide green eyes peer up at me. Fuck. Those eyes. They entrance me.

“About us,” I say, my gaze not leaving hers. I need her to know I’m serious about this. About fixing us, this mess I created. I want my wife back.
Suddenly, she spins around and takes a single step closer. She smells fresh, like soap and strawberries, and her hair is already starting to spring back into curls as it dries.

“Look
, I don’t think…”

I reach out and frame her face with my hand, cutting off her objections. “Then don’t.” I lean forward and kiss her softly on the lips
, unable to stop myself. I know I shouldn’t, but fuck, I want her so damn much. My heart is thumping out of my chest. I’ve wanted this moment for so fucking long; it almost hurts to finally have it. I don’t ravish her mouth like I want to. Instead, I hold myself back and kiss her gently, so scared that she will push me away. She responds timidly, opening her mouth for me so I can enter. I groan as our tongues touch, revelling in the scent of her, the taste of her. She lifts her arm up to hold onto my bicep, allowing the towel to fall onto the floor. My gaze instantly drops, and I get harder than I think I’ve ever been in my life. Reaching my hand behind, I grip her hip and pull her closer, rubbing my rough fingers over her smooth, creamy skin. A sigh escapes her mouth as I trail kisses down her jawline, sucking gently on her earlobe.

“Tell me you want this,” I whisper into her ear. I told myself I wasn’t going to, but now I can’t make myself stop.

“If I do, are you going to hold it against me?” she whispers back. I lift my head up so I can look into her eyes.

“What do you mean?”

“If we do this, it doesn’t mean anything. We’re not in a relationship. We aren’t working on our marriage. We are just… it’s a one-time thing,” she manages to get out, lifting her chin up stubbornly. Her mouth is saying one thing, but her eyes another. That’s probably the only thing that’s stopping me from walking out of this room right now. She presses her breasts against me and my cock twitches.

Well, not the only thing.

I step forward, taking her with me until the back of her knees hit the bed. I lift her up by her ass, enjoying the sound of surprise that escapes her pouty lips. She grips my shoulders with her hands, holding on for dear life. I gently lay her back onto the bed, keeping my eyes locked with hers the entire time. Even guarded, her eyes are beautiful green pools I could get lost in. Great, she’s turning me into a fucking poet. Pulling back from her body, I let myself take her in completely. Breasts that overflow my hands, a tiny waist and flared hips that are perfect to grip onto. Utter perfection. She watches me studying her, but doesn’t say anything, just allows my silent perusal. Leaning forward, I cup her face and capture her lips, more demanding this time. My fingers roam towards her breasts, feeling the weight of one in my hand before swiping the nipple with my thumb. She moans loudly, rubbing herself against me, encouraging me to give her more. I smile against her lips, giving her one more kiss before moving my head down. I take my time, kissing her jaw, her neck, and her shoulders. I run my tongue down in between her breasts, holding them both in my hand. I suck one nipple into my mouth, using my tongue and then my teeth to tug gently. Taiya’s hands run through my hair, pulling the ends, telling me she wants more. I glance up at her as I lick her other nipple, knowing that it needs my attention too. When I have her writhing on the bed in pleasure, I head further south, nibbling around her belly button before reaching her bare pussy. I run my hands over her thighs, squeezing gently before spreading them. My cock strains against my jeans as I see her core, wet and ready for me. I kiss up her thighs, and the closer I get, the more I take in her scent. It’s just as I remember. As soon as her taste hits my tongue, I groan. Using her ass cheeks to pin her down to the bed and keep her in place, I devour her. This is what an alcoholic must feel like when they have a drink after being sober for so long. She does that to me. It isn’t long before her thighs start to tremble and she’s calling out my name. Could it get any better than that? She knows who is between her legs, giving her pleasure. She knows who in this minute, she belongs to.

“Fuck,” she curses as I suck on her clit, prolonging her release.
Her hips buck wildly, and I watch her every movement, enthralled. When she finally collapses onto the bed, her tension released, I give her one last lick before I pull away. I stare at her as I wipe my mouth with my hand, her beautiful body not doing much to help my straining erection. When I push off the bed and stand up, she looks up at me in confusion.

“What are you doing?” she asks, her voice hoarse.

“I’m not going to make love to you until you admit that you’re mine, and I know you aren’t ready to do that right now,” I tell her honestly. My dick protests, but for once, I ignore him and walk towards her door. I open it, turning back to face her. “I love you, Taiya,” I tell her. Then I walk out.

Chapter Ten

“Has Reid seen what you’re wearing?” I ask Summer, raising a sceptical eyebrow.

“What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?” she says, looking down at her tight white dress.

I make a choking sound. “I can see
… everything
.”

She rolls her eyes. “Since when do you care about seeing too much of a woman?”

“It’s you. It’s a little different. You’re not just any woman. You’re my future sister-in–law,” I complain.

Summer laughs at my sullen expression.

“And Taiya is going out with you. You both don’t need the added attention,” I tell her, scowling. Maybe I should go with them?

“You’re not coming with us
. Taiya will be pissed,” she says, reading my mind. “Besides, Reid will be there, so stop worrying. And yes, Reid saw this dress. Why do you think it took me so long to get ready?”

I choose to ignore her comment, leaning back into the couch.
Summer leaves the room, I assume to primp herself and I glance at the door once more, wondering when she’s going to arrive. I haven’t seen Taiya since the other day, when I walked out of her room and left her alone and naked. I went home and had three cold showers that night. Yes, three. I know Taiya; she would have let me make love to her, and then she would have pushed me away. I don’t think I could have taken it if she said it was a mistake. When I do make love to her, she will be ready to accept that we were made for each other. My brother walks into the room, wearing jeans and a black shirt. My eyes narrow when I realise it’s
my
black shirt. His hair is still damp from his shower. He looks at my expression and grins.

“A little jealous, are we?” he teases, running his hands through his hair.

“I could come, you know.”

“And ruin
Taiyas’s girls’ night?”

I exhale loudly. “Never mind, I have a million things to do tonight anyway,” I lie. I hav
e nothing to do. At all. I already cleaned the apartment this morning, so I can’t even do that. I suppose I could watch some TV, or something. Animal Planet might have a documentary on. For once, that doesn’t even sound appealing.

“Like what? Sit at home, watching Animal Planet and wishing you were out with
Taiya instead?” he says with a smirk.

Sometimes it sucks that my brother knows me so well.
Reid looks at me, and I don’t know what he sees, but his expression softens.

“It’s just a night out. I won’t let
her out of my sight,” he says. He’s thinking I’m worried about her with other men. And while the thought kills me, it has been a year and she obviously would have been with someone else in that time. The thing that I’m so out of sorts about is that she will be there with my favourite people. Reid and Summer. Shouldn’t I be there too? My brother, my best friend and my wife are going out and I’m stuck at home. I feel like I’m a kid being put in the naughty corner.

“I know,” I say, forcing a smile. Reid shakes his head at me, leaving the room.
The doorbell rings a few seconds later, and I instantly stand.

“I’ll get it
, Ryan. Don’t you move,” Summer says as she enters the room, walking like a professional in her high heels. I hear the door open, and the sound of Taiya’s voice. A few seconds wait, and then the object of my obsession steps into the living room. Caramel curls frame her face, bouncing with each step. She’s wearing makeup on her face, but not too much, thank fuck. A short black dress that shows off her thighs, and sparkly silver high heels. Images flash in my head about the things I want to do to her wearing nothing but those heels. Her emerald eyes widen when they see me, and then narrow.

“Ryan,” she says curtly, nodding her head.

“Hey Tay,” I say, taking in the beauty that is my wife. She gives me a weird look, one I can’t decipher. I used to be able to tell exactly what she was thinking. I wish I could just walk up to her and touch her. Hold her. Kiss those perfect lips. Isis steps in behind her, giving me a smirk and a small wave.

“Hey Isis.”

“Have a seat, girls. I’ll just be a sec,” Summer says, walking back into the bathroom.

“Do you girls want a drink?” I ask politely.

“Yes, please,” Taiya says, sitting down on the couch. “Whatever you have is fine.” Before I can go into the kitchen to get them something, Reid walks in holding a bottle of vodka, ice and orange juice.

“Hey Reid,”
Taiya greets. “This is my friend Isis. Isis this is Reid.” Isis says hello, and I can see her plainly checking my brother out. Yeah, good luck with that one. Summer returns with a tiny little bag in her hand, takes a seat and starts talking with Taiya and Isis. I can tell she’s a little nervous. She’s not exactly a people’s person. I grin when she finishes her drink in a few gulps. Isis, on the other hand, chats away animatedly, like she’s known Summer her whole life. Taiya is a little more reserved, but still friendly. I see her looking over at me out of the corner of her eye. I don’t remove my gaze from her. When she walks into the kitchen to put her glass away, I take my chance.

“You look beautifu
l,” I tell her, leaning against the kitchen table. I can smell her from here, so fucking sweet.

“Thanks,” she says, not looking at me.

“You mad about the other day?” I ask, frowning. Didn’t she understand why I didn’t finish what we started?

“Yeah, I just love getting left naked and willing,” she mutters, finally turning around to look at me.

“Hey, I got you off,” I say,
wincing when I realise how asshole-ish that sounds.

Her eyes narrow to slits, wh
ich seems to be her most common look when she’s around me. “You know what, you made the right decision. No good is going to come from us fucking each other.”

Ouch. “I didn’t
want you to regret it after, Tay. It would kill me,” I say softly, letting my guard down for a minute. For her to see how much it actually killed me to walk away. “We need to talk before anything like that happens.”

“So what, you have rules now? Going down on me is okay then?” she says, putting her hands on her hips. Her lips are a plump pink, and I can’t keep my eyes off of them.

“Are you complaining about me going down on you?” I ask, rubbing my jaw with my fingers. Will I ever figure women out? I’m assuming the answer to that is a resounding no.

She huffs and tries to walk around me, but I gently take her by the wrist. “Tay,” I whisper. She stills and looks at me. I mean
finally
looks at me, and sees me.

“Ryan,” she whimpers, letting her guard down. I pull her into me, wrapping my arms around her.

“You go out and have a good time tonight, okay? Will you talk to me tomorrow? I mean actually talk to me, Tay?” I’m practically begging, but I don’t care. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do to get her back.

“Okay,” she says, and that one word gives me hope. So much fucking hope, I feel like jumping for joy.

“Okay,” I repeat, kissing her gently on her lips. Just as she pulls away, Summer walks in, smiling widely as she takes us in. I can almost feel the happiness pouring off her in waves.

“Re
ady to go?” she asks Taiya, who nods. Taiya turns around and offers me a sweet smile before walking out of the kitchen. Summer gives me a thumbs up.