Page 41 of From the Embers

Denver won’t even let me Uber alone. This man.

“D, you don’t have to do that. I want to stay, if that’s okay?”

“I wouldn’t have asked if I didn’t want you to.” He kisses my hair. “God, you’re so snuggly.”

I can’t help but laugh. “Are you always this nice? Or is it just me?”

“Usually the women don’t stay over,” he says.

A flash of jealousy goes through my mind but I stamp it out. He’s allowed to have a past, even if it means other women have used that damn sex chair.

“Do you send them packing?”

He laughs into my hair. “Not exactly. I’m weird about sharing my space like that. They know it’s just sex.”

“What about me?” I whisper, unsure if the words even came out.

“I told you. You’re different, Adelaide.”

I smile despite myself. “You could be the world’s biggest player.”

He bumps me with his hips. “I can assure you I’m not.”

“But you could be.”

He turns my head so I’m looking at him. “The truth is? You have me in a chokehold, Princess, and I don’t know what I’m gonna do about it.”

Well, I wasn’t expecting that.

thirteen

Denver

I don’t even know what I’m playing at telling her she has me in a chokehold. Deep down I want her to know exactly what effect she has on me, but I know that’s risky.

Risky because I can’t be all in. Not with her.

“You have me in a similar position, if I’m being honest,” she whispers.

Not sure I’m ready for this conversation, I distract her by yanking her up off the bed.

We end up showering, and it’s a new experience for me. I’ve only ever showered alone.

Of course, watching her use my bodywash as she lathers the soap all over herself makes me hard all over again. She pinned her hair up because apparently my shampoo would make her hair fall out—I only use the cheap, grocery store stuff—but it doesn’t stop me gripping it when she starts fondling herself a little too provocatively.

“You keep doing that, and I’m gonna fuck you in this shower.”

“Duh, that is actually the point.”

I grin and she grips my cock with one hand, sliding it up and down as I groan. You’d think we’d be spent after what we just did, but around her, I’m like a horny teenager all over again. I can’t get enough. She fondles me while I cup her tits, our breathing becoming more intense as I shift to grab another condom and she stops me.

“I’m on birth control.”

I stare at her, my hand hovering over the shower door. “Babe, you don’t have to do this.”

“I’ve always made a guy use one, not that there’s been that many.”

Somehow that makes me feel better. “I’ve always used one too, and it’s been six months.”