Page 10 of Elijah’s Whim

First, her playful smile dropped away completely and her lips formed a stern line. Her azure eyes were opened as wide as possible so she wouldn’t miss a single detail of my impending screw-up.

And the final clue, and likely the most potent of them all, was the methodical clip to each word when she all but hissed, “You can’t be serious.”

No, but she sure as shit was. And suddenly playtime was over and she was taking her ball and going home. Clearly, I caused the final foul, but I needed to find out what I did and how to fix it. Quick.

I scrambled to my feet, and then in one easy motion, like mounting a surfboard to paddle out past the break, I covered her body with mine. With my stomach to her back, I used all my weight to press her into the mattress. There was no way this woman was going to throw me out of a room in my own house. And even though a small handful of women would disagree, I was a gentleman. Fine. A good, well-mannered man at the very least. So if that happened, I would do what she asked.

What I didn’t tolerate, however, were women who stomped around like little brats. In my house, little brats got big spankings, and they usually didn’t like them. Rarely did reality live up to fantasy, and a spanking for discipline was no different.

Now, a spanking for pleasure? That was a whole different story. The thought of spanking Ms. Farsey’s perfectly peachy ass made me groan out loud. Forgetting I was still on top of her, I dropped my head to muffle the sound and ended up nuzzling my face right into her silky mane.

Good Christ. Out of the frying pan and into the fire.

I didn’t want to let her go without addressing the topic at hand, but I had to roll off her immediately. I felt the undeniable stirring low in my balls, and I knew what followed close on the heels of that sensation. She would not miss the erection that I was about to regain if I didn’t move.

With as much nimbleness as possible, I moved from atop her delectable body to the center of the bed. I didn’t want her to feel trapped, and if I lay on the outside, she wouldn’t have been able to get off the bed if she chose to do so.

Hannah looked confused and bewildered and still quite pissed off when our gazes met. How had I not noticed the lively way her blue eyes expressed so much emotion before?

“What?” she nearly growled, and damn if it didn’t turn me on more.

“You’re stunning,” I answered with an honesty I hadn’t tapped into in a very long time.

“And you’re so full of shit your eyes should be brown instead of this icy magic you have going on here.”

I couldn’t help the grin that sneaked out after a comment like that. How was I even expected to keep it held in?

“I’m sorry I offended you earlier. It was not my intention, and I hope you’ll forgive me.” She went to speak, but I pressed a few fingers over her lips. I had one more thing I wanted to say before she tore into me again. “When you’re ready to listen, I’d like the chance to explain what I was talking about. When you’re ready, though.” I moved my fingers from her plush mouth and was immediately sorry to not have that connection with her. It felt so damn good to be touching her anywhere—everywhere—I could be.

After inhaling a long breath, she let her eyes fall closed—and stayed that way for long moments. Of course, I didn’t mind. Not one bit, because I studied her intensely while she relaxed. I wanted to pepper her with questions, but more than my own selfish desires, I wanted her to relax and have some peace. Her body had been so tense when I’d gotten home from work. I knew much of that was my fault. I wasn’t always easy to be around. Of course, compared to, say, Bas, I was Mary fucking Poppins, but the more I got to know her, I didn’t think I could let Hannah near someone like Bas.

“You have no idea how badly I want to touch you right now,” I said so quietly, I wondered if she heard me. It was possible it was very strong desire and not actually spoken words. If that were the case, I’d be safe from making an ass out of myself if I were rejected.

Rejected. There was a word that was bitter on the tongue and left an aftertaste similar to vomit for a guy with an ego the size of mine. It wasn’t a concept I spent too much time on. Like stepping stones in a creek—you hopped quickly on to the next thing and never got too comfortable in that one place for very long.

“Where?”

That brought my attention back to the stunner right in front of me.

“Wha-What?” Shit. Was I on my first date?

Damn it, man, pull yourself together.

“Sorry. I was lost in a bit of a fantasy,” I admitted honestly.

“Is that right?” She stole my half grin then, and damn if it didn’t look good on her. “Are you going to share?”

“Oh, hell no.” I chuckled lightly.

“That doesn’t seem fair. So now you have to answer my first question. And don’t be cheesy, either.”

“Cheesy? Moi?”

“Oh, don’t even. I doubt that innocent bit works on anyone, Elijah Banks. Now, before you kill the mood completely here…”

“Okay. Okay.” I was a desperate man. “Let’s recreate the scene.” I wiggled from the shoulders down—the best I could while lying in a bed. Whatever the gesture looked like, it made Hannah laugh again, and I swear this woman’s laugh was a bigger aphrodisiac than all the oysters in the Gulf of Mexico.

Once her eyes were closed, I said very quietly, “You have no idea how badly I want to touch you right now.” The full smile that split my face couldn’t be helped. It was so damn good to be silly with Hannah and just feel alive with this captivatingly beautiful woman.