Page 25 of This for That (The Edge of Retaliation 1)
His stubble scratches against my skin, and I love it. I want more, and yet I want to savor this moment forever so I never get bored of it.
The kiss deepens. My breathing turns into shallow pants, and my hands find his chest, roaming over his muscles, feeling every hard inch of them. His hands leave my face, sliding beneath me and pulling me closer, cupping my ass and squeezing. The kiss deepens, and becomes frenzied. Our tongues stop dancing, and start fucking. They collide together and our moans vibrate through my mouth.
I want him. I don’t care if it’s in the back seat of this car. I want him so damned bad I can’t breathe. He pulls me over onto his lap, and I feel the hard length of his cock against my core.
He stops.
I whimper.
“Can’t,” he growls. “I can’t do this in a car. No fuckin’ way.”
Disappointment hits me again, mixed with awe, which is a strange feeling. I’m disappointed because I want more, I want so much more, but I’m in awe that he’s being so kind, and that there are still men like him out there. Men who don’t just take what they want, regardless of anything else.
“Don’t look at me like that,” he murmurs, grabbing my hips and rubbing my pussy along his cock. “You can feel how much I want you, but I’m not goin’ to strip you of your virginity in the back of a car. Gotta respect that, darlin’.”
Well fuck.
I do.
I really do.
“I get it. Thank you,” I whisper.
“Take you out, yeah? On a date.”
On a date.
Tanner doesn’t seem like the kind of man to date.
Why would he want to date a complete stranger when he could get any woman just by making eye contact with her?
“You don’t seem like the dating type,” I say.
His eyes search my face. “There are a lot of things you don’t know about me. Don’t judge a book by its cover.”
Ouch. “You’re right. I’m sorry. I just . . . you could have any woman you wanted in the back seat of this car. Why me?”
He reaches up and cups my jaw again. “You’ll just have to wait and find out, won’t you?”
I guess I will.
Yeah, I guess I will.
“C’MON, CALLIE, HURRY up!” Ethan yells, as we cross the road to the park where he wants me to keep bloody running.
I don’t fucking run.
He isn’t getting this—not yet, anyway. He still seems to think I am completely able and can run my little ass around this block every damned morning.
He’s horrible. I don’t like him at all.
That’s a lie. I adore him.
But the running, dammit. I hate it.
“I can’t run anymore,” I whine as I jog across the road. “It’s been two weeks, and I still hate it.”
“You’ll get used to it,” Ethan says, not a damned pant in his voice.
“When?” I gasp, stopping and leaning over, panting and grabbing my knees.
“It takes ninety days to make a new habit.”
I snort. “Stupid saying.”
He stops and turns towards me. “Come on, Callie. You’re doing good. Stick with it.”
I look up at him, my cheeks flushed. “Can we stop just for a second? One second?”
He nods, and points to a park bench. We both walk over and sit on it, me taking more than a few minutes to catch my breath. When I do, I turn to him and tell him, “I’m starting my new job tonight.”
“You got a job?” he asks, raising his brows. “Where?”
“A friend of mine has a sister who runs a café. She gave me a job when he recommended me to her.”
“He?” Ethan asks. “Didn’t know you’d already made friends.”
I shrug, and look down at my knees, “I got a flat one day, and he helped me. He invited me to a party. I went; we became friends. I’m glad, because his sister seems really nice and she gave me a chance, which nobody else would. I mean, I didn’t tell her about my past but she didn’t ask, so I’m grateful for that. It’s not the best job in the world, but it’s a job, and I’m grateful.”
Ethan nods. “I’m happy for you. It’s good to get back into the swing of things.”
“Yeah, it is.”
“How have you been coping otherwise?”
I shrug. “Good and bad. I’m a little lost, to be honest. I don’t know what to do with myself most days, I find myself confused and so used to the routine I lived in for six years. I forget that I’m able to go out and do whatever I want. That’s a foreign feeling to me.”
“You should explore farther. Go to the beach. Go and enjoy a movie. Go to a museum or a theater There are so many things to see in this city.”
I nod, and then smile. “You’re right. I’ll get there.”
