Page 36 of Work It Out
“And don’t even think about locking me out.”
Damn him, she’d been halfway to the door to do just that.
She was too tired and embarrassed and way too confused to deal with anything else tonight. If he thought cuddling would make letting her down easier for either of them, she was past arguing about it. Too ragged and bruised, she wouldn’t pass up the chance to let him hold her together a while longer.
She tossed the covers back, climbed in, and moaned as the familiar mattress cradled her.
“Beats sleeping on exercise mats, huh?”
Jake stood in the doorway in a pair of loose athletic shorts. He wasn’t classically beautiful like Nate or uber muscular like Blaine. His dimples made her heart race, though, and his constant teasing flirtation made her feel feminine in a way nothing else ever had, even if it wasn’t real.
Rayah closed her eyes against the burn of more tears. Why couldn’t it have been real?
The bed dipped behind her, and the blankets rustled. “Come here, cupcake. We need to get a few things straight.”
She rolled over and stared at him. He stretched out the arm closest to her and patted his chest with the other hand. “Come on. Get in on this while I’m still soft and squishy. A few weeks from now, I’ll be all buffed out. It’ll be like cuddling a boulder.”
She wanted to laugh and make a place for herself against his shoulder. It would feel amazing, even if it wouldn’t solve anything. Instead, she shook her head and settled against her pillow. “This isn’t necessary, Jake. You don’t owe me an explanation, and you certainly don’t owe me pity cuddles.”
“Pity cuddles? For fuck’s sake, Rayah.” Jake slipped his arm under her and hauled her against his chest. “This has been the longest day of my life. I swear, my hair hurts. It actually hurts. I always thought that was an exaggeration, but Ifeelit, and it aches.” She did chuckle at that. Pierce had worked him hard.
Jake’s silver eyes gleamed like white-hot flames in the moonlight. “I desperately want a whole host of things, the most notable of which is to sink into your tight little body and not come out for a week.” He smoothed the hair from her face, raining a cascade of tingles over her skin. “Unfortunately, we need to talk about a few things before that happens. Moreover, you’ve been through a hell of a lot tonight.
“I can absolutely be pushy and assuming, but I’d never, ever purposefully risk taking advantage of anyone, let alone a woman I respect as much as I respect you. And if I’m being honest, I want to mean more to you than some rebound lay. You’re understandably emotional over things with Blaine. I want you to be with me because you can’t think about anything—or anyone—else. God knows, you’ve made a full-time job of starring in some very dirty fantasies of mine. I think I might deserve some airtime in your head, too.”
Oh, he’d had several leading roles he didn’t know about. Not that she’d admit it.
“For tonight,” Jake said, arranging them both so they lay on their sides with her back pressed against his front, “I’ll settle for being the big spoon.”
He was right. He could absolutely be pushy and assuming, but only in the most wonderful ways. She needed someone who respected her strength enough to cart her around and position her like a doll when she was being stubborn even as he challenged her to be brave enough to ask for what she wanted.
Jake would make her admit how much she burned for him before he truly laid a finger on her, and he’d make sure her focus didn’t waver. No one had ever made her feel soseen. Not even Blaine.
The heaviness of the last few years leached from her heart and settled in her bones—always a part of her but more dormant somehow. Though the feeling was utterly exhausting, all that ache seemed more manageable with a lighter heart and an extra set of arms to carry the load. She and Blaine would work it out; they had to. But that was tomorrow’s problem. For tonight, being enveloped in Jake’s warm embrace was plenty. They’d never last, but they could steal a little time. That would have to be enough.
Rayah scooched closer to the curve of Jake’s body. Her breath hitched and her pussy clenched when her bottom wiggled against the long, thick ridge of him, and that unfamiliar thrill felt amazing, too.
He wound an arm around her waist, tucking her closer still and pinning her against him. “Be a good little spoon and go to sleep before you make me cross-eyed.”
“Fine.” She kissed her bicep pillow. “Since I can’t persuade you to be the big fork.”
His sensual chuckle went straight to the place where she ached for him most. “Don’t worry, cupcake. I have every intention of forking the hell out of you. Very, very soon.”
For once in her life, she couldn’t wait.
Chapter Eleven
September 18
Tweet by Jake Newman @NotJustAnotherChris
Nothing strikes fear in the heart quite like being called a “man” inthattone by an angry woman.
Jake woke with an armful of warm, soft woman, and life didn’t get better than that. Mostly. He would’ve loved it if they’d both been naked and he was balls deep in her, but Rayah wasn’t that girl. There was nothing wrong with a woman just looking for a good time. Rayah simply wasn’t built that way. She’d regret any sexual encounter in which her emotions weren’t clear and fully engaged. She could probably count her partners on one hand.
He’d need both hands. And his feet. And several other people’s hands.
He was lucky she hadn’t kicked him out of bed. Which was precisely why he’d stopped things the night before, even though his dick threatened to shrivel up in protest.
