Page 62 of Whisper Sweet Nothings
“That wasn’t embarrassing at all,” I whispered.
“That was fucking beautiful.” His green gaze looked at me with complete adoration, and my chest squeezed.
I slid down his body and adjusted my robe. “Well, it was a bit more than a kiss.”
“It was,” he said as he stood with his back to the wall, watching me.
My gaze moved to the erection that was currently tenting his joggers. “Should we do something about that?”
He laughed. “No. I’ll take care of it.”
“You’ll ‘take care of it’?” I smirked.
“Yes, Winnie. I’m a man raising a little girl on my own. I don’t get out a lot, so I’m quite well versed in taking care of my needs.”
I bit my bottom lip, and I didn’t know what to say, but I didn’t want this night to end. “Do you want a cup of tea?”
He chuckled. “A cup of tea?”
“Yes. I’m not sleepy, so I thought we could just—hang out?”
He smiled and gave me a little nod. “How about you start the tea, and I’ll grab a shower, because I can’t sit and talk to you when I’m hard as steel, not that I haven’t done it many times before.”
“You sure you don’t want me to give you a hand?” I chuckled.
“Don’t tempt me. I’ll meet you in the kitchen in five minutes.”
“Ohhh… it’s that quick, huh?” I teased as I walked behind him.
He startled me when he turned abruptly, pinning me to the wall with a mischievous grin on his face as he leaned down and spoke against my ear. “I’d force myself to take my time if I were buried inside you. But if I’m just thinking about you, I can pretty much come on command.”
I could barely catch my breath as I stared at him, and he leaned down and gave me a chaste kiss. “See you soon.”
I heated water in the kettle, my body still on a high after the pre-tea orgasm. I poured the water into our mugs to steep, and Archer stayed true to his word and returned in just a few minutes, looking relaxed with his wet hair and handsome face. He’d changed into navy joggers and a white tee.
We settled on the couch, where we shared stories about our childhoods and our families.
“That must have been so fun growing up with all of your cousins, too. Living on the same property the way you did.”
“It was the best,” he said as he set his mug down on the coffee table. “How about you. Did you like being an only child?”
“I mean, I would have loved to have siblings, but with my dad raising me on his own, it was always just me and him against the world, you know?”
“Yeah. And do you talk to your mom?” he asked.
“No. She left and never looked back. That’s what made things so complicated with Jaden.” I let out a deep breath. “He had this great family, and his mom and I were so close. But I couldn’t stayin a relationship with a man just because I loved his mother, you know?”
“I get it, but it’s no way to live. And you weren’t happy for a while?”
“I wasn’t even excited on my wedding day. I felt like such a cliché getting married at twenty-one when I was still in college. But he was so lost during that time, and he was adamant about either getting married or breaking up. I was young and not as confident as I am now, I guess, so I went along with it.”
“Life is all about the journey. We learn from the things we do, and we can’t turn back time, so you take your experiences and the knowledge you have from them, and you move forward.” He traced his fingers along the palm of my hand.
“How about you? Did it take you a long time to get over Melody’s mom?” I asked.
“In some ways, yes, and in other ways, no. I loved her, and that part was difficult. But from the moment she left, I was thrust into this new life raising a tiny human, so I didn’t have a lot of time to wallow or feel sorry for myself. But I do think it’s probably made me cautious about relationships with women, not to mention I’m raising a child on my own, so it changes things.”
“And you’re fine raising Melody on your own now?” I pressed. “You like keeping your relationships casual?”
