Page 41 of Falling for the Unexpected

“Please don’t stop,” she pleaded while looking up at me. Before I knew what possessed me, I slammed my lips over hers and started kissing her deeply. It took just a moment for her to start returning the kiss, her tongue meeting mine stroke for stroke. As soon as we took a breath, the song stopped and a much faster one came one. We broke apart and stared at each other. The beat of the music made the tension between us that much more palpable. She also didn’t look like she hated me kissing her; in fact, she was moving toward me again, her eyes on my mouth like she wanted more.

I’d spent weeks—months—debating with myself about my feelings for Simone and how to deal with them. I could choose to not see her at all, but that wasn’t really an option. I couldn’t abandon her and Stella like that, just because I couldn’t control myself. So instead, this was me, taking a risk, a chance, and hoping it didn’t blow up in my face.

“I need some fresh air, you want to come out back with me?” I asked, feeling overwhelmingly hot now. I needed a moment to think, and give Simone a chance to think, too.

“Sure,” she said, sounding a little flustered from our short make-out session.

I knew I was probably confusing her, having left abruptly at the bar earlier, and stopping us now, but Simone made me feel like I had no game whatsoever. I grabbed her hand and led her through the crowd and out the back of the club. As soon as we opened the door, a blast of ocean air hit us slightly cooling the heat we had been feeling. I looked at Simone closely and saw red tinting her cheeks.

“Look, I’m sorry if I pushed you too far in there. You look beautiful and your dancing is extremely sexy…” I trailed off. I knew she was in a vulnerable place, and I didn’t want to make her feel pressured into anything.

“You think I look beautiful?” she asked, beaming up at me like that was the first time she’d ever heard it. I still remembered Jim’s birthday party and Brad’s ridiculous comment about her body.

“You’re gorgeous,” I told her, meaning every word. I couldn’t believe this woman in front of me could ever doubt her beauty. Then I remembered whom she had been married to. I’m sure he never made an effort to give her any sort of compliment. Knowing how her childhood had been, it was very likely she rarely heard any form of praise.

I bent down slightly to meet her eyes. “You are the most beautiful woman here tonight. It took everything in my power to not get carried away back there,” I told her honestly.

She glanced up at me again, moving closer to my body. “I think I might have enjoyed you getting carried away, Mr. O’Neill,” she whispered, and damn if that didn’t make me harder.

“Oh really?” I asked right before meeting her lips with mine yet again. I had her pinned against the building, my hands traveling up her sides before brushing over her breasts.

She started moaning against my mouth just like she had been moaning on the dance floor. She had my self-control hanging on by a thread. Kissing her wasn’t going to be enough.

“I really want to take you home with me tonight,” I told her, taking a break, both of us panting.

“I really want to go home with you,” she said, making me smile.

I grabbed her hand and led her back inside. “We should see what everyone else is doing,” I said, moving us quickly through the club.

I dropped her hand as we approached our group. Ian informed me that Trent had already left with Ashley. Everyone else looked ready to leave so we all headed toward the door. Addie and Kayla were both pretty drunk, and being the responsible brother I was, I offered to let everyone stay at my house. I may have had an ulterior motive for the offer. I hadn’t been able to think of any other way to get Simone back to my house without raising suspicions. Erik was going to head home since he had to be at the racetrack in the morning, but Ian was coming back to my place since he was crashing there until he got settled into his own place.

We managed to snag a cab with enough room for all five of us. It was a fairly quiet ride. In the back, Ian, Kayla, and Addie were half asleep already. With Simone next to me for the twenty-minute ride, I had to remind myself to not lean over and touch her or keep staring at her legs.

Once we pulled up to my house, I had Ian help me get both Kayla and Addie inside. I had three extra bedrooms, but Ian was already occupying one. All the bedrooms were on the second floor, mine at the front of the house facing the ocean. Ian had decided he wanted the one at the far end of the house since we both appreciated our privacy. I put Kayla and Addie in the room next to Ian’s, and Simone in the one next to mine.

Addie and Kayla were passed out the minute their heads hit the pillows. I made sure they were comfortable before closing the door behind me. Ian immediately retreated to his bedroom, leaving Simone and me alone. Finally.

“Do you want some water?” I asked, leading her back down the stairs to my kitchen.

“Yes, please,” she answered behind me.

We sat at my kitchen island making small talk, the heat between us having cooled down a bit after driving home and getting everyone settled.

“I love the sound of the ocean, you’re so lucky to hear it from here,” she said softly, her eyes never leaving mine.

“It sounds even better up on the roof. Come on, let me show you,” I said, grabbing her hand and pulling her up both flights of stairs. I directed her to the half wall that was at the edge of the deck.

As she stood there, I moved in behind her, caging her in with my arms resting on the railing. I knew she could feel me directly behind her by the way her body tensed for just a moment. I wondered if I made her nervous or if it was something else. There was so much about Simone I still didn’t know. She was reserved with most people, but not as much if she felt comfortable around them—like Marla, Jim, and Trent. I knew with a childhood like hers, without having any stable figures in her life, that some part of you never really outgrew the damage done when you were younger. I was glad that she was seeing Stephanie, and working out some of those issues, and I had seen a huge improvement over the past few months. She was more open and confident, and coming out of her shy, quiet shell.

“Oh, this is beautiful,” she said on a long sigh. She swiveled her head around, staring in the direction of the pier that was lit up. Against the dark sky it shined brilliantly.

“Absolutely beautiful,” I said, not taking my eyes off of her.

She turned to face me when she felt my breath on her neck. Even though our faces were only a couple inches apart I couldn’t move away. I knew moving things this fast was risky. She was Trent’s sister-in-law, well, ex sister-in-law, and he was extremely protective of her. She also had a child, and while I adored Stella, I wasn’t sure I was ready for that kind of responsibility. But at the same time, I couldn’t seem to make myself pull away from her.

The lust in her eyes wasn’t helping my resolve either. She looked at my mouth, licking her own lips, giving me all the signals that she wanted more as well. She had totally been into it when we had been kissing on the dance floor and she apparently wanted a repeat. Feeling a bit more daring now that we were alone, I leaned down so our lips could meet. I was planning on taking it slow and kissing her gently, but then she grabbed my hair and pulled me closer, thrusting her tongue in my mouth. She tasted so good, and I loved how confident she was in this moment. She knew what she wanted and right now she wanted me.

Even so, I was reminded of the fact that she had been drinking earlier. I didn’t want this night to turn into a huge regret for her. I broke our kiss and she looked at me in confusion.