Page 74 of Second Time Around

Twenty

When his alarm went off, Beck reached over and patted the space beside him. He’d expected to feel a soft, warm body, but instead, he felt a mound of cold covers. He sat up in bed and glanced around, hoping that she’d suddenly appear and crawl back into bed with him. However, the house was dark and quiet, and he got the sinking feeling that she’d left.

Shoving off the covers, he crawled out of bed and padded into the bathroom. Sure enough, her bathing suit was gone from where it had hung over the shower, and the only sign that she’d been there was the towel she’d used, hanging askew on the towel bar.

She’d probably been in such a hurry to leave that she hadn’t bothered to straighten it. Then again, she’d never been a stickler for neatness. Instead of having the “morning-after glow,” he felt the heavy weight of disappointment.

Last night had easily been one of the best nights of his life. After making love for the second time, they’d gone downstairs, her in his T-shirt, him in shorts, and eaten the cream puff sundaes he’d made them. She’d exclaimed how delicious hers was while they’d sat side by side on the couch and enjoyed the desserts.

At least she’d enjoyed it. He’d been too distracted by the sight of her in his T-shirt, knowing that she was still naked underneath. She’d sat cross-legged, and he’d eyed her silky, smooth legs, recalling the feel of them wrapped around his waist. He’d gotten hard just thinking about it, but he’d hidden his arousal behind his dessert bowl.

After they’d finished, he’d asked her to stay the night, figuring he had about a fifty-fifty chance of her saying yes. Naturally, it took a while to get a definitive answer.

“Do you want to watch a movie or something?” he asked after returning their empty bowls to the kitchen.

She glanced at her watch and shook her head. “It’s kind of late.”

“We could go to sleep.”

“Together?”

He chuckled. “That’s kind of what I had in mind.”

“I don’t know if I can sleep here.”

“Why not?”

“Because I don’t sleep well in strange places.”

“This isn’t a strange place anymore, and you already know what the bed feels like.” He watched a play of emotions cross her pretty face. Her makeup had long since been rubbed off, and her hair was adorably rumpled, but she looked just as beautiful now as when she’d first arrived—probably even more.

She sighed. “I always sleep better in my own bed.”

He decided to try a different tack. “We probably wouldn’t sleep much anyway.”

“What would we do instead?”

A wave of desire threatened to knock him over, but instead of trying to fight it, he decided to roll with it. Placing a hand on her bare leg, he began stroking it. “I can think of a lot of things. Can’t you?”

She sucked in a breath and glanced down at his hand. “I suppose I could stay a little longer.”

He slipped his hand under her T-shirt and caressed the inside of her thigh. “Or you could just spend the night.”

“Don’t push it,” she said, but there was no fight behind her words.

He leaned in and kissed her, tasting the chocolate syrup from the dessert on her tongue. In the meantime, he trailed his fingers higher up her thigh.

She looped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer, sighing against his lips.

He loved that she was still as responsive as she used to be. However, the days of awkward fumbling were gone. They were both experienced now, and their movements were sure and polished. He hated that their experience had come from other people, but he refused to think about that now.

He skimmed his fingertips along her crease, happy to find her damp and ready, just like him.

“Beck,” she said, breaking their kiss to look at him. “What are you doing to me?”

“Pleasuring you.”

“But why does it feel soooo good?”