He groaned, pulling me even closer and nuzzling his head into the nape of my neck. I didn’t have the willpower to move, so we laid there for a little bit longer until he finally let out a sigh and pulled himself upright. He looked down at me and smiled, his eyes dark but this time, not with lust. I could see his emotions swirling around in the starry coloring of his blue eyes. He kissed me and then got out of bed, pulling on his clothes and picking mine up, neatly laying them on the end of the bed. I groaned, got up, got dressed, and laid my face on his chest in the darkness of the room. He kissed the top of my head and led me out of the house and back to the car. We hopped in, holding hands, and drove off toward my house.
The mood in the car was really somber, and I couldn’t help but worry that things were going to change. I was worried that I took the risk of pulling him back into bed, and in the end, that risk would be the end of something that was already so incredible. But I didn’t know what else to do at that point. I felt so close to him, and I wanted to be even closer. It wasn’t like he didn’t enjoy it as well, but the quiet of the car made me nervous, no matter how hard he grabbed onto my hand. When we pulled up to the house, he opened my door and walked me up to the front door. Immediately, as he leaned in, all of my fears quickly evaporated. His lips pressed into mine, and his arms wrapped around my body. It was one of the most passionate kisses I had ever experienced. I could barely keep my feet on the ground, and I felt like we were both hovering in the passion of the moment. He pulled back and looked deeply into my eyes, calming any nerves I might have.
“I really don’t want to let you go,” he whispered.
I smiled at him and let him pull me into a hug. I rested my head against his shoulder, thinking about how amazing everything in my life was starting to become. I had everything I ever wanted, except for a healthy father, which was something I was more motivated than ever to get started on again.
“I’ll text you,” he said, kissing my forehead and turning to walk away.
I shook my head and leaned against the door, watching him as he walked through the overgrown yard to his completely out of place car. I smiled as he looked up and flashed one of his charming smiles, waving at me before climbing inside. I wanted to run after him and go back to his place, but I knew I had to keep my head on my shoulders and keep my job.
I went straight to my room and closed the door, butterflies flying through my chest as I changed into my pajamas and set my alarm. Once I was in bed and had the covers pulled up, I listened to the sound of the waves across the street. Instead of me drifting right off to the sound, I sat there replaying every single moment of the last two hours. His skin, the smell of his body, the sound of the groans coming from his chest, the look of lust in his eyes, and everything else that happened. I grabbed onto my pillow, feeling like I was no longer anchored to the earth. That had been the most erotic experience of my life, and Blaine was one of the sexiest men I had ever been with.
I felt like a schoolgirl after her first kiss, thinking about the way his body tasted against my tongue and feeling the flitter of electricity in my chest. I had been worried for no reason, but he quickly had taken care of that with the passionate kiss on the front porch. Everything seemed like one of those girlie, romantic movies I used to gorge myself on. But now, with Blaine in my life, I was living my own romantic movie. Only mine wasn’t really a comedy. Hopefully, our love affair turned out like one of the good ones, with us sailing off into the sunset, wrapped in each other’s arms. I knew at that moment, I wasn’t going to let Blaine get away from me for anything.
Chapter 11
Blaine
I hadn’t been into the office in nearly a month, but today, I was motivated to get back in there and actually put some work in. Josie was so inspirational on so many levels, and after I had dropped her off the night before, I went home and really thought about our conversation over dinner. She was right. Everyone had things going on in their lives, things that could really mess them up on many levels, but that didn’t mean they should stop their lives and kill their dreams. I felt like it was harder for me to realize than others because I had the means to just give up, while other people fought for their dreams while supporting their lives and their families. So, at nine in the mornin
g on Monday, I showed up at my firm’s office and completely shocked pretty much everyone inside. As soon as I walked through the door, jaws dropped, and I could see Anderson Brady, the managing partner, get up and walk over with a smile.
“Blaine,” he said, shaking my hand and patting me on the back. “How are you?”
“I’m doing well,” I said. “Everything looks great.”
“Yeah, it’s going well,” he said, smiling. “What can we do for you today?”
“I think it’s time I made some changes in my life,” I explained.
“I like how that sounds,” he replied. “Come on, let’s go into my office.”
I followed Anderson across the hall and into his office. Anderson had been a friend of mine since my father and him were in law school together. My father trusted him to carry on the legacy of the firm, just as he had trusted me. I didn’t quite hold up my end of things, but I was ready to get back in there.
“So, tell me what’s going on,” he said, laughing and sitting down behind his desk.
“I’m ready to jump back into things and put this degree to good use,” I said. “I want to bring in some clients that are maybe on a sliding scale. I don’t want to just deal with the richest of the rich anymore.”
He smiled. “You sound like your dad. I think this is all fantastic. What made you change your mind? I knew that you were struggling after they died, and you really didn’t like the field we were in.”
“A girl,” I said, laughing. “Not that she wants me to work, but she made me realize some things, some important things.”
I knew it sounded stupid to say a girl changed my mind, but I would be lying to myself if I thought that I could have come to this conclusion on my own. Josie was a force to be reckoned with, but she was also extremely kind and very intelligent. She knew as much as I did that I needed to chase my dreams, and I had the perfect outlet to do that.
“I can’t wait to meet her,” Anderson said. “Tell me about her.”
“Well, she’s a school teacher in West Palm,” I explained. “She, uh, she’s not like any girl I’ve ever dated before. She doesn’t have a fairytale story about growing up. She definitely has had her fair share of things thrown at her, but she is light and lively and really knows how to cut right to the core of me.”
“You haven’t known each other long?”
“No,” I said, laughing. “She kind of came out of nowhere and really just stole my heart. She’s really something else. She had a rough childhood, and she was forced to make some hard choices at an age when she should have been hanging out with friends, not becoming the leader of a household. But it’s really turned her into a humble and empathetic person. She doesn’t see the dark side of things very often. She reminded me that a lot of people go through tough times, but our dreams for the future are what keep us going and give us hope. I realized I had completely given up on everything when Mom and Dad died, and I don’t want to do that anymore. I want to know Dad would have been proud of me.”
“Well, she sounds like a smart woman,” he said, chuckling. “I’m really happy for you, Blaine. And we are all really happy to hear you are going to start working again.”
“Thank you, Anderson,” I said, standing and shaking his hand.
“I’ll send my secretary over to brief you on things and get you up to speed,” he said, reaching for the intercom. “Mary?”