He groaned and threaded his fingers through her hair as she moved her mouth methodically up and down his engorged erection. A deep carnal ache began building as she tortured him with the rhythmic suction of her wet mouth.
“God, it feels so good…” he moaned as he stroked her hair. So many feelings were rushing through him. Commitment. Protectiveness. And…love. It was love. He didn’t want to spook her by saying that, of course. But it was true. He was falling in love with her.
All he could do was try to show her that through his actions. The way that he would use his body to make her feel every bit as good as he was feeling when it was his turn to pleasure her. He would do anything he could think of to express his feelings to her without scaring her or making her back off.
He would use anything at his disposal to show Stephanie how special she was, how much she deserved every good thing in life. And prove to her how hard he would work to try to give them to her.
Just when he thought he couldn’t take the amazing movement of her mouth one minute longer without exploding, she lifted her head up and smiled. She was like a magician, her timing was impeccable. She knew the exact right moment to stop what she was doing if things were going to continue.
She stood up and smiled down at him. For a moment, he thought maybe she was going to be the one to say they needed to stop. That she was going to tell him that it was too much exertion for him and his condition. That they should wait. If that was the case, he was going to at least convince her to let him return the favor and show her the same oral pleasure that she’d just given him.
But it turned out there was no convincing necessary. That wasn’t at all what she said. In fact, she didn’t say anything. With a mischievous little grin on her face, she started taking off her clothes and dropping them on the floor.
One word continued to play in his mind as she did. Mine. They could take things as slow as she wanted but he was going to do everything in his power to make her his. God knew, he was already hers.
***
As Stephanie peeled off her clothes layer by layer, piece by piece, uncovering herself to Ace’s hungry gaze, she felt herself getting more and more turned on. When she had first started kissing and caressing him, the idea was that she would just give him a blow job. A way to make him feel better. Of course, they wouldn’t have sex—he wasn’t up to it. It would be too strenuous, too painful.
But then, at the last minute, when she felt him surging with release against her tongue and hand—she’d changed her mind.
Different arguments replaced her earlier worries. First, he was healing very quickly and seemed to be handling physical activity well. She honestly didn’t think it would be an issue for him to go further. Second, she planned on doing all the work. Lastly, and most importantly, she figured this might be her two and through. There was no guarantee that she would get a three and free, so she figured she might as well enjoy it.
Sure, Ace talked a good game. And it’s not that she thought he was a liar. She figured he most likely believed what he was saying about wanting more, wanting to have a relationship. But…come on. That wasn’t reality. That was fantasy talk. Once he got a real, cold, hard look at what her life actually entailed, it would be over. She didn’t think he was capable of doing what Mason had done and demanding she choose between him and the twins. But, she figured any man in a serious relationship would want her to put him first. And she couldn’t even blame him for that. That was a normal, healthy expectation to have.
So, she figured since this might be her body’s last opportunity to enjoy what Ace was offering, she was certainly not going to pass it up. She was going to take every bit of pleasure that she could from the encounter, file it away in her memory banks so she could return to it on the cold and lonely nights that she knew would certainly be waiting for her in the future.
When she discarded her last piece of clothing she stood before him completely naked and forced herself to remain in place and not rush things. There was no more powerful aphrodisiac for her than the feeling of Ace’s eyes on her body. Every inch of her skin felt like it was sizzling with hot desire. Her nipples and core ached and tightened. Her muscles felt loose and molten and liquid.
She felt sexy. She felt beautiful. His gaze was the only thing in her life that had ever made her feel that way.
She wasn’t delusional. It’s not like she thought she was ugly. She just never thought about it at all. When you’re raising kids, when you have the kinds of responsibilities she did—especially the kind that came with Scott’s special needs—you never took time to stop and think about it. Let alone to feel it all the way down to your bones the way Ace made her feel.
She worried more about whether she was strong enough. Whether she was smart enough. Whether she was brave enough. The thought of whether she was pretty enough? Yeah. It never crossed her mind.
Until Ace, that is. When he looked at her, she felt like a goddess. It was intoxicating, heady and powerful. She felt empowered and free. Like there was an entire world filled with endless possibilities.
Of course, she knew that none of those things were true. The world didn’t hold endless possibilities for her. It held endless responsibilities. She wasn’t free and her empowerment was a day-by-day choice.
So even in moments like this, the most precious of her life, when she drank in all of the wonderful feelings that Ace stirred in her—she still had to keep a wall up. Self-protection was key. She still had to remind herself that, yes, even though Ace had her flying right now, there was going to come a time when she would have to return to earth. Whether that was going to be a smooth or a crash landing was entirely up to her. She couldn’t let herself forget it.
But that didn’t mean she couldn’t enjoy the moment.
“Come here.” The sexy promise in his deep voice sent a shiver racing down her spine.
“You’re kinda bossy.” Her words were breathless as she climbed onto the bed.
“And you kinda like it,” he gritted out.
Heat warmed her cheeks at his statement and she knew that he could see her blushing.
“Do you have a condom?”
She nodded. Simone had bought them for her last Christmas as a gag gift. She hadn’t wanted to throw them away so she kept them in her nightstand.
“Get it,” he demanded.
She reached beside the bed and pulled the protection out. She started to tear the corner.