Page 41 of The Best Number

“I’ll copy and paste the scene to a new document and that way you can annotate it if you like and I’ll incorporate that back into the main document.”

I set that up before handing him the laptop. He takes it from me, settling it on his knees.

Rather than sit here, watching him read and feeling nervous about what he thinks, I get up to tidy up after dinner.

Chapter eighteen

Jack

I’m aware of Cassidy watching as I start reading, but I’m soon engrossed in her words. I barely notice when she gathers up the plates from dinner and takes them through to the kitchen. I reach the end and try to scroll down for more. She sure is good at grabbing my attention.

She’s wiping down the worktops when I come in behind her and put a hand on the counter either side of her to cage her in. I kiss the side of her neck and she tilts her head to give me better access.

“I should be used to it by now, but I still get nervous when someone reads my work. Especially when it’s not the finished, fully edited, and proofread book.”

“It’s good, Cass. I really wanted to carry on and read the next bit.” I turn her, planting a kiss on her lips before lifting her and perching her on the edge of the counter. She grabs my shoulders to steady herself.

“I added some notes at the bottom. Do you want to go through them now? Or do something else?”

She bites her lip. “Can I talk to you about it later if I don’t read it now?”

“Of course.” I smile and watch her intently.

“What?” she asks, looking flustered by my steady attention.

“I’m just wondering how I should make you come first.”

She blushes a little and I hope she’s picturing all the options, too. She brushes her lips to mine. We kiss as she wraps her legs around my waist, pulling me closer. I can’t help but grind my hard cock against her centre.Fuck, that feels good.

I break away from her lips to lay kisses along her jawline and down her neck. My hands come to the bottom of her top and I ease it over her head. I cup her breasts, still contained in her lacy bra, giving a happy sigh as I fondle her. “Love these. I’d love to fuck them at some point.” I picture my cock nestled between her breasts, while I thrust between them over and over.

“I’d like that.” She unfastens her bra and shucks it off quickly so I can bring my hands to her now naked breasts. I roll each nipple between my fingers and thumbs, loving how they harden from my touch.

Reaching one hand back, I grab hold of the back of my shirt and pull it over my head, discarding it on the floor next to her bra.

“Fuck. Do you wanna know how many TikTok’s I’ve watched of men doing that? I thought it was some kind of magic trick. You’ve got thirst trap written all over you, Jack.”

“You should see how good I look when I lean with my hands on the top of a doorframe,” I tell her with a wink.

“Please, can we have an afternoon where you show me your versions of all the thirst traps? I have a whole list of them saved on my phone… they come in handy for my books.”

“Sure thing, Cass.” I can’t think of anything better than spending the afternoon turning this woman on and fulfilling her every fantasy.

I lean in and she meets me halfway, our lips connecting. Her hands caress my back. I pull her closer so she’s sitting right on the edge of the counter and from there I can rub against her. As much as I want to get inside her, I realise this won’t be the most practical place to fuck. But I like having her pressed against me and groan when her hands make their way down to my shorts and tuck under the waistband to squeeze my arse.

“Where do you want to do this, Cass?” I lean back enough to look her in the eye. She meets my gaze as she bites her bottom lip.

“Bedroom?” She asks it as a question. “Or the couch?”

I grab hold of her and move to carry her through to the bedroom, but she wriggles and slides down out of my grasp.

“Where are you going?” I ask.

She clasps my hand. “You don’t need to carry me, Jack. Let’s go.” The urgency in her tone makes my already hard cock throb harder.

She tugs my hand, and I follow her through to the bedroom. She spins around to face me. I’m stunned when she pushes me into the nearest wall, my back hitting it with a soft thud. She’s showing a dominant side and I’m more than fucking here for it. Eager to see where this leads, I hold back from grabbing her to see what she has planned next. She runs her hands down my chest and I swallow when she palms my hardened cock through my shorts.

“What do you want, Jack?” she asks in a husky tone.

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