Page 19 of Passion Restored

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Water slid over her skin, and she moaned, wishing her hand were something far better than it was just then. Liz needed to come, and for some reason, she couldn’t get there that morning.

It probably had something to do with the fact that every time a certain bearded and inked neighbor slid into her mind, she pushed him right back out, interrupting any thoughts of orgasm along the way. She’d already washed her hair and the rest of her body, as well as shaved her legs—something she hated when only half awake—and had decided to at least try and get herself off a little bit before the rest of the day. She had a rare day off and wanted to unpack some more and maybe even do something others called relaxing.

But before she could relax, she wanted to have just a tiny bit of bliss.

If only she could get Owen out of her mind.

And at that thought, images of him on his knees in the shower in front of her slid into her mind, and she was powerless to stop them. He had his big, calloused hands on her thighs, slowly squeezing into her flesh before spreading her before him. He’d lick up her inner thigh and the place where her leg met her hip before nibbling down to her mound. His beard would scrape her skin in that sensual way that sent shivers down her spine, and he’d lick her as he kept his eyes up, wanting to see her face as he tasted her.

She’d run her hand through his hair and press him closer, loving the way he sucked on her clit before biting down. She’d throw her head back into the tile, holding onto the soap dish with one hand as she came so she wouldn’t fall.

And as she rubbed her hand furiously against her clit, she came, thinking of Owen’s mouth on her pussy, his hands molded to her flesh. Her legs shook, and she forced herself to slide down and sit on the floor so she didn’t fall and break something.

That was one thing she did not want to explain to her coworkers at the ER.

With a fumbling grace, she reached up for the nozzle and turned off the cooling shower, her chest heaving as she tried to catch her breath.

Holy hell.

She’d come freaking hard just thinking of Owen Gallagher—a man she should not be thinking about at all. He was only her neighbor and a former patient. Nothing more. She didn’t even know the man, and for some reason, every time she was around him, he put her back up. She had no idea why, but if some internal part of her wanted to push him away, she should just go with that and ignore any attraction that flared between them.

And that meant no more getting herself off to thoughts of his mouth on her pussy.

Her clit throbbed, and she glared down between her legs.

“For the love of Pete. You just got off. Stop wanting more.”

And she’d officially gone crazy. She’d just chastised her clit for daring to want a Gallagher to get her off. And not just any Gallagher. Owen freaking Gallagher. With that sad thought, she pulled herself up and got out of the shower, standing on the rug and toweling off so she wouldn’t end up with a puddle in the middle of the floor and slip on it later. She’d seen so many household accidents run through her ER that she tried her best to not become a statistic. With a sigh, she pushed those unhealthy thoughts from her mind and went about making a mental list for the day. There were still countless things to do around the house to get it fully unpacked and looking like a home. Standing around naked in her bathroom was not one of them.

By the time she got dressed and headed into the kitchen to make coffee, her list had grown past a mental one, and she was already writing things down in order on her phone. She didn’t know what she would do without the note app and the ability to move things around on it. As she sipped her coffee, she looked around her new kitchen and let herself smile. They might not be completely unpacked, and she and Tessa would have to move things around to paint in a year or so, but it was hers.

She no longer had to pay rent, and she didn’t have to deal with landlords who liked looking at her breasts rather than her face, or never being able to change anything because she didn’t own it. And while it was Tessa’s first home, as well, Liz had never truly owned anything in her life at all. This place and all its faults were hers, and she couldn’t wait to put her stamp on it.

Tessa had left early that morning for work so today would be Liz’s day to put things to rights. They had a master list they worked from so they didn’t redo things or miss something important—thankfully, Tessa loved lists as much as she did. Tessa might be a little wilder than Liz, but she loved order in some things just as much as Liz.

Liz carried her coffee toward the front of the house, wanting to do something she quite possibly had never done in her life—sit on her front porch and take in the morning. That had always seemed so…unproductive to her, and while it still probably was, she was going to try it out if only for one morning.

Tessa had brought home the ugliest outdoor chairs Liz had ever set eyes on to put on their front porch. They didn’t match each other, let alone the house, or the set they had in the back yard. Liz wanted to either upholster and paint them or get rid of them altogether, but Tessa would hear nothing of the sort. Apparently, it was Tessa’s project, and Liz would just have to deal with it.

This is what came with buying a house with your friend and not your spouse.

Liz shrugged as she sank into the surprisingly comfortable chair. She’d just get her way on something else inside the house since that’s how they worked. She sighed and took another sip of her coffee. Even though they were ugly, the chairs weren’t uncomfortable. In fact, the one she rested in seemed to mold to her butt quite perfectly, and now she didn’t want to get up.

Maybe Tessa had a plan, after all.

The morning was just settling in, and from her position on the porch, she could see the beauty of the Rocky Mountains as well as the foothills that seemed so much closer in their new place than in the small apartment they used to share. She’d wanted this house because of the view alone, and Tessa had been right there with her. There was truly nothing as majestic and beautiful than the Rockies on a clear morning.

As soon as that thought had entered her mind, a certain bearded neighbor filled her vision. But this time, it wasn’t just her imagination. He’d taken off his sling and wore a tight t-shirt as well as a worn pair of jeans that clung to his very thick and muscled thighs as well as that firm butt of his that made her mouth water. She wasn’t sure if he could see her from where he stood, but the fact that he probably couldn’t made her feel like a lecher.

That didn’t stop her from staring, however.

She took another sip of her coffee, her gaze no longer on the mountains but on the man she’d just come thinking about. The man she shouldn’t be thinking about at all. He was too close to her life, too gruff, too…just too everything. When she was ready to settle down, she’d find a nice, calm man that didn’t make her go crazy for no reason. She didn’t want to be with a man with large hands that could use them for any purpose he desired.

Liz closed her eyes and let out a breath, pushing those thoughts from her mind. She hadn’t thought about those days for a while now, and she wouldn’t start now. And for one thing, she above all others knew that it didn’t take a man with large hands to inflict the kind of pain she tried not to think about.

Smaller hands with a firm disposition could do well enough if they wanted to.

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