Page 33 of Jake

Heather’sheartthunderedinher ears. Was she hearing what she thought she was hearing? He’d always thought about her just as she’d dreamed about him? Her chest ached at the idea of the years they’d missed out on. But if they’d gotten together then, would it have worked? She wasn’t the same person now she’d been then, and that was a good thing, at least in her opinion. Would things work between them? Even with how badly she wanted it to? The only way to find out was to jump in and try it. If she backed away now, she would always wonder, always wish she’d taken the risk. The last twelve years had taught her that.

She leaned in, closing the distance between herself and Aaron, until her lips met his. His kiss was hesitant at first, but it soon turned hungry. She met him at every turn, pouring the need and want she felt into the kiss.

As if of their own volition, her arms wrapped around his neck, pulling him closer. Sensations and emotion overwhelmed her until she barely noticed when she was scooped off the sofa and set on his lap. Though the change of surface, she noticed. Gone was the soft padding underneath her, as it was replaced with the hard warmth of his leg and a ridge she couldn’t ignore and didn’t want to.

Without thinking about it, her body arched against his, grinding her needy core against the hard length of him and sending waves of pleasure through her. She lost track of time, of the world around them, of everything but the two of them as she let her hands play up and down his torso while she lost herself in his taste and the feel of him beneath her.

“Are you sure?” he asked as she tugged his shirt off over his head.

“I’ve never been more sure. But not here. Let’s go to the bedroom.” Her voice had gone breathy, needy. She tried to climb off his lap, only to be stopped by his hands on her hips.

Before she could say anything, he stood, taking her with him. She let out a startled eep and wrapped her arms around his neck as he carried her through the trailer. Not used to being carried or the odd sensations it caused low in her belly, she buried her face in his neck, thankful the place wasn’t big enough he would need directions.

“I hate letting go of you, Lynnie, but I can’t get my boots off while holding on to you.” He set her gently on the bed, then stepped back and bent to untie and loosen the laces on his boots.

She tilted sideways, until she rested on one elbow and watched the muscles in his arms and shoulders play beneath the skin as he worked his boots off. The tattoos on his arms and neck had been impossible to miss, but she should have realized his back and chest would have them too. Her fingers itched to trace the lines and colors along his skin. She couldn’t help but wonder what designs his jeans hid. Hopefully, she wouldn’t have too long to wait to find out.

When he’d finished with his boots, he looked up at her, a predatory look in his eye. If she wasn’t so certain he would never hurt her, it might have scared her. But there were only a few people on earth she was as sure of as Aaron, though she couldn’t have said why, and at the moment she didn’t want to examine it.

He moved to the edge of the bed, staring down at her with hungry eyes as she lay on one side, looking up at him and hoping she looked alluring.

“Lynnie, I’ve wanted this for a long time, but I know you’re not coming from a good place. The last thing I want is to scare you or hurt you. You can stop this at any time. If I do anything you don’t like or don’t want, just say something. Okay, sweetheart?”

She nodded, not entirely sure why he felt he would scare or hurt her. Yeah, she’d run from her ex and his friends, but not because they’d hurt her. She’d run before they’d had a chance.

“I need the words, Lynnie.”

“I understand. If there’s anything I don’t want, say something.”

“Good girl.”

She liked hearing that. Heat pooled low in her belly, and she didn’t entirely understand why, but she wasn’t going to examine it, at least not yet. Leaning up, she reached for him, wrapping an arm around his neck she tugged him closer. She wanted to kiss him, to feel his mouth on hers and his hands on her skin.

His hand skimmed along her belly, over her shirt, reminding her that she was still fully dressed while she’d taken off his shirt. She didn’t like that. She wanted to feel him, skin to skin. Her hands went to the bottom of her shirt and began tugging it up, working it up until she broke their kiss with a gasp, then shoved her shirt up over her head and off.

Aaron’s eyes played down her body, then back up.

“You’re beautiful,” he said once his gaze returned to her face.

“You’re not bad looking yourself.” Heather stretched one hand behind her back and unhooked her bra. “I’ve waited a long time for this.”

“What?”

“You.”

25

Jakealmoststoppedbreathing.He froze, his hands on her hips and aching to move up her body, when he heard her words. She wanted him. Well, given where they were at the moment, that part wasn’t too surprising. But that she’d been waiting for him?

He knew she didn’t mean she was a virgin. There was no way she’d waited until they were nearly thirty for that. Besides, she said she’d been living with that Mitch asshole. Did he care that she’d been with others? No. It wasn’t like he’d saved himself for her. What mattered was where they were now. Here in each other’s arms.

“You’re not the only one.” He only hoped he could live up to her fantasies, because he assumed that if she’d been thinking of him that long, she had done as he had and thought about what it would be like.

Closing the distance between them, he covered her mouth in another searing kiss. His hand slid along her waist, and he marveled at how soft she felt, how had he gotten here again? Did it matter? What mattered was that he was here, and she was up for this, now he had to be sure he didn’t screw it up.

He trailed his lips along her jaw and down her neck. She let her head fall back as he lavished attention on every inch he came across. One of her hands buried in his hair and seemed to urge him on. Pulling him close as small sighs and cries erupted from her mouth, urging him to continue.

When Jake reached her breasts, he teased one nipple with his tongue, flicking and circling the tip before sucking into his mouth, then releasing it to give the other the same attention. Judging from the way her fingers curled into his scalp and shoulder, along with the sounds she made, Heather approved. He loved the way they filled his hands, a perfect handful with only a little overflowing. He couldn’t imagine her being more perfect.

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