Page 24 of Merry Little Midlife Matchmaker

The wetness between my legs surprised me. A sigh slipped through my lips as I touched myself, imagining rougher hands in place of mine. I wanted to feel the stretch of him at my entrance. Wanted to feel his skin against mine, all that hard, naked flesh pressing me into the mattress while I panted his name.

My free hand slid up to cup my own breast. I closed my eyes and flushed at the thought of kneeling before him and taking him in my mouth. I wanted him to say my name again. I wanted him to be desperate when he did, to feel the tug of his fingers on my hair.

I came in a rush, thinking about the sound of his voice and the look in his eyes if I pushed him down to his back and sank down on top of him. I could almost feel the touch of his hands on my hips, rocking me to orgasm, and release went through me in a flash. It felt so good.Sogood. Nearly as good as the real thing.

Panting, I curled onto my side and waited for my heartbeat to slow. When my thoughts knitted themselves back together enough that I could think in full sentences again, only one thing became clear: I should not have done that.

Mostly because I wanted to do it again.

And I wanted the real thing.

I jumped when my phone rang. Scrambling to grab it from the nightstand, I gasped at the name on the screen—and swore.

ELEVEN

SEAN

Lizzie answeredon the third ring. “Sean? Is everything okay?” She was breathless, her voice strained.

I frowned. “Everything’s fine. Bad time?”

Her voice was rough around the edges when she replied, “No, you’re fine. I just got into bed.”

I hummed, liking the thought of Lizzie in bed. I liked the intimate sound of her voice right now. I wondered how she’d sound after being thoroughly fucked, if her voice would get drowsy and sated, or raspy, or thin. I wanted to know exactly how my name would sound at the peak of her orgasm, and how?—

I squeezed my eyes shut and pushed the thoughts aside. She wasn’t for me. I had a date with another woman lined up. Thinking carnal thoughts about my best friend’s little sister had to be some kind of punishable offense.

“What’s up?” she asked after a breath, sounding more like herself.

I marshaled my thoughts into order and slapped the horny part of my brain back with a stick. “I just wanted to say thanks for tonight. Aaron invited me out to the bar, and he said he had a babysitter lined up. I didn’t know it was you.”

“He has a babysitter built in, more like,” Lizzie answered dryly. “I’m always only one call away.”

“You could’ve said no.”

Lizzie made a noncommittal noise. “Well, it was no problem. Mikey and Zach seem to be getting along, and I got to have a night off cooking.”

Somehow, babysitting five kids didn’t seem like a night off to me, but I didn’t mention it out loud. Instead, I took a deep breath and broached the second reason I’d called. “I was also calling because…”

She shifted, and I imagined rucked sheets and plush pillows. I wondered what she wore to sleep. Something silky and soft and pink, that I’d enjoy peeling off to reveal one inch of her skin at a time?—

I cleared my throat. “I have a favor to ask. But you can say no. I don’t want you to feel like you have to agree.”

“Okay.” Suspicion laced the word. “What is it?”

I took a deep breath and sat up on the couch, glancing down the hall to peek at the bottom of the stairs. Mikey was in bed, and I hadn’t heard any creaks or footsteps that would tell me he’d snuck out of his room. “Mikey asked me if we could get a Christmas tree this year,” I finally said.

“Right,” Lizzie said. “Do you… Is that not something you normally do?”

“His mom does Christmas,” I explained.

“Every year?” Shock vibrated in Lizzie’s voice.

I cleared my throat. “Just the way the custody agreement shook out. But after seeing how happy it made him to decorate your tree, I was thinking that maybe it would be good to have our own holiday. You know, the two of us. Even if it isn’t on the actual day.”

“Oh, Sean,” Lizzie said, and I could just picture her smile. “Of course. You need help? What do you need me to do?”

“I, well…” I laughed self-consciously and scrubbed the short hair on my scalp. “I’ll be honest, I don’t know the first thing about shopping for a Christmas tree. If you could help me out with a list, or tell me where I should get one…”

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