Page 53 of Stone Promises

“Better.” I smile because he remembers. He remembers all of it.

“And the one at the lake, when your bikini top came off—that was a pretty damn great picn—”

“Nope,” I interrupt. “It was the best, Chad. The best one ever. I’ll never forget it.”

He beams with pride. Then he startles me by reaching over me, grabbing me by the hips and lifting me on top of him. I’m straddling him as he stares up at me. “This,” he says, wiping mustard from my lip with his thumb and then putting it in his mouth to clean it. “I’ll never forget this or any other moment I get to spend with you. They are the best of my life, Mal.” He puts his hand on my neck and pulls me to him, mashing our mouths and bodies together.

He tastes of ketchup and salt and chocolate. I don’t even mind that he tastes of pickles. I feel him grow hard beneath me and my body takes over, undulating on top of him as we explore each other with our mouths. “God, Mal,” he whispers, as his lips find my earlobe. “I’ve missed you so much.”

“Me too,” I say, my head falling back to give him more room to work.

“I think I missed you more these past weeks than the nine years we were apart,” he says against my skin. Then he suddenly pulls away from me, looking guilty. “Not that I didn’t miss you then. Because I swear I did. I thought about you all the time. But after that kiss two weeks ago. Jesus, do you know how hard it was to get on that plane and fly away from you?”

“I know what you mean,” I say smiling down at him. “I feel the same way.”

His head cocks to the side and he studies me. “You do?” he asks, tracing the ball of his thumb across my cheek. “I mean, do you really? Or are you just saying that? Because I’m not shitting you, Mal. These past weeks were torture. I’m not sure what I’m even going to do after . . . ”

His eyes do all the talking after his words stop. I get it. I know exactly what he’s saying. How are we going to be apart after this weekend? If we do all the things I think we are going to do. After spending three days together. If being apart from him after just one kiss was that hard, I can’t even imagine what being apart after making love will feel like.

I put his face between my hands and caress his cheeks with my thumbs. “I’m not just saying it, Chad. It’s true. Being without you these past weeks, it was horrible. And I know you’re only here for a few days. But that’s okay. Because if a few days is all I get, I’m willing to take it. I’ll take whatever you give me.”

He pulls my lips to his. “Everything,” he whispers into them. “I want to give you everything.”

Chapter Seventeen

Chad

I pick Mallory up and carry her back to the bedroom. This is it. This is the moment I finally get to see her—finally get tohaveher. I place her down on the bed and lie beside her. I trace the outline of her face with my fingers. I want to remember every curve, every placement of each freckle, every nuance of her heated expression.

My heart thunders beneath my shirt. My hand shakes as it works its way down her shoulder. I realize I’m fucking terrified. I’ve been with a lot of girls. So many I don’t even remember all of their names. But this time is different. I shake my head and snort a laugh before capturing her eyes with mine. “NowI’mthe one who’s nervous,” I admit.

“You?” She tilts her head with a questioning gaze. “Why?”

I stare into her gorgeous green eyes. “You’re so beautiful, Mallory. I want this to be perfect. I want to live up to your expectations. And, well, I might be a little worried about any preconceived notions you might have given that I’m, uh . . . ”

“A famous movie star that girls drool over who has a reputation of being good with the ladies?” she asks, smirking.

“Ugh,” I groan, burying my head in the crook of her neck. I wish I could take it all away. Turn back the clock and erase all the stupid shit I did.

“Chad.” She runs her fingers through my hair and I look up at her. “Don’t you think I’m nervous, too? Not because of who you are now, but who youwere. I’m lying in bed with the boy I had a crush on all those years. We were perfect together then. This will be perfect, too. Because it’s us.”

Man up, Stone.

I climb on top of her, supporting my weight on my elbows as I hover over her lips. “Damn right it’s us. It’ll always be us, Mal.” Then I claim her mouth as if it has always belonged to me. As I kiss her deeply, the nerves I felt disappear and turn into something else. Pure hunger for this woman. Every kiss with her is better than the one before. Every touch has us exploring new, uncharted territory.

I press myself into her, grinding our clothed bodies together in simulation of what is yet to come. A soft, mewling sound comes from the back of her throat. It’s sexy as hell. I sit up and straddle her, fingering the hem of her shirt, visually asking for permission to remove it. She smiles. I don’t hesitate another second before pushing it up her body, past her black lace bra and over her head. I don’t even know where I throw it because all of my attention is focused on her breasts. Holy God, they’re incredible. I put my hands on her, molding each breast into one of my hands. They fit perfectly. Warm and soft and oh, so natural.

My fingers find the front clasp of her bra and when I snap it open and take in her bare chest, I’m sure I’ve died and this is heaven. “Jesus, Mal. You are so beautiful.”

Her hands pull at my shirt, begging to find what’s underneath. I reach behind my head and pull it over me, depositing it next to the bed. Her hands on my chest feel incredible. But that’s not what sends ripples of pleasure through me, it’s the way her eyes take me in. She doesn’t look at me like other women do; like I’m a prize they will get to brag about to their friends; like I’m a conquest to add to their accomplishments. No, Mallory looks at me in awe and with complete reverence, like she’s seeing the Mona Lisa for the first time. Like she’s unearthed some secret that is only known to her. And I swear to God it’s better than any high I’ve ever gotten from drugs.

We take slow and careful pleasure exploring each other, learning one another’s skin inch by silken inch. My fingers come upon a small raised scar several inches from her belly button. I get off her and position myself next to her as I lean down to examine it, running my finger carefully along it.

Mal shivers from my touch. “Appendix,” she says. “I was twenty.”

I frown, thinking of her scared and having an operation. For the millionth time, I scold myself for not being there for her. I bend over and kiss her scar, my tongue taking the same trail across it as my finger had. My hungry mouth works its way up her stomach, tasting every inch of her as I blaze a path to her breasts. Her nipples are stiff and they pucker further under my tongue. She groans as I lick and suck them, arching her back as her chest pushes into me. The sultry noises she’s making have my dick straining painfully against the fly of my jeans.

As if reading my mind, Mallory’s hand works its way between us, caressing me through the denim. I push into her, craving every stroke she gives me. Her dexterous fingers make easy work of unbuttoning my jeans, and when she slips her hand beneath my boxer briefs and touches my bare skin, I shout out, “Mallory, Jesus!”

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