Page 43 of Play for Keeps

She squeezed him tight, and he groaned long and loud, proving all the Kegels she’d done to strengthen her pelvic wall were not for nothing. He seemed to lose the thread on his protest, so she decided to goad him along a little. “Butt? On the first date?”

A laugh boomed from him like a cannon blast. Then his hips jerked, and his entire body seemed to bow and flex as he unleashed a rough, ragged groan. His eyes closed, and his face contorted. Gorgeous, white teeth gleamed in the fading light of the day, but Ty wasn’t smiling as he pumped into her. His handsome face was twisted into a grimace as he lowered his head into the crook of her neck. Full, soft lips sought and found the tender spot beneath her ear. She shivered at the contact, but she wasn’t the least bit cold.

Heat radiated from his skin. She imagined waves rising off him the way they wafted from overbaked asphalt. His chest heaved as he blew like billows, each breath fiery and moist. He groaned again, but she heard little pleasure in the throaty surrender.

“What?” She ran comforting hands up over the planes of his back. “Did you throw your back out? Pull a muscle? Charlie horse?”

His only response was a huffy chuckle and weak shake of his head.

“You’re not some kind of shape-shifting animal that breaks its yoohoo off in the female, are you?”

“Wha?”

The question was muffled and loaded with enough disbelief to give her an answer. “Never mind.” She slid one hand up into the downy soft curls at his nape. “You just…you don’t seem happy.”

The observation earned her another soundless laugh and a half-hearted version of his earlier groan. He drew a breath deep enough to make her think of birthday cakes loaded with those candy-striped candles, but instead of a hearty gust, he let go slow and soft. “I’m not happy that I can’t seem to manage to make love to you naked in a bed like a normal human being with reasonable impulse control. Maybe I am some kind of animal.”

Millie grinned at the apex of the vaulted ceiling. “I hear being a normal human is boring. Never saw the point in being average.”

He lifted his head, holding her gaze, and slowly peeled himself off her. His feet found the floor, and he canted his body away from her. Broad shoulders hunched as he dealt with the condom. She smiled. If he was an animal, he was a cautious and considerate one, even if their encounters hadn’t quite lived up to whatever standard he had set in his head.

Sated as she was, she still felt a little…squirmy. Millie raised her arms over her head and pointed her toes, twisting to one side then the other as she indulged in a long, luxurious stretch. Letting her muscles go slack, she opened her eyes to find Ty staring down at her. Unrepentant, she gave him a lazy smile. “I like this couch.”

“I slept here the night you came creeping across my back lawn.”

The image of him passed out in this exact spot pleased her for some reason. Like this overstuffed, overused sofa was somehow destined to be tangled up in their affair. She ran her hand over the fine grain of the upholstery. “You got drunk after I left.”

“Yes, I did.” Ty held up one finger to ask her to hold her thought, then pivoted on his heel, headed for the narrow hallway, and opened one of the doors.

A light flicked on, and a second later, she heard the toilet flush and water run in the sink. She let her head fall back and blinked up at the ceiling, willing her bladder not to give in to the siren song of water rushing through the pipes.

Too late.

Cursing the daiquiris she’d downed earlier in the evening, she heaved a sigh and rolled up off the couch. She hadn’t thought to grab a shirt or something when she followed the sounds of the commotion in the garage. Now, she cursed her lack of forethought. Straightening her shoulders, Millie forced herself to walk across the room as unselfconsciously nude as he had. After all, she looked pretty damn good in the buff. For a woman of any age. Besides, the sunlight was waning, and he’d seen all she had to see. No point in playing shy.

Ty opened the door to the powder room, then drew up short. “Oh. Sorry. I needed to get rid of the…”

He waved in the general direction of his crotch, and she bit back a laugh. “Evidence?”

“Encumbrance,” he countered.

Millie ducked her head as a prickle of heat danced through her. “Have I ever told you how hot it is when you jock types show your smarts?”

He smirked. “Is that what the kids call them now?”

“I need a minute.” Placing her hand on his chest, she pushed him back enough to give her room to slip past him into the half bath and close the door behind her. “I wouldn’t mind a glass of water, if you feel like treating a girl.”

“I’ll treat you to anything you want,” he called through the door. “Water, wine, beer, booze?”

“Water is good,” she answered, hoping he’d go away. Her muscle control wasn’t as absolute as it used to be.

“How about dinner?”

Millie dropped onto the commode and let her face fall into her hands.

“I don’t think I have much here other than stuff in the freezer,” he continued as if they didn’t have a door between them. “I could order in.”

She scrubbed lightly, then gave her cheeks a light pat, gathering the strength to hold on a few seconds longer. A whimper rose in her throat, but she managed to squeak out a weak, “Sounds great.”

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