Page 96 of Not As Advertised

I watched her take in the beautiful display. Taking Abbie in my arms once more, I kissed her sweetly.

“To match your hair,” was all I said, feeling bashful for the first time in my life. The shrug that accompanied my words was so unlike my usual formal posture that I’d perfected for the office. I was looking forward to the man I could be with Abbie.

I kissed her again.

“The thing I love most about you, other than your caring and tender heart, is your determination to be true to yourself. I have learned so much from you. You have reminded me of all the precious ways there are to find joy in life. All the teasing keeps me on my toes.”

“Aiden, I think you need to say something snarky, or I’ll be crying all week.”

“The invading part comes next, sweetheart.” I gave her a hungry grin, and she rolled her eyes at my terrible joke. “By the way, I want to see all your photos. From this trip and everything else you haven’t shown me yet. But later. Much, much later.”

“I don’t even know if they are any good, Aiden.” She ducked her head.

I put both hands on her cheeks to bring her gaze back to mine.

“Hey, now. If they are even one iota of the quality you took on our work trip, they are going to be brilliant. Sonia Martinez still sends me an email every time they use one of your photos.”

“Fine. I’ll show you some later. Right now, I need you to take me to bed. I missed you so much.” She pressed herself against me.

“I missed you more, baby.” I absolutely had. “Let me show you how much.”

Leaning down to capture her mouth with mine, I picked Abbie up in my arms and carried her down the hallway to the master bedroom to make good on my word.

By the time I could think again, the sun had long set over the ocean. We’d missed it completely. I’d be sure to make it up to her over the coming days.

With Abbie on my chest, listening to my heartbeat, as she said she liked to do because it calmed her, I felt a deep sense of contentment that I had realized nearly too late.

“Abbie, I have something else I wanted to talk about.”

In response, Abbie sat up, this time letting the sheets fall away from her torso. Her legs bent to press her bare shins against my side.

My gaze locked on her breasts. God, she had no idea how much power she wielded over me. Body and soul, everything about her seduced me. I continued staring at those luscious mounds and their tight pink nipples. I’d just made love to her, and I already wanted her again.

I loved that she felt safe enough to be comfortable in her own body like this. It showed me how far we’d come.

But how did she expect me to concentrate now?

“Hey, eyes up here, buddy. You wanted to say something, remember?”

My gaze darted to her briefly and then down to her chest again.

“Ah, what? Right. I did say that, but now…” I leaned toward her, determined to capture one of those tight buds in my mouth.

“Oh no! You talk. Then we can talk about how you are taking me to Disneyland this week.” She squirmed backward slightly to keep me on track.

“Baby, I can’t talk about Disneyland right now. My thoughts are as far from family-friendly as you can get.”

“We can get back to those thoughts in a minute.” She winked.

I reined in my baser urges, promising myself I only had to wait a few minutes and I could get back to worshiping her body.

“Actually, I have something important to tell you first. I’ve started seeing a therapist. Her name’s Sarah. We’ve had two virtual sessions already and have set up an appointment in person for when I get back.”

Her revelation caused me to sit up and gather her against me, hugging her tightly.

“I’ll support you every way I can. But I’m really glad you have a professional you can trust that you can talk to.” I sobered, pulling back enough that I could look into her eyes. “I’ll never be able to make up for my part in all the hurt you experienced.”

“Hey. I already forgave you.” She brought her mouth to mine to kiss me gently. “It might be a complete disaster, but I’m learning how important it is to try. So I’m going to.”

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