Page 42 of Home Changes
She was. God, she was. They both leaned into touches, to the dance that spun them higher and higher. She shivered at his touch. The soft moans and sounds of her pants filled the room. They were the sexiest sounds he’d ever heard. Her shirt landedsomewhere on the floor. Then her bra, undone with steady fingers and care that he prayed told her he wasn’t just undressing her; he was memorizing and mapping every inch of her body. Her hot, tight, gorgeous body.
“You’re beautiful,” he murmured, his voice rough even to his own ears. “You always were.” He’d always admired her. Her laugh, her personality, but he knew he was leaving Hollister the first chance he got, and besides, she was Ken’s. Or so he’d thought. Now, he could stare at her beauty because she was his. All his, and she was giving him the most beautiful present he’d ever received. She was giving him herself, and he would honor that present forever.
Her chest rose and fell beneath his gaze, vulnerable and naked, but she didn’t flinch, and he prayed she understood the reverence he was trying to give her. His hands slid over her hips, down to the waistband of her jeans, and then paused. His mouth was on her again, whispering promises against her neck.
“We’ll go slow,” he said, even though he was barely holding himself back. “I need you to feel everything. No rushing through it.”
“I want to feel everything,” she whispered, her arms pulling him closer. “I want you.”
The room was filled with the soft sounds ofbreath and the rustle of sheets. His shirt joined hers, then her jeans, then his. Piece by piece, they shed the barriers between them. The air was warm and heavy, filled with the scent of night air and skin.
He kissed her like she was something he didn’t dare break because she was a present, and she was safe in his arms. She would always be safe with him. He reached over to the nightstand, grabbed his wallet, and pulled out a condom.
“Why?” she panted.
He stopped and looked down at her. “Protection against pregnancy.”
“I’m on the pill.” She took the condom and tossed it off the bed.
“Probably for the best. That thing is five or six years old.”
She laughed, and he smiled down at her. The humor died, but the passion between them engulfed them white hot and urgent.
When he entered her, it wasn’t without hesitation. He paused, kissed her cheek, her jaw, her temple. God, it was painful to stop, but for her, he’d endure hell. “You okay?”
“Yes,” she whispered. “I want this, Seth. I want you.”
And then there was no space left between them.It wasn’t perfect, but it was real. They laughed and sighed. There were awkward moments that melted away as they found a rhythm. Was it the perfect coupling? God, no. But it was good, and the depth of the honesty between them was powerful. It was the type of intimacy that broke the holds of the past and shone a light on the future.
Seth held her gently because this woman mattered, and she’d taken up a place in his life with ease. He treated her like the precious gift he believed she was. And when she cried, just a little, he kissed the tears from her cheeks.
When they were both quiet again, tangled in each other beneath the worn quilt and the soft moonlight coming in from the window, Seth spoke first. “I can’t help but feel you just changed everything for me,” he said, voice bare and honest. He needed her to know what he was saying was the truth.
Allison didn’t answer right away. She just curled closer to him, fitting into the space his body made for her. She whispered, “I think you changed everything for me first. You saw me.”
Outside, the wind whispered through the prairie grass. Inside, two people who had lived through a rough and rutted past found something neither thought they’d get. A fresh start.
CHAPTER 14
The morning sun filtered through the gauzy curtains, painting soft gold across the room. Outside, a rooster crowed somewhere. Allison stirred first, blinking against the light. Her body ached in a good way, muscles warm and stretched in places that hadn't been used quite like that before. She smiled before opening her eyes, the memory of the night clinging to her skin like the scent of Seth’s cologne.
He was still beside her, and she admired the picture of him. Bare-chested, hair tousled, his arm heavy around her waist, anchoring her to the bed like he had every right to keep her there. And you know what? He did have that right. She’d given that to him. She searched her mind and her heart for anyregrets, but smiling, she knew there were none. Seth filled the empty spaces in her life. Would the future be perfect? No, but who expected perfection? She wanted real and honest, and she found that with him.
She eased out from under the quilt as gently as she could, tugging one of his old flannel shirts from the chair near the bed and slipping it on. The hem nearly hit her knees.
She padded barefoot toward the kitchen, intending to make coffee or at least start breakfast, but she’d barely crossed the living room when the hallway creaked and Chester appeared, shuffling out in a rumpled Army T-shirt and flannel pants, hair sticking out in all directions. Gomer was glued to his side.
He squinted at her, rubbing one eye with the back of his hand. “You here already? Drove all this way so early?”
Allison blinked. “Uh …”
He grunted and shuffled past her toward the counter. “Damn early to be feedin’ a man, but I won’t complain. You bring food?”
She bit back a laugh, cheeks warming. “Actually, I’m using what you have here.”
“Smart.” He gave her a side-eye glance, thenblinked like he was trying to piece together a puzzle, but it wasn’t making a picture. “Thought I heard you come in, but then I thought I must be dreamin’. Hell, I didn’t even hear Seth get up.”
“He’s, uh …” Allison tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, glancing back toward the hallway. “Still sleeping.”
