Page 47 of Peak of Love
It was her turn to lean in and say, “Spill it.”
“Being with him wasn’t sexy because he’s as hot as the devil. At least that’s not the only reason. You know what I heard loudest of all? When you said he lights you up from inside.”
Tori paused, letting her words sink in. “Celina, hon, you put on a good front for the world, for your sons. You smile and hug and work and say all the right things, but I haven’t seen that spark in your eyes in so long. I thought I’d never see it again after Asher died.
“Just now, every time you said Dane’s name, you reallydidlight up. Frustrated and confused and even upset—your spark is back, Celina! And it isfire. I bet if you ask him, he’d spend his life keeping it there.”
It was cold. Dane hadn’t meant to stay out that long. When Jonathan, a lead engineer in the Seattle office, invited him to grab a beer a few hours ago, the rain hadn’t started. The bar was in the center of the city, less than ten blocks from his townhouse. Heading home with water pelting his face, the ten minutes felt longer. He welcomed it, though. Spending a few hours out of his home and out of his head was a good thing.
He didn’t want to crowd Celina and the boys while her sister was visiting, so didn’t plan anything recently. Which meant he didn’t make the usual excuses to his colleagues about being busy with a soccer game or a tuba lesson. There were no plans to be distracted by the boys’ busy lives. And there were no reasons to see Celina at all.
As he neared his house and the cold ceased to bother him, he slipped right back into his brain’s most recent screensaver. The last time he had grabbed the boys for a pickup basketball game, she had been preparing to go for a run. The memory of her tight pants and that high ponytail swinging behind a simple baseball cap made him hard even as he walked through the wet, darkened night of early spring. He was truly depraved.
By the time he reached his block, he was ready to pull his cock out the second he dragged himself past the front door. It would probably take just a few tugs. He was getting really efficient at jerking off since it was his only form of release from a sex-starved, Celina-temptation existence.
And then he saw her, standing on his front stoop, huddled in her raincoat with her head down. The speedy sloshing of cars through the rain drowned out the sound of his approaching steps. She was breathing fast and shallow. But it was her hand, pressed and stroking the door the way she had placed it against his chest so long ago, that arrested his attention.
“Celina? What are you doing here?”
She jerked her head up. He noticed she took a deep breath before turning to face him.
God, she was beautiful. Despite the gloomy night, her face was as warm and bright as the sun. And when he saw her lips part and her eyes flutter, he had to put his hands in his pockets to stop himself from grabbing her close.
“Is everything OK?” he blurted out, suddenly alarmed about why she would visit instead of call or text. He didn’t even need to check his phone, because Dane always checked his phone. She hadn’t called or texted since the Earth Day outing.
“Hi,” she muttered, seeming nervous and skittish.
He simply stared for a moment before returning her greeting.
She crossed her arms over her chest and shivered, jarring Dane out of his stupor.
“Shit, come in. You’re freezing. I thought you had a key.” In fact, she’d had it for years. Asher and Celina were the first people he’d given keys to when he bought the place. She had insisted on buying him plants, so he joked they were her problem when he’d be gone for weeks.
“Nothing’s wrong. I just, um, I wanted to see you.”
He finally got the door open. Dane ushered her in and they slipped out of their shoes automatically, lining them up on a boot tray. Her little rain boots beside his Doc Martens were achingly domestic. He turned away and brusquely announced, “Let me hang your jacket.”
“I’ve got it,” she retorted, already reaching for a hanger in the closet. “You should, um, get out of your wet clothes.” Her eyes glazed over his chest and Dane realized his shirt clung to his torso. The way she looked at him sent lava through his veins. And straight to his dick. Her eyes swiftly lowered before she glanced away. No point hiding his arousal now.
“OK, yeah, get comfortable. I’ll be right out.” He beelined to his bedroom where he stripped down to his boxers.
Take it easy, she’s not here for that,he scolded himself. Damn cock didn’t believe it, though. Resigned to his body’s betrayal, Dane grabbed loose sweatpants and a t-shirt. He made his way to the kitchen where she had grabbed two whiskey tumblers from a cabinet.
That’s when he registered she was wearing the black dress from Whistler. The one with the low neckline and form-fitting shape that followed the curve of her hips. She had opaque tights which didn’t stop him from following the patter of her steps as she approached.
“Does this fridge make those fancy ice cubes?” she inquired.
“Nope.” He walked to the freezer and pulled out the whiskey ice rocks from a special drawer. “These are even bougier.”
Her plump lips lifted at the corners as he dropped the rocks in the glass. He relieved her of the tumblers and walked to the butler cabinet by the living area. “Scotch good?”
“Scotch is perfect,” she answered huskily. She sat on his sofa at the edge closest to the gas fireplace. He walked to the mantle and ignited the flames before offering her the drink.
It felt natural to have Celina in his home, tucking her feet under her hip and swirling the honey-colored liquid while relishing the aroma. Naturalandconfusing because she was as unreadable as she was gorgeous.
She stared into the fire while he stared at her. She straightened her back and cleared her throat. “I’ve missed you, Dane.”
Just like that. Barely a handful of words and he was ready to lay himself at her feet. Before he could do that or something equally ridiculous, she continued.
