Page 129 of Seven Year Itch
I find her standing on her tiptoes in my Colorado Rockies T-shirt, holding the hanger of a large white garment bag. It’s unzipped, revealing the infamous stained wedding dress that was trashed all those years ago during the house reno mishap. I clear my throat and lean against the door, fighting away the painful flashback I am having right now.
Her head turns to look at me, and her cheeks flush crimson. “I could never bring myself to get rid of this dress. The one that I married Randal in, however, went right in the trash can.”
My shoulders shake with silent laughter. “I bet it felt good to dump that one.”
“It really did,” she replies with a heavy sigh. “But you know what I’ve been thinking about all morning?”
“What?”
“I was so pissed at you about that flood, and you never once thought about ratting Randal out. He was just as much a part of the accident as you. In the end, he was fully responsible. Why didn’t you say anything even then?”
My lips thin as I stare at her looking so stunning with her sleep-tousled hair and bare face. “I wanted to protect you.”
“But why? I was so awful to you during the reno even before the accident.”
A heaviness builds in my chest as I consider whether or not to say the next part out loud. It could scare her away. Then again, I told her I wouldn’t keep any more truths from her... so here goes. “I think I wanted you even then.”
She frowns back at me. “What are you talking about?”
I scrub my hand over my face, shocked that I’m actually admitting all of this to her and myself. “You marched into my brother’s house on poker night all hot and spicy and poking at all of us like you owned the place. You were exactly the kind of girl I would go for.”
She smiles curiously. “So why didn’t you?”
“You were Cozy’s best friend,” I reply, gripping the back of my neck. “She was getting serious with my brother, and I knew the only way I could try to be with you would be if I was willing to marry you.”
Her expression shifts, and a terrified look streaks across her face. “Wait. Does that mean now you want—”
“I don’t want to marry you, Dakota,” I reply with a laugh, and she looks relieved until I add the last part, “yet.”
“Yet?” she exclaims, propping her hands on her hips like she’s about to scold me. “My divorce was final a couple months ago, Calder.”
“Oh, I know,” I huff, pushing off the frame of the door to eliminate the space between us so I can wrap my arms around her waist. I press a chaste kiss to her forehead as she grips my bare shoulders. “I’m not saying marriage now. But I am saying that I don’t hate the idea of you walking toward me in that exact dress someday. It made me breathless seven years ago and that was before I even realized how I felt about you.”
Her body tenses beneath my hands so I try to soothe her with a soft kiss to her lips. “I’m not trying to rush you, baby. I’m just trying to show you that this is real for me. And you are the onlywoman in my life that I have ever felt like this with, and I will do whatever I can to keep you right here.”
I squeeze her hips and pull her in close, feeling her heart race against mine. This is perhaps an even bigger declaration than the love bomb I dropped on her last night. But fuck it, once you start letting yourself feel shit, it kind of feels fucking awesome.
“I’m happy to call you my girlfriend for now, and we can see where the future takes us.”
A bright, teasing smile sparkles on her face. “Did you just call me yourgirlfriend?”
“Would you prefer I call youmy woman? Cuz I like the sound of that too.”
Her brows pop up, and a heated look crosses her face. “You can call me whatever you want as long as you keep doing whatever you did with your tongue to me last night.”
“Oh, did my woman like that?” I growl, dipping my lips to her neck and nibbling her supple flesh. “My tongue is at your service, but I need something a little sexy from you too.”
Her hands slide down my chest, and I let out a deep groan as she strokes my cock over my briefs. “Name it,” she whispers.
I shake my head and laugh.She’s going to fucking kill me.
“I’m not sure this thing works with boobs,” Dakota says all trussed up in my living room with her arms stretched out wide.
“It works great with boobs,” I reply, walking over to her and adjusting the straps. “But it might work better if you were naked underneath.”
“Oh, is that right?”
I chuckle softly and a memory of her at the sex club flashes in my mind. “Hey, I can get you a matching mask if you like. It might be a little dirty from the girls who wore it before you, though.”
