Page 23 of The Singer and the Silent Type

As I rushed fresh glasses of wine to the ladies in the corner, it amused me how formal Iris and Cody were with each other. I guess, in a way, he needed her approval for things to seem proper.

Everything really did seem to be in its place now, except for one tiny detail. Rushing around the room, it took me a while before I could take a break, but Cody seemed patient as ever.

When I finally had a chance to stand close beside him, I whispered, “I’m sorry I was so hysterical. I’ve never had a boyfriend before, and I had my hopes up way too high for them to be dashed during our first weekend together.”

“I understand. We both have a lot to learn, but we’ll figure it out.”

Bringing my lips to his ear, I breathed, “And I think I love you too.”

In a flash, he spun and kissed me. The rest of the world disappeared. His lips, his hands, Cody breathing me in. At that moment, I knew that he was absolutely the one. It was only a few seconds, but it was life-changing.

He pulled away too soon, but it was understandable since I was at work and we were already getting funny looks. “Actually, I don’t think,” I whispered. “I know I love you.”

“I love you, angel,” Cody breathed into my ear. “May I follow you home tonight?”

I nodded, grinning, rushing back to the kitchen. The rest of my shift seemed to take forever, but soon I was driving my very own car home, with Cody’s truck right behind me. When we got to my place, there was the perfect amount of space at the end of the driveway for our two vehicles.

As I unlocked the front door, I heard Cody come up behind me, wrapping a hand around my waist. “I’m relieved to see that you’re a good driver,” he said. “Testing the brakes before you trusted them, going at a very reasonable speed, even though you must know how badly I need to get you naked. You’re a very sensible lady, Lorena.”

I giggled, then laughed out loud as I realized he wasn’t kidding. The door was locked, his boots were off, and I was scooped in his arms, being dropped on the bed in a flash.

Although I don’t quite think anything ripped, it felt like he was tearing my clothes off. As soon as we were both naked, his huge body beside mine and his hand on my hip, he kissed me intensely.

“Lorena, I’ve had to corral a wild horse with my bare hands, deliver a calf with no assistance, and put out a brushfire with buckets and my boots. But I’ve never been as scared as I was today when I honestly thought you were going to break up with me.”

“I’m sorry I thought the worst,” I said. “I guess I’ve always just expected that people are more likely to believe the bad things about me than the good.”

He nodded, his hand reaching behind to cup my ass, squeezing my skin. “I guess I can understand that, but I hate it. You’re an amazing girl, and almost everyone in town knows it. The tiny handful of people who don’t like you don’t like anyone, so they can just go to hell.”

We laughed together, then he moved over me, kissing down my neck to nibble at my nipples until I was squirming under him.

During the drive home, I had been hoping for a repeat of last night’s amazing experience. But now that his thigh was rubbing over mine, his hand gripping my hip, his lips wrapped around my nipple, I realized that I needed much more than that.

Pulling his shoul

der slightly, I brought his lips back to mine. “Sorry, baby,” he murmured against my lips. “I didn’t mean to assume that you’d want me like that again tonight.”

“I do want you, but I also need to tell you…thank you.”

“For what, angel?”

I kissed the tip of his nose, making him grin. “For my beautiful new car. It’s not just the car itself, which is amazing, but it’s what it means to me.”

He kissed along my eyebrow. “What does it mean to you?”

“That we’re real,” I whispered. “This isn’t a fling, or a crush, or anything temporary. I want us to be together for good. And knowing how much you want to keep me safe definitely tells me that’s what you are thinking as well.”

“Lorena, I’ve never been in a relationship that lasted more than a few weeks, and that was years and years ago. I stopped trying to date because I didn’t think anybody was dateable. But then you came along, and you’re not just dateable, you’re keepable.”

I giggled as he kissed along to my ear. “I don’t think that’s a word,” I whispered.

“Okay, I’ll use a different word. How about you’re lovable. Because I do love you.”

It seemed so much more serious with us lying here together, alone and naked. His eyes were on mine, gauging my reaction. I was frozen for only a blink before smiling. “Cody, I love you too.”

He exhaled a loud sigh of relief. Then he kissed me. There was something slightly different in his energy, as his arms held me close, and his lips held me captive.

When his lips disappeared, I whimpered in frustration, but then I felt them between my legs. His tongue against my sensitive flesh opened me on levels I wasn’t aware I possessed. A humming moan rolled through him as he licked up drops of my arousal. His hunger for me was strange, but devastatingly sexy.

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