Page 15 of Crushing on the Grumpy Boss

His eyes are still on mine and even though neither of us says a word, he still doesn’t turn to leave. I feel the air grow thick between us—I wonder if he feels it, too. I wet my lips, noticing the way his eyes fall from mine, down to my mouth. I bite my lower lip, looking at him from beneath my lashes. He lets out a long breath. “Fuck,” he breathes out, smashing his body against mine as he pulls me in for a kiss. This kiss is soft, slow, and sweet. This kiss feels right.

My hands are between us, and I grab a handful of his shirt and hang on for dear life. His hand moves to my jaw, holding it softly as he deepens our kiss. He slowly pulls back, only an inch. “Let’s get out of here.” His eyes find mine, waiting for a reply.

I can’t speak. I can’t find my voice. All I can do is nod.

10

TRAVIS

Ihave no fucking clue what I’m doing. This certainly wasn’t planned. In fact, this is the exact opposite of what I planned. I wanted to put the space back between us. That’s why I spent the entire day locked in my office. Yet, the first chance I had, I pulled her against me and kissed her until neither of us could breathe. Now, I’m taking her back to my house. We both know what this is. She’s always made it clear how much she wanted me. I’ve always held back, but the truth came out last weekend, and keeping it locked away is no longer an option.

We climb out of the truck at my house, and I open the front door. I drop my keys onto the entryway table and turn to face her in the living room. “You want a drink or something?”

She has her arms crossed as she shakes her head. “I’m fine.”

I wet my lips and nod, not knowing what the fuck I’m doing. So, that’s what comes out of my mouth. “I have no idea what I’m doing here, Riley. I don’t know what this is between us. I don’t know what it can lead to. All I know is, Saturday night was amazing for me and afterward, I freaked out and ran away. I intended to avoid you today, not knowing how to handle this mess I’ve created. And then I walked out of my office and saw you with him. I’ve never felt more jealous in my life. And when I followed you out and I saw him…” I take a deep breath, “touching you, I snapped.”

The corners of her mouth turn up slightly and she steps toward me. She looks up at me and her blue eyes are sparkling, darkening. “I don’t know what this is either, but I know I don’t want to run away from it.” Slowly, she lifts herself onto her tiptoes and presses her lips to mine.

The kiss is soft and slow but building. She lets her coat fall from her arms before wrapping them around my neck and pulling me closer. My hands find her hips, and after only a moment of kissing her, I find myself picking her up against me. Her legs wrap around my hips as I carry her to my bedroom. I kick the bedroom door closed and press her against it.

She gathers my shirt in her hands, pulling it upward until I break our kiss to rip it over my head and sling it into the floor. My mouth is right back on hers as her fingers move over my bare skin, almost burning me with her touch. I grab the hem of her shirt, pulling it up her chest. She helps slip it over her head, and I drop it onto the floor at my feet. Our mouths find one another again and my hands move around to her back to unfasten her bra. One quick movement of my fingers has it snapping open and falling between us. I grab it, slinging it into the floor as I place her on her feet. I drop to my knees, pressing kisses across her hot skin.

I move my hands up to her breasts, holding them, massaging them, and enjoying the weight of them in my hands. She’s perfect; not too big, and not too small. She’s soft, heavy, and responsive as I suck a nipple into my mouth, flicking my tongue against it. She laces her fingers into my hair, pulling me closer as she tugs at the root. As I kiss her breasts and stomach, I unfasten her jeans, working them down her long legs. When I get them to her ankles, she steps out of them, and I push them aside. I look up at her body. She’s wearing nothing but a pair of hot pink lace panties. I run my hands up her smooth thighs, stopping at her hips as I stand before her.

She smirks at me in the darkness of the room and unfastens my jeans. They fall on their own, and I kick off my shoes and jeans in one swift motion. I grab her, pick her up against me, and carry her to my bed. I know this time will be better than the last. We know what we’re doing now; it wasn’t just something we fell into. I plan to take my time with her and make this last as long as possible.

Our hands are busy touring one another’s bodies as our mouths remain welded together. Before I know it, we’re both stripped of the only fabric keeping us from connecting. With my hips between her thighs, my body comes alive, pressing right where we’re both longing to connect. She wiggles her hips, causing me to slide between her slick folds. She feels too good beneath me. With a surge of excitement, I pull my hips back and send them forward again, sliding into her tight little body. We both moan the moment we connect, savoring the moment. I’m wound so tightly that I feel as if I could explode just from pressing into her. I wanted to take a moment to get myself together, but she had other plans.

She moves her hips against me. “Please, don’t stop now,” she begs as her nails dig into my back. As badly as I want to slow down, she’s begging for more, and I’m in no position to argue. I give her what she wants, what she needs. I pull back my hips and send them flying into her once again. I roll my hips, ticking that delicious spot inside of her that I know will leave her seeing stars. Her muscles begin to tighten around me, almost like she’s milking me for everything I have. All thoughts fall away as I turn my attention to giving her what she wants and in turn, providing just as much for myself.

We’re lying in my bed, naked and breathless. I don’t want to ruin the moment, but I have to know. “So that guy at the bar, he’s the high school boyfriend you ran off and married?”

I hear her take a deep breath, letting it out slowly. “Yep.”

“And you’re getting divorced?”

“As soon as I can afford it.” She rolls to her side, hooking her leg up over my hip as she rests her palm against my chest.

“What happened?”

“Life happened. We were too young to do what we did, but we thought we could make it. We really did love one another back then, but we had no idea what it would take to survive. We worked ourselves to death trying to build a better life. But every time we felt like we were getting somewhere, something knocked us down. It felt like we were fighting just to survive. We grew up and grew apart. We were too focused on surviving to love. And then, it was like he gave up. Like he wasn’t even trying to survive anymore, let alone make it work between us. I came home from work and found him in our bed with another woman. I was heartbroken and angry. As much as I thought I loved him, I knew it was over. So, I packed up and came home.” She shrugs.

“Do you regret it?”

“No,” she answers immediately, so I’m sure of her answer. “This feels right. This feels like I’m finally getting my life back on track. That I’m finally where I should be.”

I wet my lips. “I’m still married, too,” I confess.

“I know. Evie told me.”

“She did?” I turn to look at her in the darkness.

She nods. “I thought I remembered you getting married, but once I started working for you, I put the pieces together. I never saw her around the bar, you never spoke of her, and you didn’t wear a ring. I had to ask Evie and while she couldn’t give me much, she did say that you were separated.”

After all she’s shared with me, I feel I owe her the same. It’s clear that we’re not going to be able to resist one another. The only other thing to do is to let one another what we’re signing up for. “I married my high school girlfriend. Like you, we were young and stupid, even though we waited a long time after graduation to get married. We thought if we waited, we’d know better, understand what life would look like for us.”

I take a long breath and try to find the words. I haven’t talked about her in a long time. “Our life wasn’t what she had planned. She liked to live with her head in the clouds. She thought that I’d get picked up to play professional football and that we’d live a life of luxury. Of course, I didn’t. I graduated with a degree in business and planned to open the bar. While it wasn't what she expected, she decided to go along for the ride. She tried; she really did. But in the end, it wasn’t enough. She packed her things and left to find the life she wanted.”

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