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Chapter Seventeen
“Iwas thinking, maybe we could share a minivan to the airport?” Bradley stated, as I rejoined the group after saying goodbye to Deanna.
I was sure this was a last-ditch attempt to spend time with Tricia, but I shrugged that thought away.
The pleading look in his eyes had appeared a little pathetic, but despite knowing what he’d like to have happened between him and Tricia, and the probable scenario that I’d break his jaw if he tried, I found myself nodding. We were parting ways on the concourse anyway, since he was traveling back to a different state.
Our company limousine had already been hired and I figured it was likely waiting for Rhea and me, since we were already late for the ten-minute checkout time we’d arranged. “Sure, no need to arrange anything. Our car is already waiting outside. I’m sure we can squeeze you both in.” I had already been going to suggest they ride with us before Bradley had shown his hand.
My concession was partly to show Tricia she could still have independence in her friendships, despite my caveman act with Bradley. I had no wish to control her in that sense; she just wasn’t sharing rooms with them while they tried to get into her pants. So, no matter what I’d thought of Bradley’s tactics, I knew he was important to her. Besides, apart from the fact she had blown him out in favor of me, I had already decided the threat from him to my relationship with Tricia was negligible.
As far as romance went, his passion for more was purely one-sided. There were also logistical pluses. Bradley lived over five hundred miles away from New Jersey, in Ohio—a safe distance from her—a single busy dad with three kids to take care of. Trusting her was important, but we were new. I’d already been burned by Charlotte and I was still learning about Tricia so I was confident, but I wasn’t prepared to take anything for granted.
Waiting for that final intimate act of being inside Tricia again had felt agonizing at times, but I told myself once I had her beneath me, taking it slow would have been worth it. It became my mantra every morning in the shower with my soaped-up dick in my hand—twice.
Tricia had flown to the conference on a later plane than Rhea and me, but had fortunately been booked on the same first-class flight back to New York. After saying goodbye to Bradley, Rhea switched seats with her, and Tricia slept on my shoulder for most of the ride.
The flight back dragged, knowing how desperate I was to get home and have her to myself after the previous days of fantasizing about all the dirty things I longed to do to her. I was delighted when she’d agreed to stay at my place for a few days before returning to New Jersey. The instant glint of lust in her eyes and the salacious smile she gave me when I had suggested we were on the same wavelength.
The end of the conference had marked the beginning of a new chapter for us both, and leaving Denver had come as a welcome relief because those previous few days had passed agonizingly slowly. More than once a heated scene had developed between us where I had almost caved, it was single-mindedness that I hadn’t. Sexual frustration had obviously been good for business as well, because through my aggressive pitching skills and networking, Rhea and I managed to procure three new lucrative accounts for the firm.
Before boarding the plane for Denver, life had felt hectic, and apart from a crazy preparation schedule, I hadn’t envisioned I’d have any visitors for at least a few days after my return.
As such, I’d ignored my usual domestic routines and had left a few unwashed dishes in the sink, an unmade bed of days’ old sheets, a full dirty laundry basket, and a generally well lived-in feel to my place. Before flying home, I’d quickly scrolled through my contacts and found Brenda, the young and homey housekeeper I used on an ad-hoc basis since Juliette had left and life had prevented me from keeping on top of things.
Engaging her worked for me and Brenda’s services had been one of my best judgements in life. The girl had OCD standards of cleanliness in her spotless attention to detail, and most importantly she had killer cooking skills. I’d used her about a dozen times or so when my mom, sisters, or my friends came into town to visit and although I had always refused to have a housekeeper, she was someone I felt comfortable around.
I looked toward Tricia, passed out, her cheek leaning heavily on my shoulder, her upturned face breathing gently across mine, her cherry lips lightly parted, and I swear nothing had ever felt more natural.
Watching her sleep gave me an incredible opportunity to study her beautiful features without the interruption of being distracted by her stunningly soulful eyes. I basked in the privilege of her beauty as she slept innocently, completely unaware I was staring at her.
She would have made an incredible model, even now in her forties, and the temptation to kiss her had felt almost irresistible. Even as she slept, she drew me in until her breaths became my air. So eventually after I’d tortured myself I lost my fight and kissed her.
* * *
The weather was cold, wet, and windy when we deplaned and made our way to the driver waiting in the arrivals terminal to whisk us home. Not wanting to waste time, I sent Rhea home in another car and in less than an hour we were in the elevator on the way up to my apartment. Tension grew with every floor. When the car stopped outside my apartment floor, Tricia heaved what had sounded like a sigh of relief. Glancing at her she smirked, and I chuckled.
“At last,” I remarked, my tone low with frustration as I almost dragged her to my door and hastily unlocked it. “After you,” I offered, minding my polished manners, after which I guess I left those at the door. No sooner were we inside than I grabbed her slender wrist and spun her back on herself, her feet retracing the way she’d just entered until her back landed against my outside door.
“Damn, lady, why do you look so surprised?” I asked playfully, my heart thumping erratically because although we’d both known all our moments in the previous five days had led us here, it had felt something else for me to realize there was nothing else to stop us.
“I never thought we’d make it this far without jumping on one another,” Tricia replied, threading her fingers through my thick brown hair and staring adoringly up into my eyes. “I’m impressed with your restraint, Mr. Wild,” she said, in a low seductive tone. When she lowered her eyes and gazed up through her lashes pretending to be bashful, I was done.
“Not against the door,” I mumbled, placing my lips on her cheek. Tricia’s breath hitched and quickly became a soft breathy chuckle.
“Why the hell not?”
The previous times we’d been together had been mostly rough, uncoordinated, and desperate. I refused to allow us to lose control like that after all the denial and anticipation we’d gone through to get things right between us.
An ache in my groin made my cock twitch in protest as my mouth slid down to her neck and grazed over her pulse point. When I felt how fast and strong her heartbeat was against my lips, I smiled against her skin with satisfaction because every beat matched mine.
Dipping my knees, I slid my arms up her ribs, and lifted her up onto my body. Silently she wrapped her long jean-clad legs around my waist. One hand slid under her ass to keep her in place and I kissed her—hard. Pushing my head closer to hers, Tricia deepened the kiss, her breathing short and fast. As I my feet began to move, I staggered blindly toward my bedroom, without ever leaving her mouth.
Reaching the bed, I lowered her feet slowly to the floor, broke the kiss, and placed my hands either side of her head.
“James,” she said on a breath, as her serious eyes ticked over my face, like she was searching for words to say.
“Shh,” I whispered in a barely-there voice close to her ear. I felt its effect ripple down her back when she shivered and obeyed my wish. My heart swelled in my chest and I took a deep breath as I accepted the blistering connection we’d made. It stole my breath when I saw her eyes grow heavy with lust. Her shoulders suddenly dropped and I knew I had all of her right there in the palms of my hands. Mind, body, and soul, not just her body. We had passed the point of hooking up. Smiling at that thought, I shook my head because the connection we shared had felt spiritual.
