Chapter 11

CHAPTER 11

CHARLOTTE

I ’d driven home and gotten into the bath like I always did at the end of a long day on the farm. This tub was spoiling me for my next apartment, which probably wouldn’t have a nice one.

I rested my head against the porcelain rim, luxuriating in the bubbles and the warmth of the water. The smell of lavender permeated the air.

My nipples were hard, and my core begged for my touch after that almost kiss in the barn. At first, his arm slung over my shoulder had felt casual, but then he’d shifted me in his arms so easily. We were facing each other, and my hand immediately went to his chest where his heart was racing.

He’d brushed a strand of hair off my cheek, and I anticipated him kissing me. I’d curled a hand around his neck and pulled him down to me. I wasn’t afraid to go after what I wanted, and I wanted him.

I needed to forget about the precariousness of my living situation and my business in order to lose myself in him. He was so protective and strong. I craved his attention. When we were together the other night, I felt like the only woman in the world.

But I wanted more.

I circled a nipple with one finger, enjoying the goose bumps that erupted over my skin. I bit my lip as I tweaked the tip, wishing it were someone else’s hands. They’d be bigger than mine and calloused from work.

Would he be controlling in bed? Attentive? Tender? My mind was racing with the possibilities.

I slowly moved my other hand down my stomach and between my legs. I slipped a finger inside, my mouth falling open. It wasn’t the same as someone else’s hands, but it would have to do.

I was positive Teddy was berating himself for attempting to kiss me. He was probably relieved that Wes had shown up before we could.

I wasn’t happy about the interruption. I wanted to see how far Teddy was willing to take things. I never thought about sex on Santa’s chair before, but it had its appeal. Especially when I was positive Teddy was one of those guys who lived by an impossible code. One that wouldn’t allow him to relax and have fun.

I moaned as I slid in a second finger, pumping in and out, imagining I could replace it with Teddy’s cock.

I stilled when I thought I heard something outside. Panic flew through me. Was it Rick? Wes usually closed the gate after he left for the night, and he’d been talking to Teddy. Had Rick slipped down the lane?

There was pounding on the front door. I got out of the tub without bothering to empty the water, quickly rubbed myself dry, and then drew a silky robe over my body.

I shivered when I walked out of the warm bathroom into the chill of the hallway. I tiptoed downstairs, wondering what I was going to do if it was Rick. Should I call Teddy first ?

My phone buzzed on the table by the front door. I snagged it, ready to call Teddy or 911 when I saw it was Teddy calling me. I answered on a whisper. “Hello?”

“Are you going to answer the door?” Teddy all but barked at me.

“Oh, I thought it was—” The panic subsided, making me feel weak.

“I’ve been knocking on your door for five minutes?—”

“Sorry,” I clicked off the phone and opened the door, clutching the robe at my chest.

Teddy’s gaze flew over me one time, as if checking to make sure I was okay, and then a second time, more leisurely.

I felt that one like a caress, heating every part of my body.

“Can I come in?”

I found myself nodding and stepping back as he moved past me, closing and locking the door for me.

Then he turned to face me. “You were taking a bath?”

There was no room in the entryway. I couldn’t breathe without sucking in his evergreen scent. I touched my hair, which was still in a messy updo. “I always do at the end of the day. Is something wrong? Do you need my help?” I couldn’t work out why he’d be here at this time of night. We hadn’t said we’d meet up.

His hands touched my shoulders lightly, but I felt the warmth like a brand on my skin. The silky material might as well have melted away. “I needed to finish something.”

I opened my mouth to ask what, but he’d already lowered his. Then his lips were moving over mine. It was hard and possessive. I couldn’t back away. He’d banded an arm around my waist and pulled me into his hard body.

I let go of the robe and looped my arms around his neck. His hands ran down my back until they rested on the globes of my ass, and he squeezed. I was already wet, partly from my ministrations in the tub and his manhandling of me .

He was everything I hoped he’d be: possessive and demanding. He lifted me, and my legs went around his waist. My naked pussy was pressed against the buckle of his jeans. I whimpered at the sensation.

“I got you, baby.”

Oh, fuck. I loved the way he called me baby; the endearment flowed through me like honey on a hot day, slow and languid. I wanted more. I wanted him to spread me out on my bed and have his way with me.

The entire experience felt like a dream. I might have been back in the tub, my hands on my pussy, while I imagined this entire thing.

In my bedroom, he slowly lowered me to the bed, following me down, his mouth never leaving mine. I’d wanted this in the barn, but this was so much better.

The robe fell open, and my naked body was pressed against him. He pressed his jean-clad dick against my core, and I moaned against the amazing sensation.

“Teddy.” I twisted my hands in his hair. “I want you naked.”

“Whatever you need.” He lifted back to shrug off the flannel, then pulled the T over his head. He stood on the floor at the end of the bed to remove his shoes and jeans, throwing a condom wrapper on my bare stomach.

“Yes,” I hissed.

When we were here in this bed, nothing else mattered: my ex, the farm, his grumpiness. It was just him and me and his magical mouth and hands.

When he pushed his briefs off, his cock sprung free, hard and thick. I reached for him. “You’re beautiful.”

“You’re the beautiful one.” He moved over me, deliciously naked and hard everywhere. I arched into him, reveling in the feel of his bare skin. He was burning hot to the touch. “I need to feel you inside me. ”

He paused, looking down at me. “Fuck you’re hot when you talk like that.”

Apparently, I had a very dirty mouth when it came to Teddy Calloway, or at the very least, I had no qualms about voicing my desires.

He palmed my breast, one calloused thumb brushing over the hard peak while he kissed me. His erection lodged at my core, and I was squirming, trying to get him where I needed him the most.

When his tip slid inside, we both froze.

Teddy moved as if to pull out, which only made him go deeper. I groaned at the sensation, barely resisting the urge to palm his ass and draw him inside. This was reckless, crazy even. I didn’t know Teddy well enough for him to be bare inside me.

“I need that condom.” Teddy growled.

At some point, it had slid off my chest onto the comforter. Teddy pulled out of me, leaving me empty and wanting more.

He finally found the wrapper with a triumphant sound, not wasting any time ripping open the wrapper, and smoothed it over his straining cock. He was huge all over, and I couldn’t wait to get him inside me.

He repositioned himself at my entrance, his gaze flickering to mine. His muscles bulged as if he was holding himself back. “Are you sure about this?”

“Yes, please.”

“So sweet,” Teddy said as he slid inside. He took a few seconds before, going deeper, letting me adjust to his size.

He braced his arms on either side of my head, then lowered his mouth to my nipples. Sounds of need erupted from my throat. I finally gave into the desire to palm his ass and pull him deeper inside me.

Sweat beaded on my forehead. This was intense. I’d never had sex with a man for the first time that felt anything close to this. We didn’t even know each other that well. But our interactions over the last year must have been some kind of foreplay, because I was more than ready for him.

I was so wet, he easily slid in and out, driving me impossibly higher. I wasn’t sure I could orgasm from sex. It usually had to be a certain position, and I needed to be touching myself.

Teddy adjusted his position, pulling one leg higher to get a better angle, and it was hitting something deep inside me, igniting a fire.

“Teddy,” I cried, almost scared of what he was doing to me.

“I got you, baby. Just let go.” He wanted me to give up control, to trust him to take care of me. And the second I did, he increased the pace of his thrusts, sending me over. Spasms of pure bliss racked my body as he continued his thrusts.

I couldn’t catch a breath. My heart was beating hard, my pussy clamping around him. I whimpered from the intense aftershocks pouring through my body.

Teddy thrust deep, resting his head against the crook of my shoulder as he released into the condom. I wished we could go bare. I wanted to feel all of him inside of me. But that was crazy. This wasn’t a relationship.

With a tender kiss on my shoulder, he pulled out and went to the bathroom to take care of the condom. I heard the water run but couldn’t move. Would he say that he regretted everything? Would he walk out?

When he returned, he surprised me with a warm wash cloth. He cleaned me, then tossed it into the open hamper along the wall, gathering me to him. I felt like I wouldn’t be able to move for a long time. And his body was like a furnace next to me.

I played with the hairs on his chest. How had we gotten here? I’d been taking a bath and not expecting any visitors when he’d shown up. “Why did you come over?”

“I needed to see if you wanted to kiss me, if you were attracted to me. I didn’t mean for this to happen. It just did.” His hand wandered over my body, over a shoulder, then the dip in my waist, my hip.

I felt cherished when he did that, but I had to know if he had any regrets. “I’m glad it did.”

My stomach rumbled.

“Can I make you dinner?”

“You don’t have to. I can get something—” I made a move to get out of the bed, but his arm banded more tightly around me.

“I want to.” He maneuvered me so that I was flat on my back and he was propped up on one elbow.

I blinked up at him. “Yeah, okay.”

He kissed me softly, then moved to get out of the bed, untangling himself from the gaggle of sheets and blankets.

I admired his bare ass as he bent to grab his briefs. Then he sauntered out of the room.

I felt deliciously sore between my legs, but I wanted to have him again. I was insatiable, and it was all his fault. I had a fleeting thought that I could get him out of my system, but even I knew that wasn’t realistic.

Teddy Calloway was an addiction. A dangerous one. I wasn’t positive I’d be able to kick the habit if we had sex again.

I stretched, feeling powerful at the effect I had on him, when he prided himself on self-control. That I’d made him lose all sense of it had to mean something. As much as I didn’t want to read more into it, it was impossible not to.

I wanted to see an almost naked man cook in my kitchen. It wasn’t to be missed, so I pulled on his flannel shirt. I buttoned just a few of the top buttons. It smelled like him, a combination of man and evergreen. I padded to the kitchen where he was whisking eggs.

Teddy looked up, and my body flushed all over. “How do you feel about an omelet?”

I should have sat on a stool, but he gestured for me to join him, and when I got near, he pulled me into his side. I braced myself with a hand on his chest. He leaned down to kiss me on the forehead. What was this? I thought he didn’t date, but his moves were next level.

If he kept this up, I’d be falling for him in no time.

“What do you like? Onions, cheese, tomatoes?” His voice rumbled against my cheek.

“All of those.”

He loosened his hold on me so that he could turn the burner on, then throw the diced onions in the pan.

I never wanted this evening to end. I wasn’t sure what it meant but my heart was fluttering in my chest, desperate to give meaning to it.

“I like you wearing my shirt.” With the onions cooking, he refocused his attention on me.

I held my hands out to my sides. “It’s huge.”

His hands slipped under the soft material. “I like all the skin it reveals.”

He made me feel sexy, desirable. His large hand palmed my bare ass, and he groaned.

“I didn’t want to miss you cooking practically naked in my kitchen. No one would ever believe me.”

Teddy’s hands stilled.

“Not that I’d tell anyone,” I rushed to add.

“I’m not sure I’m ready for anyone else to know. They’ll have opinions, and we work together.”

I nodded. “Right. Of course.”

Were we keeping it a secret, or was this a one-time thing?

His voice lowered. “But tonight, I don’t want to worry about any of that. I just want to feel you.” His fingers worked open the buttons, and he pushed the material to the side. “You’re gorgeous.”

He lowered his head to suck on my nipples. I held him to me, his scruff scraping the soft skin of my breasts. Then his hand cupped my bare sex, his finger slipping between my folds. “You’re already wet for me.”

“Your mouth is heaven.”

“Just what I like to hear.” He reached back and turned off the burner, lifting me onto the cold counter surface. “I’m hungry.”

“But you just turned off?—”

He pulled me to the edge of the counter, spreading my legs. Then he lowered his mouth to my sex. I let my head fall back, my eyes drifting shut while he worked me over. I lowered my elbows to the counter and widened my legs, needing more.

He used his mouth and his fingers to drive me up and over. It happened shockingly fast. I still wore the shirt, but now it only covered my shoulders and arms. I was bare to him otherwise, and boneless.

He wiped his mouth, helping me up. “You’re tastier than any omelet.”

But my stomach rumbled.

Teddy chuckled. “I’m still going to feed you.”

Where was the grumpy guy who adhered to a strict set of standards that would never let him sleep with a coworker? Or stand practically naked in her kitchen? He was relaxed in a way I’d never seen him.

His muscles loose, his eyes soft. I wanted to see more of this side of him. He helped me down from the counter, circling my waist, lifting, then placing me on my feet.

He turned on the burner again, then added the eggs to the pan. When it was cooking, he faced me.

I looped my arms around his neck, his erection poking my belly. “Do you need me to take care of that for you?”

His appreciation rumbled through his chest. “As much as I’d love that, I don’t think I can cook and enjoy your mouth at the same time.”

“We could cook later,” I suggested, wondering where this seductress had come from .

“I’m going to feed you first. Your stomach is rumbling.” He touched my stomach, his palm covering it. “You’re so sweet. I’ll never get enough of you.”

I let the warmth of that statement bloom in my chest. I wasn’t sure I would either. I’d never had a lover who was more skilled or attentive, and he wanted to feed me. He was the perfect man. A little gruff on the outside, but amazingly soft and tender inside.

“I want to taste you,” I said, surprising myself. I never particularly enjoyed blow jobs. I did it because it was expected. But Teddy was such a giving lover; I wanted to return the favor.

He cupped the back of my head in a possessive move that made my body liquid before he kissed me. When he finally released me, my lips felt swollen, my breasts heavy.

While he checked the omelet, I smoothed my hair, wondering what I was doing in my kitchen. The flannel shirt still hung open, and I liked it because I was available to Teddy, and he couldn’t seem to stop touching me. If this continued, I’d be perpetually wet and aching for him.

When the omelet was plated, he buttoned a few buttons over my breasts, then patted my ass. “Eat. I have more plans for you tonight.”

“Yes, sir.”

“I like the sound of that on your lips, especially after how you fought me for so long.”

My cheeks heated. “I wasn’t fighting this.” If I had known we’d be this explosive in bed, I would have suggested this a long time ago.

“Hmm,” was all he said.

I sat on the stool, thinking I’d need to deep clean the kitchen tomorrow.

He whipped up a second omelet, eating it when I was almost finished with mine. When he was done, he took the plates, rinsed them, then placed them in the dishwasher .

His heated gaze met mine. Then he stalked toward me. I turned on the stool, widening my legs. The shirt fell open, and he growled. “So sexy.”

My skin heated as he lifted me, my legs banding around his waist. I felt the bulge between my legs, and I was salivating for it. When we reached the bedroom, he lowered me slowly down his body until I was standing.

I sank to my knees, pulling his briefs over his hips.

“You don’t have to.”

I gave him a look under hooded lashes. “But I want to.”

His hand rested in my hair. “I won’t argue with that.”

When his briefs were off, his cock sprang free. It was large, hot, and heavy in my hands.

Teddy groaned as I gripped him. I tentatively licked the precum off the tip. “You’re killing me.”

Emboldened, I took him in my mouth, hoping this felt good for him. The wood floor bit into my knees, but I was focused on giving him the pleasure he’d given me in the kitchen.