Slowly she shook her head, her hair rustling against the soft pillowcase, tickling her cheeks. She wished she could bat it away, damn it. “No. It should bother me. I know it should. I should be horrified, but I’m…not.”
Smiling, he bent down and kissed her. Hard. “This is what I enjoy the most. Discovering all the extra kinky bits that are hidden deep inside you and exploring them with you further.”
“You’re not bothered by what I said?”
“Hell, no.” He grinned. Literally grinned, looking like a little boy who just received his every Christmas wish. But there was nothing little boyish about the very virile man whose cock pulsated within her body at this very moment. “So. Want to put on more of a performance?”
She frowned, wariness and a fair dose of excitement building within her. “What do you mean?”
“I’ll take the cuffs off.” He ignored her question.
“Eric. What do you want to do?” Curiosity filled her. Why wouldn’t he answer her directly? What sort of game did he have in mind now?
“Can I show you? You can say no if it’s too much for you to handle.”
Now why did that feel like a dare? “What are you talking about, too much to handle?”
“What I have in mind is pretty…blatant.” The grin grew, strands of hair damp with sweat flopped over his forehead and he was the sexiest thing she’d ever seen. “I don’t know if you’ll agree to it. But I have to give it a try.”
Oh, it was going to be really naughty, she just knew it. “If you want to do it, I’m game.”
He withdrew from her, pushed back so that he knelt between her legs and rubbed his hands together eagerly. “I knew you’d agree. You won’t regret it, baby. You can trust me on that one.”
She did. Trust him. “Only if you trust me back,” she said, her voice whisper soft.
“I do.” Leaning over her, he went to work on the velvet cuff that encased her left wrist, unsnapping it with ease. “I do, Stace. I trust you more than anyone. I trust you with my life. I trust you with my secrets and my shitty ways and my good ways. I’m working on making my shitty ways disappear but I need…I need your help with that.”
“All I want to do is help you. Be there for you. Be with you.” She watched him move, drinking him in as he took her freed wrist and rubbed the skin with gentle fingers, pressing an even gentler kiss to the inside of her wrist. “I love you, Eric.”
Whoops. She hadn’t meant for that to slip out.
He paused, her wrist still clutched within his tender grasp, his gaze locked with hers. He slowly lowered her arm and then went to work on the other one. Undoing the snaps sounded loud in the quiet of the room and he offered the same sweet treatment, rubbing out the ache, kissing her skin.
All the while he remained silent, as did she. All the air gathered in her lungs and throat, nearly choking her with the need to get it all out but she couldn’t. She could only wait, breathless, almost weak from wanting his response.
Finally, finally he hovered over her, his face in hers, his breath a soft breeze across her lips. He kissed her, his tongue danced with hers for the briefest, sweetest moment until he finally broke the contact and pressed his forehead against hers.
“I love you, too, Stace. I love you more than anything or anyone else in the world.”
She closed her eyes, smiling as peaceful relief washed over her.
He loved her. Eric loved her.
Life couldn’t get much better.
Chapter Eleven
“I can’t believe I’m agreeing to this.”
“You like it, my horny little love.” Eric smiled, enjoying his free use of the word love in reference to Stacy.
His smile grew as he glanced out the sliding glass door to see their audience of one had actually stripped himself of his clothing. He still sat on the edge of his bed, a fleeting glimpse of his erect cock flashing. Hidden mostly by his fisted hand, for the man had begun to stroke himself with abandon.
Sick fuck. They were even sicker fucks for putting on this show. For his neighbor, for God’s sake. A man they could both run into in the parking lot or in front of the long rows of mailboxes. How uncomfortable did that have the potential to be?
Ah hell, he couldn’t worry about it now. They were far past the point of no return. The man was naked and masturbating. Eric was standing naked in front of the window alongside Stacy who he was just about to get into position.
A position that would most certainly titillate their neighbor—as well as himself.