Whiskey and Country

33

DAHLIA

Ilay in bed, my mind replaying the last few hours on loop. My body aching deliciously. And the man curled around me, snoring.

When Nick returned home, I had no idea how to bring comfort to a man who was completely shattered, his shoulders slouched forward and his chin down, standing in his entryway, his wet clothes fitting him like a second skin. He looked soul weary. Saying goodbye to his best friend had not been easy for him. Buddy’s collar hung from his fingers. And my insides coiled at the sight. Buddy was gone. Forever. The realization hit me straight in the chest, a mass pressing against my lungs.

One glance at Nick and I could read all the hurt swimming through him.

I knew how helpless he must have felt.

My words were useless. Nothing I said at that time could have erased or appeased how he felt. On my feet, I hugged him instead. In all the years I’d fought with my late husband, after he came back a changed man from the war, I’d learned that our bodies were much better at communicating pain and sadness than our words.

At that instant, I hadn’t planned to shower with Nick, but with the anguish that flashed in his eyes as I undressed him, his body rigid and unresponsive, I figured he might require this. Affection. And warmth.

Both naked, our bodies pressed together in the most intimate way, and yet, there was nothing sexual about it. My hand traveled over his heart as mine beat through his back.

This man had infiltrated every corner of my mind. My heart. And my soul.

His sorrow became mine.

Nothing could break us apart as grief held us prisoners.

My stomach twisted at the idea of telling Jack about Buddy’s passing away the next morning. I didn’t know how to explain death to a toddler. He still didn’t understand the part where his own daddy had died. My heart shrunk in my chest, the beating irregular.

In the kitchen, I studied Nick as he was eating a piece of the cake that was supposed to celebrate Buddy’s birthday. Only one thing could fix us. Love. No matter the form or the way to express it.

Under his watch, I removed the shirt he’d given me and discarded it on the floor. Nick’s smoldering gaze drank me in. His irises darkened. His lips forming a thin line.

He scanned me from head to toe, and an ache built down in my lower belly. Hot. Rousing heat rolled from him. The sexual tension between us upped to the roof.

“God, you’re beautiful.” The tone of Nick’s raucous whiskey voice warmed me.

“Touch me, Nick. I can’t stand not being in your arms any longer. We both need this.”

His features turned feral.

Could I dissolve with only one sweep of his tongue?

Or from the intensity with which he was eye-fucking me?

My body quaked from the lack of attention.

Days when my vibrator was my best friend had become insignificant. Now when I’d experienced the real thing—flesh, tongue, dick, not necessarily in that order, though. Any order would seem fit right now—I would never go back.

I brought one finger between my legs, and fire burned in Nick’s gaze. The animalistic side of him took over, and his own finger, thicker and longer than mine, replaced my digit. Waves of unleashed ecstasy surged through me. Why was Nick’s touch better? As if his fingers had a sixth sense when they fucked me. As if he could get me high just by embedding them inside my body.

A loud gasp escaped my lips, mixing with his groan.

I came, trying to surf the nirvana for a few more seconds.

My back hit the wall as I swam in an aftershock bliss.

I yelped when he ripped my panties off, and that was the sexiest thing I’d seen in a long time. This man. One request and Nick turned into an unapologetic, dominating alpha. He gripped my ass and rammed into me until my vision blurred, and I believed I would never get down from this high.

Afterward, we showered together for the second time in less than an hour, but this round, the sexual tension between us had reached a new height. Nick’s mouth was all over my skin, biting, teasing, licking, and kissing. My head turned. I spread my arms on both sides, pushing the shower walls to stay upright.

My knees buckled.

My pulse raced.

My heart banged.

“Stay with me, Dahlia. I’m not done yet. You woke up the beast in me. Now you’ll have to tame it, or I’ll eat you up all night. I’m ravenous and can go on for hours. Nothing will make me stop. Except you begging me to. You taste too fucking good, and only you can sate this thirst I have for you that’s urging me to continue.”

I swallowed hard.

All my wishes were being granted, here and now.

I lost my footing as Nick licked the seam between my legs.

“Hold on to me. You’ve seen nothing yet.”

When I finally fell asleep, the grin curling my lips hadn’t disappeared. And the feeling rooted deep in my heart had increased.

It only amplified my will to come clean. To be honest. And to take a leap of faith.

* * *

The next morning, I woke up early, and Nick was still asleep. A man who got up at the crack of dawn had been done in by the events of last night. I watched him for a long minute, making sure the worried lines that had marred the skin around his eyes last night had disappeared. Once satisfied, I snuck out of bed. Careful not to disturb him, I tiptoed outside the room and went to check on Jack. Through the ajar door, I peeked inside. He was still deep in his sleep, his fist holding on to his blanket. The sight of him made my heart quiver and my eyes well up with tears. When I learned I was pregnant at twenty, it had been such a shock, but now I couldn’t imagine a life without my baby in it. He was my whole world.

Strong arms locked around my waist, and warm lips trailed kisses down my neck. I shivered. If only I could wake up like this every day. With the man I loved next to me. I swallowed the words, spun around, and wrapped my arms around his neck.

“Good morning,” I said, kissing him back. My pulse sprinted. Yeah, I loved him. More than I ever could have imagined. My stupid heart was messing with me. In many ways, it didn’t make any sense. Our relationship was still brand new. Yet, it felt right in every way. The other day, I wondered if my heart had read the bond we shared as affection? Because it had been deprived of love for such a long time. And couldn’t process the outpouring of flutters invading me every time my mind drifted to Nick. Or when we spent time together. No. I knew all about love. I had it. I lost it. And now I could feel it again. Burgeoning inside me, its branches scattering, their sap charging my blood.

“Good morning. Sleep well?”

I smiled against his lips. “I did. What about ya?”