They’d stopped at an ice cream parlor on the way home and had eaten their cones while sitting in the brightly lit interior of the shop. It had been the most romantic, completely normal thing they’d done together.
It didn’t mean she hadn’t noticed how he’d tensed up when his brother mentioned their mother’s matchmaking.
She’d been pleasantly surprised at how friendly and welcoming Jackson’s family was and hoped she’d made a good impression. A permanent relationship with Jackson was unlikely, but she still wanted them to like her.
That’s because you’re still hoping for a miracle. This is how you always get hurt.
The sound of the door opening alerted her to Jackson’s presence but she didn’t turn around. She closed her eyes and hoped he would think she was asleep and not try to engage her in conversation because, Lord help her, she might just bawl her eyes out if he touched her at that moment.
The soft sweep of his lips over her brow startled her. He lifted her gently out of the chair and held her close. Ridley couldn’t resist wrapping an arm around his neck and resting her head in the crook of his shoulder. Words seemed inadequate at the moment and she had no desire to break the mood by questioning him. When she opened her eyes again, they were in Jackson’s room. He lowered her onto the king-sized bed and then settled himself gently next to her. He seemed at a loss for words as he looked around the immaculate room.
“I don’t want you to leave.”
She looked at him in surprise. “What?”
He got down on the floor so he was kneeling before her. She covered her mouth with her hand. He couldn’t be proposing. They’d only known each other a little more than a week.
“Jackson, what are you doing? Get up.”
He grabbed her hand. “No, I need to say this. You can have a good life here. We’re good together. And it doesn’t have to end. Stay with me.”
Tears sprang to her eyes as he pressed her hand against his heart.
“Say you’ll stay.”
She shook her head. “This is crazy. I have a life in Florida. I can’t just move.”
“You can if you want to. I know this seems like it’s happening really fast and I’m not saying we need to go out and buy rings tomorrow. I just want the chance to find out. Do you? Do you want me?”
His eyes stayed on hers as he waited for her answer. Elation rose in Ridley as her thoughts swirled in a million directions. She had a job and a life in Florida but she didn’t have this. A man who was willing to get on his knees before her and tell her he wanted her.
She grabbed his arms and pulled him up on the bed next to her. “I do want you.”
“So you’ll stay?”
She grinned. “Yes. I’ll stay.”
He grabbed her and pulled her on top of him.
“Jackson! What are you doing?” She giggled when his lips trailed white-hot kisses down the side of her neck.
“Celebrating,” he replied.
She bucked off the bed when he gently nipped at her earlobe. His hot breath in her ear started a tickle that sped all the way down her spine and swirled between her thighs.
He eased himself up enough to pull his shirt over his head, and Ridley took the opportunity to run her hands over his well-developed pectorals and flat abdomen. She brazenly unsnapped his jeans and looked up into his eyes to see his reaction when she cupped him.
He cursed softly before snatching her hand away and roughly tugging the jeans off his body. He reached into the bedside table for a condom and quickly tore the wrapper. She took the package from him.
“Allow me.” She straddled him and softly stroked his length as though measuring the thickness. He shuddered when she lingered over the tip, brushing her thumb along the ridge before sheathing him with the protection.
She pushed his hands away when he reached for her and unhooked her bra herself. Flinging it to the floor, she cupped her breasts and saw him fight for breath as he watched her stroke herself. When he reached for her panties, she chuckled softly as she eluded him.
“Uh uh. I’m in control here.”
She slipped out of them and dangled them from her pinky finger before letting them drop to the floor next to her bra. When she straddled him this time, she was unprepared for the hard feel of him under her naked heat. She wanted to take it slow, make him want her, but she couldn’t deny herself any longer.
She gripped his length with her left hand, satisfied when she heard his cry, then she guided him inside her. The feel of him sliding along her sensitive flesh was so good that she paused for a moment, overwhelmed.
She heard the whimpers, barely realizing she made the sounds as Jackson’s strong hands worked her hips against him, over and over until she thought she would burst. She felt the power she had over him at that moment, the way his breath hitched when she stopped her frantic rocking motion. After a few tense moments she saw him bare his teeth in a grimace as he grabbed her hips and held her still above him.
She collapsed on top of him, exhausted from her wild ride, and surrendered herself to his desires. She wanted his lean body pressing tight to hers and she didn’t fight him as he flipped her over and sank into her in one thick thrust. She felt him moving against her deepest ache and gripped his ass to pull him in farther.
He reached between them and stroked her in time with his thrusts. She couldn’t control her body’s reaction to Jackson’s fingers on her most intimate body parts. She couldn’t even cry out at the exquisite combination.
He seemed to have a thousand fingers, all caressing her at once, inside and outside. Every muscle in her body clenched at the same time as she came, crying out his name.
“Ri, you don’t know what you do to me.”
He buried his face in her neck and his thrusts started coming harder. Faster. He twined their fingers together and held her down as he came. She bit his shoulder when his last thrust pressed her firmly into the bed. He jerked over her, his fingers gripping hers tightly as his body shook with the last contraction.
He collapsed on top of her and she wrapped him up in her arms. She didn’t ever want to let him go. The differences between them probably meant any relationship they tried to have wasn’t going to be easy. However, she would always have this moment; she would always have the memory of him inside her, warm and sweet.