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  Ace slides down me until his face is at the apex of my thighs. With the first contact his tongue makes, my upper body automatically lifts off the bed and my fingers tightly grip his hair. “Ace,” I moan loudly and his enthusiasm increases in response. When his fingers fill me, the overload of sensations becomes incredibly strong. The stirring low in my belly is building exponentially with each flick of his tongue and curl of his finger. When his teeth lightly graze the cluster of the most sensitive nerves in my body, I can’t contain the scream of sheer pleasure.

  “Damn, I love hearing you scream my name.” His voice is low and sexy, thick with need and desire. “I plan on hearing it many more times before the night is over.”

  He slides back up me until we’re face-to-face again. His hips undulate, rubbing his cock against the wetness between my legs, and causing sweet torture for both of us. I hear a drawer slide open and the crinkling of a plastic wrapper before Ace sits back and gives me a complete view of his perfect body. Unabashedly, I watch as he rolls the condom down his length. I’m apparently so mesmerized by him that I don’t realize he’s watching me watch him.

  When our eyes meet, his are burning like white-hot flames. “Layne, there’s one thing you need to remember,” he commands. “This is not a one-night stand. Or a summer fling. Tomorrow morning, you’re not running out of here saying we made a mistake. We’re both all in now.”

  “I’m yours, Ace.”

  I would agree to anything he said right now.

  With expert precision, he’s suddenly settled between my legs again. His erection perfectly poised and waiting. “Look at me,” he whispers. Doing as he asks, I open my eyes and feel the intensity radiating from his. He slides into me and never looks away. His weight rests on his forearms and his hands frame my face. “You are mine, now,” he emphasizes when he’s fully inside me.

  Our bodies move in tandem with flawless timing. When Ace pushes forward, my hips lift to meet his thrusts. With every wave, he owns my heart a little more. With every word tenderly whispered in my ear, my body responds in ways I’ve only read about. With every passionate kiss, the past fades away and the future becomes brighter.

  “You are the only addiction I’ve ever had.” His murmurs against the sensitive skin of my neck send cold chills rippling across my skin. “You’re the only addiction I ever want.”

  “Ace, I think I’m falling in love with you.” The words are out of my mouth before I realize I’ve just said them aloud.

  I didn’t mean to blurt that out.

  Even if it was only in a whisper.

  Even if it is in the middle of the most passionate lovemaking I’ve ever experienced.

  Even if it is thoroughly and completely true.

  His movements cease and his eyes dart back and forth between mine, searching for an answer to an unasked question. While holding my breath, I decide I want him to see me as I honestly am. I don’t want to hide my feelings. I don’t want to regret not telling him how I feel. I don’t even care that I’m the first one to say it. It feels like I’ve been sheltered all of my life, intent on never confronting whatever makes me uncomfortable.

  Until Ace.

  “Will you catch me?” I need to know. Please say yes.

  “I’ll never let you fall alone, Layne.”

  His eyes can’t lie, can’t betray what he’s thinking or feeling. His eyes really are the windows to his heart and soul. And I love what I see.

  He surges his hips forward as he dominates my lips and tongue with his. The urgency we started with has morphed into a connection, a need to physically confirm what we just verbally confessed. Sweat beads over our bodies and soaks the sheet beneath me. The humid summer night air drifts in through the open window, cascades over our flesh, and makes both of our bodies even steamier.

  “Ace, don’t stop,” I beg shamelessly.

  “I’m falling with you, Layne. Let go, baby.”

  His words obviously affect me as much as his body does, because my body obeys his command. My inner muscles tighten around him as the tension builds. Gripping, clawing, calling out his name as my orgasm peaks. As I’m coming down from my climactic high, I feel him pulsing inside me before I hear his muffled voice whisper my name. I’m still in a state of euphoria when I feel his absence, but he’s crawling back into the bed with me within seconds.

  He rolls me over to my side and embraces me from behind. My back to his chest. His arm draped over me protectively, possessively, lovingly. As I’m drifting off to sleep, safe and secure in his arms, I think I hear him whisper, but it’s hard to tell in my dreaming, exhausted haze.

  “Where have you been all my life?”

  * * *

  Waking to soft kisses along the back of my neck has to be the most erotic feeling. “I could definitely get used to this,” I mumble in my sleepy voice. “I haven’t slept that well in years, but I love the way you wake me.”

  “I’m glad, because I couldn’t stand it another minute. That spot on your neck was taunting me, tempting me.” Soft kisses mixed with a warm tongue on my skin further hypnotize me, force me under his control, and make me want it even more. “I had to remind it that you’re mine. All of you.”

  “I guess I should tell you something,” I reply, my tone serious. He stills and waits for me to continue. “There are other parts of my body defying you. I guess you’ll have to exert your dominance over them, too.”

  The rumble of his chuckle rolls through his chest and I relish in the vibrations that flow through me. “Don’t worry, my shy, timid rose petal. I’ll find every rebellious spot on your body and bring it under submission.”

  His arm tightens around me, pulling me flush against his body. His hand slides down my body, over my breasts to my stomach, before reaching my lower abdomen. He draws figure eights low on my stomach, dipping down to my pelvic area but never exactly where I want to feel him. “You’re getting warmer.”

  He leans into my ear and replies, his voice deep and seductive. “You’re already hot, babe, but you’re about to get a lot hotter.”

  I start to roll over to face him, fully ready to do some exploring of my own, when his phone rings. He sighs heavily and releases me to roll over and grab his cell off the nightstand.

  “Hello?”

  “Good morning, precious. Are you having fun with Aunt Lily?”

  From the one-sided conversation I’ve heard so far, I know without a doubt he’s talking to River.

  “Yeah? What have you two been doing?”

  Ace’s prolonged silence tells me River is giving him an earful of all her recent escapades with his sister. Knowing her, this conversation will probably last for quite a while. Every few seconds, he responds with an “uh-huh” or “yeah,” but otherwise, he’s silent. The moment seems to have passed, and now that I’m fully awake, I need to get to the bathroom immediately.

  This is when it really hits me that I’m still naked in Ace’s bed. My clothes are strewn all over his house, and even though we shared an incredible night, I’m not comfortable walking around naked just yet. I grasp the sheet and hold it to my chest as I sit up and look around then remember that I took his shirt off him while we were in the living room.

  I have no choice. I have to do the naked walk of shame across the room now.

  When I slide to the side of the bed, I feel Ace’s eyes on my back. I turn my head to look over my shoulder at him and meet his gaze. He questions my motives with just a look, a shift of his eyes, a tightening of the muscles around them. Am I leaving? Am I running now that I realize what we’ve done? He’s listening to his daughter, but he’s trying to read me.

  Leaning back on my arm, I place a soft kiss on his cheek for reassurance. His free hand wraps around mine, securing me in place. Gently shaking my head from side to side, I silently answer his doubts before I point toward the bathroom door. He gives me a single nod and loosens his grip on me. After a deep breath, I sit back up and slide out of the bed…butt-ass naked…and walk as quickly as I can without
being too obvious.

  As I round the corner of the bed, Ace finally gets a word in with River.

  “Yes, as a matter of fact, I have had the pleasure of seeing Layne since you’ve been gone.”

  The secret meaning behind his choice of words is betrayed by the playful tone of his voice. My chin drops to my chest as I hurry to get on the other side of the closed door. Finally, in private, I release the breath I’ve been holding in one forceful exhale before making the mistake of glancing in the mirror.

  Oh.

  My.

  God.

  Not washing my makeup off last night was a huge mistake because I look like a rabid raccoon this morning. My hair is standing up in every direction imaginable and my eye makeup is smeared haphazardly across my cheeks. There’s no way I’m going back out there with Ace when I look like a terrible rendition of Medusa. I take care of my personal business, find an extra toothbrush, and brush away my morning breath. When I confirm he’s still talking on the phone, I decide to use this time to take a fast shower.

  The hot water soothes the tender ache in my muscles from our sexcapades last night, and the memory brings a smile to my face. The only soap in here is Ace’s masculine-scented body wash, Boss No. 6. No wonder he always smells so good, I think as I lather up. With his body wash, shampoo, and conditioner infused into every pore of my body, I dry off and wrap the towel around me with every intention of finding my clothes from last night.

  When I open the door, Ace is standing on the other side, waiting for me with the look of a man on a mission. I startle at first and release a nervous laugh. “You scared me. Everything okay with River?”

  He nods but doesn’t reply otherwise, doesn’t take his eyes off mine.

  “Is she having fun with your sister?”

  Again, the wordless nod, but there’s an obvious gleam in his eyes.

  “What is it?”

  “Are you going somewhere?”

  It’s a trick question, that much I know.

  “I just needed a shower. And I need clean clothes. And a hair dryer.”

  “You running?”

  “Yes, I am,” I reply, keeping my voice soft. His face falls with disappointment and the tightness in my chest squeezes my heart. “I’m running straight to you. Straight into the flames, not away. I meant every word I said last night, Ace.”

  He pulls me into him and wraps his arms around me. “I can’t tell you how glad I am to hear you say that.” With a quick tug on my towel, it crumples to my feet and one side of Ace’s mouth quirks upward. “Oops.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  ACE

  “You’re not wearing that.” I fully realize that I sound like an ass right now, but I’m willing to accept that.

  Layne laughs, effectively dismissing my outburst. “Yes, I am wearing this. It’s the only bathing suit I brought with me.”

  “So wear shorts and a T-shirt instead.”

  “No, I’m not wearing shorts and a T-shirt all day, either. It’s almost a thousand degrees outside with a humidity level of at least three million percent. You’re the one who asked me to be in this race with you, so deal with it.”

  I don’t know exactly how I’m supposed to deal with it when she’s wearing a barely-there black bikini to the inner tube race today. The race that the whole town will turn out for. The race where we’ll get soaking wet from the minor-category rapids splashing all over us. The race where she’ll most likely be in a two-person raft, sitting between my legs, and wearing next to nothing.

  “Layne, sugar.” I soften my tone.

  “No, sugar. Your sweet-talking won’t change my mind. Nice try, though.” Her saccharine-laced smile doesn’t fool me. She’s enjoying this little squabble. She’s enjoying winning it.

  “You like to argue too much,” I mumble petulantly.

  She shrugs. “I’m good at it. Always have been. Are you ready to go now? We’re late enough as it is because I let you win the argument earlier this morning, right after my shower.”

  That makes me laugh heartily. “You let me win? That’s amusing. As I recall, you’re the one who pushed me down on the bed and had your wicked way with me. You were very intent on getting your workout this morning. I don’t recall having a say in it.”

  “Exactly. I let you win without fighting at all.”

  She turns to walk toward the door and part of her ass is peeking out of her bikini bottoms, just begging for my hand to caress it. Or pop it one good time.

  “Ow!” she shrieks and whirls around to face me.

  “What?” I feign ignorance, and more importantly, innocence. “What’s wrong?”

  She cuts her eyes at me, clearly calling me out on my bullshit. “Nothing. Nothing’s wrong at all.”

  I have a sneaking suspicion that I’ll pay for that little smack later. It was so worth it, though. She pulls a T-shirt over her head and picks up her beach bag before we walk out the door, and I hide the smirk that displays my appreciation. I know she’ll take it off once we hit the water, but the consideration is still there.

  “Stop smiling,” she says without looking at me. “It’s just for the ride over there.”

  “Let me carry that for you, sweetheart.” I take the bag off her shoulder without acknowledging what she just said.

  On the way to the river park, Layne’s earlier comments about the heat play through my mind and remind me that summer has hit early and with full force. The last thing I want to think about is the weather turning cooler, school starting back, Layne leaving.

  “You know, there’s still a lot I don’t know about you.” Honestly, I want to know everything about her.

  “What do you want to know?” Her tone is sincere and open, no hint of the leeriness from when we first met.

  “For starters, what do you do for a living up in New York?”

  “I’m a lawyer.

  “A lawyer, huh? So you do divorces and shit like that?”

  “No. Most of my focus is on intellectual property, trademarks, copyright infringements, that sort of thing. Sometimes I’ll help one of the partners with family law cases—such as wills, probate court, stuff like that, but usually nothing more than paperwork. I’ve never been interested in getting into a big divorce battle.”

  “What do you do for fun, after work?”

  It takes her a little too long to answer and I glance over at her. Her brows are drawn down, her head is slightly tilted to the side, and she’s staring off into space. “All I did besides work and stress over having a family was draw occasionally. It’s sad that my life has been focused on no more than that, isn’t it?”

  “You’re young. You still have plenty of time to do whatever you want.”

  She nods thoughtfully but doesn’t respond. I turn into the parking lot of the river park, and the scene in front of us seems to bring her out of her own little world. “What the hell? Where did all these people come from? Oak Grove isn’t this big!”

  “They come from all over for the fair and the race. The addition of the couples’ race today brought even more people out. This should be fun if nothing else.”

  After grabbing Layne’s beach bag from the back of the truck, I help her out of the cab and lace my fingers with hers as we walk to the registration tent. People are milling about all around us, but as we walk by, almost every head turns so eyes can rake over my girl’s body. And she’s even still wearing the T-shirt.

  God help the man who tries to touch her, especially when she takes it off and reveals the skimpy black bikini underneath.

  “Ace, Layne, glad you decided to join us today,” Justin calls from behind me. “Did you come to get your ass kicked on the river?”

  “Like you could ever beat me,” I chuckle. “Who are you racing with?”

  Justin looks uncomfortable for a second before he answers. “Lily.”

  “She’s watching River for me. How can she be in the race with you?”

  “I asked Zoe to watch River during the race,” Lily says as she walks
up. “Is that okay?”

  “Yeah, Zoe’s a good kid. She’s helped me out when I was in a bind before. Where are they?”

  Lily points to the swings where Zoe is pushing River. River has her head thrown back, laughing and having a great time. “Give me a second, okay?” I ask Layne.

  “Sure. Go see your daughter,” she encourages me.

  River jumps out of the swing when she sees me approach and flies into my arms. I twirl her around before repeatedly kissing her sweet little face. “I’ve missed you, baby girl. Have you been good for Aunt Lily?”

  “Daddy,” she admonishes me. “You asked me that this morning.”

  “You’re so right,” I admit as I put her down.

  She runs back to the swing and resumes her activity. The protective father in me can’t walk away from my daughter without reiterating the dangers of being around the water to both River and Zoe. I can’t even bear to think what I’d do if anything bad happened to my little girl.

  “I promise I’ll take good care of her, Mr. Sharp. She won’t get out of my sight even for a second.” Zoe’s promise is earnest, but there’s no hiding the fear in her expression. Not fear of me, but of authority figures in general, thanks to her parents.

  “I know you won’t, Zoe. You’re very good with her.” She gives me a smile in return and her face lights up from just that small amount of praise. “I’m going to get back over there with Layne. We’re doing the race together. You two had better root for us,” I insist as I turn to walk back toward my crew.

  Justin, Lily, and Layne are still in the crowd of people right where I left them, but they’re not looking in my direction at first. Justin is busy talking and happens to glance over Lily’s head in mid-conversation and sees me approaching. Through the people milling about, I catch glimpses of his arm sliding off Lily’s waist and back to his side. He’s trying to be nonchalant about it but he’s completely busted in the act.