Page 35 of Justice for Samara

He rolled his eyes. “No. I’m an almost-twenty-seven-year-old deputy sheriff whose mother is driving him crazy. Does that sound normal to you?”

“A mother driving you crazy? Yeah. That does. And most people would agree,” she said and giggled.

“Yeah, you got me on that one. But you know what I mean. Life is about ups and downs, but I have to believe it would be easier if you had somebody’s hand to hold while you were on that wild ride.”

She nodded and leaned against him again. “I think so too.”

“And I had a great role model. Until the day he died, my dad was in love with my mom. Didn’t just love her?adored her. Flowers about every other week, big fuss over special occasions, date nights out, things like that.”

“Yeah, mine weren’t that lovey-dovey, but you could tell they were a partnership. They backed each other on everything. It was always a unified front.”

“That’s the way it should be. I want somebody who’ll partner with me, not fight against me. I mean, if you don’t trust the person you’re with to make decisions and you can’t trust their judgment, you’re in trouble before you begin.”

“I agree.” She leaned out and set the bottle on the coffee table. “All done.”

Michael did the same with his can. “Me too.”

Her head tipped toward the bedroom. “I’m going into the bathroom to get ready for bed. When I get out, you can have a turn.”

“Sounds good to me. I’ll take these and throw them away.”

“Okay.” Samara leaned in and gave him a peck on the lips before she stood and wandered toward the bedroom, those beautiful hips swaying under the thin cotton dress. Michael took a deep breath and let it out slowly, then picked up the bottle and can and headed to the trash bin by the laundry room door.

The back door went out of the laundry room, so he opened it and looked out. The yard looked more like a jungle, but not an unruly one. It was obvious Mrs.Lowry liked plants because they were everywhere?big ones, small ones, bushy ones, every kind of plant imaginable.Are those banana trees?he asked himself, because that was sure what they looked like.

As he stood there looking out over it, he thought about the woman in the other room. He felt lucky to have found her. Was she playing him? He didn’t think so. After all, being the girlfriend of the chief deputy of TriggCounty wasn’t exactly a position of great esteem, even if she did work there. More than that, she ticked off every box on his list for what he’d want in a partner. Over the short time she’d worked for their office, they’d worked well together, and comfortably too. It didn’t seem too much of a stretch to think she’d be the same way in a relationship.

It was time to put up or shut up, and he intended to make it the best experience he possibly could. That meant being conscious of her needs and sensitive to the things she said and did. He could take a lot of clues from both of those. He knew women weren’t usually good at asking for what they wanted, mostly because they’d either been turned down or ridiculed for being “too sexual.” That wasn’t going to happen with her. He’d make sure of it.

By the time he closed and locked the door, then turned off the lights in the kitchen and living room, he’d managed to talk himself down off the ledge. It wasn’t like he didn’t know how to have sex. Glenna had seemed pretty satisfied… until that asshole had come along.Don’t let him ruin this for you!a voice in his head shouted. She’d left him for what she thought would be a more exciting guy. He remembered the first time she’d seen him in the store in his uniform. He’d pretended that he didn’t see her, but she’d stared a hole through him, and he’d laughed all the way to the car.

It took some work, but he pushed it all out of his mind and went back to his thoughts about Samara. By the time he crossed the room, he could feel his body readying. She was already in bed, under the covers, the sheet tucked across her chest and a smile on her face. “Hello, beautiful,” he said and knelt on one knee on the bed to lean down and kiss her. “I’ll only be a minute.”

“Hey, can I tell you something?”

He stroked her cheek. “Of course.”

“I don’t have any pretty lingerie. Nothing like that. Granny panties and sports bras. That’s about it. So I’m nothin’ fancy under here.”

“Do you have onanythingunder there?”

A low, throaty laugh bubbled up from her throat. “Um, actually… nope.”

“Good. I like that best. Be right back.” The bathroom door closed with aclick, and he started shucking clothes. When that was done, he grabbed a washcloth and wiped himself down as best he could. That would have to do. He had his clean clothes for the morning, but that was it.Should I go out there in my boxer briefs? Or bare?The boxer briefs, definitely, but not his shirt. That was good enough.

Then he looked down. There was no hiding it. He was hard and ready, already aching and almost panting. Would that be too much for her, seeing him like that?Look, Edwards, you’re all man. She knows that. It’s not like she’s never had sex before. She hasn’t since, well, but… Stop overthinking everything and just get out there.He smashed a little toothpaste on his finger, ran it around all over his teeth and tongue, then washed his hands and spit the toothpaste into the sink. Why the hell hadn’t he thought to bring his toothbrush into the bathroom? It was out there in his bag, and that wasn’t helping him any.Why the fuck am I so nervous?he asked himself.

When he opened the bathroom door, she’d turned down the lights and lit a candle. The whole room smelled like some kind of incense, and it made him throb just thinking about all the erotic and exotic promises that scent made to him. Then he thought of something he should’ve taken care of before. When he opened the door into the hallway, she asked, “Where are you going?”

“Just a second.” There was bottled water in the refrigerator, and he brought two bottles back, placed one on her nightstand, and carried the other one to his. “We might want these.”

She smiled. “We might need them.”

Thumbs hooked in the waistband of his briefs, Michael dragged them down and stepped out of them, then slid between the sheets. When he reached for her and pulled her against him, the sensation of her hardened nipples against his chest took his throbbing to a burn. As he kissed her, he tipped his pelvis toward her, and he knew she could feel his hardness against her skin. Michael took the kisses from her lips, down her jaw, down the side of her neck, and onto her collarbone, before he finally pulled the sheet away.

Beautiful. There was no other word to describe them. “God, babe, your tits are amazing.” He didn’t give her a chance to respond before he latched onto one with his teeth and gently nipped it.

“Amazing?”

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