Page 60 of Love.V2
I stroked the backs of my fingers down her neck, afraid I’d hurt her. I pressed apologetic kisses to her mouth before looking at the wreckage around us.
Pillows had fallen haphazardly to the floor. The sheet had pulled away from the mattress. The comforter was toast, crumbled somewhere behind us. She’d slipped out of her heels somewhere along the way, but I…
“I still have my shoes on,” I panted in disbelief. We had obliterated the room. Each other. And I was still mostly dressed.
Tess’s lips were puffy and red; streaks crossed her chest from my five o’clock stubble. One of the straps of her dress fluttered, torn and useless. Her hair was a tangled halo around her face. From her wide, surprised eyes, I assumed I didn’t look much better. Wrinkled shirt under my armpits and my pants pushed down just far enough for me to ravage her.
I still had myshoes on.
In the quiet aftermath, a giggle bubbled out of her lips. She brought her hand up to her mouth, glancing back to me, then to the ruined bedding around us. “We really made a mess,” she laughed, eyes dancing.
I snorted into her shoulder, dragging kisses there as I eased out of her. We both groaned, and she collapsed, twisting onto her back. She had the biggest smile on her face. My heart ballooned inside my chest.
Perfect.
I eased onto my side, pulling her against me and finally toeing my damn shoes off. “I really did plan to go slow,” I said, kissing her hair as she snuggled in.
“Next time,” she whispered, fitting her forehead against my neck.
I sighed and pulled her closer.
Later, I would carefully peel what remained of her dress over her head and gently tuck the comforter around her. I’d shuck out of my own clothes, turn off the lamp, and we’d watch the lights outside sparkle through the sheer curtain.
Later, Iwouldgo slow, running hands and tongue and teeth over every inch of her, careful of the sore places where I’d been too rough.
For now, though, I held her close, pressed together in the wreckage of what we’d done. Absolutely certain that if I could go back and do it all over again, I wouldn’t change a thing.
Chapter 17
Tess
I didn’t have the heart to tell Dylan I was getting a little tired of lavender lattes. Especially not since he’d ordered three different artisanal syrups, which arrived at my doorstep the same day as the fancy electric milk steamer.
He started sending a lot of things to my apartment, actually. Mostly because neither of us wanted to leave unless it was absolutely necessary. Since returning from New York, we’d been holed up here, fueled by incessant sex and the news that we’d made it to the final round of the Botto bidding process. Our only competition in the next presentation was a local firm in the city, and Angela assured me that while the other agency had strong ideas, they were nothing like Jinx’s offerings.
“—and the formula we’re using makes her fart like a trucker—Oh. Hello, Satan.” Vanna sneered when Dylan appeared behind me on the phone screen.
“Morning, Vanna!” he chimed, smacking a kiss on my cheek and edging me out of the way to finish the eggs I was cooking. Her face scrunched.
“So that’s still a thing?” She asked me the same question every time we talked, like she thought Dylan would magically disappear. I smiled at him.
“Still a thing.”
She pretended to gag. “Alright, I’m leaving before you force more of this lovey-dovey bullshit on me. I have to go get farts outta this baby.”
“Tell Adrianna I said hi!”
“Yeah, yeah. You look happy or whatever. You’d better stay that way. You hear me, Satan? Make it stick this time!”
“Yes, Boss!” Dylan shouted back. Vanna rolled her eyes, but I caught a hint of a smile on her lips just before she hung up.
“Okay, we’re both thinking it, so I’ll say it,” Dylan declared, tipping the eggs onto plates. He looked like devastation wrapped in corporate clothing. Hair still damp from the shower we’d shared, freshly shaved and smelling like my flowery body wash.
“What’s that?” I took another sip of coffee and eyed the eggs.
“We gotta wash the sheets.” He sighed. “I know, I know, it will involve actually leaving the apartment for something other than work. But after last night, we’ve veered into safety hazard territory.”
I laughed, glancing at the rumpled bedding across the room. We’d swapped out the sheets mid-week for my extra set, but last nighthadgotten a little out of control.
