Page 124 of Bottle Shock
I step into view and there she is. My beautiful wife. Walking toward me carrying a brown paper bag, wearing a smile and a pretty little sundress that knocks every rational thought out of my skull.
“Hi,” I say, and it comes out softer than I intend.
“Hi.” She looks around us to see if we’re alone before standing on her tiptoes and pressing a quick kiss to my lips. “I brought you lunch.”
I snake my arm around her, kissing her again. Once just wasn’t enough. “What’s the occasion?”
She shrugs. “I grabbed lunch with Elyse and thought youmight be hungry, so I ordered to-go for you. Gotta keep my man fed. Energized.” A suggestive eyebrow wiggle follows.
With my arm still holding her close, I slip my fingers beneath the strap of her dress, grazing that smooth, creamy skin over her collarbone. “Your man, huh?”
She pins me with a look, a little challenge in her eyes. “Yeah. Unless you’re someone else’s.”
“Only yours.”
Her smile cracks wide and bright, cheeks flushed pink.
We’ve been sneaking around for the past two weeks now that Lily is home. And while it’s mildly annoying given we’re both adults, there’s something thrilling about sneaking her into the house after Lily falls asleep and making love to Scottie with hushed moans, whispering filthy, dirty things in her ear as I thrust my cock in and out of her, stretching her pussy to its limits. The way she comes apart under me, moaning, biting my shoulder to stay quiet. It’s addicting.
But as fun as the secrecy has been, I’m ready to put an end to it. To tell people about us. To be a real couple.
We go into my office off the crush pad, shutting the door for added privacy in case someone walks in. My two assistants are dealing with an issue at the Woodinville facility, so I don’t anticipate anyone walking in besides my nosy family.
I open up the bag to pull out the lunch she brought me.
“It’s just a sandwich from the diner.” She shrugs like she’s worried I’ll be disappointed.
“It’s perfect,” I tell her. “Exactly what I needed.”
I actually am starved. Sometimes when I get too deep into my work, I forget to eat. But before I take a bite, I grab my water bottle and chug half of it, trying to wash the dryness off my tongue.
Scottie raises a brow. “Damn. Someone’s dehydrated.”
“I’ve been tasting samples all morning. Bench trials, acid adjustments, barrel previews. My mouth feels like cotton.”
She laughs. “Okay, but how are you not drunk if you’ve been drinking wine all day?”
I smirk. “I’m not actually drinking it. I spit during tastings.”
Her face scrunches like she’s disappointed, but there’s a twinkle in her eyes. “Oh, so you’re aspitter. I see.” She taps her finger against her chin, pretending to think. “Lucky for you, I’m aswallower.”
I choke on my sandwich. “Jesus,” I murmur, laughing, dragging a hand down my face. “You enjoy making me flustered.”
She looks up at me through her lashes—sweet, innocent, fucking lethal. “You’re very sexy when you get all hot and bothered.”
I take another bite just to keep from groaning. “Keep talking like that and I’m never finishing this sandwich.”
She smiles like she knows exactly what she’s doing. “Take your time.”
We talk while I finish eating—nothing particularly exciting, just easy things. Lily’s latest obsession, a new animated show about a girl band that hunts demons. The sale of the Wallula Lake house finalizing. A new listing Scottie’s excited about. I love listening to her talk. I always have. Her hands move when she gets excited about something, whole body in motion, like her joy doesn’t know how to stay contained.
We don’t talk about Chicago despite her impending plans to leave soon.
I have no intention of ending our relationship, or getting a divorce like we planned on. I’m in this. And if that means flying back and forth to Chicago until Lily starts college, then that’s what I’ll do. I’m not giving up on her. Or us.
And I’m hoping I can gather the courage to speak to her about it sooner rather than later.
After I finish eating, I wipe my hands offand stand.
