Page 11 of Cheesecake
“What movie should I watch next?” Penny asks when we’re not far from her place.
“We could always watch one together?” I suggest. “This guy is having a sleepover at Mom’s house tonight, anyway. So if you don’t have any plans…”
Her teeth press into her bottom lip as she smiles and nods. “I’d love to.”
I glance at her for a second. “No pressure, of course. I don’t want you to think I expect—”
“I want you to.”
“Er…” I'm a little taken aback by her forwardness and don't know how to respond.
“Oh shit. Unless...you don't want to,” she says, an edge of concern in her voice. “Oh, my god, you don’t want to, do you? I'm throwing myself at you and you’re not ready.” She pulls her hand from mine and groans. “I'm sorry. I just thought after our talk today... But we can totally wait. You probably need to wrap your head around the idea of me, or something anyway. I don't know how this works when you’re a...”
“A widow?” I fill in for her. She bounces a shoulder. I turn into her street and pull up outside her house, the engine still running so Billy doesn’t suddenly wake up. “Listen, I know this situation isn’t normal. But I promise you, I don’t need to prepare myself, and I don’t have any hang-ups around the loss of my wife. Do I miss her? Yes, I do. But I mourned, Penny. I mourned so hard I almost forgot how to live myself. But I’m ready, sweetheart. I’m more than ready to move on and start something new…with you.”
“I’m ready to have something with you too,” she says, still seeming a little confused.
I reach out and take her hand again. “I just don’t want to rush this. I’m not some kid who’s so desperate to get you into bed that I can’t take my time with you. This is your first time, Penny. And I want it to be special for you. Can you understand that?”
Rolling her lips, she nods. “I get it. We’ll go slow,” she whispers before glancing at the sleeping Billy then leaning across the seat quickly and planting a fast kiss on my lips. “Thirty-one.” She grins. “I’ll see you tonight.”
“Come by at nine?”
She nods then hops out of the car. “Tell Billy I said goodbye.”
“Of course,” I say, idling at the curb while watching that gorgeous ass of hers sway with every step she takes. When she’s inside, I adjust myself in my pants so the fabric doesn’t feel so tight. “You can wait too,” I mutter to my crotch before I pull away from the curb and head back home, still trying to work out how the hell this thing between me and Penny is going to work in practice.
If I had an eighteen-year-old daughter, I’d lose my shit if she was dating a thirty-five-year-old man. I’m almost twice her again—something my mother pointed out when she told me not to do ‘something stupid’. But even though it seems stupid or even creepy in their eyes, I know what my heart wants. It’s Penny. It’ll always be Penny.
Penny
“Possibly unsurprisingly, I had a copy ofThe Shiningat home,” I say, smiling as I hold up the DVD and a box of microwave popcorn when Corey opens the door. He grins and takes it from me.
“Unsurprisingly, I also have a copy. I also have popcorn, so you and I, sweetheart, are going to have a feast.” He wraps an arm around my waist and tugs me across the threshold of his house, kissing me long, deep, and hard. My entire body sings, and I’m looping my arms around his neck, the popcorn box still in my hand, and melting into him while his tongue does magical things inside my mouth. I can’t get enough of him.
“Thirty-two?” he rasps, coming up for air and grinning down at me. I let out a laugh and nod. “Let me give you a quick tour of the place before we add to that number.”
Taking the popcorn from me, he takes me through the first floor of his modest home, showing me the living area where he places the DVD, the kitchen where he places the popcorn, then dining room, powder room, followed by a general indication that there’s a laundry leading to the yard and the bedrooms and main bathroom are upstairs. But he doesn’t move to show me, telling me he was serious about this taking things slow thing.
“Drink?”
“I’d love one.”
Opening the fridge, he pulls out two cans of soda and pops the top of one, handing it to me. We drink in quiet, then suddenly we look at each other and just start laughing.
“I am so fucking nervous right now,” he says, shaking his head at himself. “Look at my hand.” He holds it out, and it’s actually shaking slightly. And suddenly I realize that maybe hedoesneed to go slow too. This is a big deal for the both of us.
“Then maybe we should pop the popcorn and get that DVD on?” I suggest, setting my can on the counter and grabbing for the box.
“You always know what to do,” he says, his voice low and soft as he steps closer and helps me get the box open and the packet out. It isn’t a two-person job, but somehow, Corey makes it an intimate experience. My nipples feel diamond hard and sensitive. Every time I move, they brush against the lacy cotton of my bra, and every time Corey’s skin connects with mine, I feel a pooling heat low in my belly. When the microwave takes over, Corey leans in and brushes his lips against mine.
“Thirty-three,” he whispers, sucking gently on my mouth. “Thirty-four.” He moves his mouth to the curve of my neck and gently sucks the delicate skin. “I want you to lose count tonight, Penny.”
My hand lifts and slides into the back of his hair as his kisses move up to my jaw, then over to my ear, his tongue seeking out my lobe. “I don’t want to watch the movie anymore,” I gasp, curving my body into his and feeling a jolt of lust as his hard length presses against my belly, straining against the zipper of his jeans.
“We should definitely watch the movie, Penny.” His hands move to my waist, and he lifts me onto the counter, his mouth returning to mine and kissing me even deeper than he did before. I’ve already lost count of how many this is. All I can think about is how good it feels to have him so close to me, and to be completely alone while it’s happening.
“Soon,” I whisper, opening my legs so he can step closer to me, our positions making it so his hardness is pressing directly against my core, setting off a need for friction like nothing I’ve ever felt before. “Corey.” I close my thighs around his hips and grind against him, pulling him as close as I can as my mind spins and I lose all ability to form a coherent thought.
