Page 55 of The Librarian and the Rock Star

“Just breathe,” he said, caressing my hand. I nodded trying to appear calm more than I was actually trying to be calm. He put the armrests between us up and leaned over to slid his arm around me, rocking me gently. “We’ll level out in less than sixty seconds.”

Now that I knew how long it would be, I slowed my breathing and calmed right down. Turning to him with a sly smile, I said, “You knew that giving me a precise length of time would help me count, didn’t you?”

He grinned. “You seem to appreciate details, and being able to mentally file information. An exact amount helped, right?”

“Absolutely. Very clever.”

“Well, I have to try to keep up with you,” he said, pulling his arm back so he could turn more toward me. “The way you’re so smart, and share information without trying to make others feel dim for not knowing, is impressive.”

“Sharing knowledge is just what I’ve always done.”

“Yeah, but you’re so mellow about it. You’re never bossy.” He rolled his eyes. “I’ve hung out with girls who were nothing but bossy, and it’s a pain in the ass.”

My lips tightened slightly, and he noticed. “Did I say something wrong?”

“They might well have been pains in the ass, but perhaps you should say they were demanding, bitchy, obnoxious, or selfish. The word ‘bossy’ is actually pretty anti-feminist.”

He looked genuinely confused. “How so?”

“Would you ever call a man bossy?”

He stared into space for a moment, thinking. “I don’t know. I guess not.”

“When little boys are pushy, forthright, dominant, they’re said to have leadership potential. When girls do it, they’re called bossy, and thought of as a troublemaker. It’s dismissive.”

“You don’t think that’s just a little nit-picky? It’s not really intended like that.”

“Anyone can be nasty, so a negative term is often deserved. But the word ‘bossy’ is too often used to keep women from being dominant leaders. It’s one of those tiny things that we should all watch out for.”

Jack nodded, realizing that I was quite serious. “Okay. Thank you for the clarification.” I smiled, extremely grateful that he seemed to be only slightly miffed, not brutally offended.

“Okay,” he continued, “I’ve known some women who were pushy, domineering, selfish and stupid, and having a sweet, smart, interesting – even when sometimes fussy – girl in my life is a refreshing change.”

“Um, thank you.” I rested my head on his shoulder, thinking about what a refreshing change it was to be able to discuss these things openly with a guy without fear of a fight, or him withholding sex like my ex often did.

He snuggled against me, and as his eyes twinkled, a naughty thought popped into my head. If I was going through a life change, trying to break out of my shell, and try new things, Jack was certainly a willing participant.

He had planted the idea of sex on the plane, but I didn’t have to be the one having it. The second the seatbelt light turned off, I asked, “Are there any blankets around?”

“Sure, baby,” he said, unbuckling and jumping up to grab one from the pile at the front of the cabin. He came back and started to tuck me in as he sat down, but I laid it across both of our laps.

Reaching my hand under the blanket, I unzipped his jeans. He raised an eyebrow, quizzically, but he shifted his hips so that I could dig into his shorts and wrap my hand around him.

Feeling his soft flesh become firm from the touch of my hand was a perverted little thrill, and I looked into his eyes as I licked my lips at him. “There are security cameras around here, right?”

“Probably.”

“But they would only glance occasionally, and ignore anything that looked perfectly normal, wouldn’t they?”

“Probably.”

Stroking his stiffening length gently, I whispered, “Just lie back and relax.”

He did as he was told, turning slightly more toward me so that I could get a better grip. I ran my fingertips over the head, loving the way his eyes gleamed when I found the most sensitive spot just underneath. Running my fingers along the ridge, his expression was positively adorable. He wrapped his arm around me again, snuggling in as his breathing became a bit deeper.

“Do you like this?” I asked softly.

“I’m sure you can tell how much I do,” he whispered huskily. His thickness had swollen to the point where it was actually stiff, and I felt a few telltale drops of excitement as I massaged him.

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