to believe Jon was a perfectionist. Even today when Darci had not so subtly singled out Ali and Jon to husk the corn for dinner Jon had gone above and beyond, not leaving even one strand of silk on any ear. Then, quick and efficient, he’d cleaned up their work area and dispatched with the garbage, carrying it all the way out to the trash bin. Anyone walking through the kitchen would have never known they’d husked a dozen ears of corn moments before.
She could certainly appreciate a job well done, especially when it entailed a good and thorough kiss. With full body participation on his part, Jon treated Ali to just that. He captured and held her tightly with both hands. One large palm wrapped around her neck to cradle the base of her head, while the other clasped her hip as he pressed close.
A low groan of satisfaction rumbled from within his chest as he tipped his head and breached her lips with his tongue, deepening the kiss. One thigh moved farther between hers, causing a delicious friction in a region she’d too long ignored. Her own sound of satisfaction mimicked his.
Jon drew in a sharp breath in response and pulled back, breaking the kiss. “Bedroom?” He asked the one-word question from just inches away from her face.
She could see his blue eyes narrowed with need. Could feel the warmth of his breath brush her lips.
Swallowing hard, Ali managed a small nod. Lightheaded, she felt as if she had to try to remember to breathe or she’d pass out. Of course if she did, Jon was big and strong enough to pick her up and carry her to the bedroom.
Deep in her Scarlett and Rhett fantasy, she had to work to not be disappointed when Jon grabbed her hand instead of sweeping her into his arms. He glanced expectantly at the selection of doors and she realized he didn’t know which one led to the bedroom.
Good thing she’d lived there for a few years or she might have had trouble remembering where the room was herself. Taking a man she’d just met to bed was proving nerve wracking. Or maybe it was just the sex hormones flooding her bloodstream that made her woozy.
Feeling awkward, she led him by the hand to her bedroom. It would have definitely been easier if he’d swooped her up in his arms, tossed her onto the bed, and ravished her. Ali hated having to take the lead.
Thank goodness once they were actually in the room and she’d flipped on the light switch he took over, stepping close again. Towering over her, he gazed down at his hand as he pushed the straps of both her sundress and bra over the crest of her shoulder. He trailed one fingertip over her heated skin.
“You got some sun today. You should have been wearing sunscreen.” Bending low, he moved his mouth over the path his finger had taken.
That stole the reply she’d been about to make about how she had put on sunscreen before she’d left the house but it had been a long day out in the sun.
That’s what she would have told him, if she could have gotten her brain to function. He continued slowly exposing her, pushing the neckline of the dress as well as the cup of her bra lower until the heat of his mouth covered the peak of her breast.
Tipping her head back, Ali let her eyelids drift shut as a shudder ran through her. She felt the bulge of his muscles beneath her hands as she grasped onto his biceps, partly because she couldn’t stand not touching him and partly because she was feeling a little unsteady and needed something to hold on to.
Electric shocks of pleasure zinged through her as he worked her nipple with his mouth. His hands didn’t remain idle. True to form, the man was an overachiever. He traversed the rest of her body with big flat palms that seemed made to cradle her curves. He moved to cup the swell of her behind.
Cool air struck her flesh as he bunched the fabric of her dress and her lacey boy short-cut panties—a skimpy indulgence compared to the practical cotton underwear she usually bought—were exposed.
Ali had spent
Allison M. Dickson, Ian Thomas Healy