After the Rain (The Callahans) (13 page)

“Too much?”

“No, I just….” Her voice broke off. “I like it.”

He smiled at that. “I like it too. But if you don’t want to go further, it’s okay.”

“What’s further?” she asked and then wanted to kick herself. What a stupid question.

“Anything you want. Just kissing or touching—or both. Whatever.” He let his hand fall from her hair and waited, patiently. “The ball’s in your court, Montana.”

She could feel how aroused he was. The bulge in his boxers was evident from where she lay across him. “I can’t be on the bottom.” The words came out quickly. “And I can’t be face down.”

His eyes studied hers, carefully. “You make the rules. If I do something you don’t like, all you have to do is say something. I’ll stop.”

Paul had said the same thing. And he hadn’t stopped. Not until she’d stopped breathing. “Promise?” she finally said, a little bit of her dignity crumbling. She hated being so insecure.

He was quiet for several seconds and she nearly changed her mind. “Have you been with anyone since—”

“No,” she said, hesitantly, glad to have the words out in the open. She knew he needed to know, yet she hadn’t wanted to tell him. It only made her seem like more of a freak. She started to sit up, but he reached up and stopped her.

“It’s okay. Don’t run from me.” He slowly sat up, pulling her into his lap. They watched each other in silence, each fighting their own battles with need. “I realize that you’ve had issues with other guys. I’m not one of them, okay?”

“Okay,” she said, quietly.

“If you want to stop at any time, I will stop. I do promise.” He brushed the hair back from her face. “Okay?”

She nodded, her anxiety melting somewhat.

Their lips touched lightly, his fingers tangling in her hair again. He tilted her head to the other side, his mouth now at a better angle. She welcomed his tongue, her own melting with his eagerly. Her hands braced against his shoulders. She felt his hands drop to her back. They rubbed lightly against her skin, but didn’t lift her shirt. His mouth strayed from hers and moved down her neck again. She couldn’t think when he did that. She rocked against him intimately, shocked at the intensity of the feelings rocketing through her. She had a hold of his T-shirt hem and before she gave it cautious thought, pulled at it, struggling to yank it over his head. He helped her a moment later, tossing the shirt to the floor. His mouth was on hers again, immediately. She didn’t bother holding back. She kissed him just as deeply as he kissed her. She let her hands roam down over his chest, and the very light coat of black hair that dusted it. The scar at the top of his shoulder caught her eye and she stiffened. She’d almost forgotten about those. His hands were right there, at the hem of her tank top. She reached down and stopped his fingers from lifting the shirt. Pulling back, she inhaled, nervously.

His eyes met hers. “You want me to stop?”

“I have scars.”

“So do I.”

“Mine are uglier.” She reached up and rubbed the goose bumps that had suddenly broken out on her arms. “And bigger.”

“Nothing about you is ugly, Montana.”

“I’ve never let anyone see them before.”

“Maybe it’s time you did.” He leaned back against the headboard, obviously leaving the ball in her court again.

“Can’t we do this without taking off my shirt?”

He was quiet a moment, then he shrugged. “If that’s what you want.”

She didn’t know what she wanted. Part of her wanted to take her shirt off and let him see the nasty, puckered marks on her skin. At least then it would be over with. She wouldn’t be hiding anymore.

“You don’t have to take it all the way off. Does it bother you if I do this?” He reached forward and moved his hand under her shirt. It lightly rubbed over her flat abdomen. He didn’t move any higher, just let his hand rest there. Her eyes involuntarily shut. Oh how she loved his hands on her.

“I can’t think when you do that.”

“Then don’t,” he said, his mouth finding hers again. “Just feel.”

She was doing plenty of feeling. With every brush of his hand against her stomach, her thighs clenched together—in anticipation of what, she didn’t know exactly. When his mouth left hers, she went in search of it. Before she could catch her breath, she felt his lips against her ear, his tongue sliding over it. When he lifted her shirt this time, she didn’t protest. He tugged the tank top over her head and tossed it on the floor beside the bed. She waited for him to blanch at the sight of her scars but he didn’t. He ran his fingers over her skin, and then replaced his fingers with his mouth. “Trey...” she heard her voice say in a groan.

“You’re beautiful, Montana.” His mouth moved down her neck again. “I thought that…the first time…I saw you.”

She let him move his hand lower. Her breath stopped when he reached the area just above the juncture of her thighs. Her hand reached down and stilled his.

True to his word, he stopped. His eyes met hers. “I want to touch you, baby. I promise it won’t hurt.”

“I don’t want to have a panic attack.” Speaking the truth about her fears made her feel marginally better.

“You won’t. I won’t let you. We’ll stop if it comes to that.” He kissed her deeply. “I promise.”

She reluctantly lifted her hand, her eyes never leaving his. His hand moved lower. Her heart pounded in rapid successions. When his fingers brushed against the most intimate part of her, she tensed, but didn’t stop him.

He didn’t worry about the clothing that separated his fingers from her skin; he just lightly feathered touches against her, his mouth moving back to hers.

“Just relax and remember it’s me.” He said the words against her mouth, his breathing just as erratic as hers. He kissed her several times before his fingers grew bolder. She waited for the panic to come. It didn’t. All she felt was an undeniable craving for more. There was a pressure building that she wasn’t sure what to do with. She’d thought herself incapable of feeling anything during foreplay or sex.

“Just relax.”

“I can’t.” She moaned the words against his neck. She was going to lose it. She couldn’t stop herself. Involuntarily, she was rubbing against him now, the need for release nearly unbearable. “Trey…I need…” She breathed deeply. “Stop. Just stop.”

His fingers stilled, abruptly.

She reached down between them, her fingers finding the hem of his boxers.

“Kylie—”

“I want to.” She met his gaze. “I don’t want to go alone.”

He swore, roughly. “I don’t have any protection.”

“I’ve been taking the pill since college. I just never needed it until now.”

Relief lit his face. “Are you sure?”

“I’m not afraid of you, Trey. I’m sure of that.” She let her fingers press against the front of his boxers. He tensed and let out a breath. She grew bolder and let her fingers rub up and down his length. “Can I stay on top?”

“You can be anywhere you want,” he said on a hissed breath.

She peeled back the top of his boxers, exposing him fully to her view. She’d never really looked at a man before. The idea had been too terrifying until now. “What do you want me to do?” She looked at him with question in her eyes.

He reached for the hem of her pajama shorts and slowly slid them down her legs. Without giving herself time to think, she lowered herself over him. The thickness probed at her and she tensed, uncomfortably.

“You’re going to have to relax, baby. This won’t work unless you do.” He pulled her close to him and whispered the words against her ear. Then his tongue moved over her skin again. She wrapped her arms around his neck and sank deeper onto him. He was inside her now, almost all the way. He breathed deeply against her skin and she let out a small moan. She’d never imagined anything feeling this good. The overwhelming tension she’d had at first, quickly disappeared and instinctively she began to move over him.

“That’s right, baby. You’re doing good.” He grasped her hips with his hands, helping her with the up and down motion. “You feel so good.”

She leaned down and let her forehead rest against his, her breath coming in pants. “I think I might be ready to…..”

“Go ahead. I’m with you.”

She shut her eyes and let the sensations take over her body. It took only seconds for her to fly over the edge. His mouth smothered her moans at the last minute as his own release quickly followed.

She stopped moving, her body limp. She avoided his gaze, unsure what to do now. Should she get off of him and move away?

“Don’t tense up on me now.”

She lifted her head from his neck. He was smiling and his smile was contagious. She felt as though a huge weight had been lifted off of her shoulders.

“We might have woken someone.” He reached forward and ran a hand through her now sweaty hair.

She had thought she’d been quiet enough. But in the end, she’d lost all sense of reality.

“Hey.” He leaned forward and snagged her wrist before she could climb off of him. “Don’t worry about them. They’re all sound sleepers. I was just kidding. Trust me, no one heard a thing.”

They shouldn’t have done this here in the house. And they wouldn’t have, had his ex-wife not been staying in his house. “What about Shayna?” she finally forced herself to ask.

“I told you last night, she’s leaving today.”

“Trey, she called you for a reason.”

His expression darkened. “Like I said, there’s no chance for Shayna and me. It’s been over for six years. Longer even.” He let go of her wrist and allowed her to slide off him before he swung his legs over the side of the bed and reached for his jeans.

“I’m not trying to make you mad.” She watched him yank up his jeans, not bothering to button them.

“You’re not making me mad,” he said, sighing. “I don’t want her here any more than you do. Trust me on that. I couldn’t turn my back on her. This guy she married is violent. Even if I wanted to, my badge keeps me from turning away from a situation like that. She’s got kids.”

“I know, you told me.” Kylie watched him disappear into the bathroom. While he was gone, she got up and straightened the bed up. By the time the bed was made, he was back in the room, reaching for his boots. He sat down and shoved his foot into one.

“I do trust you,” she finally said, walking over and standing in front of him. She didn’t know why she was being so shy around him after the intimacy they had just shared.

He was quiet a moment, then he let his booted foot drop to the ground and looked up at her. “I’m sorry she showed up to complicate things right now, Kylie. I like you…a lot.” He reached for her hand and tugged her toward him. She let herself slide easily into his lap.

“We’ve moved a little fast here and that’s making this more complicated. Not because of Shayna, but because you don’t even know how long you’re staying here.”

He had a point. “Obviously, I don’t take things like this lightly,” was all she could say.

“Neither do I,” he replied, squeezing her hands. “I can’t make any promises just yet and neither can you. But I can tell you I’m interested in seeing where we go here. What about you?”

“I haven’t been able to do this with anyone else, Trey.” She figured those words spoke volumes.

He was quiet a long moment, his eyes studying hers carefully. “I get that. But you’re not staying here permanently, are you? You’re going back to Montana.”

She didn’t know what she wanted to do anymore. She knew she was happy here. She knew she hadn’t been this happy in a long time. But she wasn’t sure she could walk away from her life in Montana either. She had a job she loved there. Friends. Family.

“We don’t need to make life changing decisions right now, Kyle. Let’s just have a little fun here and see where it goes, okay? I’m willing to overlook the fact that you might be leaving in a few weeks, if you are. We deal with that when the time comes.”

She figured that was fair enough. “Okay. Like a vacation romance.” She grinned halfway. “I never thought I would have one of those.”

“There’s a first time for everything.” He gave her a quick kiss on the mouth, and then pushed her gently over onto the bed so he could grab his boot and finish dressing. “I need to get going. I have to get to work.”

“Will I see you later?” She tried not to sound needy but she figured she failed.

“I’m not sure of my schedule today. Depends on what unfolds.” He stood. “I’ll call you later.”

She nodded and watched him go. When the door shut behind him, she leaned back on the bed and stared up at the ceiling, unable to stop the smile from appearing on her face.

15

By the time Kylie made her way downstairs, it was after nine. The entire family was bustling around the kitchen, preparing to leave for their workday. Kylie grabbed herself a cup of coffee and leaned against the counter watching them. Dusty and Faye were talking back and forth about some wedding issue or another. Joey was wolfing down a pile of pancakes and eggs as if there was no tomorrow. No one stopped what they were doing to acknowledge her. This was weird. Maybe they were all sound sleepers and hadn’t even known she and Trey had spent the night together.

“Pete called,” Joey finally said, looking up from his breakfast. “He said the part he needs for your jeep should be in today.”

“That’s good news.” She smiled. It would be nice to have her own transportation again.

Suddenly the room grew quiet.

“What?” she asked, looking from Joey to Faye, and then finally to Dusty.

“You aren’t taking off, right?” Faye questioned, her brow furrowed. “Because you told me you would stick around for the wedding.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” she said, suddenly feeling like she was missing something here.

“I hope not. I need you. There are tons of details to go over. And we need to find you a dress. You are going to be my maid of honor aren’t you?”

“Of course I am. What’s wrong with you?”

“I’m out,” Joey said, standing up and carrying his dishes to the sink, before heading for the back door. Dusty made his exit quickly as well.

“Wow. I guess I’ve learned how to clear a room in an instant.” She took a large sip of coffee and waited for Faye to get out in the open, whatever was on her mind. She obviously had something to say.