Matt

 

 

I made love to my girl all night long, reveling in the feeling of her skin pressed against mine. I'd have sold my soul to hear her cry out in pleasure again, but around five that morning, I finally curled up behind her and let her rest.

There was no way in hell I was sleeping and missing a minute of our reunion. It had only been a week since we'd left each other with no hope, but it felt like a fucking year.

And all over her trying to protect my pride. My heart burned in my chest as I ran my fingers down her side and nestled the back of her neck.

"I love you beyond words, Erica Hall," I whispered against her skin. She moaned and rolled her hips, waking up the monster between her thighs.

I had to two options. Give her what I wanted to give her, or let her rest up. I'd be taking her home later that day. It was time to start our life together, the way we should have before all the shit with Mitch went down.

Open. Honest. Communicating all the damn time.

I kissed her again before getting out of the bed. There would be plenty of time to take advantage of her soft skin and tight body. I pulled a pair of shorts out of my bag and put them on as I watched her. I could paint a million portraits of her and I'd never be able to truly capture just how beautiful she was.

After standing there like a stalker for a little while longer, I pulled myself away from the bedroom and walked into the little make-shift living room they had. A painting stood in the corner of the room, the beauty of it almost stopping my heart.

I walked over and picked up the picture of the two of us that lay on the table beside it. Her painting rag was covered in various colors and crumpled up on the floor. She must have been working on it all week.

"Magnificent," I whispered reverently.

I pulled out my phone and took a few pictures of it. Jonathan would love it. I texted him that he was wrong about her. He texted back pretty quickly that he was relieved to know that and beyond sorry.

He was a good man, and would always seek to protect his friends. I was grateful to be one of the lucky few. He loved the painting and wanted to see it in person when everything settled down between all of us.

I answered Damon and Lanie's texts too, letting them know that Erica was good, and we were on the mend. Their responses back almost felt like a collective sign was happening around the world for us. It was a damn good reminder that we had a lot of people rooting for us.

More than we thought.

After cleaning up everything, I packed up mine and Erica's stuff and put it by the door. It was mid-day before I crept back in the room and snuggled up beside her.

"Morning, baby." I reached around and cupped her tit as I ran my nose up the back of her neck.

She whimpered and jutted her ass out, rubbing her soft curves over me. "What time is it?"

"Time to get up and get moving. I want to take you home tonight. Zek misses you a lot. Is that okay?" I played with her nipple, loving the way it hardened under my touch. I would spend the evening worshiping both of her pretty pink buds if she let me.

"Yeah. I'd like that." She turned over to face me and pulled me in close. "Don't ever leave me again, okay?"

"I won't, Erica, but be open with me. I had no clue what happened." I pulled her in for a long kiss. "Let's just start over, alright?"

"I'd like that." She kissed me again. "Alright. Let's grab a burger to go from the pub downstairs before we go. I want to say goodbye to Sid and Jander."

I snorted and chuckled. "Who?"

"The guys downstairs. One owns the bar, and the other is a local artist. They have been really great to me." She kissed the tip of my nose and rolled out of bed the other way.

I jerked up to a sitting position so I could watch her naked ass as she walked across the room. I whistled loudly.

She glanced over her shoulder, a sexy smile on her lips. "Like what you see, Mr. Bryant."

"I love it. Keep up that sassy attitude, and I'm going to spank you."

She bent her knees and shook her ass, her voice sultry. "Like this?"

"Yeah." I bounded off the bed.

She screamed and ran into the living room. I caught up pretty easily and turned her to face me before picking her up and kissing her senseless. "Get dressed, or we are never going to get out of here."

"There's a bed. Food. Painting stuff, and you." She shrugged as I let her down. "I'm good staying here forever."

"What about Zek?" I gave her a look.

"Right! Let's bust out of this joint."

 

*

 

"You really like the painting I did?" She sat beside me in the car, a smile on her beautiful face. She had no makeup on, and her hair was wild as shit, which was just the way I liked her best.

The windows were down in the car, and I could barely hear her, but the feeling of the wind against our skin was needed. Freedom was ours when we were together. It was a great reminder.

"I love it, baby."

"My dad used to love looking at my art, but I usually had to hide it under my bed." She glanced toward her open window. "My mom hated it. Called it a complete waste of time."

"She's a cold-hearted bitch, Erica."

"No. She's just mean. She thinks that things should be the way she wants them, and if they're not, she shuns them. She just doesn't get it."

"How is she? Have you seen her lately?"

"Yeah. This last week. The day you broke things off with me." She glanced over at me. "Sunday?"

"Fuck. Seriously?" I shook my head. "That had to be the-"

"Worst day of my life." She finished my sentence for me. "I'm not going back to the retirement home. I can't."

"I don't blame you a bit, and you should probably delete Leon's number from your phone. He's a horrible person, Erica."

"I agree." She leaned back and closed her eyes. "Anything else on the contract job that you were looking at doing?"

"You know, I don't know. I was supposed to get a file from Jonathan with the people and places that the client wanted to be photographed as part of the portfolio, but I haven't checked my e-mail because of all this stuff with you. Grab my laptop out of my bag and check it."

She leaned around the seat to the back to grab the computer, putting her perfect ass in the air. I couldn't resist.

I reached over and fondled her, running my fingers over the edge of her short shorts until I reached her soft center. I slipped my fingers under her shorts and panties and dipped my fingers into her soft heat.

"Matthew!" She moved back in her seat, her face flustered.

"What?" I licked at my fingers. "I'm a gentleman until you belong to me. Good luck to you now." I winked as she swatted at me. I laughed. "Fuck, I love you."

"You're so naughty." She turned on my computer. "I love it."

"Good. I’m not going anywhere. Neither is my naughtiness." I turned and focused on the road. As much as I tried not to think about Mitch and all the shit that happened to us, I couldn't help it. Worry filled my stomach, and I glanced over at her. "Did you ever find out anything about whether or not Mitch was involved in your mugging and hit and run?"

"No, but I can't imagine that he was. I'm letting it go. He's not a thug. Just a lonely billionaire with too much money and time on his hands."

"He did act a lot like my brother would have before Bethany. Bastards."

"You're a billionaire too, silly." She pulled up the file and tilted her head to the side. "Matt... who's the client for this job?"

"No clue. Why?"

She turned the computer toward me. It took me a minute to realize what I was looking at. Various members of my family popped up on the screen, then the office down in Seattle and a few other iconic locations.

"What the hell?" I pulled off the road into a gas station. "Why would someone want pictures of the places and people I love?"

"Do you think Damon is the client?" She reached over and snatched the computer back.

"Maybe so. My father doesn't really do art, even though he supports me in doing mine." I shook my head and reached for the phone.

Jonathan answered on the first ring. "Matthew. What's up?"

"Hey." I glanced over at Erica as a smile lifted my lips. "Who's the client on the project you just sent over?"

"Why, your father." There was a deep chuckle, and I couldn't help but laugh too.

My dad did believe in my art, but he still lacked faith in the fact that I could make a living out of it. He had me at M&B so I could be me and he could pay me.

Now he was paying me to paint pictures that he would probably never put up. It was almost bittersweet.

"Thanks, man. I'll get on it next week."

"Excellent."

We hung up, and I reached for Erica's hand. "I got you something, or I started to. It will be ready in a few weeks. You need to pack up your place. I'm not living alone without you anymore."

She nodded. "Let's pack up the whole damn place tomorrow. I don't want to waste another minute without you."

"Good answer." I brought her hand up to my lips and kissed her, breathing her in and falling in love all over again.

She was mine, and that's all that mattered.