Chapter 14
“Did you buy me a Barbie Doll toothbrush?” Grayson asked, holding it up as he walked into her bedroom. She tried to hold back the laughter and failed miserably.
“I thought it would be easier for you to tell which one was yours.”
“Very funny.”
“It sings,” she added.
“I hate you,” he said, making her laugh again. She could tell he didn’t mean it.
“So what are you doing this weekend?” he asked, coming back into her room with the singing toothbrush.
She was laughing so hard she could barely answer.
“My team has a meeting next week and I’m presenting. I really want to impress them. I’m going to be preparing for that.”
“It doesn’t hurt to be prepared.” He left to go back to the bathroom.
She listened as he went from the bathroom to his bedroom and then walked back in her room carrying a pillow. He traded it out for the one on the other side of the bed and got in next to her. He adjusted the pillow, and then let out a happy sigh as he snuggled under her covers.
She sighed and turned off the light, lying there next to him, looking up into the darkness of the room. She’d missed having someone to sleep with. Not just for sex, but just…there.
“FYI, the Barbie toothbrush sucks. It’s so tiny I have to brush one tooth at a time,” he complained.
She laughed again and let him pull her against him.
* * * *
The next morning, she awoke alone. Gray was in the kitchen.
Her heart squeezed happily at the sight of him in boxers and a T-shirt at the coffeepot. She decided the reaction was more about the coffee than the man. Though he was pretty damn sexy, even when he wasn’t trying.
As she passed, he turned, pinning her to the counter and kissing her deeply.
“How’s that to start your day?” he asked, while wiggling his brows at her.
“It would have been better if you didn’t have morning breath,” she joked.
With a laugh, he poured coffee into her favorite travel mug and added a huge helping of vanilla creamer.
“I know that’s not true, because I used your toothbrush this morning when I got up.”
“Seriously?”
“Well, I didn’t have all day to spend brushing my teeth. I have to get to work.”
“Whatever.”
“So I was thinking about your upcoming meeting and I want to help.”
“Help?”
“Yeah. Maybe you could bounce your presentation off me and I’ll give you feedback.”
“You are not going to want to listen to my budget findings for Pinecrest Parking Systems.”
“Oh, but I am. I’m riveted by the thought of parking systems and how they spend their money.” He grinned at her.
“You don’t have a car.”
“I used to. And I might want one again, if I had a safe place to park it.”
“They have a sizable budget for safety upgrades.”
“Good plan,” he agreed with a nod while leaning over the eggs on the stove, the slope of his back inviting her to lean up against him.
“It’s also convenient.” She hopped up on the counter next to him before laying out her plan. “They need to spend more money in advertising. I’m going to suggest they get the extra income by not going to trade shows. According to the data, they’re not getting enough of a return in that area.”
“But they will from advertising?” He sounded doubtful.
“I spoke with marketing and got a plan. If they spend it in key locations, it can pay off.” He nodded at this and they both went off to get dressed.
“So what locations?” he picked up the earlier conversation as they walked to work.
“I actually came up an idea that Diana in marketing loved. I’m thinking the subway. When you’re crammed in on the train, everybody wishes they had a car. I’m going to suggest some less expensive spots on the platform. Seeing that option day in and day out might make more of an impression than throwing their advertising dollars all over the place.”
“That’s a really good idea.” He held the door open and smiled.
There was something in that smile. Something comfortable. She nudged his arm with her elbow.
“Thanks for the coffee.”
“Thanks for the crappy toothbrush.” He winked as they got on the elevator and rode up together.
Grayson was good to his word. After their morning meeting, he came in her office to hear her presentation. He made comments and suggestions that were actually helpful.
“Maybe ease them into the new statement format in stages rather than dumping that on them right out of the gate. People like to feel as though they can trust someone before they’re open to change,” he suggested, taking it very seriously. “Well, most people like to trust someone. Maybe not you.” He gave her a wink.
“It’s not that I don’t want to trust someone. It’s more that I…can’t.”
“You trust me, right? I mean you moved in with me, trusting in the fact I wasn’t going to steal your stuff or hurt you.”
“You did steal my toothbrush.” She raised a brow.
“Still. There had to be trust there on some level.”
“Maybe,” she allowed reluctantly. “A very small level.”
“Whatever. I’m going to count it as an accomplishment.”
By lunchtime, Gray’s attention began to wane. He was no longer offering suggestions of the accounting nature, but was still offering suggestions in the naked department.
“Would you like to go home for lunch?” he whispered by her ear while she tried to type.
For a second, she let the joy of the moment envelop her. This was what she would have wanted. A man to support her ambitions as well as make her smile.
She took a breath and let that dream flow out of her as she exhaled and took the thing she could have. Sex.
“Sure. Let’s go.”
* * * *
“Let’s go out,” she said as they left work for the night.
“Out?”
“A club. Do you remember the place where you go to hang out with people and socialize?” Of course he remembered. He just didn’t see why he needed to go to a club when Alyssa lived with him. They could have a drink and socialize in the comfort of their own home.
But he knew what she meant, and it was nice to see her take a break from worrying over the presentation, which she had already perfected earlier.
“Fine. We’ll go out to a club.”
“I’ll buy you a drink, since you were such a big help today.”
He knew he wouldn’t let her buy him a drink as payment for doing something he wanted to do. Not to mention something he was already being compensated for by his salary.
Besides, he had fun helping her with her proposal. She was brilliant and should have been promoted years ago.
He showered after Alyssa came out of the bathroom. When he was dressed, he sat on the sofa, waiting. Alyssa was pretty quick about getting ready. She was gorgeous so there was only so much that she needed to do.
She emerged from the hall wearing a short red dress. Her blonde hair fell in waves past her shoulders and her face had a subtle amount of makeup. Just enough for a guy to see she would still be amazing without it.
He felt lucky to be able to walk into any place with her on his arm.
Ten minutes at the club, and Gray was ready to get out. He finished his drink and danced with Alyssa. Grinding up against her body had the effect he predicted. He frowned when they sat down again.
“You don’t seem to be having fun,” she noticed despite his attempt to hide it.
“Honestly?”
“Of course. That’s the rule, right? No bullshit.”
He nodded. “I would have rather just stayed home and snuggled on the sofa with you while watching a movie where things blew up.”
“Hmm.”
“Don’t give me shit about it. You asked.” He frowned at his hands on the bar.
“I’m not going to give you shit. I was just thinking it sounds nice. I wouldn’t have to wear heels.”
“Oh, no. You still need to wear the heels, but with your bra and panties.”
“How about no heels, a T-shirt, and a pair of your boxers?”
“Deal.” He held out his hand and she shook it before tugging him off his stool.
“Let’s go.”
Seeing her in his clothes did something primal to him. It was as if she were marked by him. She was his.
He smiled as she settled on the sofa in his boxers. She rested her head on his thigh and her long legs stretched out, taking up the rest of the space. He played with the long strands of her golden hair until the movie began.
This was so much better than a loud crowd or going off with a stranger. While he’d done this many times with past girlfriends, this was a contentment Grayson had never known before Alyssa moved in.
The movie was horrible, so he wasn’t surprised when she started to fidget only ten minutes into it. What did surprise him was what she began fidgeting with.
She slipped her hand under the waistband of his shorts and was now stroking him with a phenomenal rhythm. She twisted around in his lap as he let his head fall back against the cushion. He closed his eyes, letting the feeling of her touch sink into his bones. Then he felt something else.
Warm, wetness surrounded him and he looked down to see her mouth gliding up and down his length.
“Liss?” he said shocked.
She paused and smiled up at him.
“What? You said this was one of the perks of having a screening.”
He had said that, but then she hadn’t wanted him to take advantage of that perk for her pleasure.
“Should I continue?”
“Yes,” he answered, his voice coming out breathy and desperate. He watched as she ran her tongue up his cock while giving him a naughty look.
When she wrapped her lips around him again, he jerked. He tugged down his shorts a little so she had more room as she serviced him with incredible enthusiasm. She even moaned a few times as if she were enjoying it. The sound reverberated through his flesh, making him want to explode.
He made the mistake of opening his eyes and looking down to watch. Her lips were flushed red from the friction. She continued to slide down over him and pull back up with just the right amount of pressure.
He could feel himself building. Watching was too much, but he couldn’t look away, and it was too late anyway.
“Liss,” he groaned, giving her fair warning, but she didn’t move. Instead, she kept going, taking in everything he gave her as he cried out so loud it echoed in the room.
When his breathing came back down to normal, Alyssa tucked him back in his pants and looked up at him.
“I don’t like this movie. Can we watch something else?” She tilted her head adorably, her lips still shiny and slightly swollen. He’d never seen anyone more beautiful in all his life.
“We can watch whatever the hell you want.”
* * * *
Gray fell asleep while they were watching the movie she picked, and she covered him with a blanket before going to bed.
Now he wasn’t in her bed and she missed him.
As she was deciding whether or not she wanted to go wake him so he could come to bed, he stepped in her room and crawled into bed next to her, pulling her close.
“Snuggling isn’t required after oral.” She laughed, but shifted so she could get closer. She’d taken great pleasure in watching him enjoy what she was doing to him earlier. She loved that power, and had forgotten what it felt like. It had been so long. A lifetime ago.
“I like to talk to you while I fall asleep,” he confessed.
“And you wondered why I bought you a kid’s toothbrush. Do you want me to tell you a bedtime story?” she joked.
“Maybe. You got any good ones?”
“No.” She shook her head, remembering her personal stories were off limits.
“Maybe you could tell me what happened to you?” he suggested.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean the way you won’t let anyone in, and how you avoid anything remotely resembling a real connection with another person.”
“Oh. That.”
“Yeah. That.”
“It’s like you said, my bitchy blood.”
He wasn’t dissuaded.
“Come on. I know you don’t like to trust people. But have I given you any reason not to trust me?”
“That’s kind of the problem. I don’t know who I can trust and who I can’t, so by default, I trust no one.”
“Please, tell me. Trust me with this one thing. Please.” He made it sound simple. It was just a story. Part of her past she hadn’t managed to get over. Maybe telling him would be a step in that direction. Or maybe he would look at her differently.
“You go first. What is the worst thing that happened to you?” She made a habit of turning his questions back on him as a distraction. It usually worked.
“All right. I’ll go first, but you’d better not leave me hanging when I’m done. Will you share yours if I share mine?”
“I promise I’ll tell you every gory detail.” She shook his extended hand to finalize their agreement, then he began his story. She was expecting him to fall asleep at some point before she needed to tell him anything.
“I fell in love in twelfth grade. Her name was Mandy. She stayed back home and went to college there.”
“Where is that? Home.”
“Connecticut.” They both paused for a moment. Probably trying to figure out why he’d never mentioned it before. Then he went on. “I wanted to go away to school. She promised me we would be able to stay together for the four years we would be apart. Then she screwed my best friend.”
“Ouch.”
“What made it worse was she started screwing him the minute I left and I didn’t find out about it until I was a junior. He even told me he was doing this hot girl who had a boyfriend, throwing it in my face without using names.”
“Rude.”
“I know. It makes it difficult to trust people.”
“Including yourself?”
“Yes. Definitely. I always wonder, am I good enough to keep a woman’s interest or will she go off with some other guy?” They both nodded. “Same thing happen to you?”
“Not exactly.” She frowned. Her distraction technique hadn’t worked this time, and he seemed far from sleep.
“You promised. It will be okay, Liss.”
She couldn’t believe she was going to do this. Her mother was the only person in her life that knew her story, and they never spoke of it. Somehow she knew Grayson wouldn’t judge her, or try to pity her.
While Kenley was officially her best friend, she’d never felt comfortable discussing it. For some reason, speaking to Gray felt more natural. She let out a breath and decided to go for it.
“You know where I grew up.” He already knew so much about her, maybe this wouldn’t be bad. Maybe it would even feel better to talk about it.
“Trailer park,” he said.
“Right. I worked my ass off to get scholarships so I could go to college and make more of myself than a struggling single mother, like my own mom.”
“And you did it,” he said. “I’m proud of you, for whatever that’s worth.” He shrugged it off.
“I was on the pill before I ever even planned to have sex, just in case. And I was going to find a great guy who would want to marry me.”
“I think most girls have that on their agendas at that age.”
“Well, I found a great guy who wanted to marry me.” She took a deep breath. “But now he’s in prison.”