Chapter Twelve
Ally stopped by the supermarket after work, finally calming down from what she was now calling the night (and morning after) that Ethan blew her mind. Only took eleven hours for her to calm down. Ha! The man was a collection of contradictions—tough with a stone expression that rarely cracked into a smile, but then in bed he’d been gentle, almost tender. She’d never experienced that with any man. And the way he’d listened, really listened, to her relationship concerns. He was the most amazing man she’d ever met.
No pulling the rug out from under you, I promise. I like you and want to spend time with you. Ethan’s words came back to her again, bringing a gooey deep affection. She was halfway in love with him.
Oh, God. She was falling for him.
She gave herself a mental shake, pushing her cart down the bread aisle. Focus. She’d spoken to Claire about the assistant opportunity after work today only to find it wasn’t a good fit. So what was she going to do with her life? What was her purpose? This thinking-things-through stuff wasn’t for the faint of heart.
Her cart was full of healthy food when she made her final stop at the freezer section for ice cream. She halted two steps down the aisle. As if conjured from her thoughts, Ethan stood at the opposite end of the aisle.
She made herself continue forward like everything was normal. Like her heart wasn’t racing, her knees wobbly over seeing him so soon after their hookup. Nothing like the early evening after the morning after…whatever. It was always awkward to see your lover fully dressed when the vision of their naked body was still fresh in mind. The things his mouth had done to her. She throbbed at the memory.
He hadn’t noticed her yet as he picked out Hungry Guy frozen dinners.
Just be friendly. Casual. No big deal.
“There’s my stalker!” she called with a wave.
He straightened and flashed a smile that stopped her heart. She flushed and her heart kicked into high gear as she closed the distance between them, parking her cart alongside his.
He tossed two more frozen dinners into his cart, joining the pile already in there. “Yeah, I figured if I stood here long enough, you were bound to come in for…”
“Ice cream,” she supplied. “And ya know, the usual stuff for the week.”
He searched her features for a moment before asking, “How’s the plan to work with Claire? Have you spoken to her about it?”
She sighed. “It’s not going to work out. She says after the movie wraps, she and Jake want to buy a horse farm in Connecticut. They’re hoping to start a family. She said she’ll still be working, but probably more behind the camera with her production company.”
“So she doesn’t need an assistant?”
“No, she does, but it would be more local.” She frowned. “I don’t want to hang around a horse farm in Connecticut. I’ve lived my whole life in Connecticut. I thought it would be so glam too. I told her that and she understood. She said she’d ask around if another actress needs an assistant that would involve more travel for me. She knows, like, everyone.”
Ethan moved to stand by her side. “Sorry it didn’t work out, but I’m glad you’ll be sticking around.”
“Thanks. But there’s still a possibility. Claire could come through with something else. She has incredible connections.”
His voice turned husky, making her knees weak. “You free for dinner on Saturday night?”
“Yes.”
He smiled warmly. “Then it’s a date.”
Her self-preservation kicked in, needing to slow it down, protect her heart. “But I’m not spending the night this time.”
He arched a brow. “Not even for what women want?”
She hesitated, but told herself to remain firm with the boundaries. “Not even that.”
“All right.” He played with a lock of her hair. “I’ve got another thing you might like.”
That got her attention. No, she needed firm boundaries. Besides, next Sunday morning was Lauren’s bachelorette brunch. Her friend was such a sweetheart, she wanted her bachelorette party to be a classy brunch at a nice restaurant. There’d been much debate among her friends over secretly springing a stripper on Lauren at the brunch, but Hailey had put a quick halt to those proceedings, declaring they’d be kicked out of the restaurant for that. They’d settled for the much tamer mimosas with secret gifts of naughty lingerie. Ally personally thought that was more a gift for Lauren’s fiancé than Lauren, but it would be fun to watch her blush and attempt to thank everyone in her usual sweet way.
“I have plans Sunday morning,” she informed him, but then she couldn’t resist. “Tell me the other thing I might like.”
He pushed her hair behind her ear. “You’ll have to spend the night to find out. I’ll make sure you’re not late for your plans.”
She narrowed her eyes. This sounded like a trick. He just wanted to cuddle her and that was bound to get her all mushy and vulnerable.
“Up to you,” he said with a smirk. “Last woman I did it too actually…nah. You don’t need to know that.”
She slammed a hand on her hip. “Not cool to talk about other women with the woman you’re currently propositioning, you know.”
He shrugged and watched her with a confident sexy look in his eyes.
Ooh, she couldn’t take the suspense. “What’d she do?”
He leaned down and whispered near her ear, the words hot against her skin. “She turtled.”
“She what?”
He stroked her hair back from her ear and held it as he cradled the side of her head and whispered, “She made this wheezy sound like a turtle orgasm.”
She was so confused. Also intrigued. And a hot mess of hormones. “And you know about turtle orgasms how?”
He dropped his hand and met her eyes. “YouTube video. Guys at work showed me.”
“So you didn’t actually witness turtles fucking while you were doing your park ranger thing?”
He grinned and looked around. Luckily, they were alone down at this end of the aisle, because she’d said that turtles-fucking thing a little loud. “That would be a no,” he said. “And I’m not a park ranger.”
She crossed her arms. “I’m not sure I want to turtle.”
He gave her his sexiest smirk. “Bark? Meow? Howl?”
She laughed and uncrossed her arms.
He took her hand in a firm clasp. “I’ll pick you up at six on Saturday. Dinner will be all suburban-like with running water and a chef that prepares the meal.”
She melted. “Okay. Will there be benefits after?”
“Up to you,” he said at the same time as he nodded.
She laughed. “All right, it’s a…” She coughed, nearly choking on the word. She was so afraid she was going to get her hopes up again, go all Cinderella on his ass when there simply was no prince waiting to whisk her away to everlasting happiness. Real life didn’t work that way.
“Date,” he supplied.
She took a shaky breath. And then put as much cheer into her voice as she could while she babbled nervously. “Yes. Well, I better get going. I have a lot of cooking to do. I’m making white chicken chili for dinner and three loaves of pumpkin bread for my class tomorrow.”
He didn’t move, still close enough to make her want to throw herself at him. “It’s a nice place; dress would be good.”
She nodded in a jerky motion, waved him to the side and, as soon as he moved, she grabbed her cart and made a U-turn out of the frozen aisle, her stomach doing a jittery dance.
It wasn’t until she got home that she realized she forgot the ice cream.
~ ~ ~
Ethan rarely did the fancy-dinner thing. Not his style. But he needed Ally to know he was serious about her. Casual hookups didn’t get across that message. Not that he’d turn down hooking up with her. He just…dammit, if he was going to do this, he had to do it right. Full-on wooing. He’d never wooed in his life, but his foster brother, Zach, was a professor of anthropology and had shared some good stuff about dating based on real anthropological evidence and biology. He’d explained the dominant male was highly valued for a mate as protector and provider for the young. Dominant didn’t mean pressing the other person down. It was more like strength to fight off enemies and rivals, protect the family and bring home the gift of food. Though Ally brought her own food home and cooked better than he did. Whatever. It had made sense at the time. He was a cop, so he already had the protector thing down.
He peered in the bathroom mirror at the crappy knot in his tie and undid it again. If she understood him at all, she’d know what a big deal this fancy dinner was. He tied the knot again and then loosened it. He hated ties.
He finished getting ready, nerves making him tense and jumpy. He couldn’t remember being nervous about a date since he was a teenager on his first date. It felt like so much was riding on it. He was serious about Ally, had tried to be as straightforward as possible about that, but it still felt like any moment she was going to slip through his fingers. Like he’d turn around and she be flying off to Paris for a year as some movie star’s assistant or off to Japan to teach kids English or something.
But he couldn’t back off. Not when he felt so much. He thought about her a lot—her cheerful exuberance, her beaming smile, her grit, her luscious body, her softness. When he wasn’t with her, he couldn’t wait to see her again. And when he saw her, the whole world was brighter, sights and sounds sharper. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath in and out. What the hell happened to him? He’d only known her up close and personal for four weeks. That was much too soon for…love. Had it finally happened for him? He’d never felt like this before, all out of sorts and wanting another person close so much. He suspected it was, but wouldn’t check in with anyone to ask. He’d just move forward like everything was normal.
Because if Ally didn’t love him back, there was no point in even thinking about it.
He loved her.
Fuck.
He’d never told anyone he loved them. And no one had ever said it to him. Would that bad luck streak finally end?
Or would he be waving goodbye as she left for some grand adventure?
He shrugged on the suit blazer. Enough thinking. Time for action. He marched out the door.
~ ~ ~
Ally was standing in a bra and panties, carefully applying mascara in the bathroom mirror, when the doorbell rang. Shit. He was early! She yanked the bands out of her two braids, tousled her hair into the kinky waves she’d been going for and then raced to her bedroom for her pink fleece robe. “Coming!” Now that she lived alone, she couldn’t count on her roomie to run interference.
She rushed to the door, peeked through the peephole, and yanked it open, a little breathless. “Hey, you’re way early.”
Ethan stepped inside, looking somber and serious in a navy blue suit. “I was ready. I don’t mind waiting for you. Take your time.” His gaze dropped to her bare legs, where the robe ended mid-thigh, and then traveled up to the gaping top that likely gave him an eyeful of cleavage. Finally, he lifted lust-filled eyes to hers.
Her body responded in kind with a throbbing pulse between her legs. She licked her lips, closed the distance between them and placed a hand on his chest. “Nice tie.”
“Ally,” he said in a strained voice.
“Eth,” she whispered.
They slammed together, mouths hungry, hands grabbing. She was frantic for him, pushing off his blazer, grabbing his shirt and lifting it from his pants, undoing his belt buckle, all while his mouth devoured hers. He kept kissing her, shifting her to the wall, pressing and grinding against her. She was wild to have him, lifting her leg and wrapping it around his, tilting her hips up in invitation. He slid a hand under her robe and cupped her between the legs, where she was already hot and wet. He kissed her harder, more demanding, and then tore his mouth away, his fingers hooked on the sides of her panties.
“Stop me,” he said.
She pushed his hands off and slid the panties down herself. Then she opened her robe and tossed it to the side.
He groaned.
The rest happened shockingly fast. He freed himself, lifted her and took her in one fierce thrust, her back hitting cool wall. She gasped at the sudden filling of her body and then there was nothing but his mouth on hers, his body pumping hard and fierce, the intense coiling of tension at her core, higher and higher. She broke the kiss, desperate for breath, and he held her by the cheek and jaw, his eyes hot on hers, his thrusts deep and incredibly powerful, like he held nothing back this time. He gave her everything, the hard and the tender, and she understood in that moment who he was. Tough on the outside, tender on the inside. But she couldn’t speak, could only hang on, panting and aching and completely overwhelmed. His hand slipped between them, stroking her rapidly, and she jerked and then exploded, the orgasm stealing her breath. He pounded into her and she just clung to him. His own release pulsed inside her moments later, bringing another wave of pleasure.
He leaned his forehead against hers, breathing heavily. “You okay?”
“Yeah.”
He lifted his head and smiled tenderly. Her heart squeezed painfully hard. He kissed her gently. “Sorry if I was rough.”
“I like it both ways, rough and gentle. It’s like you, tough on the outside, secretly tender on the inside. Right?”
“I dunno. Maybe.” He lifted her off him, set her down, and retrieved her robe, wrapping it around her shoulders.
That was when she felt the aftermath—no-doubt virile sperm sliding out of her. Her stomach dropped and she went cold all over. How could she have let this happen again? How could he after he knew about her accidental pregnancy?
He tucked himself back into his pants and zipped up.
She slid her arms into the sleeves of the robe and tied it with shaking fingers.
“What’s wrong?”
Her voice came out small. “You didn’t use a condom.”
His face fell. “Ally, oh, God, I’m so sorry.” He pulled her close, hugging her. She couldn’t hug him back. She was stiff and cold. He rubbed her back. “I wasn’t thinking. I’m clean. I always use protection.”
“It’s okay,” she said through numb lips. Though nothing was okay.
He pulled back to look at her. “You’re shaking. C’mere. Sit down.” He tried to guide her to the sofa, but she pulled away.
“I’m fine.”
“Ally, I’m really sorry.” His voice was a quiet misery. “I just wanted tonight to be perfect, and I screwed up.”
“It’s not your fault. We were both stupid.” She headed toward her bedroom. “Give me a few minutes to get ready.”
“Ally…”
She stopped, numbly waiting for him to finish his sentence.
“I’m not like Dean. I’ll deal with the consequences of my actions.”
She nodded stiffly and retreated to her room. His reassurance just made her feel worse. Like it was a bad thing if she got pregnant. Of course it was. They weren’t in a committed relationship.
She sat on her bed, the numb shock wearing off. She didn’t take risks like that. Ever. Not since Dean.
She closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths. She was expecting her period in a couple of days. Chances of a pregnancy were smaller; ovulation had most likely passed. Well, she’d know in a couple of days, wouldn’t she?
Ethan appeared in her doorway, his face creased with worry. “Do you want to skip dinner?”
She shook her head. “No, let’s go. I’m expecting my period in two days. I’m sure it’ll be fine.”
He visibly relaxed. “Okay. I’ll go wait in the living room.”
She quickly dressed, not giving herself time to dwell on the uncertainty. She’d enjoy a nice meal with good company, even if they were complete morons when they got too close. Not like they were going to hook up again after that scare. Talk about a buzzkill.
She stepped out to the living room in her little black dress and black heels. “Ready,” she said, putting as much cheer into her voice as she could.
“Hope you like French food,” he said, heading to the front door and opening it for her.
“Mmm, French fries are my favorite.”
He barked out a laugh. “Not sure they’re on the menu.”
They headed down the outdoor hallway toward the stairs. “How about French toast?”
“Actually, that is on the menu.”
“Ha!”
“They’ve got all the usual culprits. You’ll be well fed.” He entwined his fingers with hers and they were off for a date she was determined to enjoy.