Chapter Twenty-Nine
Lexi
Dinner with Katherine had gone well. There had been a couple weird comments here and there, but that was to be expected. It had been fun. I liked Katherine. She reminded me of Misty in a lot of ways. I could see us becoming friends.
If Andrew let us, that was. Katherine had mentioned that she'd originally planned to take Emma and I out to brunch one morning but that Andrew had changed the plan to dinner at his place at the last minute. She hadn't said it in a pointed way. She'd just wanted to invite us to do that some other time.
But it made me wonder why Andrew hadn't said anything about that plan. Was there a reason he wanted to be present while Emma and I hung out with his sister?
Of course, it was one thing for Andrew to commit to dating me. It was another thing entirely for him to introduce me to his family. That was a much bigger step. Maybe he was suddenly getting cold feet about this whole thing.
Whatever this thing between me and Andrew was. No one seemed to know what Andrew and my relationship was, and that was part of the uncertainty at dinner.
I watched Andrew wipe down the already-clean countertops in the kitchen. My brow furrowed. “Are you okay?” I asked.
He glanced up at me and smiled, but the expression didn't quite reach his eyes. “Why wouldn't I be?” he asked, a little extra vigor in his cleaning.
I stared at him for a long moment and then shrugged carefully. “You just seem tense,” I said. “Just figured I'd ask if you were all right.”
“I'm fine,” he said in a clipped tone.
“Okay,” I said. I finished putting away the leftover food and then paused in the doorway of the kitchen. “Tonight was fun, but I guess I'm going to go to bed, then. Have a good night.”
“Wait,” Andrew said, as I started to retreat. He tossed the rag in the sink and turned towards me, raking a hand back through his hair. “I'm sorry. I'm just distracted.” He paused. “What did you think of Katherine?”
“I liked her,” I assured him. “She's very nice, just like you said. I'm not sure that I'll take her up on the admin job because it's probably better suited to someone with experience in the non-profit field, but it was nice of her to offer. And the doll she brought for Emma is gorgeous.” I smiled. “Actually, Katherine reminds me a lot of my friend Misty.”
“Good,” Andrew said, but he still seemed distracted. I waited, wondering if he'd say anything else. But when he spoke again, his words caught me off guard. “Come to bed with me.”
I blinked. We'd had sex a couple times now, but I still spent most nights alone in the guest bedroom. I knew he was probably horny, having gone from sleeping with multiple women per week to sleeping with nobody after he broke up with Renée, but he'd been very good about keeping his hands to himself.
The fact that we'd just had dinner with his sister made this seem like something more, maybe. Like he wasn't just asking for sex.
“Okay,” I said simply.
Andrew glanced around. “I want to finish up a couple more things down here, but I'll see you up there, okay?”
“Okay.”
I walked slowly upstairs, dragging my hand along the banister in an attempt to ground myself. For the first time all night, I allowed myself to think of some of the comments that Katherine had made, the hints that she'd dropped.
I wasn't stupid. I knew that Andrew had dragged her into the other room so that he could tell her off for hinting that our relationship had a future. But maybe she knew something that I didn't. Maybe he'd only been telling her off for spoiling the surprise?
But Andrew didn't seem like he was ready to propose, and to be honest, I didn't know what I'd say if he did. I wanted to get my feet back under me before I thought about marriage. We weren't even saying that we loved one another yet. Getting engaged already would feel too hurried, like we weren't thinking things through. Like maybe he was acting out of guilt rather than love.
You couldn't build a solid relationship based on guilt. And I had no desire to have a loveless relationship like my parents.
Andrew came up to bed a few minutes after I'd lain down. He stripped, his eyes on me the whole time, and then crawled into bed next to me, pulling me into his arms.
“I'm glad you liked Kate,” he said quietly.
“I hope she liked me,” I mumbled. “I know how important her opinion is to you.”
Andrew laughed. “I'm sure she liked you. And she was absolutely smitten with Emma, of course.”
“But?” I pressed.
Andrew was quiet for a moment. “Katherine's not the most tactful person in the world. I know that she just wants me to be happy, but she might have said a few things that put undue pressure on our relationship. I hope you weren't bothered by them.”
I pulled back so that I could look up at him. I wondered how to answer that. Clearly, he was more freaked out about the whole commitment thing than I'd realized.
“I don't think she meant to put undue stress on our relationship,” I finally told him. “I think she just wasn't sure exactly what point our relationship was at. To be honest, I don't think that we really know either. We haven't defined it in so many words.” I paused. “If anything, I think she was just trying to figure out what point we were at. But I wasn't bothered by any of it.”
“Good,” Andrew said, sounding relieved. He pulled me back toward his chest, probably so that he wouldn't have to look me in the eyes during his confession. “I do want to get married at some point, to someone. But I'm not ready to consider that just yet. Not with anyone. And things have already moved so quickly with us, with you moving in here and having Emma, that I just want to enjoy your presence for a little while longer before we start talking about anything more serious.”
“Is that what this is about?” I asked teasingly, dragging my fingers along the skin of his torso. “Me being here in bed with you? We're enjoying one another's presence?”
Andrew chuckled. “Well, I should hope so.” He caught my wrists and rolled us over so that he was on top of me. “Of course, if you're not enjoying my presence just yet, I suppose I'll have to do something about that.”
“Like what?” I asked challengingly.
He growled wordlessly and bent down to kiss me. The kiss was bruising and sensual, much more than a simple meeting of the lips. He rocked his hips down in time with the movements of his mouth, letting me feel how hard he already was, waking an answering desire in me.
He maneuvered my wrists so that he pinned them with just one hand. Then he brought his other hand down and slid it beneath my shirt, caressing the soft skin of my breasts. He pulled away for a moment and just stared down at me, an unreadable expression on his face.
I raised an eyebrow at him and then slowly removed my shirt, revealing my naked body beneath. Andrew hummed a pleased noise and then bent to trail his lips across my skin, making goosebumps rise in waves. I trembled, burying my fingers in his soft hair as he began to lick at my breasts, sucking the nipples until they stood sharply against my skin.
He repositioned himself so that he hovered over me again and dragged his fingertips up my sides. It seemed like there was something that he wanted to say, but he wasn't sure how to word it.
I groaned impatiently. “Are we fucking or talking?” I asked.
Andrew cleared his throat, sounding awkward. “I'd like you to sleep in here,” he said.
I rolled my eyes but caught his hips, trying to get him to resume what he'd been doing. “So glad you're not kicking me out,” I said sarcastically.
Andrew blinked and then shook his head. “That's not what I meant,” he told me. “I meant, I'd like you to sleep in here, from now on. I don't want you to sleep in the guest bedroom anymore. Unless you really want to. But I like the idea of waking up with you every morning.”
I stared at him for a long moment, sure that he was kidding. But he looked as serious as I'd ever seen him. “Okay, I’d like that,” I said simply. “Now can we continue?”
Andrew snorted at my impatience and kissed me again. It was gentler this time, although just as steamy. His tongue delved into my mouth and drew out lewd whimpers from me.
He pushed my legs up, opening me up for him, and then he plunged inside my entrance, foregoing foreplay and sheathing himself fully in my warmth. I sighed and tugged at his shoulders, pulling him close and burying my face against his neck to breathe in his heady scent.
Our sex that night wasn't lazy, but there was something slower about it, something sweeter. The word “languid” popped up in my head. Whatever it was, I liked it.
He stroked my clit as he rocked his hips into mine, his movements unhurried and tender. I shuddered and spread my legs further to allow him access, shifting against the sheets to change the angle until every stroke made sparks erupt in my core.
My skin felt heated and flushed, and I couldn't seem to keep my eyes open for longer than a couple seconds. The pleasure continued to build, spilling through me until I thought that I would fly apart into a thousand pieces. Each stroke of his fingertips seared with promise as he mercilessly played with my erogenous zones.
I came hard. My walls contracted around his length and drew Andrew into his own orgasm.
For a long moment, the only sound between us was our harsh panting as we caught our breath again. Andrew curled his body around mine as my eyes drifted shut. “Good night,” I whispered.
“Good night,” he responded, his voice a low rumble.
I thought again about what he'd said, about wanting me to sleep in there. It might not be a definition of our relationship or a declaration of love, but it was a step forward, at least.
Anyway, it wasn't as though I had any complaints about sleeping in there, not if every night was going to be like this one.