chapter TWENTY-ONE
The only reason Curtis ate anything was because it was the polite thing to do.
The only reason he sat at his mother’s dining room table and told stories and answered his brothers’ and sisters’ never-ending questions was because it was the polite thing to do.
And the only reason he didn’t race out of his mother’s house with Lorrie tossed over his shoulder was because it was the polite thing do to.
That and because it was Lorrie’s birthday, and his family had made her a cake and had given her gifts, but now the celebration was over, and he was all out of polite.
Sure, he’d missed his mother and his brothers and sisters, he was grateful to be home, more than grateful that they’d taken care of Lorrie while he was away, but the only thing he could think about was Lorrie.
And the way she’d kissed him in his old bedroom a short time ago, the way she’d gone up in flames when he’d touched her.
Fuck. He needed to get her naked. And soon.
“You ready, darlin’?” he asked when he felt the appropriate amount of time had passed since he’d stepped foot into the house several hours ago.
“Ready,” she said, sounding far more confident than the girl he remembered.
“We’re gonna head out, Mom,” he told Mary Elizabeth, who was in the kitchen putting the dishes in the sink. She looked good, healthy. So much better than the year that had followed his father’s death. And from what Lorrie had told him in her letters, she’d stopped drinking.
“I’m surprised you lasted this long,” she teased, turning to face them. “Oh, and I had David stock your refrigerator and your pantry, since Lorrie’s been staying here with us. And Daphne cleaned the house from top to bottom yesterday, put clean sheets on the bed, so it should feel like home again.”
“How did I not know about it?” Lorrie asked, a smile in her voice. “I have to admit, Mrs. Walker, that’s pretty sneaky.”
And it had worked out better than Curtis had planned.
“If you need anything, y’all know where to find us,” his mother said, her eyes meeting Curtis’s as tears pooled. “I’m so glad you’re home.”
Curtis released Lorrie’s hand long enough to give his mother a hug and a quick kiss on the cheek. “Me, too, Momma. Me, too.”
“Now get outta here,” Mary Elizabeth joked, lightly pushing him on his shoulder. “We’ll catch up more tomorrow.”
Curtis smirked at Lorrie. “We might not come out of our house for a few days,” he said absently.
Lorrie blushed as Curtis took her hand in his. He did his best not to drag her back to their house, and once they were inside, he even managed to release her long enough to set her gifts on the table.
Still, she didn’t seem nervous, which surprised him.
“Have I told you how much I’ve missed you?” He reached for her, pulling her toward the couch.
“I think you might’ve,” she replied with a smile. “But I don’t mind hearing it again.”
Curtis pulled her into his lap, unable to leave even a breath of air between them. He never wanted to stop touching her.
Cupping her head, he stared into her eyes. “I did,” he said firmly. “I missed you every minute of every day.”
Her smile was slow and sweet. “I know.”
He sobered as he remembered her last letter and how upset she’d been with him. “Even if I didn’t handle it in the best way.”
Her eyes softened. “I understand. I don’t like it, but I understand. I wish you’d’ve been honest with me.”
“I was trying not to hurt you.”
“I know that, too.” Her hands wandered over his chest, and the friction through the rough fabric of his uniform was enough to make his dick hard. “But I don’t wanna talk about that right now.”
“Lorrie.” He could barely get her name past his lips. His body was fueled with so much pent up desire he could hardly breathe.
Her smile widened.
“I’m ready, Curtis. More than ready.”
He loved that she knew what he needed to hear. He loved that during the time he’d been gone, the connection between them hadn’t dimmed. In fact, it had grown stronger, more powerful. It was all-consuming.
“I don’t wanna rush this.” He really didn’t, but he feared he wouldn’t be able to help himself.
“Then don’t. We can take all the time we need.”
Easier said than done. His dick was throbbing, a desperate ache that only her body could sate. There were so many things he wanted to do to her, so many ways he wanted to pleasure her. And he wanted to start by stripping her clothes away and kissing every glorious inch of her body.
Right now.
Lorrie had fantasized about this day for … so long. Too long. And now that it was here, she fully expected to be nervous, anxious, scared. She was none of those things. Not that she could tell it from the look in Curtis’s eyes. He seemed worried. Then again, when he’d gone off to the Army, she hadn’t been ready.
She briefly wondered whether or not he wouldn’t appreciate the fact that she ached for him. Perhaps she wasn’t supposed to be quite so forward. But then she remembered the letter, all the things he’d said he wanted to do.
She wanted those things. Oh, how she wanted those things.
And she couldn’t bring herself to hide her true feelings, her deepest desires. They were married. This wasn’t frowned upon. But even if they had been, Lorrie wasn’t so sure she could’ve pretended otherwise. Not with him.
Leaning forward, she rested her forehead against his. “I want this,” she whispered, brushing her finger along his jaw. “I want you. I want to feel you...” She swallowed, forcing the next words past her lips. “I want to feel you inside me.”
A deep, rumbling growl reverberated up from his chest, and the next thing Lorrie knew, she was hanging on to him as he bolted up from the couch, his arms around her as he carried her to the bedroom.
“Woman … I think those might be the sexiest words I’ve ever heard.”
She could tell he thought that was a good thing, so she decided to go with it. This was what she wanted. Curtis Walker. She wanted to spend the rest of her days making love to him as he’d promised.
He tossed her unceremoniously on the bed, making her giggle again. Then his big, strong body was above her, his knee pressed between her thighs, his mouth finding hers in a brutal yet devastatingly sweet kiss. They were a jumble of fumbling hands as they rolled together on the bed, her body coming to rest atop his.
When she lifted her head to stare down at him, she saw a hunger so incandescent she thought she might go up in flames.
Curtis’s hands slid up the backs of her thighs, the same way they had earlier in his old bedroom. Only this time, they didn’t stop; they continued higher, his fingers slipping beneath her shorts and the edge of her panties until he was cupping her bottom, pulling her lower body against his.
Another growl escaped him.
“Are you sure, darlin’?”
“More than sure,” she told him, smiling.
He rolled them once more, freeing his hands as he got to his feet, leaving her lying on the bed before him. There was a fleeting moment when she felt a little anxious, but rather than let it consume her, Lorrie moved to the edge of the bed, sitting up and putting her hands on his belt just as he reached for it.
She still couldn’t believe that he was here with her. The wait was finally over, and the past had become just that…. It was behind them where it belonged, and she was so ready to move forward. With him.
His hands stopped as he watched her, his eyes wide with wonder. In that moment, Lorrie was completely uninhibited. Freer than she’d ever been in her life.
And she knew it had everything to do with this man.
Slowly, she worked the belt free from the buckle, her eyes never leaving Curtis’s as he stood before her. His hand went to her neck, his thumb brushing over her bottom lip as she then freed the button and lowered his zipper.
“Oh, God,” he groaned. “Touch me, Lorrie. I need to feel your hands on me.”
She wanted more than her hands on him, she wanted to run her lips over his skin, but she didn’t say as much. Instead, she felt bold enough to say, “Take off your shirt.”
With his one hand still cupping her neck, Curtis used his other to work the buttons loose on his shirt, fumbling a couple of times while she ran her hands down the outsides of his thighs. When he removed the uniform shirt, he was left in a white undershirt, which quickly disappeared.
Lorrie had seen Curtis without a shirt before. She’d seen him when he was working on the ranch, after he would shower when they’d first married, but none of those instances prepared her for the body he revealed to her now. Her eyes instantly locked on to the tattoo on his chest, directly over his heart. Her name. He had her name inked on his body, and that was possibly the sexiest thing she’d ever seen. After brushing her fingers over the letters, she let her gaze slide to the other parts he’d revealed. His chest was broad, his muscles so well-defined her fingers itched to touch them. Allowing her gaze to move lower, she bit her bottom lip as she followed the lines that bisected his abs.
Without thinking, she leaned forward and pressed a kiss right on his navel, unable to look up at him. His hand returned to the back of her head, his fingers fisting gently in her hair. A torrent of sensation shot down her spine. She liked the way he touched her, the desperation she could feel vibrating from him. It was as though he could hardly hold himself back.
She trailed kisses over his abdomen, sliding her tongue over his skin, moaning as she did. Her hands found their way up to the waistband of his pants, but before she could pull them down, Curtis stopped her.
His finger curled beneath her chin, his thumb brushing over her bottom lip. “Darlin’, I can think of so many things I want you to do with that mouth.” More heat flared in his eyes. “And I fully intend to get there, but right now… Oh, fuck… I’m not sure I can handle much more than sinking inside you.”
There was something about his profanity that turned her on. Perhaps it was for the reason he’d explained earlier. That he didn’t know how to express himself otherwise. She found it incredibly sexy.
His words made her skin tingle, her body desperate for his by the time he helped her to her feet and crushed his mouth back to hers. Strong fingers worked the buttons on her blouse before it was falling open. She didn’t release him until he pushed the fabric off her shoulders, and only then so that it could flutter to the floor, leaving her clad in only her plain white bra and her shorts. Had she known Curtis was coming home, perhaps she would’ve gone out to buy a nicer one, maybe worn a dress. But when he freed the clasp on her bra and it fell to the floor, she figured it wouldn’t have mattered what she had on.
“Let me look at you.”
His voice was so rough, so deep, it caused a shiver to dance down her spine, but she dropped her arms when he took a step back. She didn’t attempt to cover herself; instead, she worked her shorts over her hips and allowed them to drop to the floor, pooling at her feet.
Never once did she take her eyes off Curtis.