Part 6 (2/2)
”Yeah. If I ever see Nick again, he's going to understand just how bad it is.”
Oh, how cute. He wants to defend my honor. ”Don't bother. I'm much happier now.” I lean into him with my lips puckered.
He looks adorable as he squishes his lips together making a duck face. ”Me too. I should have fought for you a long time ago and you would've never had to go through the pain he put you through. I'm sorry, Melly.”
”Stop. You're gonna make me get all emotional on you.” I stuff my mouth with crunchy bites so the tears don't fall. ”Now, really. Be quiet. I gotta get my Brad on. And Justin too. Oh, and Ben. Got my Fruit Loops and a screen full of studs. This is what I call a vacation.”
”You're nuts.”
I lean over again, feeling the need to kiss him one more time before the flick starts. ”Now, shh.”
I'm startled awake when I'm lifted into the air. ”What are you doing?”
”I'm taking you to bed,” Ty says.
I'm fully awake now and could walk to the bedroom on my own, but being in Ty's arms is just too d.a.m.n good to pa.s.s up. I rest my head on his shoulder as he walks down the hallway. He places me on his bed and my eyes trace his body from his waist all the way up to his gorgeous green eyes as he stands to his full height.
He is pure man. All tall and hunky, like a cover model from one of my romance books. If I could just get him in a cowboy hat, an open plaid pearl-b.u.t.toned s.h.i.+rt displaying his taut abs, with a rope hanging over his shoulder, my ultimate fantasy could be fulfilled. Yeehaw, I want to say even though he's standing before me in some soccer shorts and a Hurley t-s.h.i.+rt. My imagination is wild enough that it doesn't matter.
”What's going on in that head of yours?” He cups my chin in his palm, and tilts my head up.
A smile spreads over my face. ”I'm not tired anymore.”
”No?”
”No.” I reach out, grasping the back of his knee and dragging my fingernails under his shorts and up the back of his thigh. ”I'm wide awake. You?” My hands travel around his legs to his rock hard quads. My breath quickens when the length of his shaft pulses against the thin piece of material that covers his flesh. I allow myself to explore and discover this man is not wearing any boxers. ”Free ballin'?”
”Commando's the way to go at home,” he says, smoothing his hand over my hair. ”Let's get ready for bed. Then, I can help you get tired out again.”
”Sounds good.” I rise to my feet and circle my arms around his waist. ”You go first. I'm gonna grab my bag and unpack some stuff first.”
”I already brought it in.” He gestures toward the door and sure enough, my things are sitting there waiting for me. ”I cleared some s.p.a.ce for you in my dresser so you wouldn't have to live out of a suitcase. The whole top row is free. I also moved all my stuff from the counter in the bathroom so you can take up as much s.p.a.ce as you need there.”
”Thank you, Ty. I appreciate it.”
”Are you surprised?” He smiles.
”No.”
”Yeah right. I bet you thought it was going to look like a frat house in here.”
The thought had crossed my mind. He's a bachelor. And he lives alone. After Nick left, I didn't feel the need to keep my house as tidy as I did before. Granted, the extent of my messiness is leaving a gla.s.s of wine in the sink or a pair of heels next to the couch in the living room. But Tyler's a guy and he's an artist. I'm surprised paint, clay, and whatever else he uses isn't splattered all over the place.
”See.” He points a finger at me. ”I knew you thought I'd be living like a slob.”
”I did not.”
He folds his arms over his chest.
”Okay. Maybe a little.”
”I have a confession to make.” A grin forms on his lips. ”I did have to do a little spring cleaning. But nothing too drastic.”
”You know what I haven't seen and I'm surprised?”
He raises a brow. ”What's that?”
”Your artwork? Your supplies? I noticed a couple of your pieces in the living room, and the painting in the hall, but where's the rest of your stuff?”
A full blown smile lights up his eyes. ”How do you know those pieces are mine?”
I place my hands on my hips. ”Really?”
”Yeah.” He chuckles. ”How do you know?”
He knows the answer to his own question but I'll play along. ”I don't know. Just looks a little amateur. Like something you'd do,” I tease.
He clicks his tongue at me. ”I'm not an amateur.”
I smack his arm. ”I'm kidding with you,” I say, placing my palms flat against his chest. ”I'd never forget that tug of war painting.” He smiles down at me and then presses a kiss to my forehead. ”That's when you first started your infatuation with hands. And I loved it. It still amazes me that you were able to capture such high school angst at such as young age. It's something I'd expect you to do now as a teacher, not when you were a teenager yourself.”
His smile fades and his expression turns serious. The intensity worries me. ”What, Ty?”
There's silence for another breath before he cups my face in the palms of his big hands and bends down to kiss me. His lips brush softly against mine, and then he murmurs, ”I love you, Melissa. I always have.”
His words linger in the air as I close my eyes, trying to determine if he really said what I thought I heard, or if I just imagined it. ”Say it again.”
”I love you.” His mouth covers my own and desire spreads through my body like nothing before. Kiss after kiss, his tongue dances with mine until he dips his head and feasts on the sensitive skin at the base of my neck. I could hold him here forever, my fingers combing through his hair as he nips and sucks on my chest. But I can't continue like this, I need to see his eyes. I need to look deep into his thoughts and know that he means what he says.
My hands mold to his jaw line and tug his face up toward mine. I can almost feel his heart thumping rapidly in his chest. His eyes melt into mine and if I'm not mistaken, they're a little gla.s.sy. And not just from l.u.s.t, but from the emotion flowing between us.
”Tyler Gelson. I've loved you all my life.”
Once again, I'm swooped up off the floor and I'm being carried a few steps to Ty's bed. ”We can get ready for bed later,” he says, as he lowers me onto his bedspread, his own body following until he's horizontal on top of me, holding up his weight on his knees and elbows. ”Right now, I'm going to take my time showing you just how much I love you.”
I push on his shoulder till he's resting back on his heels, and I'm sitting up. I push him down till he's flat on his back and I'm straddling him with a knee on either side of his waist. ”Well you better buckle up, Ty, because I have my own ideas,” I rock back and forth against his thick pulsing shaft and his eyes flutter closed, ”of how I'd like to express my never ending love to you.”
Chapter 8
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