Fireside by Susan Wiggs (pdf e book reader txt) 📗

number three is, no faking orgasms. I can’t stand that. I don’t take shortcuts and I’m not in a hurry. Which leads me to rule number four.” He bent low and whispered, his breath warm in her ear.

Prior to this whispered suggestion, which made her blush to the roots of her hair, she’d believed she had a shot at resisting him. Now, however, she was a goner. She didn’t even remember leaving the room and taking his hand, leading the way upstairs to her bedroom. She barely heard the gentle creak of springs as they fell together onto the bed.

Then he kissed her in earnest, and she didn’t think at all. The day spent out in the cold, in vigorous physical activity, suddenly took its toll. Coupled with the narcotic effect of the peppermint schnapps, she felt amazingly relaxed. Their bodies seemed to fit perfectly together. He was big and warm, and seemed happy enough to lie still for a while and hold her. Just as he’d promised, he made no hurried demands, just showed a curiously sweet affection.

“What’s this sweater?” he asked, toying with the front of it.

She watched his hands steal upward, over her rib cage. “Your excuse to feel me up.”

“No, I mean, yeah, I intend to feel you up. But this sweater. What’s it made of? It’s really soft.”

“Angora.”

“Nice. Makes you feel like a giant plush toy I won in a shooting gallery.”

She was trying to decide what to make of the remark, but it only made her laugh. “I’ve never been called a giant plush toy before.”

“It’s meant as a compliment. Everybody loves a plush toy. I like your green eyes, too. They remind me of my favorite flavor of Jelly Bellies.” He started kissing her again, and she let him, thinking perhaps the newness would wear off and she would not feel so desperate with wanting him.

Yet an extraordinary thing was happening to her. Something she’d never expected or felt before, ever. It wasn’t mere lust but something else, a sense of comfort and safety, which made no sense at all. The feeling persisted even when he lay back and pulled her into the curve of his body so that they fit together as precisely as pieces of a 3-D puzzle.

He touched his lips to her temple. “This is nice.”

“Mmm, it is,” she agreed.

“Today was nice,” he added. “Even though I nearly broke every bone in my body, I kind of like snowboarding.”

She was enjoying the vibration of his deep voice as she rested her cheek on his chest. “After all that whining, you liked it?”

“I liked trying something new with AJ,” he said. “And with you. I like you. A lot.”

She sighed, smiling as she closed her eyes. She lay still for a few minutes, riding the gentle rise and fall of his chest and listening to the settling sounds of the old house at night. A warm breath of heat blew gently from the furnace register.

“You probably hear this stuff all the time,” he said.

“I swear, no one’s ever told me my eyes are like green Jelly Bellies.”

“You know what I mean.”

She did. And she knew if she lived to be a hundred, she would never feel this way again. It was a curious thing to know, considering she wasn’t all that old, yet she deeply felt the truth of it in a hidden place inside her. The thought made her sad, because she wanted so much more than a fling with him. She wanted forever, and they couldn’t have that.

“I like you, too,” she confessed, her voice an intimate whisper in the darkness. “That came as a surprise to me. I mean, I didn’t expect to like you. I thought you’d be like so many of my former clients, self-absorbed and well, frankly, a jerk. And instead, you turned out to be sort of a good guy. I think. You’re kind, and you are trying hard with AJ. You make me laugh and…” She paused, weighing her words, wondering if she should own up to this. He was so quiet, such a good listener. “I like the way you kiss me,” she confided. “No, that’s a lie. I actually love the way you kiss me. I think—against my better judgment—I might have a crush on you.”

She was grateful for the darkness and for the deep silence of the night, hiding her blush and cushioning her whisper. It made the heartfelt admission come easier. She was amazed at what she heard herself revealing to him, yet now that she’d started down that road, she couldn’t stop herself.

“I’m supposed to be training you to deal with your career, and here you are teaching me something. Or at least reminding me of something. Namely, that not every single guy I meet is an insensitive jerk.”

She smiled in the dark, the beat of his heart strong and deep against her cheek. He smelled so good, and knew just how to hold her to make her feel safe and cherished. Everything about him felt good.

“You’re an amazingly good listener,” she added. “I hope I’m not making you too uncomfortable, baring my soul like this.”

He kept quiet, except for his gentle breathing and the steady pulse of his heart. Kim bit her lip and squeezed her eyes shut. Oh, Lord. He was giving her the silent treatment. She’d said too much. She’d been too honest. And clearly, it was freaking him out. He was speechless. Perhaps speechless with horror.

“I’ve said too much, too soon,” she admitted. “It’s probably too much information, and it just might be the schnapps. Okay?”

Silence.

“Bo?”

More silence.

Reluctant though she was to shift from her position of warm comfort, she braced herself on one arm and half sat up. “Bo? Did you even hear a word I said?”

Amber light from a streetlamp slanted through the window. Kim could just make out his features.

He was sound asleep.

“Oh, for heaven’s sake,” she muttered. “That was the best conversation I’ve ever had with a man, and you’ve been