Maybe Matt's Miracle (23 page)

Matt

I watch Sky’s ass as she walks toward her bedroom without a word. I heave a sigh. I want to follow her and grab her ass and lift her shirt and bite the sensitive skin on her side, just above her hip. I want to undress her slowly. I shift in my chair and adjust my jeans. Seth snorts.

“
What?” I ask, trying to look innocent.

“
Dude, you’re so transparent,” Seth says. But he’s grinning. He’s not mad.

“
What’s transparent?” I ask. How much I love her? I hope that’s transparent. How much I respect her? I hope that’s obvious. How much I want her? That might be better left between the two of us.

He closes the magazine. “Sorry I cockblocked you,” he says.

That hits me in the gut. “Don’t talk about your aunt that way,” I snap.

Seth’s brow furrows. “I didn’t say anything bad.”

“
Don’t talk about her like I’m hanging out trying to get in her pants. It’s not like that.”

He nods his head slowly. “If you say so.”

“
Seth,” I warn.

“
What?” he bites out.

I can’t think of what I
should
tell him, so I have to go for the truth. “I love her, Seth. I love her a lot. And yeah, I want to get in her pants. But I also want to marry her, and I want to get to love her forever. I want to live with her and share all her ups and downs.” I drum my thumbs on the table, trying to figure out what else to say to make him understand. He’s a walking hormone, which is what he should be at his age. He’s not thinking long term. But I am. “So, when you talk about cockblocking me, it makes me worry that you might think that’s all I’m after. It’s not. I respect her. And I want to be sure you know that.”

Seth does that slow nod again, like he’s thinking it over.

“
Would it bother you if I asked her to marry me?” I blurt out. No idea where that came from, but there it is.

Seth’s brow rises. “You really want to marry Aunt Sky?”

I nod. I do. I so do.

He looks around, and a little muscle tics in his jaw as he grinds his teeth. “What happens to us if you get married?” he asks.

Huh? “What do you mean?”

“
I mean if you and Aunt Sky get married, she’s going to be your wife. We were just getting used to her being our mother.”

Oh, I get it. Shit. “Can’t she do both?”

He shrugs. “Can she?”

“
The only difference I see is that you’d have two parents at home instead of one.”

Seth’s eyes narrow. “Two parents.”

I nod. “Seth, I know I’m not your father, and I never will be. But I want to be part of your life. In whatever way you’ll let me.” It’ll probably be in some ways he doesn’t appreciate, too, but that’s what dads do. It’s not always Father’s Day and Little League fun. “I don’t want to take Sky away from you. I promise.” It’s important for him to get that last part. He needs to feel safe with her and know that she’ll always be there, no matter what. Hell, in two years, he’ll be going off to college. I won’t have long with him at all, not like Joey and Mellie.

“
Your family is pretty cool,” Seth says quietly.

“
Sometimes they’re not.” I laugh. Usually they are.

“
So, you staying over tonight?” Seth asks.

I shake my head. “No.”

“
Why not?” He looks confused.

“
Because I respect Sky.” Because I don’t want you think poorly of her.

“
Whatever, man,” he says as he gets up. “I’m going to bed.”

“
Good night,” I say.

He goes into his room and closes the door. I let out a deep breath. God, there’s a lot to consider when there’s a teenager in the house. He’s impressionable, and he’s going to learn how to treat women from the way his mother was treated, and the way Sky is treated around him in the future. I am determined to be a good influence.

Sky walks out of her room, her hair damp around her shoulders. “Did Seth go to bed?” she asks. She fidgets around the kitchen, like she’s not quite sure what to do.

“
Yep.” I stand up and lean against the counter. She turns to set up the coffeepot for tomorrow morning, and I see her ass in those pajama bottoms and I want to just grab it and plump it and sink my teeth into it. But I have to go home. I groan to myself.

“
What’s wrong?” she asks, turning to face me.

“
Nice jammies,” I say.

She looks down at herself, grins, and strikes a dramatic pose. “You like them?”

I swipe a hand down my face. “I’d like them more if they were on the floor.”

She freezes. The skin I can see through the open vee of her pajama top colors, turning all rosy. “Oh,” she breathes. But then she grins and crooks a finger at me. “I think they would really like to be on the floor.”

I groan again and toss my head back. “I can’t.”

She freezes again. “You’re not staying?”

I shake my head. I’m stupid. I know.

“
Why not?” she asks quietly.

I point toward Seth’s room. “Because we have a teenager in the other room, and I need to set a good example for him.” I hate this. But it is what it is.

Her jaw falls open. “You’re worried about Seth?”

I nod and raise my knuckle to my mouth, biting down on it, trying to take some of the ache out of my nuts.

“
I think Seth is old enough to understand.”

I shake my head. “I know. But he just said something that hit home with me. I don’t want him to think I’m with you because I want to score.” I do want to score, but that’s beside the point.

She motions from her to me and back. “I kind of hoped to score,” she whispers vehemently. She glances toward Seth’s closed door. “He’s in bed. He’ll never know.”

I point to my chest. “But I’ll know.”

She harrumphs, and her shoulders drop. “I put on perfume and everything,” she mumbles.

I walk over to her and wrap my arms around her, sniffing her neck. I can smell the sweet scent that’s her, but I can’t tell where she applied it. “Where?” I ask, hesitant when I hear my own voice quaver.

“
Wouldn’t you like to know?” she asks with a giggle. She steps onto her tiptoes and wraps her arms around my neck.

I walk her backward toward her room as I kiss her. Her lips are hungry against mine, and she takes greedy little nips at my mouth. I want to stay. I want to be inside her. But I can’t.

I grab the hem of her shirt and shove her gently through the doorway of her bedroom at the same time, yanking the shirt over her head.

“
Change your mind?” she asks, breathless, as she covers her breasts with her hands. They plump around her fingertips, and I want to kiss her fingers away.

I lift her shirt to my nose and sniff it. “I’m taking this with me because it smells like you.”

“
Matt,” she protests, but it’s more of a playful grunt. “Give me my shirt.”

“
If you want the shirt, you have to give me your panties,” I say. I glance down.

“
I’m not wearing any panties,” she says, taunting me.

I lean forward and kiss her forehead, lingering for just a moment, taking in the feel of her clutching my shirt in her fists. “God, you’re killing me,” I say. I let my hands drift up and down her naked back, and she purrs like a kitten, pressing her tits against my chest.

“
Stay,” she says softly.

I shake my head, take her hands in mine, and unravel her fingers from my shirt, then set her back from me. “If it was just us, you wouldn’t be able to get rid of me.”

“
But it’s not.”

I shake my head. “Good night,” I say as I walk away.

“’
Night,” she calls to my retreating back.

I go out the front door and groan loudly. I want to go back to her. But I also want to do this the right way.

Skylar

Matt’s barely out the front door when I call him. In fact, I can hear the
ding
of the elevator over the bad reception in the enclosed space when he answers me with nothing more than a groan.

“
Matt,” I say quietly.

“
What?” he bites out. But I can almost hear the lazy smile in his voice.

“
Come back.”

He hisses out a breath. Then says quietly, “If you say the word
come
one more time…”

My breath catches, and my heart starts to trip. “Matt.” I’m grinning like a fool, and I don’t care. My door is shut, and no one can see me.

“
Are you still topless?” Matt asks. His voice sounds like it’s been dragged down a gravel road and back.

I look down and cross my arms over my naked breasts. I guess I am. “Yeah,” I say.

He groans again. “Send me a picture.”

“
I’m a lawyer. We don’t do stupid shit like that.” Not to mention that I’m a mom. And moms don’t do that. I look down at my chest and unfurl my arms. “My nipples are hard.”

“
Sky!” he hisses, but he’s laughing, too. “Stop it.”

“
What’s wrong, Matt?” I tease. I hear him give his address to a cab driver. “Why are you taking a cab?” He usually takes the subway.

“
Because I want to get home quickly,” he says.

“
Why?” I put one knee on my bed and crawl to the center. I should probably put a shirt on, but I kind of like the naughty feeling of being topless while talking to Matt.

“
Because I want to talk you through an orgasm,” he says.

“
What?” I ask. My heart skitters.

“
You heard me.” He chuckles. “Unless you don’t want me to.” He waits for my answer.

“
I want you to,” I whisper.

He hisses in a breath. “Talk to me about something else for a few minutes,” he says over a chuckle. I hear him groan and there’s silence, aside from street noises and a gentle sound when he starts to hum in my ear. I grin. I can’t help it.

After a short ride, I hear him thank the cab driver and slam the car door. Then he’s quiet as he takes the four flights of stairs up to his apartment. He’s breathing a little heavier when he gets to the top, but not much.

“
Not now,” I hear him mutter to someone.

“
Who was that?” I ask.

“
Paul.”

“
Do you need to go talk to him?”

“
All I need to do right now is make you come. He can wait.” I hear his keys clang as he drops them somewhere. Or maybe it’s change from his pocket. “Go lock your door,” he says.

I scramble across the bed and do what he says. My hand hangs on the doorknob for a second as I think about what I’m about to do. A shiver runs up my spine, but I push the thumb lock. The click shimmers through my hand. I hold onto the doorknob for another second.

“
Good girl,” he says. His voice is smooth as silk, and it slides up my body, making my knees weak. “Go lie on the bed again.”

“
You’re kind of bossy.”

“
I know. You like it.”

I do. “How would you know?”

“
Because you’re all wet and slippery and your heart is pounding just like mine is.” He waits a beat. “Isn’t it?”

This is Matt. Of course, he cares about how I feel. “Yes,” I whisper.

He growls. “Take off your bottoms.”

I prop the phone between my shoulder and my ear and hook my thumbs in the hips of my pajama bottoms, then shove them down over my feet. “Okay,” I say.

“
Are you naked?”

“
As the day I was born,” I say over a nervous giggle.

“
God, you’re beautiful.”

“
How would you know?”

“
Because every time I close my eyes, you’re all I see. You’re in my fucking head, Sky, every minute of every day.”

I was hot a minute ago, but now I’m breathless.

“
Did you tell me your nipples are hard?” His bed squeaks as he talks.

“
Are you in bed?” I ask.

“
Yeah.” He grunts. “Or rather, on it.”

“
Me, too.”

“
Good. Now back to your nipples.”

“
What about them?” I grin. I can’t help it.

“
I love them. They’re all pink and perfect, and when I kiss off all your lipstick, they’re the same shade as your lips.” He pauses. “Touch them.”

“
Touch them how?”

“
Not soft. Because they probably hurt, they’re so hard.” He waits. “Am I right?”

“
How did you know?”

He chuckles, but it’s a pained sound. “Because I’m hurting, too, Sky.”

“
Oh.”

“
Pinch them lightly, both at the same time.” His breaths grow heavier.

“
Matt,” I whisper. “I’m not sure I can do this.”

“
Close your eyes.”

I do it.

“
Now touch your nipples.”

I gasp as I draw a thumb across the turgid peak.

“
God, Sky,” he whispers.

Matt was right. The swipe of my thumb is not enough. I cup my breasts in my hands and pinch my nipples between my thumb and forefinger. I nearly drop the phone from where it’s crammed against my neck.

“
If I was there, I would pinch them and then lick the pain away.”

“
Matt.”

“
What?” He chuckles.

“
What are you doing?”

He laughs again. “What do you think I’m doing?”

“
The same thing I’m doing?”

“
Well, I don’t have pretty tits to play with, but yeah.”

“
How much longer before I can move down south?” I ask. I squeeze my eyes shut, waiting for him to laugh at me.

But he doesn’t laugh. “Now.”