Sweetest Temptations (10 page)

“You said you wanted me to show you,” Kennedy said, his mouth brushing my ear. I moaned in response, wondering what he meant, and eager to find out. One thing I had learned about him was that Kennedy was a creative lover. He had no inhibitions, no hang-ups whatsoever. If it felt good, he was game.

Placing his hands on the insides of my thighs, he spread me open, placing every part of me on display. Scooting down just a little, my insides turned molten as his hard cock sprang up between us, standing tall enough to breach the water’s surface. Behind me, I could feel Kennedy’s heart beating hard and steady, and when he fit his chin on my shoulder, we both watched in anticipation as his hands wandered slowly down my body. He played with my breasts, and then lingered on my stomach, tracing the edges of my belly button, before going lower. I jolted when he cupped my mound, my legs twitching as he slid his finger through my slick folds, and when he took his length in hand, I lost my breath.

Watching him slide into my body was the most erotic experience I’d ever had. Blood pumped feverishly in my veins, causing my body to plump and blossom like a flower around him. Kennedy’s guttural moan in my ear as he lifted his hips and pumped himself inside of me sent me even higher. Water lapped all around us, spilling over the edges of the tub. I didn’t care. Nothing mattered in that moment other than the way we felt joined together.

I couldn’t take my eyes away from the sight of us coming together. The slow glide of his cock entering and retreating, his fingers making slow circles over my clit, spreading my lips wide so we could both watch. When Kennedy’s breathing intensified, his stomach muscles clenched, and his thrusts grew more wild and frenzied, I knew he was getting close. In turn, I felt my own orgasm answer the call.

Covering his hand with mine, I helped him find the perfect rhythm to finish me off, and together, we came. Loudly.

Banging on the ceiling ensued, and I reached behind me, running my fingers through Kennedy’s hair, and pulled at the roots as we shouted our release for all the building to hear. I didn’t care. My love for him was something to be celebrated.

As we returned to earth, our breaths heavy and hearts pounding in our chests, I laughed. Nothing had ever felt so good, so right. “Wow. Why haven’t I ever done that before?”

“Because everyone before me was a boring, selfish slob. Face it, sweet, I know how to make your body sing.”

As his member softened and slipped free, I longed for more. More sex. More him. More time. I had two more days with him before Kennedy had to return to his shifts at the station, and I wanted to soak him in thoroughly.

Turning over, I straddled his lap, tied my fingers behind his neck, and stared into his eyes. “You’re a dangerous man,” I whispered, lowering my mouth to his, “but I look forward to singing for you more.”

13

“So you’re Ken.” Hope flipped her long, golden locks over her shoulder, and smiled prettily at my boyfriend. Uh, friend. Bedmate? We’d been dating for going on two weeks, and I had no idea what to call him.

Ever the charming man, Kennedy stood and stretched his arm across the table, gripping her hand and giving it two firm pumps. “Very good to meet you, Hope. Abby has told me absolutely nothing about you.” My jaw dropped and he winked at me, instantly forgiven.

I’d woken up to several texts this morning, all from Hope teasing about how I’d ditched her for my new boy toy and threatening to stuff her face full of pie if she didn’t get to meet him ASAP. After putting in a full shift at the bakery, and leaving at a reasonable hour with a promise from Dex to close up, Kennedy and I drove straight to the restaurant to meet up with Hope. This was a classic case of two worlds colliding. I had hoped to keep him to myself for a little longer, but those plans were quickly going down the drain. He already knew my sister, and he’d met Dexter. Now Hope. All that was left was for him to meet my parents. That was something I was putting off as long as possible.

Hope pressed her hand to her chest, feigning hurt feelings. “You haven’t told him anything about your best friend?”

Laying my napkin across my lap, I gave her my best innocent eyes. “How could I ever describe your beauty? Your incredible grace? Your amazing sense of style? Words wouldn’t do you justice, so I thought it better to have him see for himself in person.”

Hope preened, enjoying the overindulgence of praise. “I can see how that might be a problem. You’re forgiven.” This was why she was my best friend. She and I went together like chocolate and ice cream—perfect. In the years we had known each other, we rarely ever fought, and if we did, it was never mean-spirited and was always resolved quickly. We simply understood each other.

“So,” I said, turning to Kennedy, “what do you think of her?”

Kennedy’s smile was radiant in the way that made my heart jump. The man was truly something to behold, and his beauty went so much deeper than the skin. He was gorgeous inside and out. “From what I can tell of her, Hope is everything you said she was. But,” he added, hooking the back of my neck and pulling me close, “she doesn’t hold a candle to you.”

His kiss was fast and sweet, just a peck, really, but it held enough promise to spark my imagination. I had to shake my head to clear it, and when I looked up, Hope wore an insanely giddy smile, her hands clasped together under her chin, and I knew. We had a bathroom meeting in the near future.

“You two make a perfect couple,” Hope said, sizing us up. “With your hair color and Ken’s…everything, your kids are going to be insane.”

“Whoa, there. Pump the brakes,” I laughed, while perusing the menu. “We’ve barely started dating. Kids are not even up for discussion at the moment.”

“Why not?” Kennedy’s question caught me off guard. My gaze swung up to meet his, stunned. “I think we’d make great looking kids.”

“Of course we would. Look at us. But seriously, we hardly even know each other. We’re not even official, so it’s way too early to be discussing this.” There, I said it. Just slapped that issue right down on the table. Now to see what he’d do with it.

“We’re official,” Kennedy said, his brows scrunching in the middle. “Why would you say we weren’t official?”

“You never asked me to be your girlfriend,” I replied easily, scanning the menu once more.

“I didn’t realize we were still in high school.”

My head snapped up as Kennedy pushed his chair out and stood. “Where are you going?” He couldn’t seriously be leaving. Had I really upset him? Panic rose up in my chest like a dark, oppressive cloud before a storm.

Brushing his hands down his shirt, Kennedy looked around. “So how do we do this? Do I get down on one knee, or should I ask your father for permission first?”

Hope burst out laughing so loud and hard, I was surprised she didn’t split her sides open. “You didn’t tell me he had a sense of humor too! Seriously, Ken, do you have a brother?”

“Please, sit down,” I begged, noticing the people seated at nearby tables watching us. I hated being the center of attention. A bit of light praise, sure, but I was the kind of girl who thrived on silent appreciation. Which is why I was so very grateful for Dexter coming to work for me. He loved being in the limelight, so manning the front counter was the perfect place for him, and the kitchen was the perfect place for me.

“In a minute.” My face burned as Kennedy dropped down on both knees in front of me. Taking both of my hands in his, he looked up at me through those incredibly bright and soulful eyes. “Abigail, my sweet, will you do me the great honor of being my girlfriend?”

“Is this where I cry and flutter my hands? I feel like I should be crying.” I laughed off my nervous embarrassment, my go-to defense against all things uncomfortable.

“I wouldn’t be opposed to a tear or two,” Kennedy replied, smirking. “It’ll let me know you care.”

Taking a deep breath, I thought of the saddest thing I could think of—Humane Society commercials. Those sad, furry faces and Sarah McLachlan’s heavenly voice in the background. It was inspiration enough to become a little misty-eyed. Kennedy appeared a little startled, and majorly impressed.

“I have no idea what brought that on, but I’m contributing it to my amazingly heartfelt proposal. So, what do you say? Be my lady?”

“You know I will.”

Hope clapped furiously as Kennedy grabbed ahold of my face and smashed his lips to mine. “This calls for dessert. Desserts all around!”

Cheeks flushed from his exuberant kiss, I tucked a few strands of hair behind my ears as Kennedy reclaimed his seat. “I thought you were on a diet,” I reminded Hope, in case she forgot. With all the hard work we’d put in together and individually, I didn’t want to see her fall off the wagon.

“I’m ordering a salad,” she said, “but this calls for a celebration, and what’s life worth if you can’t celebrate it with your friends?”

Truer words had never been spoken. With a nod, I scoped out the dessert menu and pegged the chocolate lava cake as my next victim.

***

“Your friend is nice.” Kennedy and I reclined on his sofa, staring out the large picture window overlooking the marina. After dinner, he asked me over to his place to stay the night. The apartment could easily house two of mine, and it was richly furnished, looking as if it belonged to a wealthy bachelor rather than a hunky fireman.

“Yeah, she’s pretty great.” After he’d asked me to go steady—
officially
—we’d gone on to have a wonderful dinner. Hope was perkier than I’d ever seen her, and I contributed it to Kennedy’s presence. He drove me crazy in the best way, and it would be unreasonable to think that such a fine specimen could walk around the city streets and not have a similar effect on all estrogen producing females. It warmed my heart to know that my best friend and boyfriend had hit it off. I could imagine nothing worse than having two people I care about hate each other.

“Hey,” I said, reminded of something Hope had said back at the restaurant. “You never said if you had a brother or not.”

“I don’t. I’m an only child.”

“Oh.” My shoulders fell as I worked to organize my thoughts. “What about Jack? Is he single?”

“I don’t know. Maybe?”

“What about the other guys you work with? Are any of them single?”

Kennedy turned to me with a knowing look. “Are you trying to play matchmaker, Abigail Satcher?”

“Not matchmaker, per se.” One of Kennedy’s eyebrows crooked up, and I felt my eyes grow wide and heard my voice rise in pitch. “What’s wrong with bringing two beautiful, single people together?”

He cleared his throat. “I can’t tell you what to do with your spare time, sweet, but don’t expect me to help you. If the guys are looking for a woman, I’m sure they can find one without my help.”

“But, don’t you want to see them happy?”

“Who says they’re not?”

I spluttered, searching for a comeback, but no words came forth. “Well, fine. I’ll ask them myself next time I see them.”

“You do that,” Kennedy said, patting me on the top of my head.

I was gathering the perfect rebuttal, when my phone chimed inside my purse. Looking over my shoulder, I groaned. “I knew I should have turned that thing off.” I was considering ignoring the call and letting it go to voice mail, when Kennedy’s phone began ringing.

With a smile, he said, “Go get rid of whoever is calling you, and I’ll get rid of whoever is calling me. Then we’ll shut the ringers off and I’ll show you the benefits of having multiple showerheads.”

Biting my lip, I jumped from the couch and hurried over to my purse while Kennedy reached to answer his phone. Fishing around for mine, I pulled it out and checked the caller ID. Not recognizing the number, and seeing that it was too late for it to be Dexter calling, my finger hovered over the button as I considered whether or not I should answer.

Something in my gut told me I should.

As I lifted the phone and pressed it to my ear, an inexplicable sense of unease washed over me. “Hello?”

The voice that came down the line was rough with age and spoke with authority. “Good evening ma’am. This is Lieutenant Alan Marks with the Toledo Police Department. Is this Ms. Satcher?”

“Yes, this is she.”

“And you’re the owner of
Sweetest Temptations
located on Fifth and Broadway?”

Worry crimped my stomach into tight knots and I turned to look at Kennedy for support. “Yes. What’s this about?”

“I know it’s late, but there was a small problem this evening. Is there any way you can come down to your place of business so we can speak in person?”

I met Kennedy’s hardened gaze and saw the phone gripped tightly in his hand. His grim expression told me that whoever he’d been on the phone with hadn’t called to deliver good news, and in the back of my head, I worried that it had something to do with my own call.

“Yes, yes. I’ll come right away.”