Worth Waiting For (9 page)

He could see them thanking her and an overwhelming pride and admiration swelled inside him. She was truly amazing.

She walked out and her smile faded. She pushed her hand into her hair and rubbed the back of her head.

“You okay?” he asked quietly.

She nodded. “Oh, yeah, I’m fine.” She moved to him and laid her forehead on his chest. “Everything’s okay right now. The cardiologist is here, and they’re going to do emergency bypass surgery”—she glanced at her watch—“shortly. That’s her daughter…” She jerked her head toward the lounge. “She’s my patient, too.”

“She seemed pretty happy and relieved to see you.”

Ainslie smiled crookedly. “Mark is a great surgeon, but his people skills sometimes leave something to be desired. Sometimes those damn specialists forget people need to know what’s going on. They need things explained to them in simple, understandable language.”

“And you did that.”

“I tried.” She sighed and rubbed her eyes. “Can we go home now?”

“You bet.”

He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and led her out of the building into the morning sunshine.

Back at her place, he directed her to the bedroom.

“What?” she asked, as he gently pushed her down the hall.

“Back to bed. You woke up too early. And you didn’t get much sleep last night.”

He knew she’d been awake during the night, plus he hadn’t let her sleep much.

She sighed. “Okay.”

“Does that happen a lot?” He lifted her T-shirt over her head.

“Does what happen?”

“Early morning phone calls and trips to the hospital.”

“Actually, no, not that often. But the hospital knows if one of my patients is admitted, I want to be kept updated on what’s happening.”

He unbuttoned her jeans and slid the zip down. “I have to say, seeing you there all professional, really turned me on.”

“What doesn’t turn you on?” She laughed and he pushed her down to sit on the bed so he could remove her jeans. She unfastened her bra and tossed it to the chair, then slipped between the covers wearing only her pink cotton panties.

She snuggled her head into the pillow and closed her eyes, then popped them open two seconds later. “Aren’t you coming to bed, too?”

He smiled down at her, the light dim in the room with the curtains still pulled. “If I do, you won’t get any sleep.”

Her lips curved into a smile and her eyes fluttered shut again. “That’s okay.”

He stroked the hair back off her forehead. “Okay, but we’re going to sleep.”

CHAPTER 11

He stripped off his clothes and joined her in her warm bed. She turned into his arms, sliding a leg over his hip to pull him closer between her thighs, kissing him, her hands holding his face. God, it felt incredible to be wanted that much. She was so hot and hungry for him, it made him almost desperate with need for her, too. He was hard as hell, but determined to let her get some sleep, so he tucked her head under his chin.

When he awoke a few hours later, she was sprawled on her stomach, face pushed into the pillow. He pulled the covers back to admire her, unable to resist touching her back and smooth bottom. He stroked his fingers over her, down to the backs of her thighs, and she trembled. She was waking up.

Her legs parted a little, and he smiled. He dipped his fingers between her legs and discovered she was wet. He pushed a finger gently inside her, and her legs widened farther, her butt lifting off the bed just.

Oh, yeah. So sweet.

Her hair covered her face, so he reached up and drew it back, tucking it behind her ear to reveal her still-closed eyes and her teeth digging into her full bottom lip. She moaned.

He moved over her, pressing her into the mattress with his weight, and kissed her cheek, her neck. Her butt thrust up at him again, making him even harder. Then he pushed her legs apart with both hands, a little roughly, impatiently, and she moaned again into the pillow, hands clenched into the sheets beside her head. He pushed into her and she met his thrusts, the soft, firm cheeks of her ass pressing into him.

When she moved up, he pushed her back down, held her down, dominating her, driving into her again and again, but she kept fucking him back until he felt his balls tighten, spine tingle and then a rush of incredible pleasure swept from his toes to his head, hot and heavy. He pressed through his orgasm, holding her hips as he shuddered and groaned her name.

He collapsed over her, drew back the hair from her face and kissed her cheek. She lifted her head and turned her mouth into his for a long, clinging kiss.

He moved off her, both of them sweaty and sticky, leaving the covers off so they were bare. She turned into him, snuggled against him, one leg going over his so her hot, wet cunt pressed to his thigh. She started moving, undulating a little against his leg, and he realized she was seeking her own release.

He smiled and cupped a hand over her ass as she pressed into him, rubbed against him shamelessly, then trembled and pulsed against him. He gripped her ass tighter, holding her as she climaxed.

“Sorry,” he murmured into her hair. “I should’ve taken care of that.”

“I can take care of myself,” she mumbled, still quivering.

“I know, honey, but you shouldn’t have to.”

She lifted her head to look at him, eyes a bit glazed. “Griff, there’re all different ways to have an orgasm. They’re all good. Some better than others,” she admitted with a smile.

He grinned and stroked her back and hip. “Which ones are better?”

“Mmm. The best are when you’re inside me.”

“Ah.”

“Yeah. It’s so intense when you’re inside me and I come all around you. God.” She shuddered a little at her own words.

He was silent, unsure what to say to that, turned on.

“Have you ever…you know?”

“What?”

“Have you ever come with someone inside you?”

What the hell was she asking him? “Um, no.”

“Oh. We should try it. It’s awesome.”

He twitched and hardened, despite the fact he’d just come moments ago.

“You want to.” Her hand stroking down his abdomen to his boner. He twitched hard, again.

“Jesus, give me a few minutes.” He groaned. “I’m not twenty-two anymore.”

She laughed. “Okay.”

They lay there snuggling, petting, and talking.

“I could use some food,” Ainslie said.

“Mmm. Me, too. Bacon and eggs.”

“I don’t have any bacon. But I have some ham.”

“Ham sounds good.”

Neither of them made a move to leave the bed. Ainslie’s hand slipped down to his dick again to find him rock hard.

“You may not be twenty-two, but you’re pretty resilient.” She rose up and over him, straddling him.

What a view.
She lifted her hands to her tangled mane of hair and pushed it behind her head, holding it there for a moment, her breasts lifted high and full. Her nipples were swollen, dark and mouth-watering. His gaze moved down over her flat abdomen, the sexy dip of her bellybutton, to the puff of golden curls. His cock thrust up hard and thick between them.

Ainslie gazed down at him, took him in her hands and shifted so she was over him. He ached to be inside her, but she teased him, sliding the head through her wetness, back and forth until he was ready to flip her over onto her back and take her hard. Then she lowered herself onto him and it felt so damn good. She was wet and hot around him, a velvet fist clutching him. She moved her hips in little circles, driving him insane and he gripped her hips, lifting her. She rose and fell in tune with his hands. Then, to his surprise and dismay, she lifted right off him.

“Hey…” He watched her thrust two fingers inside herself, twirling them, then withdrawing them. Then she lowered herself onto him again, making him moan with pleasure.

She leaned back and cupped his balls, making him jerk inside her, then teased the crevice between the cheeks of his ass with fingers wet from touching herself. A barrage of sparks shot up his spine.

“Spread your legs,” she whispered to him, eyes fastened on him, glittering and blue. He opened his legs, and her fingertips slid wetly over his puckered anus and his whole body bucked at the sensation. She massaged there, teased him, had him gritting his jaw and clenching his muscles. Oh, man, she was killing him. Then one finger pushed into him, slowly, gently.

Jesus Christ!
Her finger found nerve endings so sensitive, pleasure streaked through him like a comet. His hips lifted. Fire and ecstasy struck his balls, and he fucked up into her and came so hard and fast he thought the top of his head came off, an intensely powerful orgasm that rocked his body until he was limp and mindless.

“Holy shit.”

She lay down on top of him, stretching her legs out, his cock still inside her, twitching helplessly.

“I told you,” she murmured, head on his chest.

He was dumbfounded. Unbelievable, earth-shattering, heart-wrenching sex. He was utterly lost to her.

* * *

“Now I really need food.” Ainslie’s stomach gave a little gurgle as if to convince him.

“Mind if I take a quick shower?”

“No, of course not. Help yourself to whatever you need.”

She slid out of bed, her body pleasantly achy. Her hips hurt a little from when he’d taken her from behind, pushing her legs apart, but the ache just made her remember and want more.

He disappeared into the bathroom, and she staggered into the kitchen, warm, rumpled and sated. Soon the aroma of good strong coffee filled the kitchen. She peered into the fridge, looking for the ham and the eggs she knew she had.

She got busy whisking eggs and had butter sizzling in the skillet when a phone began to ring. It was an unfamiliar warble, not her phone or her cell phone, and she turned around, seeking the sound. It was Griff’s cell phone, sitting over on the counter where he’d dropped it last night.

It kept chiming and the water in the shower was still running, so she lifted the pan off the stove and picked up the phone. Maybe it was Vince.

She tapped the screen. “Hello?”

Silence. “Who is this?” asked a woman’s hesitant voice.

“Um…this is Ainslie.”

“Oh.” The voice was cool, curt.

“Were you calling Griff?”

“Where is he?”

“He’s…” She glanced down the hall toward the bathroom and the running shower. “He’s just unavailable at the moment. Can I tell him who called?”

She heard an indrawn breath. “It’s Kassidy,” the woman snapped in an icy tone. “His girlfriend. Yeah, you can tell him I called.” The line went dead.

Ainslie’s heart stopped and she feared she might need resuscitation like poor old Mrs. Garcia. Her body went cold as she stared at the phone. She had no idea how long she stood there until Griff appeared in the door, in his jeans and nothing else, rubbing his hair with a towel.

He looked at her holding his phone and raised a brow.

“You had a call.” Her voice didn’t even sound like hers. Her stomach rolled and she feared she might vomit. Her fingers tightened on the phone, her heart palpitating in an irregular, breath-stealing beat. “From your girlfriend.”

“Kassidy called?” he asked cautiously, and the guilt on his face put an end to any faint hope she might have had that it was a mistake.

CHAPTER 12

Ainslie looked at the phone in her hand through a scarlet haze and then drew back her arm and hurled it at Griff as hard as she could. It struck his shoulder and bounced off onto the floor, skittering along the hardwood into the hall.

“Ow! Jesus!” He rubbed his shoulder and stared at her. “Ainslie, hold on—”

“No.” Fury boiled inside her. “Just get out.” She shoved past him and down the hall, into her bedroom where she grabbed his duffel bag and the T-shirt on the bed. She stuffed it into the bag and stalked back down the hall to her front door, which she flung open.

“Get out…now.” Her voice shook with wrath and agony, but she struggled to hold herself together. No way was she going to let him do this to her all over again. She would not put up with that crap again. Ever.

“Wait, Ainslie.” He followed her. “I’ll explain—”

“No, you won’t,” she said coldly. “I don’t want to hear any more of your bullshit.”

His face was tight, strained. “But—”

“You have a
girlfriend
.”

“And you have a boyfriend.” His jaw clenched.

She paused a moment, nonplussed. “I told you about him. You knew that. Why didn’t you tell me? You were just…doing it again, weren’t you? Were you trying to ‘put some space’ between you and her? You were using me. Jesus, Griff, just get out. Get the hell out.” She grabbed his hand and despite his much bigger size, with a shove she had his surprised body out the door. She slammed and locked the door behind him before the tears started.

She stumbled back into the kitchen and realized she’d left the stove on. She turned it off, staring at the bread and eggs she had been preparing only moments ago through eyes blurry with tears.

Her chest ached and her throat burned. She should have known. He was so smooth, so charming, so convincing, he had sucked her into his web yet again.

She slammed a palm down on the counter top, then leaned her elbows on it, her face buried in her hands. Goddamn it, she was such an
idiot.
He was doing it to her all over again.

He had a girlfriend he’d never thought to mention.
Ha!
The deception, just when a tiny seed of trust had started to germinate, cut deeply. The stabbing in her heart hurt so fiercely she put a hand to her chest and rubbed.

Despite her thoughts last night about how she’d manage if he left, inside a bud of hope had been growing that maybe things wouldn’t end. She knew he couldn’t just stay forever, but there had been a faint little hope that he’d come back…they’d see each other again, and maybe things could work out this time.

It had been a low, muted hope, not even something she’d been willing to admit to…so why did it hurt so much to have it crushed?

She supposed it was the way it happened. Because he’d never mentioned a girlfriend, she’d assumed he was alone and there was some small possibility they could be together. She’d also known that whatever happened today when he left, she had to break things off with Matthew. It was not fair to him to go on, knowing how she felt about Griff, whether Griff returned her feelings or not.

She wandered into her bedroom and gazed at the bed, still unmade and showing signs of their lovemaking the night before. She wiped tears away with both hands and slowly crawled into the bed, wrapping herself in the covers. She inhaled deeply and drew in the scent of Griff and sex.
Oh, God.
A fist squeezed her throat and her stomach cramped.

She wasn’t sure how long she’d been there when she heard a chiming noise again. She lifted her head and realized it was Griff’s cell phone. Curious, she climbed out of bed and followed the sound. The phone lay in the hall, against the baseboard. She’d pushed him out without it.

She picked it up and debated answering it, finally deciding, what the hell. She flipped it open.

“Hello?” Her voice emerged as a croak.

There was a brief pause. “Ainslie?” It was the same woman. Ainslie’s stomach tightened.

“Yes?”

“Um…is Griff there?” The woman’s voice sounded thick.

Ainslie swallowed past the tightness in her own throat, a little surprised.

“Um…no. He left. He…forgot his phone.”

“Huh? Where did he go? How could that be? I just talked to him two minutes ago.”

Ainslie pushed her hair back, confused. “Not from here, you didn’t. I don’t know where he is.”

“Oh. I…um, I don’t get it. I guess that doesn’t matter. I just called him back to tell him not to worry about coming by.” Her voice caught and she cleared her throat. “I’ll take his stuff over to his place later today before he gets back, so we don’t have to see each other again.”

Ainslie tried to process that. “You…what?”

“He just called to break up with me. You didn’t know?”

“No. I kicked him out.” Her head felt clogged up.
Stupid.

There was silence. “Look, I don’t know what’s going on between you two. It sounds kind of complicated. I knew Griff was going to see you this weekend.” She sighed. “You gotta know when a guy tells you he’s going to see his old girlfriend to make sure things are really over, things are
not
really over.”

Ainslie fell deeper into speechlessness.

“So it wasn’t that big a surprise when he called and broke things off. I kind of figured that was coming.” Ainslie could hear the pain and tears in Kassidy’s voice. “Anyway, just tell him I’ll have his stuff to his place before he gets back to LA. I’ll leave his key in his house.”

“I…won’t see him to tell him,” Ainslie began, but Kassidy had hung up.

She closed the phone, her mind whirling.
What the hell? He broke up with her? Where was he? How did he call her without his cell phone?
Then a car door slammed shut out front.

She stumbled to her door and opened it. Griff was walking up her driveway toward her. Lines etched his forehead and bracketed this mouth, and his brows slanted down. His hair was rumpled and his T-shirt wrinkled, but he still looked so damn appealing.

“Where did you go?” Her heart thumped so hard she could feel it in her mouth.

“To the corner store down the street.” His voice was low. “There’s a pay phone there. I had to make a call.”

“I know.”

Their gaze held for a moment that stretched into two.

“Are we going to do this out here, or can I come in?” he inquired, oh-so-politely.

Ainslie considered his request. A few moments ago, she’d been furious and heartbroken. Now she was confused and curious.

She sighed heavily. “Come in.”

She moved aside so he could enter. “Um…want some coffee?”

“Not really.” He shoved his hands into his pockets, shoulders hunched. “Yeah, okay.”

In her kitchen, with trembling hands she poured two mugs, then passed him the milk and sugar he needed. She perched on a stool and lifted her mug to her lips with both hands, afraid she’d spill it if she tried with only one. Her hands were shaking so much, she barely touched the mug to her lips, but it helped to have something to do.

“I’m sorry you had to find out about Kassidy like that.” He lowered his head, shaking it. “God, here I am, apologizing again for another stupid mistake. I was so goddamn determined to do things right.”

“Why didn’t you tell me about her?”

“I really don’t know.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “When I saw you, I just wanted you. I guess I felt like, if I told you about her, you wouldn’t talk to me.”

She nodded. That was probably true.

“I was going to tell you today. You probably don’t believe that, but it’s the truth. We have a lot to talk about.”

Again, she nodded.

He drew in a breath. “I was being honest with you about my reasons for coming up here to see you. I just…couldn’t tell you about Kassidy. Or what had prompted me to come see you now.”

“Why not?”

“Jesus, I can only open myself up so much. Man.” He rubbed his face. “Kassidy and I have been seeing each other for a while. She started talking about marriage. Usually that sends me running, but I actually felt like I was kind of ready for that…family, kids. You know.” He paused. “But I was having a hard time seeing that with her. I was telling the truth when I told you I haven’t been able to get you out of my mind for the last ten years, and I couldn’t marry Kassidy without seeing you one more time, just to…see you. I don’t know what I really expected. I told her that.”

“She called back again.” Her heart thawed and softened just a bit. “She told me you’d just called and broken up with her. She said she saw it coming.”

He nodded and rubbed a hand over his chest. “I feel like shit for doing that to her. Christ, it’s hard to break up with someone. I still have to go and face her in-person.”

Ainslie told him what Kassidy had said.

He drew in a long breath. “Nice of her to let me off the hook, but I feel crappy about doing that over the phone.”

“You big softie, you.”

His gaze cut toward her, but then his face relaxed ever so slightly.

“I am not.” He scowled. “I just don’t like hurting people.”

“That’s why you couldn’t break up with me. It was easier just to leave.”

“Yeah. Coward.” He sighed. “At least I talked to Kassidy. See how much I’ve grown up?”

“You should’ve told me about her.”

“I know, and I planned to. Truly, Ains, I planned to tell you today, to tell you…to ask you…hell.” He rubbed his eyes. “I knew as soon as I saw you things weren’t done between us. But, God, Ainslie, after spending the weekend with you, I was a goner. There’s no way I could marry Kassidy. Or even keep seeing her.”

Hope blossomed in her like a flower. Her chest expanded with the breath she couldn’t let out. “Why, Griff?”

“Because I still have feelings for you,” he choked out.

She smiled, warmth spreading from her heart down her arms and legs. “What kind of feelings, Griff?”

He shook his head, mouth curving into a wry smile. “You’re torturing me, aren’t you?”

“You bet.”

“C’mere and I’ll show you.” He slid off his stool and took the coffee cup from her hands, then pulled her stool close. He framed her face with his hands. Lowering his head, he kissed her, with so much love and tenderness she thought her heart might burst. He nibbled at her bottom lip, sucked it gently, then kissed her again, stroking his tongue over hers. “I love you, Ainslie.”

She wound her arms around his neck and kissed him back with everything she had until she almost fell off the stool. “Griff, I think I love you, too.”

“You think?” He pulled back, eyes questioning.

She met his gaze steadily. “This is all going really fast. You have to understand that I… You hurt me a lot last time. I never really got over that, but it did help me grow into who I am now. I’m a lot stronger than I was.”

“Believe me, I know that. And I love it.”

She smiled. “But when I found out about Kassidy, I thought you’d done the same thing to me all over again. That hurt, too. I’m sorry, but I guess I didn’t totally trust you.”

He nodded somberly.

“So, God, yes I have feelings for you, so much. So much more than even before when we were kids. But we’ve only been together a weekend. I want to be with you, but it’s going to take time. I don’t know what you’re thinking about us, and what will happen next…”

“I haven’t thought a lot about it, except I know I have to be with you, too.”

“My life is here. And yours is in LA.”

He shrugged. “Not necessarily. With the kind of work I do, I can work anywhere. And LA is only a couple of hours away.”

“Really? You’d move here?”

He looked at her like she was crazy. “Of course I would. I love it here.”

“Whoa.” Her breath left her all in a rush. “I didn’t expect that.”

“What
were
you thinking?”

“I don’t know. I was too afraid to expect anything.”

His eyes closed as if he was in pain. “I’m sorry.”

She swallowed past a lump in her throat and she nodded.

“What about Mitchell?”

“Matthew.” She swiped a tear from her cheek. “I’d already decided to break up with him. I couldn’t keep seeing him with the way I feel about you. Whatever happened. It wouldn’t be fair.”

“Whew.” He looked so relieved, she laughed.

“I can’t believe you’re jealous of him.”

“I am not jealous.”

“Yes, you are, and I love it.” She gave him a big smooch on the mouth.

“Do you…love him, Ains?”

She considered that. “Apparently not,” she answered. “I care for him, I really do. I feel horrible for what I’m going to do to him, because I think he does love me. But I don’t love him the way I love you.” She swallowed. “You’re the one I want to be with.”

He smiled slowly and gently pushed her hair back from her face with both hands. “So we’ll just take our time and keep getting to know each other all over again and…see where we end up.”