If I Say Yes (24 page)

“It’s a date.”

THE KITCHEN IN
this house would be every chef’s dream. The space
is enormous. My entire apartment can fit inside of it. Everything about
this room screams finesse, from the spacious black granite counter tops
that provide enough room that you could prepare all the food you
need to serve a seven course meal on it and still have room for desert.
The cherry colored oak cupboards are filled with everything you could
imagine
needing
for cooking and snacking. The double door
refrigerator
secretly flush against wall holds practically every refreshment known
to mankind and the widest variety of beer and wine selections. All the
appliances, including the double oven, is black. The thing that wins
me over the most, however, is the dishwasher. My rinky-dink, rundown
apartment doesn’t have one of them, and I have grown tired of washing
dishes by hand.

I don’t claim to be a master chef, but I like to think that I know my
way around a kitchen. Which is why Reid sat at the breakfast bar nursing
a dark ale beer as I whipped around, cooking up a storm. “Where do
you keep the whisks?” I ask over my shoulder while adding some salt
and pepper to the bowl of eggs sitting in front of me. I hear Reid laugh
and stop long enough to look at him. The tip of the neck of the beer
rests against his lips, and he is smirking. “What? What is so funny?”

Reid sets the beer down on top of the counter and walks towards
me. He reaches up with his thumb and wipes my nose. “You had a bit
of flour on your nose.” I feel my cheeks blush and turn back to keep prepping the food. A long arm reaches around me and holds a whisk in front of my face.

“Thank you,” I say and take it out of Reid’s hand. “Now I have some eggs and pancakes to make. Let the chef work.”

“You know…” R
eid’
s voice
becomes
softer
as he
crosses
the kitchen.
“I could get used to this.”

“To what?”

“Watching you cook in my kitchen.”

“Oh yeah?” I ask. I continue beating the eggs with one hand and use
my free hand to throw a handful of bell peppers into the mixing bowl.
“Well, don’t get used to it. I’m only cooking because I’m hungry, too.”

Another loud laugh escapes Reid. The witty banter flows between
us easily as I continue to cook dinner. Some people may hate the idea
of breakfast foods for dinner, but nothing comforts me more than a plate full of pancakes, my signature scrambled eggs, and bacon.

Once the food is done, we eat at the breakfast bar. Reid is still sipping
his beer, and I have orange juice for myself. When we clear our plates,
Reid picks them up, rinses them off in the sink, and places them in
the dishwasher. He finishes his beer and disposes of it in a recycling bin hiding underneath the stainless steel double sink.

We decide to head back upstairs to his room and watch a movie.
As we approach his room, butterflies begin to flutter around in my
stomach. I don’t know why I am nervous. It’s not like we haven’t lay
next to each other in a bed before. It still doesn’t help, though. All
through dinner, Reid remained shirtless, and it began to stir feelings inside of me that I forgot even existed until I met him.

Inside of his room again, I actually take a moment to really glance
around his room. It’s clean and elegant like the rest of the house. A fire is burning in the fireplace across the room, and I can’t remember if it was burning the first time I came in here. The room is much like the room he deemed as mine, with the exception of his bed. Instead
of a canopy bed, his is larger, resting on top of a raised platform, with
slick black linens neatly tucked in at all the corners. Several pillows
line the top of the bed against a very elegant, wooden headboard carved
with a design I can’t quite make out. At the end of his bed is the only
thing that doesn’t seem to fit in with the rest of the house, a huge,
battered chest with a large padlock on it.

More secrets?

I try not to think about it. I am a total walking contradiction. Of course, he must have some things he hasn’t shared with me. I don’t like the thought of him keeping things hidden from me however. I
mean, yes, it’s only fair that he keeps things hidden from me, but Reid
is seemingly perfect in my eyes. It slightly frightens me what kind of
secrets he has that he feels he can’t share with me.
God, I’m such a wench.

I watch Reid grab a series of remotes of the nightstand next to his
bed, hit a button, and can barely contain the squeal of surprise that
escapes my lips as I witness a TV raise out from the edge of his bed.
How is that even possible? I glance up at Reid, who has a slight smile
on his face, but deeper down I can see the traces of uneasiness creeping
in. Glad I’m not the only one who feels nervous for some reason. He motions for me to sit down on the bed as he hits another button and
the wall near his bed begins to shift and reveals the biggest movie
collection I have ever seen. I shift nervously on his bed in anticipation
as I wait to see what he puts on. He climbs onto the bed next to me and drapes his arm across my shoulder, pulling me closer to him. It feels so right to be there with him, sitting on his bed, snuggling, and
watching a movie like any normal couple. Yet I still don’t know where
we stand.

“Reid?” I pull away and stare at him. He gazes back at me and raises
an eyebrow. “What are we?” I ask quickly. He tilts his head at me and
eyes me curiously,
like
he doesn’t understand my question. “What I mean
to say is… what are we doing? Are we dating? Are we exclusive?”

“I feel sorry for any man who even thinks about touching you. You
are
mine.”
It isn’t the exact answer I am searching for, but if I can’t
understand what he means by that, then I clearly need to go back to school. I lean back against him with a smile plastered on my face and my heart beating rapidly.

As we wait for the previews to finish playing, my mind races with
a thousand thoughts. What am I thinking? I can’t be in a relationship,
yet I want to be. But how can the two of us really be in a relationship if the both of us are hiding things from each other? I’m about to spill my life story to him when I see the menu for the DVD come on and begin to laugh. “Friday the 13
th
?”

“I recall you telling me that you have an unhealthy obsession with
all things horror.”

“That I do.”
Amongst many other things, including you.
I settle in next
to him, amped to be watching one of my favorite movies.

Halfway through the movie, I try to ignore the fact that Reid’s hand
has lowered itself to the top of my leggings, tracing circles along my
waist. I press my body closer to him, kissing his neck, and smile when
he moans in pleasure. Desire comes over me, and I begin to leave a trail of kisses down his neck and his still bare chest. Slowly, one kiss
after another, I make my way down his chest. His grip on my waist
tightens as I make my way back up his body and kiss his neck again.

“Liza…” he says, straining for control.

“Hmm?” I whisper, leaving another kiss along his chin. I flip over
so I am straddling his lap and place a kiss against his lips.

“Liza…” he says again, his voice sounding more like a warning this time.

I laugh against his mouth and let out a low growl. “Just shut up
and kiss me.” Reid pulls me down against his body, one hand lightly
gripping a handful of hair as he presses his lips against mine. I can
feel his erection growing through our clothes, and I begin to grind
against him. Another moan escapes from him, and he stops kissing me
to look at me.

“Are you sure?” he asks softly.

I say nothing and just nod my head. I let out a yelp when he quickly
flips me over onto my back and kisses along my collarbone. His fingers
line the hem of my shirt. I take a deep breath as he begins to slowly lift
up the bottom of my shirt. He stops once my jagged scar is revealed. I watch him, waiting to see if I can see disgust in his eyes, if he finds my mutilated body a horror. I inhale a sharp breath when he presses
his lips against the biggest bulge of scar tissue protruding from my
skin and lightly kisses it. “Beautiful,” he whispers. Another kiss on my
scar. “Every part of you is absolutely beautiful.” He continues to leave
kisses across my abdomen as he lifts my shirt higher until he pulls it
over my head. Lying there in my bra, I feel completely vulnerable, but
I don’t move.

He kisses the corner of my mouth, cupping one of my breasts in his
hand and massaging it. The feeling sets my body on fire, igniting a spark I thought burned out a long time ago. I press my body against
him again, trying to get as close as I possibly can, and search for his lips
until I find them with mine. My lips slightly part, and his tongue slips
into my mouth. Our tongues begin to dance, darting around quickly.
I dig my hands into his back, bringing his chest crushing down on mine,
and moan out in pleasure.

Reid
reaches
underneath
me and unclasps my bra, setting my breasts
free. He breaks away from the kiss, much to my disappointment, and
kisses me on my chin. A moan of pleasure escapes my throat when he
takes my breast into his mouth. His tongue flicks across my nipple
and he alternates the sensation with slight nips of his teeth. One hand
caresses my other breast, pinching the nipple between his thumb and
finger, tugging on it. His other hand slips down my leggings, rubbing
against my folds over my underwear, and I struggle to keep from
moving. I run my hands over his broad shoulders, feeling each cut of
his muscle, and slide my hands down his backside. Slowly, I bring my
hands around to the front and slip one into his pants. Reid moans as
I grip his length and begin running my hand up and down. I’m taken
aback by the size of him. Even with my inexperience, I know he’s bigger
than average, but nothing I don’t think I can handle.

Touching him unleashes a caged animal, and he quickly strips my
leggings off, leaving me wearing nothing but my lace underwear. “You
have no idea what you do to me,” he says in a heavy voice. He crushes
his lips against mine, pressing his erection against the very thin material
that covers me, and my body vibrates with arousal. I use my feet to slide
his pajama bottoms down, and he springs free. Reid stops kissing me
and traces a path down my body once more, stopping to give attention
to my breasts before continuing downwards. He hooks his fingers into
my underwear and pulls them down. I take a breath. No going back now, and nothing but pure excitement courses through my veins.

He gently presses his lips onto my folds and slowly slips his tongue
in between. My body shudders; pure ecstasy is pulsing through my veins. His tongue darts around, pressing closer to the spot that sends
my toes curling, and I scream out in
pleasure.
“Oh. My. God! Don’t stop.”

A low growl sounds from Reid as he sends me further over the edge. Just as I am about to climax, he pulls his tongue out of me, and
I moan. “Are you sure you want this?” Reid stares at me. His normally
dark eyes are hazy with pleasure, and I nod my head. “I promise to
go easy.” I bite down on my lower lip as he enters me. I wince at the
discomfort, but it is quickly replaced with the feeling of ecstasy again.
“Oh fuck, you’re so tight,” Reid says through gritted teeth. “You feel so good.”

“Faster,” I say breathlessly. Reid begins to pump faster, and I can f
eel my orgasm growing. “I’m going to come!” I scream.

“We’ll go together,” he says. I match Reid thrust for thrust, and
we cry out together as we let our release go. He collapses on top of me,
panting and breathless, and he brushes the hair out of my face and smiles.
“You are so beautiful…” He kisses me. “I’m falling in love with you.”

I still. I tighten my hold on Reid, not allowing him to pull up and
look at me, and my mind is a cluster of thoughts. It’s all too much.
Going from swearing off men, to being in a relationship, to having sex.
I can’t deal with this emotion. But his words melt my heart, and I know
I love him, too, whether I will admit it or not.

“Me, too,” I whisper and kiss him again. We stay like that for a few
minutes longer before he pulls out of me, and I don’t want him to go.
I want to lie like that forever, just him and me, in our own little world.
Reid helps me up off his bed, leading me to the bathroom, and turns
on the series of showerheads. I step into the waterfall cascading down
on us, pull Reid against me, and kiss him. After a few minutes of kissing
and
touchin
g, Reid takes me again a
gainst
the marble wall of his shower.
I know in that moment I will never get enough of him. No matter how
hard I try.