Surrender To You (19 page)

“I’ll behave if you do,” I promised instead, standing up.

He grabbed a throw pillow, placing it under his head as he stretched out on the sofa, smiling up at me.

“You’re taking up all the room!”

He clasped my hand and pulled me down until I was on top of him. I moved a little and got comfortable, then he wrapped his arms around me. His chin rested on the crown of my head and he sighed.

“This is…so nice,” he murmured with a yawn.

“Mmhmm.”

As the movie began, one of his hand caressed my arm and across my back. The repetitive motion had me feeling drowsy, my eyes drifting shut as I just enjoyed being close to him. I couldn’t remember the last time Stefan and I had just lain together, enjoying the company of the other without having sex first. Probably before everything had gone so wrong.

When his arm stopped a little while later, I felt their heaviness against my back and knew he’d fallen asleep. Attempting to get up to leave, his eyelids drifted open as he smiled sleepily.

“No. Stay,” he murmured drowsily. “So…nice…”

Really not wanting to leave anyway, I kissed his jaw before resting my head against him once more.

The next thing I knew, Simon was whispering in my ear.

“Elle? It’s time to get up.”

I lifted my head and opened my eyes to find that not only I was no longer lying on him, but we were in a bed.

“How?”

His eyebrows rose, his face serious. “Magic.”

I groaned and rolled to my side, at which point he decided to pull me toward him and his bare chest.

“I carried you here, of course. You were snoring a little, was cute.”

“Oh! Don’t tell me that!” I hid my face in my hands.

He chuckled, his hands rubbing up and down my back as he nuzzled my neck.

“What time is it?”

“Six,” he mumbled, pressing a hot kiss to my shoulder. “I have to leave for work soon.”

“Damn. So you’re working me up for nothin’?”

“You’re right, I shouldn’t…”

“I’m kidding!” I cut him off, sliding my hands up to put my arms around his neck. “Who knows when I’ll see you again, have to take what I can get.”

He looked at me then, sliding a hand up to the back of my neck, his eyes serious.

“It’s different than I expected.”

Confused, I frowned.

“What is?”

His eyes dropped my mouth.

“Waking up next to a woman.”

I gasped. “Seriously? I could see the no sex thing but not even sleeping next to anyone in all this time?”

He tugged me closer, making it very clear how turned on he was, his eyes deepening in color. “My first thought,” he said with a quick peck on my lips, ignoring my question. “Was how absolutely beautiful you looked while asleep. I didn’t want to disturb you.”

“What was your second?” I asked, unable to look away.

“That I wished you were naked, so I could see how much better reality is than my imagination.”

“Did you steal that line from a movie?”

“Why? It is cheesy?” He grimaced. “Maybe that explains it, all these years I used terrible lines…”

I cut him off with a soft kiss, only to end up beneath him as he covered my body with his.

After several moments, he lifted his head and smiled before rolling away, tossing the blankets aside as he sat on the edge of the bed.

“All right, time to get dressed,” he said, running a hand through his hair. “Otherwise I’ll be late!”

It wasn’t until I sat up on my elbows that I realized he’d been completely naked this entire time and got a nice view of his toned backside as he stood up and walked away.

~*~

The closer to the party it got, the more nervous I became.

Especially since Penny had sent me a text the day after I’d spent the night at Simon’s, informing me that the party had been moved up a week. Grace had called her in a panic, explaining that Stefan and Evan would have to go out of town on the original date and needed to have it happen sooner.

Now it was Tuesday and the party was this upcoming Sunday.

It was also Simon’s first day off since we’d seen each other last and we were walking downtown, hand in hand.

“You doing okay?”

His voice invaded my thoughts and I jumped.

“Huh? Yeah, I’m fine. Why?”

“You haven’t really mentioned what happened on our first date. I’ve been afraid to ask but the look on your face had me wondering enough just now to ask anyway.”

Ah, he thought my anxiety was over seeing Lawrence.

I shrugged. “I haven’t really thought about it, which is odd because my brain shouted at me that it was him, but I feel so glad that I can’t remember. I dealt with a lot of my issues about it in therapy.”

I truly hadn’t. However, I certainly wasn’t going to be near that restaurant any time soon, perhaps ever again, but I’m sure he’d gathered that.

He nodded, bringing up our clasped hands to kiss the back of mine. “If you need to talk about it, I’ve always got an open ear, all right?”

I beamed up at him in answer, just as we entered the local diner for some lunch.

Only to have Grace literally bump right into Simon.

He used his free hand to steady her, her face flaming as she noticed me standing next to him.

“S-sorry!” She stuttered, twisting her hands together. “I looked down for just a second—”

“No problem,” Simon said smoothly. “How is Lyndsey?”

Grace’s face lit up, making my heart twist in a bitter emotion I didn’t want to examine. “She’s fine, her arm is fine. She’s gonna have a scar now to show off which is all she talks about. Kids!”

“Yep, she’ll no doubt get lots of attention if she wants it,” he replied with a laugh. “Can’t wait to have my own children one day.”

At that, Grace smile softened but she kept her gaze focused on Simon. I silently fumed. “Never knew such joy in my life, truly.” She looked down at her watch. “I’d love to stay and chat but I gotta go!”

He nodded as she threw me an unsure glance before walking out. “Awkward,” Simon muttered, guiding me to a booth near the back.

I didn’t even bother to respond, his summary of the occurrence spot on.

Sitting in the back was a good choice, because people would be less likely to walk back here to talk to him, as they often did when we were out and about. I’d learned to just smile and pretend I wasn’t listening when people he’d treated at work would start discussing stuff with him right in front of me. Not that any of them ever seemed to care about the privacy of their health problems; some even tried to get me to join in which I always found amusing.

The waitress arrived, giving me a smile before turning to Simon. Her face fell momentarily while Simon quickly looked down at the table, then she turned back to me with a overly bright smile.

Interesting.

“What can I get y’all to drink?”

“I’ll just have a water please.”

“Same,” Simon said, only looking up when the girl took off.

“What the hell?”

He reached across the table and covered my hand with his, face red. “She uh…she was one of the women I went on a date with that never called me back.”

“Awkward,” I sang, repeating his words of just a few minute ago, bringing a grin to his lips. “Did you know she worked here?”

“No.” He shook his head. “It was a while ago, but she said she worked at the theater then. I come here rather often though, so she must have just started.”

She came back then, gently placing the water on the table before pulling out her pad again. “Are you ready to order?”

The question directed at me, I had to suppress a grin at the silliness of her behavior.

I ordered and when she looked at Simon, he smiled at her while still holding my hand.

“Good to see you, Lex.”

She bit her lip, probably contemplating how nice she should be. “I’m fine, thanks for asking. What would you like?”

With that, I giggled and her face flushed. Simon ordered, then she stalked away.

“I’m so embarrassed right now.”

“Why?” I took a sip of water and watched his eyes darken as I licked my lips. “She’s the one who should be embarrassed. It was one date and she didn’t call back, big deal. No reason to be rude.”

At that, he chuckled. “I like how she said ‘I’m fine, thanks for asking’ even though I hadn’t.”

“Do you know what her deal is?”

“Ah…” he coughed. “I might. I don’t, however, think it’s appropriate to share.”

I shrugged, realizing that he’d probably rejected her advances or something similar, and took another drink of my water. “I understand.”

When our food arrived ten minutes later, a new waitress had replaced Lex, who explained she’d gotten sick and had to leave.

To which Simon and I, after the waitress left, busted out laughing at before enjoying our meal.

~*~

After lunch, another walk around town, a visit to the library and one food shopping trip later, we arrived back at his place.

Sitting on the couch as the room around us slowly darkened, Simon asked if I would spend the night.

“Are you sure? I wouldn’t want to tempt you too badly…”

He pulled me onto his lap, positioning me so I was straddling him. “I was thinking,” he whispered, his voice low and rumbling. “That I could - well, that you could lie in my bed naked and let me touch you.”

I sucked in a breath as both his palms slid up and down my arms, his words giving me goosebumps. “Do I get to touch you too?”

He shook his head, automatically making me pout.

Snickering, he tapped my mouth. “You’re gonna trip on that.”

I stuck it out a bit further and in a flash, he held my head in place as he softly caught my lower lip between his teeth.

Then, our mouths were battling as I hung on for dear life. In one smooth motion, he held me while standing up and headed toward the stairs. Ending the kiss so he could get us to his room safely, I nibbled on his hear, causing him to moan and my stomach to clench with desire.

Quickly divesting me of my clothing, I bit my lip nervously as he checked me out from head to toe. When he reached out to touch me, I held up a hand.

“You gotta be naked too. Otherwise it would be weird.”

I thought it’d be too much like I was his patient, and by the gleam in his eye, I figured he realized that as well.

He took off his shirt and unbuckled his belt, pulling it out and tossing it aside as I sat on the bed. As he reached for the button on his pants, he paused, glancing at me. “Do I have to be completely naked?”

I tipped my head to the side, smirking at his question. “Why wouldn’t you be?”

He gulped. “If I keep my boxers on…any attempt to take them off would make me pause and stop. I’m not sure I can guarantee…”

My nipples tightened at the mental images flying through my brain as he stopped talking. Incapable of speaking at this point, I waved a hand and he took off his pants, only to promptly come over and plop me in the middle of the bed.

His ‘don’t move’ had me giggling.

Now he straddled me as I lie staring up at him. “Let me know if you want to stop, okay?”

“I will,” I promised, holding still even though the very nearness of him made me want to wiggle.

I closed my eyes, only to open one a minute later when he’d done nothing. “What are you doing?”

“Admiring you,” he whispered. “Your body is so beautiful. I’m not sure what to do first.”

Now I blushed. “Touch me.”

He lifted a hand, only to lower it again.

With a snicker at his hesitance, I snagged his hand in mine and brought it to my breast. Surging up into his palm, I squeezed lightly, hinting that he should do the same thing. He did and I let go, his free hand coming up to give the same attention to my other breast as I closed my eyes again.

“They fit perfectly in my palms,” he observed, the desire in his voice so thick my nipples pebbled tighter, eliciting a low moan from me.

I didn’t know if he noticed or not, a question that was answered when his mouth closed around one, sucking and licking with an untutored enthusiasm I found endearing. He switched to the other one for a moment, then stopped. His right hand trailed down my stomach, stopping just above the center of me. When he didn’t move again, I opened my eyes only to find him staring at me.

“May I?”

I didn’t wonder why he asked me for permission. He knew my past, he had my agreement when I’d taken off all my clothes, but the gesture meant the world to me. He wanted to make sure I said okay, that I was ready for his touch.

And in that moment, I knew one thing for certain - I’d completely fallen in love with Simon.

“Yes, please,” I begged, unsure if the truth could be heard in my voice.

He must have seen something in my face though, because in that moment, a breathtaking smile lit up his face. He leaned in toward me, covering my mouth and kissed me with a reverence that had my nose tingling, tears bubbling to the surface. Without breaking the contact of our lips, he changed positions, lying down beside me on his side.

His hand skimmed lower, lightly parting me, both of us gasping. I bent a leg to make it easier as two of his fingers slid up and down. I moaned into his mouth, unable to stop myself from pleading for more with a tiny thrust of my hips. Taking my cue, he slipped a digit in, followed by another within seconds.

“Elle.” My name was a breath against my lips, the slow in and out of his fingers a torture, his thumb pleasuring me on the outside. “You should see you right now. I’ve never seen anything so delightful in my life. Your face is flushed, your eyes dreamy. I would do this every day just to see you this way, just for you.”

I didn’t know if it was his words, or the look in his eyes, or just the right amount of touching. Yet as he bent his head to take a nipple between his lips, the heat of his mouth and the barest scrape of teeth finished the job, sending me over the edge. I stiffened as the pleasure coursed through my veins and his head came up just as I shut my eyes, throwing my head back as I cried out.

“Wow,” he exclaimed hungrily.

A bark of laughter escaped me as I lifted my eyelids, his deep green eyes focused on my face. He removed his fingers slowly, leaning over to kiss me.