Dating a Metro Man (21 page)

He wrapped Jenna in his arms, with her hand still gripped tightly on him, stroking the last of his climax away. Seth ran his hands over Jenna’s back and shoulders, stroking and massaging as the water beat down on them like warm rain.

Jenna kissed Seth’s chest and cuddled against it. After a couple of minutes of Seth rubbing her back, she was practically asleep on her feet.

Seth turned them until the warm water could flow between them. He felt Jenna’s hands busy at work again, but this time moving slowly and carefully over him, washing him and her. Love was in her touch and in every slide of her hands. Seth wondered how much longer he was going to have to wait until Jenna could admit what was between them was so much more than just great sex.

When the water started to cool, Seth reached and turned the shower off.

Taking one of the large towels hanging just outside the shower, he wrapped it around his waist. Then he took the other and wrapped it around Jenna’s body which was now slumping with fatigue.

“Easy,” he said, scooping Jenna up in his arms.

“If you’re still strong enough to carry me after what I did for you, I must not have done it right,” Jenna said, letting her weary head drop to his shoulder.

“You were perfect, and what you did was wonderful. I’m just feeling my inner caveman for a moment. I’m carrying you off to have my way with you,” Seth said, setting her down on the bed.

“Well, all I ask is that you don’t wake me,” Jenna said tiredly, keeping her eyes closed as Seth dried her with the edges of the towel. “Do whatever you want, but if you care about me at all—let me sleep through it.”

Seth laughed and coaxed her into lying down. He unrolled her out of the rest of the towel and pulled a series of covers over her before trotting back to the bathroom. A few minutes later Seth came back out and crawled into bed to scoop Jenna close.

“Are you asleep?” Seth asked, rubbing Jenna’s arms to warm her as he curved his body around the back of her.

She mumbled something incoherent because the words were all jumbled in her head.

“Sleep, baby,” Seth said, his heart full of unexpressed emotion. “I’m just going to hold you while you sleep. One of these days I’m finally going to love you enough to get through that stubbornness of yours.”

“Love you, too,” Jenna said, sleepily. “I’ll have marshmallows with mine, please.”

Seth froze at her words of love, and then shook in laughter at the crazy sleep talk that followed her declaration. He looked at the clock and was amazed to see it was barely after eight-thirty. He was tired too, especially after what she’d done for him in the shower, so sleep was not going to be a problem—even this early.

“Marshmallows? Jenna, you drive me crazy. Do you know that? Is that why you do it?” he asked her sleeping form, sighing and putting his head next to hers on the pillow. He was really glad Jenna was finally letting him spend the night. Leaving her would have been impossible with her words of love ringing in his ears.

It was only a couple of minutes later that Seth fell deeply and contentedly asleep at her side.

*** *** ***

“So is it true?” Talia asked, watching Allen sip his beer. “Did Seth steal his girlfriend back from you?”

“Carter also tell you what kind of underwear he wears?” Allen asked, laughing. “You better read the fine print of that contract you’re about to sign with him. No telling what he put in it.”

Talia laughed, delighted with how witty and fun Allen was.

“I have to confess—Seth offered to fix me with up with you. I hadn’t made up my mind about him or you when you showed up today,” Talia said, eyes twinkling.

“
Him?
You were thinking about dating Carter? But he’s your boss,” Allen said, a bit shocked, but then what did he know about most of the real world? He’d spent the years between eighteen and twenty-four in the military. He’d spent the last two in school trying to figure out his life. Women had been few and far between, especially the ones in the last two years since most thought he was nuts for wanting to design clothes for a living.

“I married my boss once and got ten wonderful years of marriage and two great kids out of it. It worked out pretty well for me. Seth Carter is a kind and caring guy. I figured any woman dumb enough to trade up on him ought to have some competition. Of course, that was before I saw you today,” Talia said firmly, watching Allen dip his head and grin. “Now I’m wondering how the girlfriend ever left you for him. What’s your side of the soap opera?”

Allen laughed at the soap opera comment, but he guessed it was fairly close to being the truth about the situation.

“Jenna Ranger was in love with Seth Carter even when I was dating her,” Allen admitted with a shrug. “Hell, on some level I think I knew it. But she was beautiful and pretty convincing about being over Seth. It took me awhile to see she was just lying to herself. And for the record, I broke it off with her, not the other way around. Don’t let her or Carter tell you differently.”

Talia snorted, her sense of humor sharpened by the beer and pleasant male company.

“I believe you, but mostly because I can’t imagine you losing a woman to Seth. I mean Seth is nice and caring, but you’re—well, maybe we should discuss my theory about your appeal some other time,” Talia said, laughing at herself and her loose tongue. She hadn’t had beer in ages either. She’d bought it for her father when he came to visit.

“Honestly, I never got to know Jenna that well. I work for both Jenna’s mother and step-father. I had to be very honorable where she was concerned. Fortunately, I hadn’t used my best moves on her yet, so there was no permanent damage done by our brief stint of mostly platonic dating,” Allen said, grinning at Talia’s snorts and laughter.

“Really? Platonic dating, eh? Well, lucky her then. I’m sure she was saved from a sordid life of sexual guilt for not getting to see your best moves,” Talia said, rolling her eyes. “How old are you again? You brag like a teenage boy.”

Allen certainly knew a challenge when he heard one. He leaned forward and put his still half full beer on the coffee table. Then he leaned back on the couch and put one arm up along the back of it.

Allen slowly turned his massive body to face Talia’s where she was curled up on the other end of her couch, feet tucked under her.

“Want to see one of the moves that I never used on Seth’s girlfriend? It might be risky though. You’re older and have already admitted you don’t date often. If you’re worried about what might happen to your self-control, I totally respect that. We can try it some other time,” Allen said sincerely, finding it difficult to keep his composure and not to give in to his amusement when he was flirting with Talia.

Talia just laughed at Allen’s warning. “I think you’re very attractive, but I can’t imagine anything you could do that would make me lose my self-control. My dear boy, you are practically a stranger. I just met you.”

Allen laughed. “
Boy?
You’re only eight years older than me. That doesn’t make you an old lady or me a boy. And I can already tell you’re interested in me physically from the way you’ve been checking me out. We aren’t going to stay strangers, Ms. Martin. I’m just a little apprehensive about changing the situation between us tonight. As you said, we just met today.”

Talia did burst out laughing then. “How you do love to brag. Fine, Mr. Stedman. Show me this amazing move of yours. Give me your best shot. I’ve lived a very full and interesting life. I spent most of the eight years difference in our ages having sex with some very interesting men before the one I married, who was quite proficient in that area. I must warn you that I’ve seen a lot of very good moves.”

“Okay,” Allen said softly, shrugging his massive shoulders as elegantly as someone his size could. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you. Here it is.”

Hooking one large hand over both her feet, Allen pulled Talia down the couch, threw one of her legs off the front of it, and moved his massive body over hers landing his growing interest squarely in her crotch. He could only be grateful that his tactic had worked as well as it had. Of course, he’d been mentally rehearsing it and other potential moves for the better part of an hour as they talked.

“Hey,” Talia said, surprised at Allen’s aggressiveness which was a tad out of character with his niceness.

“So are you ready to see the move now?” Allen asked politely, whispering the question in her ear and feeling her laughter even as the heat of her called to him. Allen instinctively knew he would find the woman wet and willing if he checked. Lord, how he wanted to check, but he didn’t dare. It had been too long and she was too, too intoxicating.

“Sure,” Talia said, laughing at his playful teasing, but reluctantly admitting he did have some good moves. “Bring it. Show me this irresistible move of yours.” She stared up into Allen’s eyes as he stared down into hers.

For all her brave talk, Talia felt her heart beating rapidly in excitement and her body going up in flames with Allen’s massive form hovering over her. He smelled like spicy men’s cologne and hot aroused male. What they were doing was a dangerous game to play with a man she had only met a few hours ago. But now Talia wanted badly to know what it was that Allen thought he did that was so extraordinary.

Allen bent to her mouth so slowly that Talia wondered if the man was going to kiss her or not. Then just millimeters above her mouth, Allen started to whisper endearments in French as he licked the seam of her partially opened lips. Her surprise at his reserved actions was quickly snuffed out by a sigh from her that echoed in the mostly quiet living room.

Talia closed her eyes and let herself enjoy what he was doing. It had been so long—so very, very long since she had been kissed so thoroughly and with such attention to detail.

Allen felt her surrender, but fought the urge to take what he knew he could. All the while he whispered, nipped, and nibbled, he also continuously pressed down between Talia’s legs little by little more until he was deftly stroking the hard evidence of his own desire against her. Once full contact was made, he bit and sucked Talia’s bottom lip, absorbing the moan of building arousal that erupted from her throat. He laughed and stroked even harder as both her legs lifted along his sides.

Then Allen felt her heels digging into his flexing glutes and knew beyond doubt he had gone a lot farther in arousing her than he had intended. He was going to stop until Talia’s hips shifted to show him just the place she needed attention most.

Suddenly, the game they were playing took Allen to a serious place he hadn’t been expecting to visit so soon. It had been quite some time since he’d known this level of arousal himself. And he’d never known a woman who had handed over the key to her pleasure quite so willingly.

There was a time to be noble, Allen decided, and a time to take a gift when it was being offered. His body was informing him with every surge of her hips that the woman beneath him was a gift for him. That’s when he realized what he wanted to do with Talia Martin and what he was going to do were the same thing. The realization sent the rest of the blood in his brain rushing to another more useful area.

Against Talia’s mouth, Allen whispered succinctly in French that he understood what she needed, even as he used one hand to rub her thigh and knee in approval as it bracketed his hips. A couple minutes later he had to cover her mouth totally with his so neither of them would call out and wake the children as they sweetly, thoroughly rubbed and climaxed together on her couch. His bluff had been called in a major way and Talia’s vibrations under him were both torture and reward. He hadn’t done this much lovemaking with clothes on since high school, but didn’t regret a second of it.

If Talia had asked him, he would have started all over and done it again.

When their breathing finally returned to something almost normal, Talia brought a trembling hand to Allen’s face even though her eyes were too heavy yet to open. Still, she could feel Allen hovering over her, supporting his weight on his arms, not resting his body on hers completely. She finally forced herself to open her eyes and look at the man who had given her physical happiness for the first time in a long while.

“Thank God you never used that move on Seth’s girlfriend,” Talia whispered hoarsely. “You were right. It was
assolutely
irresistible. Best move I ever had used on me.”

Allen laughed at the awestruck sincerity in her voice, even as his heart beat frantically in his chest at her teasing. He kissed her hard because he simply had to. He liked this woman. Lord, he really, really liked this woman.

And he wanted to do this with her again. He wanted to do it better. He wanted to do it over and over until he found her limits, until she begged him to stop.

“It’s going to be even better when I show you without the clothes,” Allen said finally, touching his forehead to hers.

“Lie down on me,” Talia commanded, closing her eyes again. “I just want to feel your full weight. I need to after we—after you—hell, just do it. Okay?”

Allen eased himself down until he rested his full weight on her. Talia wrapped her arms around him in pleasure. She whispered sexy praise in French in his ear as she stroked his back and ran hands through his hair.

He shivered at the touch of her hands, fighting the urge to press down harder on her. Allen knew he was probably crushing her with his weight, despite her healthy size. Jenna had been the smallest woman he’d ever dated, and he hadn’t gotten nearly this far with her, for which he was now incredibly thankful. Carter would never have felt beholden and he wouldn’t now be lounging, relaxed and content between Talia Martin’s wonderful legs.

Allen shifted in Talia’s arms and rolled them to their sides until they were nose-to-nose on the couch. She looked at him with nothing but adoration.

“Is there any other woman in your life that I have to worry about?” Talia asked finally in English.

“No. But one look at you and I would have forgotten about her anyway,” Allen told her honestly, running strands of her silky hair through his fingers.