Hotshot (38 page)

“I’ll carry you.” I swing our legs over the side of the bed and lift her easily.

She lets out a small gasp when she sees what I’ve done. The blinds and curtains are closed tight, keeping the room dark except for the candles I relit and the tree shining. Her throw pillows from the sofa are arranged on the floor, next to several new presents under the tree.

“Where did those presents come from?”

“Claire’s closet. She instructed me to find them and put them under the tree.”

“But we’re not exchanging until she gets back.”

“She mentioned that, but wanted you to have these.”

“Oh no! I don’t have anything for her to open today!” Panic starts to rise in her voice.

“Shhh, I handled it.” I walk over and lower us to the floor.

She looks at me suspiciously. “What did you do?”

“I called Gail… she took care of it.”

“And?”

“Claire is getting a Rolex from the both of us.”

“You bought my best friend a Rolex?”

“Oh yeah.” I smile proudly.

“You are insane! I bought her a year’s subscription to Netflix and a new pair of scrubs! How the hell can I compete with a Rolex?”

I laugh at her irritation, which riles her up more as she wiggles to get free. “Stop, baby. I’d buy her any fucking thing she wants for everything she’s done for you… and consequently me.”

“It’s really too much.”

“Never.”

She stops wiggling, and her face falls. “Shaw, I sent your present home with Nicky. Since I didn’t know when I’d see you again, I wanted you to have something from me.”

“I know. He told me, but don’t worry about it. You’re my present. This time alone with you on a day you love so much is my present.” I emphasize the words, hoping she understands how much this means.

She throws herself into me, draping her legs and arms around my hips and shoulders, burying her head in my neck and squeezing tight. I barely understand her mumble something about ‘best Christmas ever’.

In this position, her pelvis grinds against my dick, which remains hard. Her head snaps up, and a suggestive grin forms on her lips. Scooting back, she reaches down and rips my shirt over her head, leaving her completely naked.

My mouth goes dry as my heart starts to hammer in my chest. My eyes rake over every inch of her flesh, desire building to the point of explosion. I’m too lost in the vision to fight her when she pushes me to my back and lays on top of me, kissing down my chest and nipping along my abdomen. Her destination finally registers when she slides one hand inside the waistband of my pants and palms my dick, her other hand pushing the pants down.

Oh fuck! Her touch is enough to set me off, but if she sucks my dick, I’ll never last. Her tongue sweeps across the head and circles the tip, and my balls tighten. It takes all my strength to fist her hair and gently pull her back up to me.

Her eyes light up in surprise and confusion right before I slam my mouth to hers, winding us so she rolls, tucked partially under me. I kiss her deep, while removing my pants with my free hand.

My cock bounces free, hitting her hip, and she reaches down to grip it. When she starts to stroke, I break away from her mouth and kiss a path to her ear, sucking her earlobe into my mouth. “Babe, you keep doing that, it’s going to be over before it starts. It’s been too long.”

She loosens her grasp but doesn’t let go.

I skim my fingertips along her stomach until I reach her hipbones and slide my hand between her legs, feeling her slick heat instantly. One finger slides in easily, and she lets out a groan that sets my blood on fire. My thumb grazes her clit at the same time I slip another finger inside. Her knee falls to the side, giving me deeper access. I twist and twirl my fingers while continuing to kiss behind her ear and down the column of her throat.

Her core muscles clench right as her hips buck into my hand. I move lower and suck one of her hard nipples into my mouth, circling my thumb in the spot that makes her go crazy.

She lets out a hushed moan and jerks on my cock, coming apart and trembling against my side.

My tongue does one last swirl around her nipple then lets go, as I slowly slide my hand to the side and move to hover over her. Her eyes are hazy at first clearing as she focuses on me. They glow a smoldering translucent blue, which is exactly what I hoped for.

I move between her legs and keep my eyes locked with hers as I slide in. She feels like silk; every inch of my cock tingles at the warmth. Her legs wrap around my hips as I sink deeper. My elbows shake, threatening to buckle at the intensity of the moment. She’s tight but easily pulls me all the way in.

“Tell me you love me,” I demand in a husky voice, needing to hear the words.

“I love you,” comes out in a rasp.

I start to move slowly, barely thrusting as I fight to regain control. The coiling in the base of my spine travels lower and threatens to erupt with each movement. Her hips swivel a few times, and I growl in frustration, my resolve weakening. She licks her bottom lip, knowing what she’s doing, and her eyes send a clear message… she’s trying to unravel me.

It’s working.

One arm moves under her shoulders, and I yank her up as I sit back on my knees. She gives a little yelp then chokes back a whimper when I have her pressed against me as close as possible. I heave up, and she’s forced to break eye contact as she throws her head back, groaning.

The vein in her neck ticks as her pulse races, and I feel her heart beating with my own. My body takes over as I grind and pump into her from below. Beads of sweat roll down my neck and back as I throb inside her. Her nails dig into my shoulder blades, and she clenches so hard on my dick I see stars as my release builds. She brings her head back up and drops it to my shoulder, her teeth grazing my skin until she bites down and cries out. I barely register the pain as I explode, feeling every sensation as I come harder than I ever have in my life.

Spots cloud my vision as I roar into her hair, feeling every beat of my orgasm pumping into her. She grasps tight, holding on, as we both tremble. No words are spoken for several minutes, both of us breathing heavy, as sex lingers in the air.

A sense of peace settles over me, knowing we’ve connected back to where we were. I swipe my tongue over her neck where it’s still pulsing and whisper, “Tell me you forgive me.”

“It may take days of making it up to me, but I forgive you.”

“Days, huh? How about a lifetime?” I smile against her skin, knowing in my heart this is the right moment. No stalling, no hesitation, this is it.

She goes stone still, and I have to pry loose enough to reach into the tree behind me. I dig the ring out of the branch and turn back, popping open the lid.

Her eyes grow wide and start to shimmer as she looks at me in disbelief.

“A lifetime, Bizzy. A lifetime together. Marry me.”

“Shaw,” she breathes out.

“Say yes, Bizzy.”

She looks at me with hesitation written all over her face. “We’ve had the most tumultuous relationship two people can have. Our lives have changed so much in the last few months. We haven’t even lived together yet!”

“Yes?” I press her.

“How can I answer? Yesterday morning, we weren’t even talking more than a few minutes a day. You came here to stop me from taking a job, and laid out your life for the last few weeks that you chose not to include me in. Don’t do this to me, Shaw.”

I smile, realizing she needs more. I’m going to have to work for this. “I’ll spend the rest of my life making it up to you for my stupid and selfish decisions. It’ll be my pleasure to shower you with gifts and all the love in my heart. You’ll never want for anything.”

“Shaw, I don’t need gifts.”

I brush my lips over hers then replace them with my finger. “This has nothing to do with your job. I’ve had this ring since October. I was going to slip it on your finger the night you dropped the bombshell about coming to Charlotte. Since then, I’ve had several opportunities, but right now, in this moment, with me still inside you, is when it hit me the most. I love you with everything I have. Being with me hasn’t been easy, and it’s not lost on me what I’m asking you to do. But I promise you, there will never be another day in your life where you won’t know how much you mean to me. This is not a spur of the moment thing. This has been in my mind since the day I kissed you on the beach.

“I’ve loved you for ten years, Bizzy. Maybe it took me a while to realize the depth of that love, but since you pounced into my life that day in the hospital, you’ve had a piece of my heart. Now, you have it all…every single piece of it.”

“Oh my God.” Tears puddle in her eyes, and she looks at me with the most love I’ve ever felt in my life.

“Answer me.”

She starts to nod, the tears now streaming down her cheeks. “Yes,” she rasps.

I move quickly, taking the ring out of the box, slipping it on her finger, and crashing my mouth to hers.

My cock grows hard again as I move us gently, me going to my back so she’s on top. I fist my hands through her hair, keeping her sealed against me until we both break away for air.

She lifts up and lifts her hand in front of her face, her eyes growing wide again once she realizes what I’ve done. “SHAW!” she squeals, waving the hand to me. “This is over the top!”

I lift the hand to my lips and kiss the cathedral diamond and the sides, which I had designed with diamonds in calligraphy with our initials. To anyone glancing, it looks like a huge rock, but looking closer shows the details.

“You like?”

“On the off-chance I’d said no, what would you have done?” she tries to ask snarkily, but it comes out sexy.

My hands travel to her ass, and I buck into her, grinning smugly. “You do realize I never really asked, right? No wasn’t an option.”

She starts to argue, but I bolt up and kiss her again. Then I proceed to do what I’ve wanted to since October… make love to her in nothing but my diamond.

“Mom, we haven’t gotten that far.” Bizzy rolls her eyes at me and tosses her head to the ceiling. I take the opportunity to kiss her neck, and she starts swatting at me with her free hand.

“No, he just proposed a few hours ago. Give me some time. This is all sort of a surprise.”

It’s been like this for the last fifteen minutes, since Bizzy called her mom to say Merry Christmas and told her about our engagement. Rory knew, since I explained my plans on the phone last night on my way to the airport, but did her best to act surprised. I actually asked Tom’s permission out of respect. He was hesitant with his approval until I explained the intensity of my feelings.

With or without his permission, I was coming home with Bizzy as my fiancée. When he realized this, he laughed at me and called me a cocky asshole then threatened my life if she ever hurt again.

It was an understanding, and I took it as a challenge.

“I’m not sure, Mom, we need to talk to talk to Maria and see. Shaw’s got a boatload of clients and friends. We have a lot to work out, but I’ll be home in a week.”

I see where this is going, so I take the phone from her hand and press the speaker button.

“Rory, you’re on speaker. Anything you and Bizzy decide, big or small, but whatever you do, it needs to be quick. I don’t want a long engagement. She’s moving in with me the second we get back to Miami, you two can plan it.”

Bizzy smiles wide and wiggles in my lap.

“Okay, I’ll wait until you get back, but do you think I can call Maria?” Excitement bubbles in her voice.

“Give us half an hour. We need to call my family, then you can go for it.”

“I can do that.”

“Mom, don’t go crazy here. Remember, we have playoff games, and the baby is due in early April. Logically, we should shoot for summer.” Bizzy snuggles into me.

No one skips a beat at the mention of my son. He’s going to be one lucky son of a gun… all this love.

We say our goodbyes, and I settle her deeper into my lap and kiss along her forehead.

“I need to call Claire,” she mutters.

“My family is on pins and needles… they knew this was coming. They’re first.”

“I’d like to tell Nicky myself, if that’s okay.”