Try - The Complete Romance Series (26 page)

I gasped when I felt the cool air against
my skin and realized that more and more of my clothes were falling away from my
body, hitting the floor or flying across the room as Patrick stripped them off
of me. I started to work on his clothes, tugging his sweater over his head,
throwing it aside without even looking to see where it ended up in the
darkness. I pulled the shirt underneath free of his pants, letting my
fingertips graze his skin as I undressed him. I wanted to tease him every bit
as much as he was teasing me.

Patrick stepped back from me, turning a
light on in the bedroom, and I blushed as he took in every inch of my body. “I
was such an idiot,” Patrick said, shaking his head slowly. “Such an idiot for
almost letting you slip away.” He stepped closer to me again and then started
guiding me towards the bed, his hands trailing over my body slowly, caressing
me everywhere. My pussy was already soaking wet, my skin tingling, and I stood
up on the balls of my feet to kiss Patrick as he pressed me down onto the bed
on my back.

He reached down between my legs and I
shivered as his fingers brushed up against me, stroking up and down slowly,
pressing deeper as he teased me. My hips began to move in reaction, my whole body
twisting and writhing as he found my clit by touch. I’d somehow managed to
forget just how good it felt to have him touch me, play with me. He shifted on
top of me and I felt the hardness of his cock digging into my thigh, the heat
of his skin almost burning, the slickness of the precum already beginning to
flow.

I moaned out as Patrick started to rub and
stroke my clit more firmly, one of his fingers drifting down to slide up and
down my inner labia, not quite pushing inside of me, teasing me for what felt
like ages. I squirmed underneath him, getting more and more turned on, my
breath catching in my throat. Patrick kissed me everywhere, over and over
again, capturing my lips with his and then trailing his mouth down to my
breasts to worship them with his lips and tongue. He slid one finger inside of
me slowly, pushing past the resistance of my body, the flexing of my muscles,
and I cried out, arching up, twisting my hips down into his touch. I reached
down and groped at Patrick’s body until my fingers found his cock, hard and
heavy; I wrapped my hand around him and began to stroke him just like he was
teasing me. Patrick groaned, shuddering against me, his fingers working me
faster.

We both squirmed and writhed and twisted
against each other in Patrick’s bed, bringing each other to the edge of climax
and then slowing down until I thought I might go crazy or maybe even die if I
didn’t get off. I pulled back, panting and gasping for breath, and looked
Patrick in the eyes. “I’m so close,” I told him, almost whimpering from how
needy I was, how much I wanted him.

“Me too,” he told me, his voice ragged and
hoarse. He slipped his fingers away from me; the next moment I felt the heat of
his hard cock pressing against my entrance as he guided himself along my folds.
He shifted on top of me and my whole body tensed up, waiting for the next
movement. Patrick thrust into me slowly, filling me up inch by inch, and I
moaned out, wrapping my legs around his waist, pushing my hips down to take him
deeper. His hands wandered all over me as he rocked against me, his hard, thick
cock rubbing against my inner walls, and I kissed him everywhere my lips could
reach. I fell into his rhythm, twisting my hips down and arching up as he
thrust deeper and deeper inside of me.

I lost all track of time, wrapped up in
the sensations, how good it felt to have Patrick’s body pressed against mine,
to feel his cock inside of me. He started to move faster and harder and I met
his thrusts, moaning out again and again as I came closer and closer to orgasm.
I felt the tension mounting inside of me with every movement of Patrick’s hips,
and all at once something snapped, and the last of my self-control dissolved as
wave after wave of pleasure washed through me, driving every thought out of my
head. I barely even noticed Patrick hitting his own orgasm; but when I felt the
sticky-slick heat of his come gush into me, my climax intensified and I clung
to him, moving until neither of us could possibly move anymore. We both sagged
against the bed, panting and gasping, and I fell into a happy, satisfied doze,
my cheek pressed against his chest, listening to his heartbeat as it slowed
down.

Chapter Four - Patrick

I checked the time yet again as I tried to
get the knot in my tie right. I was anxious to see Mackenzie in the dress she’d
bought for her parents’ party, but even more than that I had to admit I was a
bit nervous about meeting her family, even if it was just for New Year’s Eve.

“Did you buy that tie for the party?” I
turned to look at Landon, dressed in warm pajamas for the trek to his
grandparents’ house. He always spent New Year’s Eve with Joanne’s parents, and
normally I was with him—but this year would be different for us both.

“I did,” I told him. “I bought it to match
Mack’s dress.”

“That’s silly,” Landon said, frowning in
confusion.

“It’s something you’ll understand when you
get older and go to parties with women,” I explained. Mackenzie had sent me a
picture of the dress she’d gotten a couple of days before, and I’d spent the
day before New Year’s Eve scouring menswear sections to find a tie that would
go with it. I’d even gotten her a corsage from the florist who’d had the
peonies she loved; I knew it was a hokey tradition, but I hoped she would
appreciate it.

Mack had told me while we cuddled in bed
the night of our last date that the party wasn’t a situation for a tuxedo, but
that everyone tried to dress at least a little nicely, so I’d found one of my
better suits to wear for the event, and made sure it wasn’t stained before I
even went after the tie to wear with it.

“What are you going to do with Mack at the
party?”

I smiled, checking my reflection in the
mirror to make sure the tie looked right. “We’re just going to listen to music
and dance, and talk to people. It’s not like a kid’s party.”

“That doesn’t sound like a lot of fun,”
Landon said, looking at me doubtfully.

“There will be food and things to drink.
It’s a grown-up party.”

“No games?”

I shrugged. “I don’t know. There might
be.”

“It’s going to be weird to not be with you
at ball drop time,” Landon told me. I hesitated and looked at my son.

“I know it’s going to be weird,” I said,
crouching down and getting to my son’s level. “Maybe next year we can all go to
a party together—me, you, your grandparents, and Mack.”

Landon brightened. “Do you think so?”

 
I
grinned. “I hope so!” I tousled Landon’s hair. It occurred to me that according
to the bet we’d made—that I could find Landon a new mom before the New Year—I
only had one day left to win it. “Do you think I can seal the deal with Mack by
tonight and win our bet?”

Landon looked thoughtful. “I really want
double presents,” he said slowly, “but I want to have Mack live with us, too. I
wish she could be my mom.”

My heart twisted inside of me and I felt
happy and sad at the same time.

“Well, it’ll probably take me a little
while to get her to be your mom,” I said, holding Landon’s gaze. “But she’s in
our life now, and I’m going to do everything I can to keep her with us, if she
wants to stay. How does that sound?”

“I hope she stays,” Landon said.

“Let’s get your backpack packed, so I’m
not late to pick her up for the party,” I suggested. Landon darted out of my
room and into the living room to gather up the toys I’d told him he could take
to his grandparents’ house, and I checked myself in the mirror one more time, and
then left the bedroom to supervise the last mad dash of my son’s packing.

I grabbed the corsage and a bottle of
champagne out of the fridge, bundled Landon up into a heavy coat over his
pajamas, and helped him get into his seat in the car. I would have just enough
time to drop him off at my in-laws’ house, pick up Mackenzie, and get to her
parents’ place outside of the city, assuming that traffic hadn’t started up
early.

“Are you going to kiss her at midnight?” I
heard Landon kicking his feet against the seat bottom as we made our way to his
grandparents’ house; traffic wasn’t as bad as it would be in a few hours, but
it was still the same heavy Chicago flow as always.

“Probably,” I said. “Think you’ll be able
to make it all the way to midnight this year?”

“Gramma said that I could have a little
coffee milk to stay up,” Landon informed me; I laughed.

“Well I will call you and let you know if
I got to kiss Mack when the ball drops, how about that?”

“Only if you’ve stopped kissing her,”
Landon said with a giggle. “Otherwise I won’t be able to understand you.” I
snorted, picturing Landon’s idea in my head. It felt good—and right—between Mack
and me again. I was glad that Jess had made me clear the air and make the big,
romantic gesture—I was glad that Mack had happened to see me with Jess so that
we could get things straight between us. I was still nervous about meeting her
parents, since I knew it was a big step, but I was ready for it.

I got to Joanne’s parents’ place as
quickly as traffic would let me, and my heart started beating faster as soon as
I had given Landon a kiss goodbye for the night. I knew I’d be thinking of him
while I was with Mack, but if she couldn’t handle that then it would just mean
that things would have to run their course and the relationship wouldn’t go any
further than it already had; but I thought I could count on her, of everyone I
had ever dated, not to mind that I was thinking of my son while I was with her.
I pulled out of my in-laws’ driveway and sped down the road to make sure that I
could get to Mackenzie’s apartment on time. If I was lucky we might even have
time for a kiss and a hug before we had to get back on the road or risk being
late.

Chapter Five - Mackenzie

By the time I heard Patrick’s knock at my
door I was almost in a frenzy, I was so anxious. I had spent most of the
day—once I’d gotten out of work after lunch—getting ready, and my parents had
called three times to confirm that I was coming and that I was bringing a date.
I’d rushed home from the clinic and immediately started a hot bath while I took
out all the things I’d planned to wear for the evening. My parents liked to see
everyone dress up a bit for New Year’s, but it wasn’t quite a completely formal
occasion; so when I’d known that I was going to be bringing Patrick with me,
I’d taken the time to find the perfect dress, along with a great pair of shoes
to go with it, and a little bit of jewelry.

I had made sure that everything went
together perfectly and put all the pieces where I could get to them and then
I’d slipped into the hot bath, soaking in the fragrant water for almost an hour
with a conditioning treatment in my hair. I’d pulled the plug and took a
shower, rinsing the treatment out and scrubbing myself from head to toe. I
wasn’t always as good about shaving in the winter as I was in the summer. I
wore jeans or tights and long sleeves almost all the time, and until I’d met
Patrick a few weeks before, I hadn’t been dating anyone. But I wanted to be as
flawless as possible for the party, so I went over everything with the razor
twice and made sure I was silky smooth everywhere.

Once I finished in the shower I wrapped
myself up in my thickest, fluffiest robe and slathered lotion everywhere that
would show with my dress. I blow-dried my hair and took a minute to gulp down a
cup of coffee and eat some toast to keep my stomach from going sour, and then I
was back to getting ready for the big night. I did my makeup more carefully
than I had in weeks, and pulled my hair back into a style I’d looked up while I
had a lull at work.

By the time I hurried to the door at the
sound of Patrick’s knocking, I was as flawless from head to toe as I could
possibly be: perfumed, made up, my hair done, and in a dress that fit me just
perfectly. I’d be a little bit cold going to and from the car, but I had a long
coat to wear and it wouldn’t be too long before I was in the warmth again.

It was all worth it when I opened the door
and saw Patrick’s reaction. For a moment he stood in my doorway, staring at me
in obvious amazement, speechless. I took in the sight of him in the suit he’d
chosen, and I realized that he’d either found or bought a tie that would go
perfectly with my shimmery blue-and-green dress; it was the same colors, but
without the sparkle. Then I noticed that he had a box from a florist shop in
his hand.

“You got me a corsage?”

Patrick shook his head quickly, the
surprise disappearing from his face as he smiled. “I know it’s corny, but I
thought you might like it
because
it’s corny,” he admitted. I blushed, and Patrick opened up the box to reveal
the corsage: it was a white rose in full bloom, with ferns and baby’s breath
tied to it.

“Pin it on me,” I said, tingling all over.
Patrick took it out of the box and carefully pinned it to the front of my
dress, and I took advantage of how close he was to kiss him quickly, barely
remembering not to press myself against him or else I would crush the flowers.

“I bought a bottle of champagne to bring
with us, too,” Patrick told me, taking my hand in his. “Are you ready to head
out?”