In His Bed(17)

Colin walked Hernandez to the front door. Taking the opportunity to flee, her body strung too tight from the last few hours, she gratefully headed upstairs to relax. She patted her thigh. “Come on, Charlie, let’s get comfy.” The dog followed her up the stairs and into the bedroom.

After stripping out of her swimsuit, she took a quick shower and changed into a pajama top before sliding into bed. Charlie cuddled beside her as they flipped through the channels until she found a program she liked.

The last thing she remembered in the haze pulling her into sleep was Colin’s handsome face, those half-mast eyelids, sparkling ocean depths staring back at her. She fought to erase the image, but with her defenses down, his name crept over her lips. Tomorrow she would regret dreaming about his warm kiss, but tonight...tonight she’d allow herself this one small pleasure. Colin Marshal was going to invade her dreams, and she was going to let him.





CHAPTER FOUR



Colin lay in bed watching the lightning cast shadows on the walls. The patter of rain on the long windows should’ve soothed his nerves, but knowing Lea slept across the hall made his body tight like a bow primed to release. The click of claws on the floor stopped. He leaned over the bed and saw Charlie sitting on the carpet.

He reached down and petted her on the head. “Hey, girl, what are you doing in here?” This wasn’t the first time the cute mutt ended up in his bedroom. Lea always kept her door ajar to let the dog wander around to get a drink of water and do whatever dogs did in the dark hours of the night when no one was watching.

The faint sound of Lea’s voice carried from the hall. “Charlie?”

Colin slipped out of bed and picked up the dog. “She’s in here,” he said and walked to the door. Lea stood in the hall. The way the hem of her short white pajama top skimmed the creamy skin of her thighs made his dick twitch.

“Oh,” she said in a daze. “Come back to bed.”

While her half lidded eyes slowly blinked, he took her hand and led her back to her bedroom. The light from the TV cast shadows on the walls as he heard a commercial quietly play in the background. He guided her under the sheet and set Charlie on the comforter at the end of the bed. When she turned on her side, the thin fabric of her nightie slipped, revealing the ridge of her hip. The muscles in his abdomen flexed. God, he needed a quick taste of the smooth skin. Hell, a quick anything with Lea wasn’t going to be enough.

He’d pulled the sheet to cover her shoulder when she grabbed his wrist. “Stay,” she mumbled.

Had he heard her right? Did she really just tell him to get into her bed? Not waiting for her to change her mind, he tucked her in, walked to the other side of the bed, and slipped under the sheet.

“So pretty,” he whispered as he got comfortable and propped his head on his hand.

She rolled onto her back. “I don’t want to betray my best friend.”

He didn’t want to piss off his mother, but his feelings for Lea had grown and made it worth the risk. “I know, baby.” She finally opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling. “Do you want me to turn off the TV?”

“No, I like to sleep with it on.” He’d paused, wondering what to say next when she spoke again. “I’m awake now. I didn’t want you to think I’d say this in some kind of daze.”

He scrunched his brow. “Say what?”

“Kiss me.”

Damn, his dick pulsed, thickening with her timid request. He rose and cradled the side of her face to press his lips against her mouth. She slowly opened, bringing her arms around his neck, hands exploring the nape, fingering the short hairs there. He tilted, licked and she responded. Each slip of his tongue met with a lap of her own.

“Colin,” she said between the increasing pressures of their mouths. “This feels...good.”

He’d waited so long to hear her say those words. “It does, baby. Can I touch you? Please God, say I can touch you.”

In the dim light from the TV he watched her nod. He skimmed his hand under the hem of her pajamas to cup the full mound of one breast. He squeezed. The sensation of her smooth skin rubbing against his palm made his balls tighten.

With another slip of his tongue, he nibbled on her bottom lip. Her hips rose, bumping the front of his underwear. The contact made him thrust, seeking some kind of relief from the pulsing between his legs.

“Jesus, Lea,” he pleaded and tugged on the fabric until both breasts were exposed. He pressed his lips against her chin, the side of her neck, on the front of her chest until he reached one taut nipple.

The delicate massage of her fingertips against his scalp made his senses go on high alert. The thrum in his bloodstream kept time with the pulsing in his cock. He drew the little pebble into his mouth and laved the tip with his tongue. When her back bowed from the mattress, he wrapped his hand around the soft mound and squeezed.