He hummed thoughtfully. "More than a drive-by this time," he added, and I tilted my head in confusion.
"My last visit was quick, remember?"
"Yeah," I said with a small, slightly embarrassed smirk, thinking about how I'd kicked him and Remy out before they could fully engage in a modern-day battle of wills … or fight to the death. The latter had probably been the most accurate.
"It's great, Win. And, quick visit or not, I noticed the first time." His voice was soft and measured, and I tried to live comfortably in the compliment rather than analyzing it.
"Thanks." He nodded and turned back to the mantel, the cotton of his shirt stretching along the hard lines of each muscle. He found a picture of my mother and me, wrapped up in each other and smiling like nothing in the world could touch us at my college graduation. For her, she'd succeeded in raising me all the way into womanhood on her own, and for me, I had the whole world laid out thoughtfully in front of me. I still felt that way about life, but I'd also learned a few things along the way. Plans shift and your definition of happiness will change; you just have to go with it.
"You look just like your mother," he whispered, and a part of me tingled at how intimate this whole discussion felt. These pictures-and the people in them-were the foundation of who I was.
"Thank you," I said again-and I meant it. My mother was a stunning woman, inside and out. I couldn't think of anything more flattering than being likened to her. "But you don't need to whisper, remember? Lexi isn't here."
He nodded, but the volume of his voice barely changed at all. I wondered if he felt as vulnerable as I did or if it was something else. "Where is she tonight?"
"She's staying at Remy's for the night."
His mouth tipped into a slightly tipsy grin. "So, it's just us."
He'd been so careful with his words and manner before, I'd actually almost forgotten just how much alcohol we'd consumed. But the effects were starting to dull as time bled the buzz from our systems, and all that was left was freedom from inhibition. For me, it meant a looser tongue and an unlocked door on my carefully crafted cage, and for Wes, it meant a playdate with his lighthearted side.
And God, playful Wes was so endearing. I wanted to eat him with a spoon.
I smirked. "It's just us."
"What are we going to do with all this alone time, Win?" he asked cheekily, a glint of mischief in his eye. I felt a shiver run down my spine. His eyes were like a fucking arousal superpower. Pussy Power, activate!
Desperate to get my bearings, I looked down at my feet for a brief moment. Of course, with the hum of his powers and the alcohol freely flowing through my bloodstream, all that did was give me time to imagine how nice it would be to see what Wes's hard, sexy body looked like wet. "Want to get in the hot tub?"
"You have a hot tub?" The corner of his mouth curved into a naughty smile.
"Yeah." I nodded. "It's on the back deck."
He immediately started slipping off his shoes and unbuckling his belt … in the middle of my living room. I watched, transfixed on his every move and frozen in place, as he reached behind his neck to pull his shirt over his head and yanked his belt from its loops. The metal buckle clanked as it landed on the wood of my floor, but I couldn't look down. A firm stomach and golden skin and the slight hint of a happy trail made my swallow rough with anticipation.
It was a slow climb to the top, but when I finally made it back up, his eyes held mine shamelessly. The button of his jeans pulled free with a pop, and I finally found my voice.
"So … I take it your vote is yes?" I asked on a laugh.
Forgoing words, he answered with a wink and a nod and continued to disrobe. I watched in fascination as he pulled his keys and wallet and cell phone out of his pockets and set them on an end table and pushed his jeans to the floor. One foot and then the next, he stepped out of the pooled fabric and kicked it gently to the side.
And then he was standing in nothing but his boxer briefs.
Just his boxer briefs.
Holy hell.
I could see the outline of his cock through the black cotton material, and to put it simply, he looked obscene. Sweet Christ, I had the urge to cover my eyes with my hand, but it would have been fruitless-I could already imagine myself peeking through my fingers.
I wasn't sure how much time had passed as I sat there, ogling the fuck out of him, mentally tracing the veins and licking my lips, but he had to clear his throat to bring my attention back to his face. "Win? Hot tub?"
I nodded but didn't move. Somebody needed to call the fucking police because this asshole was concealing a goddamn billy club in his pants. I hated to be this predictable, but … how in the motherfuck had that thing fit inside of me so many times?
"Are you going to change?"
"Change?"
No. No. No. Let's not change anything. I was just spit-balling. I'm sure I can make you fit. Fucking double sure.
"Your clothes, sweetheart. Are you going to change your clothes?" he asked with an amused grin. "I'm crazy about those boots, but I have a feeling they might not be so great in the water."
I glanced down at my clothes dumbly, almost as if I was floating outside of myself, and realization finally sunk in. "Oh," I muttered, and if my cheeks hadn't already been rosy from the numerous shots Cassie had pushed on me, they sure as hell would've been then. "Right. Just give me a second to change into a bathing suit."
His lips crested into a devilish smile. "You know I won't mind if you go without … "
Jesus. Playful Wes was going to be the death of me. I was sure of it.
I shook my head on a laugh and turned to head to my bedroom. "I have neighbors. I'm putting on a bikini."
He grabbed my hand as I passed him and tugged me back until my body hit his, his chest pressed against my back. "I'm really good with bikinis," he whispered into my ear, and I giggled at that. He nuzzled my neck and pressed his mouth softly to a sensitive spot that he knew would spur goose bumps. I spent a lot of time pretending everything was casual, but Wes Lancaster knew my body. I could feel his lips move up into a satisfied grin against my skin.
"I think it's safe to say you're good at taking them off, not putting them on," I whispered.
"I promise," he said with a seductive hum into my skin. "If you go change right now, I'll be good at a lot of things."
I rolled my eyes and pushed away so that I could look him in the eye.
"Give me five minutes. I'll meet you outside."
Clad in my skimpiest pink bikini and fake confidence, I walked outside onto my deck, my bare feet carefully tiptoeing across the wood, and found Wes lounging comfortably in my hot tub, his arms stretched across the edges. Droplets of water shimmered in the moonlight as they slid down his firm chest and back into the water.
Oblivious to my approach, his head back and his eyes closed, he looked like a Greek god.
I honestly wasn't sure if this was the best idea I'd ever had-or the worst. Tonight, right now, I knew it would feel good. But what had started under the assumption that a few romps would be the perfect solution for getting him out of my system had turned into an obsession. I was starting to crave him like a drug, spending all my time from one fix to the next trying to figure out how to make it happen again.
According to just about anyone who had the power of speech, Wes was not the kind of man who settled down, especially with a woman who already had a child-wasn't even really a monogamous kind of guy. But it didn't feel like that anymore. It felt real and deep and a little bit like I was going to feel like such a goddamn fool when it turned out a man didn't up and change everything about himself for a woman. Because as much as I tried to warn myself of that very thing, my naïve, romantic epicenter in my chest wouldn't stop whispering that maybe it could be that way for me.
I took a deep breath and finally started to walk again.
All things in moderation. That was the advice I had given thousands of patients, and I should have been able to follow it myself.
His eyes opened and turned to me. It was sheer absurdity how quickly I got lost in him.
Fucking shit, moderation sucked balls. I didn't want bits and pieces of him here and there. I wanted all of him-all of the tiny details that made him the man I was so obviously falling for.
Shit, Winnie, my brain whined. This quickly? I thought you were smarter than this.
His eyes turned hooded and heated, watching closely as I climbed in and slid into the water across from him. My skin prickled from the sharp change in temperature. I'd spent entirely too long outside the water doing the mental hokey-pokey.
"Come here, Win," Wes whispered and held out his hand.