Tough Enough(54)

For several minutes, I stare at the dent in her pillow, considering the woman who made it. I’m not surprised that once I unraveled the mystery of the shy girl with the haunted eyes that I’m still interested. Something told me right from the start that this one was special. And I wasn’t wrong. She’s different and special in the best possible way.

I finally drag my pathetic ass out of bed and find the bathroom directly across the hall. I pause in the doorway to listen. All I hear are sounds of battle coming from the living room. I smile to myself, shaking my head as I walk naked to the toilet. It’s hard to tell what other surprises this woman might hold.

I borrow Katie’s toothbrush and brush my teeth. I figure since we’ve licked each other from head to toe, she surely won’t mind if I use it. In the mirror, I catch sight of my stiff dick, so I go back to the bedroom for last night’s clothes. I figure it might be prudent to wear something other than a hard-on when I go out to greet her this morning. I’m ready for some more of the untamed Katie from last night, of course, but it’s hard to tell where she might be in the bright light of day. Women and their mood swings!

When I’m dressed, I run my fingers through my hair and head for the living room. I smile when I see her. Like I do most of the time.

Katie is curled up on the sofa, covered with a blanket, munching from an enormous bowl of popcorn, watching what looks like The Walking Dead.

“Popcorn for breakfast?” I ask from the doorway so as not to startle her by walking up behind her and kissing her, which is actually what I want to do.

She cranes her neck to look back at me, eyes bright, lips curved. “Yep.”

“And The Walking Dead before noon?”

“Yep.”

“Another layer to your awesomeness? Jesus, woman! You’re killing me!”

“I’m pretty sure you uncovered all my layers last night. And if all that sex didn’t kill you, I think you’re good.”

Thank God! She’s not all moody and shit.

She just gets more perfect by the day, and my cock twitches like it’s in total agreement.

Down, boy!

I walk around the back of the couch to Katie’s end, scooping her up as I pass and then turning to sit down with her in my lap, much like I did last night. “You fit like you were made to sit here, did you know that?” I ask, taking in her fresh skin, her pink cheeks and the little smile that’s gracing her luscious mouth.

She gets all shy, laying her head on my shoulder and playing with some of her popcorn. It’s not the painfully . . . pained shy look that I’m used to, though. The one that she usually wears. This one is different. In a good way.

“Well, you’ve got all sorts of nice places for me to sit,” she finally mutters.

Through with pretending I’m not dying to kiss her, I tip her chin up and take her lips. Gently, even though I’d much rather ravage her. But I’m not stupid. I know there’s still a chance I could scare her away, so I have to take it slow.

Slow. Damn it.

It’ll be worth it, though. God forbid I screw it up now.

I rub my nose against hers. “Your nose is cold.”

“It’s chilly in here,” she states, burrowing under her blanket.

I tuck the edges around her more securely, reaching under one end to grab her foot. Her toes are freezing. I rub them until they warm, treating her right side to the same as she returns her attention to the television.

“This is my favorite show,” she says by way of explanation, not taking her eyes off the flat screen. “They’re having a marathon today and tomorrow.”

“Well, don’t let me interrupt,” I warn, moving my massaging hand up her bare leg.

I watch Katie watch the show. Her eyes are wide and fixed on the screen. She tosses a few kernels of popcorn into her mouth every few seconds and chews slowly, like she’s trying to keep the noise down. I swallow a laugh. God, this is the most adorable thing I’ve ever seen.

Every now and again, she reaches back to blindly offer me a few pieces. I take them from her fingers, resisting the urge to suck salt from the tips.

As the minutes tick by, I work my way up to her knee, concentrating on her other leg, heating her flesh as I go. She pays me zero attention, so focused is she on her show. It is a great show, but I want to be more distracting than a bunch of zombies.

I ease my fingers up onto her thigh, taking turns gently squeezing her supple muscles and softly stroking her silky skin. Still, she doesn’t take her eyes off the TV.

It’s when I reach her hip that I realize something that has my cock filling with blood again, pressing up toward Katie’s plump ass. She’s not wearing any panties. Hell, she may not be wearing any clothes at all under that blanket. The thought has me gritting my teeth and mentally kicking myself for only having two condoms on me.