Total pages in book: 31
Estimated words: 28341 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 142(@200wpm)___ 113(@250wpm)___ 94(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 28341 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 142(@200wpm)___ 113(@250wpm)___ 94(@300wpm)
This is what it feels like to be alive. Pleasurable. Thrilling. Intoxicating.
All I’ve been doing is existing.
As my body tips over its peak, I can’t hold back the pitched moan that escapes me. As my body convulses and crashes through wave after wave of indescribable pleasure, his hips are quickening and his hands gripping my ass like a lifeline. In once final jerk, he drags me against the hilt of his member and shudders.
We shift so I can lay down next to him. The couch is too narrow for us to be side by side without laying like spoons. We are both catching our breaths, though he still strokes my side as he lays behind me.
Once I can maintain a typical breathing pattern, I break the tension with a small comment. “Well, that was… unexpected.”
“Agreed,” he mutters, still catching his breath.
“Oh, it can’t be that unexpected for you,” I chortle.
There’s a pause before he replies, “Why is that?”
Peering over my shoulder at him, I raise a brow. “You don’t do this a lot?”
He looks confused, but I don’t think he seems offended. “I’ve never hooked up at work.”
“Really?” I breathe, sitting up in surprise. “You must have women come in all the time, bridesmaids, family members, hell… probably even some brides. That through themselves at you, or at least try to.”
Emanuel shrugs and studies my face. Even after everything we’ve just done, I can’t get over how handsome he is. He’s still dark and handsome, though he’s ever so slightly less of a mystery now after our talk. “I suppose,” he admits. “None of them really ever caught my attention.” He throws me a questioning look. “What about you? Surely you hook up all the time. Men must do Olympic level feats to gain your attention when you go out.”
“I suppose,” I agree with a chuckle. “But I guess I’ve never really been interested in anyone.” We are studying one another, realizing that there very well might be something more here than idol attraction. It seems only logical, right? If we are both throwing caution to the wind and sleeping together within just hours of first meeting one another. Especially when considering that we have always had options, but none ever sparked interest. “So, what do you think this means?”
He clears his throat and sits up then too. Next to me, he rests his elbows on his knees as he rubs his hands together. “I’m not sure… I’ll go ahead and be honest that I’m not exactly… emotionally available at this moment.” His lovely brown eyes peer over to me. “But, I’m open-minded to see what happens here. If you are.”
“I am,” I breathe. “Sounds good to me. I’m not sure I’ve really prepared myself for anything more. No, I didn’t even prepare for this,” I correct immediately with a breathy laugh. I nod, though, and lock eyes with him. “But I'm happy to think on it and keep an open mind too.”
“Good,” he replies, a phantom of a grin on his lips. Emanuel stands and starts putting on his clothes.
With a different sort of feeling coming over me, I follow his lead and dress myself as well—though, I have to go out to the dressing room to find my clothes I came in with. When I emerge from the stall, he’s standing nearby and nods toward the door. We walk out together and he locks up the shop. We pause, looking at one another. My heart skips a beat, and it fills me with hope and worry at the same time. “See you at the next fitting appointment?” he asks.
I nod. “See you then.”
His mouth twitches, and then he leans forward and kisses me lightly. It’s not as carnal as before. It’s sweet and brief. We lock eyes once more, the gaze lingering, before we both turn and walk away. I haven’t any clue if anything more will come from what is between the two of us, but one thing is certain. I’m already excited for our next appointment.
Chapter Six
Emanuel
TWO WEEKS LATER
Life has been normal but in the first time in a very, very long time… it’s blissfully so. Before meeting Wren, life had fallen into what I can only describe as a gray fog. Nothing had been bad or troublesome, but it had been boring and lackluster. Routine had been a nice distraction, I suppose, but now it didn’t feel so draining. I woke up looking forward to having coffee and walking to work, and throwing myself into my tasks once I arrived.
It’s not like Wren had filled me with love, or that we have a new romance blossoming. Maybe some people would think it was shallow and gross to have a new lease on life just because you got laid, but it was more fundamental. What she had done for me was awake a part of me that I had forgotten about. Sex is part of being human and that is what I have somehow managed to forget how to be for the last couple of years. I had engineered myself to simply get through the motions of the day. Completely tasks, fueling myself, and running maintenance on my body like you would expect a robot to.