Total pages in book: 38
Estimated words: 35763 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 179(@200wpm)___ 143(@250wpm)___ 119(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 35763 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 179(@200wpm)___ 143(@250wpm)___ 119(@300wpm)
“I get that, but in life sometimes we have to do things others don’t like because it’s your life. Not theirs. Your mom made the choices that she thought were best. She’s lived her life in a way so that you have that opportunity as well. You have to make the decision that’s best for you.” I nod. I get what she is saying, but I’m not sure it is that easy.
I pull the Jeep into the garage. We enter the house through the side door. The second we do, I feel my heart give a flutter of excitement. I have never experienced this kind of excitement before. It’s different, and I don’t want to lose it.
“I’m going to see what I can make for dinner,” I tell Willa.
“Cool, I’m going to change.”
“All right.” I go to the fridge to see what all we have before I go change too. Willa heads upstairs. I note what we have before checking the pantry next. I need to put in a grocery order. I go to pull my phone out of my bag but pause when I see West standing in the doorway to the pantry.
He’s in a pair of slacks and a buttoned-up shirt. The sleeves are always rolled up, displaying the tattoos on his forearms. How far up do they go?
“Hey.” I smile, speaking first. I don’t want this to be awkward. West glances around before stepping inside and closing the door behind him. When the door clicks closed, it’s as if the air around us changes.
“Hey,” he says back. His eyes roam me up and down, and I regret not having gone back to the guesthouse to change out of my uniform. He doesn’t make a move to come closer to me. The pantry is a pretty good-sized room. “About this morning.”
“Maybe don’t say anything,” I blurt out, scared that he might tell me this isn’t going to work.
“Teddy.” He softens his voice and moves to stand directly in front of me. He lifts his hand to my face, almost cupping my cheek. It feels so close and far away at the same time.
“Touch me,” I whisper, swallowing hard. I leave it in his hand. He has to make a choice. When his hand presses against my cheek, my eyes fall closed, and I lean into him. Then I feel his lips on mine, surprising me.
A surge of ardor filled me along with a desire deeper than I have ever known. I firmly grasp his shirt and return the kiss, I think shocking both myself and West equally. Our mouths part, and our tongues meet in a fierce, electrifying kiss. We both melt into each other.
It isn’t awkward, nor do I feel like I don’t know what I am doing. No, it feels exactly right. As though I was meant to kiss this man. West's arms tightly encircle me, drawing me into his embrace. His mouth moves hungrily over mine. My hands roam up his chest to his shoulder, wanting to touch all of him before I wrap them around his neck.
West lifts me into his arms, and I wrap my legs around him. He tastes like he is mine, with a hearty mix of desire that makes my heart race with excitement. Everything else fades away—the worries of why, if, or of it being wrong vanish. It is only us. All that matters in this moment is the two of us.
When West finally lifts his head and mouth from mine, we both are breathing heavily, trying to catch our breath. Neither of us speaks, only staring into each other's eyes.
There’s no way in hell I’m giving this up.
Chapter Thirteen
WEST
Holy fuck. I have never experienced anything that intense before in my life. I stare down into Teddy’s eyes, knowing I’ll never be able to stay away from her. I debated giving her time and letting her graduate. I realize now that I was only fooling myself. There is no way I can stay away from her. I only have those fleeting thoughts when she isn’t near me. The second I am in her presence, everything goes out the fucking window.
“Okay.” Teddy swipes her tongue across her bottom lip. “You can talk now.”
“I missed you today,” I admit. Her whole face lights up with a bright smile.
“I missed you, too.” I want to ask why she didn’t come straight home then. No, she went to the diner for the longest thirty minutes of my life, but I can’t ask that. I don’t think I’d keep getting this smile, and I’m not willing to do anything to lose it. To lose her.
“What am I going to do with you, Teddy?” My fingers flex on her ass; she lets out a small gasp. When I lifted her into my arms, I hadn’t been thinking about how she was in a skirt. It had bunched up, my hand going under it so there was only her panties between her ass and my hands. My fingers itch to trail along the edge of her panties, but I know I need to take this slowly with her.