Page 27 of Nailing Studs
Damn.
“Two sets of hands who respond to the tiniest moan from your lips, the softest sigh, the smallest twitch of your hips?”
I was losing my will to hold myself back. He was taking me apart word by word, inch by inch as his fingers moved along my thigh, into my hair. I gasped when his finger slipped inside the frayed hem of my jean shorts. Grabbing his wrist, I held him still. I squeezed tighter.
“Well,” he said, a devilish grin playing at his lips, “have you thought about it or not?”
I nodded, loving the way his hand curled under my hair against the skin at the back of my neck. “Sure. What woman hasn’t? But it’s tightly locked in my fantasies.” Yet with him touching me like this, what was real and imagination were blurring together with each passing second.
“From where I was standing, the fantasies you were having looked pretty damn good.”
I laughed breathlessly. “Yeah, well, they were.” I could have taken the leap forward at that point. Told Dominic exactly what I’d been fantasizing. I could have asked him to make it a reality and kiss me. But I wasn’t ready.
Pushing his hand away gently, I cleared my throat. “I need a little more time. I’m not saying no; I’m just not saying yes yet. Can you give me that?”
He seemed reluctant to let me go, but as he studied my face, he seemed to realize I needed more space. After all, they’d told me of their plans less than an hour ago.
“Yeah, totally. And we’d need you fully on board with this—there’s no pleasure in entering into something like this unwillingly.” Dominic nodded. He retracted his hand and headed to the door. He paused, then tilted his head. “Hey, wanna come take a look at something in the next bedroom?”
“Bedroom, huh? Is that a ploy?” I laughed.
He glanced at me over his shoulder, the light expression he’d worn earlier replaced by his usual shadows. “I don’t do ploys, Kayla. It’s all about being up front and honest for me.”
“Which I appreciate more than you’ll ever know,” I muttered, following him out of my room. We crossed the hall to the open and expansive loft that Tabitha had used as a sewing room and additional guest bedroom. I’d always loved this spot filled with shelves, books, and knickknacks, plus all of Tabitha’s sewing stuff. Now it sat empty except for one chair.
Dominic flicked on the light, then pointed to the top corner of the room. “See it?”
I squinted and shook my head. “Sorry, I don’t…”
Dominic grabbed the single chair in the room. “Up you go.”
I stepped up onto the chair’s seat, which promptly gave out.I shrieked and tumbled, only to be caught by a pair of strong arms.
“I guess that’s why they left the chair.” Dom chuckled, his warm breath brushing against my ear.
“Stupid piece of junk. You almost killed me. Not you, the chair.” I clung to Dominic to regain my balance. His broad shoulders felt sturdy, strong, safe. His skin smelled nice too, like something musky and spicy.
“Here, since we’re like this already, let me lift you up. When I do, look inside that corner. Got it?”
“Got it.” I felt my heart flutter.
Dominic scooped me up in his arms and hoisted me high. No big deal. Just a man, lifting a full-grown, slightly overweight woman as though she were light as a feather. I wasn’t sure what to do with my hands, so I placed one against Dominic’s chest. Straining, I scanned the area for what I was meant to be looking at. Honestly, it was hard to focus on anything except his arms cradling my ass.
“You see, there?”
I narrowed my eyes and finally made out the shape of a nest buried in the shadows of the ceiling. Inside were little baby birds making peeping noises, all stretching out their necks, waiting for their parents to feed them. “I see it,” I told him. “So cute!”
I was enjoying being held by this man far too much. I didn’t want this moment to end, but I couldn’t stay on his shoulder forever. Eventually, he effortlessly set me back on my feet.
“What do you want to do about that? See if I can move it outside?” he asked.
“Let’s leave them for now. I’ll call animal control later to make sure they don’t get hurt when we remove them.” I suggested.
He was still holding me and I realized how close our mouths were, how easy it would be to lean up and kiss him. His lips were full and perfect for nibbling on. Dominic’s hands flexed, as if he wastesting out the firmness of my waist.
I heard footsteps coming up the stairwell. I started to pull out of Dom’s hold to turn and greet Taylor, but for a second, Dom’s hold tightened, as if he were training me to get accustomed to three of us together. But when Taylor entered the room, Dom let me go.
“Hey, didn’t realize carrying you around was part of our job description,” Taylor said, grinning at me.