Chapter 8

SETH

Seth was enjoying the soft flush on her cheeks, and he wondered what had made her so flustered.

Her eyes had gone a molten gold as she stared at the rug, leading him to believe that her thoughts had not been as coy as she was.

Watching her reaction to her imagination and his subsequent teasing had his heart beating hard inside his chest in anticipation. And her denial was fanning the flames in his veins.

“I’m going to make us some coffee,” she said softly, getting to her feet. He smiled as he grasped her wrist, yanking her onto his lap as a sharp squeal escaped her lush lips.

“Not until you tell me what you were thinking,” he said softly, placing one hand on her hip and the other at the back of her head to keep her in place.

They were touching ~everywhere~, and Seth realized that his game could backfire on him as she wriggled to get free.

“Oh, no…,” she said breathlessly, shaking her head, the tendrils that had loosened from her French braid brushing against his face.

He leaned closer and touched the corner of her mouth with the tip of his tongue, barely suppressing the groan that threatened to escape.

~Vanilla and mint~… That was what her skin tasted like. Her fingers tightened on his shoulders for balance.

His errant tongue slowly licked across her tempting bottom lip, drawing a soft sigh from her mouth in quiet invitation.

He withdrew his wayward tongue and left a trail of warm air across her cheek to her ear. She shivered as he kissed her lobe, her friction against him making his stomach tighten.

“Tell me,” he whispered.

“N—no,” she mumbled.

He felt his bones melt in relief. He hadn’t realized how deeply he was waiting for that denial.

“I have never been so relieved to hear a woman say ~no~.”

Indie’s laughter dissolved into a moan when his tongue glided down the column of her neck, ending at the point where her pulse beat erratically, inviting him to join the subtle rhythm.

Her skin was so warm and sweet, making him want to explore the rest of her softness for a very long time.

Seth lowered her to the sofa’s cushions, leaning his weight on his elbow above her head so he could curl his fist into her cinnamon locks.

With her buttocks still settled firmly across his lap, her back was arched, exposing the shape of her full breasts to him.

He sucked in a deep breath, nipping her neck and grazing her throat with his teeth. He felt the vibration as she moaned deeply, the sound reverberating into his soul.

He slid a hand under the hem of her sweater, seeking the silky heat of her skin and feeling the satisfied smile on his face when she gasped at the contact.

He pushed her clothing up and placed a kiss on her sternum, feeling her heartbeat increase beneath his lips. “Tell me…”

“Seth…,” she hissed, her husky voice sending a shiver down his spine.

He ran his tongue along the bottom edge of her bra, slowing down as he reached the sensitive swell, deviating toward her ribs.

She fisted her hand in his hair in protest, and he couldn’t contain his smile as he looked up at her.

He arched a brow as he dipped his tongue into her navel. “Tell me…”

“Fine…,” she whimpered, then drew a deep breath. “I was seeing you—me—us—on the rug in front of the fire…”

Her words came out fast and in a single breath. She moaned when he blew air across her hardened nipple.

“Was that so hard?” he teased. With a soft growl, she tightened her fingers in his hair and pulled his head up to her, but Seth pulled back just before their lips met.

She opened her eyes to look at him, and there was no way he could stop the growl that escaped as he took her mouth in a searing kiss.

“That was the best ~no~ I have ever said,” Indie gasped as they broke apart. Seth laughed as he pulled her sweater over her head, then bent his head to kiss her exposed shoulder.

She shifted back until her head reached the opposite side of the couch, cupping his jaw to pull him in for another kiss.

He moved to cover her with his body and thought he had touched heaven when he settled between her thighs.

A breath hissed from between his teeth when her womanly curves cupped his hardness, the heat engulfing him even through their clothing.

She slipped her hand under his sweater and scraped her nails up his spine, making him shudder. The action caused friction in their intimate connection, making them both moan.

Indie increased the contact by wrapping one leg around his waist.

“Seth…,” she breathed his name, and he felt his insides ignite. He bent his head and sucked her nipple into his mouth, making her arch her back as she cried out.

She lifted her hips, the movement causing him to groan. She wrapped her fist in his hair again as she moaned his name. “~Seth~…”

She turned her hips a bit and Seth pulled back to look at her reluctantly. “You okay?”

“No,” she moaned as she put her hand beneath her butt. “My phone is ringing.”

“Why?” Seth groaned, dropping his head to her shoulder as she pulled the offending plastic from her pocket. She giggled as she checked the caller ID.

“I have to take this. It’s my sister. She’s stuck somewhere in the Andes.” Seth could see that regret and excitement were shining from her eyes in equal measure.

“Shit,” he groaned as he extricated himself from her body, immediately feeling bereft at their separation.

Why were they constantly interrupted? When he was dreaming it was one thing, but when they were ~actually~ together, too?!

Seth walked over to Indie’s wall, where a tiny photo placed at the outer edge of the grouping caught his eye.

It showed a tiny baby wrapped in a pink blanket, her name spelled out in letters made of ladybugs and butterflies: ~Indigo Madison Aphrodite Dawson~.

He traced his finger over the tiny bundle and was reminded of a similar photo in his wallet, the tattoo on his forearm burning with memories.

“Seth?”

He turned back to Indie, his smile firmly in place. “How about we keep things cool…and go on an actual date tomor—the day after tomorrow?”

She raised an eyebrow.

“I’m on late shift tomorrow,” he explained with a shrug.

“Okay.”

He could see something flicker in her eyes, a dimness he didn’t like, as she watched him put on his jacket.

She walked him to the door and crossed her arms as she waited for him to leave, her eyes downcast.

This evening had not gone as he had expected, from ending up at her shop after leaving the hospital to them exploring the cushiness of her couch, to the interruption of its natural conclusion.

He’d be damned if he was going to leave her with any doubts about how it should have ended.