Tempting Prince Charming, page 11
“No, Thad, please. You’ve done enough already. I can’t have you become her nanny.”
The playboy winked at her. He leaned in and whispered, “Maybe we can think of a fun way for you to make it up to me? A dozen kisses, perhaps?”
A dozen kisses? She would give him a hell of a lot more than that if he wanted.
She held out a hand. “Deal.”
“Deal.” He shook her hand and then stood. “I need to make a few calls first, and it sounds like Zelda’s downstairs, so I’ll go check in with her.”
Just like that, he was gone. The apartment felt empty now without his strong, calm presence. Veronica had a terrible feeling she could get used to him being here far too easily. And that was the last thing she could afford… to fall in love with a man destined to break her heart.
9
Thad stepped into the stairwell that led down to the coffee shop and dialed Simon’s number.
“Good morning, sir,” Simon greeted.
“Simon, I need you to do me a favor. I stayed over at Veronica’s last night. She came down with the flu and has no one to look after her. I’m going to call Winston over at the Gold Circle. He’ll pack my weekender bag and bring it down to you.”
“Yes, sir.”
“And I’ll need you to do another favor.”
“Name it.”
“I have two young passengers, a high schooler and a four-year-old who need a ride to school at seven-thirty, then back from school to the Chi-Bean around three.”
“Easily handled, sir.”
Thad hung up and descended the stairs to let Zelda into the shop. She was waiting outside the store in the dark, bundled up in a heavy coat and woolen hat. He unlocked the front door and let her in.
She removed her gear and looked over him critically. “Well, you look like you’re in one piece. Glad to see you survived the night. Did she?”
“Everything went well,” he assured the petite blonde. He didn’t tell her how his neck and back were stiff as hell from his awkward sleeping position or how his head throbbed from a lack of proper sleep.
“You look like you need coffee,” Zelda said as she stepped behind the counter. She started prepping a machine to make him a drink.
“I wouldn’t turn down a cup,” he admitted with an exhausted smile. “Veronica’s a little anxious about the shop today. You said Zach and Beth were able to help out for a few days, right?”
“Yeah, they can work more hours. Zach should be here in fifteen minutes.” Zelda poured him a fresh cup of coffee, which he accepted gratefully. Caffeine was going to be his best friend today.
“Do you want to go up and check on Veronica?” Thad asked.
“I might when Zach gets here. Still got things to do here.”
He nodded. “I’ll be working remotely today so I can stay and help her out.”
“Thanks for that.” Zelda passed him a fresh cup of coffee. “I’m glad she has someone watching out for her.”
Zelda’s words made him realize just how much Veronica needed someone, at least at times like this, and he was glad to be there for her.
When he went back upstairs, he found Veronica passed out on the couch. Her dark hair was plaited in a long loose braid and one of her hands draped off the couch. Her face was smooth with sleep, yet even in her dreams she still looked worried, with a hint of a frown.
Thad gently tucked her hand back under the blanket before he braced one of his own hands on the armrests and leaned over to brush the backs of his fingers over her cheek. He pulled the blanket tight around her. Her nose was a little red and her skin a bit too pale, but she didn’t feel hot to the touch like she had last night. Suddenly, a little body pressed next to him.
“She fell asleep while you were gone,” Lyra said in a whisper.
“Yes, she needs to sleep. Gives her body time to get better. So you and I will need to be quiet while we get you ready for school. Do you have a backpack or something you take to class?”
She nodded and held up a green sparkly princess backpack.
“Good. Let’s figure out your clothes.” They went into her bedroom and he eyed the closet and dresser, totally lost. “What do you usually wear to school?”
The girl tried to open the top dresser drawer. Thad helped her. Inside were neatly folded rows of little leggings and shirts. He did his best to find what matched, but decided it was time to get Zelda involved.
“Stay right here,” he commanded, perhaps a bit too seriously. The girl giggled as though he was the funniest thing in the world and crawled onto her bed. He opened the door that led to the Chi-Bean below and saw Zelda had left the bottom door open.
He called down the stairs, “Hey Zelda!”
Her face appeared in the doorway. “Yeah?”
“Can you help Lyra change for school? I can watch for Zach to arrive.”
“Sure.”
She and Thad passed each other halfway on the stairs. Thad waited by the front door of the coffee shop for Zach to show up. When he did, Thad let him in and hurried back upstairs.
Zelda laughed as she met him halfway down the stairs again. “All done.”
“Thanks. If you see my driver, let me know. He’ll be taking Lyra and the neighbor girl to school.”
“Katie too? Okay, I’ll tell her when I see her.”
“That be great, thanks.”
Half an hour later, Thad was pulled in a dozen directions as he marshaled Lyra and a blushing teenage girl out the door into Simon’s care. He’d already had his driver figure out what sort of car seat he’d need for her age and had the driver pick it up before coming over.
His driver had raised his eyebrows at being introduced to Veronica’s daughter but didn’t say anything, for which Thad was grateful. Thad grabbed his brown leather weekender bag from Simon and slung it over his shoulder before heading back inside.
Veronica had slept through all of it, even the two conference calls he’d conducted at the kitchen table.
By lunchtime, Thad needed a shower. He checked on Veronica one more time. She was still sound asleep, so he collected his shower kit from his weekender bag and stepped into the guest bathroom. He hoped Veronica wouldn’t mind.
He ran a palm over his jaw and winced at the thick stubble. He normally never let himself go this long without a shave. Once he was stripped out of his clothes, he reached into the stall and turned on the hot water. As he got inside, the steam eased the ache in his muscles. He sighed and placed a palm on the glass door, drawing in slow deep breaths as he took a minute to process all that happened in the last twelve hours.
What was he doing? He was playing nurse to a sick woman and nanny to a kid?
This was so not him. Yet, he didn’t want to leave. He felt responsible for them somehow. He chuckled at the strange thought and shook his head beneath the spray of water.
Jared was right. Going out with Veronica was different, so very different than he was used to. It was messy, chaotic, and yet he found it all strangely irresistible. After just one week, she’d tilted his world onto a completely different axis. This past day was one step short of total chaos, but he didn’t regret it. The only thing that bothered him was what came next. He wanted Veronica, wanted her to the point of madness, but Lyra was now part of the equation. He didn’t know the formula to solve this particular problem. He knew how to date single women, but a single mother? He was out of his depth here.
Thad scrubbed shampoo in his hair and relaxed. He knew he was alone, since Veronica was asleep. He couldn’t resist testing the acoustics of the bathroom, so he opened his mouth and started to sing.
A beautiful sound pulled Veronica out of pleasant dreams. Somewhere, someone was singing. She sat up in a daze on the couch. She vaguely remembered Thad putting her here and tucking her in. She’d fallen asleep, listening to him and Lyra talk, hadn’t she?
She picked up her cell phone from the floor to check the time. 2:30. There was no sign of Lyra. Had Thad found Katie and gotten the girls off to school? Veronica wrapped the fleece blanket around her like a shawl and moved through the apartment in search of the music. As she got closer to the guestroom, she recognized the baritone. It was Thad singing. Hearing his voice was like drinking the smoothest of whiskeys and it was coming from the guest bathroom.
Don’t do it… Don’t…
Screw it.
She opened the door and the heat of the humid air curled around her, chasing away the chill in her bones. The glass was fogged, but only barely. She could see the outline of Thad’s tall, muscled form all too clearly as he showered. Thad’s palm appeared on the glass as he tilted his head back beneath the nozzle, and something primal stole through Veronica.
She dropped the blanket around her and walked toward the shower. She was too shy to remove her clothes, but she wanted so desperately to be near him, to touch him. In that moment, his presence called to her like a star’s gravity pulling her into his orbit.
Veronica opened the shower door and his voice died away. His dark gold hair hung in slightly wet curled tendrils against his ears and the back of his neck as he faced her. She swallowed hard and swept her gaze down his body. Every inch of him was perfect. She stared below his waist and was not at all disappointed. In fact, his size was actually daunting. She raised her eyes back up and saw that he was watching her with a relaxed perusal of his own.
A dark spiraling tribal style tattoo of a bird covered part of his right shoulder and pectoral. It was the only thing that marked his perfect body.
“You want to join me?”
Thad’s invitation was impossible to resist. “Do—do you mind?”
“Not at all.” He moved back half a foot while she removed her boxers and panties but left the long T-shirt on. She wasn’t ready for that next step, but she was close. He didn’t say anything about her choice.
“What is your tattoo of?” she asked as she closed them both inside the shower. He moved so the hot water covered her, soaking her shirt and plastering it to her skin. She reached up and traced the beautiful design with her fingertips.
“It’s a phoenix. Symbolic of rebirth among the ashes. I like the idea that even if you burn up you can still get a second chance.”
Veronica kept her hands on his skin, now stroking the hard planes of his chest until her fingers circled each of his nipples. “It’s beautiful. When did you get it?” He huffed at that caress and a rush of power filled her. She was affecting this gorgeous God of a man with just her touch.
“I got it when I turned twenty-four… I may have also lost a bet with Angelo and Jared and I may have been more than a little inebriated. I don’t regret it, though.” He hissed out another breath as she dragged her nails lightly down his abs to the V-shaped muscles of his hipbones.
“Fuck, honey,” he groaned as she continued to touch him with teasing strokes. “Keep it up and I’ll embarrass myself.”
Veronica wanted him to kiss her, wanted it so much it hurt. But she was still sick, and Thad didn’t deserve to get the flu after everything he’d done.
“I shouldn’t be here. I don’t want to get you sick.”
Thad smiled. “Well, I got a flu shot recently, remember?”
“Those aren’t a hundred percent effective.”
“Maybe I’m willing to take the chance.” She sighed as she turned to face the water, so it splashed down her chest. He rubbed her shoulders, his strong fingers digging into the knots she didn’t even know she had.
“Oh God, of course you have magic fingers,” she moaned and leaned back against him. His chuckle sent ripples of arousal through her, building up and making her long desperately to go further than she’d planned with him today.
“Just wait until you see all the things these fingers can do.” His teasing only made her desire burn hotter. Veronica clenched her thighs together. She felt safe in this warm enclosed space with him, as though anything she said in the quiet sanctity of the shower would be protected. “Thank you for taking care of me. Of us.”
“You deserve to be looked after.” His voice was gruff, as though he was annoyed no one had been there before to do it. She turned in his hold and his arms slid down her back, his fingers clenching the fabric of her soaked T-shirt just above her bottom.
“It’s been hard,” she confessed. “I want to say that everything’s been easy, that I have it all together, but I don’t. I barely get by. Every day I ask myself if I’m hurting Lyra if I don’t give her everything she needs. Then I get so stressed I can barely breathe—” She choked on the rest of her words and he simply pulled her deeper into his embrace.
“Hey, lean on me,” he whispered in her ear. “It’s okay. Let me ease your burdens, honey. Please.” His voice was so soft, so smooth and reassuring.
“And when you leave?” She dared to ask. She rubbed her cheek against his chest, her arms twisting about him.
“I don’t plan to leave anytime soon, so don’t worry.” His arms were like twin bands of steel holding her together. He made it all sound so easy, to not think about that day when he’d eventually get tired of her. But Veronica spent all of her life grounded and knew better than to keep her head in the clouds.
“Just promise you’ll warn me before you leave.”
Thad was silent a long while before he answered. “Neither of us know where this is going, but I understand what you’re saying. You want to be realistic. You have to be. I will always be honest with you, no matter how things end up.”
His answer stung, but they both knew this was only temporary. He wasn’t ready to settle down yet, and she couldn’t afford to attach herself to anyone, not unless she went all in, and she wasn’t sure she would ever be ready for that.
Thad let go of her and reached for the shampoo bottle. “Turn around.”
She gave him her back and he washed her hair. When she was ready to wash the rest of herself, he pressed a kiss to her forehead and stepped out of the shower, giving her some privacy to remove her t-shirt. He seemed to understand that she still needed time before she was ready to be intimate with him. Given that they’d only gone on a few dates, they’d already leaped light years ahead of most couples.
When she emerged from the shower, he handed her a fluffy white towel, which she wrapped around her body. He stood at the sink, filling up a face brush with shaving cream. The crisp, tart-scented cream brought back memories of watching Parker shave. A bittersweet ache filled her as she saw Thad move the razor over his jaw and chin in slow measured strokes, taking time between each to run the razor under the water and clean it off. Halfway through, he noticed her watching him.
“It’s been a while since I’ve seen a man do that,” she admitted. It had been a while since she’d seen a man do a lot of things up close. Now more than ever, she realized how deeply she’d buried her loneliness.
“You can watch me shave anytime.” He finished shaving and flicked his wet fingertips at her. She squealed and grabbed her wet t-shirt from the floor of the shower and flung it at him.
Thad lunged for her. She laughed as she tried to evade him, but he caught her by the waist and pulled her flush against him. Their laughter slowly died as he held her in his arms, their bodies separated only by their clean towels. Their faces were close, but not touching, their gazes locked.
“This is crazy, isn’t it?” she asked.
He cupped her cheek with one palm, and she leaned into him.
“Maybe it is, but I like this kind of madness.”
Thad leaned in and kissed her. She tensed, trying to push him away. “You’ll get sick.”
“I won’t, but even if I do, it’ll be worth it,” Thad said and covered her mouth with his again. In that moment, she released all her anxiety about the last day. The kiss started soft, but soon hardened in the most delicious way, as if he wanted to devour her. She sighed in sweet pleasure as she explored his mouth, embracing the sharp need for more. She trembled, her knees knocking into each other as she envisioned his body mimicking the gentle thrust of his tongue between her lips. She lost count of the hours or perhaps days this moment seemed to last. When their mouths finally parted, she was clutching his shoulders and he was holding onto her tightly.
“Unfortunately, I’ve got some work to do before Lyra gets home, and you still need to rest,” he said with reluctance, as though he wanted to say something more. Doubt soon crept into her mind. Had he truly wanted more, or was he already losing interest? And how pathetic was she to already be worrying about that?
“We need to go slow. I don’t want to rush this,” Thad said, answering her unspoken fears.
“You mean that?”
He traced her lips with his fingertips. “Yes, I do. Sometimes fast is fun, fast is easy, but everything about you is different. I want to take my time with you, even if it kills me.” He flashed her that charming grin that made her belly flutter.
“But maybe not too slow?” She found herself asking.
“Not too slow,” he agreed and playfully slapped her bottom. “Go and put on something comfy. I want you either in bed or on the couch. I have some soup for your lunch. All right?”
“All right.” She thought she would never want to eat again after last night, but her appetite was coming back with a vengeance. By the time she’d changed, brushed her teeth again and came out into the living room, Thad was unpacking a bag of food.
“You didn’t need to order in. I had soup cans in the pantry.”
He scoffed. “Cans? You need homemade soup. Angelo makes the best chicken noodle.” He set the soup out on a small tray and brought it over. She couldn’t help but admire his long, lean form and how relaxed and sexy he looked in his jeans and moss green Henley top. He looked good in everything, especially if a camera was pointed at him. Just looking at him revved Veronica’s body back up, but she was too exhausted to really do much about it. And a part of her agreed with him: now was not the time to rush into anything.
She finished her soup while he worked at his computer and over the phone. Veronica was fascinated seeing him in his element. He was ruthless at times, pushing his terms as he negotiated deals over Zoom meetings. He always smiled as he finished a deal, even the people who caved to his terms sounded happy to be doing business with him. He really was a beast in the boardroom, and it was surprisingly hot to watch.
The playboy winked at her. He leaned in and whispered, “Maybe we can think of a fun way for you to make it up to me? A dozen kisses, perhaps?”
A dozen kisses? She would give him a hell of a lot more than that if he wanted.
She held out a hand. “Deal.”
“Deal.” He shook her hand and then stood. “I need to make a few calls first, and it sounds like Zelda’s downstairs, so I’ll go check in with her.”
Just like that, he was gone. The apartment felt empty now without his strong, calm presence. Veronica had a terrible feeling she could get used to him being here far too easily. And that was the last thing she could afford… to fall in love with a man destined to break her heart.
9
Thad stepped into the stairwell that led down to the coffee shop and dialed Simon’s number.
“Good morning, sir,” Simon greeted.
“Simon, I need you to do me a favor. I stayed over at Veronica’s last night. She came down with the flu and has no one to look after her. I’m going to call Winston over at the Gold Circle. He’ll pack my weekender bag and bring it down to you.”
“Yes, sir.”
“And I’ll need you to do another favor.”
“Name it.”
“I have two young passengers, a high schooler and a four-year-old who need a ride to school at seven-thirty, then back from school to the Chi-Bean around three.”
“Easily handled, sir.”
Thad hung up and descended the stairs to let Zelda into the shop. She was waiting outside the store in the dark, bundled up in a heavy coat and woolen hat. He unlocked the front door and let her in.
She removed her gear and looked over him critically. “Well, you look like you’re in one piece. Glad to see you survived the night. Did she?”
“Everything went well,” he assured the petite blonde. He didn’t tell her how his neck and back were stiff as hell from his awkward sleeping position or how his head throbbed from a lack of proper sleep.
“You look like you need coffee,” Zelda said as she stepped behind the counter. She started prepping a machine to make him a drink.
“I wouldn’t turn down a cup,” he admitted with an exhausted smile. “Veronica’s a little anxious about the shop today. You said Zach and Beth were able to help out for a few days, right?”
“Yeah, they can work more hours. Zach should be here in fifteen minutes.” Zelda poured him a fresh cup of coffee, which he accepted gratefully. Caffeine was going to be his best friend today.
“Do you want to go up and check on Veronica?” Thad asked.
“I might when Zach gets here. Still got things to do here.”
He nodded. “I’ll be working remotely today so I can stay and help her out.”
“Thanks for that.” Zelda passed him a fresh cup of coffee. “I’m glad she has someone watching out for her.”
Zelda’s words made him realize just how much Veronica needed someone, at least at times like this, and he was glad to be there for her.
When he went back upstairs, he found Veronica passed out on the couch. Her dark hair was plaited in a long loose braid and one of her hands draped off the couch. Her face was smooth with sleep, yet even in her dreams she still looked worried, with a hint of a frown.
Thad gently tucked her hand back under the blanket before he braced one of his own hands on the armrests and leaned over to brush the backs of his fingers over her cheek. He pulled the blanket tight around her. Her nose was a little red and her skin a bit too pale, but she didn’t feel hot to the touch like she had last night. Suddenly, a little body pressed next to him.
“She fell asleep while you were gone,” Lyra said in a whisper.
“Yes, she needs to sleep. Gives her body time to get better. So you and I will need to be quiet while we get you ready for school. Do you have a backpack or something you take to class?”
She nodded and held up a green sparkly princess backpack.
“Good. Let’s figure out your clothes.” They went into her bedroom and he eyed the closet and dresser, totally lost. “What do you usually wear to school?”
The girl tried to open the top dresser drawer. Thad helped her. Inside were neatly folded rows of little leggings and shirts. He did his best to find what matched, but decided it was time to get Zelda involved.
“Stay right here,” he commanded, perhaps a bit too seriously. The girl giggled as though he was the funniest thing in the world and crawled onto her bed. He opened the door that led to the Chi-Bean below and saw Zelda had left the bottom door open.
He called down the stairs, “Hey Zelda!”
Her face appeared in the doorway. “Yeah?”
“Can you help Lyra change for school? I can watch for Zach to arrive.”
“Sure.”
She and Thad passed each other halfway on the stairs. Thad waited by the front door of the coffee shop for Zach to show up. When he did, Thad let him in and hurried back upstairs.
Zelda laughed as she met him halfway down the stairs again. “All done.”
“Thanks. If you see my driver, let me know. He’ll be taking Lyra and the neighbor girl to school.”
“Katie too? Okay, I’ll tell her when I see her.”
“That be great, thanks.”
Half an hour later, Thad was pulled in a dozen directions as he marshaled Lyra and a blushing teenage girl out the door into Simon’s care. He’d already had his driver figure out what sort of car seat he’d need for her age and had the driver pick it up before coming over.
His driver had raised his eyebrows at being introduced to Veronica’s daughter but didn’t say anything, for which Thad was grateful. Thad grabbed his brown leather weekender bag from Simon and slung it over his shoulder before heading back inside.
Veronica had slept through all of it, even the two conference calls he’d conducted at the kitchen table.
By lunchtime, Thad needed a shower. He checked on Veronica one more time. She was still sound asleep, so he collected his shower kit from his weekender bag and stepped into the guest bathroom. He hoped Veronica wouldn’t mind.
He ran a palm over his jaw and winced at the thick stubble. He normally never let himself go this long without a shave. Once he was stripped out of his clothes, he reached into the stall and turned on the hot water. As he got inside, the steam eased the ache in his muscles. He sighed and placed a palm on the glass door, drawing in slow deep breaths as he took a minute to process all that happened in the last twelve hours.
What was he doing? He was playing nurse to a sick woman and nanny to a kid?
This was so not him. Yet, he didn’t want to leave. He felt responsible for them somehow. He chuckled at the strange thought and shook his head beneath the spray of water.
Jared was right. Going out with Veronica was different, so very different than he was used to. It was messy, chaotic, and yet he found it all strangely irresistible. After just one week, she’d tilted his world onto a completely different axis. This past day was one step short of total chaos, but he didn’t regret it. The only thing that bothered him was what came next. He wanted Veronica, wanted her to the point of madness, but Lyra was now part of the equation. He didn’t know the formula to solve this particular problem. He knew how to date single women, but a single mother? He was out of his depth here.
Thad scrubbed shampoo in his hair and relaxed. He knew he was alone, since Veronica was asleep. He couldn’t resist testing the acoustics of the bathroom, so he opened his mouth and started to sing.
A beautiful sound pulled Veronica out of pleasant dreams. Somewhere, someone was singing. She sat up in a daze on the couch. She vaguely remembered Thad putting her here and tucking her in. She’d fallen asleep, listening to him and Lyra talk, hadn’t she?
She picked up her cell phone from the floor to check the time. 2:30. There was no sign of Lyra. Had Thad found Katie and gotten the girls off to school? Veronica wrapped the fleece blanket around her like a shawl and moved through the apartment in search of the music. As she got closer to the guestroom, she recognized the baritone. It was Thad singing. Hearing his voice was like drinking the smoothest of whiskeys and it was coming from the guest bathroom.
Don’t do it… Don’t…
Screw it.
She opened the door and the heat of the humid air curled around her, chasing away the chill in her bones. The glass was fogged, but only barely. She could see the outline of Thad’s tall, muscled form all too clearly as he showered. Thad’s palm appeared on the glass as he tilted his head back beneath the nozzle, and something primal stole through Veronica.
She dropped the blanket around her and walked toward the shower. She was too shy to remove her clothes, but she wanted so desperately to be near him, to touch him. In that moment, his presence called to her like a star’s gravity pulling her into his orbit.
Veronica opened the shower door and his voice died away. His dark gold hair hung in slightly wet curled tendrils against his ears and the back of his neck as he faced her. She swallowed hard and swept her gaze down his body. Every inch of him was perfect. She stared below his waist and was not at all disappointed. In fact, his size was actually daunting. She raised her eyes back up and saw that he was watching her with a relaxed perusal of his own.
A dark spiraling tribal style tattoo of a bird covered part of his right shoulder and pectoral. It was the only thing that marked his perfect body.
“You want to join me?”
Thad’s invitation was impossible to resist. “Do—do you mind?”
“Not at all.” He moved back half a foot while she removed her boxers and panties but left the long T-shirt on. She wasn’t ready for that next step, but she was close. He didn’t say anything about her choice.
“What is your tattoo of?” she asked as she closed them both inside the shower. He moved so the hot water covered her, soaking her shirt and plastering it to her skin. She reached up and traced the beautiful design with her fingertips.
“It’s a phoenix. Symbolic of rebirth among the ashes. I like the idea that even if you burn up you can still get a second chance.”
Veronica kept her hands on his skin, now stroking the hard planes of his chest until her fingers circled each of his nipples. “It’s beautiful. When did you get it?” He huffed at that caress and a rush of power filled her. She was affecting this gorgeous God of a man with just her touch.
“I got it when I turned twenty-four… I may have also lost a bet with Angelo and Jared and I may have been more than a little inebriated. I don’t regret it, though.” He hissed out another breath as she dragged her nails lightly down his abs to the V-shaped muscles of his hipbones.
“Fuck, honey,” he groaned as she continued to touch him with teasing strokes. “Keep it up and I’ll embarrass myself.”
Veronica wanted him to kiss her, wanted it so much it hurt. But she was still sick, and Thad didn’t deserve to get the flu after everything he’d done.
“I shouldn’t be here. I don’t want to get you sick.”
Thad smiled. “Well, I got a flu shot recently, remember?”
“Those aren’t a hundred percent effective.”
“Maybe I’m willing to take the chance.” She sighed as she turned to face the water, so it splashed down her chest. He rubbed her shoulders, his strong fingers digging into the knots she didn’t even know she had.
“Oh God, of course you have magic fingers,” she moaned and leaned back against him. His chuckle sent ripples of arousal through her, building up and making her long desperately to go further than she’d planned with him today.
“Just wait until you see all the things these fingers can do.” His teasing only made her desire burn hotter. Veronica clenched her thighs together. She felt safe in this warm enclosed space with him, as though anything she said in the quiet sanctity of the shower would be protected. “Thank you for taking care of me. Of us.”
“You deserve to be looked after.” His voice was gruff, as though he was annoyed no one had been there before to do it. She turned in his hold and his arms slid down her back, his fingers clenching the fabric of her soaked T-shirt just above her bottom.
“It’s been hard,” she confessed. “I want to say that everything’s been easy, that I have it all together, but I don’t. I barely get by. Every day I ask myself if I’m hurting Lyra if I don’t give her everything she needs. Then I get so stressed I can barely breathe—” She choked on the rest of her words and he simply pulled her deeper into his embrace.
“Hey, lean on me,” he whispered in her ear. “It’s okay. Let me ease your burdens, honey. Please.” His voice was so soft, so smooth and reassuring.
“And when you leave?” She dared to ask. She rubbed her cheek against his chest, her arms twisting about him.
“I don’t plan to leave anytime soon, so don’t worry.” His arms were like twin bands of steel holding her together. He made it all sound so easy, to not think about that day when he’d eventually get tired of her. But Veronica spent all of her life grounded and knew better than to keep her head in the clouds.
“Just promise you’ll warn me before you leave.”
Thad was silent a long while before he answered. “Neither of us know where this is going, but I understand what you’re saying. You want to be realistic. You have to be. I will always be honest with you, no matter how things end up.”
His answer stung, but they both knew this was only temporary. He wasn’t ready to settle down yet, and she couldn’t afford to attach herself to anyone, not unless she went all in, and she wasn’t sure she would ever be ready for that.
Thad let go of her and reached for the shampoo bottle. “Turn around.”
She gave him her back and he washed her hair. When she was ready to wash the rest of herself, he pressed a kiss to her forehead and stepped out of the shower, giving her some privacy to remove her t-shirt. He seemed to understand that she still needed time before she was ready to be intimate with him. Given that they’d only gone on a few dates, they’d already leaped light years ahead of most couples.
When she emerged from the shower, he handed her a fluffy white towel, which she wrapped around her body. He stood at the sink, filling up a face brush with shaving cream. The crisp, tart-scented cream brought back memories of watching Parker shave. A bittersweet ache filled her as she saw Thad move the razor over his jaw and chin in slow measured strokes, taking time between each to run the razor under the water and clean it off. Halfway through, he noticed her watching him.
“It’s been a while since I’ve seen a man do that,” she admitted. It had been a while since she’d seen a man do a lot of things up close. Now more than ever, she realized how deeply she’d buried her loneliness.
“You can watch me shave anytime.” He finished shaving and flicked his wet fingertips at her. She squealed and grabbed her wet t-shirt from the floor of the shower and flung it at him.
Thad lunged for her. She laughed as she tried to evade him, but he caught her by the waist and pulled her flush against him. Their laughter slowly died as he held her in his arms, their bodies separated only by their clean towels. Their faces were close, but not touching, their gazes locked.
“This is crazy, isn’t it?” she asked.
He cupped her cheek with one palm, and she leaned into him.
“Maybe it is, but I like this kind of madness.”
Thad leaned in and kissed her. She tensed, trying to push him away. “You’ll get sick.”
“I won’t, but even if I do, it’ll be worth it,” Thad said and covered her mouth with his again. In that moment, she released all her anxiety about the last day. The kiss started soft, but soon hardened in the most delicious way, as if he wanted to devour her. She sighed in sweet pleasure as she explored his mouth, embracing the sharp need for more. She trembled, her knees knocking into each other as she envisioned his body mimicking the gentle thrust of his tongue between her lips. She lost count of the hours or perhaps days this moment seemed to last. When their mouths finally parted, she was clutching his shoulders and he was holding onto her tightly.
“Unfortunately, I’ve got some work to do before Lyra gets home, and you still need to rest,” he said with reluctance, as though he wanted to say something more. Doubt soon crept into her mind. Had he truly wanted more, or was he already losing interest? And how pathetic was she to already be worrying about that?
“We need to go slow. I don’t want to rush this,” Thad said, answering her unspoken fears.
“You mean that?”
He traced her lips with his fingertips. “Yes, I do. Sometimes fast is fun, fast is easy, but everything about you is different. I want to take my time with you, even if it kills me.” He flashed her that charming grin that made her belly flutter.
“But maybe not too slow?” She found herself asking.
“Not too slow,” he agreed and playfully slapped her bottom. “Go and put on something comfy. I want you either in bed or on the couch. I have some soup for your lunch. All right?”
“All right.” She thought she would never want to eat again after last night, but her appetite was coming back with a vengeance. By the time she’d changed, brushed her teeth again and came out into the living room, Thad was unpacking a bag of food.
“You didn’t need to order in. I had soup cans in the pantry.”
He scoffed. “Cans? You need homemade soup. Angelo makes the best chicken noodle.” He set the soup out on a small tray and brought it over. She couldn’t help but admire his long, lean form and how relaxed and sexy he looked in his jeans and moss green Henley top. He looked good in everything, especially if a camera was pointed at him. Just looking at him revved Veronica’s body back up, but she was too exhausted to really do much about it. And a part of her agreed with him: now was not the time to rush into anything.
She finished her soup while he worked at his computer and over the phone. Veronica was fascinated seeing him in his element. He was ruthless at times, pushing his terms as he negotiated deals over Zoom meetings. He always smiled as he finished a deal, even the people who caved to his terms sounded happy to be doing business with him. He really was a beast in the boardroom, and it was surprisingly hot to watch.
