Total pages in book: 78
Estimated words: 74577 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 373(@200wpm)___ 298(@250wpm)___ 249(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 74577 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 373(@200wpm)___ 298(@250wpm)___ 249(@300wpm)
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
AJ
I felt like I was floating through life.
Honestly, I don’t think I’d known anything close to this kind of happiness since I was a kid, back when life was carefree and easy.
It was somehow even more fulfilling, though, being an adult with worries and responsibilities, but still finding a marrow-deep sort of contentment.
Obviously, the difference now was Atlas.
I went to sleep with him every night, woke up with him in the mornings. And many hours in between were spent completely naked, exploring each other’s bodies, getting wrapped up in pleasure.
And, God, yes, the pleasure.
Every time Atlas reached for me, I knew that there would be multiple orgasms in my future. He showed me new depths of desire, showed me how an orgasm could completely overwhelm me, dull my other senses, and even rack my system with aftershocks once they subsided.
The craziest thing was, it didn’t seem to matter how many times we had sex, I somehow always craved more.
Even just the casual brush of his hand on my lower back when he passed behind me had little sparks of desire pinged off my nerve endings, making me want to grab him and have yet another round.
I had to admit, even though I kept trying to urge him to take it easy, I was beyond thrilled that he was out of the cast and in the boot. Because, to put it plainly, the man had lots of moves and positions that the cast would have made impossible.
Aside from that, it also meant he was able to leave the house much more easily. Even if I insisted he use the crutches when we got somewhere.
His new SUV was a real treat, too. With actual heat that worked, now that the weather had taken a nosedive toward the thirties. I mean, the man had butt warmers in the seats.
On the nights when we didn’t want to stay in, we played our favorite little game of driving around aimlessly until we hit a restaurant we’d never heard of before, and gave it a try.
Sure, the results were mixed, leaving us ordering in or making frozen pizzas when we got home, but it was a fun little adventure.
We did spend most of our time at home, though, sometimes with Atlas’s laptop sitting on our legs as he scrolled through furniture sites, wanting my opinion on some additions to make to the house.
It occurred to me after we were done, though, that he’d left the decisions almost entirely to me.
An insecure part of me was concerned that he was letting me decorate because he didn’t intend to be around long-term.
I worked hard to squash those thoughts, though, as the days passed and he showed no intentions of leaving, of even talking about getting on the road again.
Most days, while I was at work, he was at physical therapy. Sometimes, he would stop at the doggy daycare to bring me lunch, or drop off coffee if he was getting some.
Other days, he was home all day by himself, and I would come back to find he’d worked on some random project.
Painting the faded hallway. Regrouting the tub. Once, I came home to find he’d built a little picnic table out of scrap wood and turned it into a feeding station for our friendly neighborhood squirrels to eat without getting trapped in the bird feeders.
We’d even ordered a Christmas tree and decorations for outside.
The holiday season was coming up fast.
I found myself wondering what I could get him that he would like. And if, maybe, just maybe, he might be getting me something too.
I couldn’t remember the last time I had been given a gift.
Way back at the beginning of our relationship, Joss did get me things here and there. But, looking back, it was really gifts for himself. Cookbooks. Kitchen gadgets. A stationary bike, so I could lose weight for him.
It was never anything I would personally enjoy, something that he saw and thought of that might bring me happiness. It was just for his own desires.
“Earth to AJ,” Ella called, making me snap out of my thoughts, finding her standing there in front of me, pulling a pink hat with a big pom-pom on top onto her head.
“Oh, sorry, what was that?”
“I know that look,” she said, suddenly leaning over the desk, resting her arms on it, her smile girlish. “Does your distraction have anything to do with Mr. Tall, Dark, and Sexy?” she asked. “And don’t you dare try to tell me that the man is just your landlord,” she said.
“He’s… not just my landlord anymore,” I admitted.
“I mean, duh. My landlord has never brought me lunch to work. Granted, my landlord is an ancient widower who I’m pretty sure can’t even see me properly, but still. Spill.”
“You need to get home to your girls,” I reminded her.