Building Up Love: Insta Love Shy Girl Romance #10 Read online

  Taking her hand, I placed it over my chest. “Alison, I’ve never had this reaction to a girl before. You are smart and sweet and beautiful, and I can’t wait to see you on Monday. But for now, I’m going to leave before I tear your clothes off and begin kissing far too much of you.”

  Interrupting her giggle with another deep, soul-scorching kiss, I finally set her on her feet so that I could stand up.

  Reaching into my wallet, I dug out my card. “If you need absolutely anything this weekend, sweetheart, just call or text. Okay?”

  “All right. Thanks.”

  “I can’t wait to see you at work,” I said. “I wish I could see you sooner, but I’m booked all weekend.”

  Her hand darted out to grab my arm. “I hope you’re not working all weekend,” she said quickly, looking concerned. “You’re doing something relaxing, right?”

  I loved that she already cared about me enough to worry that I worked too hard.

  “I need to check on a few job sites tomorrow morning, but Saturday evening and Sunday are my college buddy’s reunion weekend. We go up to his summer house to shoot pool, eat too much barbecue, and dare each other to swim across the cold lake.”

  Her eyes shone with amusement. “An outdoorsy guy. I like it.”

  “And I like you,” I whispered, kissing her gently before turning to the door and leaving quickly before I lost all of my willpower.

  I hated having to leave her for two whole days. After finally being fairly certain that I’d found the girl of my dreams, two days away from her seemed like far too much.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  * Alison *

  After Mark left, I could barely settle down to sleep. Saturday morning I cleaned and organized my apartment a bit. Normally, if I were starting a new job I would be preparing for it, but since I had no idea what the new job was, there was nothing I could do.

  I spent a bit of time researching Mark’s company. I wasn’t an architect or engineer, so I certainly wasn’t going to be doing anything specialized. But every corporation needed administrative people to keep communications running smoothly. Maybe I would be assisting in creating presentations or something like that.

  By Sunday morning, I was becoming incredibly antsy, so I dragged myself off to the market. Hopefully cooking myself a big dinner would calm me down enough to sleep properly. Plus, I could have leftovers for lunch for the next few days at work.

  I had just returned with two bags full of groceries when I heard my phone beep.

  Mark: I can’t stay away from you. May I invite myself over for dinner at your place tonight? I’ll bring takeout and be there at 8, if that’s OK.

  Looking around at all of the fresh vegetables I had just bought, I certainly couldn’t let them wait a day. I was pretty good at the recipe I had planned to make, so perhaps that would show him as my new boss that I was competent and detail-oriented.

  And of course, if I were considering more of the boyfriend angle, all men love a woman who cooks for them. Win-win!

  Me: I was just starting to cook a big dinner, and there will be more than enough for two. See you at eight.

  Mark: Can’t wait to see you. I know it’s weird, but I miss you already.

  A flutter of excitement flew through me. Could he really miss me? It seemed ridiculous, but there was a spark between us that could not be ignored.

  I wasn’t used to men paying any attention to me, especially not huge, confident, gorgeous men like Mark. He should have women tripping all over themselves to get to him.

  As always, I tried to focus on the task at hand, cleaning, chopping and preparing everything so that it could simmer in the crockpot until he arrived.

  As I showered and got ready, I was amused to think that I had no idea what to wear for a casual dinner in my own apartment. Looking like I was trying too hard would be pathetic. I settled on a navy skirt with an open-necked t-shirt with blue flowers on it; it was both casual and pretty, without showing off my breasts too much. Technically, the outfit would be office appropriate, since I still wasn’t quite positive what sort of message I should be sending.

  Mark arrived at ten to eight with a bouquet of wildflowers. Setting them on the counter, he took hold of me immediately, kissing me softly until I thought I was going to melt. It was easier to run my hands over his back in his soft black cotton t-shirt, and he looked so sexy in deep blue-black jeans.

  “Feel free to call me ridiculous, and I apologize for being early, but I couldn’t stay away,” he said. “I need to get to know you.”

  “There’s not much to know,” I laughed, waving him to a chair while I arranged the flowers in a green glass vase. “Thank you for these. Did you pick them yourself?”

  “Yes. My friends were giving me grief about leaving early for some chick.” I turned to see that he was positively grinning. “I told them it wasn’t ‘some chick’, it was the girl of my dreams. Then I went out to find those to bring some of the country back for you.”

  “They’re beautiful, thank you.”

  “Not a millionth as beautiful as you are,” he said, grabbing my wrist as soon as I put down the vase, and pulling me to stand between his legs.

  His kisses felt so hungry. Fiery. As if he wanted much more.

  Perhaps if I had dated more in high school and college, I would understand how people were supposed to build up to physical affection. But after just a few minutes of kissing Mark, I knew that I wanted it all. That was certain. The only question was when.

  We had barely started dating, so was it wrong to sleep together tonight? I let that thought wander through the back of my mind as I finally pulled away to serve dinner.

  As we ate, we chatted lightly about Mark’s apparent lack of pool-playing skills while up at his friend’s house. “As an engineer, I can see the angles,” he explained, “I just can’t shoot straight.”

  I liked that he made fun of himself so easily. His good nature was uplifting.

  He asked me about my packed bookshelves, and what my dream vacation would be. “I’m not a beach person,” I said. “It would be pretty for an hour, and I love the sound of the waves, but I can’t just lie around all day. I want to go to museums, art galleries, little non-tourist coffee shops.”

  “So you’d rather absorb the culture than the scenery,” he nodded. “I like that.”

  By the time I pulled out bowls of chocolate coconut ice cream for dessert, the conversation had turned to his company. He had inherited it from his Father , but unlike my old boss Ralph, who chose to be lazy and just coast along, Mark had tripled the size of the corporation and created new divisions.

  I didn’t understand some of the technical details, but I appreciated that he was trying to bring new environmentally responsible practices to job sites.

  “Since the company is called Green Construction and Development because of our last name, people naturally expect us to be environmentally aware,” he explained. “If someone finds out that we aren’t, they’re going to be disappointed, and won’t trust us. My Dad didn’t care so much about that, and it wasn’t such a big deal when he was in charge, but I’m in charge now, and I do.”

  “I like that you don’t want to disappoint people,” I said softly.

  “Plus, of course we should all be adapting business practices to be as environmentally aware as possible,” he said. “Sometimes the expense is astronomical, or not feasible for technical reasons. But every company can improve at least a little bit from year to year. There has to be progress.”

  He surprised me by jumping up and clearing the dishes, then loading my tiny dishwasher.

  “You don’t have to do that.”

  “Don’t be silly, it’s the least I can do,” he chuckled. “That stew was incredible, by the way.”

  “Thanks. It was my grandmother’s recipe.”

  Mark took my hand and I followed him to the couch, where he pulled me into his lap. It was bizarre how comfortable I felt sitting on his strong thighs, snuggled into his chest and should
er with his thick arms around me.

  “Alison, I absolutely adore every single thing about you,” he said softly. “I know it’s fast, but I want you to be my girl.”

  My breath froze, but I forced myself to nod up and down.

  “I’m sorry, honey, did I surprise you?”

  “A little. I mean, you barely know me.”

  “Every single thing I learn about you, I like, and need to know more.”

  I smiled into his warm eyes. “I was thinking the same thing about you.”

  “See? It’s a sign.”

  It was hard not to automatically agree with every single thing he said, even when it was a bit crazy.

  I already had surprisingly intense feelings for him. I liked the way I felt around him. I knew that it was a bad idea to date my new boss, but if he was okay with it, and he was in charge, it should work out fine.

  As he kissed me gently, every single tension and nervous thought fell away, leaving only our arms around each other, and our lips searching for even more connection.

  CHAPTER SIX

  * Mark *

  Looking around her small apartment, I couldn’t wait to ask Alison to move in with me someday. It was obviously far too soon to be thinking like that, but I couldn’t help it. I wanted her with me always, and picturing a future where we were together was irresistible.

  Someday I wanted to make her dinner at my house, but I needed her to be as comfortable as possible for our first few dates. Especially when I rudely dropped in on her at the last minute.

  I also wasn’t sure how she’d react once she saw how huge my house is. She seemed to still be in the polite phase where she was agreeable to everything. That was great, but she was going to have to open up and speak her mind at some point. I was bound to irritate her or do something wrong along the way.

  As I kissed her lightly, snuggling and cuddling her against me, I realized that she seemed a bit tense. “Honey, if you want me to stop, please just say so,” I said softly.

  “No, I like it,” she said quickly. “It’s just…” She closed her eyes.

  Bringing my lips to her temple, I kissed along her soft skin until I breathed in her ear, “Honey, am I the first man you’ve ever really kissed?”

  Alison’s shiny hair bobbed as she nodded.

  “I’m sorry,” I said, putting a little space between us while keeping my arms around her. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “I can’t…just...say something like that.”

  Tipping her chin up with my finger, I said, “Please, Alison, tell me everything. Even if it’s strange, or you’re not sure how to say it. I need to know. Okay?”

  Her nose crinkled as she made a face. “It’s always been hard for me to say some things. I can’t stand being so awkward.”

  “I’m going to need you to try,” I smiled.

  She nodded quickly, her fingers digging into the back of my neck as she rubbed along my skin. “I’ll try. I promise.”

  “That’s my girl,” I whispered, pulling her back against me. “Alison, may I stay the night and just hold you? I want you to be comfortable with me.”

  Her head sank against my shoulder. “I’m more comfortable with you than I’ve ever been with anyone,” she said, looking up at me with those dazzling eyes. “It’s not a very large bed, but…yes.”

  Lifting her carefully, I carried her to the bedroom despite her protests of having legs that were perfectly fine for walking. Placing her across the bed, I laid down beside her, rolling us together so that I could kiss her with my entire body.

  There was nothing in the universe softer than her sweet mouth. It was hypnotic. Her curious tongue, her silky lips, her soft gasp as my hands glided down to cup her sweet little butt…I had to shift my hips to keep my arousal to myself for now.

  When we finally parted for breath, her eyes were sparkling. “If we’re really going to sleep, I’ll have to find some pajamas,” she said.

  Although I desperately needed to see Alison naked, I couldn’t frighten her off, or let her think for one second that sex was all I was after.

  “I can get you some pajamas,” I said. “Let me show you.”

  I helped her off the bed so that I was sitting on the edge and she was standing between my legs, facing me.

  “You seem shy, so I’m going to keep my eyes closed. All right?”

  She laughed, looking at me as if she thought I was nuts. “Sure.”

  Holding my eyes wide then shutting them dramatically, I reached out to find the edge of her t-shirt. Raising the fabric slowly, she helped me peel it off. I leaned forward to kiss along the tops of her breasts, feeling her little gasps as she tried to be quiet.

  Reaching behind, I unfastened her bra, pulling it off and tossing it across the room so that she laughed again. Although it was almost painful, I kept my eyes tightly shut, skimming my hands across her full, round breasts lightly as I heard a soft sigh.

  “I’m just checking your size, of course,” I said, trying to sound businesslike as I committed the feeling of her soft globes to memory. “Need to make sure this special pajama dress fits.”

  “Of course, absolutely,” she giggled.

  Reluctantly removing my hands from her petal-soft flesh, I took off my t-shirt, then turned it around and pulled it over her head.

  “Hold on,” she said, fussing around with the arm holes until she managed to dive in.

  As I pulled it down, I felt that it reached several inches down her thighs, like a mini dress. Reaching under it, I unbuttoned her skirt, helping her slide it off while I caressed her cute, curvy rear and hips.

  “I’m just making sure these areas don’t get cold,” I assured her. “May I open my eyes again?”

  “Yes.”

  The first thing I noticed was that she was blushing just a pinch, but grinning widely. The second thing I noticed was that her eyes wouldn’t stop darting to my chest and shoulders. That was definitely a good sign.

  Standing up, I was right in her space, so I picked her up and spun her back onto the bed. Quickly slipping off my pants, I left my shorts on as I turned off the light, crawling into bed beside her. I could feel her slight shudder as I held her against me.

  “Just relax, honey,” I said softly. “We’re just sleeping. We don’t need anything more tonight.”

  Alison looked up at me, her kiss swollen lips opening slightly then she snapped her mouth shut again.

  “Unless you want more?” I asked. Gliding my hand up her side, I cupped her breast through the cotton fabric to feel how hard and tight her nipple was.

  “You’re going to have to tell me if you want more,” I said teasingly. “It will be good practice for you.”

  “What if I don’t quite know what I want?” she murmured, instinctively pressing her breasts against my hand, then her hips against mine. With her entire soft, sexy body so close, my thoughts took a sharp turn from wanting to be a good guy to needing to be her guy.

  My mouth locked against hers in a deep, sultry kiss. She whimpered at the smooth motion of my tongue rubbing against hers, as her breasts pressed harder into my chest.

  “Whatever you want, baby, just say it. A new car? A pony?” I slid my hand along her hip to tickle the front of her thigh. “My mouth between your legs, making you quiver?”

  Alison’s mouth fell open, then she blinked. Then, to my absolute delight, she clearly nodded up and down.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  * Alison *

  There had been many times in my life when I hadn’t been sure what I wanted until I heard someone else mention something that lit me up from the inside. The second Mark mentioned…that…I was nearly drowned by a wave of raw need.

  I’d never had sex before, but I figured this might be a good way to break the ice, so to speak. I assumed that Mark knew what he was doing, so I could just let him take over.

  Nodding again, I whispered, “That might be nice.”

  Mark’s gorgeous smile simultaneously put me at ease and excited me to the
core. As he slowly began slipping his t-shirt that I was wearing as a nightdress up my thighs, I wondered if it was natural for me to feel this hot and wet inside. As if my body was preparing to melt right into his hands.

  He was so slow, so gentle, as he pushed the fabric up my skin. “Alison, may I take off your panties and push this shirt out of the way?”

  I nodded, lifting my hips to help him pull my silky undies down my legs.

  With only the dim light peeking in through the curtains, I wasn’t sure how he could see me clearly, but I saw his eyes glint with hunger as he stared between my legs.