Robyn Grady - New Year's Wish

He lifted his head and stared down into her pretty brown eyes. She smiled in response. “That’s almost poetic. Watch it, Shaw, your badass image is slipping.”

“I got ink at sixteen. That’s pretty badass,” he retorted, trying to push aside the feelings she called easily to the surface. He wasn’t one of those guys who spent much time thinking heavy thoughts. So he could only blame Lindsey and this evening for stirring up those old memories.

“And now you’re twenty-seven and retiring? Time flies, doesn’t it?” she said, rolling onto her back and lifting her arms up above her head.

The movement forced her breasts into prominence, and he reached over and feathered his fingers across them. Slowly stroking her skin, which was very smooth and very warm. Addicting almost. He never wanted to stop touching her.

She turned over again, facing him. “I don’t want to talk about the past.”

“Me, either.”

The present was way more interesting than the things he’d done in the past. For instance, this was the first time he was close enough to hold Lindsey in his arms. Close enough to notice that on her rib cage just below her breast she had a small birthmark. He leaned in to kiss it.

“What are you doing?”

“Memorizing you. Trying to make sure I know every inch of you.”

“I thought it took guys a while to recover after sex,” she said.

He shook his head and laughed. “Some guys. Some of the time. I think it depends on the woman and man. It’s not taking me any time with you.”

“Why do you think that is?” she asked curiously. “Is it back to me being special?”

He caressed her side, starting at her shoulder and working his way slowly down to her hip. “I don’t know why. It’s not something I’ve ever analyzed. Why would I? Sex is supposed to be fun, not figures put in a spreadsheet.”

“Is it?” she mused. “That hasn’t always been my experience, but then I haven’t done the amount of experimenting you have.”

“Gorgeous, you’re pushing me. I’m not sure why.”

“I’m scared,” she admitted. “This seemed like fun in the bar, but now that I’m up here, I don’t know how to act or what to do next. I’m not used to that.”

He sighed. “There is no right or wrong action here. We make up our own rules, okay?”

He wanted her to be different, and she was. She made him feel alive in a way that only snowboarding had before. Something he’d never found in any of his personal relationships. Maybe it was just the novelty of sleeping with a girl he’d wanted since he was seventeen. Or maybe it was just the place he was in at this moment in his life.

But he didn’t want her to think they had to behave in a certain way. With other woman he’d been different—happy for the sex, but not wanting anything more. It had been casual and friendly with no feelings getting hurt. But this was Lindsey, and he needed more.

More? How much more, he had no idea. This was all new to him, too.

“Okay, so what kind of rules should we have?” she asked. “Are we going to do this again?”

“Um...I thought that was obvious,” he said, gesturing to his erection.

She laughed, and the sound washed over him like a warm bit of sunshine on a cold day.

A moment later she reached for him, stroked her hand up and down his cock, and then leaned down to kiss him. “Okay, so after that—then what?”

“We’ll figure it out. This is one thing we don’t have to train for or have a rigorous schedule about.” She nodded, and he saw that something was going on inside her head, but he had no idea what it was. What was it she was thinking? He thought maybe he shouldn’t let himself get distracted, but for tonight he’d had enough conversation.

He had a naked Lindsey in his bed and he intended to enjoy her.

* * *

THEY FELL ASLEEP in each other’s arms after making love the second time, and when Lindsey woke, it was to the soft snores coming from Carter. He was turned on his side, facing her, and their fingers were linked together. She was riveted by the sight of him, but had a little bit of a headache and was thirsty.

Really thirsty.

She carefully pulled her hand from his and made her way quietly across the bedroom into the bathroom, where she closed the door, letting just the illumination from the night-light break the darkness. She saw herself in the mirror, but avoided eye contact as she filled a glass with water and slowly drank it.

Lost in thought, she closed the lid on the toilet and sat on it.

She was no closer now to knowing what to do next than she had been six hours earlier. She noticed she had a little bit of razor burn on her neck, remembered the feel of him in her arms and shivered. Carter Shaw. Who’d have guessed?

She finished her water and then stood to lean in over the sink.

Her previous sexual experiences had been less than stellar. Did she look different now that she’d had an orgasm with a man rather than by her own hand? She searched her face for some sign, but there wasn’t one. She still looked like Lindsey. Like herself. But inside something had awakened. Something was changing, and she had no clue what she was going to do next.

She bit her lip. Staying here and waiting for Carter to wake up sounded like a bad idea. She knew that last night was only one night. It had been fun and frivolous, two things she’d never embraced in her entire life. But she’d liked it. No regrets.

You only live once, right? But now it was a new day and time for making plans.

No matter how incredible it had been, there was no denying that this thing between her and Carter wasn’t going to last. They had nothing in common aside from sports, and skiers and snowboarders were very different. Frankly, they didn’t really even know each other that well.

Something that she intended to ensure didn’t change. Because there was no need for it to. He was going back to his wandering ways, and though she’d cross paths with him once in a while on the committee for the charity event, she doubted she’d really see that much of him.

She felt a little pang and ignored it. Of course, the thought of going back to the adversarial strangers they’d been hurt after last night. After sharing something with him she’d experienced with no other man. But it wasn’t going to happen again. Carter was a bad boy and not at all the kind of guy she was interested in trying to date. Besides, her life was a big-ass mess right now.

Lindsey sighed. Her clothes were scattered in the other room, and she needed to collect them, get dressed and beat a hasty retreat before he woke. But first she grabbed one of the robes from behind the door...because in the cold light of day walking around naked didn’t feel right.

She opened the door cautiously and heard the low rumble of Carter’s voice.

“Thank you very much.”

He was awake.

He was sitting on the edge of the bed, his back to her, his brown hair tousled and sticking up a little on the left side. He tossed the cordless phone onto the bed and stood. “I ordered breakfast.”

“I actually should probably be going,” she said hastily. “I feel like I’ve—”

“Where do you have to go? I know you’re not working today.”

“You do?” Her eyes widened. “How do you know that?”

“Because you were drinking and partying last night. I know you aren’t the type of person to ski after a night like that,” he said. “Take it from me, your concentration won’t be that great.”

“Have you done that? Snowboarded in that condition?”

“I have. I don’t recommend it.” There was a long pause. “Let me grab a robe and we can have breakfast, okay?”

She didn’t want to get to know Carter any better. Sure, she knew how that sounded, but the truth was, the more she knew him the bigger the chance of her starting to like him was. She didn’t want to change the dynamic between them that had worked so well for so long. She had figured out a way to manage him.