49
LIKED BY ROBIN_AND_TREY AND 13,050 OTHERS
I made a discovery this weekend, readers. As we all know, sex can be good cardio, and good sex can . . . well, burn a lot of calories. What I hadn’t counted on was the FitMi app already having a premade entry for sex on their exercise tracker. I know how many calories you burn is based on the type of activity, length of time, and body type, but still . . . doesn’t sex being in the app make you want to exercise a little bit more? I wonder what badge this might lead to . . .
* * *
WES STEPPED INTO the bathroom, and I felt an odd sense of loss, lying there alone on the bed. I snatched my phone from my bag on the floor to distract myself from the competing forces of my mind whirring and my body completely relaxed.
Claire: Rumor is that Maricela decided who will get the promotion.
Claire: I’ll buy you a consolation martini on Monday.
I stared at the text and took in the feel of Wes’s bedding under my naked body, the scent of us lingering in the air. I let my eyes fall shut, relishing how comfortable it felt. If the promotion would be decided soon, I’d have a better idea of where the project was going. I could ask Natalie for help on how to manage the appearance of a potential conflict of interest. I was certain readers would love a happily ever after story.
“What’s wrong?” Wes walked toward me, still gloriously naked, so at ease with himself, and I drank in the sight of him, still amazed this was real. What was better, his eyes traveled my body, displaying the same expression I imagined I must have had. I set my phone on his nightstand and enjoyed him looking at me as I followed the lines of his body to his belly button, then down the thin line of hair. Damn.
“Absolutely nothing’s wrong.”
Wes climbed into the bed, wrapping his arm around my waist and pulling me back against his chest. “You sure? You looked concerned,” he said, nuzzling my neck and stroking me from my hip up my side and then around my body.
I liked feeling his hands on my stomach, and I smiled. I settled back against him. “Very sure.”
“There’s so much I don’t know about you.” His warm, hard chest against my back felt right. “How long have you worked at the magazine?”
It was so freeing to get to talk about this. I couldn’t believe he was so unbothered. “Four years. I’ve wanted to tell you about it.”
“I knew you were an excellent writer after I looked through your notebook in your apartment.” He dropped kisses on my shoulder, these sweet little pecks that made me want to pause and write an ode to his lips. It was as if someone had opened up a valve in Wes and now all this affection was flowing out of him.
“Oh yeah? My doodles inspired you?”
“You could say that.” His breath puffed near my ear, and a trickle of anticipation eased down my body. “I read a haiku you wrote about touching yourself.”
“What? No!” I tried to turn to face him, but he held me tight. “I can’t believe you read that!”
He nipped at the sensitive skin below my ear. “I committed it to memory. On a precipice, my fingers, like your soft tongue, edging me closer.”
My entire body flashed hot. “Well, that’s embarrassing.”
“Informative,” he said into my neck. “I’m very interested in using my tongue to take you to a precipice.”
“I can’t believe you never told me you read that, or that you wanted to know anything else about me after!”
“I want to know everything. How do you take your fancy coffee?”
I smiled. “How do I like my coffee, or how do I pretend to like it since meeting you?”
His laugh rumbled against my shoulder, and he squeezed me to him. “Both.”
“Skim milk and two stevia packets,” I began, feeling his nod against my skin.
“And how do you really like it?”
I turned in his arms. “Caramel latte with whipped cream and a little chocolate sauce. Maybe a donut on the side.”
My breath hitched when his thumbs slid in slow circles over my thigh. “You like when I touch you there?” he murmured against my shoulder.
“I do,” I said, as his lips migrated to my ear. “But I was reacting to the memory of the latte.”
“A guy’s pride can only take so much.” He began the slow circles between my waist and hips again, fingers kneading, then venturing to caress my backside. “You can still drink the lattes. Maybe I’ll have one, too. I can think of some new cardio I’ll be adding to my rotation.”