Meeting His Match

Chapter 10-2

Mac stared in awe at the beautiful woman lying in front of him. At the moment, he wasn’t sure if she was playing and acting as Gem. He’d like to think she wasn’t, but whether Gem or Natalie, he couldn’t stop. Her beckoning had him l*****g his lips and tasting her. He wanted more. Standing beside the bed, he dropped his pants and underwear and kicked them free of his body.

When he crawled over Natalie’s body, she sighed and he knew Natalie, and not Gem, was lying under him. Her strong, sure fingers wrapped around his hard d**k and stroked. A deep groan rumbled in his chest. He didn’t know what it was about this woman, but she made him lose control too easily.

“I like that sound,” she purred.

He shifted out of her grasp and stared into her eyes. “Are we sure about doing this?”

“I’m damn sure. Are you?”

He kissed her again and her legs wrapped around his hips. He wanted nothing more than to slide home, but he needed a c****m, so he pulled away. “c****m?” he asked.

She clucked her tongue. “I never thought of you as the kind of guy to show up unprepared.”

“I didn’t plan on this.”

“Really?”

“I thought I’d show up and we’d talk. Which, by the way, we’re still going to do. Later.” Bending, he kissed her neck. She bucked and squirmed.

She gave his shoulder a shove. “c****m in the nightstand. Now.”

He went into the drawer and grabbed a c****m. She took it and slid it on for him, offering extra strokes as she did. He thrust into her hand before reluctantly pulling away. He wanted this to be good for her as well. Pushing her gently back he allowed himself time to explore her body and adequately work her into a frenzy.

She quivered and trembled under his touch, and when he finally sank into her, he knew he was where he belonged. The startling realization had him frozen in place.

This feeling, this unmistakable feeling was what his mother had always talked about. Finding your home, your final destination. He’d dismissed it because he’d never experienced it. And now, it was with a woman he barely knew.

Natalie’s breathing had returned to normal and she shifted under him, pulling him from his thoughts. He moved inside her and she held him close. He was in no rush to finish, especially now that he knew he was caught up in something different—not simply having s*x with a woman he liked.

Fear hit him at the same time. Fear that she would laugh if he told her. Worse, that she wouldn’t feel the same. Lowering his lips to hers again, he allowed his body to reveal what his mind wasn’t prepared to say aloud.

Sweaty and out of breath, Mac lay beside Natalie, stroking her skin. He buried his face in her hair at the crook of her neck and sniffed. “I love the smell of your hair.”

“Did you know the human nose can remember fifty thousands different scents?”

“No, I’ve never heard that before.” He waited, and when she didn’t say anything else, he propped up on an elbow and asked, “Any other nose trivia?”

She c****d an eyebrow in challenge. “An ant has a better sense of smell than a dog.”

“What’s going on?”

“What do you mean?”

“Why are you spouting off random facts?” As the words left his mouth, he saw her shields coming back up.

“I wasn’t spouting anything. I mentioned something after you sniffed my hair. You asked for another fact.”

“Natalie.”

She blinked and turned her face away.

Gently, he turned her back. “Why are you running from this?”

“Because I’m not sure what this is anymore,” she whispered. She swallowed and he watched her throat work.

“What did you think it was?”

“I thought we were friends having a good time, working through some s****l tension.” Her chest rose and fell rapidly.

Mac moved so he covered her again, keeping most of his weight off her, but trapping her just the same. “And what is it now?”

She shook her head slowly.

“This is real, different, but we don’t have to label it yet. Let’s just be.”

She nodded and smiled, relief softening her body. He kissed her again, loving that her whole body responded to his every touch.

“What do you have planned for the rest of your day?” he asked against her lips.

“I don’t have plans. Figure out the next dates for the show. Look for a new job. The same stuff I do every day.”

“If you don’t have anything pressing, I’d like to spend some time with you.”

“Don’t you have to work?”

“We can plan the show together. That’s where most of my energy is spent these days. I’m still proving myself to my mother.”

“Proving yourself?”

He rolled off her and lay down, pulling Natalie to his chest. If they were going to talk, he needed to remove the distraction of her n***d body. “How much do you know about Everyday Love?”

“Just what I read on the web site.”

“My mom and dad founded the company after they’d been married for a couple of years. My dad was a psychologist, but my mom, she just gets people. It’s like a sixth sense with her. She’s an excellent matchmaker. But in recent years, with the advent of dating web sites and apps, the business has taken a hit. I hadn’t realized how bad it had gotten because I was living in New York.”

Natalie brushed her fingers through his chest hair and rested her chin on him to be able to look up. “You lived in New York?”

“For three years. My ex-wife wanted to be in New York, so we moved there. Anyway, when I came home after my divorce, I wanted to help with the business more. I’d grown up at Everyday Love. My mom had been doing everything by herself since my dad’s death. I told her I wanted to take over, let her retire and enjoy her life. Although she hasn’t outright said it, I don’t think she believes I can do it.”

“What did you do in New York?”

“I had my own practice.”

“Practice?”

“Psychologist.”

“Like your dad.” Her eyes softened as she said it.

He nodded and played with her hair as it trailed down her back.

“Why not continue that here?”

“It was never what I wanted.” He took a breath, unsure of how to explain this. “I became a psychologist to follow in my dad’s footsteps. He used his education to do what my mom does instinctively. I only started my own practice in New York because it was what Ariel wanted. I wanted her to be happy.”

“Since you’re divorced, I’m guessing it didn’t make her happy.”

“She wanted me to be someone with power and influence. What I wanted was a wife and family. I wanted the love I saw my parents share. Ariel wasn’t it. It took me a long time to figure it out. She wasn’t who I thought she was.” For the first time in a long while, he considered what had really happened. “I don’t think she ever outright meant to lie. What she wanted for life was nothing like what I wanted. Looking back, I think maybe I was so desperate to find that perfect love I saw what I wanted to see.”