Her phone had beeped during the call, and she’d pulled it from her ear long enough to look at the caller ID and see she had no intention of answering it. After she hung up, she saw the voicemail light on and debated listening to the message, deciding against it. It would only hurt more to hear Tyler’s voice right now, especially if he was calling making excuses for what she had uncovered.
Hesitating for only a brief moment, she erased the message without listening to it, she decided to take a shower and try to relax. She pulled off her shirt and skirt, padding to the bathroom to turn on the faucet. When someone knocked on her door, she growled to herself. She’d forgotten what it was like to be home during the day, with salespeople knocking on the door constantly. Throwing a towel around her shoulders and holding it over her chest, she went to answer the second knock, opening the door just a crack so she could look out and tell whoever it was she wasn’t interested. But when she popped the door open a crack, all words were lost, and she found herself staring into the piercing blue eyes that still managed to take her breath away.
There stood Tyler, square on her doorstep, his face inches from the door opening. He didn’t speak, but his eyes told a story of confusion and pain. Valerie felt the butterflies flutter through her belly but taking a deep breath she found her voice long enough to question him.
“Tyler, what are you doing here?”
He shot her a look, more of a wince that spoke of his uncertainty.
“You just left without saying goodbye. Something had to have happened. Valerie? What’s going on?”
She shook her head, her anger returning at his feigned innocence. “Nothing, Tyler. I just found a better offer and would rather work where I’m treated with respect.”
She started to close the door in his face, but he pushed his palm against it, holding it open. “Valerie, talk to me. What the hell is wrong with you? Did I do something? Because I don’t remember having said or done anything to piss you off.”
She scowled at him. “Sometimes, it’s the things you don’t say.” She tried to close the door again, to put space between them, but he was too strong.
Tyler didn’t understand why she was so angry with him. Had one of his cousins told her something vile and untrue that would have her in such a mood? It was a logical explanation.
“Valerie, whatever those guys told you about me, or whatever you heard that has you so upset, I’m sorry. I just don’t understand… please, talk to me.”
She scoffed. “Oh, I don’t blame your family at all. Who would want a fat piece of trash from the wrong side of the tracks poisoning the bloodline? Tyler, you should just leave. Just forget about it…about me.”
He saw pain on her face and it broke his heart. He had to know why she would feel this way, had to know why everything that had been so incredibly wonderful only a few hours ago was suddenly turning to stone.
“Trash, Valerie. I wouldn’t be with you if you were trash.”
She raised an eyebrow at him, trying to hold back the tears that wanted to flow unhindered down her cheeks. “I’m not stupid, Tyler. I was an easy mark, right? Why? Because I’m not skinny like all of the girls at the office? Because you thought that maybe I hadn’t dated in awhile and you’d come rushing in and sweep me off my feet? I’m not so desperate, Tyler – and regardless of what you or your family think of I’m a decent, kind person who deserves to be loved. Really loved. Not just a quick fix for a guy looking to secure his trust fund.”
As realization set in, Tyler’s eyes swirled grey, resentment for his father replacing the look of confusion with a look of pure hatred.
“Valerie, that was never my intention. I’ve bucked against that rule since it was put in place. I wasn’t dating you to make my father happy. He very much disapproves of everything I do, so I stopped trying.”
Valerie shook her head. “Is that why you took the job at the law firm? Is that why you’re studying to take the bar? Tell me, Tyler, what is it you really wanted to do with your life? If you stopped trying to make your father happy, you would have gone ahead and joined a hockey team, wouldn’t you? So, tell me why I should believe that you aren’t using me?”
Tyler’s face fell, and Valerie instinctively wanted to reach out and touch his cheek in comfort. But she held back, too angry still to show how much she actually cared. It was too late for that. She’d fallen for someone who had no real interest in her, and she sure as hell wasn’t going to settle for that.
“I walked out, Valerie.” He almost choked on the words, his emotions out of control. He was usually so passive, so laid back about everything. He never felt passionately about anything, even his adrenaline highs. He didn’t understand the depth of emotion he swam in right now, and it threatened to drown him.
“I asked my father where you were, and when he told me you left, I told him I didn’t care about the trust fund and walked out.” She’d stopped holding the door, so he pushed it open further and stepped inside, closer to her. She squeezed the towel tightly around her, defensively, still eyeing him warily. “And when I left, I came straight here.”
Valerie sighed. It sounded good, but how could it be the truth?
“Go back to work, Tyler. You’d hate your life without the money. You need it. You need the yacht, and the motorcycle, and the fast cars and all the finer things in life. You don’t need me. And if it’s the job you’re worried about, I already have another one lined up. The joy of being at the top of your class is that everyone wants you.”
But Tyler refused to listen. “I’m glad you found another job, if that’s what you want. But something I’ve realized since I met you is that, with all the ‘finer’ things in life, I’ve never been more than content. I’ve never been on fire about anything I’ve ever done in my life, with the exception of hockey. That’s the only thing I’ve ever been passionate about.” He put a hand on her shoulder, and she twitched but didn’t’ pull away. “But I’m passionate about you. Valerie, you have changed my life. You’re a beautiful, sexy, intelligent woman who deserves all the finer things in life herself. And I would rather be with you than have my father’s money. I can make it in this world without him. As long as I have you.”
Her lip trembling, Valerie stood there, a shiver running down her spine as he caressed her arm. She could feel the heat of his body radiating, and it twisted her insides. She hated how much she wanted him, how much she wanted to believe what he told her.
“Why would you walk away from such an easy, perfect life? It doesn’t make any sense.”
She stared up into his eyes, shining with intensity. “Valerie, I want you. Why is that so hard to believe? Can’t you just believe me, give me a chance to prove it?” His hand snaked from her arm around her waist, tickling over the small of her back under the towel. His touch on her bare skin made her gasp, and her breath came in short pants.
“Prove it?” she whispered as he toyed with her spine. She stepped closer so their bodies almost touched. “How would you prove it?”
A crooked half smile, filled with mischief, curled his lips. “Well, first I’d start by making love to you because you truly are the most beautiful woman that I’ve ever seen.” He leaned down and brushed his lips on the top of her ear and continued in a whisper, “Then I’d forget about the trust fund and focus instead on being with you. I’d make it my job to show you just how incredible you are. I know we barely know each other but there’s something about you that has literally attached itself to my heart and it won’t let go. I don’t ever want it to let go. It’s like my very soul is tethered to yours.”
She couldn’t hold back the moan of relief mixed with desire as his tongue drew a trail down her jaw line and to the corner of her mouth. She put her palms against his chest with the intention of pushing him away, but she lost the towel in the process, and his lips found her shoulder, nibbling and teasing, and she pressed against him. How could something that felt so right, so good, be wrong? She could feel his erection against her stomach and knew he wanted her.
Tyler felt her lift her head, and he turned to take her lips. He could taste her desire, the sweet honey of her as a woman. He dove into her, breathing her in and drinking of her, his hands roaming her body, touching as much of her skin as possible. When she reached for his shirt, he lifted his arms and broke the kiss long enough for her to pull it over his head, then preyed on her lips yet again, his tongue dancing with hers.
Despite her better judgment, Valerie let him back her toward the bedroom, then into the bathroom. The water roaring behind her from the shower spray was like a dull whine compared to the rush of blood to every extremity of her body as he lit her senses on fire.
She fumbled around, trying to help Tyler get his jeans off, but her hands wouldn’t cooperate and he finally stayed them, holding them against her chest as he undressed. Valerie could have choked, literally, at the sight of his gorgeous erection, perfectly straight and pleading for her to touch it, to lick it, to let it gain relief inside of her.
Tyler was the only man with whom she’d ever felt secure enough to just reach out and touch him, regardless of her concerns regarding her size, her class, or anything else that got in the way. None of that mattered. Not anymore.
So now, as he held her hand while she stepped into the shower, she waited for him to join her and immediately reached out to grip his cock, watching his eyes roll back in his head as she used the water to lubricate him, slicking her hand up and down and around his head with tender but insistent motions. Tyler took one nipple in his mouth and began to suckle, nipping with his teeth and flicking with his tongue until Valerie screamed, nearly coming just from his light touch.
As she felt her body go loose, spineless, he used one hand to tease and play with her br**sts, rolling the round nipple between his finger and thumb until she thrust her br**sts toward him, begging him for even more attention. Instead, she found herself being forced to open up to his fingers, as he spread open her folds and stroked her clit, running circles around it and petting her with such expert, skillful fingers that her entire body convulsed even before he pushed two fingers deep inside of her.
“Tyler,” she groaned, desperate for mercy.
With the water streaming over her skin and through her hair, Valerie let go of her inhibitions, and she grinded against his fingers as they found that internal button, doubling her pleasure as she felt waves of release roll over her like a crashing wave again and again. When she thought she couldn’t bear anymore, Tyler pulled out, reaching around behind her and grabbing her ass. He lifted her up easily, and she wrapped her legs around him, pressing her to the slick, hot shower wall.
Tyler could no longer hold back. He had to be inside of her, and she was wet and ripe for the taking. With one stroke, he filled her with every inch of this girth, fighting to hold perfectly still as she writhed, her vag**al walls convulsing around him as he impaled her, trying to keep himself under control. He wanted to savor this, not let it get away from him. Every long, slow stroke brought them both closer, and he moaned out into her neck, her hot breath and sensuous pleading for more echoing in the shower stall.