dropped as he thought before answering. “I honestly didn’t do it for you, Diesel. I did it for that sweet girl in there who deserves to grow up loved. I had my parents and Uncle Beau and Aunt Marnie. There was never a moment when I didn’t feel cherished and adored. I want Marigold to have that.”
He stepped in closer, nudging my leg to the side so he could slide one of his between mine. Our hips brushed against each other, and I shuddered. Parrish’s warm hands slid up my neck to my jaw. “Diesel, it took me about three seconds to see how much you cared about her. You can’t fake the kind of panic you had when you realized she’d grabbed the coffee mug that day. Your first thought wasn’t about how to downplay what had happened. You did the opposite. You blew it up into a huge example of how you weren’t good enough for her. In other words, you thought she deserved the best. You wanted her in the safest hands, even if it wasn’t yours. That’s the kind of parent she needs.”
My heart thumped in a combination rhythm of nerves at the memory of how close she’d come to getting hurt and also excitement at how much of Parrish’s body was now pressed against mine.
“I can’t think when you’re touching me,” I admitted breathlessly.
Parrish’s fingertips moved lightly back down my neck, making me feel drunk and slightly disoriented. “You fell into my trap, then. I don’t want to talk.”
I could have sworn we were discussing something serious. Something important.
“Ngh,” I said when his hip rolled against my hard dick.
He caught his bottom lip with his top teeth and nearly caused me to toss him face-first onto the kitchen counter and tear open the back of his pants like an animal.
“And anyway,” Parrish said in a teasing voice, “who cares why? As long as we’re here together now. Does it really matter how it came to be?”
I shook my head and used my single remaining brain cell to reassure him I’d never be like Payne. “I promise I’ll try to be worthy of you,” I said in a rough croak.
His eyes widened for a split second before softening again. His smile was wide and sincere. “And that’s how I know you’re different.”
He rolled that hip into me again, taking my breath away completely. I sucked in a curse.
I leaned down and pressed my lips to the thin skin behind his ear. I’d learned early on in our make-out sessions on the sofa that he always shivered when I brushed my lips across it.
“Not fair,” he breathed. “Fighting dirty.”
“Remember when you said you wanted to explore all of my tattoos with your tongue?” I suggested before sucking on his ear lobe.
“Yuh-huh.”
“Well, I want to do the same to you.” I pressed him back against the counter and lowered to my knees before reaching for the button on his pants.
“I don’t have any ink,” he said. His eyes were dazed, and his hair was a little messy on one side from where my nose had nuzzled it into a puffy nest.
“Let’s pretend,” I suggested, slowly pushing his pants down to reveal another adorably bright pair of briefs. These were turquoise with orange stitching. His erection already tented the cotton pouch in the front enough to pull the elastic band out from his skin. I rubbed my cheek against it and enjoyed the ragged breath it drew from him.
I looked up and met his eyes. “I’m going to describe what I see, the imaginary tattoos on your pristine skin.”
Parrish’s chest rose and fell more quickly. “Can we…” He looked around, suddenly realizing the only bed in the place was in the room where the baby slept, and I realized I was going to have to get serious about building an addition on this place sooner than later.
For now, I scooped him up and brought him into the living room where I nudged the coffee table aside and threw down the sofa quilt before setting him down on it. “Better?”
He nodded and reached for me, but I pulled back so I could get undressed before touching him again. I knew if I began kissing and touching him again, I wouldn’t be able to stop. Parrish watched me hungrily as I stripped down. He finally realized he still had some of his own clothes that needed removing, so he got to work pulling off his shirt. Thankfully, he left the sexy