Piper (Queen's Birds of Prey #4) - Kathi S. Barton Page 0,45
was in was shut off and not used again. It despaired of ever having someone use it again.” She asked him if the bed spoke to him. “Not the bed. The wood. Everything has a story to tell. Whether it be old like this or newly cut.”
“This is from the stash. I remember seeing it in the corner when we were there last. It called to me, and I remember touching my fingers to the headboard and feeling something. At the time, I thought I had lost my mind. Perhaps it, like this place, knew we’d be here together. Make love to me, Grant. I so need for you to take me.” Grant pulled her into his arms and kissed her deeply. “I love you.”
She left him there while she went to the bathroom. He wanted to tell her she didn’t need to dress up for him. That he wanted only to have her now. However, when she closed the door between them, he could feel his excitement to see what surprise she might have for him.
Pulling the bottle of champagne out of the ice, he wondered where it had come from. Then he remembered Piper had told him she’d asked for something special for their room. He supposed this was their wedding night, and he should have thought of it too. When he heard the door open behind him, Grant turned slowly. Seeing her standing there made his entire body hard as stone.
The glass in his hand shattered from his excitement. Champaign poured down his hand, along with blood from the glass, cutting deeply into his hand. Dropping the bottle to see to his other hand, it hit his bare foot and had him jumping up and down from the pain. He knew what he must look like, but right at that moment, he didn’t care. He was hurting. Just as he was getting his shit together and the pain leveling out, he kicked the bottle across the room and hit Piper in the shin. Falling forward to try and catch the projectile, he hit his head on the corner of the bed and laid there. Christ, he thought, I’m a fucking moron. He looked up at Piper when she started laughing.
“Oh my God, Grant, that was by far the funniest thing I’ve ever witnessed. What the hell happened?” He didn’t even bother trying to get up, fearful of what else might befall him. “If I’d not seen this, I would never have believed it. Are you hurt?”
“No. I’m humiliated. Why did you come out of the bathroom naked? Don’t you know I’m a man on edge?” He looked up at her again. “Can we start over? And never mention this again? Christ, my head hurts.”
Piper got on the floor with him, and he kissed the large knot on her shin. She told him she was just fine but did look at his head. Grant wondered what would have happened had they had a tray of food here too. What sort of mess would he have made then? When she had him sit up, she examined not just his head that had a large knot on it, but also his hand and foot. She was still laughing when she told him he was going to be just fine. Grant pulled her over his lap and held her while she continued to laugh at him.
“Anytime you want to stop laughing is going to be all right with me.” That, of course, made her laugh all the harder. “I swear to you, Piper, I’ve never felt as stupid or as clumsy as I have today. It was as if I’d never seen a naked woman before.”
She put her hand over his mouth. “You haven’t.” He nodded and kissed the palm of her hand. “Also, just so you know, neither have I seen a naked man. We’re new to each other. All right?” She laughed a little more. “Of course, if you were to tell me you’d really not seen a naked woman before, I’d believe you, after that show of clumsiness.”
“Yes, well, I wasn’t expecting you to be naked.” He kissed her neck, then her shoulder. “Perhaps we should stay on the floor, so I don’t toss you across the room when I enter you. You never know.”
“I do know. I know you’re the best thing that has ever happened to me.” She turned on his lap, so she was facing him. Grant willed his clothing away, and she hummed at