heels, so it was a comfortable difference. I closed my own eyes, enjoying the feel of her body, the way the air practically sizzled with the electricity between us. It was subtle, much like the two of us in general, but it was there and if I felt it this acutely, she probably did too.
“It’s been ten years and seven months since we danced,” she said suddenly.
“Ten years, seven months, and twelve days.”
She gave a delighted little sigh. “You counted the days… It’s been such a long time since that night, Ace.”
“But I’m here now, baby.”
Chapter Sixteen
Shannon
“I can’t think of a single place I’d rather be than right here,” I told him.
“Ditto.” His arms tightened around me and we barely moved, swaying as little as possible and losing ourselves in the moment.
“I have a question,” he said softly.
“Sure.”
“What happened to your glasses?”
“I had laser surgery. My ex hated me with glasses, and I had the surgery for him, but it turned out to be a good thing. I love waking up and being able to see, or when I swim… I don’t miss them at all.”
“I just like having easy access for staring into your gorgeous eyes.”
He knew how to push every one of my erotic buttons; being with Ace was heavenly. I loved everything about this man, from his chiseled jaw and strong hands to the muscles bulging in his biceps to the way he looked at me like he wanted to devour me. I’d never thought about a man literally devouring me, but with Ace, that’s how it felt.
“It’s time to call it a night,” Chance said as the song ended and we reluctantly headed back to where we’d been sitting.
“Us too, I think,” Ace said, his arm around my waist. “It’s been a long few days for us.”
“I’ll see you in the gym at seven.”
“See you then.”
Ace kept his arm tightly around me as we descended the stairs and headed back to our room. I kicked off my heels and sat on the edge of the bed, rubbing my sore feet.
“Want a foot massage?” Ace asked, smiling down at me.
“Absolutely.” I scooted back on my bed and presented my foot to him. He sat on the edge of the bed and set it on his lap, using both hands and rubbing his thumbs up the center of my foot. “Oooh.” I leaned back and closed my eyes. This was heavenly. Those damn hands of his were going to be the death of me. He was holding my foot gently now, as if it was the most delicate thing in the world, but his fingers were working magic and goose bumps rose on my flesh. We were both fully dressed but this might have been the most erotic moment of my entire life. He kneaded the ball of my foot with his fist, the pressure just enough to erase an evening of high heels and leave me feeling relaxed and comfortable.
His hand moved up my foot, to the ankle and then to my calf. He rubbed both hands along the skin there, going back to my foot and then up to the calf again. I’d had foot massages before, but not like this, and I barely recognized the longing inside of me. Once upon a time, I’d been an excited virgin anxious to learn what the big deal was about sex. About orgasms. And everything to do with intimacy. Instead, my best orgasms happened by my own hand and there had been no such thing as true intimacy with my husband; he’d never lasted long enough and foreplay was nonexistent.
“You just got stiff as a board,” Ace murmured. “Where did your mind go that took you away from the here and now?”
“To a time when I gave up on my dreams and settled for something spectacularly underwhelming.”
“Your ex.” His voice was strange, as if he was holding back anger, and I opened my eyes, lifting myself to my elbows to look at him.
“Are you mad?”
“Not that you were thinking about him, but that he did whatever he did.”
“He didn’t hurt me, if that’s what you’re thinking. He was just…boring. Staid. And sex was over so damn fast, I never had the chance to enjoy it.”
“Can I ask why you got divorced?” He’d picked up my other foot now and was starting the whole process again, so I laid back again.
“My mother introduced us.” I laughed even though it wasn’t funny. “Which should have been my first clue that