Long Time Gone - Lorelei James Page 0,29

fact you’re eighteen.”

That had pissed her off. She climbed on his lap and covered his mouth with her hand.

“I oughta spank you, Calvin McKay, for talkin’ such crap. Am I some mealy-mouthed maiden who can’t speak up for herself? Hell no. There are two people in bed doin’ what we’ve been doin’ and if one of us wanted to stop, then one of us is smart enough to say so. Have I said no?”

He shook his head.

“Have you said no?”

Another shake of his head.

“And I’m also smart enough to figure out that you haven’t asked the other women you’ve been with to do the fun, kinky things we’ve been doin’. Or maybe you thought that as a sheltered Catholic virgin I wouldn’t know what’s considered normal when it comes to sex, so you decided you’d sneak in some kinkier stuff to see if I balked.”

His eyes narrowed.

“Which probably would’ve been true…if I hadn’t found my Aunt Hulda’s erotic how-to books. She had a whole box of them. I have no idea where she got them, but I think because she was a nun who married a priest, neither of them knew shit about sex and they had to learn it from books.”

He mumbled something beneath her hand.

“So you don’t get to act sorry. Because I’m not. Not. At. Fucking. All. I liked that you don’t treat me like every other woman you’ve bounced on or like I’m some fragile doll you can break. I like that you play rough with me. If you woulda gone too far, I’da told you.”

And he’d proved how sorry he was for bringing it up. Twice.

So things were going good. So good that she mentioned to him she’d considered not going to Alaska.

But because Cal was smart, in addition to being loving and thoughtful, he was refusing to let her stay.

Refusing. To prove he wasn’t joking, he’d tossed her suitcases on the bed half an hour ago and reminded her of the bus schedule in Spearfish.

Kimi brooded as she sorted and repacked everything she owned.

The silence between them was deafening.

Then Cal’s strong arms encircled her. She closed her eyes and let the warmth and comfort of his sheltering body envelope her.

“I’m crazy about you, Kimi West. You know that.”

She slumped against him. “I know.”

“You may act older than you are, but it doesn’t change the fact that you are just eighteen. You have adventures ahead of you.” He kissed the top of her head. “I want that for you. To have the excitement of doin’ something new. You deserve a chance to see who you are away from your schooling and your family. You’ve been plannin’ this a long time—longer than you’ve been with me—and I’d never ask you to give that up.”

Even if I want you to ask me to stay?

Rather than phrase her response nicely, she felt her anger and fear of the unknown get the better of her. “Oh, so now that you’ve had me in your bed for a week, you’re tired of me? You’re gonna show me firsthand the McKay reputation for fucking until you get your fill and then moving on?”

“You don’t have to leave in anger,” he said softly. “You already left your family that way, don’t lump me in with them. There’s no need to say hurtful, untrue shit just because you can.” He brushed his mouth across her ear. “You think this is easy for me? You think my selfish side ain’t screamin’ up and down that I’m a fuckin’ idiot for makin’ you go? It’d be a damn sight easier askin’ you to stay. We both know that. But I never wanna see them pretty blue eyes glaring at me with resentment. I never wanna see a far-off look on your face that tells me you’re wondering how different your life would’ve been if you’d taken that chance. That’s a big goddamn burden for me to bear, sweetheart.”

“But how is making me go any different than what my family did by making my decisions for me?”

“Because you made this decision on your own. I’m just makin’ sure you stick with it.”

Tears welled up. “Why are you bein’ so reasonable?”

“One of us has to be.” He kissed the hollow below her ear. “Finish up and get those suitcases off the bed, woman, so I can strip you bare and give you something hot and hard to remember me.”

At least he hadn’t said he wanted to make love to her one last time.

So it was sort of