tried to talk Gammy out of this,” she explained, interrupting his thoughts. “She thought she was doing me a favor by not having a problem with us sleeping together. I told her it wasn’t necessary, but…well…you can probably tell already how she can be.”
Okay, she was not interested in sleeping with me…
Kind of a hit to the ego, but…whatever.
“Anyway, if it bothers you, we can trade-off–I’ll sleep on the floor one night, you sleep on the floor another. Unless you have a better idea.”
Yes, for us to both be in the bed and naked.
“I think we can handle sharing the bed,” he said, hoping he sounded casual. Taking a step closer to her, he put the bags down and kept moving until he was directly behind her. Slowly he reached out and put his hands on her hips and whispered in her ear. “We almost shared a bed last night.”
Tilting her head, she hummed softly. “But someone turned me down. I took that to mean you weren’t interested.”
Turning her, Levi saw just a hint of hurt and uncertainty there and knew he needed to reiterate all the things they talked about last night. “Willow, me turning you down last night had absolutely nothing to do with you and everything about feeling weird about being in my sister’s house.” His hands rested on her hips again, gently kneading them. “I want you; you have to know that. But I’m not going to take advantage of our situation. And trust me, with your grandmother essentially across the hall from us…”
“Her room is on the other side of the house,” she explained and then grinned. “And she’s a little hard of hearing, so…”
“Willow…”
“Okay, I know what you’re saying, and as much as I hate to admit it, I agree. It’s weird. This isn’t the time or the place for anything to happen between us.” She nibbled on her bottom lip–something he loved seeing. “But that doesn’t mean I’m happy about it.”
“Believe me, I feel the same way.”
“Really?”
“I do,” he said, reaching up to caress her cheek. “But just in case you need a little more convincing, let me show you.” Leaning forward, Levi captured her lips with his and poured everything he had into kissing her. It probably wasn’t the smartest thing to do, considering her grandmother wouldn’t be gone long, but it was important for him to show her how desirable she was and how much he wanted her.
In the back of his mind, Levi knew the next few nights were going to be torture–to lie in bed with Willow and not make love to her, but…they could possibly change their plans for the trip home. Originally, they figured they’d stick to the same accommodations they used on the way down to Florida and stay with his sisters. But now? Now he was going to book them at a couple of hotels along the way and see about dragging out their road trip a little longer.
Whoa…getting a little ahead of yourself, aren’t you?
Levi really wished his inner voice would shut the hell up.
“Yoo-hoo! I’m back!” Gammy called out. “Turns out, Shirley went to the post office earlier with Dorothy! So I’ll just go tomorrow while we’re out!”
Reluctantly, Levi lifted his head and saw Willow shaking hers. “She’s going to be a handful. I just know it.”
“Oh, there you two are! Oops! Am I interrupting?”
Willow took a step back and Levi’s hands dropped to his side. “No, you’re fine, Gammy,” she said.
“Well, just so you know, there are condoms in the linen closet.”
“Gammy!”
“What? I told you weeks ago, Willow bell, I’m not a prude. I always keep them in the house.” Then she winked at Levi. “You never know when they’re going to come in handy.”
“Shoot me now,” Willow murmured, hiding her face in her hands.
“Oh, stop. You’re a big girl now and talking about sex shouldn’t embarrass you.” Shaking her head, Gammy continued to explain things that no one wanted her to. “Sweetie, you might not believe this, but I keep them in the house for me too.”
All Willow did was groan.
“Not that there’s any chance of me getting pregnant.” She laughed heartily. “Heaven forbid! But did you know, Levi, that retirement communities have some of the highest STD rates in the country?”
He choked a little as he shook his head. “Uh…no. I wasn’t aware of that.”
“True story! I’m telling you, there are a lot of swinging singles here, and they all thought since the threat of pregnancy was gone that they