I stop in my tracks and smack his chest. “You did not.”
“I did.”
Oh. My. Gosh.
My heart leaps with a blast of joy unlike anything I’ve felt in a while.
I drop his hand and bring mine to my mouth. “Why would you do that?”
His brow crinkles. “If you don’t want to—”
“Shut your mouth! Of course, I want to! I just …” The shock starts to wane, and my heartbeat begins to settle. “I … I don’t understand.”
“It’s pretty fucking easy.” His lips twitch as his eyes search mine. “I referred your work to a colleague. What’s so complicated about that?”
I hold my breath and study this man.
Does he remember our conversation at Holt’s wedding? I told him that this type of photography was my dream.
My heart swells so big that I think it might burst.
Why … Why would he do this?
“You didn’t have to do that,” I tell him.
“No. I didn’t. But I did. I respect your hustle. And I can see how passionate you are about photography. It reminds me of how much architecture is a part of who I am. It motivates me. It drives me. It’s … It’s how I communicate in a lot of ways.”
His eyes sparkle under the setting sun.
My mind wonders what he’ll want in return but, for the moment, I put that thought away and just revel in his kindness.
I slide up against his body and wrap my arms around his neck. It takes him aback for a moment before he locks his hands on my backside.
“Thank you,” I whisper.
He rolls his eyes. “It was just a referral, Dara.”
“Not for that. Well, for that but not just that.”
We begin to sway easily with the breeze—just Wade and me beneath the magnolias.
“Thank you for believing in me,” I tell him. “I really appreciate that.”
He runs his hands over the globes of my ass. “I appreciate this.”
Even though his redirection takes away from my gratitude, and I’m not sure he understands just how grateful I am for the opportunity he just gave me, I let it go.
I glance around the Gardens and spot a little bench hidden under the trees. The limbs are overgrown and drape around it like a private canopy.
Perfect.
I run a finger over his lips. “I’ll make you a deal.”
“No.”
“Wade!”
He chuckles. “Why would I make any kind of deal with you? I hold all the cards.”
“You just think you do.”
He grins, shaking my ass cheeks with his hands. “I actually do.”
I giggle. “Well, as riveted as I am about walking the entire expanse of the Gardens, I’d really like to do one thing first.”
“What’s that?”
“You.”
His eyes darken. “I could get behind that.”
I grin. “I’m hoping you can get under me, actually.”
“Fuck yes.” He straddles my feet with his and presses me against his body.
Oh, shit. He’s already hard.
I missed that. I missed him.
“There’s a bench to your right,” I tell him.
“Say no more.”
He takes my hand and leads me quickly through the grass. We dip beneath the branches and find the small area I spotted a few minutes ago.
“Sit,” I tell him. “And take your cock out.”
He grins. “Okay. I’ll play.”
“Tell me you have a condom. Please tell me you have one.”
He looks at me like I’m silly. “Do you really think that I’m going to see you and not be prepared to fuck you? Come on, Dara. I’m more of a professional than that.”
“Thank God.”
I unfasten my pants. He sits on the bench, knees far apart, and rolls a condom down his already erect length.
Shit.
My breathing is ragged as I bend over and press a wet, aggressive kiss to his lips. He tries to grab my head and keep me there, but I pull back.
Then, before he can give me orders, I tug my pants down and back up to his lap. I grip the base of his cock and slide my body down on top of his.
He hisses as he penetrates me. I moan as I’m filled with his length.
The air is thick and heavy as I arch my back and lift off him.
“The view from here is the best view in the place,” he says, smacking my ass.
“I’m pretty partial to this seat.”
He chuckles until I fill myself with him again. I rock my hips slowly, deliciously—his cock touching every wild nerve ending in my pussy.
He pushes deeper. I roll my body in a circle. His fingers dig so roughly into my hips that I call out in sweet agony.
He leans up, holding me still with an arm around my middle, and bites my ear.
“Shhh,” he warns. “You’ll give poor Marjorie a heart attack.”
I giggle as he presses a kiss behind my ear and then sits back. He flexes his hips as I start to pump him in and out of myself.
The sound of our bodies hitting each other carries through the trees. Wade sits up, pushing a hand between my legs, and presses a finger to my clit.