Read Online Since You've Been Gone (Welcome to Paradise) by Elle Kennedy - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Elle Kennedy
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soon.”
Exhausted and sated beyond belief, he rolled over and pulled her close. “You have incredibly high expectations,” he mumbled. “Lord, woman, two orgasms weren’t enough for you?”
“Two orgasms will do—for now.” She nestled against his side and rested her head on his chest. “I’m just kidding,” she added with a little sigh. “That was incredible, Bishop.”
“Yeah?” he said roughly.
“Hells yeah. Granted, I don’t have much to compare you to. I’ve only slept with two other guys.”
“And I’m better in the sack than both of them. Clearly.”
“Clearly,” she echoed. Then she laughed. “I bet my two measly lovers are nothing compared to the stable of women you’ve slept with.”
He threaded his fingers through her hair and absently stroked the wavy strands. “You’d lose that bet.”
“Really? How many fillies do you have in your stable then?”
A laugh lodged in his chest. “I’ve slept with four women . And I think you might have set the feminist movement back several decades with your horse comparison.”
“Ah, whatevs. Feminists are too uptight for my liking. Anyway, only four? That surprises me.”
“I wasn’t lying when I said I wasn’t into casual sex,” he replied with a shrug. “I’m more of a relationship kind of guy. Not lately, though. It’s hard to maintain a relationship when I’m always traveling.”
“I can imagine. Who was the last person you were with?”
“A journalist I met in South Africa. She was pretty damn cool, but we couldn’t make the long-distance thing work. What about you?”
“I dated this artist in Chicago for two years. He painted the craziest shit, like futuristic landscapes and weird killer robots. He was a great guy.”
Austin tweaked a strand of her hair. “Um, if you want to vouch for someone’s character, I’m not sure you should lead with ‘killer robot paintings’.”
Mari’s laughter fanned over his pecs. “Yeah, you’re right, that does make him sound nuts. But Michael really was sweet. The relationship just fizzled after a while. He wanted to move in together, but I couldn’t see myself ever living with him, or marrying him, or having kids with him. That’s when I realized we probably shouldn’t be together.” She stroked his chest with her palm, her tone growing thoughtful. “Do you see yourself getting married?”
“Eventually. Maybe once I get the traveling bug out of my system.” He shrugged. “For now, I’ll leave the marriage thing to my brothers.”
“Are all three of them married?”
“Nate and Owen are, but Jake’s on his way. I think he’ll probably propose to Bree this year.”
“What are they like?” Mari asked curiously.
“My brothers or their partners?”
“Both.”
“Well, Nate is the oldest, and I guess he’s the strong, silent type. Come to think of it, so are Owen and Jake. Those two are identical twins, but they took completely different paths in life. Owen runs his own construction company, and Jake enlisted in the army right out of high school. He was Special Forces, but now he’s an instructor on the base in Colorado Springs.”
“Oooh, military men are so hot.”
Austin rolled his eyes. “I think the entire female population agrees with you. Jake was never hurting for female company. But he’s committed to Bree now. She’s a lawyer, not sure what kind of law she practices, but she’s a great girl. Really sweet.”
Too sweet, he almost added, but he didn’t feel like going there right now. Since he’d met Mari, he hadn’t been obsessing as much about his family issues, and he wanted to keep it that way for as long as possible.
“Maddie is great too,” he went on. “She’s Owen’s wife, and the two of them fight like cats and dogs. Maddie is way too opinionated for her own good and the most stubborn person I’ve ever met.”
Mari laughed. “I like her already. Okay, so Bree and Maddie are with the twins. Who’s Nate married
Exhausted and sated beyond belief, he rolled over and pulled her close. “You have incredibly high expectations,” he mumbled. “Lord, woman, two orgasms weren’t enough for you?”
“Two orgasms will do—for now.” She nestled against his side and rested her head on his chest. “I’m just kidding,” she added with a little sigh. “That was incredible, Bishop.”
“Yeah?” he said roughly.
“Hells yeah. Granted, I don’t have much to compare you to. I’ve only slept with two other guys.”
“And I’m better in the sack than both of them. Clearly.”
“Clearly,” she echoed. Then she laughed. “I bet my two measly lovers are nothing compared to the stable of women you’ve slept with.”
He threaded his fingers through her hair and absently stroked the wavy strands. “You’d lose that bet.”
“Really? How many fillies do you have in your stable then?”
A laugh lodged in his chest. “I’ve slept with four women . And I think you might have set the feminist movement back several decades with your horse comparison.”
“Ah, whatevs. Feminists are too uptight for my liking. Anyway, only four? That surprises me.”
“I wasn’t lying when I said I wasn’t into casual sex,” he replied with a shrug. “I’m more of a relationship kind of guy. Not lately, though. It’s hard to maintain a relationship when I’m always traveling.”
“I can imagine. Who was the last person you were with?”
“A journalist I met in South Africa. She was pretty damn cool, but we couldn’t make the long-distance thing work. What about you?”
“I dated this artist in Chicago for two years. He painted the craziest shit, like futuristic landscapes and weird killer robots. He was a great guy.”
Austin tweaked a strand of her hair. “Um, if you want to vouch for someone’s character, I’m not sure you should lead with ‘killer robot paintings’.”
Mari’s laughter fanned over his pecs. “Yeah, you’re right, that does make him sound nuts. But Michael really was sweet. The relationship just fizzled after a while. He wanted to move in together, but I couldn’t see myself ever living with him, or marrying him, or having kids with him. That’s when I realized we probably shouldn’t be together.” She stroked his chest with her palm, her tone growing thoughtful. “Do you see yourself getting married?”
“Eventually. Maybe once I get the traveling bug out of my system.” He shrugged. “For now, I’ll leave the marriage thing to my brothers.”
“Are all three of them married?”
“Nate and Owen are, but Jake’s on his way. I think he’ll probably propose to Bree this year.”
“What are they like?” Mari asked curiously.
“My brothers or their partners?”
“Both.”
“Well, Nate is the oldest, and I guess he’s the strong, silent type. Come to think of it, so are Owen and Jake. Those two are identical twins, but they took completely different paths in life. Owen runs his own construction company, and Jake enlisted in the army right out of high school. He was Special Forces, but now he’s an instructor on the base in Colorado Springs.”
“Oooh, military men are so hot.”
Austin rolled his eyes. “I think the entire female population agrees with you. Jake was never hurting for female company. But he’s committed to Bree now. She’s a lawyer, not sure what kind of law she practices, but she’s a great girl. Really sweet.”
Too sweet, he almost added, but he didn’t feel like going there right now. Since he’d met Mari, he hadn’t been obsessing as much about his family issues, and he wanted to keep it that way for as long as possible.
“Maddie is great too,” he went on. “She’s Owen’s wife, and the two of them fight like cats and dogs. Maddie is way too opinionated for her own good and the most stubborn person I’ve ever met.”
Mari laughed. “I like her already. Okay, so Bree and Maddie are with the twins. Who’s Nate married
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