Read Online The Perfect Stroke by Jordan Marie - Free Book Online Page A

arms around me. He holds me close, the flowers and wine bracing against my back.
    “I’ve missed you.”
    I realize I’m dealing with a player, and those words are probably just another line designed to get my pants off of me, but the thing is… it’s a very good line . Plus, I really want him to get my pants off.
    “Scruffy is a good look for you,” I tell him, moving my hand along the five o’clock shadow on his face. Any look is good on him. I don’t think you can make him look bad—at least, physically.
    “Can I have my kiss now?” he asks. Last night during our phone conversation, I told him he could have a kiss if he could remember what I was wearing the night we met. I really didn’t think he could, but he nailed it, all the way down to the sea foam green, lacy silk panties and bra I had been wearing. I reach up to give him a peck on his cheek.
    “There.”
    “Um… no. That is not the kiss we discussed.”
    “It’s not?” I ask as innocently as I can pull it off.
    “Definitely not. There was no tongue action in that.”
    “I don’t remember tongue action being discussed,” I tell him with a grin, breaking away. I take the wine and flowers from him and lead him into the kitchen.
    I have a small house. It was Banger’s and the only true home I’ve ever known. It’s an open concept with the living room and kitchen as one large space. It’s too small for a dining area, so there’s a breakfast bar. It’s two small bedrooms and a bath. I’m sure it is nothing like what Grayson is used to, but I don’t sense him checking it out and finding it lacking, so I relax a little.
    “Tongue action was implicitly implied.”
    “Say that ten times really fast.”
    “Why, Cooper, are you trying to get me to show off how well my tongue works?”
    “I think I can remember,” I tell him, shaking my head. “I hope burgers and fries are okay. Honestly, it was a long day at the garage and I was too beat to worry about dinner.”
    “Burgers and fries are my favorite,” he says, and though he’s probably lying, I relax that much more.
    “Thank you for the flowers and the wine. You didn’t have to,” I tell him, putting them in a vase and running tap water into it.
    “I did it with an ulterior motive,” he says, and I jump because he’s right behind me. He wraps his arms around my waist, pulling me back into him. His face slides against mine, the stubble on his face scratching softly against my neck.
    “What would that be?” I ask, my voice breathless.
    “You. I want you,” he says, his lips following the pulse point in my neck.
    “Gray…” I protest, but even I know it sounds weak.
    “God, I’ve been thinking of nothing but you for days,” he groans, his hands moving under my shirt, sliding slowly up my stomach, teasing the warm skin there until he cups my breasts. I want to give in. All week I said I was going to, but now…
    “Gray, I don’t think we should do this,” I tell him, forcing myself to pull away. Once his hands leave me, I feel strangely deprived. God, I’m a bigger mess than even I knew.
    “What’s going on, Cooper?”
    “It’s just… I don’t think I’m ready to just jump into bed with you.”
    “It doesn’t have to be a bed. The floor, the wall—hell, the kitchen counter works for me.”
    “That’s not what I mean and you know it.”
    “I don’t see the problem. We’ve already slept together, did you forget?”
    “No. That was different.”
    “I don’t see how. Besides, you can’t deny that we’ve been talking all week, and I think it was pretty clear from our conversations where this was headed. So why the sudden hot and cold, Cooper?”
    His words make me feel like I’m on trial, which sucks. He wants full honesty? Fine.
    “It was different before because there was nothing but one night of sex.”
    “Two,” he corrects me.
    “Whatever. The point was it was a space out of time where I let go of my better judgment and just took something I