Since they’d moved in together, Jonathan found Violet to be a joy. It was incredible to be able to wake up and find her in his bed every morning. Violet, it turned out, was a cuddler in her sleep, and she tended to cling to him, as if worried that she’d let go and he’d disappear. Thus, he tended to wake up with Violet’s front pressed to his back and her cold feet pressed against his calves.
He f**king loved every moment of it.
They made love with abandon, talked about the future, and he didn’t even care that she tended to throw her shoes off wherever it struck her, and he could follow a trail of dirty clothes back to the bedroom. After all, they could always hire a maid.
All that mattered was that when he climbed into bed at night, Violet’s arms went around him. And when he woke up, he’d look over and see her lovely face on the pillow next to his.
Jonathan’s heart had never been so full.
Cade kept up a stream of easygoing conversation as they headed down the hall toward Jonathan and Violet’s new apartment, but Jonathan wasn’t listening. He’d been gone from Violet for almost a full day; he’d left before dawn that morning and was getting back after two the next morning. This was the longest they’d been apart and he missed the hell out of her.
“You sure she’s up?” Cade asked, stifling a yawn.
“She said she would be,” Jonathan told him, and opened the heavy wooden door to the penthouse apartment. Immediately, the smell of a spicy stir-fry touched his nose, and his mouth watered. He loved Asian food; he’d developed a taste for it in his travels, and Violet had remembered that.
As if she knew he was thinking about her, Violet padded out of the kitchen, dressed in one of his old T-shirts and a pair of his baggy sleep pants that clung tightly to her generous curves. Her dark hair was rumpled and her eyes looked sleepy, but she held a spatula and beamed at him. “You made it home! I was worried about you.” Her gaze went to Cade and warmed. “And you brought a friend. Hi, Cade! It’s so good to see you.”
“Violet,” Cade said, striding forward to give her a quick hug. “You’re looking lovely.”
They hugged briefly and as soon as Cade released her, Jonathan dragged his beautiful woman into his arms, kissing her passionately. She returned his kisses breathlessly, then pulled away. “You’re going to make me burn the food.”
“You didn’t have to cook,” he told her in a low voice.
“I’m glad she did. It smells amazing,” Cade said, leaning against one of the nearby counters.
Violet pulled away from Jonathan’s arms with a blush and a quick look of longing, and then she turned back to the wok on the gas stove. “I needed to do something to stay awake while I waited for you. Coffee?” She gestured at the half-full coffeepot on the counter.
“I’m good,” Cade said. “Can I look around while we wait for food?”
“Of course,” Violet said, and winced. “Just . . . excuse the mess. I haven’t picked up.”
“I won’t say a word,” Cade said with a grin, and disappeared into the living room.
Immediately, Jonathan grabbed Violet and began to kiss her again, pressing her against a nearby counter and grinding his erection against the cradle of her hips. “God, I missed you.”
Her return kisses were equally frantic, her hands clawing at his shirt. “Not half as much as I missed you.”
His hand slid into the waistband of her pants and she whimpered, pulling at his hand. “No, Jonathan, wait—”
“I don’t want to wait,” he growled. He’d been waiting all day to touch her again. To feel that sweet slickness pool between her legs just for him. Twenty hours without Violet was too long. How had he ever gone ten years?
“Wow, the ceiling in here is enormous,” Cade called from the living room. “Is the guest bathroom down the hall?”
“Y-yes,” Violet called out, sounding breathless as Jonathan’s fingers delved down the front of her sleep pants. She was pinned against the counter, but she wasn’t fighting him. Instead, she clung to him, her h*ps pushing against his hand in a silent plea for more. Ah, there it was. Her cl*t was already poking out, stiff with need, and her wetness hit his fingers as soon as he touched her folds. God, she was always so wet for him. He began to rub and loved the little whimpers she gave even as she started to ride his hand.
Jonathan’s mouth captured hers and he kissed her, hard and fierce, while he rubbed her to a quick, brutal orgasm. She came moments later, clinging to him for support, his palm flooding with her juices, her tiny scream smothered by his tongue. He loved the sight of that, and the glazed, exhausted, replete look she gave him when he pulled his hand away. She clung to him, tucking her head against his chest. “Mmm, I’m so glad you’re home.”
He chuckled and took the spatula from her hand and set it on the counter. The stir-fry was burning, so he turned off the stove even as she yawned and burrowed against him. “Let’s get you to bed, love.”
“What about food—” she began sleepily.
“I’ll eat tomorrow.”
“What about Cade—”
He swung her into his arms and began to carry her toward the bed. “He can go get a hotel room.”
He thought Violet would protest, but she only buried her face in his neck and began to lick and suck on his skin there. He groaned with need. “Hurry up and kick him out, then,” she murmured as he pushed open the door to the bedroom and laid her in the rumpled bed.
Jonathan pressed a kiss to Violet’s forehead. “I won’t be long.”
He wasn’t; Cade discreetly emerged from the back of the penthouse once Jonathan shut the bedroom door behind him and adjusted himself. “You know,” Cade said, “I think I’ll just head out, if it’s the same to you.”
“Perfect.” Jonathan grinned at him in understanding. “You’re a good friend.”
“I might swing by the Lyons offices in a few days,” he said thoughtfully. “Thinking about getting a customized car for a friend.”
“It’ll be on me,” Jonathan said. Just leave in the next few minutes.
Cade nodded, seemingly distracted. “Catch you in a few days, then, man.” He clapped Jonathan on the shoulder. “Got keys I can borrow?”
“My roadster’s keys are on the hook by the door. It’s yours.”
Cade grinned. “I’ll see myself out, then. Tell Violet I said good night, and that it was lovely to see her.”