Spark: Book 1 (The Heat Series) Read online

  Chapter 18

  Ava yawned and stretched in the king sized bed. She looked over, and Xander was still asleep. She felt content and a bit sore. She turned on her side and watched Xander, his face softened and relaxed with sleep. He was so handsome, and he was all hers. She got out of bed and went to the large bathroom. The beautiful red roses stood in two large vases on the ledge surrounding the tub. She had an idea and hoped that Xander would join her. After she had prepared, she woke him. He sleepily looked up at her.

  “Good morning. How is it possible that you look more beautiful than you did last night?”

  She didn’t say a word but crooked her index finger and wagged it. She wanted him to follow her into the bathroom. He rose from the bed, naked. In the sunlight, she could see all the muscles in his six pack as he flexed and stretched. His legs were strong and muscular. She once again caught notice of the faded outline of the tattoo on his upper thigh. She wanted to ask him about it; it seemed familiar. Before she led him into the bathroom, she told him to close his eyes and wait a minute until she called him. He was still sleepy and impatient. He heard the gentle splash of water.

  “You can come in now.” He entered the bathroom and saw that she had filled the huge tub with water and rose petals from the vases of red roses.

  “Well, this is a garden tub, and now there is a garden in the tub along with a sexy creature.”

  “Come join me.” He slipped into the tub enjoying the fragrance of the roses as they steeped in the hot water. The bath felt good on his body. The tub was big enough for them to move around and she was playing hard to get. She floated just out of his reach until he made a quick move one way when she thought he was going the other. He pulled her on top of him, and she straddled his legs as they embraced. He pressed his lips to hers and slipped his tongue in her mouth. Her stomach started to do little flips at his touch. He curled her hair around his hand and pulled it away from her slender neck. This was one of his favorite body parts on her though it was safe to say that her body was his favorite part, period. He kissed the tender flesh just above her beating pulse and ran his lips over her until he latched on near her shoulder and gently sucked. She softly moaned and allowed her fingers to feather along his strong chest, down his stomach, and to his pubic area. He stilled her hand with his own.

  “Don’t start something unless you plan to finish it,” he purred.

  “I plan to finish it.” He removed his hand from hers, and she stroked his length. He continued kissing and sucking her neck while his hands cupped her breasts. He shifted his position so that he was able to have better access. Even in the bath, he felt the slickness of her as his fingers pushed through her folds.

  Ava wrapped her hand around the back of his head and leaned close to his ear, “I want you so much.”

  He positioned her opening over his cock and worked himself into her. She was so tight but even in the hot bath he could still feel her heat.

  “Ohhh.” She gasped.

  He stopped what he was doing. “Ava if it hurts we don’t have to do this.”

  It did hurt, but after he had entered her, the pain started to fade.

  “Don’t you dare stop.”

  “Wrap your legs around me.”

  “No.”

  She positioned her legs on either side of him, so she was squatting and pushed off the tub bottom. She began pumping moving over his hardness. He was impressed with her willingness to take the lead. He moved away some of the rose petals that were floating between them so he could have access to her lovely breasts. He cupped one and sucked her beaded nipple while he pinched the other. She was grinding herself against him with each thrust, and her breathing was quickly becoming a pant. He was so aroused by her face, eyes closed, beads of water dripping down, her red lips swollen from their kissing. He was inching ever so close to his release.

  “Ava, don’t stop,” he panted. He released her breasts to cup his hands under her ass. He sped up the motion, and her moans got louder. Then he felt her climax as she squeezed him. She kept working him until he let out a loud moan and he held her tight as he finished.

  “If I knew how good this was I would have never waited so long.”

  “I thought you never really had a boyfriend before?”

  “I didn’t, but I had plenty asked for dates at NYU. I could have had sex.”

  “Yes, you could have, but it wouldn’t have been special like it was last night.”

  She leaned against his chest.

  “You’re right; it wouldn’t have been special.” She lay against him for a few minutes until she noticed that the water had begun to cool. “Maybe we should get out of the tub and take a shower.”

  “Just let me hold you a little longer, I’m enjoying this very much.”

  After a little while longer, he released her. She stood up in the tub and rose petals clung to her wet frame. He brushed at them and his cock started to twitch. He could go all day and night, but she needed a rest. It was obvious she was still sore, and they had their whole lives to make love. They washed each other in the shower. Xander loved washing her hair. It was long and thick. He massaged the shampoo in with his fingers while she leaned her back against him. When he was done lathering it in, he switched positions with her and held her under the spray to wash out the suds.

  When they were finished, they wrapped themselves with oversized towels and padded back into the bedroom. Xander opened the drapes facing the lake, and the room was lit up with the bright sun. Ava removed her towel to dry her hair. He couldn’t resist, and he sat down next to her to kiss her shoulders and neck.

  “Xander, stop. If you continue, we will never get dressed.” He looked at her with an evil grin on his handsome face.

  “Is that such a bad thing?”

  “Not at all.” He removed his lips from her neck to go back into the bathroom. When he came back out, he was naked. She couldn’t help but look at him. She once again noted the faded outline of a tattoo on his upper thigh and decided to ask.

  “Xander, what is that?” She pointed to the mark. He absent-mindedly rubbed at it as if he could make disappear.

  “It’s something stupid from my rebellious years in college. My father had a fit when he saw it, so after college I had it removed. It was the Wilder family crest but over embellished. He felt that it was a disgrace to the family.” She ran her finger over the faded mark, and he flinched as if she raked her nails against it.

  “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to pry.”

  “It’s fine.” He said nothing further about it. He picked up his suitcase and laid it on the bed, rummaging through it for a pair of khaki shorts and polo shirt. She had no idea what she wanted to wear as she looked through her bag, but in the end, she chose a short sleeveless sundress in a floral print. She braided her hair and put it in a ponytail holder. Slipped on a pair of flip flops and decided against any makeup.

  “Are you sure you want to wear that?”

  With alarm, she looked herself up and down “Why is there something wrong?”

  “No, it’s just you might want to wear a pair of shorts for what I have planned.”

  She removed the sundress and threw it at him playfully. “You could have told me that before I put this on.” Her standing there in nothing but a lace bra and thong was hot. He had a good mind to forget what he had planned and take her to bed for the day. He pushed the thought out of his mind, for now. Ava changed into a t-shirt and shorts.

  “How is this?”

  “I guess it will do.” Ava let out an exasperated sigh and walked out of the room. He followed her to the massive kitchen watching as she opened the refrigerator and removed the orange juice.

  “Do we have time to eat? I’m starving!”

  “Well, there is no time frame so we can eat before we go.”

  No time frame? Where is this man taking me? She sliced the bagel and slathered a layer of thick cream cheese on it. He was glad to see she was eating without his prodding. He joined her, and they cleane
d up together after they had finished.

  “You might want to put on those water shoes in the hall closet. My mother is about your size so they should fit.”

  “Xander Wilder, please tell me what we are doing.”

  “Just follow my lead, doll, and you will be fine.” She kicked off her flip-flops and worked on the water shoes she had found. He led her out to a very large shed off to the side of the house. It held several kayaks, two canoes and accessories all neatly stored on shelves. He selected two life jackets and handed her one. “Wear this.”

  “I don’t need this. I do know how to swim.”

  “I’m sure you do, but safety first. You don’t have to wear it if you don’t want to, but I would feel better if you did.” She complied just to shut him up. She had spent a good chunk of her early life swimming and fishing with her father.

  Xander walked to the small beachfront and pushed one of the two rowboats into the water. “Get in or you can help me push if you don’t mind getting wet.”

  She chose to jump in the boat, and he pushed it in the water until it was no longer touching the sand. He climbed into the boat and carefully walked to the back until he was sitting in the middle one seat away from Ava. He had his back to her, and she watched as he locked the oars in by slipping them into pins on the top of the boat. Then he turned and sat down.

  “Ready?”

  “I guess?” He ignored her tentativeness and began to row. It was still early in the day, but it was already very warm out. Once they were out in the deeper water, Xander stopped rowing to remove his life jacket and shirt. He left the life jacket on the seat next to him and used his shirt to wipe the sweat from his face. She could see the hair at the nape of his neck was damp with sweat.

  He started rowing again until they were out in the middle of the lake. The sun was full up in the sky now, and she could feel herself sweating. She was thankful that there was a gentle breeze blowing. She leaned over the water while Xander rowed, and let her hand glide along. The house had gotten small in the distance before she realized it. He had rowed quite a ways, and they started to see other homes. People were sitting on their docks fishing and kids were playing on the front lawns near the water. Xander waved to a few of them.

  “Do you know them?”

  “Even if you don’t, it’s the neighborly thing to do.” He stopped rowing and left the boat to drift. His chest was glistening with sweat, and she thought he never looked sexier. He reached into his back pocket and put on a pair of sunglasses. She had forgotten to take hers, and she looked at him with squinty eyes. He reached into the pocket of his life jacket and handed her a pair. They were a little big for her face, but she was thankful that he brought them for her.

  He reached under the seat and handed her a spray bottle. “Put on some sunscreen. You’re so fair; you will surely get a burn in this sun.” She sprayed her arms and legs then rubbed some on her face.

  They drifted in the water for about an hour. They talked about their lives before each other. Though the Wilder and Keene families had known each other for years, Xander and Ava had not had much contact probably because Xander was several years older than her. He also spent a lot of his summers at sports camp. He played lacrosse and football in high school and started attending skills camps when he was thirteen. So he was never free to join his family when they visited the Keenes. Xander admitted that he didn’t remember many times meeting her as a child.

  A little while later he noticed she was beginning to burn, and he told her to apply more sunscreen. She applied more and he rowed as hard as he could to get them back and out of the noontime sun. As they pulled into the Wilder’s beach, Xander jumped out of the boat to pull it onto the sand. She wobbled her way to him, and he lifted her out.

  “That was fun. Can we do it again?”

  “Sure, but I think we need to make sure you apply sunscreen every half hour. Your arms are a bit red and so is your nose.”

  When the boat was secured, they made their way to the house.

  Ava was thirsty and selected a bottle of water to drink before she went in the shower. He went into the bathroom with her and noticed they had a mess to clean in the tub. The rose petals had stuck on the bottom. He told her to shower, and he would clean.

  She stripped off her clothing while he worked on the tub. By the time she was wrapped in a towel, he was done cleaning. It was spotless, and you would never have known that a soggy pile of rose petals had been sitting in the bottom just minutes earlier.

  “Thank you. I would have cleaned it since I made the mess.”

  He held up his hand to indicate he wanted her to stop. “Go relax; I’ll join you in a few minutes.”

  Ava wiped herself while Xander stepped into the shower. She fell asleep on the bed in her towel. It was still early in the afternoon, but she was tired.

  “Hey sleepyhead, do you want to get dressed?” Ava awoke to see Xander standing over her. He was wearing only basketball shorts, and his hair was still damp from the shower.”

  “I’d rather lie in bed with you. Join me?”

  “I would love to, but I am starving. Come have something to eat and we can take a nap later.” She was still in the towel she had wrapped around her after she got out of the shower. The floral sundress she previously threw at Xander was neatly folded on his side of the bed. She picked it up and slipped it on. Xander couldn’t take her eyes off of her. The dress clung to her body especially her breasts. The thin cloth left little to the imagination, and he could see the outline of his favorite part of her body. He decided not to comment about her lack of underwear, and he left the room before his arousal gave him away. He went to the refrigerator and started to take out anything and everything.

  “What’s your pleasure?” She went to him and wrapped her arms around his muscular back.

  “Are you on the menu?”

  “Maybe not for lunch but I’m sure that I can be for dessert” He wanted her for every meal for the next couple of days, but she needed to eat.

  “How about I make a nice lunch, and we sit out on the patio and eat?”

  “What patio?”

  “Look out the kitchen window.”

  She peered out the window and below the back part of the wraparound porch was a beautiful stone patio. It had a large covered area with a grill, under counter refrigerator, small sink, and granite countertops. There was a sitting area opposite the outdoor kitchen with a beautiful teak table and eight cushion covered chairs under a large umbrella. A huge stone fireplace with a built-in pizza oven dominated one corner with stone seating flanking either side. Adirondack chairs were arranged in a semi-circle around the fireplace. It was like nothing Ava had seen.

  “Why didn’t you show me this yesterday?”

  “I think we were a little preoccupied,” he winked at her.

  “Why don’t you go down and I will be right out with lunch.” She opened the sliding glass doors and went down to the patio to explore. The property on the back side of the house was flanked by large hedges to prevent prying eyes from seeing in.

  “Sweetheart, lunch is ready.”

  Xander placed a large tray on the teak table. She headed over to see what he had made.

  “I wasn’t sure what you wanted, so I just brought a selection. On the tray were a small bowl of fruit salad, several types of rolled cold cuts, chunks of assorted cheese, and crackers. He had also brought two wine glasses with a bottle of white wine. She wasn’t feeling hungry until he presented the food, then her stomach started to growl.

  He handed her a plate, and she filled it with a little of everything. Xander poured her a glass of wine, then himself.

  “To what shall we toast?”

  Ava thought for a minute. “Too wonderful times like this together. This place is so nice, I’m not sure I want to go back to the city.”

  “I know what you mean. I used to get lost in this place. You should see how it is in the summer. All the flowers are blooming around the property. We go swimming on our
little beach. Sit outside by the fireplace, roast marshmallows and make homemade pizza. During the Fourth of July, they have a big fireworks display in town. You can see it from the roof deck. That is why it was so important for me to get married and have my own family. My parents want us to fill the bedrooms up with grandkids. Family was always very important to us.”

  Ava nodded because she understood what he meant. She missed her family in Georgia and was fortunate that her aunt and uncle had taken her in like she was one of their own. Her relationship with her father was never as close as with her mother and Brooke was more like an acquaintance than a sister.

  “I know. I feel the same way. But we lost that connection when my mother died. She was like the glue that kept everyone together.”

  Xander felt sorry for her having lost her mother at such a young age. His mother was an integral part of his life. She always went to his sporting events and was there when he needed her even through his college years. Though his father was busy, he always tried to find time to spend with Xander.

  They enjoyed a leisurely lunch until the sky started to darken and fat drops of rain bounced off the pavement. They threw everything on the tray and made a run for the house. It wasn’t a far run, but by the time they got to the porch their clothing was soaked and hair plastered to their heads. Ava’s dress revealed every delicious curve and her nipples had hardened from the chill. Xander couldn’t help but stare at her. She noticed and felt a heated rush that went all the way to her core.

  “You’re looking at me like you are the big bad wolf, and you want to eat me.”

  He chuckled, “I would be lying to you if I said that was not what I was thinking. When I was a kid, I used to go for walks in the rain.