Age Gap Romance by Penny Wylder
Tristan
I’m a goddamn fool. I should have done this a long time ago, and I’ll always have to live with the fact that I wasted years trying to be strong and do what I thought was the right thing for everyone when it was probably the wrong thing for us.
Nicola tastes like the sweetest dessert that I can imagine, and now that I’ve had a chance to breath in her flavor, it’s all I want. If I had my way I would keep her in this bathroom all day, making her come until she could no longer speak. Hell, she might already be halfway there.
And the fact that this is still a first—that I’m the only man that’s ever tasted her—has me harder than I’ve ever been in my goddamn life. She’s quivering, about to burst. I know I can make her come again. I feel the way her breath comes quick and I see the way her hands are gripping the counter out of the corner of my eyes.
God, I want all of her. It’s taking everything in me not to lay her out on this floor and have my way with her now. I understand her hesitance, but I’m not going to back down. I came back to claim what she offered and I’m not going to let her think that I have any doubts. At all.
I run my tongue along the seam of her, savoring that delicate sweetness before sucking her deep again, listening to her breath catch. She’s so close, and I use my tongue, swirling and reaching over her swollen clit until I feel her shudder again. Until I feel her body release and her thighs lock around me.
It’s her hardest orgasm yet, and Nicola can’t quite hold back her cry. It echoes around us but I can’t bring myself to care. Let them hear. Let everyone know that I know how to pleasure her. Slowly, I help her come down from pleasure with gentle kisses and slow licks. I could do this all day. And I finally pull back from her, even though it’s the last thing I want to do in the world.
“Happy birthday,” I say, smirking up at her.
“That was quite the present.” Her breath still isn’t even, and her hair is falling into her face. I want to see that wild hair after we’ve made love, tangled and spread across the pillows. Draped across my chest.
A loud knock sounds on the door, and Nicola jumps and goes pale. “Just a minute,” she calls out, and steps away from me, fixing her dress. The woman wantonly enjoying my tongue is gone, and replaced with one who’s nervous. “You need to hide,” she says, pushing me towards one of the bathroom stalls. “Just until I make sure everything is clear.”
I catch her by the arm and pull her close to kiss her. Even beneath her nerves, she can’t quite hide the way she melts under my mouth. My Nicola is still there, even if she’s pretending that she’s not. I’m going to prove to her that this is worth it. That we’re worth it, even if I’m the one that wasted so much time. That’s my fault. I know that. But I can still make it right.
When I pull away, her eyes are wide, and I can’t quite interpret the emotion there. “Hide,” she says, before unlocking the door.
I step into the stall, smiling. I don’t think we need to be so cloak and dagger, but if it makes her feel better I’ll do it. Her panties are still in my hand, and I tuck them into my pocket. She didn’t ask for them back, and I like the idea of having them as a souvenir for the first time I tasted her. I’m only concealed for a moment before I hear her voice again. “It’s clear. Leave quickly so nobody sees you coming out of the women’s bathroom.”
There’s more that I want to do than leave this room. I want to talk about us and what just happened. But when I step out of the stall to leave, Nicola is already gone. The hallway is empty, and she’s disappeared without a trace. I don’t know this building well enough to go looking for her.
Maybe I pushed too hard, too fast. Maybe with Nicola, for the second time, I made a mistake.
I don’t see Nicola for the rest of the day, and between settling into my new office and signing paperwork with HR, I don’t have a chance to look for her. But I snag one of her business cards from an assistant. It has her cell number, and though I probably should just wait, I don’t want silence between us. If she’s angry I want to know. If I truly crossed a line, I want to know. My stomach does a flip as I enter her phone number, because I don’t want to think that I’ve already ruined this.
Nicola, it’s Dash. Please don’t run away. I want to talk about what happened today, and what happened four years ago. If I need to promise that I won’t kiss you for you to talk to me, I can do that. Just please, don’t shut me out.
I send it and take a deep breath. It’s all I can do for now. And there’s plenty for me to do at home to unpack. But hell if I’m going to get anything done while I’m watching my phone.
* * *
Nothing from Nicola. I sent her a text telling her good night, and another one saying good morning, but there’s been no response so far. I haven’t run into her at the office yet, and I’m not going to force the issue, even though Bruce made it seem like we’d be working pretty closely together. I’m sure that I’ll see her soon enough. Until then, I can be patient.
A knock at my office door makes me look up from where I’m staring at my phone, willing a text message to appear. It’s Bruce. “How are you settling in?”
“Fine,” I say. “Got everything squared away with HR, so I should be able to start piling through everything that was left on the desk.” The previous person in my position had a lot of irons in the fire, which is good for the company but it makes for a lot of catch-up work on my end. But I don’t care. I’m a fucking lucky man. Job in my field with a decent salary, working side-by-side with the woman I’m completely and utterly in love with? I’ll take some busy work to dig through any day.
“Excellent,” he says with a grin. “I’m sure you’ll have it worked out in no time. But what do you say we take a long lunch to catch up? Noon?”
I nod. “Sure thing.”
“See you then,” he says, smacking the doorframe on the way out. One of the things I’ve always appreciated about Bruce is his ability to make you feel welcome. We’ve been friends for so long, but even after my absence it doesn’t feel like we’ve missed a beat. And furthermore, I know him well enough that I know he’s not going to act like my boss outside of work. I don’t plan on doing anything that would make him want to pull rank on me at all.
Except for maybe fucking his daughter.
Shit.
Yeah, I understand why Nicola is suddenly so hesitant about all of this. Aside from the time and distance, she loves her job. That was abundantly clear in the focus group yesterday. She doesn’t want to do anything to jeopardize her position at the company. And because I know Nicola and how kind-hearted she is, I can guarantee that she’s also worried about me and my new position here. Maybe even my friendship with her father.
She’s worth the risk to me. I need to make sure that she knows that. But if I’m not worth it to her, I would understand that. Things change. I can only hope that I can show her that what she always dreamed about can be true. We can have a life together.
Glancing at my phone, the screen is still empty.
I distract myself with the work. Lots of introduction emails to contact points looking to market with us. Lots of enquiries that need to be followed up on now that the position is full again. I need to analyze potential marketplaces across the country to see which ones have the best opportunities for expansion. There’s enough work here to keep me busy for weeks, and it’s a good way to get distracted.
It seems like it’s only been a few minutes when Bruce is hovering in my doorway again. “Ready to go?”
“Yeah, one second.” I finish up the last line of an email I’m sending before grabbing my coat and wallet. “Where are we going?”
“How do you feel about Callie’s?”
I can’t keep the grin off my face. Everyone in the world thinks that their local pizza place is the best pizza. But I’m pretty sure that Callie’s actually takes the cake. And I haven’t been there in a couple years, since my last whirlwind visit to Leighton City. “I feel great about that.”
Bruce smirks. “I thought you might.”
We hop in our cars, and meet at the restaurant. It’s snowing in that perfect movie way with big, fat flakes that probably won’t stick more than a few hours but look amazing while falling anyway. It was snowing just like this four years ago when I left, and I can’t help but wonder what Nicola and I might have done in the snow together had I been braver than I am now.
Walking through the door to Callie’s, I freeze. It’s not just the amazing scent of pizza, but it’s the fact that Nicola and her mother are already sitting at a table, chatting. “I didn’t realize that I was crashing a family lunch.”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Bruce says, clapping me on the shoulder. “You are family, Tristan. Got to know that by now, right?”
“Right.” I wonder if he would say the same if he knew about Nicola and me. But that’s a problem for another day. Today’s problem is figuring out if there even will be a Nicola and me.
“Sorry we’re late,” Bruce says as we approach the table. “Had to pick up this slacker.”
Nicola and her mother look up and the words that she had been saying die on her lips. She looks shocked. I give her a warm smile, one that I hope is reassuring.
“Tristan!” Bruce’s wife Valerie jumps up from the table and envelops me in a hug. “My god, we missed you.” She hits me in the arm hard enough that it might leave a bruise. “I’m glad you got your head far enough out of your ass to come back here.”
“That’s quite the welcome, Val.”
She makes a face as she sits back down beside her daughter. “You deserve it.”
“Did you order yet?” Bruce asks.
Nicola speaks up, though her eyes are still on me. “No, we were waiting for you.”
“Well, we’re here now,” he says. “Tristan, what do you want?”
Normally I’m a meat guy. I like a good meat-lover’s pizza. And Nicola does too. But there’s one thing that she can’t stand, and one thing I guarantee will get her to talk to me, even if she’s yelling. “I thought I might go for some Hawaiian.”
Nicola’s jaw drops. “You did not just say that.”
“What?” I act innocent.
“You know what.”
The waitress has set down a glass of water in front of me and I just take a sip, locking my eyes with hers. I can play innocent all day. “No.”
She narrows her eyes. “Pineapple does not belong on pizza.”
“Hmm,” I say. “I think pretty much anything you want can belong on pizza.”
Bruce and Valerie laugh, but Nicola doesn’t. “Bullshit. You used to agree with me too. I distinctly remember us having multiple conversations about the travesty that is pineapple on pizza.”
I shrug. “It’s been a few years. People change.”
“Not that much.” Her eyes are fire and I like the spark. That’s the response I was looking for.
“Fine,” I say, raising my hands in surrender. “Maybe I just wanted to see if the hatred of pineapple stood.”
“It does,” Valerie says. “At least for Nicola. But I’m dying to know more about what brought you back to Leighton City, and what the hell you were doing while you were gone.”
This is a minefield, but it’s one of my own creation. I have to be careful. But if I play my cards right, I might be able to send a message to Nicola as well. “The crux of it is that there were some things I realized about myself, and I wasn’t ready to face those things. So the idea of being here, and bringing all the people I love into the crazy with me, was unbearable.” I look at Nicola. “But I’m ready now. It was stupid to run in the first place.”
Her breath catches, and it’s so subtle that I doubt either of her parents notice, but I’m watching for it. Valerie looks a little confused. “Well…okay. You know you have us if you ever need anything or want to talk about it.” She laughs, and looks at Bruce. “I need someone to start getting Bruce out of the house again, so if you two want to have a girl’s night and go out and talk about your feelings, feel free.”
Bruce and I chuckle. “Thanks,” I say. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
Nicola is still looking at me, and just like yesterday, I can’t interpret her expression. But it feels like she’s searching for something. I hope I can give her what she’s looking for. We order our pizza, and true to form, I order meat lover’s, though the temptation to order the Hawaiian is still there. But I want to order something that I’ll actually eat.
The tension that appeared when Valerie asked why I’m back disappears for the most part, but I can’t help feeling a little awkward still. It’s bound to happen, when you haven’t interacted with people regularly for years. Your dynamic is going to change, and we haven’t quite found our stride yet. But overall, the conversation is good, and as we casually talk about life and the work plans that Bruce has, Nicola relaxes. She fucking lights up when she talks about all the ideas that she has for regional flavors and the incentives that go along with them, and I fire right back about marketing ideas and pitches for slogans that are off the top of my head. I’m glad that Bruce looks approving but really, I’m just happy that I’m able to make Nicola laugh.
It’s the best sound in the world. Apart from, maybe, hearing her moan.
The pizza is just as delicious as I remember, and I eat way too much of it. But I can’t bring myself to regret it at all. This is great. Especially when she’s smiling at me from across the table.
“Well,” Bruce says, stretching, “I have to get back to the office.”
“And I have a meeting,” Valerie says. “You want to be dropped off at the office, Nicola?”
“I can take her back,” I say. “I’m going anyway.”
Valerie smiles at me. “That would be perfect, Tristan, thank you.”
I catch Nicola’s face as her mother says that, and am rewarded with seeing her mouth fall open in shock. She was definitely going to protest, but I didn’t even give her a chance. I suppose I should feel bad, but I don’t. There’s not a chance in hell that I’m playing fair. Not when it comes to this.
“We’ll see you both later,” Bruce says, clapping me on the shoulder. He’s already taken the bill with him, so I don’t even have to worry about that. All I need to focus on is Nicola, now that we’re finally alone.
“Well,” Nicola says. “Are you going to sweep me into the bathroom here too?”
Fuck. I would in a second. “Would you like me to?”
Her cheeks stain pink with her blush, and it tells me her real answer. But she doesn’t reply, just changes the subject. “I like your ideas. It’s a good thing that Dad brought you on now. We have a lot to do for summer.”
“I agree. We’ll definitely be working a lot together.”
She rolls her eyes. “Which was your goal, clearly.”
Leaning my elbows on the table, I wait until she looks at me. “I didn’t ask Bruce for a job to get closer to you. In fact, I didn’t ask him for a job at all. If I had, it would have been something small, like on the production line just to get me started while I settled back in town. I never imagined that he would offer me Marketing Director.”
Nicola takes a bite of her pizza and looks away. “Well you’re certainly a good fit. But thank you for telling me that. I really believe in the company, and I didn’t want—”
“Me to ignore everything about my job while trying to be with you?” I finish for her.
“Yeah.”
I smile at her. “Don’t worry, I fully plan on doing both.” She looks away again, and I have to ask. “Have you changed your mind? If you have, I won’t hold it against you.”
“Do you think launching a sorbet would be good in the South? That might be nice and refreshing for the summer months. I could do something with lemon.”
“Nicola.”
She looks at me. “What?”
“You didn’t answer the question.”
“And you didn’t answer the one Mom asked you earlier about why you left and why you came back.”
There it is. There’s anger in her gaze. But I can take the heat. If I didn’t think I could, then I certainly wouldn’t be here. “I’m back for you,” I say. “Four years ago you promised me all of you. No matter how long it took. And I was a coward about it. I wasn’t ready, but I am now.”
Nicola is perfectly still, looking at me with something like disbelief and awe. But she says nothing.
“I’m here to claim what you offered. You said that you wanted to marry me, and that’s what I plan on doing, Nicola. I’m going to marry you, and I’m never going to walk away again.”
