Chapter 453
Two years had passed since I last saw Gregory smoke. Not once had I smelled the faintest hint of tobacco on him. It must have been a particularly tough time for him.
Gregory kissed me with a tenderness and passion that felt like the first bloom of love, pouring all his fervor into me. My knees weakened, and only by his hands steadying me at my waist did I manage to stay upright.
Sensing my instability, he wrapped his arms around me and, while continuing to kiss me, walked backward until we sat down on the couch. His hands, with their distinctively defined wrists, grasped my calves and gently parted them, inviting me to straddle him. Then, he held me closer, kissing me with a wild abandon that left me breathless.
“Gregory…” I gasped for air.
“Hmm? Are you okay?” he asked, pausing to let me catch my breath, only to dive back in a moment later. His hand slid up under my dress, his calloused palm creating a tantalizing friction against my skin, eventually coming to rest on my chest. His touch was so gentle yet so intense that I found myself unable to speak a complete sentence.
Yet, all his kisses were through the fabric of my clothes.
Without stopping, Gregory kissed me again, his eyes burning with restrained desire. “Jane, Jane…” His voice was hoarse with longing. “You have the worst timing with your period.”
My cheeks burned even hotter. “It’s not like I can control it. It happens every month at this time.”
“It’s okay,” he said, his voice deep and soothing. “I can wait. Jane, if there’s one thing I’ve excelled at over the past twenty years, it’s waiting.”
I ran my fingers through his hair and gently kissed his forehead, using a nickname I had always avoided. “Thank you, Mr. Ford.”
He froze, surprise and pleasure evident in his gaze. “What did you just call me?”
“Gregory, didn’t you hear?”
“No, it’s not that,” he said, playfully pinching my waist. “The last part. Say it again.”
“I thought you hated being called that?” I teased, trying to hold back laughter. I remembered when Dorothy used to call him by that nickname, and he always despised it.
Gregory knew exactly what I was referring to and chuckled. “You said it yourself. I don’t like others calling me that. Are you ‘others‘? Jane, from the moment you were born, you
were meant to be mine.”
“That does make sense,” I mused. Our families had arranged our marriage when I was
born.
1/2
11:29
Gregory raised an eyebrow. “So, say it again.”
“I won’t… Ah… Stop, that tickles!”
He flipped us over, pinning me down on the couch. One hand held mine above my head while the other tickled me mercilessly. “Will you say it or not?”
“I can’t… Okay, okay… I’ll say it! Just stop!” I laughed until tears streamed down
my face.
He paused, waiting for me to speak, but was interrupted by his phone ringing. He glanced at the caller ID and answered. Before he could speak, a playful voice came through.
“Greg, where are you? We’ve been here for ages, and the birthday boy is MIA. Did you run off to find a chick?”
“You guessed right for once,” Gregory replied, holding me close as he stood up. “We’ll be there soon. Start without us; don’t wait.”
After hanging up, Clarence was utterly confounded. But then, seeing Christine, he couldn’t help but tease her. “Are you sure Greg sent you and this little one ahead?”
Christine shot back, “It was my best friend’s idea.”
From the moment she walked in, she and Clarence had been at odds.
Clarence thought she was desperate to clinch a deal, following them here. No matter how much she explained, he wouldn’t believe her.
Considering all the effort Gregory had put in over the last twenty years, only to be seemingly abandoned, Clarence was livid. “Your best friend? Jane, is it? You better go back and tell her not to think Gregory’s still pining for her.”
“While she’s still young, she should move on. Gregory’s already found someone else.”
2/2