I didn’t know if it was the pressure on my clit or his dirty words that did me in, but I clenched tight, holding on to his shoulders. Carter kept thrusting through my orgasm, until he cried out his own release, buckling over me, slamming his hands on the desk for support at either side of my arms. He groaned my name, driving into me until he was spent. Resting his head on my chest, he took in long, deep breaths and only pulled out a few minutes later, helping me stand. My legs were a little wobbly. If his shit-eating grin was anything to go by, he hadn’t missed it.

He rested a hand possessively on my back. “I’m never going to be able to get any work done in here again.”

I shrugged a shoulder playfully, and he pinched my ass. “That was my master plan all along.”

Chapter Twenty-Three

Chapter Twenty-Three

Val

“Chop, chop. Come on, no slacking. The others are going to be here any minute now,” I instructed one week later as I was preparing for Friday dinner. Jace and Hailey had arrived earlier, and I had roped them into helping me cook. Usually I didn’t want more than one chef in the kitchen (unless it was a bare-chested, singing Carter; I’d eat burned toast just to have that view), but I was trying out a new dish today, and it turned out to be more complex than I’d thought.

“Hey, I’m working hard,” Jace complained. “I’m just not good at it.”

Hailey wasn’t faring much better. She’d actually arrived earlier because she wanted to dish about her latest date, but with Jace around, that had to wait. But by the shimmy in my sister’s movements, I gathered it had gone better than fine.

It had been a hectic week, in which I’d finally managed to try out the “sampling in the dark” technique, and I liked it so much that I was going to incorporate it into my routine from now on. Whenever I’d had a free moment, I’d been perusing my favorite online stores, and sent April so many links that she could renew her entire wardrobe. I’d told April to blame me for any outfits Carter might deem... inappropriate. I hoped Carter wouldn’t have a panic attack when she showed him the selection.

“Considering you had two hopeless cases as kitchen aides, I’d say this turned out pretty well,” Jace said a while later as he tasted the final product.

“Hey, don’t sell yourself short,” I replied after swallowing a spoonful. “This is great. Before you know it, you’ll be a cook. A very attractive quality in a guy, I must say.”

“Yeah, what’s that, Jace? Val tells me you’re on your way to settling down,” Hailey teased.

“You already informed everyone in the family?”

“Of course.”