Free Penalty Clause by Lori Ryan Page B

emotions play across Jill’s face. Before she could answer, he dipped his head to hers and brushed his lips softly over her mouth.
    “Say yes, Jill. Please say yes. Yes to completely no-strings-attached sex for as long as we both want – and to not sleeping with anyone else while we’re together.” Andrew paused and looked at her as he laid out the terms and watched her turn an even deeper shade of red. “For safety’s sake.”
    Andrew kissed Jill again, more firmly this time. Gently exploring the softness of her lips, the sensual curve of her mouth, delving in to touch her tongue with just the very tip of his.
    “If either of us wants to end things, we walk away with no ties, no hard feeling, no obligations. Just complete fun, guaranteed to bring back your confidence. And carefully designed for us to remain good friends even after it ends.” Andrew smiled and waggled his eyebrows at Jill, causing her to break into laughter that diffused the tension.
    Andrew was attempting to keep things light, but the few small kisses had pushed his control to the brink. He was hanging on by a thread as he waited for Jill’s answer.
    “I don’t know, Andrew. I know it was my idea, but I’ve never done anything like that before.” Jill lowered her eyes as if she couldn’t look him in the eye. It dawned on Andrew that Jill might not have been with anyone other than her husband.
    Andrew reached out and brushed a finger down Jill’s cheek, causing her to look back at him. That single touch shot right to his groin and he knew if she didn’t say yes, he needed to get the hell out of there. He’d need to run fast and far in the other direction if she said no. Shit, he should probably run like hell even if she said yes.
    “Haven’t done what, Jill?”
    “Um, just you know, had sex without a real relationship,” she said quietly, her eyes big and round.
    “Have you been with anyone other than Jake?” Andrew asked her softly.
    Andrew knew he probably shouldn’t pry into the intimate details of Jill’s marriage but he couldn’t help himself. He wanted to know what Jill had been through. He wanted to fix everything for Jill. It killed him to think Jill had doubts about herself.
    Jill shook her head and Andrew cursed silently. If Jill had never slept with anyone other than Jake, Andrew would bet she’d had years of that selfish ass satisfying no one but himself in the bedroom. God, how had Jill tied herself to such a pig when she could have had any man on the planet drooling over her? She was so smart, and beautiful, so talented. How had she ended up with a guy like Jake?
    “Then, you’re gonna love this,” Andrew said with a grin and leaned in to brush his lips against hers again. Andrew waited a breath to see if Jill would push him away and when she didn’t, he swept his hands into her hair and pulled her toward him. Andrew deepened the kiss with a sweep of his tongue.
    Jill went stiff for a second but then melted into Andrew’s hold and he felt her begin to kiss him back.
    Andrew broke the kiss and held his forehead to Jill’s as he caught his breath and let her catch her bearings.
    “Are you okay with this, Jill?” he asked.
    Say yes. Please, say yes.
    She nodded and then confirmed with a small ‘yes.’
    Andrew hadn’t realized that he had been holding his breath, waiting to see her answer. He scooped Jill up and carried her up stairs, only mildly aware that as they made their retreat upstairs, Rev cleaned off the remnants of food from their plates.
    ***
    Jill felt a thrill of anticipation ripple over the fear and nerves running through her. Although she had been in one other long relationship before Jake and had been intimate with that man, they had never actually made love. With her limited experience, Jill was filled with trepidation at the thought that she might not know what to do with Andrew. That she might not be able to satisfy him.
    With Jake, their sex life had always been nice, and she missed sex now