I don’t.
I lift my arms slightly in answer, and he exhales against my lips before peeling my top over my head. The fabric slides away, pooling somewhere behind me, but I barely notice. Because now his hands are on me—exploring, mapping, tracing slow, burning lines down my spine.
I gasp as his lips leave my mouth, trailing down my neck, over my collarbone.
He’s taking his time. Letting me feel everything.
My hands find his T-shirt, fumbling with the hem, eager, needing to feel his skin against mine.
He lets out a low chuckle, his lips brushing against my shoulder. “Impatient?”
I don’t even hesitate. “Yes.”
Theo grins, a lazy, obnoxiously sexy grin, before reaching behind him, pulling the T-shirt over his head in this sexy way that I thought only happens in films.
I’ve seen him topless, but we were surrounded by people. Having him here, half naked, just the two of us, that is a completely new level of sexy as hell.
Strong shoulders, toned arms, the kind of stomach that makes my fingers itch to explore.
I trail my hands over his chest, feeling the warmth of his skin beneath my palms, the steady rise and fall of his breath.
His hands also start to explore my body again, finding the waistband of my skirt. He pauses, giving me another moment to change my mind, but I don’t want to.
I press my lips to his, my answer clear.
Theo groans softly against my mouth as he tightens his grip before he starts to undress me properly.
And I know—tonight, I’m not holding anything back.
As my skirt pools at my feet, I step out of it, my pulse hammering. Theo’s gaze drags over me, slow and deliberate, his expression dark with hunger. He looks devastated by the sight of me, like he can’t quite believe I’m real.
The way he watches me sends a thrill down my spine, emboldening me.
Holding his gaze, I slip out of my knickers, then unclasp my bra, letting it fall away. His jaw tightens before he growls deeply. This man might be an adorable dorky single dad, but anyone who thinks that makes him any less a man needs their head check out. This, here, is the sexiest man I’ve ever had in my bedroom.
Heat coils in my stomach.
I slide backwards onto the bed, leaning back just enough to hopefully look half-sultry—while subtly adjusting my posture to make sure my boobs don’t resemble sad little sacks of gravity’s betrayal.
Theo exhales sharply, his eyes never leaving me.
“Ivy… the few times I let myself hope we’d get here—to this moment—I imagined what you might look like naked. But no fantasy ever came close to this.”
He watches me for a beat, his chest rising and falling in slow, deliberate breaths, like he’s trying to rein himself in. But the way his hands flex at his sides, the way his jaw tightens, tells me he’s barely holding on.
Then, with a quiet exhale, he reaches for his belt.
The soft clink of the buckle sends a shiver down my spine.
He keeps his eyes on me as he unbuttons his jeans, pushing them down in one smooth motion. The fabric pools at his feet, leaving him in nothing but black boxer briefs that do absolutely nothing to hide how much he wants me. If I thought he was packing at the cottage, it’s nothing compared to when he is hard. And this is all for me. Because of me.
Heat pulses low in my stomach.
I bite my lip, drinking him in. Every inch of him is effortless, stunning.
Theo catches my look and smirks, but there’s something almost shy behind it, like he’s not used to being this exposed, this vulnerable.
That thought alone makes me want him even more.
