Page 75 of The Paris Chapter

‘So much,’ he whispered.

‘Then kiss me. Please.’

‘I thought I was begging this time?’ He smiled and moved closer, letting go of my hand. His fingertips touched my cheek then my lips. ‘Tessa Elliot,’ he said softly. ‘The woman of my dreams. Will you let me kiss you? Please, sweetheart?’

The term of endearment tore away any remaining concerns I had. I needed to kiss him. ‘Yes, Ethan Taylor. Man of my dreams.’

God, you have no idea how much I mean that.

His eyes lit up as he leaned in and brushed my lips gently with his. I whimpered and he drew me in for a deeper kiss. He reached for the back of my head, tangling his fingers in my hair as his tongue found mine. I wrapped my arms around him and kissed him back, thinking that we would have been crazy to havelet this go. Ethan’s lips fit mine so perfectly, it was like we were two puzzle pieces coming together.

Ethan leaned back to look at me then. ‘Tessa,’ he said in a low voice. ‘Are you really sure about us?’

I leaned in closer so I almost touched his ear as I whispered, ‘I’m all in.’

‘God, so am I,’ Ethan said. ‘But we can take things slowly. Maybe I should go.’

‘I don’t want you to,’ I said instantly. ‘We’ve been apart too long.’

‘I know what you mean.’ He brushed my lips with his again. ‘I love kissing you.’

‘Don’t stop then,’ I pleaded with him. ‘Why don’t you stay? Back in a one-bed apartment together…’

Ethan chuckled. ‘God, I have missed that place. But I meant what I said. I don’t want to mess this up.’

I climbed off the sofa and held out my hand. ‘You won’t. I want to be with you tonight. If you want to be with me?’ I bit my lip, hoping he would want to stay.

‘There is nothing I want more.’ He got up and took my hand.

‘Finally, spending the night together,’ I said, leading him towards my bedroom.

‘We already have,’ he teased.

‘You know what I mean.’

We walked into my bedroom and I turned on the bedside lamp, then went to draw the curtains as Ethan stepped towards my bed. He turned to watch my movements.

‘You have no idea how much I’ve wanted you,’ Ethan said to me. ‘That first night we slept in the same bed together, God, when you started to ask me what the French word was for kissing, you almost killed me.’

My breath hitched. ‘You have no idea how hot it was when you told me to beg you if I really wanted to kiss you.’

‘Hmm. So, do you do like to beg?’ Ethan asked, his eyes darkening.

‘Hold that thought…’ I ducked out of the room, smiling as I heard him protest. I hurried to the hall cupboard and rooted through the cardboard box of junk in there that I kept meaning to sort out. I smiled to myself when I found what I was looking for, grabbed them, and hurried back to Ethan in the bedroom.

‘Speaking of begging… I found the handcuffs I got for Carly’s hen do. They’re pretty flimsy but they might come in useful,’ I said, holding up the fluffy leopard print pair. I went over and gave them to Ethan.

He dropped them onto the bed, then his hands slid up to my waist. ‘There are a thousand possibilities running through my head, but what do you want, Tessa?’

‘You,’ I said simply. ‘It’s been torture thinking about writing a sex scene in my book but not being able to re-enact it with you.’

Ethan pulled me towards him and our lips met in a soft kiss. He leaned back and cupped my cheek in one hand. ‘I am here for that anytime you want,’ he said huskily. He brushed my hair back off of my shoulders, his fingertips lingering on my warm skin. ‘So soft. So beautiful. So…’ He leaned in to whisper. ‘Naughty. You are perfect.’

I pulled back and looked into his eyes, pupils as dark and dilated as I knew mine were. ‘I take back ever calling you sweet,’ I said, more turned on than I had ever been.

‘You want me to be sweet, I will be. But if you don’t…’ He trailed off.

‘You agree we don’t have to move slowly?’ I asked, my voice turning breathless as I thought about what we could do on my bed.

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