Page 37 of Pillowtalk

“Come on, we better hurry,” Aaron said, running a hand down her back and then dropping it to her palm. He laced their fingers together, and if Kennedy weren’t already grinning, she would have certainly smiled wider than a clown.

Aaron, as quietly as he could, unlocked the door and led her outside and down the dock. Not a moment too soon, either, because as Kennedy took a quick glance over her shoulder, she noticed a couple of shadows moving around the corner of the boathouse, stumbling their way inside.

Aaron pulled her into the long grass, and when they were halfway back to the party tables, they stopped, looked up at each other, and shared a laugh that Kennedy could feel rise from deep within. She leaned into him, using him for support, but also wanting to indulge in the warmth he seemed to bring not only to every part of her body, but to the most shattered pieces of her already claimed heart.

“You want to head back?” he asked over the top of her head, a comforting hand running over her shoulder.

She shook her head against his shirt, tucking in to hide her face. Could she ask for what she really wanted? Was it horrible of her to want it again so soon? With Aaron’s rambled admission that he was as drawn to her as she was to him, she felt a bit more confident, but it was still not something someone outright says.May I please have another orgasm? Thank you very much.No…she didn’t have the gall to say that, or anything close.

Also, she wasn’t quite sure that was all she wanted. It would be nice, of course, but what she really needed wasintimacy.She wanted someone to hold her, touch her, to fill those pieces of her that were drowning in loneliness ever since Jared passed. She wanted to roll over and touch something warm and breathing. She wanted arms to hug her, lips to kiss her, a voice to calm her.

She wanted pillowtalk, and she wanted it with Aaron.

A chunk of her broken heart fell and pierced her. She nearly begged for forgiveness again, but she felt nothing there. No rustle of the wind, no sun to warm her face, no indication that Jared was there or ever had been. She pushed her face farther into the living, breathing man who, despite her fight, was slowly stealing away much more than just her body.

“Stay with me,” she said in a broken whisper. Aaron shifted underneath her, tapping a finger to her chin and coaxing her eyes up to meet his.

“What?” The way his honey eyes swirled and his pupils dilated told her he’d heard her request exactly, but the pull of his brow and the tightness of his jaw said he needed her to say it twice.

“Stay with me.” Her hand stirred in his. “I can’t wait another moment for you to touch me again.”

His jaw flexed, denting his scar. She reached up and ran a finger from just under his ear to his chin, and he caught her hand, weaving their fingers together. A long, hot breath released from his lips, washing over their joined hands and setting Kennedy’s skin ablaze.

“Let’s sneak around back,” he said, and Kennedy could not help but smile at another victory, even though they would both pay the consequences when their minds caught up to their bodies.

---