Page 38 of Pillowtalk

Kennedy

“I think…I think I need a minute.”

Kennedy’s breath came out ragged, her voice a stuttering mess as Aaron kissed her senseless in the light of her room at the B&B. He pulled back, eyes laced with lustful confusion, understandably so. It was Kennedy who’d grabbed hold of him the moment she turned the lock, knowing that conversation would only put a snag in her plan to be on her back, underneath his beautiful body.

Her hands went up into her hair, the sharp sting of a few strands being yanked from their roots making her flinch. “Sorry,” she blurted, grabbing at him again. “I’m stupid. Being stupid.”

Their lips touched in a hard, frantic press, once, twice, and then it was Aaron who was pulling back. “Are you worried?”

Yes,she thought. Yes, she was worried, but she was also turned on, her body shivering with undeniable need. She wasn’t going to let her worries overpower her night with such a sexy and mouthwatering man.

“I’m fine,” she said, reeling him back in. She got in a few more kisses before he let out a laugh, clearly not convinced.

“Tell me,” he said, running a gentle thumb over her forehead. “What’s going on up here?”

Her eyes fell shut, and she breathed out a small laugh at herself. “Not much, to be honest,” she joked. “You’re kind of turning that off.”

She felt the coarse stubble along his jaw graze against her cheek when he grinned, but it disappeared quickly as he asked, “What about here?” His finger brushed across the top of her shirt, right over her pounding heart. “What’s going on here?”

She couldn’t answer that, not even in her head. Admitting how torn she was only made her feel worse. Her hair caught on the buttons of his shirt as she shook her head hard. That was a question shewouldn’tput a voice to.

His body tensed beneath her head, and her knees bent as he stepped forward, pushing her backward until her legs flushed against the soft mattress behind her.

“We don’t have to do this,” he said, his voice a husky lull that could just as easily send her into a peaceful coma or jolt her like a shot of adrenaline.

“I want to,” she countered quickly, panicked that he’d withdraw and leave her alone. She clung to his arm, holding him in place. “I just…I need a minute.”

He exhaled above her, squeezing her close for a quick second before coaxing her to the bed. The cold air that was suddenly between them sent goosebumps up the back of her neck as her bottom melted into the mattress.

“Tell me something,” he said, the bed sinking in next to her with his weight. Her eyes followed his, curiosity crawling through the corners of her mind as he pressed his lips to the sensitive skin just under her ear.

“Like…?” she prodded, tilting her head to give him better access.

He pulled back for just a moment, encouraging her to lie down. A small wrinkle appeared at the bridge of his nose that was so adorable she nearly straddled him and said that her minute was up.

“Like…anything,” he said. “Anything about you.”

Her brows rose. She wasn’t sure what to start with, but she imagined that whatever she chose wouldn’t break the moment any more than she already had. However, since she did want to eventually dive back into something much harder and faster than his quiet pace, she searched her brain for an insignificant detail that wouldn’t have sadness or pain plaguing it.

“I hate ice cream.”

He jerked back, wrinkles appearing on his forehead as his brows pulled inward. “Really?”

She nodded, grinning shyly. “It’s…really gross.”

His strong, broad shoulders shook with silent laughter before he bent back over her and patterned her collarbone with kisses. “I’ve never met a soul who doesn’t like ice cream.”

“That is the response I usually get when people find out.”

“What about it don’t you like?”

She licked her lips, her heart flying in that moment of small talk just as much as it had in the middle of her intense pleasure at his hands. She didn’t want to think what that meant, so she shook it off before it consumed her thoughts.

“The texture,” she told him. “It’s too”—she made a face—“gooey.”

He chuckled at her description, his hand tumbling down her ribs and squeezing at the hip. “So what about frozen yogurt?”

“Nope.”

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