Page 61 of Last First Love
I throw my head back against the wall and grip his hair hard, pulling him closer to where I need his mouth. "You talk too much," I hiss out, then dip low enough to grind against his beard. But then he pulls back and sinks down again to restart his slow moving mouth right above my knees.
I make a noise that's somewhere past a whimper, and he laughs and bites me hard enough for me to suck in a sharp breath, then he soothes the spot with his talented, eager tongue.
"Please, Ken. I need you."
His eyes search my face and find whatever he was looking for there, and he takes some small mercy on me at last. "I could stay here all night and tease you until you were so keyed up that you'd come the moment I put my mouth on you."
I shiver at the heated promise in his voice. I believe him. I'm not far from that now, to be honest.
"Isn't several weeks of foreplay good enough for you?" I run my fingers through his hair, letting my nails trace along the edge of his ear.
"Years," he mutters. "It's been years of us wanting each other. The last few weeks are nothing compared to the years I've been waiting to have these feelings."
His words make the entire moment change from lust-fueled to something more, something bigger. Something I'm not ready to say out loud yet. I still for a moment, afraid he'll see the truth of it on my face, or hear it somehow in the stuttering beat of my heart.
He sighs and leans against my legs, the side of his face pressed above my knee as he kneels there before me and hands me his entire heart.
"Lily, I've never loved anyone before. But I will never stop loving you." He takes a breath, even as his words make my own lungs stop.
"I know we probably only have this one night together, and I don't want you to feel obligated to say anything, but I couldn't make love to you without you knowing how I feel." He stirs and meets my gaze, his glittering blue eyes like a distant sea that I know I could happily drown in. "I love you. No matter what else happens, I needed you to hear it from me at least this one time."
He squeezes my leg with his arms, and I feel like I could collapse so I slide down the wall until I'm sitting next to him, staring at him as if it's the first time I've ever seen him.
His face pales at my movement. "Hey, no. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to kill the mood, but even if you—"
I stop him before he can finish that stupid sentence. Because I can absolutely tell whatever was going to come out of his mouth next was beyond stupid.
And I'll be damned if I'm going to let Ken Daniels ruin the best moment of my entire life by saying something stupid. Especially when I'm naked.
Instead of letting him talk, I kiss him. I pour all of my feelings into that kiss, all the years of wanting to see that look on a man's face for me, just as I am. Not the me if I'd lose some weight. Not me if I'd dress prettier or work out more. Me—exactly the way that I am today.
"Thank you," I say against his lips. "But also take off your pants. It works better that way."
He laughs, then stands and pulls me up next to him. "We could even go to my bed. It also works better that way." But instead of the eyebrow waggle that I'd expect with that kind of line, he looks almost shy. And there's a definite blush staining his cheeks this time instead of mine, and I love how he gets shy with me.
I shrug, feigning nonchalance. "I suppose you need all the help you can get."
He fake scowls at me, but then scoops me up into his arms and carries me down the hallway. "Probably. You'd better get used to helping me out when I'm about to mess up."
I squirm a little in his hold because I know how much I weigh and he definitely shouldn't be carrying me around like this. "You mean like when you're trying to lift too much weight? How about now?"
He stops and puts me down carefully, then turns to me, lit only by the bedside light in his room. "I'm not going to listen to anyone talk badly about you or your body ever again without speaking up about it." His fingers find my chin and lift my face to his. "And that includes you."
His words hurt a little, but they fit just right too. It's like he knows all the secrets of my heart and is willing to do whatever is needed in order to get us to a better place.
Slowly, I nod. "Okay. I can live with that."
He leans down and kisses me gently. "Good." He pulls me closer until I'm completely wrapped up in his arms, his chin resting so perfectly on top of my head. "I told you we would be good together."
I snuggle a little closer to him. "We'd be better if we were both naked though."
And with one final happy sounding laugh, he finally takes off his clothing and my mouth goes dry at the sight. Holy mackerel. The man is like a walking anatomy lecture, showing off every inch of skin and muscle that he's clearly honed to perfection over time.
He slides onto the bed and pats the space next to him, and I work extra hard to stop ogling him and act like this is no big deal. You know, the part where I’m getting naked and about to finally have sex with the hottest man I've ever seen.
And then he reaches over and laces his fingers with mine, kissing me sweet and soft and slow. "You're always right, Lily. This is so much better."
Ken
