Page 14 of Lies and Lullabies
“Stop?” She walked over to stand right in front of me.
I shook my head and smiled up at her. “Too easy to confuse withdon’tstop. So ‘oh God’ is no good either.”
Her flush deepened. “How about ‘wait’?”
“‘Wait,’” I repeated. “Alright. Now come and get me.” I guided one of her hands to my shirt buttons. “Go on. You’re making this happen.”
I looked down to watch as she tentatively fingered the first button. “This is weird for me,” she whispered. “It’s been a long time.”
“Hey.” I reached around to give her a playful little pinch on the bottom. “Whose idea was this? Keep going. You need to be the one in control.” Not only would that keep me from rushing her, it just made good sense. If she initiated every move, there was no way I could accidentally freak her out.
And truly, I’d rather have third-degree blue balls than frighten Kira. If she ended up having a panic attack in my arms, it would slay me.
Her eyes flickered to mine again. Then she glanced down at her work, a sly smile on her lips. Her fingers fumbled on the buttons, and my heart squeezed again. There was a sweet awkwardness here that was unfamiliar to me. But I guess that was to be expected when you already cared for someone you’d never been naked with. So this was normal, right?
But… bloody hell, had Ineverbeen in this situation? It had been years, anyway, since I’d waited longer than a few drinks to sleep with someone.
Wow. How was that even possible?
“Do I have to do all the work here?” she asked as my shirt finally slipped off my shoulders. She was standing over me, her gaze caressing my bare chest.
In answer, I gathered the hem of her T-shirt, and with a glance into her eyes to be sure that it was okay, I lifted it cautiously over her head. She wore a plain white bra underneath, and in my opinion it hid too much of her. Slowly, I leaned forward to put my lips on her sternum. With gentle fingers, I reached around to unclasp her bra in the back.
It fell away, and her beautiful breasts were right there at eye level. I’d been picturing them all summer long, and now here they were, rosy nipples hardening in the night air. I eased her body closer to mine, my chin between her breasts. I tilted back, looking up into her face. “Are we still good?” I whispered.
“Very good.” Her eyes were wide, looking down at me with something like wonder.
This is a privilege. I formed that thought even as I cupped one of her breasts in my hand, turning my face to flick my tongue across her nipple. “I’m glad I shaved,” I said into the soft swell of her breast.
“Oh,” she said quietly, her body tipping towards mine. Her hand fisted my too-long hair as I slowly kissed her breast. She wasn’t afraid of me. I could tell by the way she melted into my body.
Her skin was velvet to my touch. I slid one palm down to her belly, pausing to admire the pretty taper of her waist. When I rested my fingers on the button of her shorts, she didn’t flinch. “Is it time to remove these?” I whispered, tracing a lazy circle over her tummy.
“Okay,” she answered. “But then you have to take yours off. I can’t be the only one undressed.”
“That’s really not a problem for me.” I chuckled. Then I dropped Kira’s shorts to the floor, and her panties with them.
Damn. Kira naked. This was the one beautiful Maine view that I never thought I’d see.
For a moment, I could only stare at the sleek curve of her hips, and the trim little triangle of hair between her tan legs.
It was too overwhelming to stay there, eye level with her chest. So I stood, popping the button on my shorts, pushing them down. I dropped them onto the floor, along with my boxer briefs. Naked myself now, my arousal kicked up another notch.
Easy, I coached myself.Slow.
Lying down, I positioned myself on my back. For a long moment, Kira only stared at my body. I saw her swallow roughly, and just as I began to wonder if she was going to back out, she moved quickly, sliding onto the bed beside me. Instinctively, I rolled closer.
She stiffened. “Wait. I’m not ready.”
Jonas, you asshole. As quickly as if I’d been stung, I rolled away, lying beside her again on the bed. I made sure to put a few inches between us, not touching her at all. Then I took one of her smooth hands in mine, drawing it up to my lips to kiss her knuckles. “I know that, sweetness. We’re just warming up, here, okay?”
“Okay,” she breathed.
“In fact, there’s not going to beanysex until the moment you say so. Got it?”
“Yeah.”
I closed my eyes and counted silently to ten. I opened them again, taking measure of her gaze. Those beautiful gray eyes were steady. “For now, we’re only going to make out. So come here and kiss me.” I smiled at her as calmly as I could manage, even as my heart rate soared. I wanted to make her happy. I wanted that so damned badly it hurt.
