Page 16 of Better Than the Beach
“Correct,” he nods solemnly. “But I’m also looking at how parentification can actually shield the older sibling in some ways, too. A necessity to mature rapidly, to take on more responsibility, can also cause the child to view both parents from a different lens.” He sighs sadly. “But ultimately, it’s like trading one trauma response for another.”
“Either way, the child’s mental health is negatively affected,” I muse. “You know, studies have shown that music can be used as a therapeutic method to improve social and emotional aspects in kids. Provides emotional support, encourages expression, that sort of thing.”
“This is something you’re passionate about,” Nolan says, his response sure and almost reverent. I can once again feel his eyes on me. Exposing my vulnerabilities and laying me bare. “Why isn’t this what you’re pursuing? And don’t tell me it’s because you want to be a teacher,” he adds with a laugh. “I don’t believe that for a minute.”
I puff out a breath and shrug. “It’s not in the cards for me.”
“Then shuffle the deck,” he states, pointed and clear, his serious eyes locked on my face. “Not everyone finds a career path that lights them up, so when you’re one of the lucky few who do, you owe it to all the other people in the world to pursue it.”
He reaches over and takes my hand, giving it a squeeze, then runs his fingers over my knuckles. My breath quickens at his touch.
“Shuffle the deck, Cassandra.”
I can’t look away from him. From the conviction in his eyes, the commanding tone of his voice. I don’t realize I’ve drifted closer until his other hand wraps around the back of my neck and pulls me in.
His lips slide over mine, and I open for him immediately, tangling our tongues as he pulls me onto his lap and squeezes my ass with the hand not tangled in my hair as he kisses me senseless. He groans into my mouth and moves his lips to my neck, tugging on my hair so my head bends to the side, giving him better access.
“Fucking hell,” he growls into my skin, “I’ve been wanting to do that for days.”
He bites down lightly on the sensitive skin where my neck meets my shoulder. I gasp and move my hips, making him groan again.
He’s hard beneath me, and all I want is to feel him.
I move again, grinding myself onto him, moving my hips back and forth over his erection. I slide my hands over his chest and plunge my fingers into his hair just as his mouth latches onto my nipple over my bikini top. When he bites down, I cry out, pain and pleasure blending into something heady and new.
He tugs my bikini top to the side, exposing both my breasts, palming them then rolling my nipples between his fingers.
“You are perfection,” he rasps, eyes flicking from my breasts to my face. He holds my gaze and repeats himself. “You are utter perfection. This body is made for worship.”
“Are you going to worship it?” I whisper, and his lips turn up in a wicked smirk before he quickly lifts me onto the edge of the hot tub. I gasp, then gasp again when he unties the strings on the sides of my bikini bottoms.
“Fuck,” he says, then swipes his fingers through my slit. I whimper and press closer to him. “Look at this pretty pussy, Cassandra.”
He slips one finger into me, and I moan. The only fingers that have been inside me in the last five years are my own. Before that, it was a fumbling high school boyfriend, and neither of us felt anywhere close to this good.
“Yes,” I whisper as he pumps, adding a second finger and rubbing his thumb over my clit. His eyes are trained on my face, pupils blown wide, watching my reactions to his touch. “That feels so good, Nolan,” I breathe out. “So good.”
“I want to suck on your clit and fingerfuck you until you come,” he says, and his voice is all sex and hunger. He wants me, really wants me, and I want him to take me.
“Yes,” I say quickly, nodding my head, and he wastes no time.
Nolan dips between my legs and licks up my slit before sucking my clit into his mouth. His tongue massages and swirls, flicks up and down, and drives me absolutely mad, all while his fingers are pumping steadily in and out. I urge him on breathily, and it’s only a matter of minutes before I’m coming with a strangled cry.
Before my head stops spinning, Nolan pulls me back in for another kiss.
“I want to fuck you,” he rumbles against my mouth between kisses. “Can I fuck you, Cassandra?”
“Yes,” I say again. “Please.”
I tug on his swim trunks, ready to let him take me right here before he stops me.
“Wait,” he says, halting my hands with one of his. He brings my knuckles to his lips and presses a soft kiss to them. “We need a condom.”
Right. Protection.
“I have condoms in my room,” I say quickly, and he furrows his brow. “I bought them for Honolulu,” I explain shyly.
“You planned on using them in Hawaii?” Jealousy swirls in his eyes, and his voice is rocky with lust and anger. “A boyfriend?”
