Page 80 of Deliverance
"Why do you seem surprised?"
I blinked. "I'm not. I'm just thanking you."
"I'd do anything for you, Erin."
I smiled. "I know."
We stood in the lobby, not saying anything further. I didn't want to get in the elevator, and it seemed as though he didn't want to leave either.
All of a sudden, Ric murmured, "Fuck it." His lips descended on mine, and I didn't pull away. I deepened it, bringing my arms around his neck and running my fingers through the hair at the base of his neck. I didn't think about what would happen the next day. All that mattered in that moment was the man who had become my friend, and for whom I'd developed feelings. He was kissing me, and I wanted the same. I had been wanting it, needing it, craving it, but never acted on it because we couldn't. I didn't know what would happen once we all went to the police, but I didn't think about that. I was free to kiss and touch Ric. Free to feel his tongue in my mouth and his hands on my hips as he brought me closer to him.
Our bodies pressed together, and I moaned, asking for more. "Ric," I breathed, coming up for air.
"Sorry," he said low.
"No." I shook my head. "Come upstairs with me."
His head twitched slightly in confusion. "Are you sure?"
I waved my hand around the area. "I don't know what will happen tomorrow or the day after that or the day after that, but what I do know is that right now, we're free. We've waited ten years for this, and I'm scared that after tomorrow, I won't ever see you again."
Ric brushed his thumb on my cheek and left his hand cupping my cheek. "I've spent the last ten years in hell because I didn't want to go a day without seeing you. I'm scared tomorrow will change everything even more."
A lump started to form in my throat as I continued to stare into his eyes. Tomorrowcouldchange everything. I wasn't going to call Steven, but my parents lived a few hours away. What if Ric became busy and then moved on?
He continued. "But, if I go upstairs with you, we're in this together, and I don't mean just tonight. I mean tomorrow, the day after that, the day after that, and so on."
"Haven't we been in this together since you walked me to the limo at the warehouse?"
"Not like how I wanted to be together. After you've reminisced with your family, I want you in my bed. I want you to be with me. I just want you. Period."
I smiled warmly and admitted, "I want that too."
Even if Steven was still single—or single again—there was no way I could go back to the life I’d had. I didn't love him anymore, but I knew I loved Ric. We had been friends for years, but over those ten years, I knew I'd fallen in love with him. It might have been the time he brought me a caramel apple or when he brought me my first book to read.
When I’d thought he'd betrayed me and was taking me back to the warehouse, my heart had hurt because I’d thought the man I had fallen in love with had been turning his back on me. That he didn't want me as I wanted him. But none of that mattered anymore because we were finally free from the wicked witch and the king of New York.
Without another word, Ric took my hand and grabbed my bag. I thought we were going to wait for the elevator. Instead, we walked to the gift shop and he bought a box of condoms before we went back to the elevators. Once we got into the lift, it seemed to take forever as it rose the fifty-two stories, but once it dinged and the doors opened, Ric didn't waste any time. He grabbed the key from me, unlocked the suite's door, and we rushed to the open bedroom. I didn't look at the elegant décor, and I didn't check out the skyline view. My only thought was of stripping Ric of his clothes and seeing every ripple of his physique that I knew he worked hard on every morning in the gym.
He shut the door behind us, and we were in a mad dash to remove our garments. There was no slowly stripping each other like I had read in romance books or seen in movies. Instead, it looked as though we were covered in flames and needed to take off our clothes before we got burned. At least that was what my skin felt like because I was boiling with desire, burning to feel every inch of this man I had never been allowed to touch before.
"Are you sure about this?" Ric asked.
I nodded and threw my panties onto the floor. "Yes."
He took a step closer and cupped my cheek before bringing his lips to mine again. "Do you know how long I've waited to be able to kiss you?"
"How long?" I whispered against his lips.
"Too fucking long."
I didn't know what he'd done with Madam when she beckoned him for sex—didn't want to think about—but it had been over ten years since I'd last kissed a man since Frank never kissed me. Kissing Ric was like being kissed for the first time all over again. The only difference was that our lips moved together in memory of what to do. While we kissed, I walked backward and sat on the bed. Ric knelt before me, kissing down my neck to each breast, sucking and flicking and making each nipple pucker. I sighed with pleasure, and he went farther down, kissing my belly and then each inner thigh.
"Can I taste you, baby?" he asked, peering up at me.
I swallowed. Just like kissing, it had been years since a man had had his head between my legs. "Yes," I breathed.
I leaned back, staring up at the white ceiling and bringing my feet to rest on the edge of the bed. His warm breath blew across my pussy as he leaned forward and took his first taste. My back arched, my hands clenched the bedspread, and I moaned. Ric didn't stop, licking in circles and flicking my clit until I was crashing over the edge with an orgasm I hadn't felt in forever. There had been times when I'd pleasured myself in the penthouse because that was the only way for me to have one, and each time I had, I’d thought of Ric. It was nothing compared to the reality of him feasting on me.
