Chapter 11
11
Dylan
J uliette stared at me in surprise when I continued to look for a parking spot in front of her apartment. I ground my teeth, waiting for her to say the words I knew would piss me off.
“You can just drop me off in front.” Yep, there it was.
“No, Juls. I’m going to walk you to your door and make sure you’re safely locked inside, like a gentleman. If it’s okay with you, I’m also going to walk you in and kiss you goodnight in a very ungentleman-like way.”
Our intertwined hands resting on her thigh had been the best kind of tease, but now the feel of her thighs clenching led to a whole tsunami of inappropriate images flooding my brain.
Stop it, asshole. Just a kiss.
Juliette gave off the wildest mixed messages. She was eager and enthusiastic, but also nervous and hesitant. I couldn’t tell if it was uncertainty about being with me, or lack of experience, or maybe with her dyspraxia, it was a lack of confidence. I didn’t know her enough to figure it out, yet, which was why I slowed things down after that first incredible, intense kiss. It was hard—almost as hard as my dick had been most of the night—to hold back when I was fairly sure she wanted more. But not sure enough to do anything about it.
Before we parted ways tonight, though, I was going to leave her with no doubt that I wanted her.
“Yeah, that’s okay with me,” she squeaked out.
Fuck, I loved her simple honesty.
I parked the car and we walked hand in hand across the parking lot, letting go only when she needed both hands to open her door. I didn’t like how long it took her to fumble around for her keys at the entrance to her building, but I kept my mouth shut. For the moment, at least.
The second we stepped into Juliette’s apartment, I spun around, taking her with me. I locked the door and pressed her up against it. “You good with that kiss now?”
Juliette nodded, her throat working hard, her eyes wide.
I held her hands and brought them up with mine, caging her in and pinning her in place. I slowly moved closer until my body pressed up against hers, then slowly lowered my mouth to hers, her beautiful eyes growing impossibly bigger until they fell closed.
I kissed her, keeping our hands against the door, away from her tempting curves, feeling her body only with mine. Her tits pressed against my chest, my dick pressed into her soft belly. She moaned into my mouth, and I groaned into hers, and, God, it was hard not to fucking touch her.
After a very long, but not nearly long enough, kiss, I dragged myself away. But only far enough to pull Juliette into my arms. She wrapped her arms around me and rested her head on my chest, where I’m sure she felt my pounding heart.
“Have a good night, baby.”
“Text me when you get home.”
“I will, and I’ll pick you up at ten tomorrow.”
“Okay.”
We’d said all the words to say goodbye, but neither of us moved from our embrace.
“I have to go, Juls.” I smoothed my hand over her curls, tugging gently at the bottom to tilt her head up. She met my gaze, and her eyes fucking glittered. “So beautiful.” I dropped another peck onto her soft lips and stepped back before I wouldn’t be able to.
“Lock the door behind me. Sweet dreams.”
“Good night, Dylan. Thanks for today.”
“Thank you, baby.”
I made myself leave and waited until I heard both locks click before I walked away.
Reading about dyspraxia was heavy bedtime material. I stayed up half the night going down one rabbit hole after another.
I was in awe of Juliette. It was obvious she’d worked damn hard to achieve all that she had. Her reluctance to go hiking made sense now, and her trust in me to keep her safe meant even more.
So I amended my original plans, and the next morning I took her to Red Oak Trail, a quick, easy, and scenic trail.
“This is beautiful,” Juliette said, playing with the flowers that edged the blanket where we’d sat for a picnic lunch.
“Gorgeous,” I agreed, but my eyes were only on Juliette. I played with the hem of her shirt, teasing her sensitive skin.
“I love it here, but I doubt this is your usual idea of a hike.” I hated the unease in her eyes.
“It’s the best hike I’ve ever been on.”
Juliette just looked at me, a playful but real doubt on her face.
“Seriously. You’re right that I’ve done harder trails, but I’ve never had more fun.”
“Even when I made you stop to watch the birds? And the rabbits?”
“Yep, those were some of those best moments. I love seeing the world through your eyes. I love how you see so much beauty and wonder in the little things.”
The smile that took over Juliette’s face radiated brighter than the sun. I watched as she tried to come up with a response, then she kissed me instead. Sometimes, it wasn’t so bad that she preferred nonverbal communication.
Back at my house, with Juliette curled up against my side, we talked for hours. She told me about work and stories about her, Jenna, and Nicky. She asked thoughtful questions about my family and my work, and she listened attentively, her wandering hands the only sign that her thoughts were somewhat elsewhere. And I was with her on that as well.
I leaned down and kissed her, gently at first, but then she moaned and grabbed a fistful of my shirt, pulling herself closer. “Juls,” I whispered against her mouth as I deepened the kiss.
Our tongues dueled and our hands roamed, her hands burning trails over my chest and stomach while I explored her soft curves, eliciting the sweetest moans and whimpers from her.
Her hand tensed on my stomach, and a second later, I felt her tense everywhere. Shit. I pulled back to look into her eyes, to see what was wrong, just as her hand landed on my dick.
She traced her hand over the length of me, and it felt fucking fantastic even through my jeans. My dick surged and jumped in response, but even if it was happy with this, I couldn’t miss her unease.
I trapped her hand under mine, stopping her movement, and very reluctantly moved her hand back to my chest. “No rush, baby. Let’s take it slow for now.”
Juliette met my eyes, bold determination fierce on her face. “What if I want to do more?”
Fuck. It would be so easy, so good to say yes, but she was still so fucking nervous.
“As much as I’d love to do more, I can tell how nervous you are. We aren’t going further until I know you’re comfortable and ready.”
Shit. What did I do? She pulled away and looked down, dropping her hands to her lap.
“Hell no. Do not pull away, do not stiffen, and definitely do not fold in on yourself like that.”
Patient respect hurt her feelings. So I gave her the crude truth. “Do you want to know the first thing I did when I woke up this morning? I jerked off thinking of you. I pictured your beautiful face, the sexy curves of your tits and hips. I wondered what color your nipples are and how they’ll feel in my hands and in my mouth. I imagined how your pussy will taste and what sounds you’ll make when you come on my face. I squeezed my dick, wishing I was inside you.”
Her eyes popped back up to mine, a little smile in the corner of her lips as though it was fighting to break free.
“I want you, Juls. I’m just trying to do the right thing.”
“Thank you.”
“Come here, baby.” I pulled her onto my lap, straddling me so we were face to face, and I held her pretty face between my hands, and I kissed her, making sure she felt every ounce of my desire for her. I licked deep into her mouth and slid my hands down her sides, my fingers digging into her soft breasts, and I pulled her down against me, my dick straining towards her. I rocked my hips up, leaving her no room to doubt my desire.
Juliette groaned into my mouth, so I rocked into her again. Her tongue tangled with mine, her hands grabbed my shoulders, and she ground down on me.
Juliette rocked and bucked against me, her heat searing through the barrier of our clothes, her movements and whimpers begging for more, so with one hand on her hip, holding her steady, the other skated under her shirt, over her soft belly, onto her breasts, palming one then the other over her bra, gently kneading and squeezing, loving the way she filled my hands, loving the way she arched into my touch, and the way she rocked against me.
“Juls,” I groaned, and she moaned in response.
She clawed at my shoulders, my back, my hair, and she ground into me. I felt the tension building in her, and it was fucking glorious. I squeezed her hip, thrusting up into her and urging her into a matching rhythm. I pulled down the cups of her bra and rolled and tweaked her nipples, and then with a pinch of her nipple, she threw her head back and cried out my name.
Fucking beautiful.
When she sagged back against me, I held her tight, chest to chest, our hearts racing together.
My dick was still hard enough to pound nails, but the soft, sensual woman on me suddenly went cold and hard.
I rubbed her back, but she didn’t relax. I gently pushed her back and, dammit, she was fighting back tears. She bravely held my eye contact, but she also held her breath. Like she was awaiting my verdict.
I cradled her face and kissed her gently. “So beautiful.”
Juliette broke our eye contact, and I felt my heart break a little too. The brave, sexy woman who’d just taken what she wanted from me was gone. Deflated like a popped balloon.