Chapter 5 #2
I lower her hands, then reach behind her to unclasp her bra.
It falls away, revealing perfect breasts tipped with rosy peaks that tighten under my gaze.
Unable to resist, I bend to take one nipple into my mouth, drawing a gasp from her lips.
Her fingers tangle in my hair, holding me to her as I lavish attention on first one breast, then the other.
"Aaron," she breathes, the sound of my name on her lips sending heat coursing through me.
We tumble onto the bed in a tangle of limbs and half-removed clothing. I help her out of her jeans, then shed my own, until we're both down to our underwear. The Christmas lights cast golden patterns across her skin as I hover above her, taking in the sight of her spread beneath me.
"You're overdressed," she says with a smile, hooking her fingers in the waistband of my boxers.
I let her push them down my hips, kicking them off completely. Her eyes widen slightly as she takes in the sight of me, fully aroused and aching for her. Before I can feel self-conscious, she slides her own underwear down her legs, leaving her gloriously naked.
"Come here," she whispers, arms opening to me.
I settle between her thighs, careful to brace my weight on my forearms. The first touch of skin against skin draws groans from us both. I capture her mouth again, losing myself in the taste of her as our bodies press together.
Her hands explore my back, tracing muscles and scars with equal appreciation. When her fingers drift lower to squeeze my ass, I growl against her mouth, grinding against her. The heat and wetness at her center nearly undoes me.
"I need to taste you," I murmur against her throat, already moving lower.
She watches with hooded eyes as I trail kisses down her body, lingering at her breasts before continuing my journey across the soft plane of her stomach. When I settle between her thighs, she props herself up on her elbows to watch, lips parted in anticipation.
"Is this okay?" I ask, pressing a kiss to her inner thigh.
"God, yes," she breathes, letting her head fall back as I place another kiss closer to her center.
At the first touch of my tongue against her, she gasps, hips lifting involuntarily. I hold her steady with one arm across her abdomen, using my free hand to open her further to my exploration. She tastes sweet and musky, addictive in a way I hadn't anticipated.
I lose myself in pleasuring her, learning what makes her gasp, what makes her moan, what makes her fingers tighten in my hair to the point of pain. When I slide one finger inside her, then two, curling them to hit that perfect spot, she cries out my name, thighs trembling on either side of my head.
"Aaron," she pants, tugging at my hair. "Please. I need you inside me."
I give her one final, lingering taste before moving back up her body, capturing her mouth in a kiss that lets her taste herself on my lips. She reaches between us to wrap her hand around my hardness, stroking with just the right pressure to make my hips buck.
"Condom," I manage, voice strained with the effort of control.
She reaches for the nightstand drawer, producing a foil packet. I take it from her with shaking hands, tearing it open and rolling the protection on. Positioning myself at her entrance, I pause, searching her face one last time for any hesitation.
"Please," she whispers, legs wrapping around my waist in invitation. "I want you, Aaron."
I push forward slowly, giving her time to adjust to my size. The tight heat of her body envelops me inch by inch until I'm fully seated inside her. For a moment, we both remain still, overwhelmed by the perfect connection.
"You feel incredible," I murmur against her neck, struggling for control. "So tight. So perfect."
Her hands slide up my back to my shoulders, nails digging in slightly. "Move, Aaron. Please."
I withdraw almost completely before pushing back in, establishing a rhythm that starts slow and measured. Her hips rise to meet each thrust, taking me deeper. The sounds she makes—soft moans and breathless gasps—are the most beautiful music I've ever heard.
As our pace increases, sweat slicks our bodies despite the winter chill beyond her bedroom window. I hook one arm under her knee, changing the angle to hit that sweet spot inside her. Her eyes fly open, a cry escaping her lips.
"There," she gasps, fingers digging harder into my shoulders. "Right there."
I maintain the position, driving into her with increasing urgency. Something primitive rises in me, something possessive and raw.
"Mine," I growl against her throat, the word escaping without conscious thought. "You're mine, Leah."
Instead of pulling away or laughing at the caveman display, she arches beneath me, meeting me thrust for thrust. "Yes," she gasps, eyes locking with mine. "Yours. And you're mine, Aaron."
Her claim ignites something deep inside me. I increase the pace, feeling her body tightening around me, knowing she's close to the edge again.
"Come for me," I command, voice rough with desire. "Let me feel you."
Her climax crashes through her with a cry that echoes off the walls, her inner muscles clenching around me in rhythmic waves.
The sight of her coming undone—head thrown back, throat exposed, my name on her lips—sends me hurtling after her.
My release tears through me with an intensity that whites out my vision, pleasure so sharp it borders on pain.
I collapse beside her, careful not to crush her smaller frame, pulling her against my chest. Her heart thunders against mine, our breathing gradually slowing as we come down from the heights together. The scent of sex and satisfaction hangs in the air between us.
For long minutes, we lie in comfortable silence, her fingers tracing idle patterns on my chest, my hand stroking the silk of her hair. The Christmas lights cast a gentle glow over her skin, making her look almost ethereal in the aftermath of passion.
"Well," she finally says, a smile in her voice, "that was worth waiting for."
A laugh rumbles from my chest, surprising me. When was the last time I laughed? "Was there a lot of waiting involved? We met less than a week ago."
She props herself up on an elbow, looking down at me with mock seriousness. "I'll have you know I've been very patient. Do you know how distracting you are when you're chopping wood with your forearms all... forearm-y?"
I reach up, tucking a strand of dark hair behind her ear. "Forearm-y? Is that the technical term?"
"It is now." She leans down to kiss me softly, then settles back against my chest with a contented sigh. "Stay tonight?"
The question hangs in the air between us, weighted with more significance than its simple words suggest. Staying means something. Staying means this isn't just physical release, just scratching an itch. Staying means opening a door I've kept firmly closed for years.
"Yes," I say, tightening my arms around her, inhaling the vanilla scent of her hair. "I'll stay."
She relaxes against me, her body warm and soft, fitting perfectly against mine.
Outside, snow falls silently past her window, covering Grizzly Ridge in a fresh blanket of white.
Inside, something new and fragile takes root in my chest, something I thought had died with my team in the desert sand half a world away.
"Aaron?" she murmurs, already drifting toward sleep.
"Hmm?"
"Merry Christmas."
I press a kiss to her forehead, breathing in the scent of her, memorizing this moment of perfect peace. "Merry Christmas, Leah."
As she falls asleep in my arms, I stare at the Christmas lights reflecting on her ceiling, feeling more at peace than I have in years. Tomorrow, there will be questions. Complications. Reality.
But tonight, for the first time since I returned from Afghanistan, I don't feel alone.
And that terrifies me more than any battlefield ever could.