35. Shep
35
SHEP
“Fuck.” I ran a hand through my hair, tugging on the strands.
I’d made a mess of everything. I’d nearly lost my mind having Thea that close, her floral and coconut scent swirling around her. And the way her breasts had pressed against me with each inhale...
I wanted her more than I’d ever wanted anyone. The force of the attraction, the desperate need, scared the hell out of me, if I was honest. And that fear was only matched by the worry that I’d move too fast and screw everything up.
Only, I’d done the opposite. I’d tried to control everything. And by doing so, had taken Thea’s autonomy away from her. No wonder she was pissed.
Moose sent a squawking meow my way.
“I know,” I grumbled. “You don’t have to say a damn thing.”
I pushed to my feet and started out of the room. I may have messed everything up, but I could apologize and make it right. Give Thea back the reins .
My bare feet moved along the hardwood floors as I rounded the corner and stopped outside Thea’s door. Images swirled in my head of her sitting in her room all alone, tears tracking down her cheeks. I didn’t let myself wait, too worried I’d lose my nerve. My hand curled around the knob and twisted to open the door.
The moment it swung in, I froze. Thea. Beneath the blankets on her bed. Head tipped back, cheeks flushed. Back arched. Her nipples stood at attention, pressed against the thin cotton of her tank top. I could see a hint of the darker peaks beneath the pale pink fabric of the shirt. Saw her breaths coming in quick pants.
Everything in me tightened, muscles stringing tight. My already semi-hard dick stiffened to attention.
“Thea,” I croaked.
Her eyes flew open and cut to me. I expected censure, Thea telling me to get the hell out. But she didn’t. Her eyes stayed locked with mine. But she didn’t remove her hand from beneath the covers. “What do you want, Shep?”
I missed the way she said my full name. How her mouth curved around the syllables.
My breaths came fast, sharp and stabbing as claws of need dug into me. “Tell me to go.” My fingers curled around the doorknob, so tight I thought I might break a knuckle.
But my girl was too damn brave for that.
“Stay,” she whispered into the dark.
I was done being an idiot, and even if I wasn’t, her pull was too strong. I stepped inside and closed the door behind me before leaning against it. “Tell me what those pretty little fingers are doing, Thorn.”
Her pale green eyes flashed in the moonlight. “What your fingers wouldn’t.”
I couldn’t help the growl that left my throat.
Thea simply arched a brow in both question and challenge.
“Show me,” I croaked.
Her teeth sank into her bottom lip, mulling over the request. Then, painfully slowly, she pushed down the blankets with her feet.
I sucked in a sharp breath. Thea wore nothing but that pale pink tank top. I could finally see those long, toned legs. Miles of smooth skin on display. She cupped the apex of her thighs, the place I wanted to see most.
My mouth watered. Fuck. She was already the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen. Seeing all of her would ruin me, but I didn’t give a damn.
“What do you want, Shepard?” Thea whispered into the dark.
“I want to see all of you.” My voice was pure grit. All need.
Thea shifted. There was no delay, no hesitation. Her hand moved, sliding from between her legs.
I shoved off the door, stalking toward the bed and taking in every inch of her. “So fucking beautiful.”
My fingers itched to touch, feel. My tongue cried out to taste. My balls ached.
Thea’s gaze locked with mine. “Shepard.”
“Fucked up. Didn’t give you what you needed.”
Those pale green eyes flashed again. “No, you didn’t.” She didn’t look away from me. “I’m not weak.”
“No, you’re fucking not. You own your body, your pleasure. You’re in charge,” I said, pure need coating my voice.
The hint of temper I saw in Thea’s eyes melted into curiosity. But it was still full of heat. And I loved her fire, however I could get it.
“But I’d love to watch you take it,” I growled.
Her breath hitched, pressing those pretty nipples against her tank. My dick twitched. I wanted to feel the tight bud against my tongue. Wanted to suck deep. To skate my teeth against it.
Thea’s hand moved then, sliding between her thighs. “Tell me what you think I should do. How I should take it .”
Hell. She was pure fire and spice. A vision more potent than anything else I could dream up.
“Lift your tank.” My voice was barely human as Thea shifted, pulling the cotton up and over those perfect swells. The skin of the buds darkened as they tightened, reacting to the cool air and her arousal. “Fuck,” I muttered.
A small smile tipped Thea’s lips .
My eyes narrowed on her. “Love that you’re torturing me, don’t you?”
“Maybe a little…” The smile grew.
“Lick your finger,” I gritted out.
Thea’s eyes flared, but she slid a pointer finger into her mouth, laving it with her tongue.
“Trace your nipple. Tell me what it feels like. How perfect it is.”
Thea’s hand dipped that pointer digit, trailing around the outside, then closer over the bud. “Hot and cold. Sensitive.”
“Keep circling,” I ordered, my own breaths coming faster. “Take your other hand and feel that scorching heat between your thighs.”
She shifted, cupping herself, fingers starting to tease the flesh there.
“Slide those fingers through that heat. Tell me if you’re wet.”
Thea’s back arched just as her thighs fell open. Her lips parted, and I wanted my thumb right there, to feel the swell of that bottom lip as my fingers teased that heat.
“Wet,” Thea breathed. “You make me that way.”
My back teeth ground together. This woman. So bold, so beautiful, so fucking perfect. “What about me?”
“Your voice.” Her back arched more. “The way it skates over my skin.”
God, I wanted to touch her. Wanted her to feel more than my voice. But I hadn’t earned it. Not yet.
“Take those fingers, work that wetness up to your clit.”
Thea’s breaths came in quick pants now, her finger circling her bundle of nerves.
My dick strained against my sweats, just dying to get to her. “Slide your fingers inside. Tell me what you feel.”
Her fingers moved again, and she let out a small whimper as they thrust in. “Tight, warm, wet.”
She was killing me, but it was a death I’d welcome. “In and out, Thorn. Nice and slow.”
She moved her hand, the sounds of her growing wetness filling the room, right along with her little whimpers. It almost brought me to my knees.
“Faster,” I pleaded.
Those fingers moved in and out, her body pulling at them with each thrust.
“Not enough,” Thea whimpered.
“What do you need?” I asked. Her eyes locked with mine as her hands stilled. “Remember, you make the rules.”
Thea’s tongue darted out, wetting her bottom lip. “Your hands. On me.”
I swallowed hard, my hands fisting at my sides. “Your rules, Thorn.” A grin tugged at my lips as I moved closer to the bed. “And it’s a chance for me to apologize. Properly.”
A devilish smile spread over her beautiful mouth. “I like the sound of that.”
I moved toward the side of her bed. “So fucking beautiful.” My fingers trailed up her leg, soaking in the feel of that smooth skin beneath my callused fingertips.
Then I reached for Thea’s hands, pulling her up and spinning her around so she sat on the edge of the bed. I leaned over her, mouth closing around the fingers she’d had inside her, and sucked them deep.
I nearly combusted as her taste exploded on my tongue. I hummed around her fingers, letting everything about Thea soak into me. Slowly, my eyes opened, and I released my hold.
“Shepard.” My name was more breath than word.
“Perfection,” I rasped. I sank to my knees so Thea was above me, giving her all the control. My hands slid up the outsides of her thighs. “I’m sorry I made you doubt for even a single second how much I want you, how strong I think you are.”
Thea watched me, so much emotion swirling in those gorgeous pale green eyes.
My fingers slid higher until they reached the hem of her tank top that rested above those perfect tits. “May I?”
“Yes,” she breathed.
I lifted it in a flash so Thea was completely bare to me. God, she was beautiful. The kind of beauty you’d never get tired of looking at because there would always be something new to discover.
My fingers itched to explore, to tease. Her nipples tightened with the promise of what was to come. Her breasts were perfect teardrops of delicate swells. I slid a hand up, needing to feel them. I cupped her there, and Thea arched into me.
My thumb circled her nipple, making the flesh there darken even further. My dick pressed against my sweats, crying out for her.
“Everything about you is beautiful.” My other hand came up to her neck, trailing down and finding her other breast. “The way your skin glows. The way your body arches.”
Thea’s eyes searched for me, finding me in the moonlight.
I kept my eyes on her as I leaned forward, my lips closing around her nipple. Thea moaned, arching into me again. A surge of electricity coursed through me at the sound and the movement.
One hand left her breast, sliding down lower and lower until it dipped between her thighs. I groaned around her nipple as I felt the wetness there. My fingers slid through her slit with ease.
Fucking hell. Thea really was going to kill me.
I teased that wetness, bringing it up to circle her clit.
She let out a whimper.
I released her breast, pulling back. “Tell me what you want. My fingers or my tongue.”
Her eyes flashed. “Both.”
I chuckled against her skin. “My greedy girl.”
I sank down, resting against my heels. With one swift tug on Thea’s legs, I pulled her to my face, her thighs over my shoulders, back to the mattress.
I drove in. At the first burst of her taste on my tongue, I moaned. I wanted to drown in it. It was everything that was Thea and yet completely indescribable. My tongue curled inside her, and Thea shuddered.
I felt the blankets shift and knew Thea was gripping them tightly.
“Shepard.” My name was a plea.
I pulled out, my tongue trailing up as my fingers slid in. Two slipped in and out, twisting and curling. The movements followed no pattern so Thea would never know what was coming next, so her body couldn’t prepare or brace.
The tip of my tongue flicked that tiny bundle of nerves, and Thea cried out, her muscles beginning to tremble.
I added a third finger, curling them in a beckoning motion that had her inner walls shaking, too.
“Oh, God. I—Shep?—”
“Shepard,” I growled against her clit. “When we’re in this bed, you call me Shepard.”
Thea’s breath hitched. “Shepard.”
Something about that had me nearly snapping. My fingers thrust in deeper, picking up speed. My tongue circled that bundle of nerves, exposing the most sensitive part of her. The part I knew would make her shatter.
As my hand sped up, I sucked her clit deep. Thea clamped down on my fingers. Wave after wave convulsed through her, wringing the life out of me and nearly making me come in my sweats like a damn teenager.
The sounds Thea made were better than any symphony. Real and authentic and her . Moans and soft cries as her body twisted, seeking more.
And then, finally, the movements slowed, and the sounds softened until Thea went completely slack against the mattress. I slid my fingers from her body and licked them clean. Her head popped up at the feel and sound, and she shook her head, amusement lining her face.
I grinned at her. “Your taste is like a drug. Gonna take all I can get.”
Thea’s chest rose and fell, still trying to catch her breath. “That was—I never—it’s never been like that for me. Ever.”
My eyes flared. “It should always be like that. Listening to your body is a goddamn gift.”
She moved then, reaching for the blanket as if to cover herself.
“Don’t,” I whispered. Thea’s gaze cut to me. “Don’t steal this beauty from me. Don’t be embarrassed about what we just shared. Because it was everything.”
She stared at me for a long moment. “Okay.” Then her gaze dropped lower. “What, um, what about you?”
I grinned up at her. “It wouldn’t be a proper apology if it was tit for tat.”
A laugh bubbled out of Thea. “I could get used to that kind of apology.”
I chuckled, pushing to my feet and pulling back the covers. I slid in behind Thea, pulling her against me, my dick pressing against her perfect ass. “I’ll be sure to piss you off on the regular, then.”