16. Piper
Chapter 16
Piper
H is lips touched mine, and all the thoughts flew out of my head.
Caution was boring.
Stopping was stupid.
And most of all, nothing about the heat that existed between us was fake. I had a feeling that things would explode between us sooner rather than later, and now here we were.
This was our third kiss, and it was nothing like the first two. The progression from wow, he’s attractive, and I must have him inside me immediately, was like going from zero to sixty.
“Tell me now, if you have any doubt about this, Piper and I’ll stop. No questions asked, and no feelings hurt. I swear. And if you need to tell yourself this is practice or pretend, or whatever else you need to do to protect yourself. Do it. I understand.”
“God, Ren. I don’t even know what to say right now.”
“You don’t have to say anything. All I want is you.” The words were hot against my mouth as he spoke.
“I want you too. Right now. I’m saying yes.”
I tugged at the hem of his shirt, grinning when he reached behind his neck and yanked it over his head. His body was insane, nothing but planes, angles, and sharply defined muscle. He was beautiful. I dipped forward to lick the little dent at the base of his throat, where his pulse fluttered.
He moved his hands to my back, tugging at the hem of my tank top, I lifted my arms and let him pull it over my head, falling to my back on the bed as he covered me, and bent low to suck a nipple into his mouth with a sharp pull.
My hands slid into his hair, pulling him close as my legs fell to the sides. I felt him through his pants, huge and hard, as I ground myself up against him and wrapped my legs around his back.
He pulled back, hair wild from my hands, cheeks flushed, pupils blown wide with pleasure. “I’ve never felt like this,” he growled. “You’re magic, I swear.”
“I’ve never felt this way either. Only with you.”
“Good. Are you sure?”
“I’m sure.”
He moved lower, sliding his fingertips in the waistband of my shorts as he placed a kiss right below my belly button. Down they went, along with my undies as he slid off the bed to his knees and pulled me along with him until my ass was at the edge.
Oh god.
“I’m dying to see if you taste as good as I imagined,” he murmured hotly against my skin.
Oh crap.
I closed my legs as best I could, cringing as I bumped the side of his head with my knee. But that little embarrassment was nothing when I knew if he went down on me, it would go on forever, and he’d end up annoyed when he couldn’t get me off.
“No, it’s okay. I have condoms in the bedside table. You don’t have to do this. You can stop.”
His head jerked back, and he gripped my outer thighs to steady my legs. “What’s wrong? Did I do something?”
“No,” I leaned toward him, propping myself on my bent arms. It’s just—I can’t come like this. I never have. It’s okay.”
His eyes lit up with understanding. “Do you want me to stop because you don’t want it? Or stop because you think I don’t want to do it?”
“Is this part of your rescue kink?” I joked to hide my embarrassment. “Save the woman who can’t orgasm from oral?”
His eyes dropped low, between my legs, for a second before returning to mine. “No, sweetheart. This is an entirely different kind of kink. May I try?”
“Oh god.”
“Tell me you want it because I sure as hell want to do it to you. I promise.”
“Okay,” I squeaked. “I mean, yes. Why not, right?”
He chuckled, and I shivered as I felt his breath hot against my inner thigh as he bent forward, moving my legs apart with his broad shoulders. “Say the words, tell me what you want.” He darted his tongue out, flicking it against my clit before sliding his lips up in a grin. “And before you start to worry. I fucking love this. Look at how pretty you are.”
My mouth fell open, but I couldn’t speak.
“Tell me you want me to taste you, lick you, suck on that sweet little clit of yours until I make you scream.”
“Oh god. Yes, please.”
“When I got here last night, I didn’t think my morning would start inside you.” He grinned as he entered me with a finger, then licked a circle around my clitoris. “I’ve been thinking about how you’d taste since the day I first saw you, do you know that?”
“No,” I moaned. “I did not know that.”
I begin to unravel as he did exactly as he said, licking, sucking, fucking me with his fingers…
I let go, shifting and writhing against the relentless movements of his fingers and tongue.
“You’re doing so well,” he whispered, his breath blowing hot against my sensitized skin. “I wish you could see how gorgeous you are, all pink and slick with my fingers buried inside you. You’re so wet, so hot, and so fucking sweet. You taste like heaven. You need to come, I can feel it. Tell me how bad you want it, sweetheart. I’d do anything for you, do you know that? Let yourself go. I’m here to catch you.”
I arched my back, shoving myself against his face, unable to answer. I flew apart as he increased the pressure, spearing his tongue into me while he swirled his fingers in circles over my clit, holding my hips down so I couldn’t move. He made me feel things I’d never, ever felt, and I got lost in it.
“I never knew it could feel like that. Oh my god, Ren. I have condoms,” I breathlessly informed him when I came back down to earth.
“I want to take you on a real date before we go further. Is that okay? Then we’ll talk about maybe starting something real together, can we do that?”
“Yes. But first…” I pushed him onto the bed and dropped to my knees. “I’m going to return the favor, if that’s okay with you.” I unzipped his pants and freed his erection while I waited for an answer, licking up the underside and kissing the tip after he nodded an emphatic yes .”
“It’s more than okay. Fuck, keep going.”
This was not usually my favorite thing to do, but now that he’d just gotten me off so spectacularly, I wanted nothing more.
Making me feel good mattered to him, and I wanted to show him that I cared about him too so I sucked him to the back of my throat and grabbed onto his hips, holding on so he couldn’t back away.
He was a gentleman. I doubted he’d be okay with the thought of me tearing up and gagging on him.
“Be careful. Don’t choke yourself. You can probably get me off just by looking at it,” he joked. “Baby, please…”
I was right.
His hands went into my hair, stroking it softly and holding it out of my face as his thumb brushed my cheek. His gaze was gentle, even reverent, as I looked up at him.
“Touch yourself. Come again, with me,” his voice was growly and deep and sexier than anything I’d ever heard so I did it, spreading my knees wide so I could circle my clit with my fingertips.
He groaned, biting his lip as he watched me. Then his head fell back, showing me the sharp outline of his jaw, the strong column of his throat as he shivered, and tightened his hands in my hair, shuddering as he released down my throat.
He helped me up, then pulled me down next to him on the bed, wrapping me in his arms and kissing the top of my head.
“Fuck, sweetheart. You’re so goddamn perfect.” His gravelly, undone exhalation sent goosebumps dancing across the skin of my neck where his words hit warm and true.
We hadn’t gone all the way, but what did that matter when it felt like I’d just given him part of my heart?
Caution was smart.
Waiting was wise.
What had I done?
My heart still wasn’t fixed from the last time it broke, and he wanted to start something real with me.
He pulled me closer, and I let out a small sigh, snuggling into his embrace. I closed my eyes, savoring the moment, wishing it could last forever.
But my mind, ever restless, refused to let me be. Doubts and fears crept in, reminding me of the times I had been hurt before.
He seemed to sense my unease. His hand gently stroked my back, and he pressed a tender kiss to my forehead. “You’re safe here,” he murmured. “With me, you’ll always be safe.”
“I know,” I whispered. Rationally, I knew he was telling me the truth. But that deep place in my heart, the one that held onto all the hurt in my life, pushed his words away.
“Hey.” His soft voice lifted me out of my spiraling thoughts, and I pulled back to look at him. “Come closer. It’s okay.”
I wanted to believe that this time could be different, but deep down, I couldn’t—not yet. At least I knew enough to realize that these feelings had nothing to do with Ren. The fear of rejection loomed large in my heart. My thoughts were a mess, weaving in and out of my hopes and fears.
Oh, how I wanted this time to be different. I didn’t want this chance to end up like the others, and I’d end up gutted and hollow.
Was I ready to be real with Ren?
I wanted to be.
But could I be with him without hurting or driving him away when it seemed as if no matter how hard I tried with someone, I never seemed to be enough?