Chapter Sixteen
Then
Avery
My body trembles with nerves. I’m about to give myself to Jasper. I don’t know if he knows yet, but he might suspect.
“I have to tell you something,” I begin, a lump lodged in my throat.
He creates a trail of wet kisses from the side of my mouth, along my jaw, and down the sensitive skin on my neck. I break out in goose bumps. “What is it?”
“I’ve—” I take in a deep breath, mustering up the courage to tell him. “I’ve never had sex before.”
Jasper lifts his head, bringing his flared eyes to meet mine. “You’re a …?
I nod, rubbing my lips together, somewhat ashamed.
“Thank you.” A subtle smile cracks the corners of his mouth.
“For what?” I ask, confused.
“For choosing me,” he mumbles, leaning in to kiss me.
“Oh, Jasper,” I moan, eyes falling closed. “You’re it for me.”
Jasper continues kissing along my jawline, before reaching the flicker of my pulse. He presses a kiss on my pebbled skin, then he lets it linger before lifting to meet my eyes. “Can I show you how much I care for you?”
The hard thuds of my heart vibrate through my ears, and now that’s all I can hear. “Okay.”
Jasper’s eyes darken. Pinching the straps on my dress between two fingers, he gently slides it off my shoulder. Then does the same with the other. My dress slips off, piling on the floor at my feet.
A sharp inhale captures my breath, with my hands at my sides, in only a bra and panties. Not much different than the bikinis I spend my days in, but these feel more intimate.
Jasper’s knuckles run along the length of my forearm, grazing my skin with gentle pressure. Without a word, I clasp a string of his shorts and give it a light tug. The tie comes undone.
“Take them off,” he commands.
I swallow hard as my fingers find the elastic on his waistband. Giving them one forceful tug, they fall to the floor. Jasper’s dick springs free.
I gasp.
“You’re shaking.” His tone is low and filled with concern.
I nod.
“Oh, Avery,” he says tenderly, cupping my face. “We can go as slow as you want.”
I nod.
“Come here.” Placing one arm under my legs and the other bracing my lower back, he lifts me.
As he carries me to the bed, I wrap an arm around his neck and curl into him.
Jasper softly lowers to the mattress. Staring at him from a lying position on my back, I drag my eyes over every inch of his toned body—every tattoo, the divots of his toned chest, and his tousled-on-top dark hair. He is mine.
Jasper crawls on top of me, a smile playing on his lips. He stops at my core. “You’re beautiful.”
“Thank you.”
He hooks a finger under my panties and slowly inches them down. His warm breath on the inside of my thighs temporarily settles my nerves.
“I’m going to loosen you up a bit.” His words hit the outside of my pussy, making it throb with anticipation.
“Uh, okay,” I squeak out, unsure what he means by loosening me up, but I do know what he’s planning on doing between my legs.
Jasper rubs his nose along the inside of my thigh, slowly licking my bumpy skin. I frantically reach for a pillow, a blanket, or anything to brace myself. He hooks both arms around the back of my knees and, with purpose, scoots me closer. I’m his to mold and manipulate.
“We don’t even need to have sex. I could stay down here all day,” he mumbles, then darts his tongue out, shooting it directly into my core. I gasp. We’ve done this before, but knowing what it will lead to makes it all that much better.
With a curve of his tongue and a light touch of his nose, I’m hit in both of the most sensitive areas. He slides in and out, licking every part of me. My legs begin to tremble like aftershocks from an earthquake, but instead, working in reverse because they only gain momentum.
“I need to make you nice and relaxed. I’d never forgive myself if I hurt you,” he says, tilting his head to get a better angle.
My fingers find his head. I thread them through the soft, short strands of hair. “You could never hurt me, Jasper.”
“We’re going to be together forever,” he purrs into my core.
The slickness of my arousal coating the inside of my thighs, his tongue laps it up, covering the landscape of my most desired area. I’ve never had another guy down here, and I hope I never will.
“Ohh,” I moan, my eyes roll back. My pussy pulses with a deep intensity as tingles start from within. The pit of my stomach drops like a free fall, causing my back to bow off the bed.
“Come for me, Arizona,” he tells me. “I want to have every part of you, in every part of me.”
I’m coming. Now recognizing this feeling.
“Oh god!” I grit out. My hands grip the back of his head, moving him in the direction I need, riding his face, not caring at the moment whether he can breathe—desperate to feel it all. An orgasm rolls through my body like a hurricane, wrecking everything in its path.
Jasper releases, raising his head and looking drunk on lust.
Matching his energy, I smile. “You could breathe, couldn’t you?”
He wipes his face on the back of his hand and crawls up my torso, leaving a trail of my wetness with his kisses. “It doesn’t fucking matter.”
I giggle.
“How do you feel?” he asks, resting his body on mine.
“Perfect.”
His smirk is wide. He’s satisfied with himself. “Good.”
“I’m happy I waited to do this with you.” My voice cracks through a whisper.
Lying underneath Jasper, our heartbeats are synchronized, and it is something from out of this world.
I understand now why I wasn’t interested in any other guy.
They were self-centered and immature, and I barely breathe the same air as them.
I thought I was the issue, but it wasn’t me—it’s that none of them were Jasper Collins.
He is my person, and I’m so lucky to have found him at only eighteen years old.
“Me too.” Jasper’s warm, inviting lips meet mine in an all-consuming kiss.
“Are you sure you want to do this?” Jasper’s elbows are bent at the sides of my face, and his palms are cupping my cheeks. He hovers over me, caging and locking me in place.
“Yes, more than anything.” My eyes dart around the room, unable to focus through the trembling.
“Avery.” Jasper angles his head, forcing eye contact. He captures my gaze, leading me back to the center. “Breathe.”
Violently shaking, I part my lips to take in a breath of precious air. “Okay.”
“Are you ready?”
I lick my lips, then nod. Terrified, excited, and full of adrenaline, I let Jasper’s legs spread mine. In one swift motion, Jasper presses a deep kiss onto my lips while entering me with a commanding yet gentle thrust.
“Ohh,” I groan. With a light sting and a dull ache, he fills me.
“God, Avery,” he grunts, but his body immediately stills. “You’re okay?”
A tear slips from under my eyelid and rolls down my cheek. A million emotions rage through me. “Yes.”
Jasper wipes the wetness with his thumb with a smile. “Make sure you talk to me.”
He throbs inside a few times before thrusting deeper. Another groan leaves my lips.
Jasper’s misted forehead rests against mine. His body moves slowly and thoughtfully, but his pants get louder. “I love you,” he whispers.
Oh my god. Another roll of his hips, teasing a sensitive spot at the top of my clit. “I love you too.”
With another deep thrust, he pulls back. “You do?”
Smiling up at the millions of emotions written on his face, I answer him. “Yes, I do so much.”
With a smile wider than I’ve seen, Jasper’s slow thrusts become more frantic. My hips move in sync with his motions. A mix of pain and pleasure and connectedness travels through my veins like a drug.
A low grunt escapes from the back of my throat, and suddenly, his body stiffens above me. His limbs lock into place. “Fuck. I love you so much.”
I kiss his face, wanting to feel every bit of him. “You feel so good.”
Jasper releases everything inside me, then falls onto me.
“Oh my god,” Jasper labors in a breathy explosion of words. His head, resting on my chest, moves with the sharp rise and fall of my lungs. Cradling him with both arms, our bodies slick with sweat. “I can’t lose you.”
“You’re never going to,” I reply wholeheartedly, brushing his hair away from his wet forehead.