Chapter 42 Ben #2
Lust coursed through his body at the way their legs pretzeled together and her pelvis nestled intimately against his. He was using the arm not protecting her skull to hold himself up so he wouldn’t crush her, but their position was only serving to highlight the way his groin was pressing into hers.
Looking at her sprawled out beneath him, her lips soft and dewy, her eyes lit with passion, and her hair fanned around her like an exotic halo, he wasn’t surprised to feel himself lengthen against her.
There was no way Melody couldn’t have felt it, what with their bodies pressed so intimately against one another’s.
Without conscious thought, he rocked his pelvis against hers. Melody moaned his name and tilted her hips up into his.
“Ben,” Melody moaned again.
If he’d had any will to resist her, it would have evaporated at the needy sound of his name on her lips. Her breathy moan pushed all thoughts out of his brain that didn’t center on finally laying claim to her incredible mouth and body.
Everything about her was beautiful, from her soulful eyes to her warm personality. Considering the way she seemed to affect him on every level of his being, he was sure it was only years of firmly cultivated willpower that had allowed him to resist her thus far.
Melody’s eyes tracked his mouth as he slowly lowered his head. When his lips were but a hair’s breadth away from hers, she angled her chin upward and closed the distance between them, pressing her mouth against his.
He moved his lips over hers with gentle pressure. Melody’s soft mewls of pleasure were all the encouragement he needed to deepen the kiss. He gently nibbled at her bottom lip until she opened for him.
Pleasure raced through him as her tongue met his and she allowed him to plunder her mouth. It was a cave of wonder he couldn’t imagine ever growing tired of.
“You’re delicious,” he remarked as he dropped gentle kisses along her cheekbones and jawline. The hand not bracing his weight made a slow trip down her body, over her ribcage, and into the dip of her waist before landing on the gentle swell of her hip. Melody groaned when he gave a gentle squeeze.
Much like he did on the ice, he allowed his senses to take over. He zeroed in on her reactions, relying on sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell to guide his actions.
Sensing Melody had enjoyed the firmer touch of his hand on her hip, he massaged his hand over the expanse of her thighs, giving a sure but gentle squeeze every now and again.
When her breathing started to turn heavy, he slipped his hand under her body and palmed one of the fleshy globes of her rear.
He ran his nose gently down her neck before placing a soft kiss where her neck connected to her shoulder and collarbone. Her breathing accelerated, inspiring him to gently tongue the area.
Melody drew in a startled breath that spoke of surprise and pleasure. Testing his hypothesis, he brought his tongue back to the same spot and used it to draw swirls on her skin.
She shuddered and arched her back, pushing her breasts into his chest. With a desperate whimper that sounded like the sweetest of music to ever grace his ears, Melody lifted her head in an obvious effort to return his mouth to hers.
If his lips weren’t currently occupied trying to fan the flames of her desire until she was practically vibrating with it, he might have laughed with delight at her forthright manner.
As it was, he couldn’t help but smile against the soft skin at the curve of her neck.
She must have felt the change in the pressure of his lips because she drew back slightly and asked, “And just what, might I ask, has you smiling up there?”
His eyebrows drew up in surprise. “You’ve got to be kidding me,” he said with a soft laugh, taking in the fantasy-worthy scene beneath him.
He dropped his head and nuzzled her neck.
“Any man alive would be deliriously happy to find himself in my current position.” He smiled roguishly before pressing his pelvis into hers to better underscore his point.
Her answering smile was an irresistible combination of shyness, self-confidence, and undisguised want.
She was like his very own Venus brought to life, alive with a sweetness and vibrancy that far eclipsed her physical appearance.
And yet, he doubted she had any idea just how alluring she was.
Hopefully, if he did his job right, by the time they left the greenhouse she would see herself as the irresistible siren she was.
Melody’s eyelids fluttered closed as he gave into her unspoken request and ducked back down to claim her lips with his.
He took his time with her. His body was approaching its breaking point, but he didn’t want to rush a single moment with this stunning creature fate had delivered to him.
He wanted to memorize every inch of her body, from the smiling corners of her mouth to the delicate tips of her toes.
Days, weeks, months, and even years from now, he wanted to be able to close his eyes and remember these moments together with crystal clarity.
He gave her luscious rear one last squeeze before inching his hand up and around until his hand just barely teased the naked skin beneath the hem of her shirt.
His gaze swept over her face. He waited for her eyes to flick up to his. “May I?” he asked as he made a show of playing with the hem of her shirt.
Liquid fire blazed in her eyes. “Please do.” Her voice was soft, but certain.
With deliberate slowness, he pushed her shirt up and over her midriff. He used his thumb to draw a lazy circle around her belly button. As he lifted her shirt ever higher, he counted every delicate rib his fingers crested.
He paused briefly to assess her reaction before sliding the fabric over her breasts. Her enraptured smile brought the best kind of warmth to his chest.
He groaned as he took in the pale-blue lace of her bra. It was sexy, but demure. Just like the lady herself. God. Could she be any more tempting?
Melody squirmed when he did no more than stare at her.
“You’re absolutely stunning,” he affirmed.
She was a vision in sky-blue brocade, so gorgeous that he wanted to imprint the image of her lying trustingly, but eagerly, beneath him into his memory bank forever.
This was the stuff of fantasy right here and he was the lucky bastard who got to experience it in real life.
Melody whimpered. “Off,” she demanded, raising her arms over her head to facilitate the removal of her shirt. His lips tilted up at her fervor. It was nice to know he wasn’t alone in the eagerness department.
“As the lady wishes,” he conceded before whipping her shirt over her head. Not wanting anything to block the stunning view of her, he tossed the shirt aside.
“Now yours,” Melody pleaded. She lifted her hands to his chest and started lifting the fabric of his Henley. His lips quirked up into a smile. Someone was taking matters into her own hands. He liked that. He liked that a lot.
Happy to comply with her expressed wishes, he reached for the fabric at the nape of his neck and tugged off his shirt in one decisive move. He tossed it in the same direction he’d just thrown her shirt. If he was lucky, the clothing pile would only grow larger as the evening wore on.
Melody moaned appreciatively as she took in the expanse of his firm, muscled chest. “How can you even look like this?” she asked, bewildered.
Her hands shook ever so slightly as she lifted them to his naked torso. She used her fingertips to reverently trace the outline of his abdominals.
He groaned. Her touch was perfect, but also not nearly enough.
He lifted one of his hands until it covered both of hers. He guided her hands up his body and pressed them more firmly against his pecs.
Her groan sounded the way he was feeling. Blissful, but in need of so much more.
Melody’s eyes flared and then blinked when their gazes connected, leading him to suspect she had seen the fire in her eyes reflected in his.
No surprise there. He was burning for her.
Patience was a virtue he’d always subscribed to, but enough was enough.
He needed to have her or he was going to incinerate.
“Can we really do this in here?” Melody questioned, excitement and uncertainty warring in her voice.
“I’d hide you from view if it came to that,” he promised with what he hoped was a reassuring smile.
Melody arched a challenging brow as she continued to tease him with the press of her hands against his chest. “You’d let your mom see your naked backside?”
He shot her a look. “It’s not like she hasn’t seen it before. The woman did change my diapers, you know.”
“Yes, but that was your baby bottom,” she reasoned. “Are you sure you’d be comfortable letting her see your manly glutes?”
A reluctant laugh escaped his lips. “I would certainly prefer she didn’t,” he admitted bluntly, “but I’d take that metaphorical bullet for you.”
He chuckled when Melody started humming the refrain of Bruno Mars’ chart-topper, “Grenade.” Would she truly catch a grenade for him? Under the right circumstances, he’d probably throw himself in front of a train for her.
They took turns exchanging lyrics, but where Melody sang hers, he settled for speaking his. He was well aware he couldn’t hold a candle to her in a vocal duet, but her smile suggested she didn’t mind his lack of musicality one bit.
Ben took a moment to simply smile at her.
He appreciated the way her playful manner had cooled his ardor to a more manageable level because he really wanted to make this good for her.
So good, in fact, that she wouldn’t be able to imagine ever being with anyone else ever again.
Perhaps he really wasn’t so far removed from his troglodyte ancestors as he’d always thought, because he felt a strong desire to claim her and make her his.
Time stood still as he memorized the sharp angles of her cheekbones, the delicate slope of her nose, the dark fan of her eyelashes, and the aroused flush of her skin. He savored the trusting warmth in her eyes and the accelerated rise and fall of her chest.
He used the hand still holding her hands pressed against his chest to massage the soft skin of her fingers. As much as he wanted to sink into the delicious warmth of her body, there was something about Melody that made him want to slow down and savor every look, every touch.
They smiled into each other’s eyes as he used his fingers to trace delicate circles up her arm. This. This right here was what life was all about. Soul-deep connection that could be communicated with little more than a look or a tender touch.
Melody’s tongue darted out to lick at her lips. “Why are you looking at me like that?” She breathed into the charged silence, her voice barely a whisper.
Contentment exploded in his chest as he took in the stunning sight before him. He smiled before answering simply, “Because you’re ready.”