22. 22 Parker
22
22 PARKER
FADE INTO YOU
When I crashed into Gigi on the sidewalk, this was not where I saw the evening ending.
Or, maybe it was beginning?
Either way, sitting across from Gigi in a quiet kitchen, sipping hot tea from a giant soup mug was an unexpected twist.
We hadn’t said much since taking our seats at the island in the middle of this absurdly modern, glistening kitchen. I’d asked her how she took her tea, and she answered (cream and sugar, thanks), and she’d asked if I wanted a slice of blueberry pie (um, absolutely, yes). Then, we drifted into silence while we ate and sipped, neither of us acknowledging the elephant in the room.
Elephants, plural.
My mind recalled those last moments of my date with Halle. It’d been a nice date. Halle was every bit as lovely as I’d built her up to be in my head. But…
Across from me, Gigi sipped from her mug, her dark lashes fluttering against her freckled cheeks. My heart ballooned. As lovely as Halle was, she wasn’t Gigi. So I’d left. And now here I was. Here we were. Eating pie instead of talking. Instead of kissing .
I flashed back to those earlier moments, on that moonlit sidewalk. The attraction had been mutual, of that I was now sure. She’d brought me back to her place, for goodness’ sake. So, why had we stalled out as soon as we stepped inside?
I needed answers.
“So,” I said, setting my fork down. “Is this what you do with every girl you bring home?”
Gigi’s eyes flew up, the last bite of pie frozen halfway to her mouth. “Um.” She frowned. “I…what?”
I leaned in, elbows planted on the island, chin in hands. “Is this your wooing tactic? Yummy pie in a fancy kitchen?”
A laugh flew from her lips. She sat back, dark eyes assessing. “First of all,” she said, amusement still pulling at her mouth, “you’re the one who suggested tea. I was being a good hostess with the pie suggestion. Second.” Her face softened. She looked me over, from the top of my head to the tip of my chin, and it felt like a caress. “I’m letting you set the pace here, Parker,” she said. “I brought you home, yes. But nothing is going to happen that you aren’t ready for.”
We locked eyes over half-eaten pie and cooling tea, and just like that, it was back. The pull low in my belly, the pull in my heart. “I think,” I started, barely hearing myself over the beating in my chest, “that I’m ready for more.”
Gigi’s eyes flashed, but she held steady in her seat. “Are you—”
“Yes.” I stood and rounded the island. “I’m sure,” I said as I stopped in front of her. She spun her seat to face me, and I stepped between her legs. She lifted her face to mine, her breath quickening. I smiled, savoring the effect I had on her.
“There’s so much,” she started, her eyes dropping to my lips, then lower still, to where my dress dipped to reveal the teensiest hint of cleavage. “So much to talk about.”
“We’ll have time to talk,” I said, placing a finger under her chin to lift her eyes back to mine. “Later.”
I could see it: the moment her restraint snapped. And it was beautiful.
Leaning in, her nose grazed over mine. My eyes fell closed, breath quickening. Our lips brushed, the lightest of touches, and a sound closely resembling a whine escaped my throat. I felt Gigi smile, and I moved to close the distance between us and kiss it right off her perfect face. But before I could get close enough, she pulled back.
“Patience,” she murmured. “We’ve got all night.” Then, finally— finally —she kissed me.
I kissed her back with everything I had, not caring if I was overeager. This was no time to play it cool, no time for embarrassment. Cupping her face in my hands, I sank my teeth into her bottom lip, earning the most delicious sound I’d ever heard, and it fueled the fire already blazing inside me. I kissed her, arching my body against hers, showing her without words how much I wanted her.
Then, in a flash, she was out of her seat, pushing me back, back, back, until I hit the refrigerator. But she didn’t stop. She stepped forward until her body was flush against mine. Air whooshed from me as my every cell leapt to life. I raised my face to hers. There was a fire in her eyes I hadn’t seen before, and the knowledge that she was burning for me? Well…it made me feel powerful.
Leaning up, I kissed her again, and, oh, did she kiss me back.
Her fingers still in my hair, she held me steady as she brushed her tongue over my bottom lip, asking for access I was all too happy to give. Opening my mouth against hers, I held on for dear life as she teased me with deliberate, deep strokes of her tongue. It was a slow kiss, the kind of kiss designed for exploration, for stoking the flames. Over and over, she delved in, wringing sounds and sighs from me, turning my entire body into a live wire.
“Gigi,” I gasped, throwing my head back to drag air into my lungs. “Please.”
“I think,” she said as she kissed her way down my neck, “that I could get used to hearing you beg.”
My hands left her waist to bury themselves in her hair, holding her against the crook of my neck, where her teeth and tongue were doing devilish things. “How long are you planning to make me beg?”
The laugh that vibrated against my skin sent a lightning bolt of want straight to my core. “Oh, sweet Parker,” she said, lifting her head to look me in the eye. “You have no idea.”
I traced my thumb over her swollen bottom lip, the steady thrum of need radiating from my center making me brazen. “Then show me.”
A growl left Gigi and she kissed me again, this time more urgent. I kissed her back with equal fervor, filling my hands with her soft curves, arching away from the fridge, urging her to touch me, too.
And, oh, did she oblige. Her hands slid over my shoulders and across my chest, teasing at the bare skin there, only to dip lower, finding the hem of my dress. The moment her fingers brushed my bare skin, stars—literal stars—exploded behind my eyes. I moaned my approval into her mouth and she took the hint, skating her touch higher and higher, over the sensitive skin of my stomach, tickling across my ribs, to cup my lace-covered breast. “You have no idea,” she said, voice low and only for me, “the things I’ve done to you in my head.”
“Tell me,” I gasped, digging my fingers into her waist, urging her closer. Blood rushed through my veins like lava, heating me from the inside out. “Please.”
“In time,” she mumbled against my lips, her thumb teasing my nipple through my bra., “but this isn’t the time for talk.”
I was on fire. I was on fire and the only way to extinguish the flames was her touch. More of her touch. Every inch of her on every inch of me. “Can we,” I panted, “bedroom, please?”
Her touch faltered. I blinked my heavy-lidded eyes open to find her studying me, her mussed hair and flushed cheeks rendering her somehow more beautiful. “You sure?”
If I weren’t already blazing with want for this woman, her thoughtfulness in this moment would have done me in. My heart swelled against my ribcage and I smiled. Resting my palm against her cheek, I nodded. “I’m sure.”
She studied me a moment longer, an inner battle I was not privy to going on behind those impossibly dark eyes. Just when I thought she was going to pull away, fix my clothes, and offer me a ride home, she smiled. A deliciously decadent smile. Leaning in, she pressed a hard kiss to my lips, then stepped back, holding out her hand.
I let her lead me down the hall, let her pull me into her bedroom, let her close the door behind me. We stood still for a moment as our eyes adjusted to the darkness, the new quiet filled only with our unsteady breathing.
“Come here,” Gigi whispered, and I could make out the shape of her hand as she held it out to me. I took it and she pulled me in, brushing the hair away from my face. A sliver of moonlight caught the glimmer in her eyes as she took me in, and I knew what she was thinking.
“Shh.” I put my finger against her lips. Her gaze lifted to mine. I smiled and slowly, without looking away, and reaching for the bottom of my dress. A sharp exhale pierced the space between us as I lifted the garment and pulled it over my head. Cool air kissed my skin, but it didn’t last long. In a few short steps, Gigi was before me, enveloping me in her embrace, mouth seeking mouth, hands seeking skin.
My head spun. I clung tight to her as I kissed her back, meeting her ferocity with a ferocity of my own. Her hands spanned my waist, finding elastic of my underwearr. She yanked me closer with a possessiveness I didn’t expect. I gasped against her lips, and she smiled against mine.
Somewhere in the back of my mind, a thought whispered. Shouldn’t I be nervous? Shouldn’t I feel insecure or inadequate? Unqualified to be at the hands of someone like Gigi? Someone with confidence and experience, someone who could have nearly any woman she wanted? But the whisper was silenced as Gigi walked me backwards until we fell in a heap onto her bed.
No, I thought, sliding further onto the bed, Gigi following me like a magnet. This feels so very right.
Planting her knees on either side of my hips, Gigi straightened. I watched as she grabbed the hem of her shirt and pulled it up.
“Wait,” I said, and she froze. Leaning over, I turned on the bedside lamp and lay back down. “Okay. Continue.”
Laughter burst from her as she yanked her shirt over her head and tossed it across the room. “Sweet Parker,” she said, leaning down to kiss me. “I’d never have figured you for a lights on kind of girl.”
I laughed, too, as I returned her kiss. “Well, there’s still so much you don’t know about me,” I murmured, dancing my fingertips down her naked spine. She shivered and I clenched my thighs tight against the increasingly persistent throb there. “Now, would you sit back up so I can get a look at you?”
Gigi chuckled, obliging, and oh— oh —was I glad I turned the light on. She was stunning. All silky skin and swirling ink and full curves. The black lace of her bra cupped her breasts lovingly, as if they’d been gift wrapped for this occasion, and the soft swell of her stomach was begging for kisses.
I’d have been self-conscious about all the staring I was doing, but as it turned out, while I was cataloguing every delicious curve of Gigi’s body, she was taking me in, as well. We met each other’s eyes and laughter bubbled up from somewhere deep inside me. A helpless smile took over her face, too, which made me laugh more.
“You know,” she said, leaning down to brace her elbows on either side of my head. “A lesser woman would be offended at all this laughing in her bed.”
“Good thing you’re not a lesser woman,” I shot back.
Her eyes searched mine. “Neither are you.”
It was a whisper, soft breath against skin, but it broke like waves across us as Gigi’s mouth crashed into mine. The sweet weight of her over me, the heat of her bare skin on mine, fed into the inferno inside my body. Unable to refrain any longer, I slid my hands over her back, relishing in the soft skin beneath my palms. Reaching for her bra, I started to unclasp it, only to be thwarted by Gigi rolling off of me to curve against my side.
A disappointed sound slipped past my lips, but she kissed it away. “You’ll get your chance,” she murmured, her own fingers getting to work on my bra’s front clasp. “But right now, I need to touch you.”
My heart slammed hard in my chest as she pulled my bra off and tossed it aside. Her eyes drank me in— drank me in—and the awe on her face had me squirming to assuage the ache between my thighs.
“Gigi,” I started, but I didn’t have to finish. She knew what I wanted. What I needed. Dropping her head, she pulled a taut nipple into her mouth, laving her tongue over it. Heat pooled low in my belly and I arched away from the bed. A low whimper slipped past my lips, and she seemed to know what that meant, too. Her fingers slid across my belly, finding my other breast. She teased it gently with the pad of her thumb. But I needed more.
“More,” I gasped, digging my nails into her back. I was rewarded with the sharp scrape of her teeth on one nipple while she squeezed the other between her thumb and forefinger. I threw my head back on a low moan, crossing my legs tight and rocking my hips.
“Mmm,” Gigi murmured, my desperation catching her attention. “How close are you, baby girl?”
“So. Close,” I panted, fleetingly wondering if I should be embarrassed by how little it had taken me to get this close. But the hungry look on Gigi’s face killed that thought before it could root itself in my mind.
“You want a little help with that?” Her fingers toyed with the waist of my panties, pausing to await my answer. “Or do you want to take care if it yourself?” She bit her lip, looking me over. “Either way, I get to watch you come undone.”
Flashes of Gigi watching me as I touched myself, as I brought myself to the edge, ran through my mind, sending a new wave of wet heat through me. Later, I told myself, knowing exactly what I needed right now.
“Touch me,” I said, arching my hips closer to her hand. “Please.”
Air whooshed from her, pebbling the sensitive skin across my chest. She made quick work of my underwear, sliding them down my legs, and I watched as she kissed her way back up, pausing to nip at the crease in my thigh. The gasp she earned had her grinning when she reached my face again.
“I’m going enjoy this,” she said, holding my gaze as her hand slid lower, lower, lower still. As she slid her fingers through my curls, parting me to find where I needed her touch most. At the contact, we both groaned. I reached for her face, pulling her mouth back to mine, kissing her with sloppy urgency as her fingers made persistent circles over my most sensitive place, shooting sparks through my abdomen.
“Yes,” I whimpered, parting my legs wider, digging my heels into the mattress. “So good.”
Gigi tore her mouth from mine to pull my nipple into her mouth as she slid her hand lower, thrusting two fingers into my aching heat. Her palm maintained pressure where I needed it while her fingers curled inward, finding a new place to set my body aflame. I cried out, arching harder into her touch.
“Mmm-hmm,” she mumbled as she took my nipple between her teeth and flicked her tongue over it, keeping rhythm with the pulsing of her fingers. I squeezed my eyes shut and lifted my hips from the mattress, so close, so desperately close, and ready to leap from the edge. Gigi placed her free hand low on my belly, holding me steady while she increased pressure with her fingers inside me.
My thighs shook. I held tight to her, nails digging into her sweat-slicked skin. “I…I’m gonna…oh, god, ” I moaned, burying my face in the pillow. The pressure was so intense, I feared I might die if it didn’t release. “Gigi, please. I need to…oh, yes .”
“Just like that,” she coaxed, dropping soft kisses over my face and shoulders, across my chest and breasts. “I got you. I’m right here.”
I tightened my arms around her as her palm grazed my sensitive nub, as her fingers moved against that spot inside me, over and over, faster and surer, until my head spun, my lungs burned, my entire body shook with the need for release.
“Yes,” I hissed against her lips as the wave crested. A string of nonsensical words escaped me as I scrambled for purchase. Something to hold onto as my body gave in to the intense release building within it.
“Let go, baby girl,” she whispered against my sweaty temple. “I want to feel you come.”
Then, as if my body was waiting for permission, the wave crashed over me, a piercingly sweet release that had me clenching my thighs around Gigi’s hand. She didn’t stop her torturous touches, stroking me from the inside as her lips sought mine, my whimpers and cries devoured by the hunger in her kiss.
She kept kissing me as I came down, the hurricane inside me slowing to a gentle wave, rocking me back to reality, to the soft bed beneath me and the even softer body anchoring me to reality. Blinking my eyes open, I found Gigi watching me, backlit by the bedside lamp and looking like a smug little angel. Smiling shyly, I buried my face against her chest and laughed.
“What?” she laughed back, gently pulling her hand from between my legs. “What’s so funny?”
“Nothing,” I mumbled into her cleavage. “That was…really good.”
Laughing again, she snuggled down into the bed so that we were face to face. “Yeah,” she said, drinking me in with her eyes. “It was.”
We lay there for a few quiet moments, grinning at each other like a couple of fools, before Gigi leaned in and pressed a quick kiss to my lips. “I’ll be right back,” she said, sitting up. “You want some water?”
I nodded and watched as she crossed the room, letting myself savor the way her black jeans hugged her perfect backside. She tossed a grin over her shoulder before opening the door, then closing it quietly behind her.
I pulled the pillow she’d been using tight against me and sighed into it. Eyelids fluttering closed, I melted into the mattress with a deep, satisfied sigh.
And then, I drifted away.