Chapter 16
Chapter Sixteen
ELLA
I couldn’t back down, not after Aiden showed me his ink. He sat on the InkBed, thighs spread, jeans around his ankles. I stood between his legs, heart beating a mile a minute. My skin was slick with sweat, and I swore my heart was pounding so hard Aiden could hear it.
“Don’t chicken out on me, Cinders.” Aiden flashed one of his toothpaste commercial-worthy smiles. “We had a deal.”
I reached for the hem of my shirt and paused to calm my shaky hands. My experience with boys could be summed up to this moment. I was eighteen and hadn’t kissed a boy.
How pathetic?
I was a giant loser.
Fear slithered down my spine like a snake, curling around my insides. My clothes were suddenly too tight with Aiden’s watchful eyes on me. I quickly stripped off my tank top and flung it onto his lap.
Taking his bottom lip between his teeth, Aiden grunted. He leaned forward and grabbed my hip, pulling me to him. “You’re beautiful, Ella.” His long fingers traced over the shamrock on my shoulder and followed the path down my ribs and up to my breast. “Fuck. You’re perfect.”
His lips brushed mine.
They were soft and warm, and I was drowning in his scent. The cloves on his breath. The charcoal on his hands. The clean linen on his clothes. I wanted to get lost in him and forget about the world and everything but him.
A soft moan escaped my throat. He barely touched me, but the anticipation of the kiss sent a rush of adrenaline down my spine. I was desperate for more, needing so badly to connect to another person. I’d waited too long for my first kiss and dreamed about this moment.
Aiden threaded his fingers through my hair, his lips colliding with mine. As our tongues tangled, I was on cloud nine, breathless and drunk on pleasure as he stole one kiss after another.
Digging my nails into his shoulders, I clung to him for dear life. If I opened my eyes, would he disappear? Would this all be over? After years of being overlooked and treated like shit, someone finally desired me.
Aiden pulled back, ending the first and longest kiss of my life with one final peck on the lips. “I want to see the rest of the shamrock tattoo.” His index finger hooked beneath my bra, and it fell down my arm when he let the strap go. “It looks pretty wild.”
Celtic vines started around my shoulder blade, twisted over my shoulder, spread over my ribs, and curved around my breast before ending with a shamrock a few inches above my nipple. Two-toned green and yellow shamrocks were intermittently spaced along the vine trail.
I fiddled with the hook and missed, anxiety tearing through my insides.
Aiden took my other hand in his. “Look at me, Ella.” My eyes met his, and he continued, “It’s cool if you’re not ready. I get it.”
“No.” I shook my head. “I want to do this. I’m just… nervous. I’ve never…”
“Was that your first kiss?”
Artists were intuitive. He must have sensed my discomfort, reading the truth from my face.
I nodded. “It’s lame. I know.”
“Not at all. I’m glad I was your first.” He licked his lips, burning my skin with the sinful look in his blue eyes. “I want all of your firsts. If you want to share them with me.”
Aiden wasn’t like other guys. So when he said this, I knew it was not some bullshit play to get in my pants. He genuinely wanted to share my firsts with me and not for some testosterone-driven need.
I unhooked my bra and let it fall to the floor at my feet. It was cold in the studio, and my nipples were painfully erect. Aiden’s eyes roamed over my breasts. He didn’t speak or breathe, only stared like he was going to devour me.
“In mythology, each leaf of the shamrock means something different.” I turned to the side for him to see where the art began on my shoulder blade. “The first leaf symbolizes hope.” I traced a line over my ribs and up to my breast. “The second leaf means faith.” I continued my exploration with my finger, stopping once I completed the journey to the shamrock that ended above my nipple. “And the third leaf means love.”
As if committing every feature to memory, Aiden raked over my breasts with a greedy look in his eyes and licked his lips.
“It’s beautiful.” He smiled. “So are you.”
I launched myself into his strong arms, and he curled them around me, lifting me onto his lap. Straddling him on the Ink Bed, I rocked my hips as our lips touched. This time, he didn’t hesitate and kissed me. As our tongues collided, I desperately wanted him to kiss, lick, and suck on every inch of my skin.
I wanted to be worshiped by Aiden.
But my moment of bliss came to a screeching halt when Sean called out, “Ella, I’m back.”
As our lips separated, I struggled to catch my breath. “Shit, that’s my boss. If he catches us in here, I’m fired. And he’ll tell my dad. Get dressed.”
Aiden slid the jeans up his thighs while I slipped into my bra and tank top. Loud footsteps approached the room, so I had to act fast. I grabbed my sketchbook from the couch and flipped to the page with the Edward Elric sketch. It was a good thing I started working on it before Aiden arrived.
My client would be there within the hour.
Seconds later, Sean entered the room without knocking. I leaned against the table, charcoal pencil in hand, and pretended to work on something for Aiden.
“Oh, hey.” Sean glanced at Aiden with a smile and then back to me. “I didn’t know you were with a client. Sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt.”
Sean closed the door, and I let out a breath of relief.
“That was close,” I whispered.
Aiden slid off the InkBed, towering over me, and bent down to kiss my lips. “I better get going. You have a client coming in and a boss that isn’t going to be cool with you fucking around with me.”
“I have to finish the sketch and clean up my space. Plus, I completely forgot about the front desk. Sean would kill me if he knew how long I left the place unattended while he was gone.”
I inched toward the door, and Aiden wrapped his arm around me from behind, pressing my back to his muscular chest. He tilted my head back and kissed my lips, draining the air from my lungs.
“Thanks for trusting me, Cinders.” His lips skimmed mine once more. “We should do this again sometime.”