Chapter 21
Alex stood at her back door and watched as Nathan pulled his truck into the garage.
She wanted to greet him, but he was most likely exhausted and stressed.
She didn’t want to add to that, even though she had been worried sick.
She had cleaned the house from top to bottom, gone grocery shopping, and had dropped by Keira’s.
Even after all that, she still couldn’t help but think about Nathan.
Twenty agonizing minutes later, Nathan strolled into the house. Alex watched him, and she immediately saw how distraught he was.
“Nathan…” she whispered as she rushed over to him. “What’s wrong? Did something happen?”
“Mission accomplished,” he said. “There are…other things I need to talk to you about. Not right now. Right now, I need...I need…” He stared at her, looking lost. “I—”
“Shh,” she whispered. “Let me take care of you.”
Gently guiding him to the steps, she led him upstairs into her bathroom.
She turned on the shower, and he looked at her, perplexed as she stood in front of him and began to tug his shirt over his head.
She didn’t know what she was doing. She just knew this was what felt right.
Nathan needed her, and she would be here for him.
Once his shirt was off, he began to protest, “Alex, I can—” but she held a finger to his lips and looked at the button on his pants.
Gingerly, she unsnapped it and pulled the zipper down.
She then gave a big tug until the pants began to come down.
He began to protest again, but she shook her head.
He closed his mouth and helped pull the pants off until he was standing in his boxer briefs.
Alex’s mouth went dry when she saw the semi-erection. He grew harder the longer she stared.
“Alex, I’m sor—” he began, but she cut him off with a quick kiss before hooking her thumbs in the elastic band of his underwear and tugging them to his feet.
Her heart was hammering when she saw all of him. He stood like a beautiful statue, thinner than he should be, but still so gorgeous her heart ached. His cock was standing at attention, veined and thick, and she felt excited instead of panicked. She didn’t feel scared. She trusted him.
When she pulled him under the spray of the shower, he must have assumed she was going to stay outside. She wanted more, though. She lifted her top and tugged it off, leaving her in a lacey black bra. Nathan stared at her, his eyes darkening.
“Fuck, Alex…” he murmured, but before he could say anything else, she unclasped the bra and let it fall off her shoulders.
She felt exposed and awkward, but the appreciation in Nathan’s eyes and the fact that he didn’t move to touch her, despite being aroused, made her feel comfortable enough to slide down her pants and underwear until she was fully bare.
She didn’t give herself time to dwell on how she was naked in front of him or that she waxed everything on her body.
She just stepped into the shower, slid the glass door shut, and moved into his arms, hugging him under the warm spray.
Alex tensed when his erection settled against her belly. He was long, thick, and smooth against her skin. She thought she would freak out, but she liked being this close to him. She liked that he desired her, and when his arms went around her, engulfing her in strength, she felt cherished.
But this wasn’t about her. This was about making Nathan feel better. Whatever went on during that mission had shaken him, and she needed to take care of him. She had a feeling that no one had ever cared for him before.
“Let me wash you,” she said softly.
Nathan nodded and lowered his head—all the protest leaving him. She could see deep sadness in his eyes.
She grabbed a washcloth stacked neatly along the alcove of her shower next to the loofahs, exfoliators, and multiple bottles of shampoo, conditioner, soap, and other miscellaneous bath products. Nathan eyed it the line of products, and a slight smile crept across his face.
“You’re going to smell like vanilla chamomile,” she told him.
“I don’t mind,” he said, his voice low.
She began washing his body, starting from the top and moving down.
His arms and chest were fine, and he groaned with her ministrations.
When she got to his torso, she bit her lip, deciding to leave that part for last. Instead, she soaped his legs and then his feet.
He stood still. When she was done with everything except the place she had been avoiding, she stood and looked into his beautiful blue eyes.
“I can get the rest,” he offered, but Alex shook her head.
“No. I want to do it.”
“Are you sure? We can—”
Nathan hissed in a breath when Alex took her hand and stroked the crown of his cock lightly.
She looked down, circling the head with her fingers, feeling the silkiness of it.
The water beat down on them as she took a glob of body wash in her other hand and stroked his cock from the base, coating it in the smooth, soapy liquid.
Bracing a hand on the shower wall, Nathan growled, “Fuck, fuck, fuck. Alex…” But she continued to stroke him, gently at first, and then harder once she felt more confident. Nathan seemed to be in pure bliss with the expression on his face, so she continued.
Moving one hand, she cupped his balls and squeezed lightly while she milked him. When he groaned at her touch, she began massaging them gently while she pumped him harder.
“I’m going to cum too fast—like a fucking sixteen-year-old.”
“Good,” she told him. “I want to be the one who did that to you.”
Nathan shut his eyes and growled. Suddenly, jets of cum shot from his cock—some of it landing on Alex’s thigh, some of it going to the shower floor. She watched, fascinated. His cock pulsed in her hand until he had spilled the last of his seed.
Alex should have been afraid. The last man who had come all over her had done it forcefully and in the most disgusting way possible.
Yet with Nathan, everything was different.
He was tender and considerate. Through the whole hand job, he had kept his hands off her, knowing she had to do this on her own terms and with her explicit consent.
When their eyes met, she knew she loved him. He was the only man who had ever gotten through to her. He was the only man she ever truly trusted. He was the only man with whom she wanted to go any further.
“Alex, that was…” He trailed off, shaking his head.
“It was just a hand job, Nathan,” she said, teasing, but they both knew she was trying to play it off.
“No, it wasn’t. You gave me a gift. You allowed yourself to be vulnerable. You chose me to take charge of your sexual experience. You don’t know how fucking honored I am.”
She closed her eyes and leaned into him, his chest strong and welcoming. His arms gently wrapped around her body in a sweet embrace.
“And if you choose,” he continued softly, “it would be my honor to do the same to you.”
“Yes,” she breathed without a second thought.
Alex wanted his touch so badly that it hurt.
She wasn’t sure how far she could go with this, but she knew he would stop when she told him to.
Even though they had met under terrible circumstances, he had proven himself to be honorable.
She trusted him with her body—and her heart.
She just hoped everything would turn out okay in the end.
Don’t think about the future, she scolded herself. Just think about right now.
Nathan shut off the water and scooped Alex out of the shower. He set her on the marble counter and grabbed a towel, spending the next few minutes carefully drying her off. His touch didn’t feel uncomfortable, and she relished watching as he did the same to himself when she was adequately dry.
Afterward, he carried her out of the bathroom and sat her gently on the bed, her damp hair splaying across the covers.
The cool air hit her sensitive nipples, and the buds hardened.
Goosebumps formed on her skin as she watched Nathan hover over her, his beautiful body on display.
She was surprised that his cock was standing at attention so soon after his orgasm. It made her feel desired.
“You are so beautiful,” he said huskily.
She felt her face heat at the compliment. Other people had told her that, but only Nathan made her feel special.
“Make me feel good,” she whispered, wanting nothing more than for him to touch her.
“I’ll do anything for you,” he said as he hovered over her and dipped his head for the gentlest kiss.
? ? ?
Nate was panicking as his lips met Alex’s.
The issue of Sally was pushed aside for now.
He had the most gorgeous woman in the world to satisfy.
It wasn’t as if he hadn’t been with his share of women.
This was Alex, and he had to make this perfect for her.
With her background and the fact that she was the most wonderful woman in the world, she deserved to be worshipped.
The kiss became fiercer, and he wanted to drown in her forever.
However, he couldn’t rush this, and he couldn’t do this roughly either.
He dragged himself away from her mouth—both of them gasping for breath.
He cupped the side of her face tenderly and stared into her eyes, taking in the sparkle of their cornflower-blue brilliance.
“I’ll take this slow,” he told her, and she nodded.
But before he could do anything, she suddenly blurted, “I don’t want to have actual sex. You know, like vaginal—”
“Yes, I understand,” he said, chuckling. “I wasn’t going to take it that far tonight. I was serious when I said I wanted to take this slow.”
Alex’s face had turned a cute shade of pink. She was flustered, and Nate had a hunch about why.
“You’ve never had any kind of consensual sexual contact, have you?” he asked. “It’s not just sex. It’s everything.”
She flinched, and Nate could have kicked himself for bringing it up.
“Is that a problem?” she asked. “I already feel bad enough that you have to deal with a rape victim. Maybe we should—”