Chapter Nineteen
Carter
Early morning light peeking through the blinds of my bedroom window and the sound of increased traffic noise outside stir me from the deepest, most peaceful sleep I have ever had. Shifting slightly, I momentarily startle and panic when I hear a grumble of discontent come from just below my head, only to remember that Billie is in bed with me and what we shared last night wasn’t a dream. My eyes peek open and as I spy the mass of tangled brown waves cascading over her face and onto my chest, I smile to myself, not quite believing my good luck at having such an amazing woman clinging to me. Gingerly, I lift my hand and move the hair off her face. The action causes her to stir a bit, and my smile pulls wider when I see the look of serenity on her face as she burrows closer to me and settles back into sleep.
For long moments, I watch her in slumber. Over her nose, there are a few faint freckles that you wouldn’t be able to see unless you were this close to her, and I thank my lucky stars that I am and have the opportunity to catalog her features. The apples of her cheeks are a natural, rosy pink and her upper lip is shaped in the most perfect Cupid’s bow I have ever seen. My eyes move upward and see a few tiny wisps of hair at the top of her hairline, and something about the thin, barely-there strands reminds me that even though this woman is strong, smart, and sexy, she is also sweet and can make herself vulnerable just as she did last night. Billie’s confidence in the bedroom could make someone think she wasn’t vulnerable at all, but there were moments when we were together last night, like when she would say ‘please’ or look into my eyes as I entered her when I could see that her walls were down. It made the whole experience that much better, and I can’t wait to repeat it.
My fingers twitch with the need to touch her, so I do. Lightly, I brush my fingers over the smooth skin of her arms, relishing the sight of the goosebumps that break out over her skin. When my eyes flick back up to her face, I watch her long, dark lashes flutter for a few seconds before her eyes blink open and stare up into mine. Her mouth turns up at the corners as she wakes a little more. “Good morning,” she says, her voice rough with sleep.
There are so many words on the tip of my tongue, words about how I have fallen in love with her, how I wished for someone special a long time ago and that I now know that it’s her, but I’m not quite ready to put a voice to them just as I’m sure she’s not ready to hear them yet. Billie’s confidence extends to a lot of things, but I get the feeling she may not be completely aware of just how deserving she is of love. Instead of telling her everything that is written on my heart, I say words that are true in this moment. “I need you, Elskling. ”
Billie’s eyes widen and sparkle for a moment, emotions passing over her face I can’t quite decipher but wish to God I could because I want to know everything that goes on in this woman’s mind and every wish that she holds in her heart. She continues to stare at me a moment before her expression shifts to one that’s more mischievous than awestruck. “Do you now?” she asks, her palm sliding down my torso until she’s gripping the hard wood of my erection that’s been there since the moment I woke up and felt her in my arms and starts to pump her fist.
My hips buck into her hand as I reach up and cup her face. Gazing into her cocoa eyes, I make my tone as serious as possible so she can hear the truth in my words. “Always.”
Before she can say anything to dispute me, I lean down and seal my lips over hers. Billie’s hand stutters for a moment as she gets lost in our kiss and I couldn’t care less. When I said I needed her, I meant it to be about more than sex. Sex with her is amazing and something I know will only get better and more amazing as time passes, but I also need her in my life in other ways. Her smile brightens my day no matter how long or hard it has been and her presence eases the ache of my loneliness, not just because she is another person in the room, but because she is the best possible person that could ever be in the room with me. Her care and attention make the grief I still sometimes carry with me that much lighter because she makes everything lighter. Every burden is lessened because of who she is and I need her in my life more than I need anything else in this world.
The realization of that has my lips faltering slightly as we kiss, and Billie takes the short break as an opportunity to move things along. Pushing the sheets back, she swings one leg over me until she’s straddling my torso and running my dick through her wet folds. With a loud groan, I grip onto her hips and push my growing feelings beneath the surface, focusing instead on making this experience as good for her as I possibly can. Just her moving on top of me like this already has my mind blowing wide with new sensations, but she might need more than that. When I look up at her face as it hovers above mine, the sultry expression she wears makes me wonder if my previous thought was actually correct. Each time she grinds down on me, I see her pupils dilate that much wider and her breath is coming in short and fast. “I’m getting close already,” she breathes out.
Her hand reaches between us and she moves me until my tip is hitting her clit in a way that makes her face light up and a low moan skate across her lips. “Hell, yes,” I mutter. “Use me to get yourself off.” It’s hotter than anything I have ever seen or experienced, and if she wants to use me as her own personal sex toy, I am all for that.
Billie doesn’t say anything but nods, her movements picking up speed until finally she opens her mouth in a silent scream, her eyes boring into mine as she comes, looking like a goddess that I don’t deserve but will do everything in my power to keep. As she comes down, she lightly brushes her lips against mine and shifts over me, but I still her with my hands that are still on her hips and start her moving again. As she slides, the tip of my dick accidently slips into her and even though it feels amazing, I pull back and start to reach over to the nightstand for protection. “Wait,” she commands, her hand on my arm. When I look back at her, she bites her lower lip in thought before leaning down to whisper in my ear. “I’m clean and on the pill. We can ditch the condoms if you want.”
Drawing my hand back and placing it on her lower back, I stare into her face and try to read her expression. It’s nearly inscrutable, but I definitely don’t see any doubt. “I’m good with that.” More than good. “But are you sure? I’m clean too,” I mention for good measure. With as little experience as I have it would be a wonder if I weren’t, but just because I haven’t been with a lot of people doesn’t mean I’m not still overly cautious Carter.
Billie smiles and nods before slipping up my still hard dick and impaling herself on it in one swift move. The first feel of her warm center against my sensitive skin could be described as silk if the light, slick material had an iron grip, one that has me needing to do a mental inventory of my workshop to prevent myself from going off immediately. When she starts to move, the need to come increases and my eyes nearly roll back in my head from all the pleasure I’m experiencing. “God, this feels…” I don’t have words for how it feels because my mind is scrambled from all the amazing sensations rolling through my body.
Billie leans down and rests her forehead against mine as she continues to swivel her hips. “It does,” she agrees. Her lips brush against mine as she reaches back and starts to play with my heavy sac. The addition of her hand on me has the tension in my body rising and I can’t stop myself from thrusting up into her. The move makes her whimper against my mouth. “Yes, more of that, please.”
My hands smooth up her back and around to her breasts where I tease at her nipples with my fingers, thrusting in to her again and again until we’re both covered in a sheen of sweat from the exertion. The muscles of my body start to tighten in preparation for my orgasm, “Close,” I mutter. In an effort to get her off first, I lean up and pull one breast into my mouth while I pinch her other nipple, my free hand sliding between us to thumb at her clit. It doesn’t take more than a few flicks before she shatters. The sight of her getting off paired with a satisfied moan leaving her lips has me tipping over the edge and coming with her, spilling into her with a grunt as she continues to bounce up and down on my dick until she’s milked me dry.
When we’ve both come down and caught our breath, Billie rolls to the side and lays next to me. The loss of her body heat and the sweat evaporating from my skin causes me to shiver. My head turns to Billie and her face lights up with something before she moves off the bed. “Wait right here,” she tells me. As I watch her gloriously naked body retreat from my room, I sit up and wonder where she thinks I would possibly go when I have someone like her in bed with me. A minute later, she comes back carrying a large box with a red ribbon over it and places it on my lap. “I got this for you. I was going to give it to you last night, but we, uh, got a little caught up.”
Her cheeks flush a deeper pink than they already were and I stifle a smile at her getting a little shy talking about us having sex while we’re both sitting in my bed without a stitch of clothing on. “You didn’t have to get me anything,” I tell her.
Her shoulder bobs and she scoots closer to me. “I wanted to,” she confesses. She taps the lid of the box and looks at me expectantly and if I’m not mistaken, with a bit of nerves as well. “Now open it.”
Nodding, I pull off the ribbon and lift the lid of the box, my eyes widening when I see what’s inside. “My dad’s flannels?” But when I pull the familiar material out of the box, it isn’t a series of shirts that come out but is instead a large quilt. As my eyes roam over the blanket, I see each large square is made of a different shirt that had been owned by my father and worn by me. The back is reinforced with a thick, dark green material that feels soft against my skin, but it’s the front that I can’t stop looking at. Lifting the blanket to my nose, I inhale and even though I am sure it’s only in my mind, I swear I can still smell the woodsy scent that clung to my dad wherever he went still lingering there. My throat gets thick with emotion and moisture gathers in my eyes, not just at the bittersweet memory of my dad, but at the thoughtfulness of the woman next to me.
“Do you hate it?” she asks, her voice small and quiet.
Her voice should only ever be bright and happy, just like her, and especially when I’m getting choked up because of how incredible the gift she got me is. “No I love it. I love…” The words trail off because I want to tell her I love her, but this moment seems too beautiful to shatter with that confession. This is about her thoughtfulness and care, not about my feelings. “Thank you, Billie.” Pushing the box aside, I pull her next to me and spread the blanket over the both of us. “This is incredible and easily the best gift anyone has ever given me. My dad would love it, and both my parents would have loved you.”
Billie’s eyes dance with happiness at the declaration and she smiles. Her expression turns playful before she swipes her hand dramatically across her forehead and I hear a breath whoosh out of her lungs. “Thank goodness. I was worried that you might be upset that I had your dad’s shirts cut up.”
Shaking my head, I lean down and kiss her lips gently. She’s trying to lighten the mood, but my feelings are too serious for me to take the bait. “No, Elskling. You’ve given me a way to keep my dad close, and not just with this.” She has shown me a way to honor my dad in my own way and in my own style while also making sure I would be able to have the safety and comfort that the old way provided. “You’ve given me a lot, and I hope you know how much I appreciate it.”
“I do.”. The seriousness on her face tells me she means it, but her mouth soon pulls into a smirk before she snuggles closer to me under the blanket. With a wink, she reaches down and squeezes my thigh with her hand before trailing it up my leg. “Maybe after a little rest you can show me how much you appreciate it.”
Returning her smile, I take her lips in a kiss. “Why wait?” As we slip down into the bed and I pull the blanket over our heads, I proceed to show her just how grateful I am for her gift, and for her.