Chapter 6 - Richard #2
Close enough that if I reached out, I could touch her.
"Because," she says softly, "looking at you has always made me wish things were different. Made me imagine a world where you met me first."
"Belle—"
"I know it's wrong. I know you're his father, that you're older, that this whole situation is completely inappropriate." She's trembling slightly, but her gaze is steady. "But I can't stop thinking about you. I haven't been able to stop for two years."
Every rational thought in my head is screaming at me to step back, to maintain boundaries, to be the responsible adult. But my body has other ideas, and when she moves even closer, close enough that her breasts almost brush my chest, I'm lost.
"Can I ask you something?" Her voice is barely above a whisper now.
"Anything."
"In the gym earlier... were you looking at me the same way I was looking at you?"
I should lie. Should protect both of us from this conversation, from admitting anything that could complicate an already complicated situation.
"You weren't imagining it," I hear myself say.
"So, you... you think I'm attractive?"
"Belle." I close my eyes briefly, trying to find words that aren't a complete confession. "You're one of the most beautiful women I've ever seen. You have to know that."
"Nathan said—"
"Nathan is a liar and an abuser who tried to destroy your self-worth so you'd be easier to control." The words come out harsh, angry. "Nothing he told you about yourself has any basis in reality."
"But I'm not… I mean, I'm not thin or—"
"You're perfect exactly as you are." I can't stop myself from reaching out now, from cupping her face with one hand. Her skin is wet and warm from the heated pool.
Belle's eyes go wide, her lips parting on a soft gasp. "Richard..."
"I shouldn't be saying this." My thumb strokes across her cheekbone of its own accord. "You came here for protection, not to deal with my inappropriate attraction. I'm sorry. I'll stop—"
"Don't stop." Her hand comes up to cover mine, holding it against her face. "Please don't stop."
We're standing too close now, the water lapping between us, steam rising around us like we're in our own private world. Her breasts are almost touching my chest, and I can feel the heat of her body even through the water.
"Belle, you've been through trauma. You're vulnerable right now. I can't… I won't take advantage of that."
"What if I want you to?" Her voice is breathless, uncertain but determined. "What if I've wanted you to for a very long time?"
My control, already threadbare, starts to fray completely. "You don't know what you're saying."
"I know exactly what I'm saying." She moves closer, close enough that her breasts brush against my chest, and I feel the contact like an electric shock. "I've wondered what it would be like if you'd met me first. If I could have had you instead of Nathan."
"Fuck, Belle—"
"I know it's wrong. I know you're his father, that you're older, that this situation is completely inappropriate.
But I don't care anymore. I'm tired of suffering, tired of denying myself anything good.
" Her free hand comes up to rest on my chest, right over my racing heart.
"And you feel good. Being with you feels good. "
I should push her away. Should maintain boundaries, be the adult, do the right thing.
Instead, I pull her closer.
"If we do this," I say, my voice rough with barely restrained need, "there's no going back. You understand that? Once I touch you the way I want to touch you, once I have you, I won't be able to let you go."
"Then don't let me go." Her hand slides up to the back of my neck. "I don't want you to."
We're breathing the same air now, lips inches apart, and I can see my own desire reflected in her eyes. Can feel her heart pounding as fast as mine.
"Last chance to change your mind," I murmur. "Because if we kiss, Belle, if you give me permission—"
She doesn't let me finish. Instead, she closes the distance between us and presses her lips to mine.
The kiss is almost shy, like she's not quite sure she's allowed.
But then I groan against her mouth and take control, deepening the kiss, and she melts into me with a soft whimper that goes straight to my cock.
Her lips are soft, sweet, and when I lick along the seam of her mouth, she opens for me immediately. My tongue sweeps inside, tasting her, claiming her, and she makes another sound, needier this time, desperate.
My hands move to her waist, pulling her flush against me, and I feel every soft curve press into my body. Her breasts crush against my chest, her stomach soft against my abs, and, fuck, she can definitely feel my erection now, hard and insistent against her hip.
She doesn't pull away. If anything, she presses closer, one leg hooking around mine, seeking more contact.
I break the kiss long enough to look at her, to make sure this is really what she wants. Her eyes are hazy with desire, her lips swollen and wet, and she's looking at me like I'm everything she's ever wanted.
"Tell me this is real," I rasp. "Tell me you really want this."
"I want you." Her voice is clear, certain. "I've wanted you for so long, Richard. Please."
That word—*please*—in her voice, directed at me, destroys the last shred of my restraint.
I kiss her again, harder this time, more demanding. My hands slide down to cup her ass, lifting her slightly, and she wraps both legs around my waist with a gasp. The position puts her core right against my cock, and even through the layers of fabric separating us, I can feel her heat.
"You're so fucking beautiful," I murmur against her lips. "Do you have any idea what you do to me? How many nights I've laid awake thinking about this?"
"Show me." Her fingers tangle in my wet hair. "Show me what I do to you."
I walk us backward through the water until her back hits the side of the pool, trapping her between the tile and my body. One hand comes up to cup her breast, feeling the weight of it, the way it overflows my palm.
Perfect. She's absolutely perfect.
I thumb her nipple through the fabric and feel it harden immediately. Belle arches into the touch with a moan that echoes off the glass walls.
"Richard, please—"
"Please what?" I capture her earlobe between my teeth, biting gently. "Tell me what you need, Belle."
"I need—" She breaks off with another moan as I grind against her, letting her feel exactly how hard I am. "I need you. All of you. I need to forget Nathan ever existed."
The mention of my son's name should kill my erection, should remind me of all the reasons this is wrong.
Instead, it makes me more determined. To erase every touch Nathan gave her, every cruel word, every moment of pain. To replace all of it with pleasure, with care, with the worship her body deserves.
"Then forget him," I growl against her throat. "Forget everything except this. Except us."
I kiss down her neck, finding that spot where her pulse races, and suck hard enough to leave a mark. Mine. She's mine now, not Nathan's, and I want evidence written on her skin.
Belle's head falls back, giving me better access, and I take full advantage: kissing, licking, biting my way across her throat while my hands roam her body. Learning her curves, everywhere I've imagined touching for two years.
"Belle, I can't—" I break off, breathing hard, my control hanging by a thread. "I can't control myself much longer. I want all of you. Everything."
"Then take it." Her voice is breathless, desperate. "Take everything. I'm yours."
Those two words—*I'm yours*—snap something inside me. I pull back just enough to look at her, to make sure I'm reading this right.
"Here?" I rasp. "In the pool?"
"No." She unwraps her legs from my waist, sliding down my body, and I have to grit my teeth at the friction. "The balneary. Take me there. Now."
I should argue. Should tell her she deserves better than being fucked in a spa facility, that her first time with me should be in a proper bed with soft sheets and all the time in the world.
But she's already moving toward the steps, water sluicing off her curves, that burgundy bikini clinging to every inch of her body. And I'm transfixed by the sway of her hips, the roundness of her ass, the way her thighs look thick and perfect and made to be wrapped around my head.
"Richard." She looks back over her shoulder. "Are you coming?"
I follow her out of the pool, my cock straining painfully against my swim shorts. The wet fabric does nothing to hide my erection. Not that I'm trying particularly hard to conceal it anymore. She's seen it, felt it pressed against her. She knows exactly what she does to me.
Belle reaches for a towel, but I catch her wrist, spinning her back to face me. Her surprised gasp turns into a moan when I scoop her up, one arm under her knees, the other supporting her back.
"Richard!" She clutches at my shoulders. "What are you—"