Chapter Eight
Ellie
I ’ve often wondered what it would feel like to kiss Gunnar, and I’m not talking about the long peck we had at Heart Mountain when we were kids. I’m talking about a full-on lip lock while playing a game of tonsil hockey.
Pretty much exactly what we are doing right now.
I knew it would be good because Gunnar excels at everything he does in life, but I can say with absolute certainty I never imagined it would feel quite like this.
Earth-shattering, combustible, life-altering …
His lips are as soft as I remember when we kissed in the rain all those years ago, but unlike last time, his mouth commands mine in a way I never knew I craved. His tongue orchestrating a beautiful dance that takes me by storm, awakening something profound within me.
“I fucking knew you’d be sweet,” he rumbles against my lips, deepening the kiss.
There’s nothing sweet about him. He’s all spice and sin. The rich flavor of his beer is potent on my tongue, the very essence of him completely intoxicating.
It lures me in, igniting an unwavering desire for more.
My arms curl around his neck in an effort to bring myself closer, every part of my body suddenly aching to touch his.
He gives me exactly what I seek. His hands drop from my hair down to my waist, fingers digging into the soft flesh of my hips as he pulls me to the edge of the counter, bringing my hot center in direct contact with his very impressive erection.
Oh god.
My gasp and his groan collide in the silence between us, the heated moment turning into something more. Something… insatiable.
“Goddamn, Elle,” he growls. “I can literately feel the heat of your pussy through my fucking jeans.”
His erotic words zap through me like an electrical current, directly affecting the body part he speaks about.
“That’s because it’s been poorly neglected its whole life,” I explain breathlessly. “So, maybe you could be a champ and take care of it for me.”
His chuckle trails into a tortured sound. “Don’t worry, I fucking plan to.” He follows up that promise by scooping me up into his arms and heading for the stairs.
I cling to him like a koala as he takes them two at a time, my lips continuing to taste and devour, unable to get enough, and it causes him to slightly stumble.
He grabs onto the railing, quickly righting himself. “Elle,” he utters in warning. “If you’re not careful, you’re going to send us both down these stairs, and if I die before finally getting to have you, I will be seriously pissed.”
“You’ll be pissed?” I counter, pulling back in mock outrage. “I’m the one who would die a virgin.”
It would be just my luck to be remembered as the twenty-four-year-old girl who plummeted to her death seconds before losing her virginity to her hot best friend. Never mind the damper it would put on this baby plan of ours .
“Then be a good girl for a few more seconds so I can make sure that doesn’t happen.” He flashes me that sexy grin, the one that causes my heart to tumble in my chest. A reaction I had even when we were kids when I was too young to understand what it meant. What I am now realizing isn’t a typical reaction you have with your best friend.
Before I can think too much about that, he blows through my bedroom door and tosses me onto the bed playfully.
A laugh escapes me as I bounce on the mattress, but the sound dies quickly when he reaches behind his shoulders and removes his shirt in one swift pull, unveiling the most breathtaking sight.
I’ve seen Gunnar plenty of times without a shirt on, usually when he’s playing sports with friends on a hot summer day, and like most women, I’m always drawn like a moth to a flame. It’s impossible not to be with a body like his. His athletic build is solid but lean, every dip and valley defined and distinguished, especially the ones by his hips that disappear into the waistband of his jeans. It’s so damn hot it makes me feel like a predator about to devour its prey.
Arrogance and amusement dominate his expression. “Like the view, Elle?”
He has no idea…
Instead of answering with words, I pull off my own shirt, revealing a pale pink lace bra that he gets no time to glimpse before I launch myself at him from the bed, pouncing like a cat in heat.
He catches me with a grunted chuckle that’s silenced by my mouth as I ravish him with a hunger that sears me to the core.
I don’t get to have the lead for long. With a growl, he takes control, his mouth dominating mine as he guides me to the bed .
Instead of following down on top, he sets to his knees over me and reaches for the metal clasp between my breasts.
My breath stalls in a moment of anticipation before he releases the hook with a snap of his fingers.
The lace cups fall away, baring me to his stare.
Warm brown eyes fixate on my exposed breasts as he gets his first look at me.
A moment of vulnerability strikes, an emotion I don’t usually feel, especially around Gunnar.
I’m slight in stature, always have been, which means no part of me is well endowed, particularly that of my chest. As I lay here sprawled before him, I can’t help but wonder how I measure up. Thankfully, it’s not something I have to wonder about for long…
“You’re fucking perfect.” The sincerity radiating in the deep husk of his voice obliterates any and all insecurity I had.
“You’re not too bad yourself,” I counter, trying to play it cool. “You should lose the rest of your clothes so we can compare other body parts.”
A chuckle escapes him before it softens into a grin. “Soon. First, we need to get you nice and ready for me.”
I’m about to tell him I’m more than ready, twenty-four years ready, but all words flee me on a rush when he cups my sensitive breasts in both of his hands.
“Oh.” A sharp breath impales my lungs at the feel of his touch on my bare skin, but it pales in comparison when he drops down and takes a beaded nipple into his hot, wet mouth.
My back arches off the mattress as a cry of pleasure races past my lips.
“So responsive,” he croons. “And so goddamn pretty.”
He tortures each one of my nipples, giving an equal amount of attention to both. His tongue lashes, lips suck, and teeth graze in a way that turns me into a writhing mess.
My hips lift, seeking friction for the throbbing between my legs, but it’s still not enough. “Please,” I whimper.
Groaning, he takes mercy on me and travels his mouth lower, raining hot kisses down my stomach until reaching the waistband of my jeans.
Heat builds in my belly as he attempts the first button in a long line of them, but it proves to be a struggle.
I curse myself for the attire I chose, knowing these jeans can be a bitch to get undone, even for me.
“Jesus, what kind of sorcery is this?” he snaps.
“Here, let me do it.” Pushing his hands away, I pick up where he left off and manage to get the first one undone in quick fashion, but my hurried attempt at the second proves futile. “What the hell?” I growl, my fingers practically splitting open as I work up a sweat.
Giving up, I try to shimmy them past the top of my thighs.
Gunnar pulls on my pant legs to help, but the extra slim waist is no match for the thigh bulge. “Fuck it!” Grabbing either side of the top button, he pulls with all his strength, sending the rest of them flying through the room.
I barely have time to register the incredibly hot act before he has my jeans off and pulls me to the end of the bed.
He drops to his knees before me, his gaze fixated on the pink lace as he hooks his thumbs into the waistband of my panties. “Lift up.” His order is raw with desire.
I follow the command, allowing him to pull the thin material down my legs.
A guttural sound rumbles from his chest as he takes in the most intimate part of me. “Fuck, Elle. Look at you. All smooth and bare.” His hand snakes between my legs, fingers parting me further for his viewing pleasure.
I gasp and shiver at the cool air, the temperature a startling contrast to the raging heat.
“Easy,” he coaxes gently, his voice soothing the myriad of emotions tearing through me. “Be still and I promise to make it good.”
I have no time to dissect that statement before he lowers his mouth to my aching flesh.
“Oh, god!” My cry decimates the silence as Gunnar devours me like a starving animal, his tongue inflicting the most exquisite torture. Each tantalizing lick dances across my senses, transporting me to highs I never thought possible.
When I think I can’t possibly withstand another second, he inserts a single finger inside of me.
My hips jerk off the mattress, the snug invasion almost too much to bear.
Gunnar bands an arm over my hips, fastening me in place, and uses his wicked tongue to conceal the tightness of his finger, leaving only pleasure in its wake.
I immerse myself in it, allowing it to consume my very being. It’s liberating and freeing all at once and has my body responding on its own accord.
My fingers entwine in the tousled strands of his hair, tugging and pulling with each fiery caress of his tongue and force of his finger.
“That’s it, Elle. Fuck my face.” Gunnar’s groan of approval vibrates against me, heightening the sensations. It’s not long before I begin to reach the point of no return. It builds inside of me to a high degree yet remains just out of reach .
“Gunnar, please,” I beg, having no shame at this point.
Growling, he gives me what I want. His tongue focuses on my clit, working harder and faster until there is no stopping the beautiful destruction. It sweeps through me like a catastrophic hurricane, submerging me in a sea of never-ending pleasure. My cries echo through the room, threatening to drown us both.
Gunnar is relentless through it all, dragging out every beautiful sensation until there is nothing left.
My lungs fight for air as I search for some semblance of normalcy. I barely register Gunnar losing the rest of his clothes before he moves over me, and it’s the powerful collision of our naked bodies that has me crashing back to reality.
Our sharp breaths collide on impact, the sensation taking us both by storm. My arms come around him at the same time he buries his face into my neck. For long seconds we do nothing but revel in the feel of our hearts beating as one. It’s the most beautiful experience I’ve ever had with another human being, and it’s now my favorite one between Gunnar and me.
After a kiss to my shoulder, he lifts his face, his intense gaze penetrating every beat of my heart. “You ready for this?” his question is loaded with so much more than what’s about to take place between us.
“Yes.” There’s no hesitation in my answer. “What about you?” I ask, turning the question on him. “It might only take once, and if that happens, there is no coming back from it.”
I hate to put it like that, but the thought of him later regretting this absolutely devastates me.
“I think we’re already past the point of no return, Elle,” he says, his gaze steadfast. “At least it is for me. There is no way I will ever be able to look at you again and not feel what I do right now.”
That revelation blankets my soul in an undeniable warmth. “And what is it you feel right now?” I ask, unable to help myself.
A heart-stopping smirk steals his expression, hinting at a secret. Instead of revealing it, he evades the question and distracts me with a kiss. I decide it isn’t something that needs to be revealed right now because this kiss says so much more than words ever could.
As we become lost in one another, Gunnar shifts his weight to one forearm and reaches between us, preparing himself by rubbing the smooth hard flesh of his cock through my wet heat.
I whimper as he passes over the already sensitive bundle of nerves and feel a renewed desire.
“Jesus, you’re wet,” he groans. “Good thing, because you’re going to need it.”
It’s a statement I don’t quite understand until he pushes the tip of himself inside of me.
A sharp breath penetrates my lungs, the tight invasion even more intense than I anticipated. Every part of my body clamps around his.
“Shit.” Gunnar’s voice resonates a pain that rivals my own. “Try to relax, Elle.”
Clinging to his shoulders, I do my best to breathe through the burn as he breaks through every barrier, inch by inch. Once he’s fully seated inside me, he stills, giving me time to adjust, his lips brushing a kiss to my temple.
“You good?” he asks.
“Oh yeah, never better,” I lie on a painful breath .
His chuckle is strained as he brings his forehead to rest on mine. “We’ll take this slow, okay?”
I nod, appreciating that, especially when it’s obvious he’s already struggling to hold back. He doesn’t need to say it. I can hear it in the rasp of his voice and feel it in the rigidness of his body.
As promised, he moves with careful precision, gently gliding back and forth, as if my entire body is made of fragile glass.
While the burning sensation ensues, so does an abundance of other emotions, and I make sure to revel in the entirety of this moment. How his gaze penetrates mine as he completes me, body and soul. How he keeps every stroke gentle and considerate, despite his own needs, something he has always done. It makes me eternally grateful to have him as my best friend and only further reaffirms what I should have known all along. That this moment was always meant to be shared with Gunnar. Just like every other defining moment of my life.
“You with me?” he asks, his gaze penetrating and jaw locked in restraint.
“I’m with you,” I whisper, lifting my hand to his face. “I’m always with you and I always will be.”
It’s something I’ve told him countless times before, that I’ll never leave him like his no-good parents did, that we will be best friends until the end of time. Yet, this time it hits differently. It’s reflected in the depths of his eyes, in the emotion stirring beneath the warmth.
I’m rewarded with another soul-touching kiss that has me falling even deeper into the moment with him. As my body adapts more to his, the initial sting recedes, giving me the courage to test the waters. With a cautious lift of my hips, I venture into uncharted territory, and it ignites an electrifying response from both of us.
Gunnar groans, his hot breath ragged and heavy with desire. “Feeling better?”
“Yes. You can go a little deeper.”
That permission earns me a deeper thrust of his hips. I moan and revel in the fullness of him, loving how the boundaries between our merging bodies blur.
Gunnar maintains that pace, the intensity of his restraint growing with every stroke. Beads of sweat glisten on his forehead, his skin coated in a sheen of exertion, adding to the raw, primal energy surrounding us.
My fingers dig into the corded muscles of his shoulders, getting lost in every groove as I try to keep pace. With every push and pull, we exchange a beautiful dance of desire that heightens with every breath.
It has another impending release building within me, sending my pulse racing in tandem with the frantic beat of my heart.
Gunnar senses the shift. “Give it to me, Elle,” he rasps. “I want to feel it all over my cock this time.”
The need in his command stokes my own like a flash fire. “Only if you come with me.”
His eyes dilate with unbridled desire. He picks up momentum, grunting with each savage thrust. The intensity between us builds, drawing us closer to that mind-numbing oblivion. Until there is no stopping it.
We tumble over that precious edge together, our cries of release merging as we surrender to pleasure. Once it’s over, Gunnar drops down on top of me, settling the entirety of his weight upon me. It’s a heaviness I welcome .
My arms come around him, the two of us clinging to one another as we bask in the aftermath of what just took place. An irrevocable shift that has changed the trajectory of our relationship.
A moment that will be embedded in my heart forever.
When we can no longer avoid the inevitable, Gunnar removes himself from my body and drops down next to me. On instinct, we both turn on our sides to face the other, as if drawn by a magnetic force. Our hands link between our naked bodies, neither of us ready to let go of the other.
His gaze locks onto mine as the fading sunlight streams through my bedroom window, casting a warm glow around us.
“You okay?” he asks, his voice laced with gentle concern.
“Yes,” I answer honestly. “You?”
He grunts at the returned question. “Yeah, Elle, I’m more than good.”
I chuckle, appreciating the lighter moment. “So, we’re really doing this, huh? Having a baby together?”
A half smile tugs at his lips. “Yep, no turning back now.”
“Any regrets?” I ask the question lightly, but there is no denying the reassurance I seek.
His expression briefly sobers. “Just one.”
The unexpected answer catches me off guard, sending a jolt through my heart. “What’s that?”
Warm brown eyes hold me captive. “That we didn’t do this sooner.”
His words carve a place into my heart forever, bringing a smile to my face. “Are you going to stay the night?” I ask, knowing that’s usually a stipulation for him.
He brushes a stray tendril of hair away from my face. “Yeah, Elle. I’m not going anywhere. ”
“Good, because I wanna do it again,” I tell him, giddy with excitement.
A bellow of laughter erupts from his chest before it transforms into a deep groan. “Give me a few minutes and I’ll gladly arrange that.” He captures my lips in a heated kiss that stokes the burning embers of our recent encounter. “Maybe I don’t need a few minutes after all,” he murmurs, rolling over top of me.
Laughing into the kiss, I wrap my arms around his neck, losing myself in a night that promises to be unforgettable. One that will mark the beginning of a beautiful new chapter for Gunnar and me.