CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

Carly

There’s no other way to put this. It’s been several years since I had sex. Before I left Vince, we hadn’t been together in a while. Between him getting it on the side and me just not being interested in any sort of intimacy with him, neither of us made any effort. And that was fine with me.

And maybe a part of me should feel a little nervous now, considering that it’s been so long, but I’m not. And I have no question that it’s because of James. He’s calm, patient, funny, loving, kind… he’s everything I want for Jack to be in a man. He’s everything I want for me. I’ve delayed. I’ve waited. I made him wait, and I’ve tried to hold back, but there’s no way I cannot be with him, forever, tonight.

If I’m being completely honest, foreplay started when I fell head over heels into him, literally. He’s carrying me into his bedroom, and I nuzzle my face into his neck, inhaling the intoxicating and overwhelmingly delicious scent of him. As long as I live, I will never get tired of his smell. It’s woodsy, and fresh, and everything a man should smell like. Does he have some sort of added pheromones in whatever he sprays on himself? Even as he’s carrying me, I feel like I need to be closer.

“Carly?”

“Yeah?”

“I kinda need to put you down.” He chuckles. “I mean, just for a second.”

I realize he’s standing beside his bed and has released his hold on me, but I’m still wrapped around him. I flush, embarrassed, unwind my legs, and set my feet to the floor.

Before he can say anything, or I lose my nerve, I reach down and pull my sweater off, exposing myself to him. I have to admit, I kind of knew what I was planning when I came over here tonight. Jack decided to stay at his friend Blake’s house, so it’s not like I will have to worry about doing a weird leave-in-the-middle-of-the-night thing, or walk in the door early in the morning.

“Holy shit.” James breathes out as he takes me in, my black lace bra and arrow necklace he gave me on our first date the only thing covering my upper body. “Carly, I knew you were beautiful…” He shakes his head and bites his lip as his eyes travel up and down my body. “You’re sure? I don’t want there to be any confusion here. You’re already mine, but once we cross this line, you’re forever mine. You got me?”

I nod my head and whisper, “I’m yours, James. I think I’ve always been yours, even before we knew each other. And I’ll be yours forever.”

“Yeah?” He confirms with a grin so beautiful it takes my breath away. Before I can respond to him, he’s on me. His strong arms wrap around me and pull me close to him, his arousal pressing up against me, and if I wasn’t already so damn turned on, I would be now.

Our mouths come together in a bruising kiss, and I have the brief thought that I actually wouldn’t mind being bruised, marked by him. Everything about him turns me on. From the way he is with Jack, the fact that he raised his daughter on his own, pursued his dream after focusing so much of his life on her, his giving and sweet nature, the way he is with me… I am overwhelmingly blown away by him, and even more so by the fact that he’s mine. He loves me. Me.

His hands drift down my back, leaving a scorching trail that sizzles through my core. His tongue slides between my lips, battling for dominance with my own. I gladly give it to him, ready to offer up every part of me. He turns his head slightly to the side then shifts, moving his mouth over my jawline down to my neck, my collarbone, my shoulder. His tongue slips out, tasting every part of me. My breaths are coming in short spurts, and I tremble at the feel of him against me. My hands reach out, hooking my fingers in the belt loops of his jeans, pulling him back to me. The feel of him against me causes a deep moan to burst from my chest, and we both become frantic. Gone are the moments of patience. Gone is the calm. We’ve walked right into the fray, too many days spent around each other holding back, waiting, waiting, waiting.

But no more.

No more. I don’t want James to be gentle. I need him. It’s as simple as that.

“No more holding back.” My voice is husky, as desperate as I feel for him.

“Carly…”

“No, James. You’ve been patient. Hell, I’ve been patient. You’ve had my heart for a long time, and you’ve been gentle, and so achingly tender with me. But right now? Right now I need you. That’s it. Please,” I beg.

His chest heaves up and down and his eyes blaze. “No problem.”

The second the words are out of his mouth, my fingers move to the bottom hem of his shirt and tug on it while trying to pull it off. He helps, only removing his mouth from mine in the time it takes to get it over his head.

The second it’s off, I take my turn kissing his neck, shoulder, chest. My mouth drifts over every part of him I can manage to get my lips on. His skin is warm under my lips, his chest rising and falling rapidly. My tongue makes a trail upward, and when I get to his neck, I can feel the heavy pulse of his heart causing my stomach to flutter with anticipation, knowing he’s as ready for this as I am.

“Oh damn that feels so good,” he groans.

Desperately, I try to not think of the last time, the last person, I was intimate with. I push the memories aside, not wanting to miss a single moment.

As if reading my thoughts, James takes a deep breath and says my name, his voice coming out like a croak. “Carly.”

“Mmm,” I mumble, my lips still on his skin.

“Baby, listen to me.”

I lift my eyes to his, seeing his soften under my gaze.

“This is just us. You get that, right? This, right here…” He motions between us. “…is what we get, just the two of us. Something we didn’t get from anyone else. Something we can’t get from anyone else. I love you. I love you so damn much I sometimes have a hard time seeing anything beyond us. But that’s okay with me because right now? I see nothing but you.”

Oh hell. His words! I can’t begin to understand what I did to deserve him or his love, but I’m not going to deny either one of us a second longer. I lick my lips and continue to look deep into his eyes. I frame his face with my hands and pull him close to give him a light kiss. “I love you, James, but I think talking time is over for a little while,” I say, grinning up at him.

“Yes, ma’am.” I see the smirk cover his face just moments before his lips are once again on me, and we fall into a heap on the bed together. We lie down, and he stretches out his long body beside me. He bends his elbow and leans his head on his hand as his other hand makes a figure eight motion on my stomach. I shiver under his soft touch, his fingertips rough against my smooth skin.

“You’re so beautiful,” he murmurs as he bends down and places kisses over my stomach. “So—” Kiss. “—beautiful.” Kiss. “Mine,” he growls as he moves from my lower stomach up toward my chest.

I arch my back in response, and his hand glides under my back to the hook on my bra. He kisses me as his hand works to remove it, both of us laughing against each other as he struggles to blindly undo it.

I press my lips together, suddenly feeling shy and nervous. The last man who saw me naked was Vince, and to say he didn’t necessarily sing my praises would be putting it lightly. I have no idea what to expect, how to react, or how he’ll react.

Finally, my bra comes unhooked, and with swift hands, he removes it, spinning it on his finger a few times before flinging it across the room unceremoniously. A laugh bubbles out of me as he moves to stand up. He pops open the button on his jeans with flair then slides the zipper down. I sit up on my elbows and watch when he turns around and does a circle motion with his hips before pushing his butt out and slowly letting his jeans fall. He looks at me over his shoulder, his eyes twinkling. He bends over and removes his jeans and socks, tossing the denim over his shoulder at me. I giggle, knowing exactly what he’s doing. He’s trying to make me feel comfortable, get me to lighten up, and I’m so grateful.

He crawls onto the bed and up my body so we’re face to face. With fire in his eyes, he kisses me, his tongue plunging into my mouth as his hands leave a blazing trail up to my breast. He lifts his head then moves down, placing soft kisses to my jaw, throat, down to my nipples. “Carly. It’s us,” he says after starting a fire in my belly. “You have nothing to be nervous about. Nothing to worry over. You’re so damn beautiful it makes me ache,” he says, pressing himself against me, making me gasp. “You feel that? That’s what one single look at you does to me.”

“Wow.”

He grins at me, unashamed.

“Thank you, James. For always knowing what I need, for being you.”

“Will you let me show you how much I love you now?”

“Hell yes,” I tell him and grab him by the back of his neck, bringing him down to me. We kiss until my lips are tingling, and I’m short of breath.

“You’re a really good kisser,” I say stupidly then cover my mouth.

“Well, I’m glad you approve. You’re kinda stuck kissing me for the rest of your life, you know.”

His large hand spreads over my stomach as his lips make a descent downward. He kisses me just above my panty line, lifting his eyes to mine.

“I want to see all of you,” he murmurs, his lips never leaving my skin.

I raise my hips and bite my lip. He wraps his hands around the edges of my pants and panties and pulls them both down my legs at once. My breath hitches when I feel him breathe against my center. His finger grazes against me, as if asking permission, and I squirm, wanting more. He sets me on fire as he alternates between sliding his tongue against me, and kissing me with his hot, eager lips. And then… he sucks. Shockwaves of lust shoot through me when he pulls on the most sensitive part of me with his mouth. I fist the sheets and twist and turn, letting out moans and completely unintelligible curses.

I arch my back as the storm building in me intensifies, and his fingers dig into my hips, holding me in place. I grip his head and press him closer. My legs fall to the side, opening myself up to him even more, and he nuzzles his nose against me, inhaling deeply. My eyes roll back in my head as his fingers and mouth work together, bringing me to the brink over and over again.

“Holy shit! James!”

He grips my thighs, lifting me up to him. He sucks hard on the sensitive bud, and I come apart, thrashing my head from side to side, one hand still on the back of his head while the other is pressed against my forehead. He slows his movements, kissing my inner thighs and moving back up my body.

As soon as his face is near mine, he teases, “Still nervous?”

I reach up and press my lips against his, sliding my tongue between his lips and tasting myself. We moan in unison, and his body drops to mine, his arms holding him up just enough that I’m not uncomfortable with the added weight, but I can feel every inch of him. I buck my hips, and he twists, bringing me with him.

I mumble against his lips. “My turn.”

He grins, crosses his arms behind his head, and waggles his eyebrows. “Have at it, beautiful.”

“Well, at least one of us isn’t nervous.” I chortle.

“Nothin’ to be nervous about, beautiful. Not when it feels right, you know?”

I nod my head and begin to kiss my way down his body. Taking my time, relishing every part, loving the feel of him, of the sounds he’s making because of me, of the shivers that wrack his body from my touch.

I wrap my fingers around the edge of his boxer briefs and look up at him, smirking. “You don’t have to ask my permission, baby,” he says, lifting his hips.

I pull off his boxers, staring for a few moments at the sight before me. I lick my lips and feel his hand in my hair. I look up to his face, his eyes soft as he looks down at me. “Carly, you don’t…”

“Don’t you even dare say I don’t have to. I know that. I want to. And not just because I want to see you happy and pleased. Because I want everything with you. I love you. I love you more than I thought I could ever love another person besides Jack.”

“Fuck me, but I love you so damn much,” he growls, jack-knifing up off the bed and taking my mouth with his.

I let him have control for just a moment, kissing and feeling. But I still want my turn. I press him back, and he resumes his position, cool and collected, but the second my mouth wraps around the tip of him, licking up the small bead of liquid, he loses all sense of calm.

“Holy shit!” He tugs my hair, and his hips buck off the bed for just a moment, pushing him farther into me, inadvertently testing my gag reflex. “Damn, beautiful. Sorry about that. Got a little excited.”

But he has nothing to be sorry for. Knowing that I affect him just as much as he does me makes heat flood to my core.

I take my time, licking up and down the length of him, sucking on the tip as I use my hand around the base, sliding up and down, twisting with each stroke.

“Carly, baby, you’re gonna have to stop. I can’t…”

“Can’t?” I tease, keeping my face close to him, not letting up my sucking and licking.

He lets out a heavy breath, twisting the sheets. “Oh, I can. I just don’t want to be done yet.”

“No?”

“Carly. Dammit. Get your sweet ass up here. You can finish what you started another time. Right now, I want to sink into you. I want your sweet warmth squeezing the shit out of me the first time I come with you.”

Oh well. Since he put it that way. I crawl up his body, and he flips us over, kissing me deeply, mixing our flavors. He positions himself at my center, staring into my eyes.

“Do we…” he begins to ask.

“No condoms. I mean, you’re…”

“Hell yes, I’m clean.”

“Yeah, I was tested after… well, after I left.”

“Enough. I trust you. You trust me?” he asks, but it’s so much more than a simple question. And the answer I give is lifting my hips to him again.

“You’re so beautiful, Carly. I know I tell you this, but you need to know. You’re so beautiful to me.”

“James,” I say quietly, tears springing to my eyes. “You’re everything,” I say to him, words he’s used on me more times than I can count.

The second they escape my lips, he presses into me slowly. He takes a few moments, allowing us both to feel.

“Never felt so amazing.” He slowly starts to move, my body stretching and opening up to him, the feel of him strong and tense.

I wrap my legs around his waist, his hands above us, threading my fingers through his, holding me down. He lowers himself and kisses me deeply before pulling back, both of us gasping for air. He releases me, allowing me to touch him, to trail my fingers down the ink that turns me on so much.

Sweat begins to bead on his forehead, the sounds of our heavy breathing and panting fills the air around us. I moan as he shifts his hips slightly, and I lift mine, allowing him to reach the spot that sends me flying. He continues his motions, his hips pistoning back and forth, as I soar, not letting up once.

I shout his name over and over through my release, squeezing the flesh of his shoulders tightly, my toes curling under as my legs bind around him. I haven’t come down from my high yet when he shifts once more, causing me to gasp and fly once again. I don’t know if this is a new flight or just a beautiful continuation, but I stay right with him through his own release.

“Unnhhh.” He jerks, his body pushing into mine to the hilt, his face buried in my neck, his breath hot on my skin.

Once we have come down from our high, James reaches over to his nightstand and picks up a box of tissues out of the drawer. We clean up before collapsing to the bed, bodies sated and exhausted.

“Whoa.”

“Yeah,” he responds.

“It’s never been like that.”

“Never,” I agree.

“Cheesecake?”

“In bed?”

He lifts up on his elbow then leans down and kisses me soundly on the mouth, his tongue moving with mine. He skims his hand up my side, brushing the bottom of my breast before grazing the center with his thumb. “Yeah, I don’t think I’m ever letting you out of this bed. But we’re still going car shopping tomorrow.”

“Relentless,” I murmur, pressing my lips against his once more.

“Only when it’s something I really want.”

I feel his smile against my lips.

Dessert is eventually eaten.

In bed.

Much.

Much.

Later.