Sofia

Ryan grabbed my ass, now covered only by my silky panties since my nightshirt had ridden up to my waist. My heart pounding, I moved my body on top of his and rubbed myself against him. I wasn’t above dry-humping like a fifteen-year-old, and from the way his hard-on bulged and shifted beneath his jeans, he wasn’t either.

It had been far too long since anyone had touched me the way Ryan was doing, his fingers digging into my back as I rolled my hips, pressing myself against his groin.

When he ground out, “You’re killing me, angel,” I continued my movements, afraid that if I stopped it all might end. The last thing in the world I wanted right now was for that to happen.

I’d never been the type of woman to care about sex. I’d gone lengths of time without a man inside me that made most women shudder in horror. They never understood how I kept it all together when I wasn’t allowing myself to come apart. Matson had always been my priority, and an orgasm seemed like a distant second . . . or fifth to my vibrator, if I was being completely honest.

But in this moment with Ryan, his hands all over me, lifting me higher so he could press kisses against my bare stomach, I wondered how I’d survived so long without it. My body ached to be filled with him, the need building between my legs before spreading through my entire body.

“I want you,” I whispered.

Ryan froze and stared at me. “You sure? Because I’m only asking once. It’s taking every ounce of willpower I have not to take you. I’m so turned on, Sofia.”

“Take me then,” I said breathlessly, and it was all the permission he needed before his grip on me tightened and he flipped us over in one movement.

“You have any idea what you do to me?”

He kissed me before I could answer, and the feel of his weight on me made me moan out loud. Ryan’s muscles were hard, but his skin was soft. His body was chiseled in all the right places, yet his touches were sensitive. He was a contradiction of the best kind, and I found myself craving more of him . . . all of him. My need for him consumed me.

Ryan let out a ragged breath. “God, I want to take things slow, but I’m not sure I can.”

“Then don’t. I need you in me. Now,” I said, surprising myself with how forward I was being.

He leaned back, his lower half still pressed to mine before he hopped up and unbuttoned his jeans. I wanted to be sexy, to take control and tell him I’d undress him, but I didn’t say a word. I lay there, a little breathless as I watched him get undressed, then pull out his wallet and remove a condom from it.

Thank God he didn’t make me ask whether he had one. The last thing I wanted to admit was I wasn’t on birth control since I hadn’t had sex in a hundred years.

He stood there in his fitted boxer briefs, the muscles in his thighs bulging like his crotch. My lips parted as he pulled his briefs to his feet and kicked them off, not a care in the world about where they landed.

“You still okay?” he asked, the condom gripped between his fingers.

“Oh yeah,” I said, staring directly at his cock.

“Enjoying the view?”

He sounded like he was teasing me, but I could tell he was a little self-conscious.

“Hell yes, I am,” I said with as much reverence as I could. It was one hell of a view.

He grinned before moving back to where I waited. I hadn’t moved an inch. Reaching for my shirt, he pulled it over my head and gasped as he looked down at me. I wanted to cross my arms and cover myself until his words hit me.

“You’re so beautiful.”

He kissed my stomach and hips, tracing the faint white lines of my stretch marks with his fingertips. His eyes drank me in, making me want to drown in this man. Reaching for his head, I ran my fingers through his hair, scratching his scalp lightly, and he dipped his head between my legs.

“I have to taste you.”

He gave me no choice as he pulled my panties down and tossed them aside before his tongue teased my inner thigh. Moving closer to my core, he breathed me in before stroking my folds with his tongue.

A moan escaped me, my hands still firmly gripping his head. “Oh God, Ryan.”

He groaned in response, taking his tongue deeper, lapping at me with quick, feverish licks. It darted in and out of me before he moved to my clit, and licked it up and down like he couldn’t get enough. God, this man knew what he was doing, and I felt like I was going to explode. My vibrator paled in comparison to Ryan’s tongue.

I wriggled beneath his mouth, pulling at his hair in an attempt to get him to stop. “In me. Please. Ryan, get inside me now,” I begged, not caring how desperate I sounded.

The sound of the condom tearing open made me grin as his head moved from between my thighs and back toward me. His face glistened with my juices, and a primal need swept over me. He wiped at his scruff with the back of his hand before coming down to kiss me, the taste of me all over his tongue. I’d never done that before, kissed a man after he’d gone down on me, but I was so turned on that all it did was fuel my desire for him more.

My fingertips dug into his back as I spread my legs open for him. Ryan didn’t take his time, and he wasn’t gentle like I’d expected. He plunged into me all at once without warning, as deep as my body allowed. The sound that escaped me was part pleasure, part pain.

“Sofia, you feel so good. So perfect,” he said as he drove into me over and over again.

His shoulder muscles flexed as he moved above me, making my eyes close in response to all the delicious, mind-blowing sensations he was creating. Ryan filled me, reaching places inside me I’d never known existed before.

“What are you hitting,” I asked with a pleasured moan.

“Am I hurting you?” He slowed his pace a little but didn’t stop moving.

“No, it feels amazing. I’ve just never felt it before.”

He smiled at that but didn’t answer. I decided that I no longer cared as he continued to pump his length in and out of me, hitting whatever the hell it was he was hitting.

“Oh God, Ryan, I’m going to . . .”

His mouth cut off my words as he kissed me, speeding up his pace as he gripped my headboard for leverage. He breathed out my name with each push inside me.

“Sofia . . .”

He groaned out my name again, his thrusts hard and rough. It was amazing, and not at all what I’d expected. Ryan owned my body, and it obeyed his every nonverbal command.

When my release hit, it felt like a wave of energy and emotion exploding all at once. Ryan still gripped the headboard as he used it to push into me with all his strength. Three pumps later and he came, his dick pulsing inside me, his hips still working in and out of me so slowly that I thought he might never stop. And I wasn’t sure I would have minded.

He collapsed on top of me, the weight of him practically crushing me as we breathed hard, our chests moving in and out in sync. “That was—”

“Amazing,” I finished for him as he rolled over and pulled me against him.

“I didn’t mean to be so rough. I mean, not for our first time, but I couldn’t help myself. You felt so good, and I was so turned on.”

His apology was sweet, but not necessary.

“I needed it. Just the way you gave it. That’s what I needed,” I confessed, because it was true. I hadn’t realized it before, but I didn’t need sweet and soft tonight. I craved a rough release to let go of all the stress and tension that had been building. “It was perfect.”

We lay on my bed, the sheet tossed to the floor, both of us still breathing hard as we floated down from our mutual high. My head lay on Ryan’s chest, still slick with sweat, and thoughts of Matson walking in and seeing us like this flashed in my mind.

“You’d better go before Matson gets up,” I said softly, drawing lazy circles with my fingers across his abs.

“You kicking me out after having your way with me? That’s cold.” His stomach bounced up and down with his laughter.

“I know. It’s just that I don’t want to confuse him,” I said, starting to overexplain before he kissed the top of my head and I stopped talking.

“I was only teasing. Of course I’ll go,” he said.

“But not forever, right?”

Suddenly, I found myself second-guessing having sex with him so quickly. Maybe I should have made him wait longer, or work harder? As women, we were taught—whether subliminally or not—that our body was our greatest weapon, and withholding sex was the surest way to keep a man coming around. But now that Ryan had gotten the proverbial milk for free without buying the cow, what if that was all he wanted?

My brain knew I sounded crazy, but my heart still worried, the poor thing fragile and vulnerable.

Ryan squeezed me tighter. “Not forever. I’m not going anywhere, remember?” When I didn’t respond right away, he pushed up, cradling my head as he pulled away to look at me. “Do you believe me?”

I avoided looking into his eyes, feeling ridiculous as my heart whined and my mind willed it to pull itself together.

He gave me a worried look. “Sofia?”

“I believe you,” I said, looking into those blue eyes that weakened my resolve. “Or I’m trying to.” I winced, thinking that he would hate my response.

“I’ll take it.”

“But what if Derek gets too crazy and you can’t handle it anymore?” I found myself asking.

My doubts and fears were eating me up inside, roiling around in my mind and making me worry. If Ryan thought he couldn’t eventually handle this, I needed to know now. I had to mentally prepare myself for the possibility that he might walk away at some point. And if he did, I wouldn’t blame him. No one needed drama like this in their life.

“I’m not leaving, Sofia.” He brushed his fingers along my cheek. “Do you hear me?”

I nodded, and he turned my face to look at him.

“Say it.”

In a small voice, I said, “I hear you.”

“Derek can’t do anything to make me want to give this up, okay? Whatever happens, we handle it together. It’s you and me now. We’re a team.”

God, what have I done to deserve this man? Please tell me. I want to be sure to keep doing it so I never lose him.

“A team,” I repeated, but it came out sounding like a question.

“Yup. Partners. Teammates.”

Ryan pushed up off the bed and reached for my hand. He pulled me to my feet and began to get dressed, finding his clothes strewn all over the floor. I pulled on my nightshirt and walked Ryan to the front door.

“Thank you for letting me come over tonight,” he said. “I promise I didn’t plan on letting you take advantage of me, but I’m not complaining.”

I laughed. “Oh, so I took advantage of you, huh?”

“You threw me on my back and started dry-humping me like we could win a gold medal for it,” he teased, making my face burn. “I’m kidding. I loved it. You can do that anytime you want.”

“Go away now,” I said, practically shoving him out the front door.

“I’ll call you later.” He leaned down and gave me a sweet kiss, his tongue exploring my mouth.

My body tingled all over again. Trying to ignore it, I said, “Text me when you get home so I know you’re safe.”

“I think that’s my line.” Ryan winked before walking away.

I watched him swagger toward his car, enjoying every second of the view.