“Oh…” Right. NFL recruiters had their eyes on him since high school, but he held out. His one request this year was to finish his last year at Harvard—smart. He was officially a pro athlete. I was so proud of him. It was what he’d wanted since he was a kid. The only drawback was that we didn’t have much time together until he got super busy.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
Staring at the necklace, I whispered. “We don’t have much time…”
He shuffled closer and tilted my chin up with a finger. “We have all the time in the world. It doesn’t matter where life takes us, Ava. I’m going to marry you and give you the world.”
The certainty behind his words almost made me swoon.
“This,” he lifted the necklace out of the box, “is just a start. I love you.”
My heart did all sorts of acrobatics in my chest. This wasn’t the first time he’d said the magic word. He said them all the time at the end of our phone conversations, but it still felt like a dream. “I love you, too.” He wanted to marry me. Of course, I knew he didn’t mean now, but he saw a future for us.
“Now that we’ve got that out of the way. Will you accept my gift?”
I laughed and lifted my hair so he could clasp the chain around my neck. The pendant landed between my breasts, and I picked it up to touch it reverently.
“I love it. Thank you.”
His gaze dropped to my chest. “It looks even better on you than I imagined.”
I flushed under the weight of his gaze as I leaned forward to brush my lips against his. The gentle kiss of gratitude turned into something deeper and hungrier. Lincoln’s hand slid around my waist, drawing me onto his lap. As I straddled him, I palmed his cheeks to kiss him with new intensity.
His lips were warm and demanding, while his hands caressed my skin. The only barrier between us was my skimpy bikini and his swim trunks. I wanted them gone. I wanted to feel all of him. We hadn’t made love yet, and I thought this was the perfect moment. I was ready.
Lincoln tore his lips from mine with a small groan. “Let’s slow down. I’m in a bit of a crisis here.” His voice rang with amusement, but I heard the undertone of agony. I blushed fromthe root of my hair to my toes when I felt his erection straining between us.
“We don’t have to slow down. I’m ready.”
He froze. I doubted he even breathed. Only his eyeballs moved, searching my face. “You know I didn’t bring you here to pressure you into sex, right? I just wanted us to have some quality time…”
I pressed my finger to his lips. “I know, but I’m ready.”
“Are you sure?”
“I’m positive.”
He stared at me for a long moment as if searching for the slightest sign of uncertainty. “Okay.”
He pressed his lips to mine again, this time with more fervor. His tongue slid against mine, tasting and teasing as he guided us to lie down. My breathing grew ragged, not just from his kiss, but with anticipation and a healthy dose of nervousness. While I was sure I wanted Lincoln to be my first lover, I was a jittery wreck. I had no idea what to do.
As if picking up on my rising anxiety, he broke our kiss and eased back just enough to meet my eyes. His hand glided up my side, settling over the frantic thrum of my heartbeat as if he could calm it by touch alone. “Hey,” he murmured, his voice low and steady. “I’ve got you.”
My breath came out in a whoosh, and I smiled. Just like that, my anxiety fled. “I know,” I whispered, tracing my finger along his jawline. I trusted him implicitly.
His thumb traced my lower lip before he kissed the corner of my mouth, my jaw, then my neck, and the curve of my shoulder. I shuddered at the sensation of his warm lips on my skin. He tugged at the string of my bikini and peeled it from my body. My pulse sped up, but not with nervousness this time. I ached to feel his body on mine without barriers. The instant his mouth found my breasts, I arched into him. My fingers threaded throughhis hair as he sucked and teased each nipple, sending jolts of pleasure through me that I’d never felt before.
My moans grew louder as I writhed beneath him, begging for more. His knuckles brushed my skin as he undid the ties of my bikini bottom. I was completely naked and vulnerable. He eased back to assess the length of my body. The timid side of me wanted to cover up. However, he stared at me with such appreciation, the other side—the wild side that was coming to life—reveled in the spark of desire in his eyes.
I tried and failed to push his swim trunks off with my toes. Smirking, he kicked it off and reached into the pile of clothes we’d left on the chair before our swim. My eyes almost popped out of my head at the sight of his erection. I quickly dragged my eyes away and tried to play it cool.
He came away with a condom. Again, I blushed profusely. This was really happening, and I’d completely forgotten about protection. He tore the foil and rolled it on, then he was back, hard body pressed to mine, kissing me into a puddle of arousal. I moaned and lifted my hips, begging him to take me. He didn’t jump right in as I assumed he would. Instead, he rolled to his side and slipped his hand between my legs. The first touch of his fingers on my aching flesh sent a ripple through me.
He slipped a digit inside, and I almost took off into the starry sky. I’d never had anyone touch me below the waist before. The experience was somehow nerve-racking yet amazing. But his slow, gentle strokes drove away the anxiety until all I felt was undeniable pleasure.
“Lincoln,” I breathed, with a desperate note. “Please, more.”
He dipped his head to feather kisses along my jaw. “You’ll get more, sweet Ava. We’re going nice and slow.”
