She laughed, the sound nervous, and started to turn.
I put my hands on her hips to stop her, thinking back to the fantasy I’d dreamt up last night and wanting to experience it for real. She stilled in my grip. I pulled her backward, wrapped my arms around her waist, and then dropped my lips to her neck. This wasn’t a fantasy, though, so of course her hair was in the way. She impatiently pushed it aside, exposing a long line of creamy skin.
I brushed my lips over it.
She jerked away, snorting. “Your beard.”
“Are you ticklish, Ella?” I asked, angling my chin toward her and wiggling my jaw as I leaned in.
“Yes!” She tried to squirm out of my grasp.
I let her go and gave up on replaying that fantasy. This was more fun anyway.
She came to a stop near the foot of the bed, her hair disheveled. The neck of her t-shirt was pulled sideways. Her chest rose and fell as she sucked in heavy breaths. Those blue eyes were wild when they met mine, pupils blown out from lust.
Fuck it.
I walked over to her, picked her up under the armpits, and tossed her onto the bed.
She shrieked mid-air, then laughed when she bounced off the mattress. Her hands went to the hem of her shirt, and she tugged it off in one fluid motion. The bra she wore was beige and entirely unremarkable. I was thankful for that, because I didn’t want anything to distract me away from the sight of her toned stomach, her defined shoulders, that long, swan-like neck.
I put a knee on the edge of the mattress and crawled toward her on all fours. Her eyes danced as she watched me come. When I got within touching distance, she grabbed my shirt and pulled me closer. I had to brace my hands on either side of her thighs to keep from falling. She met me halfway, covering my mouth with her own. Her lips parted, tongue pressing out, seeking access.
She was taking the lead, and it turned me the fuck on. There was nothing sexier than a woman who knew what she wanted and pursued it with such single-minded intensity.
I opened my mouth and let her in. Our tongues brushed across each other. She moaned into my mouth, hooked an arm around my neck, and dragged me down on top of her. I rested my weight on myforearms to keep from smothering her. Beneath me, her legs spread as wide as her skinny jeans would allow, our hips fitting together as her tongue continued to ply mine with expert precision. My dick strained against the constraints of my boxers and jeans. I shifted my pelvis forward, so she could feel how much I wanted her.
She broke off the kiss, gasping. “Too many clothes.”
I sat up and all but ripped my shirt off. The open hunger on her face as she took in the lines of my muscles made every sit-up and bicep curl I’d ever done more than worth it. I barely repressed the desire to flex for her.
Her gaze rose, taking in the tattoo that climbed up my left bicep, whorled over my shoulder, and snaked down to cover both of my pecs in a series of stylized enatas, tikis, ocean waves, spearheads, and shark fins, the spaces between swathed in bands of black.
“It’s beautiful,” she whispered, her tone reverent.
“You’re beautiful.”
Her gaze moved from my chest back to my stomach. She traced the outline of an ab with her finger. “You could do my laundry on these things.”
I cocked an eyebrow up. “In exchange for tasty treats?”
She grinned, nodding. Her nimble fingers slid down, nails scraping lightly over my skin in a way that made me shudder. They came to rest on my belt. Below it, my dick strained toward her. She started to undo my belt, one-handed, while her free hand rubbed up and down the length of my bulge.
I needed these pants off. Now. Hers too.
I reached out and fumbled at the button on her jeans, my fingers trembling.
Her hands disappeared from my waist. She clamped them onto my wrists, stopping me.
I froze. “Sorry. Too fast?”
Horror spread across her face. “I forgot about the underwear.”
Holy shit, she’d been telling the truth. I laughed before I could stop myself. “I thought you were kidding about them.”
“I wish.” Her tone was grim. “Ben, they are so bad.”
“Okay, now I really have to see them.”
