She stripped off her bra and then reached between them. Gripping the waistband of his jeans, she fumbled for the button, only to have him catch her hand and stop her before she could reach her goal.
“Not yet. Not until you come first. Hold on to me.”
Her brain stuttered both over the promise and her uncertainty, and then he shifted, wrapping his arms tight around her and standing. Her legs went around his waist as if they’d been made just for that and she hooked her feet, determined not to let go as Emerson started down the hall toward the bedroom. This was the place she should tell him she hadn’t done this before. That she was a virgin. Beyond the obvious mechanics, she didn’t know much about how things worked, but she was pretty sure that was information he’d want to have.
She opened her mouth, intending to whisper the words against his ear. Before she could make a sound, he opened the door to his room and carried her to the bed, depositing her against the mountain of downy soft pillows. The look in his eyes held so much heat, so much hunger, the words died on her lips and she couldn’t think of anything beyond wanting him.
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EMERSON NEVER INTENDEDthis to happen. He’d tried, albeit unsuccessfully, to keep Sophie in the role of client, but she was so sweet, so beautiful, so innocent in her willingness, she worked her way past all his defenses. When he looked at her laid out on his bed, waiting for him to touch her, he realized they’d always been heading toward this point. From the moment she opened her beautiful blue eyes in that hospital room, everything had been leading them here.
Toeing off his shoes and socks, he paused long enough to tug his polo over his head before climbing onto the bed with her. He might be a decade and a half older, but if the honest appreciation in her eyes was any indication, the age difference didn’t matter to her.
Kneeling between her legs, he reached for the waistband of her jeans. He kept his gaze pinned on hers, looking for any sign of hesitation, any indication that she wanted him to stop as the back of his fingers brushed her stomach. He felt her muscles jump and tighten at his touch, but her hips rocked toward him, urging her body closer. He slid down the zipper, grateful his fingers didn’t do something stupid like tremble. He wanted her so much, wanted this. He couldn’t remember the last time—if ever—a woman made him shake with need. Tugging the denim over her hips and down her long legs, he bared her body to his hungry gaze.
Sophie was so beautiful, her long limbs lithe and strong, the gentle curves of her body the perfect blend of graceful lines and delicious swells. His mouth practically watered to taste her.
“The way you look at me...” Her words trailed off, and he heard the wonder heavy in her voice.
He pulled his gaze away from the promise of her beautiful body to meet her face. The trust in her eyes rocked him to his core. He had no idea what they would end up meaning to each other. Things had already gone so much further than his best laid plans, but whatever happened, he’d do everything in his power to try to be worthy of her. To be worthy of the faith she put in him.
“You’re so beautiful. You steal my breath,” he said and then he settled between her legs to try to steal hers.
He pressed a kiss to the flat plane of her stomach and felt the tremor against his lips. She was shaking, and they hadn’t gone far enough for it to be from pleasure.
“Sophie, are you sure?” He’d been the one putting up roadblocks all along. Now all he could think about was touching her. Tasting her. Claiming her. But not if she wasn’t one hundred percent sure it was what she wanted too. It would kill him to stop but he’d do it if she asked.
“Yes,” she said without hesitation. “Don’t you dare stop.”
He pressed his lips to her lace-covered mound and smiled. Hooking his fingers in her waist band, he tugged her panties over her hips and shifted just enough to get them off her legs, leaving her gloriously naked in front of him. Running his hand up the inside of her thighs, he spread her legs, revealing every inch of her delicate folds. He breathed in the heady scent of her, blowing over her damp curls as he exhaled. He lowered his head to kiss her, to use his mouth to wind her tight until she spiraled apart with pleasure. His lips hovered over her sex, his tongue darting out to flick the swollen bundle of nerves. Her fingers tightened in his hair, but instead of pulling him closer, she was trying to hold him back.
“Wait,” she said as his brain stuttered over itself, trying to make sense of what was happening. “There’s something I have to tell you.”
He rocked back far enough to be able to look up her body and meet her gaze. “Anything,” he said, meaning it. She hesitated for a moment longer, and he pressed a kiss to her inner thigh and sat up. “I will do whatever you want, sweetheart. You just have to tell me. Do you need me to stop?”
“No, please.” She blinked quickly and he was afraid she was trying not to cry. The very last thing he’d wanted to do was make Sophie cry. “I just...I’ve never done this before. I thought maybe you should know. But please don’t stop. I need you. I want this.”
Now that she’d started talking, it was as if she couldn’t stop. The words came out in a steady stream. He couldn’t tell if it was lack of blood flow to his brain or if something else was making it hard for him to understand her.
“Hold on, Sophie,” he said when he’d managed to piece things together. “You mean you’ve never had someone go down on you before?” The idea of being the first person to share that kind of pleasure with her shouldn’t make him so irrationally happy, but it did.
“No, never.”
He resisted the urge to fist pump. He could spend hours figuring out what she liked, how she liked to be kissed and licked. It was suddenly his new goal in life to share the joys of oral sex with Sophie, and he was more than willing to devote as much time as necessary.
“Don’t worry. You don’t have to do anything but lay back and enjoy yourself. I’ll take care of you. I promise.” This was one promise he was happy to keep.
He settled back between her legs, palming her ass so he could angle her sex toward him to give him better access. Before he could taste her, he felt her fingers grip his shoulder.
“That’s not the only thing. I haven’t had any kind of sex. I’m a virgin.”
