"Tell me if you don't like anything," he says, his voice rough and low. "Or if something feels wrong. Your anatomy is similar enough to human that I think I can do this, but you have to let me know."
My chest tightens at his care. "If you can fly a transport ship through a sandstorm," I say, "I have faith in your abilities. But I'm happy to redirect you as needed."
That gets me a grin. I catch the flash of white teeth in the darkness, that irrepressible goober grin that should be ridiculous right now and somehow is not.
"Well… I also did some reading. The Cerastean manual on breeding practices. Very informative. Lots of diagrams."
A laugh bursts out of me, bright and startled and completely involuntary. Of all the things he could say in this moment, in this sacred cave with the storm raging above us and his mouth inches from the most intimate part of my body, this man chooses to make me laugh.
And somehow, it is exactly right. Because the laughter dissolves the last thread of nervousness I did not realize I was holding. The last whisper of vulnerability that comes with being bare before another person for the first time.
I place my hand on the top of his head and push, gently but firmly. "Then show me."
His grin widens against my skin. "Yes, ma'am."
He settles lower, guiding my thighs apart with gentle hands. I spread wider to accommodate the breadth of his shoulders, and the stretch pulls a shiver from somewhere deep in my belly.
He presses a kiss to the inside of my knee. Then higher. Then higher still, his mouth unhurried on the sensitive scales of my inner thigh. My hand is still in his hair, and I feel myself grip tighter with each kiss.
"Okay?" he murmurs.
"Do not stop," I manage, and my voice does not sound like my own.
A soft gust of breath ghosts over my core a moment before being replaced with Cody's mouth. A sound tears from me, stuttered and unguarded, as he flattens his tongue and licks up my center. He quickly figures out what I like best – long, steady strokes that have me quickly climbing the peak towards my release.
Within minutes, I am undulating beneath his mouth, trying to push towards my peak even faster. With a growl vibrating into my flesh, Cody adjusts his grip, wrapping his hands around my thighs and pinning me in place.
I cry out at the denial, which quickly turns into a scream as Cody clasps his mouth over my clit and sucks. The sound of his name falling from my lips echoes through the cavern, but I am unable to rein in the noise I am making.
I get close to the edge of my orgasm, but Cody isn't done teasing and slows the strokes of his tongue on me. I grab his hair and tug, hissing in demand, but Cody's ever-present grin only grows wider.
He brings me to the precipice again, his mouth relentless, and right when I think he will finally let me fall, he pulls back once more. He presses a kiss to my inner thigh.
"Cody." His name comes out as a warning.
He answers by dragging his tongue against me in one long, slow stroke that has my hips lifting off the blankets. Then he stops again.
I make a sound that is not a word in any language.
He does it a third time. Building me up until I am trembling and panting andright there– then easing off, his lips ghosting over me, feather-light when I need pressure. My thighs are shaking. My skin is flushed, and I cannot think, cannot form asingle coherent thought beyond the maddening rhythm of his teasing.
"You are doing this on purpose," I pant.
"Mmhmm," he hums, and the vibration nearly sends me over.
With the next lick along my flesh, Cody slides his fingers inside me.
"Yes, like that," I gasp as Cody curls his fingers inside me. "Don't stop," I plead as he begins to lick my clit with firm, steady strokes. I thread my fingers into his hair, gripping him firmly and not giving him the opportunity to tease me further. I need this release like I need my next breath.
I look down the length of my body at him, at this strange, wonderful creature between my thighs. His blue eyes find mine above the plane of my stomach, bright even in the dim light, and he holds my gaze without breaking rhythm. That eye contact undoes me more than any touch could. How does he do this? How does this human with his ridiculous grin and his gentle eyes take me apart so completely?
He watches me watching him, and his eyes darken with want.
His fingers hit a spot inside me that has me finally breaking his gaze, closing my eyes and throwing my head back.
My whole body pulls taut, every muscle drawn tight like a bowstring. I hang there for one impossible, weightless moment, suspended at the very edge. Then Cody curls his fingers and presses his tongue flat against me, and I snap.
The release tears through me all at once. My back arches off the blankets, his name falling from my lips like a prayer. Pleasure rolls through me in deep, shuddering waves, and Cody stays with me through each one, his mouth gentle now, easing me down as I shake apart beneath him.
