I’ve never enjoyed kissing a man with a beard before, but his isn’t as scratchy as I’d imagined. It’s actually kind of soft, and the way his facial hair gently abrades my face as we deepen things again is surprisingly pleasing. It’s like he’s marking me in some way, making me his on the outside as well as in.
That’s probably a weird way to look at it, but whatever, I’m not into thinking too much about it right now. Not actually into thinking at all, really.
I’m a puddle of sensation, all frissons of energy and buzzy electric heat. Jake’s lips are so soft. I never would have thought a mountain man would have such soft and supple lips. And the way he directs my mouth is divine. I moan gently, gripping hisshirt and canting my head for him as he changes angles again, letting him guide, letting him take. Softening into him. Melting into his incredible masculinity.
I called him sweet earlier, and he is. But he’s also not. Not right now, not like this. There’s something wild inside him. I can feel it. Something primal and vital, and perfectly amazing. Something I want to feel more of.
Something I want to know.
I reach out with my senses, even as they’re addled with Jake’s kisses, and I feel that wildness, that untamed part of him.
Goddess, it’s beautiful.
He’s like an oak tree, deeply rooted in the Earth. Perfectly grounded while reaching all that he is toward the heavens. Provider. Protector. Patient sentinel. Powerful lover.
I feel that in my blood and bones, his love.
That it’s directed solely at me is humbling. Awe inducing.
Heady.
My fingers play over his chest as we kiss, and it’s not until he breaks our connection that I realize I’ve undone his shirt and pants.
“Hols,” he says breathlessly, and I melt even more at his name for me. I’ve never had a nickname before, not really. “Babe, I want you more than you know, but I’m not sure this is a good idea.”
I frown as his words settle into my brain. “Why not?”
“I don’t want you to do anything you might regret. Not with me. We have all the time in the world for getting physical. We don’t have to—”
“I want you, Jake,” I tell him boldly. “All of you.”
I’ve seen the truth of him. Seen enough to know he is all that he seems and more. And I want to know him intimately. Want to merge our energies. Want to see what we can create together.
Sure, it still scares the crap out of me, but that’s the funny thing about fear. It’s on the same spectrum as excitement in the way our bodies process information. It’s also the threshold we must cross to fully live.
There’s immense freedom on the other side of fear, and I’m done living in slavery to the chains of the past. They have no hold on me now. Not here. Not with Jake.
Not ever again.
“Please, Jake,” I say softly, slipping my hand up to his cheek. “I want to be with you. Yes, I’m scared, but I also know that this is the path forward. You.” I caress his temple with my free hand. “You are exquisite, Jake Bryson. A gift from the Divine. I’m tired of being afraid. Tired of hiding. I want to feel alive, and I do with you.”
I also want more.
He touches my wrist, holding my hand to his face. “Holly—”
“I feel seen with you, Jake,” I tell him honestly. “Beautiful and desired.”
“You’re all those things, babe. All that and more. I just… are you sure? There’s no need torush this.”
“There’s no reason to wait either.”
He sucks in a breath, and my heart rate speeds up. I know he wants this too. I can feel his arousal beneath me through our clothes.
He’s been hard for a while.
And the fact that he’s delayed his own satisfaction, not even mentioning how turned on he is, choosing to focus purely on my comfort and pleasure instead… Well, it makes me feel safe and cherished in a way I hadn’t expected.
“I trust you,” I say, gazing into his dark eyes. “I want to trust you, Jake.” And that’s the Goddess’s honest truth. “Maybe this is fast, maybe not. But it’s right. Whatever this thing is between us. It’s right.”
