She gasped when he moved down her body, and moaned when he stripped her pants off in one smooth motion and pressed his lips to her pussy. He made a vee with his fingers to open her up, and feasted, the taste of her going straight to his head. This wasKatrinahe was tasting. He’d remember this for as long as he lived, even if this ended.
Don’t think of the end right now.
He shook his head to dislodge the thought, and she whimpered, so he did it on purpose, moving his face, trying different positions, keeping up firm, slow strokes to her little clit. She wasn’t shy now about grasping his hair, and he made a mental note every time she showed him what she loved.
She tasted like... he knew he was supposed to say sunshine and flowers, but that wasn’t true, and frankly he’d be a little concerned if she did smell like roses down here. She tasted good, an indescribable flavor he doubted anybody could ever replicate.
He loved it. He loved her.
He wanted to tell her, but there had been far too many revelations tonight. No need to add another emotionally charged one to her basket.
Her muscles clenched up, and he gentled his touch. He didn’t go far. He stayed there, resting against her thigh, giving her tiny, gentle licks, until she shifted beneath him. He wasn’t ready to leave her yet, but he reluctantly gave her one last kiss before coming to his knees. He swiped the back of his hand over his mouth and looked down at her splayed, delicious body.
He met her brown eyes, and that vague sense of melancholy he always experienced after a particularly bad dream moved through him.
What if this ends when we get back to the real world?Cinderella at midnight, left with a pumpkin carriage.
“We never got our shower.”
He blinked at the seeming non sequiter. “What?”
“Earlier, when your mom interrupted us. We were going to shower and didn’t.” She sat up and coasted her hand up his arm, then kissed his nipple. “I’m all sweaty now.”
He looked down at her body, his mood lifting. He was willing to be charmed into forgetting all of the dark stuff for a night and let hope spark inside him. Hope that this was exactly and entirely where he belonged. “As am I.”
“Shall we?”
“Absolutely. Can’t wait to see what you want to try next.”
Her laugh was low and throaty. This seductive, earthy side of Katrina was so new and exciting. All he wanted to do was wallow in that laugh and her touch.
She crooked her finger. “Follow me.”
Easy. Truth be told, he’d follow her anywhere. A shower, a hot, wet, steamy place where they could get tangled up in each other? That was a no-brainer.
Chapter Twenty-Five
“IT’S REALLY TOObad we’re conflicted out of dating apps.” Akash sorted through the papers in front of him.
Katrina pulled her legal pad closer to her and smiled at the computer screen. She was getting used to taking her conference calls from the little house’s living room. “Did you come across something good?”
“Yeah, get this: it’s called CatFishr. You can upload any pics you want, so you never know what the person you’re talking to looks like until you meet. You have to go wholly on the text conversation.”
Katrina chuckled, then realized Akash was serious. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“Who the hell would want that?” Carol exclaimed.
“Oh, I don’t know. I thought it was kind of revolutionary. You know, leaning into the fear people have with dating apps. It’s kind of like a surprise grab bag, and not knowing what the person looks like is a way to focus on substance over appearance.”
Katrina rubbed her temples. Sometimes she felt very old.What was the world teaching these youths? “Crush spends a great deal of money to combat bots and catfishing. The idea of a grab bag first date is ridiculous.”
Carol popped her gum. She’d already gone through two pieces of nicotine gum during the call, which told Katrina her friend was deep in another quitting attempt. “Dangerous, too. Bet ya anything the creators are heterosexual men who are bitter about women not swiping right on them.”
Akash gathered himself up. “Not all—”
“No.”
“Nope.” Katrina folded her arms on the table. “Think about what could happen if someone shows up for a date, and the person they’ve been talking to is their abusive ex.”
