AJ had never particularly enjoyed this act, mostly because she felt too exposed—it left too little to do and too much to worry about.
She should have known it would be different with Noah. He wascurious and thorough and so unbelievably intense. Slowly, methodically, he caressed her, noting every flutter, every sigh. He was figuring her out—of course he was, he always had before. With one long, calculated stroke, he sent a lick of heat straight through her core. “Fuck,” she gasped, and felt his concentration deepen.
AJ couldn’t take her eyes off him. He was beautiful, but it was her disbelief that held her captive. How was this even happening? She couldn’t catch her breath. Each flick of his tongue wound her tighter and tighter.
He met her eyes, and AJ felt his hand trace the slick of her seam, heard him exhale as she ripened at his touch. As he slipped a finger inside her, she shook.
“Oh my God,” he breathed.
AJ was making sounds she didn’t recognize—she wasmewing,and Noah was sipping at her like she was his first drink in days, and AJ had never ached like this for anyone.
Her muscles were starting to clench now. Noah felt it too, and he swore under his breath, then gave her another finger.
But she could not let go. She had spent so long tamping down her desire for him that now, on the verge of release, she found herself panicked by how badly she wanted him and how easily this could slip away.
Noah felt her struggling. “AJ,” he said. His other hand found hers. He held her gaze. “Trust me.”
Hisvoice.Within seconds, her thighs began to shake. Noah was ready; he slowed his movements, steadily bringing her closer, and closer, until—
“I’m gonna come,” she whispered, and she heard him moan from deep in his throat, and a brilliant sensation chimed through her, a startling, breathless pleasure.
Noah’s hands wrapped around her hips, soothing her. AJ was gone. She was nothing but the feel of him gently lowering her back onto the couch, then pressing his lips into her upper thigh.
“Ah,” she shivered.
Noah seemed surprised. He did it again. Again, AJ vibrated. He was tuning her like a crystal now, making her nerves sing at the slightest brush of his fingers, of his lips. AJ reached down to touch his cheek, and his hand closed around hers as he took her back into his mouth.
His eyes were closed, his brow furrowed in devotion. He was kneeling before her, a pilgrim at the source, confessing it all, his longing and his terror, and AJ’s body was listening, opening, giving. As he parted her, searching for the rhythm she wanted, she arched against him in answer.
His hands were grasping her now, holding her open as he pressed his tongue inside her. AJ was close again, so close that every stroke was painful. She writhed, bending, his breath hot along her center. She felt him groan, and she flitted, flickered, and for an instant, she burned bright.
As she faded back into herself, she became aware of him, of his body, of his arousal, a heavy bulge against her right shin. She sat up slow, her dress drooping closed, to find Noah in a state between her legs. He was murmuring incoherently into her right thigh. She lifted his face and found his eyes ablaze. He took her hand and pressed his lips to the tender part of her wrist.
Then AJ slid off the couch, onto her knees, so she was between his legs. He leaned forward, gripping the cushion behind her for support, his erection tenting his pants. As AJ reached for him, he closed a warning hand around her wrist.
“I’m not in control.”
AJ could see the strain in his neck, the way he was panting, his lips parted, and she looked into his beautiful dark eyes and thought,Good.
Maybe she even said it out loud because his grip loosened long enough for her to find him, to feel him twitch beneath her palm. As she closed her hand, Noah convulsed.
There wasn’t time to even unbutton his pants, he was already coming. He swore, burying his face in her neck, his whole body trembling into her as a warm spot bloomed beneath her fingers.
They stayed that way for a long moment, entwined like a pair of inosculated trees. AJ memorized the weight of his head on her shoulder, the softness of his hair against her cheek, the wordless vulnerability of his hand tentatively tracing her hip, as though unsure of his welcome.
When Noah pulled back from her, there were tears in his eyes. “I never thought I’d get to—” He cut himself off.
AJ took his hand in both of hers. She wanted to tell him that seeing him unravel like that had been the most erotic experience of her life. Instead she said, “I hope you like your dry cleaner.”
A laugh escaped his lips like air from a tire, and he bent forward, enfolding her in his arms.Yes.Even worn and spent hewasso strong. AJ could feel his breath in her hair, and she closed her eyes. His heartbeat was a homecoming.
“Want to shower?” he asked, and AJ nodded.
Together they turned off the lamps and Noah led her to the second floor. She followed him past older residential rooms to a new wing at the end of the hall. Noah pushed into a large steel gray bedroom with a king bed and modern light fixtures. This was his.
He led her into an impressive marble bathroom that had both a soaking tub and a standing glass shower and turned on the water. AJ didn’t understand how tired she was until she realized that he was helping her out of her dress and easing the barrette out of her hair. He stripped naked and opened the door, and the two of them got in.
Carefully, he positioned her beneath the shower head so his back wouldn’t block the water from reaching her. As he lathered shampoo into her hair then his, she watched droplets bead along his collarbone. He was less beefy than he’d been six years ago, but just as broad and well toned. As his hands rinsed out her hair, AJ melted into his chest, warmth pouring down her back.
