Her hands came up to my chest, gripping my shirt like she needed something solid, something real to hold onto, and I deepened the kiss instinctively. Not rough. Not rushed. Just honest. The kind of kiss you give when you’ve waited too long and don’t want to waste another second pretending you haven’t.
She tasted warm and soft and achingly familiar, like something I’d known without ever having. I slid one hand to her waist, pulling her closer until she fit against me like she always had, like my body had been shaped around the space she filled. My other hand cradled her jaw, thumb brushing her cheek as I kissed her again, slower this time, like I was learning her instead of taking her.
She made this small, breathless sound when I pulled back enough to breathe, our foreheads resting together. Her eyes were closed, lashes dark against flushed cheeks, her lips swollen and pink from my mouth. The sight of her like that—soft, open, wanting me—nearly knocked the air out of me. My entire body tightened with a desperate need, grating at me. Ihadto know her body, what sounds she made, the curve of her body.
“I’ve wanted to do that for years,” I admitted quietly, my voice rougher than I meant it to be. “Fuck, you taste so good.”
She stared at me, eyes wide, lips swollen and wet and pink. Her pulse raced at the base of her neck, her skin glistening with a layer of sweat. “Noah, oh mygod.”
That cracked something open in me. I kissed her again, harder this time, like reassurance instead of hunger. My mouth moved from her lips to her cheek, her jaw, the corner of her mouth—everywhere I could reach. I nipped her skin, dragging my tongue along her jaw as she trembled against me. That littletremble sent blood straight to my cock, the urge to make her entire body shake with pleasure my sole focus.
Her arms slid around my neck, fingers threading into my hair, tugging enough to make my breath hitch. She kissed me again, this time with more confidence, more urgency, and I met her there without hesitation. The kiss deepened, fuller now, our breaths mixing, the world narrowing down to heat and closeness and the quiet way she fit so perfectly against me.
I shifted us slowly, carefully, until I was sitting and she was in my lap, her knees bracketing my thighs. I kept my hands steady on her back, one palm pressed between her shoulder blades, the other warm and sure at her waist. I wasn’t rushing. I wasn’t taking more than she offered. I wanted her to feel desired, not claimed.
“God, you’re so strong,” she moaned, rocking against me as she tilted my head up and stared down at me. “Your thighs are like tree trunks, Noah. You’ve worked so hard to get here. I’m proud of you.”
She ground against me, tightening her legs around mine, a little moan escaping her perfect mouth.
I sucked in a breath at her words, a rough sound slipping out before I could stop it. Compliments like that always caught me off guard, especially coming from her, especially said like she wasn’t joking, like she was stating a fact she’d discovered with her whole body. My hands flexed against her back, fingers spreading wider, grounding myself so I didn’t forget how careful I wanted to be.
“Hey,” I murmured, tilting my head enough to meet her eyes. “Easy.”
Not a warning. A promise.
She smiled down at me, flushed and bright, hair falling loose around her face, and for a second the sight of her stole whatever words I’d planned to say. I slid one hand up her spine, slow andsteady, feeling the way she melted into the touch like her body recognized it before her mind did. The other stayed firm at her waist, holding her in place, not letting her drift away or tip too far forward.
“I like holding you like this,” I admitted quietly. “Feels… right.”
Her breath stuttered, and she leaned in, resting her forehead against mine again. The closeness was dizzying—her warmth, her weight, the soft press of her knees against my sides. I pressed a kiss to her cheek, then another along her jaw, letting my mouth linger there like I had all the time in the world. Each kiss was deliberate, unhurried, meant to remind her I was here and not going anywhere.
Her hands slid up my shoulders, fingers curling into the fabric there, and she rocked a little again, more instinct than intention. I tightened my grip at her waist, holding her steady, breathing her in.
“Em,” I said softly, not pulling away, just enough pressure in my voice to bring her attention back to me. “Look at me.”
She did, eyes dark and searching, and something tender settled in my chest. I brushed my thumb under her chin, lifting her face gently, my touch reverent instead of demanding.
“I’m right here,” I said. “You don’t have to rush anything with me. We’ve got time.”
Her expression softened at that, the heat in her gaze easing into something deeper. She nodded once, slow, then leaned down and kissed my cheek, my jaw, the corner of my mouth—everywhere but where we both knew it would tip us over the edge again. I smiled despite myself, pressing a kiss to her shoulder, then her collarbone, shifting the moment back into something warm instead of overwhelming.
It was the hardest thing I’d ever done.
Every instinct in my body screamed to pull her closer, to givein to the way she fit against me, the way she sounded when she said my name like it meant something more than habit. My hands wanted to roam. My mouth wanted to forget every careful promise I’d made to myself five minutes ago.
Instead, I pressed my forehead to hers and breathed.
I stayed still long enough for my heart to catch up with my head, long enough for the moment to shift from heat to something deeper. She was warm everywhere, flushed and breathing hard, her hands still gripping my shoulders like she didn’t know where else to put them. I kept my hold steady at her back and waist, grounding both of us.
“Hey,” I murmured again, softer now. “I’m stopping because I want youtoomuch.”
Her brows pulled together instantly, panic flashing in her eyes. “Noah?—”
“I want you so fucking bad, Em, and have dreamed and fantasized about this a million times. But because I want this to mean something tomorrow…And next week. And six months from now. We have to go slow.”
That stilled her.
She searched my face, reading me the way she always did, the way she could tell when I was lying or posturing. Whatever she saw there made her shoulders drop a little, the tension easing out of her body.
