Page 75 of Solo

“What?” she asks, looking confused for a second. “Oh, no, I love it. It’s just that I—it’s so nice, is all. And I know this store.” She gestures toward the logo on the lid of the glossy black box. “It’s expensive. I can’t really afford to pay you back or anything,” she mumbles, looking down at the floor as she speaks.

“It’s a gift,” I remind her. “A gift. That’s it. No strings attached. Honestly, it’s just that I hate that goddamn hoodie you keep wearing,” I chuckle, standing up and taking the coat from her. I hold it up and open for her.

“Here, try it on.”

Reluctantly, she turns around and slips her arms into each sleeve as I hold them up for her. Her eyes are drawn downward as I squat and fasten the zipper at the bottom, following all the way upward as I pull the zipper closed, until our eyes lock. I reach around behind her and pull the faux-fur trimmed hood up, then I stand back so I can survey her with a critical eye.

“Well?” she asks with the most naively sexy smile I’ve ever seen.

“Well, I think you should only ever wear this color,” I say, my voice suddenly husky.

When my lips find hers, they are soft and tentative. When she doesn’t push me away, they become more confident. I’m taller than her by a good six inches and she tips her face up, causing the blue hood to slip back off her head. And then my hands are in her hair and holding the sides of her face, pulling her into me. She doesn’t resist.

My lips are still connected to hers when I reach between us to unzip the coat, pushing it off her shoulders so that it hits the floor with a soft puff.

I’m walking her back toward her bed, but she doesn’t seem to notice as her hands tug at my shirt, trying to free it from the waistband of my pants. When she succeeds, I hold my arms up and help her to pull the garment over my head. It joins the coat on the floor. My pants follow close behind.

“Wait,” she says, pulling back for a second.

“What? What’s wrong?” I ask between ragged breaths.

She gives me a mischievous smile before clapping her hands twice. As soon as she does, the lights go out, leaving us with only the glow of the moon to see one another by. I chuckle and shake my head, pulling her in close again.

“Oh Christ, I want you, Katherine,” I murmur against her neck as I kiss the hollow of her shoulder.

“Then what are you waiting for?” she rasps.

Nothing. Absolutely nothing. I have no intention of waiting a single second longer to be with this woman.

Chapter Thirty-Four

Kate

We’re lying on our sides, facing one another when he puts his palm to my face. It’s on my cheek, his thumb rubbing back and forth against the bone that runs below my eye. I am riveted, unable to tear my gaze from his face as he touches mine. Then it comes. The moment when I can’t wait a single second longer. I reach down with both hands and pull my nightshirt over my head and then immediately press forward. I want desperately to know what his chest feels like against my nipples. I gasp loudly, arching my back with the sensation, unable to keep from rubbing my breasts against him.

Drew groans as he leans forward and claims my mouth with his own. His lips are soft. So much softer than I could have ever imagined. But as our urgency begins to take hold, they become strong and unyielding. His right hand supports the back of my head and holds me tight against him while his left continues mapping the geography of my body. My face. My shoulders. My neck. My back.

Then, he pulls his mouth from mine to deliver a series of tiny kisses across my face. My eyelids, the tip of my nose, my cheeks. I’m giggling until he gets to the spot behind my ear and then I’m moaning. This has, in the blink of an eye, become something different. It’s not about sex or no sex. It’s about chemistry or no chemistry. And I’ll be damned if we don’t have amazing, blazing, off-the-charts chemistry.

Even though we’re well on our way, I can see that he’s reluctant to be the one who takes it past the point of no return. No problem. I’ll be the one. I’ll be whatever I have to be to feel him touching my body. With his mouth still attached to my shoulder, I take both of his hands into both of mine and place them on my breasts.

“Oh. Oh God, Katherine,” he murmurs appreciatively as his thumbs begin to circle my nipples.

Somehow, his lips are on mine again. I whimper as I open my mouth to him hungrily. Yes, it’s as if we are starving for this. For each other. I’m not sure exactly how he ends up on top of me, but once I’m flat on my back, he settles himself between my thighs. His warm hands on my hips, my rib cage and back to my breasts again. I can feel his hardness resting against my belly.

“Drew?” I whisper into the darkness. “Do you have…?”

In a flash he’s off of me, hanging over the edge of the mattress. It sounds as if he’s scrambling for his jeans. I know when he’s found what he’s looking for, because I can hear the sound of ripping foil. It doesn’t take long for the boxers to come off and for it to go on.

I gasp, when he returns to his prior position, my head straining backward against the bed pillow. He takes advantage of the position to start kissing down the column of my throat.

“Jesus,” he murmurs. “You are so beautiful.”

I freeze, sucking in my breath.

Drew senses the sudden tension in me and he stops all movement.

“What?” he asks. “What is it? Do you want to stop? Did I do something wrong?”