Kellan nodded and dropped a kiss on her lips. “Maybe a smidge.”
“Good.” She traced the vague outline of Kellan’s abs while enjoying the feeling of her mouth as she teased along her neck. Kellan sucked deeper, and she panicked, pulling away immediately. “Don’t give me a hickey. Not on my neck.”
“So many rules.” Kellan teased her but held her face gently, dotting baby kisses everywhere. “I am not going to give you a hickey. I promise.” Kellan took her hand and led her to the bed.
“I should tell you something,” Ashleigh said. She registered concern in Kellan’s lovely eyes, and she backpedaled immediately. “It’s not bad. I just…” She tucked her hair behind one ear. “I told Shauna about us. Yesterday—I had lunch with her, and it just came out.”
“Okay.”
“I only mention it because I know we haven’t really talked to each other much about what this is. Or really defined it, what we’re doing here.”
Kellan sat on the edge of the bed, her expression completely unreadable. “Do you want to talk about it?”
“Not really. No. I think we’re just enjoying each other’s company. A lot.” A nervous giggle escaped, and she started to pace a few feet in a semicircle. She brought her hand to her face. “What I mean is—”
“Ash.” Kellan caressed her elbow, and when she relaxed her arm, Kellan found her hand. “I like you. I’m attracted to you. We have fun together. I think you feel the same. Why does it have to be more complicated than that?”
“It doesn’t. You’re right.”
She let Kellan pull her close, and when she reached the edge of the bed, she lifted her knees up onto it so she was full-on straddling Kellan.
“That’s better.” Kellan caressed her bottom and kissed along her neck, stopping just shy of her mouth. “Anything you want to talk about, I’m here. Okay?”
She nodded, a sense of relief washing over her. Even though they hadn’t discussed anything really, Ashleigh felt like the opportunity was there if she wanted to. More importantly, it seemed they were on the same page. A summer romance based on mutual attraction and hot sex. Not what she’d expected, but pretty great so far. She just had to make sure to keep her feelings in check. No big deal. Kellan’s mouth was torturing her with open kisses along her jawline and over by the sensitive spot just below her ear.
“For the record, Liam knows too.” Kellan slid her hands along Ashleigh’s thighs and lifted her light summer dress over her head. “I didn’t tell him, but he figured it out. Is that okay?” Kellan kissed along the top of her breasts above her braline.
“That was bound to happen. He knows us both too well to not pick up on the signs. Did he say anything?” She pulled Kellan’s hair to see her face but also because she liked the tiny feeling of control it gave her.
“Not really,” Kellan said, following her response with a kiss. “Did Shauna?”
Ashleigh rotated her neck, remembering in detail the grilling she’d gotten from her bestie. Kellan took this as an invitation to unhook her bra and kiss her breasts. “Did she ever. Shauna had about a million questions.”
Kellan released her nipple immediately. “Wait. For real?”
Ashleigh sighed at the loss. “Yes. I got the third degree.”
“What did she say?” Kellan lay back on the bed but didn’t stop touching her. In fact, the way she was holding her hips in place as she moved beneath her was teasing her in the most delicious way.
“She just wanted to know things. Details.”
“Like?” With one hand Kellan held her in place, still writhing, while the other covered her breast, massaging it with just the right amount of pressure. Her body was sizzling, like there was some kind of hardwired connection between her nipple and her clit.
“Like this.” She was breathing heavily, and she couldn’t help it.
“Did you tell her it was the best sex of your life?” Kellan was all smug charm. “You don’t know how you survived without it so long?”
Ashleigh dug her hips down deep, grinding hard against Kellan. She bit her lower lip, hoping it looked as sexy as it did in the movies. She leaned all the way forward and met Kellan with a searing kiss before pulling back just slightly. In a low voice she said, “I told her it was decent. On a scale of one to ten, a solid three.”
She broke into hysterics as Kellan flipped her over, laughing with her. She wasn’t about to admit Kellan’s skill in bed was off the charts.
“A three? A three!” Hovering over her, Kellan was all smiles as she looked deep into her eyes. “You’re killing my ego.”
“I’m teasing you.” She touched Kellan’s gorgeous face. “You know that.”
“I guess I have to work harder to impress you.” Ashleigh felt Kellan’s hand slide smoothly over her stomach, slipping into her panties. Kellan’s groan was guttural and Ashleigh knew she was turned on.
“You’re so wet. I love it.”
“Of course I am. You tend to have that effect on me.” Kellan kissed her neck, her fingers still teasing her. She wanted them inside. She wanted more. She prayed for the nerve to ask. “Kellan?”
“Yes?”
“There is something…” She stopped talking as she heard her voice shake slightly. Kellan clearly picked up on it too, because she ceased all movement.
“What’s the matter?”
“Nothing, it’s just…” She touched Kellan’s face but lost her moment of confidence. “Nothing.”
“Ash, talk to me.” Kellan kissed her fingertip. “I promise there’s nothing you can’t say. If there’s something I’m doing that you don’t like, it’s okay. You can tell me.”
“Oh my God, it’s not that. At all. It’s the opposite, in fact.”
The confusion in Kellan’s expression told her she wasn’t one hundred percent following. She was going to have to say it. Just rip the Band-Aid off. She squeezed her eyes closed but covered them with both her hands anyway. “I was wondering if you have a strap-on, and if you do, would you maybe want to use it with me?”
She felt Kellan kiss her hands away, dropping soft kisses along her cheeks. She whispered in her ear. “I do. And I do.” Kellan found her lips. “Why were you nervous to ask me?”
“I don’t know. What if you weren’t into it?”
“If I wasn’t, I would tell you. As it happens, it’s one of my favorite things to do.”
“Why didn’t you say something?”
“I wasn’t sure if you were into it or not.”
For some reason Ashleigh felt compelled to disclose the truth. “I’m not sure I am. I’ve never actually used one.”
“Really? All those years with Reagan?”
Kellan’s tone was all curiosity and held no judgment whatsoever. It was perfect and it calmed her immediately. She shrugged. “In the beginning we played around with toys. It was fine. Fun, even. We tried a strap-on once, but it wasn’t right. I can’t describe it.” She brushed her fingertips along Kellan’s smooth cheeks. “Something tells me it will be different with you. When I think about being with you, I fantasize about it. Is that TMI?”
“Uh, no. That is hot.” She kissed her soundly. “Give me one second, okay?”
Kellan dropped a final kiss on her before disappearing down the short hall into the bathroom. When she returned, she had stripped down to a T-shirt and black boxer briefs, barely concealing an obvious bulge. Kellan took the shirt off and slipped under the covers beside her. On their sides, facing each other, Kellan leaned forward and kissed her. With the tips of her fingers she caressed her face so softly that Ashleigh could barely feel the touch. The tenderness was enticing. Soft and precise. It made her crave more. She had chills everywhere.
Kellan read her body, drifting her hand over the outline of her chin, between her breasts, circling her nipples, before she reached lower to her panties and slid them off. “We’ll go nice and slow, okay?” Kellan kissed her neck and rolled her on top, so they were in roughly the same position as before. “If you want me to stop
, you tell me. Promise?”
She nodded, but in the moment, she couldn’t imagine ever wanting to stop. A little breathless, she felt Kellan’s bulge press against her. She throbbed against it, certain she was soaking Kellan’s boxers over the shaft. She tried to resist riding her too hard. She should probably let Kellan set the pace, but she was dying to feel Kellan inside her.
Kellan flipped them and kissed her hungrily before she made her way down her body. Her tongue was wet and soft and demanding. The contrast made Ashleigh whimper in delight and longing. She absolutely loved the feel of Kellan’s mouth simultaneously claiming her and building her up. But then Kellan stopped. She kissed her way back up her body, filling her with two fingers as she asked, “Are you ready?”
It seemed a formality at this point. She was beyond ready and Kellan had to know it, but she nodded assent anyway, biting her lip in anticipation of the unknown.
Kellan hovered over her as she slid off her boxers and eased inside. Holy Christ, it was amazing. She’d been slightly concerned that it would hurt, but all those thoughts melted away, replaced by sheer satisfaction from the fullness of Kellan inside her. Kellan moved slowly, rhythmically, and she spread her legs wider in response. A moan escaped her, and then another. She didn’t even care how loud she was. She wanted more. Impossibly, she needed more. She found Kellan’s mouth and covered it with hers, the desire to be connected everywhere overwhelming her. Kellan kissed her back. Soft at first, then harder, matching the pace of her hips. She broke the kiss, a little breathless as she dug her fingernails into Kellan’s back. She wrapped her legs around Kellan’s waist, needing every inch. She was going to explode, and yet release seemed just beyond her reach. She kissed Kellan’s shoulder, her neck, tasting her sweat as she clutched her tightly angling for even more depth.
“Kell.” She placed her hands on her shoulders, stopping her movement as she spoke.
“You okay? Am I hurting you?” Kellan asked.
“No. You’re perfect. Honest.” She leaned forward to kiss her, hoping it emphasized her point. “Could I just”—she made a small circle with one finger—“flip over?”
Kellan’s grin was sexy. “Yeah. Of course.” She withdrew slowly and helped her into position on her hands and knees, before easing back inside.
This.
This was what she wanted. Her muscles tightened around Kellan, igniting mini explosions everywhere. She backed into Kellan over and over, feeling her orgasm build. She was going to come—the wave was cresting. But then she felt Kellan’s hands grip her waist tightly, the pace increasing and changing from long deliberate strokes to short staccato ones. Oh my God, Kellan was going to come too. Inside her. From fucking her. How hot was that? The simple knowledge put her over the edge, and she gasped in her release, gripping the pillowcase and breathing a string of expletives into the sheets.
Kellan leaned forward and kissed her shoulder, slipping out of her and sliding into place along her side.
“That was amazing. You are incredible.” Kellan kissed her ear as she settled in behind her. Ashleigh was too blissed out for words. She hugged Kellan’s arm around her midsection as she nuzzled into the embrace.
“Same, baby. Same,” she managed to muster in a state of half stupor. Melting into the mattress, she ignored her use of the endearment and the irony of her words, knowing it was an indisputable fact that after what had just happened in this bed, she might never be the same.
Chapter Sixteen
“Let’s get ice cream.”
“Ice cream?” Ashleigh followed Kellan’s attention to the ice cream truck on the corner opposite where they were standing, in the shadow of the High Line.
“Yes. It’s summer. It’s hot out. I vote ice cream.”
“But we’re going out to dinner.”
“Hours from now. It’s not even one. And”—Kellan squeezed their clasped hands—“it’s your birthday. That gives you license to do whatever you want.”
“Or whatever you want.” She’d intended it to be playful but somehow it came out naughty. One look at Kellan confirmed she’d caught the innuendo. “That’s not what I meant. As if I hold anything back, anyway.”
It was a truth she hadn’t intended on pointing out so bluntly, but the past three days had been eye-opening, a virtual sexual awakening for her. They’d managed to leave the apartment for short bursts—a trip to the Museum of the American Indian in the Financial District, a tour of the Intrepid, where Kellan used her retired military ID to hook them up with a discount. But the vast majority of their time had been spent in bed, on the couch, in the shower, and even once on the kitchen counter.
She discovered that Kellan had a tender spot just below the waistband of her boxers, and when she lingered there, sucking and teasing, it drove her crazy. Likewise, Kellan seemed to enjoy when she tugged her hair, directed her hands, told her expressly what she wanted. And nothing seemed to turn her on as much as when she was loud and vocal. She’d figured out some things about herself too. It was pure bliss when Kellan was inside her, pounding her hard, and she reveled in the way Kellan held her and kissed her so tenderly after she came. It turned out being open and free was an absolute game changer, empowering her with a confidence she hadn’t expected. She was comfortable telling Kellan what she wanted, and Kellan was beyond masterful at heeding her requests.
With Kellan, everything seemed smooth and effortless. Right down to the moment this morning when Kellan asked how she wanted to spend her birthday. Ashleigh had purposely left the day open. It was gorgeous outside, sunny and clear, and on the spot she decided they should check out Hudson Yards, a space both artful and luxurious and new to the cityscape.
“So, ice cream, huh?” she said swinging their interlocked hands as they crossed the street.
“Let’s live on the wild side,” Kellan teased.
“Come on, slowpoke.” She tugged Kellan behind her as she followed the sound of the high-pitched jingle to the white and pink Mister Softee truck half a block down. “My treat.”
“Absolutely not.” Kellan reached for her wallet and touched one finger to Ashleigh’s nose before kissing it gently. “Birthday girl pays for nothing.”
“That’s ridiculous. I know you’re going to insist on buying dinner, so let me at least get this.”
“No.” Kellan’s smile could melt her. “What do you want?”
“Twist. On a cone. Chocolate sprinkles.”
“Perfect.” Kellan turned to the vendor and ordered two. For no other reason than the moment seemed right, she stood behind Kellan and draped her arms over both shoulders from behind, sort of hanging off her back. It was pure PDA, an overtly couple-y way to stand, but she felt Kellan relax into her embrace, and when the vendor served up the first cone, Kellan leaned back and kissed her before she gave it over.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
Ashleigh kissed her again simply because she wanted to, and she could. She stepped to the side but held on to Kellan’s hand as she licked her cone.
“Miss McAllister. Hi.”
Ashleigh wiped her mouth with a paper napkin as three of her honors students formed a semicircle around her. “Hi, guys. How’s summer?”
“Great.” Salem answered for the group. Made sense, even in this crew of overachievers Salem was the natural leader. She saw Clive and Kelsey exchange a glance and was suddenly hyperaware that she was still holding Kellan’s hand. “We just checked out Hudson Yards,” Salem continued.
“Oh my God, you gotta see it, Miss M. The Vessel is so cool. It’s like a giant tessellation. It reminded me the of the M.C. Escher art we studied last year.”
“Yes, Clive. Exactly.” She didn’t hide her excitement at her star math pupil’s understanding of the architecture and the geometry involved in creating it. It was half the reason she wanted to see it up close. Genuine curiosity and the unique views the sixteen-story honeycomb-like structure boasted were part of the allure, but she was dying to use New York’s lates
t redevelopment project in her fall curriculum.
“We were just headed that way.” She gestured to Kellan, who was making a serious dent in her ice cream. “This is my friend from Colorado.” She wiped a line of vanilla melting down the side of her cone. “Kellan, these are my students—Salem, Clive, and Kelsey.”
“Hi.” Kellan waved.
“Wow, Colorado. Cool,” Clive said, giving her a thorough once-over.
“Nice. I hope Miss McAllister is showing you all the fun stuff,” Salem said.
“Yes. Ash—Miss McAllister—is a great tour guide.”
These were some of the sharpest kids in the city. Ashleigh knew they were picking up on the vibe between her and Kellan. She made a quick circular lick at the base of her cone, ticking her head in the direction of Hudson Yards. “We should be on our way. Enjoy the rest of your break, guys.”
“See ya, Miss M.” Clive waved as the threesome started backing away.
She hooked her ice-cream free hand through Kellan’s arm. “You ready?” But as they started in the direction of the exhibit, she heard the kids call her name, and when she turned around she was met with a trio of smiles and six thumbs up. She shook her head at them but couldn’t help but smile at their support. Even her students were Team Kellan.
* * *
Ashleigh reached for Kellan’s hand as they exited the restaurant into the warm Brooklyn night. “What I love about tapas is that I’m never too full when I’m done.”
“What I love about tapas is that it sounds like topless,” Kellan joked. “And that is a style of dining I can completely get behind.”
“You can’t even sleep without a shirt on.”
“Fair point.” Kellan brought their linked hands to her lips. “But I was more suggesting you naked, me watching.”
“Yeah, that’s gonna end well.”
“I beg your pardon. I foresee a completely satisfying outcome.”
She couldn’t help but laugh. Everything about today had been perfect. Morning sex with a series of stellar orgasms. Ice cream for lunch. Magnificent pics of the Hudson Yards Vessel she would definitely be able to build a lesson plan around come September, and finally dinner at her favorite Spanish restaurant in Park Slope.
Brooklyn Summer Page 16