by C. C. Wood
I stroked him slowly, reveling in his gasps and obvious enjoyment of my touch. Suddenly, he rolled over me to stand by the sofa. He removed his shoes and socks and shucked his jeans and underwear in one smooth motion. My eyes devoured him. He was lean and athletic, his muscles defined but not bulky. His shoulders were broad, but tapered into a taut waist, the tight muscles of his abdomen flexing slightly as though he could feel my eyes like a physical touch. My gaze skimmed over his groin and I felt heat rise in my cheeks. While I knew I was staring, I couldn’t seem to stop myself.
My eyes finally lifted to his and there was no green left in his irises. Only vibrant blue that shimmered like gems. I couldn’t speak as Charles leaned over and unbuttoned my jeans. When he slid down the zipper, I could barely hear it over the pounding of my heart. I wanted his hands and his mouth on me again, but a wave of shyness crashed over me.
I grabbed his hands as they hooked into the waist of my pants. “Wait.”
His eyes met mine and he immediately seemed to understand that I was nervous. Charles leaned forward and laid his lips on mine. The kiss was sweet, gentle, comforting.
“It’s just you and me and we have plenty of time,” he murmured when he lifted his head.
I felt my eyes burn at his words. Somehow he knew exactly what I needed to hear. “It’s been a….long time for me,” I whispered. “I haven’t, uh, been with anyone since before my divorce.”
He ran his fingers through the hair at my temple. “Just kiss me. We’ll get to the rest.”
Naked, he knelt next to the sofa, kissing me as if we really did have all the time in the world and he was content to spend it touching me, tasting me. His hands moved over my body slowly, surely, but without urgency.
I broke the kiss as the throbbing between my thighs increased until it felt like a drum beat. “Okay, I’m ready now.”
He smiled at me and, together, we peeled my jeans down my legs. He pulled them off and they landed on the floor next to the couch. His hand flattened on my stomach just above the waistband of my navy satin panties. The muscles trembled beneath his touch.
Using only the tips of his fingers, he slowly trailed his hand from my belly button, across the satin that covered me, to my thighs. Once again, I sucked in a deep breath and forgot to exhale. When was the last time a man had touched me with such care? As if he couldn’t stop himself from caressing every part of me? Honestly, I couldn’t remember a single incident.
“Breathe,” he commanded in a soft voice. “Just breathe, Yancy. Let me touch you.” His other hand lifted until he cupped the tops of my thighs just above my knees. He moved my legs apart slightly, using his thumbs to massage my inner thighs as his hands inched upward until this thumbs met on the satin that covered me.
I knew the fabric was damp as he gently slid his thumb over my clitoris. I gasped at the contact on my throbbing flesh. It felt electric. My hips jerked as he continued to move his thumb in small, firm circles.
Too distracted by the sensations cascading through my body, I didn’t even hesitate to lift my lower body when his hands began to tug my panties down. Before I could freak out about being naked in front of a man for the first time in over a year, he lowered his body onto mine. His skin was incredibly hot and his delicious scent made me light-headed. I wanted to rub myself against him like a cat and enjoy the contrast of my skin against the erotically rough texture of the hair on his chest and thighs.
He kissed me passionately, his hands more insistent than before. He levered his body up slightly and slid his fingers over my entrance, swirling over my clit before moving lower to press inside of me. I gasped, my thighs jerking apart slightly, as he moved one finger, then two, inside, pressing upward slightly. My nipples tightened and I moaned.
I reached between us and wrapped my fingers around him, stroking him slowly at first before tightening my grip slightly and moving more quickly. He continued to slide his fingers in and out of my body, but he used his thumb to torture my clit and I felt my muscles tightening as my orgasm gathered within me.
Suddenly, he stopped and sat up. I tried to reach for him, to pull him back down. For one wild second I thought that he changed his mind, which was ridiculous at this stage, but I wasn’t thinking clearly. He dug around in the pile of his clothes and came up with a condom in his hand. I realized he didn’t want to stop and relaxed back into the sofa. I watched as he tore open the condom and rolled it over his cock.
I spread my thighs further for him, my shyness destroyed by the need that swamped my body. I whimpered as he stretched over me, sliding his erection through the wet between my legs. His head came up at the sound, but I clutched his hips and undulated beneath him, telling him without words that I was fine. Slowly, he pressed inside me. Even though I was wet, my body resisted. Charles wasn’t rough or impatient. Instead, he lifted my thigh, opening me further, and he entered me completely. While it didn’t hurt, I gasped because I felt full.
He didn’t move for a few moments, allowing my body to adjust. Charles looked down at me, his eyes glittering brightly. “Okay?” he asked.
“Yes,” I said breathlessly. “More than okay.”
His mouth quirked before it came down on mine. As he kissed me, he began to move, slowly at first but then faster and deeper as I lifted my hips to meet his thrusts. I whimpered again, my nails digging into his back. The orgasm that simmered within me swelled. I felt the crest approaching yet I couldn’t go over. I hovered on the edge of release, the exquisite pleasure so intense it became agony. I gasped and felt my lower body tighten around Charles.
“You’re close,” Charles stated. It wasn’t a question, yet I still answered.
“Yes,” I whispered.
I couldn’t believe how quickly I felt the orgasm building from just his body inside mine. I’d never experienced this kind of overwhelming pleasure before. Charles rose on his knees, resting one hand on the arm of the sofa over my head. His other hand moved between us so that his thumb circled my clit. He slowed his thrusts. Now he seemed to be deeper within me, his cock pressing upward and rubbing against a place inside me that seemed to send fire through all my extremities.
With a sharp gasp, my entire body tightened before I exploded into an orgasm so intense that my vision filled with white light.
When I was able to see again, I realized that I had both arms and legs wrapped around Charles, my mouth locked on his neck, as he crashed into me. His arms came beneath me, one hand fisting in my hair and the other beneath my lower back, lifting my hips to his. A few moments later, he groaned and shuddered as he climaxed. He continued to thrust into me gently for a few moments, his face buried in my neck as mine was pressed against his.
Finally, he pulled out of me, causing a shiver to run up my spine. He lifted his head to look into my eyes. His hair was messy, spiked in several directions from my hands, and his eyes were heavy-lidded.
He didn’t speak, merely touched my face, his thumb tracing my cheekbone. Then he kissed me. I felt the same shifting inside me as before, only this time it felt enormous, as though the walls I used to protect my heart were shaken to their very foundation.
Charles reached over my head to the side table and grabbed a tissue from the box I kept there. He wrapped the used condom in it and set it on the floor next to his pants. Then he rolled off of me, against the back of the sofa. I followed so that we were lying face to face.
Even though we weren’t speaking, the silence didn’t feel awkward. Instead, I felt as though his actions said more than he could with words alone. Charles used his hand to tuck my face against his chest and slid a leg between mine.
When he did finally speak, I felt the vibrations of his words against my ear.
“Let me stay tonight,” he said.
Again, though he hadn’t phrased it as a question, I knew he was asking rather than commanding.
I laid a kiss on the center of his chest and said, “Yes.”
Chapter Twenty-One
THE NEXT MORNING, I woke
up pressed against Charles’ back. He was lying partially on his stomach, and I was sprawled across his body with my head resting on his shoulder and my leg thrown over his hips. We were both naked.
I lay there without moving for a while, just breathing in his scent and letting the memories of last night wash over me. We never did finish the movie. After we made love and Charles held me for a long time, we decided we were ravenous. Though he wanted me naked, he understood that I was still a little shy, so he pulled his shirt over my head. It was slightly snug around my breasts, but fell to the tops of my thighs. I pulled on my panties and he grabbed his boxer-briefs.
We raided my refrigerator and I sat on the counter while Charles stood between my legs. We fed each other and shared a bottle of beer. At one point, the cold beer bottle pressed against my breast and I felt my nipples harden at the chill.
Charles grasped his shirt and gathered the sides so that the material was taut over my breasts. Then he used his other hand to tug and roll my nipples between his fingers. When I moaned, he shoved the shirt above my breasts and sucked one of my nipples into his mouth. He nibbled, licked, and sucked on my breasts until I was writhing on the counter, close to begging him to make love to me again.
Suddenly, he stopped, his entire body going rigid.
“Shit,” he groaned.
“What?” I gasped.
“I only brought one condom.” He slowly lowered the shirt over my breasts. “I can run down to the drug store in a few minutes.” He looked pointedly down at the erection jutting from his body.
“I have some.”
His head whipped up. “What?”
My throat felt tight, but I cleared it and said, “When Leslie came to get Carolena, she, uh, left a box for me. It was her way of encouraging me to, well….” His eyes narrowed, so I began babbling, trying to explain. “After dinner, when we were lying on the couch, just knowing they were up there if I wanted to use them…” I paused. My next words were whispered. “I couldn’t think of anything else.”
Charles smirked. “I am pretty hot.”
Like that, the awkwardness dissipated and I rolled my eyes. “Never mind. I was lying about the condoms. You need to go get more.”
Charles positioned my legs so they were wrapped around his waist and lifted me up off the counter with his hands on my ass. “Nope. I have a feeling that the doors and windows will be locked or barred when I come back.”
I laughed as he carried me out of the kitchen. I made him put me down before he carried me up the stairs. “Safety first.”
Chuckling, he pulled me upstairs behind him. Then he made love to me again. Afterwards, I wearily dragged myself into the bathroom to go through my usual night time routine of brushing my teeth and washing my face. Then I crawled back into bed with Charles, rested my cheek against his pectoral, and promptly fell asleep.
Now, in the bright light of day, I was lying on top of him, staring at the play of sunshine and shadows on the wall. I shifted slowly, not wanting to wake him. I needed to pee but I fully intended to return and snuggle up next to him.
I climbed out of bed, yanked his t-shirt over my head, and went into the bathroom. After I took care of my morning business, washed my hands, and brushed my teeth, I opened the door to find Charles lying on his side, his beautiful blue green eyes sleepy as he looked at me.
As I approached the bed, his hand reached out to snag my wrist and he rolled, pulling me over him so I landed on my back in the center of the mattress. Before I had time to regain my equilibrium, he yanked his shirt off of me so that I was once again naked.
After last night, I felt a little more comfortable with my nudity around him. It would be a while before I could parade around naked as he had yesterday, but, since he wasn’t wearing clothes either, it didn’t bother me as much as I expected. I giggled as he threw the comforter over both of us and pulled me tightly against him. I was surprised that I didn’t feel awkward. The morning after was not something I’d dealt with in a long while.
Instead, I was ecstatic. Charles asked to stay last night, he wanted to be with me and not just for sex. I cuddled closer, enjoying the feel of his hands on my body as they stroked my bare back.
“Good morning, gorgeous,” he muttered, kissing my temple.
I smiled against his chest. “Good morning.”
“How’d you sleep?” he asked.
“Okay. I’m not used to having a man in my bed.”
I laughed when he responded, “Me either.”
We settled into one another, Charles trailing his hand up and down my spine and me tracing random patterns on his chest.
“What time do you need to pick up Carolena?” he asked.
“Hmmm, I’m not sure. Maybe ten.” I glanced at the clock and saw that it was 7:30. So much for sleeping in.
“Good.”
I gasped as Charles rolled onto his back, taking my body with him and dislodging the sheets and blankets. He grabbed my thighs, yanking them up so that I straddled his hips. I realized then that he was hard and ready.
I shifted my hips and the ridge of his erection lined up perfectly with my clit.
“That’s very good,” I agreed, just before he kissed me and did other things that did indeed verify his goodness.
An hour and a half later, I was in the kitchen, scrambling eggs for breakfast while Charles made coffee. After our morning romp, he’d insisted on ‘helping’ me shower. While I dried my hair and put on a little make-up, he brushed his teeth with one of the new toothbrushes I kept stashed in my bathroom and went downstairs to gather his clothes.
“Do you have any plans for the day?” Charles asked.
I shrugged. “Not really.”
He came up behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist, and resting his chin on my shoulder. “How about you and Carolena spend the day with me? We can go to the zoo or to the park.”
I felt as though someone were squeezing my heart. “Sure. The zoo is one of her favorite places.”
His arms tightened around me slightly before he released me and grabbed his freshly brewed coffee from the Keurig. “While you go get Lena, I’ll run home and change clothes and meet you back here. Since the zoo is her favorite, we can go there.”
I nodded. I had no words because I realized that I wasn’t falling in love with Charles Faulkner. I was already in love with him. With a few simple, sincere words, I’d gone from liking him a great deal, to loving him. All because he seemed just as eager to spend time with me regardless of whether my daughter was with me or not.
Apparently, my brain might think I should take things slowly, but my heart had its own agenda.
THE REST OF the weekend was great. I fell headlong into the fantasy that we could be a family; Charles, Carolena, and I. Watching him with my daughter, the easy, open affection he not only showed her, but also me, made me wish for things. Things that were too deep for a relationship as young as ours.
On Monday, still floating on the high of new love and great sex, I went to work with a smile on my face. I had a lunch scheduled with the girls today. Charles seemed slightly disappointed when I told him I wasn’t free, but didn’t pout or seem angry. He made me promise to eat with him on Wednesday.
Nothing could get me down as I worked steadily through the morning. I felt more focused and energetic than I had in over a year. When lunch time rolled around, I locked up my office and practically bounced down stairs.
I saw Tanya and Grier standing in line at the coffee shop and headed their way. Smiling, I headed toward them.
“Hey! How was your weekend?”
Tanya stared at me, a speculative gleam in her eye. “My weekend wasn’t nearly as good as yours.”
“What do you mean?” I asked, confused.
“Well, for starters, I didn’t have sex.”
I shushed her, looking around to make sure that no one had heard her. “Jesus, Tanya, could you at least wait until we’re not surrounded by strangers to talk like that?”
She ro
lled her eyes. “If anyone heard me, I’m sure they know that many adults, including you apparently, have sex.”
I glared at her. “Zip it or I will talk about statistics the whole lunch hour.”
Tanya sighed, but shut her mouth. She hated when I started talking numbers. She said it made her head hurt and that one statistics class in college ten years ago was more than enough for her. Grier merely smiled at me.
A few minutes later, Chelsea joined us.
She took one look at me and said, “Someone got laid.”
Exasperated, I hissed, “You can’t tell that just by looking at me and quit saying it so loudly!”
Grier and Tanya both laughed so hard they had to wipe tears from their eyes. I tried to ignore them.
Ten minutes later, we were all seated at a table in the atrium, eating our lunch, and the girls questioned me without mercy.
“So, you were with Charles?” Tanya asked.
I blushed and nodded, but didn’t offer a verbal response.
Tanya sighed impatiently. “Well, spit it out. I need details. I’m too swamped at work to think about dating, much less sex. I wish I had a friend with benefits. Or even an acquaintance with benefits.”
“No, Tanya. I’m not going to share every little detail with you guys. I’m not comfortable with that.”
Tanya started to argue, something she could do all day long, but Grier put a hand on her arm. “Tanya, leave Yancy alone. She doesn’t like to kiss and tell.”
Chelsea interrupted before Tanya could continue protesting. “If you won’t tell us about the nookie, tell us everything else.”
So I did. I told them about my sister showing up and taking Carolena for the night and Charles making us dinner. I told them about Charles wanting to spend the day with my daughter and me and how affectionate, fun, and wonderful he’d been.
When I finished my story, Chelsea said, “If the sex is any good, which, judging by the smile on your face, it is, I’m going to have to kill you and take your place. Charles sounds like a fantastic guy.”