Between the Lines

by T Gephart

  By some miracle we’d navigated our way to his room, stripping and kissing the entire way, and leaving a trail of discarded clothes in our wake. Not once did he stop touching me, blindly guiding us to his bed until my back hit the mattress.

  “Jesus, you have the most amazing body.” His eyes roamed over every inch of my skin while he kneeled on the bed above me. “I’m trying to take this slow, but I really don’t think I’m going to be able to.”

  He looked huge above me, the hard angles of his toned chest and abs more defined as he sucked in slow, deep breaths. I’d seen him with his shirt off, held his cock as I jerked him off, and even with all of that, he was still more impressive than I’d imagined.

  “It’s not my body that’s amazing.” My hands moved across his chest, the tips of my fingers rippling over each muscle. “I totally see why you’re so cocky now; no false advertising here.”

  Every part of him was spectacular but he didn’t give me a chance to continue my appreciation, following me down onto the mattress and covering me with his body. “I’m glad you like what you see. But right now it’s kinda gone beyond looking, baby, and I need to taste you.”

  His mouth pressed against my skin, kissing and licking my neck as his hands snaked down. I loved the way it felt, the greedy kisses followed his hands lower and lower as my breathing got quicker.

  “So. Fucking. Hot.” He punctuated each word with a kiss, wrapping his fingers around my thighs and spreading them open as he lowered his mouth.

  I couldn’t even think, his tongue flattening against my core before I fully registered what was happening as a heated moan spilled from my lips.

  “Jesus, Justin.” My back arched, leaning into him as he alternated between kissing and licking. “That feels so good.”

  Good was an understatement, my body tingling as my mind took a mental vacation. I’d had men go down on me before, and most of the time it was pretty good. But Justin was on a whole other level, his mouth doing things to me that I didn’t even know were possible. It had started slow and languid, picking up speed and intensity before backing off right when I thought I couldn’t stand it anymore.

  It was like he could read my body, sensing all my cues and giving me just enough to make me feel crazy but not so much to send me over the edge.

  Insanity.

  Delicious.

  Incredible.

  Insanity.

  “Oh God.” My breathing increased, the heat traveling up my spine as he inserted first one finger and then two, pumping as his mouth continued its assault. I wasn’t even sure I was still in my body, everything feeling so hypersensitive it was entirely possible my spirit had evacuated.

  “Please, Justin, please,” I begged, clawing at his shoulders and needing more.

  “Mmmhmm,” he mumbled against my core, refusing to let me come as he continued to tease. “I love it when you beg.”

  He was enjoying it, thrilled beyond measure while I was slowly losing my goddamn mind. “Justin, if you don’t—”

  “If I don’t what?” he asked, thrusting his fingers in deeper as his thumb circled my clit. “I think I’m doing exactly what I should be.”

  The sadist smiled, dropping his mouth back between my legs as I felt myself explode.

  “Oh God, oh God,” I panted, my fingers gripping his hair as my body shook. It was too much, the waves of pleasure unrelenting as his tongue slowed, showing me mercy.

  “You’re so beautiful when you come.” He moved his mouth back up my body, keeping his fingers buried inside me as he kissed up my torso. “I could get off just from watching you.”

  His voice was desperate, raspy, and dripping with so much need it made me feel powerful. I liked it, knowing he was on a hair trigger and I’d been the one to cause it.

  “Nope, I want to be the one who gets you off.” I pulled at his body, pressing my tits to his chest as I rubbed against him. He was rock hard, a groan escaping his lips as I slid my slick center up and down his shaft.

  My legs wrapped around his waist, keeping him caged as I rocked my hips. Each glide up and down got him harder, his cock pulsing against me as he sucked in hard ragged breaths.

  “Tessa,” he breathed out on a growl. “Either I put on a condom right the hell now or I’m going to fuck you without one. I’ve never done that before, but I swear, if you don’t stop, you’re going to be my first.”

  It was tempting, the idea of him plunging into me bare so freaking appealing. But I resisted, knowing it was the sex endorphins talking and I wasn’t in the right mind to be making those decisions.

  I kissed his neck, my hands sliding down his chest as I circled my hips. “Please tell me you have one, I need you inside of me.”

  He cursed, a string of “fucks” dropping from his lips as his hand reached between us and steadied my hips. “I’m serious, Tessa. You’re driving me crazy and I want you so fucking bad.”

  “I want you too, Justin.” His eyes darkened as I said his name, both of us panting as he reached into his nightstand and pulled out a condom.

  His body lifted off me, shuffling to his knees as he tore open the packet and slid the latex down his shaft. He didn’t waste time with theatrics, back on me the moment he was covered and teasing my opening with his cock.

  The heat in his gaze intensified as he slowly sunk into me, my name halfway between a gasp and a moan as it spilled from his lips.

  “Yes,” I begged, the sweet friction intoxicating. “More.”

  “You feel so good,” he gritted out as he withdrew and then plunged back in. “So. Fucking. Good.”

  My head nodded, my ability to speak lost with each thrust of his hips.

  If I thought what he’d done with his mouth and his hands had been amazing, it wasn’t even close to how hot and wet he was making me with his cock. And either I’d forgotten how awesome it could be or it had never been that good.

  “God, you’re beautiful. You’ve been all I could think about since that night at the bar.” His lips dropped to mine as he took my mouth, the taste of me still on his tongue. “I want to go slow with you, Tessa, but I just can’t.” It was an apology, the precursor as his muscles tightened and he unleashed.

  It was raw, primal—the two of us in a tangle of sweat-soaked limbs as we battled to set the tempo. I wasn’t even sure who was in control, our bodies rocking as we clawed at each other like savages.

  “Justin,” I warned, fairly positive I was either going to come or lose my goddamn mind. “Don’t stop, please don’t stop.”

  “Never,” he ground out. “Not when I can feel how close you are.”

  With one last push he sent me over the edge, my fingernails digging into his back as my whole body seized.

  Yes.

  Yes.

  Yes.

  I wasn’t sure if I was saying it or just thinking it, everything tingling inside as wave after wave of euphoria washed over me.

  “Fuck, Tessa,” he cursed, sucking in a hard breath as he thrust into me. And that was all it took, his cock pulsing inside of me as he too found his finish, both of us panting out of control.

  I couldn’t move.

  Partly because Justin was plastered on top of me, and partly because I was positive my legs no longer worked. Something in me had probably short-circuited, every nerve in my body feeling like it had been electrocuted.

  Speaking was also out of the question, my vocabulary reduced to a series of whimpers as I kissed him.

  “So much for lunch, huh?” Justin chuckled, pushing himself up on his arms and lifting off me. “I promise I’ll still feed you.”

  Food was the last thing on my mind, the confliction of feelings and emotions tumbling in my head as I laid underneath him. I’d always suspected he’d be good in bed, but he was so far beyond that.

  “It better be good, Tibbs,” I warned, slightly concerned he wasn’t going to be as excited to have me spend the night since we’d already had sex. “Because if you dragged my ass into the city for a mediocre burger, I
’m going to be pissed.”

  Would he even want me to stick around? Want more? Or was the thrill of the chase over and he’d be looking for an excuse to push me out the door. And even with the uncertainty of where I stood, I didn’t even regret it, too buzzed from how good it had been.

  “Relax, Ricci, you’re in Manhattan now. Nothing mediocre about anything here.” He leaned down and kissed me gently. “We can go out or order in, it can totally be your choice.”

  He didn’t seem any different, and either was pacing himself or he wasn’t in a hurry to get rid of me.

  Interesting.

  “Let’s go out,” I offered, curious to see what the rest of the day had in store. And considering we’d never really discussed what the hell either of us were doing, I wasn’t exactly sure if the sex was a one-time deal or if it was something that would happen again. I knew what I wanted, and that was for it not to be over.

  There was no way I could deny the magnetic pull of Justin Tibbs, something I’d been fighting for a long time. And even though I’d tried to talk myself out of it, there was no way I could pretend that sleeping with him wasn’t amazing. I wouldn’t feel bad about it either, willing to accept the outcome and deal with it like an adult. After all, he hadn’t promised me anything, and I walked into it knowing exactly who he was.

  “Perfect,” his grin widened, “let’s get cleaned up and then we’ll head out.”

  With the decision made, he gently pulled out of me and rolled to his side. His lips lingered on my shoulder before planting his feet on the floor and lifting himself off the mattress. “Wanna get a shower with me?” His brow lifted suggestively as he held out his hand.

  Guess it wasn’t just a one-time deal for him either.

  “Surrrrrrre.” My lips twisted in a grin, not even pretending I didn’t know what plans he had for inside that shower. “Let’s go shower.”

  Justin

  TESSA RICCI’S BODY was perfect.

  Seriously, there wasn’t one thing about it I’d change. Everything from her tight abs and ass, to her amazing tits and toned legs.

  And touching her was my new favorite hobby.

  While my efforts to not jump right into bed with her had been commendable, I had to admit, I wasn’t that strong. And who wrote the rules that a ridiculous physical attraction meant all we’d ever be was fuck buddies?

  I’ll tell you who, nobody.

  All of it was complete bullshit, and while I absolutely wanted more than just sex with Tessa, there was no reason we had to deny ourselves either. And judging by the way she touched me, I’d say we were pretty much on the same page.

  Neither of us could keep our hands off each other in the shower. The washing took a back seat as I made her come with my mouth and hands at least two more times before finally shampooing her hair. And when it was her turn to wash me, she gave me a blowjob that was as close to a religious experience as I’ve ever had.

  Jesus.

  That mouth.

  It was almost unhealthy how much I was obsessed with her and that fucking mouth. Even when she was giving me shit, I loved it, hungry for every stupid thing that came from between those gorgeous lips.

  Once we were both dressed and decent, we left my apartment and headed out. It hadn’t even seemed weird, my hands gravitating to her as we walked to Gino’s, finding myself pulling her closer to me as we said hi to Vera and got seated at a table.

  “This is the best you got?” She smirked, glancing over the laminated menu.

  Like us, Ricci and her station had more than their fair share of Gino’s. The family-owned pizza place liked feeding first responders; we appreciated good food at decent prices, and they always made our orders a priority. Hell, they could have a pie from their oven to our stationhouse in less than ten minutes, and whenever one of us walked in, there was never a wait time. Which was why even though there were fancier places I would’ve liked to take her, we’d ended up at Gino’s. We’d already blown way past lunchtime, and if we didn’t eat soon, I was worried one of us was going to turn to cannibalism.

  “Listen, we could have totally gone to that new Italian place in the Village, but you distracted me in the shower. You’ve only got yourself to blame.” I could barely contain my grin.

  “Me?” she scoffed, “I think you’ll find it was you who started that. I was just minding my business, trying to get clean and you were—hands everywhere—intent on making us even later. And for the record, Tibbs, this isn’t even close to lunch.” She chuckled as she tapped her watch.

  “Yeah, you tell yourself whatever you need to, Ricci. We’ll just pretend you didn’t put on that show with your tits and the bodywash. Not sure how I was expected to ignore that?” I laughed, shrugging like I hadn’t enjoyed every single second of it.

  It didn’t even feel like a date, the conversation and the atmosphere so effortless it was like I was hanging out with Leighton. And that was rare, usually feeling like I needed to impress a girl or watch what I said or did, but with Tessa there was none of that. There was no pretense, no bullshit, and even though we’d had sex, she was still the same wiseass cop I’d always thought was pretty awesome.

  “What are you smiling at?” she asked, lowering her menu. Not sure why we were even bothering with the charade, I was almost positive we were both getting pizza. “You have a weird smirk on your face, and I don’t trust it.” Her finger pointed accusingly at my mouth.

  Yeah, whatever we were doing sure as hell wasn’t just dating.

  “You have issues,” I chuckled. “You’ve clearly spent too much time with criminals and deviants if you think a smile is a bad thing.” I dropped my own menu, folding my arms across my chest. “I’m smiling because it feels good, Ricci, no ulterior motive.”

  Part of that was a lie.

  Sure, it felt good to smile but it was more about how she made me feel. And since I didn’t fully understand it myself, I didn’t want to go ahead and advertise it. Besides, the last thing I wanted to do was change how easy it was between us.

  She shrugged, not fully buying my explanation. “Whatever, just as long as you don’t expect me to participate. Because, hello, that’s just fucking weird.”

  I laughed.

  Couldn’t have stopped myself even if I’d tried, loving she said whatever the hell she was thinking. There were no games, and that was so fucking refreshing I couldn’t believe how much I didn’t want it to end.

  “Hey Tibbs, Ricci.” Brooke, our waitress, lowered two plastic tumblers of water in front of us. “Ready to order or you need some more time?” She turned to Tessa before adding, “And by the way, I love your hair like that. You should wear it down more often.”

  Tessa—who apparently had no issue smiling for Brooke—grinned. “Thanks, but Cap will have my ass if I show up for a shift with it down. Uniform regulations.”

  Brooke nodded in sympathy. “Uniform regulations suck. Not to say I don’t get it, but seriously, it’s just hair, right?”

  “Right,” Tessa agreed.

  It would have been easy for her to correct Brooke and let her know why those regs existed. That apart from uniform regulations being in place so we looked professional and represented our units in the best way possible, it was also about safety. But Tessa didn’t go out of her way to make people feel bad, even if she knew she was right. It was something I’d noticed but never paid much attention to, her tendency to let things slide rather than make an issue. Funny how I’d never really appreciated it before.

  “Tibbs?” Tessa asked, her raised brow hinting it hadn’t been the first time she’d said my name.

  “Huh? Sorry, wasn’t paying attention,” I admitted, not wanting to give her anything but the truth. “What were you saying?”

  Tessa rolled her eyes, shooting Brooke a grin like they were sharing some inside joke. “I said, I’m getting the cheese pizza and a serving of mozzarella sticks. Did you want a beer or soda?”

  She hadn’t even asked me what I’d wanted to order. Getting the chee
se pizza because she knew I was a purest and didn’t like extra toppings screwing up my pie, and the mozzarella sticks because who didn’t like fried cheese dipped in marinara? It was what I usually ordered when we came in as a group, and I guess she’d been paying attention.

  “Beer, draft,” I offered, a warm feeling spreading across my chest as I handed Brooke back the menu. “Thanks.”

  “Make that two. Thanks so much, say hi to your uncle in the kitchen for us.” Tessa smiled, also handing back her menu.

  Could it really be that easy?

  Because if little things like remembering my order made me feel like a rock star, then how awesome was it going to be when she actually did something big? No wonder Leighton and North had been so hardcore, selling the virtues of relationships. Clearly, I’d been doing it wrong because this was nothing like I’d ever had.

  “So,” I rubbed my hands together, itching to reach across the table and touch her some more. “What are your plans for the rest of the week? I know you have work for the next five days. But what about the mornings before you start?”

  I wasn’t willing to wait until the weekend to spend time with her, knowing that with our schedules it wasn’t going to be easy. I’d take a few hours when I was rotated off before she had to head in if that was all I could get, the idea of not seeing her, surprisingly depressing.

  Yeah, that wasn’t going to work for me. And fuck pretending it did.

  “Well, usually I like to head to my dad’s gym, laundry, grocery shop.” She shrugged not fully understanding what I was asking. “The usual. Why? What did you have in mind?”

  “I really want to see you. You think we can make that happen?” I stopped fighting the urge and laced my fingers in hers. Why the hell had I even been resisting it in the first place? Being with her—touching her—felt good. And even though no one would assume we were a couple just because we were together—cops and firefighters had a tendency to hang out—I wanted to clear up the misconception she was just a friend.

  Her beautiful brown eyes lifted as they connected with mine, her teeth playing with her bottom lip. It was the first time I’d seen her hesitate, the flash of uncertainty not making me feel good.