“Sure.”
Within a minute or two she was back, and she slid under the covers and moved close to him.
He wrapped his arms around her. “That was nice.”
“It was.”
“I didn’t hurt you?”
She gave a little shake of her head. “No.”
“I am sorry if I was rough. But it’s your fault. You shouldn’t have been so sexy.”
She laughed and lifted her face to his. “You’re very sweet.”
He kissed her, and when he finally pulled away, her eyelids were drooping. “Get some sleep,” he instructed. His ran his hands lightly down her back, over her hip, then back up again. “As much as you can, anyway. I’ll be waking you in the night.”
She looked up at him. “You promise?”
“Absolutely. I’m going to make the most of having you in my bed while you’re here.”
She licked her lips, then rested her head on the pillow. “Goodnight, Kole.”
“’Night, Tasha.”
She fell asleep quickly, her breathing soon turning regular, her body relaxing.
But Kole would lay awake for a while, thinking about the way she’d given herself to him, and how he’d felt when she came in his arms.
Chapter Fifteen
When Tasha awoke, darkness still shrouded the room. The open curtains revealed only a black sky, and no sign of early sunlight. What was the time? Three, four a.m.? There was no point in trying to look for a clock; she wouldn’t be able to read it without her glasses on. She normally slept like a log all night, and rarely roused. What had awoken her?
She lay on her front, arms around the pillow, Kole’s warm body pressed close to hers. The answer to her final question came with a brush of fingers up her back.
She gave no sign she was awake as he stroked her. Long, gentle traces of his fingers down her spine, then back up her ribs, up over her shoulders, and down again, over and over. How long had he been doing that?
He shifted in the bed, and then she felt the touch of his lips on her shoulder. He pressed soft, light kisses, peeling back the duvet slowly as he gradually moved down her spine. Down, and farther down, both lips and fingers skating across her skin, light and sensual.
Arriving at her hips, he pulled back the rest of the duvet, leaving her lying there naked, the cool air from the ceiling fan wafting over her. His lips touched the hollow at the small of the back, and she inhaled as she felt the warm wetness of his tongue there.
He kissed over the swell of her bottom, then shifted again so he could continue down her thighs to the backs of her knees.
Tasha lay there, almost holding her breath. How many times could this man surprise her? Even though she’d hoped he’d be able to show her a thing or two, normally he was so outspokenly lusty and matter-of-fact when it came to sex, she’d expected him to be a typical guy and take his pleasure from her without giving much thought to what she got out of it.
She hadn’t expected this…seduction. This exploration of her body. His insistence that his partner’s pleasure was more important to him. His all-consuming, overwhelming desire.
He reached her foot, and his tongue trailed over her ankle bone. Her internal muscles twinged. She kept quiet though. If she let on she was awake, he might stop.
He swapped to the other leg and began to kiss back up, and Tasha’s heart rate rose. She could hardly see anything in the room, the darkness heightening her other senses. She was becoming just a bundle of nerve endings. Everything tingled, tightened, ached.
He kissed up to the top of her thigh, and then ran his tongue ever so slowly up the crease of her bottom cheeks. She closed her eyes tightly. At the top, he gave a small nibble of her flesh, and she had to bite her lip to stop herself moaning.
His lips continued up her spine to her shoulders, and he lifted himself up and leaned over her. Her heart thundered.
He bent and kissed her neck, then beneath her ear. Then he whispered, “Turn over.”
Tasha’s eyes flew open. He knew she was awake? She froze for a moment, embarrassed to admit she’d heard him. What would he do if she didn’t reply? Go back to sleep?
He took her earlobe in his mouth and bit hard enough to make her gasp. When he spoke again, his voice was firm, with a hint of a smile. “Do as you’re told.”
Do as you’re told? She wanted to tell him to get lost—she wasn’t his plaything, there for his own private amusement. He couldn’t order her around. She was a modern woman, for God’s sake! She didn’t take orders from men.
But she didn’t. Instead, she rolled onto her back and shifted to lie beneath him. He towered over her, an even darker shadow against the blackness, blocking out the faint glimmer of starlight cast by the Milky Way behind him.
“Good girl.” Now his voice definitely held amusement.
Any protest she may have given was smothered by his kiss, which blew all thoughts away like gunpowder. Because in spite of the way he’d aroused her slowly, it wasn’t a gentle, why-don’t-you-wake-up-and-we’ll-see-what-happens kind of kiss. It packed enough heat to melt lead, and as his tongue played with hers and he murmured his appreciation, she felt the press of his erection against her hip, long and hard, more than ready for her.
But he lifted his lips and continued his leisurely arousal of her, kissing down her neck to her breasts, where he spent a while licking and teasing her nipples to hard points that he nibbled with his teeth. When she squirmed, he lifted his head and scolded, “Lie still,” before moving between her legs and continuing to kiss to her stomach.
She looked up into the darkness, sucking on her bottom lip and trying not to wriggle as his mouth moved oh-so-unhurriedly down. He dipped his tongue into her navel, kissed across her stomach, and then his lips brushed her pubic hair. He shifted once more, lowering himself onto the bed between her thighs.
Tasha held her breath, tensing as she waited for the first brush of his tongue. It didn’t come immediately, though. Instead his warm breath caressed her, and then he blew gently down and back up again, sending tingles all the way through her. She fought not to let out a protracted groan.
He continued to take his time, moving up her legs, then pushing her knees apart, but her legs felt taut and fought his pressure to fall open, even though she was desperate for him to kiss her. He stroked her thighs, and she knew he was asking her to relax, but she just couldn’t. She felt like an overwound watch, tight and tense with anticipation, too nervous and excited and awkward to relax enough to open completely to him.
So he kissed her thighs, stroked her skin, and only when she grew used to his fingers and some of the tenseness faded did he finally touch the part of her that by now was aching for release.
His fingers stroked down, then parted her lips before sliding inside her. He brought up some of her moisture and caressed her for a while, his fingers moving easily through her to circle her clit. And only then did he finally lower his mouth.
Tasha couldn’t stop a low “aaah” of pleasure escaping her lips as he brushed his warm tongue through her core. He stroked up her thigh as if responding with pleasure to her exhalation, and when she dropped her hand to rest on her hip, his fingers tightened on hers briefly before returning to between her legs.
He began slowly, with long, gentle strokes of his tongue, then trying short flicks with the tip, and she realized he was trying to find out what she liked, what made her sigh, and what caused her to groan and arch her back. So she whispered her approval when he sucked, tightened her hands in his hair when he gave the long, slow licks, and when he slid two fingers inside her, she moaned and gave small thrusts of her hips.
He was so gentle, so tender, giving the occasional sexy murmur when she responded to his touch, his hand warm on her thigh. And gradually, as pressure began to build inside her, she let go of her final reserve, believing in him, trusting him, giving herself over to him. She opened her thighs wide and abandoned herself to the sensations spreading through her. It was like no orgasm she’d had b
efore, slow and unhurried, as if her muscles were being pulled together with a drawstring to a tight center of pleasure deep inside her that then pulsed in long, rhythmical contractions of pure bliss.
She exclaimed with each pulse, only half-conscious of tightening one hand in his hair while gripping the bedclothes with the other, but she did hear his deep, satisfied groan of contentment.
The pulses were only just dying away, like the last toll of a bell still echoing far off in the distance, when he lifted himself up and leaned over her. His erection rested against her stomach, hot and hard, and when he covered her mouth with his, she tasted her own arousal on his lips, musky and sweet.
He lifted his head, and she stuck her tongue out. Not sure whether he could see it in the darkness, she added, “Yuck.”
He chuckled and he leaned across to the bedside table before coming back to her, outlined in silver by the stars behind him. She heard the sound of a packet being torn open.
“I was going to go to sleep,” she said, her heart picking up its pace again. “Trust a guy to be so selfish.”
In answer, he took her hand and closed it around his erection, placed his hand on top of hers, and gave it several long, smooth strokes. Her jaw fell open at the feel of the soft skin sliding over his thick, hard length, and her mouth watered. He moved his hand away, but she left hers there, continuing to stroke him. “Are you sure you don’t want me to return the favor?” she asked, her voice sounding husky even to her. “I’d like to taste you.”
“No,” he said. “I want to fuck you.”
Tasha inhaled sharply, her hand pausing, and he removed it by the wrist so he could roll on the condom. She’d thought herself unshockable, but his unashamed announcement left her speechless, and she had to swallow to remove the dryness from her mouth.
Still astride her, he leaned forward and bent to brush his lips against hers.
“At some point, I’ll be happy to fuck your mouth,” he stated, “but for now, I want to fuck you from behind. If that’s okay with you.” His tone suggested it was a rhetorical question and she didn’t have much of a choice.
She looked up at him, overwhelmed by the sheer masculinity he exuded—his muscular arms braced either side of her, his demanding tone, his forcefulness and power.
In a normal situation, she’d have lifted her chin and defied him.
But this wasn’t a normal situation.
Heart thundering, she turned onto her front, and he shifted behind her, widening her legs to kneel between them. He pushed one of her knees up, and without further ado, slid his hand down the cheeks of her bottom, his fingers probing to find the opening beneath and slipping inside.
She gasped and bit the pillow, and he gave a deep, throaty laugh and extracted his fingers, only to replace them with the tip of his erection. Tasha braced herself for his thrust, but when it came, it was gentle, bringing with it a gradual sense of being expanded and filled as pushed his way into her.
He paused and rested his forehead on her shoulder, letting her adjust. Touched, she raised a hand and sunk it into his hair, turning to kiss his temple.
Kole dipped his head and kissed her on the mouth, hot and hard, and then began to move, long slow strokes that went deeper and deeper each time. She opened her thighs wide to give him a better angle, enjoying the position.
He slid his hand beneath her to tug at her nipples, then moved it down to between her legs to begin arousing her.
“You think you could come again for me?” he murmured as she moaned and rested her forehead on the pillow.
Oh yes. But she wasn’t going to let him have it all his own way. Two could play at the I-like-to-shock-you game.
“Maybe,” she whispered. “If you fuck me hard enough.”
He stopped, and she could picture the way his eyes had shot wide open in the dark, his eyebrows rising.
“And together,” she said. “If you can manage it.”
“You’re making demands now?” He nipped her ear.
She looked over her shoulder, meeting his lips. “Afraid of the challenge?”
“Never.” He kissed her. “How hard. Like this?” He thrust firmly.
“Oh.” She bit her lip, her body singing with pleasure. “Harder.”
He did it again, firmer this time. “Like this?”
“Oh, fuck. Yeah. Harder.”
He muttered a curse and thrust again, his hips meeting hers with a sharp smack, and she cried out with delight.
“Jeez, Tasha.” He continued at the same pace, grunting with each push. “You’re not doing my blood pressure any good.”
“Oh God.” The top of her head touched the headboard, and she held onto the slats tightly. “Don’t stop.”
“Couldn’t. If I. Wanted. To.”
She would have laughed if she wasn’t so turned on. “Oh…Kole…”
“Tell me…you’re close.”
“Not far.” She was going to end up with a bruise on her head, but at that moment she couldn’t have cared less. “Please…Keep going.”
His hand gripped the wooden slat above hers, the muscles of his arm hard as iron when she rested her cheek against them. “Fuck…”
She could feel his traitorous body tightening. “Hey, wait…” She bit his wrist as a warning.
Unfortunately, however, that pushed him over the edge. His hips jerked, and he gave a long groan as his climax swept over him.
Tasha gripped his hair tightly, loving his harsh breathing, adoring the way he couldn’t hold back. He thrust and he thrust, and it was enough to tip her over too. Her orgasm took her swiftly, and she was only partly conscious of his loud complaints as she clamped around him, her muscles squeezing and milking him dry.
When she’d done, she looked over her shoulder. The sky had lightened enough for her to see the exasperated look on his face.
“You came before me,” she accused him. “I get to punish you for that.”
He gave a small laugh. “I look forward to it.” Then he bent and kissed her. His mouth was soft and gentle, full of tenderness, and a wave of affection washed over her.
He withdrew, disposed of the condom, and collapsed onto the bed beside her, and she curled up next to him.
“Can I sleep now?” She pretended to complain, although their lovemaking had filled her with a warm glow that had nothing to do with the early summer warmth.
“Be my guest.” He yawned. “I can’t make any promises for the morning, though.”
He fell asleep almost immediately. Tasha watched his chest rise and fall, and saw the first rays of the sun turn the hairs on his chest golden. And her mind was filled with his last gentle, tender kiss.
Chapter Sixteen
Tasha rolled into work fifteen minutes late.
Their boss tapped his watch as Tasha scurried in, and she mouthed “Sorry!” and sent him an apologetic look as she retrieved an apron and tied it around her waist.
She joined Maisey behind the counter that displayed rows of sandwiches, baked pastries, salads and pies. Maisey was in the middle of serving and just smiled wryly at her, and it was about ten minutes before the queue died down and they were finally able to talk.
“I guess I don’t need to ask where you’ve been,” Maisey said, stacking the shelves with more freshly-baked apple-and-cream-filled doughnuts.
“I don’t know what you mean.”
They exchanged a glance, and both started laughing.
“Have a good time?” Maisey asked. She closed the glass case, put the empty tray on the counter, and turned to survey her best friend.
“It was all right.” Tasha swept a pile of crumbs into the rubbish bin and stopped to wipe her hands on a cloth. She faced Maisey and adjusted her glasses, feeling suddenly awkward. “I feel a bit odd talking to you about it.”
“Yeah, me too.” Maisey’s characteristic sunny smile seemed a little dimmer than normal.
Tasha scratched at a piece of chocolate that had stuck to the counter. She hadn’t given any thought to how Ma
isey would feel about her fling with Kole. Maisey’s personality usually matched her clothing—bright, haphazard, and youthful. Beneath her apron she wore a black miniskirt and a pink T-shirt, and she’d piled her hair on top of her head and secured it with a glittery band. Her makeup was, as always, immaculate, her nails perfectly manicured and the same shade of pink as her top. She even walked with a bounce in her step, and Tasha adored her infectious laugh.
But there was a darker side to Tasha’s best friend very few people knew about. After Harry died when she was nineteen, Maisey had sunk into a deep depression she’d struggled with all through uni. On the surface, to those who didn’t know her well, she always appeared happy and bubbly, but she’d had to drag herself out of bed every morning, and some days she hadn’t even been able to manage that. Eventually, she’d found a suitable medication that helped her to deal with it, and since then she’d coped better. But several times a year she still suffered from the occasional bouts where she would take a few days off work and disappear into her room to wrestle the old black dog into submission.
The last thing Tasha wanted to do was upset her, and she wished she’d spoken to Maisey about Kole beforehand. But there hadn’t really been time—the whole episode on the beach had sprung up out of nowhere. Still, that didn’t mean she shouldn’t talk about it now.
More customers came through the door, though, making it impossible to chat. “Let’s catch up at lunch,” Tasha suggested.
“Sure.” Maisey turned to serve the next in line.
Mondays were always busy, and the girls worked flat out until one o’clock, when they were finally able to take a break. They bought a couple of rolls and made themselves a takeaway coffee, then walked to a nearby small park where mothers pushed children on swings, and dogs chased each other across the grass. The Northland sun beamed down, and neither of them had brought jackets.
Tasha took a bite from her steak roll, the taste reminding her of Kole’s meal at the restaurant.
Treat with Caution (Treats to Tempt You Book 1) Page 11