He swallowed as best he could around the Sahara that was his throat. “Cressida…”
“I also know that I’m the one that’s been making all the moves here,” she said quietly. “I asked you to kiss me. I told you I wanted to have sex. A couple of times now,” she added. “I’m done making the moves. You can think about it, and if you decide to stay out here, I already told you, I don’t want to pressure you. But I wanted to be perfectly clear: I want you. I want to have sex with you tonight. And I’ll be waiting if you want the same thing.”
With that, she moved forward, pressing a gentle, too-fleeting kiss against his lips. Then she turned and strutted that perfect ass back to the sleeping cabin, shutting the door behind her.
It was like a match to kindling. His pulse pounded, and his blood roared. It was like desire gave his logical brain a round-house kick. He was done thinking, done hiding behind his conscience. She wanted him; he wanted her. He would figure out how to make it work after that.
I am not a fucking saint, he growled to himself.
Then he stripped out of his clothes, down to his boxers, and opened the sleeping compartment door.
She was in bed, already under the covers – it was cool, being January. In the dim light, her eyes looked huge.
“Yes?” she said, her voice raspy with desire.
“Yes,” he said, and stretched out next to her. “Hell yes.”
As Noah entered the sleeping cabin, Cressida felt a burst of excitement, and nerves. She wanted him, but she’d never been with anyone, and that made her anxiety start prickling. What if she was terrible? What if he were terrible, and she didn’t know how to tell him? What if it hurt?
She was trembling, because of the combination of thrill and anxiety, when he stretched out next to her, getting under the covers. She could feel the heat coming off of his skin, breathed that utterly masculine scent that was both clean and spicy/musky at the same time. Maybe it was his cologne, she thought absently.
Then he pressed against her. “Hi,” he said, his voice rumbly-low in the darkness, and she felt his hand stroke her shoulder, his fingers trailing down her arm.
“Hi,” she replied, shivering.
“You okay?”
“I will be,” she said, with more confidence than she felt. “As soon as you kiss me again.”
He leaned forward, and she felt him press against her, his bare chest against her tank-top. She reached up, framing his face with her hands, feeling the bristle of stubble underneath her fingertips. His mouth was firm, just this side of demanding as he pressed his lips against hers. With a slow, delicious slide, he slanted his mouth over hers.
She sighed, and all her anxieties and nerves melted in the face of sheer, unadulterated desire.
His tongue inched out, teasing her lips until she parted them, then tickled at the sensitive flesh of her inner lips before finally twining with her tongue itself. She gasped lightly and then, experimentally, tickled back with her own tongue. She was gratified to hear his responding growl, felt the tightening of his chest muscles as he tilted his body, his torso covering hers. Her nipples went hard as diamonds, and she arched her back. The friction of her nipples against the tank top material and his chest was enough to drive her mad. She threaded her fingers in the hair at the nape of his neck, kissing him fiercely, moaning low in her throat. Her hips squirmed as the junction of her thighs seemed to swell and pulse, driving her crazy. She tore away, breathing hard.
“Noah,” she panted. “Please…”
She wasn’t even quite sure what she was asking for, but her hips nudged against him. When he held her hips still, she muttered in protest.
“Hold on a sec, baby, just hold on,” he said, then reached down to her briefs. “You mind losing these?”
Did she mind? She had already started stripping them off before he finished the question. She all but tore off the tank, as well, until she was lying there naked. She started to reach for his boxers, and he let out a ragged laugh, stopping her.
“Noah!” It was part plea, part chastisement.
“God, I want you,” he said. “But I’m not going to just… I want to make sure you’re ready.”
“Believe me, I’m ready,” she swore. “I want you inside me.”
She felt him shudder. “Wait a minute,” he said, and then reached down, his fingers parting the curls of pussy.
She almost leapt off the bed, she was so sensitive. She was shivering like she was in the Arctic. He stroked down her slit, then back up until he found her clit. It was already tight and taut and more than ready for the attention he was giving her. She moaned, her hips angling upward, her legs parting, her body squirming.
He stroked, slow and firm, pressing against that nub until she could feel her body go damp and slick with passion. “That’s it, that’s it baby,” he urged her, spreading her wetness. Then she felt him move away from her. She was about to protest when he positioned himself between her legs.
“Oh!” She sat up, concerned. It just seemed so odd. She’d read about oral, obviously, and Hailey said that a good man made it a priority. But she felt self-conscious… down there.
She could just make out his smile in the dim light. “Don’t worry,” he reassured her, and she felt his hot breath against her inner thighs, making her tremble. With that, he leaned down, pressing his mouth against her core. She felt his first lick and she let out a low shriek, her hips jolting.
He held her still and tight against his mouth as his tongue began to move, stroking her inner petals, sucking on the hard knot of her clit until she was ready to scream. He moved his head, pressing hard, even using his teeth a little. She clutched at the bedsheets, her hips moving up to meet him, all thoughts of resistance disappearing.
Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God…
It was a litany that ran non-stop in her head as her body started to tighten, as she felt the pressure build up. She was moving quickly towards orgasm, and it was stronger than anything she’d ever felt with her vibrator. She was gasping, doing everything she could not to grab his head and just keep it there. She felt him shift a little, and then suddenly there was a finger at her opening. He pressed in slowly, inexorably, and she felt herself slowly filled, first with one finger, then two.
It was what she needed. With a sharp cry, she threw her head back as the orgasm ripped through her.
She was still breathing hard when she heard him ask, “you okay?”
“Never better,” she managed to say, with a broad smile.
“Now you’re ready,” he said, and she sighed in agreement.
“But are you?” she asked playfully. She scooted towards him, reaching for his boxers. Tugging them down, she carefully freed his cock. He groaned, and his hips moved towards her of their own accord, it seemed. Like he couldn’t help himself. She stroked him. They always wrote about penises in romance novels as amazingly hard and yet soft and smooth, and honestly, it hadn’t made that much sense. Or at least, it had made sense in theory. But oh, man, it was so much better in practice. His skin wasn’t as slippery as satin, wasn’t like velvet or silk. But the cock itself was hard as bone, and the skin was soft as a cloud. She stroked the cap, feeling the drop of pre-come at the tip. She stroked it over, imagining that what was good for her would be just as good for him. She was gentle, almost hesitant, until he covered her hand with his and squeezed harder. She moaned softly, mimicking his actions.
“Cressida,” he breathed. “Oh Christ. Your hands… so soft. You feel so damned good holding me.”
She kissed his chest, feeling the tickle of hair against her nose. She pressed against him, her nipples dragging against his skin, and she cuddled his cock with her stomach before shifting to position him between her thighs.
He went a little crazy. He started kissing her like it was keeping him alive, then moved his mouth lower, sucking in one breast, than another. His cock rubbed against her thighs, every now and then brushing against her pussy and causing her to lift her hips, inviting him in. Sh
e wrapped her legs around his.
“Noah,” she cried, and she felt the tip start to penetrate.
He backed out immediately. “Condom,” he said, his breathing ragged.
“Right.” She went to her bag, pulling them out. He laughed.
“You knew this was going to happen?”
“It was like the bear spray,” she said. “I was just being prepared.”
“Thank God for that,” he said. She heard the foil packet rip, watched as he rolled it on his girth. She felt achy with need, her skin almost crawling with it. When he covered her with his body, she reached for him, her legs wrapping around his waist. “God, baby. I don’t want to hurt you. I want this to be good for you.”
“It already is,” she assured him, and groaned with pleasure as his cock pressed against her opening. He pushed in slowly, and she felt him opening her, inch by delicious inch. When he was fully seated, she could feel his pelvis pressing against her bottom.
“Lower your legs,” he instructed her, his voice sounding harsh. “Put them alongside mine… Yeah, that’s it.”
She did as he said, and she felt the base of his cock rubbing with perfect friction against her clit. She felt the drag as he pulled out, then pressed in again. A few repetitions of that had her swiveling her hips, looking for more of that amazing feeling.
“Cressida,” he said, and she could feel the thin sheen of sweat on his shoulders and arms as he methodically moved in and out.
She couldn’t help herself. Words bubbled up in her throat. “Oh, God,” she said. “Oh, God… Noah… I think I’m… Oh, God, I’m gonna come…”
Suddenly his tight control snapped, and he was moving faster, moving harder, pounding into her, right against her spot. She clutched at him, raising her hips, meeting every frantic thrust.
“Cressida,” he groaned. “Come on, baby. Come with me.”
It was like pulling a trigger. She came explosively, feeling her body clutch around his hard cock. It seemed to set him off. She felt him jerk inside her, stretching and shuddering. She clung to him, almost weeping with emotional overwhelm.
In the aftermath, he stroked her, kissing her shoulder, her neck, just behind her earlobe. “You are amazing,” he murmured.
She felt amazing. And desired. And… well, okay, a tiny bit sore. But mostly just blissful.
He withdrew from her, and she felt empty. He took care of the condom, then came back, stretching out alongside her again. “I probably shouldn’t have done that,” he said, and she frowned. “But… damn, woman. Are you sure you’ve never had sex before? Because you just about burned me alive.”
She smiled, feeling very womanly. “Just think,” she said. “That was my first time. How much better can I get with practice?”
He sighed. “You are dangerous, Cressida Frost.”
And you, she thought, are perfect. And you’re going to break my heart if I’m not careful.
But it was too late to be careful, she realized. She was already falling ass-over-elbow in love with the guy… and she had no idea what to do about it.
It was afternoon the next day when Noah pulled into the Owl Canyon campground. It wasn’t really close to the hot spring – that was deeper in the desert – but it was close enough to where they were going to start their hunt. He parked, paying the camp master and setting them up on a site.
They’d gotten off to a late start that morning because they’d slept in. It was like floodgates had opened. He knew that if he had a shred of decency, he’d leave her alone, for a variety of reasons. But it was like decency and conscience had fled, leaving only desire and demand in its wake. She couldn’t seem to stop touching him, or staring at him like he’d invented ice cream. It was arousing, even if it was guilt inducing.
“I can’t believe we’re here,” Cressida said, looking around. “It looks just the way I imagine Monochrome Wasteland would look!”
He glanced around. For people who weren’t used to the desert, it did seem like one big, drab expanse. He’d been hunting in the Mojave before, though, and he knew that the longer you stayed, the more the subtle colors came to life in cascading shades of rust, sienna and tan. “It’ll be beautiful once we’re out there,” he assured her.
“I already think it’s beautiful,” she said, impressing him. Her eyes were bright. “This is the best trip I’ve ever been on, hands down.”
He laughed roughly. “This is pretty much the only trip you’ve ever been on, baby.” He rubbed at the kinks in his neck. It had been a long few days of driving.
“Are you all right?”
“Just tense,” he said.
“Are we going to dive right in?” she asked, sounding both eager and yet hesitant. “You know – find the hot spring, and start exploring?”
His gut twisted. “We could,” he drawled, “but it’s winter, and the days are short. We’ll start losing light in a few hours. I thought we could take the afternoon and strategize our plan of attack. I’ve done some hunts with people before that were totally unorganized, and they just turn into clusterfucks.”
She nodded. “Okay. Strategy it is,” she said, but her eyes twinkled. “But… um, before we do that…”
He smiled. “Yeah?”
“I just wondered if you wanted to work some of those stiff muscles out?” She was blushing, but she trailed her hand over his chest.
He tingled. “Right now?” he teased. “Why, Miss Frost, I do believe I’ve created a monster.”
“Just with you,” she said, taking his hand and tugging him towards the back. “Only with you.”
He knew he shouldn’t. Just like he knew this was the real reason he was stopping and dragging his feet, wasting an afternoon on strategy when they ought to be looking for the treasure. He didn’t want to lose time with her – and he still hadn’t figured out a way to both protect his mother from Killian and keep Cressida’s house.
Maybe there isn’t a way to do both.
He crawled into the sleeping compartment with Cressida, whose hands immediately went to her clothes. She peeled off her shirt and jeans, getting down to underwear. Then she reached for him.
Blindly, he answered, removing his own clothes hastily and pulling her to him. He leaned up against the inside wall. “Get me a condom, baby,” he asked, his voice raspy and hoarse.
She grabbed one out of her bag, then took off her bra and panties as he rolled one on. He tugged her over, spreading her legs so she could straddle him. He kissed her, starting soft before growing more insistent. His cock teased her quickly dampening entrance.
“God, Cressida,” he breathed, as she lowered herself onto his hardness. “You feel so fucking good.”
She simply moaned, spreading her legs to better accommodate him. Her breasts pressed against his chest as she sank lower, taking him in fully. She gasped, and he groaned at the feel of her surrounding him.
He lifted her slightly, his fingertips digging into her hips, rubbing her against him. She was panting softly, a low, mewling sound that somehow only made him harder. He reached up with one hand, smoothing it over the planes of her stomach and sides, cupping her breast. He lifted it, bending until he could take it into his mouth. She arched her back, providing wonderful friction for the both of them.
He clenched and stretched, impaling her on his cock as he moved his hungry kisses up her chest, biting at her neck, sucking at the tender spot behind her earlobe where her jawline ended. She was gasping and writhing against him. She shoved him back against the wall, then maneuvered to get enough space to wrap her legs around him fully, bringing them even closer together, like a fusion. Her arms did the same, her fingers clawing at his shoulders, her chest pressed so hard against his he could feel the pounding of her heart.
“Noah,” she murmured, rolling her hips and causing a shudder of pleasure in both of them. He fisted his hand in her hair, tugging gently as his hips started to piston of their own accord.
“Never gonna get enough of you,” he muttered as their tempo increased.<
br />
“Fuck me harder,” she breathed, shocking him so much he almost shot his load then and there. He started pumping, pulling her against him, and her legs tightened their grip. They rubbed against each other, and he felt the beginnings of her orgasm as she strained.
“Noah!” she cried out, and he felt her body grab his cock like a fist, milking him with the power of her orgasm. With a shout, his answering release shot through him, making him shudder like a stalling engine. He held her tight against him, the two of them so close it was like they were one person.
He didn’t want to let her go. Ever. He knew they both had to clean up, then they had practicalities to think of. His problems hadn’t gone anywhere.
I think I’m falling in love with you.
He didn’t realize he was going to murmur the words until they were already out of his mouth. He closed his eyes. Then he opened them, because Cressida was cradling the side of his face with her whisper-soft palm.
“I’m falling in love with you, too.”
He blinked. He shouldn’t have said it. But he couldn’t bring himself to regret them, either.
He kissed her, as gently and tenderly as he could, wishing he could express everything he was feeling and everything that was going on. He should trust her, he realized.
He couldn’t betray her.
He’d figure out something, he thought. They’d figure out something.
Just then, his phone started to ring, and he groaned. She clambered off of him. “Go get that,” she said, with a giggle.
He rushed out, grabbing his phone before it shifted over to voicemail. “Hello?”
“Noah, it’s Ernesto,” his mom’s boyfriend said, sounding agitated.
“Ernesto? What is it? Everything okay?” Noah asked, even as dread hit him like a cannonball. He took off the condom, tossed it in the trash.
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