He was done with their apologies. He was done keeping his distance.
Closing the distance between them, he pressed his lips to hers.
Chapter Seventeen
Krista’s entire body froze as Chase’s soft, full lips brushed hers. She didn’t move. Didn’t breathe. Didn’t kiss. Inside her head, she was screaming, kiss him! Outside, she looked like she was playing a game of kiss freeze tag.
Most likely picking up on her very convincing portrayal of a mannequin, Chase slowly pulled away, leaning back against his chair. His caramel-colored eyes searched hers. She’d have loved for him to share his findings because Krista had no freaking idea what was going on with her.
She desperately wanted to laugh off her statue-like reaction and make some witty joke about her odd behavior, but it seemed her mouth had gone on strike from both the kissing and talking without telling her brain. No matter how hard she willed it, no words were coming out of her mouth. Actually, there was a very good possibility that her brain had actually joined her mouth on the picket line because she didn’t think she could string a sentence together if her life had depended on it.
So they sat. In silence. Staring at each other.
Finally, Krista couldn’t take the heat and intensity in his gaze. She stood, grabbing their plates and bringing them to the sink. She was happy to note that her entire body had not unionized against her. Her arms and legs seemed to be working at full capacity.
Go limbs!
Setting the dishes in the stainless-steel basin beneath the faucet, Krista concentrated on calming her rapidly beating heart and slowing down her breathing, which was walking the fine line between erratic and hyperventilation. Her mind was spinning trying to make sense of what had just happened to her. It was like her body and brain had just short-circuited.
It wasn’t like she hadn’t been prepared for Chase to kiss her. Krista had known that things were more than likely going to get physical tonight. Put her and Chase alone for any amount of time and things heated up pretty quickly.
Her body wanted this. Her heart wanted this. Even her mind, which had been the sole holdout to get aboard the Chase-Choo-Choo, was so foggy with lust that it had run along the train as it had pulled away from Sanity Station and hopped on board the caboose.
So what was the problem?!
Krista heard the sounds of footsteps behind her, and the edge of the counter dug into her palm as she squeezed it tightly. She sensed more than felt when Chase stopped directly behind her. The tiny hairs on her arm stood up from the sensation of his warm breath fanning across her shoulder.
Krista watched as Chase’s large, tan hands settled on the counter edges on the outside of her own. Seeing the difference in size between them as their hands sat side by side was a powerful aphrodisiac. It made her want to see his how his talented, masculine hands looked compared to other parts of her body.
Unfortunately, no part of his body was touching any part of her body. But he was surrounding her completely. She was in the center of a Chase cocoon. At his nearness, a full-body shiver ran from her head to her toes, but she still stood with her back to Chase. Doing nothing.
His cheek brushed against the side of her head. “Are you okay?” he rasped deeply, the timbre sending an answering pulse straight to her center.
Tilting slightly, her head moved in a barely perceptible nod. Apparently, it was enough assurance for Chase because he removed one of his hands from its perch beside hers and slowly he ran his fingers up her arm. When he reached her shoulder, he stopped at the fabric of the strap of her dress. Tracing the dip of the dress’s scoop neck, he trailed his fingertips down and across her chest.
Krista’s eyes lowered and she watched his seductive path, her body silently willing him to slide his fingers beneath the fabric and touch her. Really touch her. Her heavy-lidded eyes shut as the upper swell of her breasts rose and fell against the erotic sensation of the roughened pads of his fingertips, brushing softly in his unhurried sensual torment.
“I like this dress.” His voice was strained with need as his hand reached her other shoulder.
Krista was sure that he was going to follow up that compliment with taking the aforementioned dress he liked so much off of her. Turned out, she was no Nostradamus, because instead, he moved his fingers back the way they’d just come, continuing his lazy exploration.
His featherlight touches were driving her so crazy that she was literally white-knuckling it. The tips of her knuckles had turned bright white as she clenched her fists on the counter’s edge. The aching need in her breasts had quickly migrated south and was now pulsing heavily at her core. Her legs shook from the waves of arousal crashing over her.
Chase had always been good at this. He had easily earned the crown as King of Foreplay. Even their first time, which had been both of their first times, had been a good hour of buildup, which meant she was more than satisfied even though the big show only lasted a few minutes. It had only taken him a little practice and he’d quickly built up his stamina.
Since he’d been her one and only until she’d left for college, she’d taken it for granted that all guys took the kind of time Chase did. Lasted as long as Chase did. She’d lived under the misguided illusion that all men made love to women John-Mayer-your-body-is-a-wonderland style.
Her collegiate experience had been educational in more ways than one. The first time she’d been with someone else, it had been shockingly bad. She’d barely been turned on and then it was over. Over the years, some guys had been better than others but none—none—had compared to Chase. Sometimes it felt like he knew her body better than she did, like he anticipated her body’s needs.
As he finally made his way back to his starting point, all of her feminine nerve endings were alive and fevered with desire. He then gently swept her hair to one side. Dipping his head, he trailed tender kisses along the base of her neck, sending a rush of moisture to the apex of her thighs. Deciding that even though she wasn’t able to form words, she did in fact need to move this seduction along. Foreplay was great. Sex with Chase was better.
Straightening her arms, she arched her back against his chest and tilted her hips, pressing her body against his rock-hard length. At her movement, a guttural moan vibrated from deep in Chase’s chest and he nipped at her neck, his teeth biting her sensitized skin. She gasped as his tongue quickly soothed the erotic sting.
“Chase.” His name came out as a whispered plea on her lips.
In one swift movement, he turned her around and lifted her onto the counter. His callused hands slid up her thighs and spread them apart as he stepped between them then pulled her to the very edge of the countertop so that her moist panties were rubbing against his jean-clad steel rod.
Her arms instinctively grabbed at his shirt. It had been so long. She wanted to see him, touch him, feel him. After making several sounds of aggravation when she wasn’t able to get it off fast enough, he pulled it off in less time than it had taken her to lower her hands.
At the sight of his magnificent body, she sucked in an audible breath. Krista’s gaze feasted on the muscled lines of his chest, the steely leanness of his abdomen. He had definitely filled out. Normally, whenever Chase stood in front of her, she had a hard time not looking at his eyes, his lips, or his sexy stubble. But right now, her eyes were glued hungrily to his body.
Lifting both hands, she ran her fingers along the ripples of his abs and felt his muscles twitch beneath her touch. His hands had found their way back to her outer thighs, gripping her tightly. As he kneaded her flesh, he rocked her feminine heat, covered only by a thin piece of lace, against the textured fabric of his denim-covered hard-on. Her sex grew wetter and more swollen with each rub against the delicious friction.
Krista continued touching his heated skin, memorizing every line, every muscle on his well-defined chest and abdomen. Fevered with arousal, her heart raced as her body began clamoring for release. Chase continued rocking erotically against her.
Nee
ding more, Krista dropped her hands from her sensual exploration of his body. Beneath her palms she felt the cold hard surface as she pushed against the countertop, arching her back to increase the force of their clothed intimate contact. As she did, Chase dug his fingers into her thighs with an innate power and control that pushed her right to the edge of climax.
A whimper escaped her mouth as she continued grinding her hips against the power of his stiff shaft. Moving his hands up to her hips, he pulled her heat firmly against his hard swollen sex, and her body shattered in white-hot bursts of pleasure. Wrapping her arms around him she buried her face in his neck. Krista hugged him tightly as she rode out the waves of ecstasy crashing over her. She needed to feel the solid strength of his body against hers as she gave herself completely to her shuddering orgasm.
Slowly, she drifted back from her cloud of bliss. Forcing her eyes open, she pressed her lips to the smooth skin of his neck, her arms still holding him close to her.
When she did, she heard the breath shoot roughly out of his nose as his straining length jumped beneath his pants. Krista loved that she still affected him this way. Over the years, she’d seen the women he’d dated which read like a who’s who of Maxim’s Hot List, and to know that he still wanted her the way he always had almost brought tears to her eyes.
* * *
Chase was holding on by a thin thread of control. He was about two seconds away from ripping Krista’s panties off. The only thing that was stopping him from doing just that was the reaction Krista had had when he’d tried to kiss her at the table.
Never before had Krista responded to him like that. He’d been her first everything and she’d never reacted so nervously, so…scared. She obviously wasn’t ready to be with him if she couldn’t even kiss him.
When he’d followed her into the kitchen, hand to God, his only intention had been to make sure that she was okay. But when he’d stepped behind her and felt her body radiating with tension, he’d known that he could easily relieve that tension. So he’d done just that and he hadn’t even removed a stitch of her clothing.
Watching her climax had nearly caused him to do the same thing in his pants. He loved the way her body moved, the noises she made. But what Chase loved more than anything, the one thing that he used to lie awake in his bed and ache for, was the way she always held on to him when she came. No matter what position they were in, she had to hold on to him. If it was doggy-style, then she reached back and gripped his arms. If he was going down on her, then she either grabbed his shoulders or his forearms. But no matter what, she held him tightly. When she did, it filled an empty place inside of him that only her desperate touch could fill.
Now, as he held her body against his, he could feel the heat of the moisture from her release in her panties. His jeans were damp with it. His jaw tightened as he tried to remain still while she peppered his neck with gentle, hot, hungry kisses.
“I’ve missed you so much,” she whispered against his skin between presses of her lips.
“I’ve missed you too,” he said, letting the words she’d spoken absorb into him. In the back of his mind he’d known that she had, but to hear her say the words filled him with a sense of calm and belonging that he’d only ever felt in her arms.
Krista leaned back from him, her eyes glimmering with desire as she ran her hands firmly down his body to his waistband. When she began unbuttoning his pants, he quickly covered her hands with his.
“What are you doing?” he asked.
Her blue-green eyes shot to his and she spoke slowly, “Taking off your pants.”
“Krista, we don’t have to do this. Not tonight.”
Confusion filled her expression. “You don’t want to?”
Now he was the one who looked at her like she might be a few cards shy of a full deck. Moving her hand lower so that her palm was pressed firmly against the evidence of his pulsing arousal, he said, “Yes. I want to.”
Biting down on her lower lip, her fingers cupped his aching jean clad shaft. A soft moan escaped her as she released her lip and asked, “Then why can’t we?”
“You’re not ready,” he gritted out.
Lifting her eyebrows, she flipped the positions of their hands and pressed his against her soaked panties. The feel of the moist heat of her sex beneath his fingers caused the flames of his already burning desire to roar to inferno levels.
“Yes. I am,” she said, mimicking the tone he’d just given her. Then, as the corner of her lips turned up in a seductive smile she pressed her fingers against his, manipulating his hand to rub her lace covered damp sex in an erotic caress.
This was the Krista he knew. Bold and sensual. A sexy smartass. He wanted to take her at face value—or in this case, wet panty. Still, a part of him held back. He never wanted to experience what he had when she’d been paralyzed from his kiss.
He knew that she’d said that she wanted him and her body was down with the plan, but he needed to know that she was really okay with this. With anyone else, the moisture he felt beneath his touch would be enough. But this was Krista. There was only one way he could know for sure that she was ready – mind, body, and soul.
“Kiss me,” he commanded.
Her brows bunched as she asked, “Is this like a Pretty Woman thing or…” Then her eyes registered in understanding, as the root of his hesitation dawned on her. “Oooh, I get it. Okay,” she said with a ‘challenge accepted’ clip in her tone. His dick swelled beneath his zipper as he saw the ‘game on’ light switch to the up position in her sultry gaze.
Krista’s beautiful eyes locked with his as she slowly ran her tongue along the seam of her perfect pink lips. Chase’s heart was pounding hard against his ribcage as he waited anxiously for her to lean forward, to make any movement towards him. But instead, she reached down to her lap, bunched the material that had gathered there in her fists, then pulled her dress up and over her head.
His head began spinning, dizzy with arousal at the sight of Krista sitting in front of him, thighs spread open, wearing nothing but a white see-through lace bra and panty set. On pure primal instinct, his hand moved to the fabric covering her breast. But she pushed his hand away.
“Uh-uh-uh. You said I need to kiss you first.” She grinned wickedly, obviously enjoying herself.
“I’m going to remember this,” he said as he lowered his hand, a smile spreading across his face. His voice dropping an octave as he stated, “There will be payback.”
“Promise?” she asked coyly.
Oh my God. She was killing him.
Not breaking eye contact with him, she reached behind her back. The sound of her bra unsnapping caused his balls to tighten with need against his body. He tried to keep his gaze focused on hers as she slowly removed one strap then the other. Chase tried desperately not to glance down and break the incredible connection between them. He succeeded until, out of the corner of his eye, he saw her toss the bra to the side. Then his eyes, of their own accord, hungrily gazed down at her bare breasts.
She’d filled out some since he’d last seen her, but her perfect mounds were still the same shape. Full and heavy on the bottom. Her red nipples were hard, and his mouth watered and his palms tingled from wanting to touch her, to lick her, to suck her into his mouth, to lavish attention on each perfect nub.
Her breasts bounced and swayed under his watchful eye. Looking down, he discovered the cause of the enticing movement. Krista was shimmying out of her panties. Chase moved back a step so she could pull them down her legs. When he did, an awareness shot through him. He knew that he had never been more turned on than he was at this very moment.
Just as that realization hit him, her panties dropped to the white and green tile floor and she parted her knees in invitation, revealing her lush sex, which was glistening with dampness.
He’d obviously spoken too soon.
His length pulsed with a throbbing ache as Krista curled her finger in a come-hither motion. Stepping back up between her thighs, he waited for
her to press her lips to his so he could ravish her. Kiss and touch every inch of her body.
Instead, she once again reached for the edge of his pants. He was so far gone that there was no way he was going to stop her this time. He watched, his arousal growing intensely with each passing second, as her delicate hands unbuttoned then unzipped his jeans. Then, hooking her thumbs in his boxers, she pulled out the elastic waistband so it cleared his erection and then pushed both his jeans and boxers down his hips. When she did, her nipples grazed his abdomen and a clear bead of moisture appeared on the head of his shaft.
“Mmm,” she said as she brushed her finger over it, spreading his arousal along his length as he stepped out of his pants.
His hands fisted at his sides as he waited for her next move. He didn’t know how much longer he could take this, but he liked where this was going, and payback was going to be fun.
Straightening back up, she curled her slim fingers around his manhood, and he felt a surge of release shoot through him. Closing his eyes, he tried to think about anything but how good it felt to have her hand wrapped tightly around him. How sexy she looked sitting naked before him. How desperate his burning need for her was. He tried to fill his mind with chords and song lyrics, anything to distract him so that this wasn’t over before he was even inside her.
He felt her move her hand down slowly, her fingers gripping him at the base of his dick as she let out a soft groan, and he had to open his eyes. When he did, he saw her positioning the engorged tip of his penis against the slick opening of her sex.
His eyes shot up to hers.
She spoke quickly, apparently finally ready to get this show on the road. “I’m on birth control and the last person I had unprotected sex with was you.” Once she’d gotten on birth control in their teens, they’d stopped using condoms.
Even with the hurricane-force arousal whipping through him, he had to let out a little laugh at just how damn cute she was.
“You are the only person I haven’t used a condom with and I get checked every six months to maintain my personal insurance policies. I’m clean.”
Crazy Love - Krista & Chase Page 17