by Lynn Galli
I’d long ago learned to bury any frustration at never reaching orgasm with a lover. But this time, I wanted it so much—for her.
“Come for me, Joslyn,” she ordered softly.
I want to. Oh God, Raven, I want to!
Her tongue explored every part of me, patiently, languidly. A hand glided up my torso to tweak a nipple, sending a new jolt of pleasure through my body. My heart strummed harder than I thought it could handle without causing cardiac arrest.
The faint tingle turned into an insistent churning. No, it can’t be. This doesn’t happen to me. I can’t be about to climax. It didn’t matter that her mouth felt like it has been pleasuring my body for years, knowing exactly everything I needed.
Even I had trouble making myself come. There was no way she was going to make this happen. Only it felt so good, so right, so extraordinary. No, I don’t orgasm, not for anyone.
Not even as much as I wanted to. Except… yes, yes, I’m coming!
“Raven!” I screamed, riding out an orgasm so forceful it made me doubt I’d ever experienced one before. The pulsations continued, relentlessly wracking my body while her lips and tongue eased up on the pressure.
Finally, she crawled up over me, staring down in wonder at my still shuddering body. “Feel good?” All I could do was stare back at her. “Guess so.” From anyone else that would have sounded smug. From her, it sounded reverent.
“You—I can’t believe—you, you made me come.”
“Yes.” She fluttered her eyebrows. “I loved making you come.” When I didn’t respond too astounded by my first orgasm with someone else, her expression grew concerned.
“What is it?”
Unexplained tears flooded my eyes. A barrage of emotions assaulted me without relent. God, I’d turned into one of those people. Ruled by emotions, unable to contain their release. And in this beautiful woman’s arms, too. I’m such a pathetic schmuck. Stop crying! Stop it right now!
“Sweetheart,” Raven spoke softly, watching me with concern and understanding in her eyes.
“I’m sorry,” I croaked when I gained some control over the roiling sway within me. “I don’t cry. This isn’t normal for me, I assure you.”
“Assurances aren’t necessary, Jos. You don’t need to withhold what you’re feeling right now.” Tender fingers wiped away the tears that had fallen. She pressed kisses to my tear-stained cheeks.
I clutched her against me, loving the feel of her weight on top of me. What was happening to me? I’d always wanted to be free of any restrictive heft, to be done with any reminders of the sex I’d had. This was different, she was different and not because she was a woman. Raven was different. “You made me come,” I repeated when I’d trudged my way to the top of the emotional mountain.
She cocked her head. “You seem surprised by that. You made me come, too. Twice.”
“I don’t usually…” I couldn’t finish what I’d never told another living soul before.
Her surprise told me she knew what I hadn’t said. “Not usually?”
“Actually … never.”
“But, by yourself?” Embarrassed, I nodded once in response to her question. “Oh, sweetheart.” Her voice held wonder, and I felt those pesky emotions start to bombard my tightly held control.
Was this what everyone talked about? Falling so quickly and thoroughly and hopelessly? No, I’ve gone thirty-seven years without falling in love. I must be making more out of this than is there. The orgasm, I’ll blame it on the orgasm.
The devastating, earth-shattering, inconceivable orgasm. At the hands of someone else. Well, mouth of this incredible woman. Yeah, a good orgasm could wring the sensibility right out of anyone. It was the only explanation for me bursting into tears after climax and clinging to Raven like I didn’t want to leave.
“Stay,” she said after the slightest shift of my body from beneath hers. It didn’t sound like an order or a plea. It was as if she’d slipped inside my mind and knew that I always left but didn’t want to tonight. It was an invitation when one wasn’t necessary. Like when people say “have a seat” after someone is already in the process of sitting. “Will your dogs be okay for the night?”
I couldn’t believe she remembered them let alone thought about them right now. Her concern made me drop the preconceived excuse. “They should be fine.”
“Then it’s something else.” Raven drew her fingertip down my forehead and onto my nose. “You’re embarrassed about crying.” It wasn’t a question, and I couldn’t have denied it had she been asking. “Don’t be.”
“Easy for you to say.” I tried for a lighthearted response.
“Don’t be,” she repeated, a request not a command.
Desire and something unidentifiable brightened her brown eyes. “That was the most beautiful thing that’s ever happened to me. Please don’t be embarrassed, Joslyn.”
“I seem to do the most unexpected things around you, Raven. I don’t know how to handle that.” Or these tumultuous emotions.
“Don’t try to handle it.” A simple order accompanied by a commanding kiss. “Let me see you, not the person you wear around for the rest of the world. Please stay. I don’t want to give up this night yet.”
God, she was good at this. So good, I may never want to give up this night.
Chapter 17
*Good morning,” I murmured, still drowsy from not enough sleep. Despite not being used to waking up in someone else’s bedroom, it took only a fraction of a second to realize where I was and whose hand was making my skin leap. I issued the greeting to the ginger colored window coverings I was facing. Raven’s body melded to mine from behind, her arm draped over my middle, hand drawing lazy patterns on my abdomen. I rolled onto my back and suppressed a moan at the sight of a sleep-tousled Raven.
“How are you?” Her eyes, nearly hidden from unkempt bangs, showed a touch of apprehension.
I smiled up at the concerned face leaning over me.
Brushing the bangs back from her stunning eyes, I teased,
“You’re afraid I’m freaking out.”
“A little.” She shrugged with just the right amount of insecurity to eliminate arrogance from her personality traits.
“Are you?”
Was I? Nearly unprecedented sleepover aside, I was waking up with a woman for the first time in my life after having ravaged her for the better part of the night. I should be, a little, right? But I wasn’t. And I stopped my mind from analyzing why, or I might end up contemplating that whole love thing again which this so wasn’t, or couldn’t be, well, shouldn’t be because I barely knew her. Okay, that part freaked me out a little.
“So not,” I answered truthfully because my hesitation made her concern grow. When a glint of skepticism crossed her expression, I went with more honesty. “Mmm, looks like I’m going to have to prove it.” Lifting my head, I closed my mouth over hers and propelled up and over until she was on her back under me. When I pulled back from the kiss, her now bruised lips spread into a sexy smile. “Convinced?”
“I don’t know,” she breathed seductively. “Do you have any more proof?”
I laughed at her delight and ran a hand down between our bodies to stroke her plump, slick flesh. “Hours and hours worth.”
After I’d convinced her twice more, we lay spent until we could move in an upright position. She offered me the shower but decided to conserve water and join me. Once we’d helped each other wash and dry, I couldn’t believe how energized I felt. If I hadn’t already made love to her several times over the course of the night and morning, I’d press her against the bathroom counter and have at her again.
While she ran a dryer quickly over her hair, I started pulling on my clothes, thinking I should do something to feed us. My brain was still mush from all of the fantastic, beyond belief, hall of fame sex that it took me a second to figure out I needed to leave the bedroom and find the kitchen for sustenance. I walked out into the hallway, tucking my shirt into my pants and finished with th
e zipper and button.
Had I been looking where I was going, I would have noticed Raven’s niece coming up the stairs. Instead, when I looked up, Ray was practically on top of me, eyes wide with shock. Perhaps it was my years of training at masking surprise with client confessions, or maybe it was because I’d just had the best night and morning of my life, but I managed an unassuming smile. “Hi, Ray.” She blinked and blinked and blinked some more then stammered, “Oh, I, um, well, see we were going, ah, I was supposed to, oh man, horses! That’s why I’m here.”
“Okay,” I accepted calmly yet started to feel the embarrassment of being caught just minutes after having sex with the aunt she idolizes.
“Sweetheart?” Raven’s voice flowed out of the bedroom, stopping any reply. “How about omelets? Then we should go check on your—Ray?!” I’d been blocking her view as she surfaced from the bedroom, but I felt her shock when she gripped my waist to get us moving.
“Um, hi, Aunt Raven,” the young woman greeted sheepishly. “Remember I asked if Kelly and I could ride your horses today?”
“Oh, yes.” Raven slid an apprehensive look my way before stepping around me. “I forgot.”
“This is a bad time, obviously.” Ray’s gaze moved studiously between her aunt and me. “You didn’t answer the door, so I figured you were down at the office. I wanted to grab a riding helmet for Kelly.” A meaningful look passed between them before they both glanced at me with apologies and hesitation. The tension was ridiculous, so I joked, “Well, so much for keeping this to ourselves.”
“I won’t tell anyone!” Ray jumped to promise us.
Raven, who’d been staring at me with a look of amazement, turned to her niece and laughed softly. “Try, Ray, please? It’s my news to share if I choose.”
“No one will hear it from me, honest. I’m sorry to bust in on your morning. I’ll be out of your hair in a flash.” Raven squeezed her shoulder. “All right, but I moved all the riding gear to the storage closet in the garage. I’m hoping it motivates me to finish the tack room out in the barn.”
“Oops! Then I’m really sorry.” Ray glanced up with remorseful eyes, two shades darker than Raven’s. “Thanks again for letting us ride today. I’ll feed them for you when we get done.” She flicked her gaze to me. “In case you had other plans.”
Don’t blush, please don’t blush, hold it in! With practiced casualness, I said, “Have fun on your ride, Ray.” She fought back a knowing grin. “Good to see you, Joslyn. Bye, Aunt Raven, thanks.” She skipped rhythmically down the stairs and out the front door.
“God, Jos, I’m sorry.” Raven approached tentatively, staring at me like she thought I’d be mad or something.
Embarrassed, yes, but mad, no.
“So, how many of your relatives have a key to your place?” I asked dryly but let the humor seep through in my smile.
She blew out a relieved breath and launched herself into my arms. “Be glad it wasn’t my brother or he’d be interrogating you right now. The witch trials would be considered a cakewalk by comparison.”
“Remind me not to run into him again.” I laughed and pressed my face into her slightly damp, citrus scented hair.
“New plan. We go to my house for that breakfast you were mentioning before Kelly gets here. Then we can spend part of the day paying attention to my neglected dogs.” Before she pulled back, I thought I felt her stiffen. More unidentifiable emotions drifted into her expression until happiness pushed them aside. I wanted to question what brought on the kaleidoscope of expressions, but she asked in that seductive voice that tested the strength of my legs,
“And for the rest of the day?”
“Oh, I think we can figure something out.” My fingers slid up from her waist to cup her breasts through her shirt, flicking over her nipples. She gasped when they hardened in response. Her head fell back, and I kissed the exposed offering. “You’re going to need to boost your energy for all the rest.”
Her hand linked with mine and started us down the staircase. “You’ve been doing more than your share of the work. It’s your energy I’m worried about.” We loaded into the car with silly grins and drove back to my house. The dogs, having not been gated into their sunroom crashed into us the moment the door opened.
“Hello, puppies.” I dropped to my knees and touched them all until their wiggling bodies calmed down. My silly grin widened to sheer happiness when I looked up and saw Raven had taken the same position a foot away. She loves my dogs. Now, that’s sexy.
“I feel guilty for keeping you from them.”
“If they knew you were the reason they got to sleep all over my furniture last night, they’d want to go home with you.”
“Hmm, a stickler for rules, eh?”
“They know their room, and it has plenty of comfy chairs to shed on. It’s not like they’re deprived.”
“I’m still going to make it up to them.” She pulled me up with her for an unrelenting kiss. “You play with them. I’ll cook.”
“They’re going to want to keep checking on you, so we’ll both cook. Besides, I like being next to you in a kitchen.” Her eyes glowed with my reference to the evening we spent at Amalia’s restaurant. “That was a fun night.”
“Fun and enlightening for me.” I went to the fridge and started pulling out what we’d need for omelets.
“Amalia’s a great teacher.” Raven began slicing the green onions and mushrooms while I shredded the cheese.
“That, too, but my enlightenment came in the parking lot later.” The knife in her hand stopped slicing as she turned to me. “You see, before that night, I’d never wanted anyone to kiss me as desperately as I wanted you to kiss me.”
“Oh, Jos, I wanted to. I almost did.”
“Then you tore out of the parking lot so quickly I could smell the burnt rubber. Yeah, that did wonders for my ego.” I enjoyed baiting her.
“Stop.” Her hand slid up my arm to cup my throat gently. The gesture felt intensely intimate. “I couldn’t, not without your permission.”
“You have it now.” I tilted forward and met her lips, taking everything from this kiss that I’d been denied that night weeks ago. “Food, dogs, orgasm, in that order.”
“Orgasms, plural. Yours, specifically.” Her eyes sent me promises that I believed for the first time in my sexually active life. She took me into her arms. “We’ll go at your pace, sweetheart.”
“I don’t want you to get frustrated.”
“I love giving you pleasure, in whatever form. I won’t get frustrated that we can’t give you release. Making love isn’t about a race to see who makes it to the finish line. It’s about giving and getting pleasure; it’s about connecting with another beautiful soul.”
My heart, which had been thumping heartily since she’d first kissed me out on that ledge, felt like it stopped entirely.
She understood me and accepted me without judgment.
Slipping, slipping faster. I still had time to grab onto something before I fell completely, but did I want to?
Chapter 18
Traitors! Ungrateful little turncoats. The minute a beautiful, kind woman comes around, they jump ship and lap at her feet like she was the one to feed them, love them, and walk them for their entire lives. Hmph! My furry deserters lounged at Raven’s feet and flanked each side of her, throwing whoa-is-me eyes and aren’t-I-the-cutest glances at her. Seeking any form of attention, even if it was just a quick pat on the head. Doggie-Hos, every last one of them.
“They have your number.” I shook my head as she shifted position to bring her back and shoulder up against me. The dogs took the opportunity to reposition some of their limbs on her lap and stretched out legs.
She chortled, burrowing into me until my arm came around and tucked her in. “This from Ms. Take In Seven More Dogs Than I Wanted? You’re just jealous that after only a day, they’re ready to go home with me.”
“Who wouldn’t be?”
She twisted to face me and winked. Charmer. �
��Speaking of which, can I interest you in coming home with me again tonight?”
My head pitched back. “My place isn’t good enough for you and your merry band of defecting dogs?”
Brown eyes widened, giving me both surprise and joy.
“Are you inviting me to stay over?”
“It’s the only way I’ll get to see my dogs tonight,” I joked.
A mock huff left her lungs before she swung up and over to straddle my lap. The porch swing rocked with her movement and the two smaller dogs jumped off with the sudden motion. I stared up at her, recognizing the glint in her eyes. My body responded to her seductive glance and the gentle rocking of her hips against my lap.
“Give me a better reason, or the dogs and I go,” she ordered with feigned seriousness.
“We had an agreement this morning. So far your guilt has kept us from completing all three.” I referred to the fact that since breakfast we’d spent the whole day and evening giving attention to the dogs with walks, throwing retrievable items, and watching them take a swim in the pond on my property. Other than a caress or two before a nap in the late afternoon sunshine out here on the swing, we’d yet to get around to item three on the list.
Her hips undulated against my lap, and I bit back a groan. “Remind me?”
“Hmm, let’s see,” I drew out. “There was food.
Breakfast, lunch, and dinner, check, check, check. Then I believe it was the dogs. All five of them, check to the fifth power. After, I think we agreed to paint the barn/guesthouse/extra building that currently serves no purpose.”
The motion of her hips this time was forceful enough to get us swinging again. “Really? Is that how you remember it?”
My hands fisted against her hips as we swayed to and fro. “Yep.”
“I’ll only help with painting if you help build a tack room in my barn. I figure you’ve got some experience with that.” Her eyes twinkled at me. “Oh, and if we don’t use any of those colors you’ve already got up over there.”