by Jenika Snow
“True,” she says and faces forward again. “Okay, fine. We'll wait. But I don't want to talk about...this. I just can't.”
She looks out her passenger side window and I catch sight of a tear just before she wipes it away. I can't bear the fact that I'm the cause of how she's feeling.
I'm not okay with her demand to drop the subject. But I'll say what I have to and after that, I won't say a word. I hope she understand that my silence doesn't mean I won't try other things to get my point across.
Even if my idea will cross the line yet again.
Unlocking my door, I get out and walk around to her side. She gives me a scathing look as I open her door, but doesn't resist as much as I expected when I coax her out of the truck.
This time, I want her to hold my gaze when I tell her what I'm thinking. If she's still upset after that, I'll give her all the time apart that she needs.
“Look at me,” I tell her, taking her chin into my upturned hand. I tilt her face up toward me when she still averts her eyes. “I was an ass for not telling you sooner, Marie. I'm an idiot for waiting until some preppy douchebag doctor comes sniffing around. For that, I'm sorry. You deserved more, better. But look me in the eye and tell me you don't have feelings for me. I won't be happy about just being friends, but if that's what you want, then okay. But tell me you don't and I'll drop this and never bring it up again.”
“I—I just—Rowan, I—” she stammers. She leans back on the truck, and I wait.
She looks away again. I can't stop myself from gazing over her body, admiring the shadows and outlines of her shape cast by the dim street light on the other side of the road. I hear a vehicle pass by, but it may as well be a deserted road. I don't care to look at anything but the woman in front of me. The woman I want.
I run my fingers along the smooth line of her jaw, and her breath catches. All of a sudden, the outgoing, confident woman I've known for many years becomes a shy and timid little girl. She may not want to say the words, but her body tells me everything. Like how nervous she is right now, and that all the chemistry we've been ignoring is real. It’s so real it has a life of its own. I can't deny it, and she sure as hell can't resist it, now that I’m standing so close, invading her space. She tries to move away but I box her in, placing a hand on each side of her upper arms.
“Tell me you don't want this and I’ll let you go," I demand, even though letting her go is the last thing I want right now. To be honest, I don’t think I can ever walk away from her.
What I want is for her to admit that yes, my timing sucks and my delivery was horrendous at the front door, but the message is just as much a turning point as the kiss I gave her a few days ago. I won’t be satisfied until she’s honest with herself and gives in to our explosive attraction. Leaning closer, I let my hip make contact with her upper belly. My cock jerks, straining in my work pants, growing in reaction to our proximity.
Her expression relaxes for a moment and she holds on to my forearms. "Okay, fine. There is something... between us. I feel...something more. I've known it for a while." It's not exactly the admission I was hoping for, but it's enough, given there's so much more on her mind. She lets out a long exhale and searches my face. "I just wish you did things a little different, you know?"
“I'm sorry it went down this way,” I tell her. "But think of how hard I’ll work to make it up to you...starting now.”
“What do you mean?”
“Tonight, you're going home with me."
Her chin lowers as she swallows hard.
"You're mine, Marie," I add. "And you're going to say those words right back to me before the night’s over."
"Rowan," she breathes out and steps closer to me. Before she can tell me another word, I pull her the rest of the way. Our lips connect, but this time she closes some of the distance between us. This kiss is nothing like the one I stole. It's hot, electrifying. She drags her hands up my back and spears slender fingers through my hair. Her leg slides up my calf as she parts her lips for me, and the moment is so intense that I force myself to stop, otherwise we’ll end up fucking for the first time right here against the side of my truck.
In almost the same moment that I pull from the kiss, I hear the creak of the front door as it slowly opens. It's Lila. Marie and I head up to her front porch, wanting to speak with her and see for ourselves to make sure she’s good. She's standing in the doorway, barely peeking her head out for me to see. The shy yet flushed and satisfied look on her face tells me she’s been up to something way more physical than talking, more intimate than just kissing. She seems relaxed, though, and relieved. Maybe happy too.
“I’m good, thank you,” she says softly. “Have a good night. Marie, I promise to call you first thing tomorrow, okay?” At that she waves at Marie. The two of them share a look. Marie has a wide smile on her face, and no sign at all of what she and I have been up to as we were waiting for Lila’s drama to settle down. Somehow, it looks like it has. And then some.
When she closes the door I head back to where Marie is still standing.
“She’s good,” Marie says, clearly reading her friend well enough to know they hooked up while we were waiting. A knowing smile rises on her face, but only for a moment.
“I’m glad we stuck around,” I mutter. Opening the passenger door, I help Marie inside, then quickly jump in on the driver’s side.
“I’m starting to think we should actually talk,” she says over the sound of the engine.
Before she can reach for her seatbelt, I put my arm around her waist. Pulling her to the middle of the bench style front seat, I stop her words and her breath with a raw, firm kiss. This time, she parts her lips for me. I invade her mouth with my tongue, exploring with urgency, teasing and tasting as my hand buries into her hair, letting her know I'll fuck her with the same fierceness as this kiss. With my mind on where this night needs to go, I pull away slightly.
“We’re done talking,” I tell her. “For now, anyway. I’m taking you to my place.”
“But—” she starts, and I stop her with another firm, brief kiss that makes my dick throb.
“No buts. We’re making up for lost time. We’ll talk all you want in the morning."
“Okay, but you need to know something.”
I turn to her. “Go on.”
“Promise me you’ll be patient... with me."
“Patient how?”
She rubs her temple and glances out the window, seeming to struggle for words. Then she shoots me a look. “I’m not like you, Rowan.”
I search her face, struggling and failing as I try to read between the lines. “What are you talking about?”
“I’m a virgin.”
Chapter 6
Marie
Rowan shuts the door softly behind him and I stand there for a second just staring at him. My heart is thundering hard and fast, and I hear it beating like a war drum in my ears, feel it in my throat. I rub my palms up and down my thighs, my skin sweaty, my hands slightly shaking.
When I told him I was a virgin he got quiet, not responding, just staring at me with this strange expression on his face. He took me to his place, and I honestly thought I’d scared him off, the prospect of “deflowering” me a little too real for some men. But he wasn’t fazed. And like he’d said, he didn’t drop me off at my place, which I was grateful for, considering that I still live at my parents’ house. After shutting off the engine, he got out of the truck, helped me out of the passenger side, and escorted me inside.
And now that we are in his house, in his domain, the air hot, the sexual chemistry moving between us, I know we need to talk about this more. It doesn’t matter if I want to be in bed with Rowan, under him, his warm, hard body pressed to mine. I meant what I said when I told him we should talk more.
I am inexperienced when it comes to this. And although Rowan might’ve been wild back in the day when we were younger, the “Big Man on Campus” in high school, I want to please him. I want to be the one who makes his
pleasure so intense he can’t even think straight, let alone speak.
“You didn’t say anything after I told you, about… my virginity.” My voice is low, slightly tight. I watch the way he looks at me, his gaze heavy-lidded, his big body seeming tense, his muscles straining. It seems like he’s on the verge of losing his control.
“You know,” he finally says and takes a step toward me. “I should kiss you on the cheek right now and let you sleep in my spare bedroom. I should leave you alone. I should take a cold shower, and jerk off to the thought of you.”
His words have my heart stilling for second before it starts beating faster, harder.
“What? Why?”
“You’re too fucking good for me, too pure and innocent.” He stares right in my eyes, holding my focus, never letting go. “But I can’t walk away. I can’t walk away knowing that I’ll be your first … your last.”
I swallow, my throat feeling so tight, as dry as if I’d eaten sand. I know my eyes have to be wide; they feel as if they are as big as my face, my nervousness and surprise over all of this no doubt clear as day.
“I’m not experienced like you,” I finally say. I’m slightly embarrassed to admit that, but I want to be truthful.
He shakes his head, this look of pain covering his expression now. He’s in front of me seconds later, his hand cupping my cheek, his thumb stroking right below my eye. For long seconds he doesn’t say anything, just stares into my eyes and then lowers his gaze to my mouth. I find myself licking my lips on instinct.
“I’m not as experienced as you think I am, but I wish I was a virgin too. I wish you could’ve been my first.” He leans down and kisses me softly on the lips. It’s gentle, even sweet. He closes his eyes and shakes his head slightly. “I’m not proud of my past, of how wild I was back in high school.” He opens his eyes and the expression he wears is genuine, raw and bare. “But from the moment I realized you were mine, that I love you, Marie, I haven’t been with another woman.”
Everything in me freezes.
“I can admit that I was a coward for not telling you how I felt before, for not admitting to you or myself that we belong together.” He cups the other side of my face, both of his hands now framing my cheeks. “I realize that I’ve been stupid to not tell you, for not taking that chance and acting on it. But I was too afraid that our friendship would be ruined. There is no other woman for me.” He leans down and kisses me softly again. “It’s only been you, for years, Marie, since I realized how much I love you. No other woman makes my heart race, makes everything else seem dim in comparison.” He murmurs those words against my lips. “No other woman makes me look forward to the next day.” He pulls back and stares into my eyes. “And there’s no other woman I want to spend the rest of my life with but you. I fucked up, and I’m sorry, from the bottom my heart. I’m an idiot, and I know that there’ll be plenty more times where I screw up. But, baby, please be patient with me and give me a chance.”
He keeps stroking my cheeks with his thumbs, his expression so raw that I feel like my heart just opened up.
“Rowan, this is all…” I don’t know what to say.
“You don’t have to say anything,” Rowan says, as if he can read my mind. “I just wanted you to know how I feel. I love you. I’m in love with you.”
My heart does this patter in my chest, and all I can think about is throwing myself at him. He hasn’t been with a woman in years, hasn’t wanted anyone since he fell in love with me. Everything he says has me flying high, and this dreamlike feeling washes over me.
Because I don’t want to talk anymore either, because I can’t find words to convey how I feel to him, I press my mouth to his. I’m the one kissing him now, the one showing him with my body that I want this, need this. He strokes his tongue along mine and I open my mouth, taking it inside. He tastes sweet, manly. It’s a combination that shouldn’t go together, but when it is Rowan it’s perfect.
“Marie,” he groans against my lips and I open wider, letting him fuck my mouth that way, the same way I want him to do between my thighs.
I have my arms wrapped around his shoulder, my fingers touching the short strands of hair at the nape of his neck. Before I know what’s happening, Rowan has his hands on my hips and lifts me up. I instinctively wrap my legs around his waist, and hold on as we kiss. I feel how hard he is for me, his cock thick, long, and so ready for me. I’m wet, so soaked that my panties are damp.
“I need you,” I whisper against his mouth. “I need you now. I’m tired of waiting—”
“We’ve waited long enough.” He starts striding toward the back room … his bedroom. Once we are in there he shuts the door with his boot and takes me over to the bed. I’m on the mattress a second later, bouncing slightly, my body on fire for how aroused I am.
He takes a step back, looking at me as I’m sprawled on his bed, his look ferocious. He looks like he wants to devour me, like he’s ready to eat me alive.
God, I want that.
I lick my lips again and muster up some courage to just tell him what I want. “Undress for me,” I finally say, my voice soft. He smirks, just the corner of his mouth kicking up, as if he thinks my telling him what to do is funny. But he doesn’t deny me. I watch in rapt awe as he gets undressed, starting with his shirt. Once the material is off I stare at his golden, muscular chest. He’s not bulky like a bodybuilder, but more lean, like a swimmer. His abdomen is cut, his six-pack so defined I feel my inner muscles clench, desperately wanting what he’s sporting between his legs to be buried deep inside of me.
“You want to see more?” he asks in a husky voice.
I can only nod.
“How about you show me something, baby?” He lifts an eyebrow and that does funny things to my belly.
I rise up slightly and start to work my shirt off. I’m more than eager, more than ready to be fully naked for him. I feel like I’ve been waiting my entire life for this moment.
I have been.
Once my shirt’s off I work on my bra, then toss the offending article of clothing away. I’m sitting there, my nipples hard from the chill in the air, my entire body flushed from arousal, and my need for Rowan so tangible it’s like a third person in the room with us.
Then he starts taking off his pants. Everything in me tightens as I watch him remove his jeans and boxer briefs. When he’s standing there naked just feet from me I can’t help but look down at his cock. He’s thick and long, the head bulbous with a drop of pre-cum lining the tip. He grabs himself, stroking his erection from root to tip, his focus trained right on me.
“You ready for this?” he says it in a way that makes my throat tighten even further. “Because once we start this there is no going back. There’s only you and me, forever, Marie.”
“I’m ready,” I say.
“Once I claim you no other man will have you.”
And God, that’s all I’ve wanted.
Chapter 7
Rowan
Once I claim her, no other man will have her.
My words seem to echo around us. “Take off the rest of your clothes,” I instruct her, standing there with my fist around my thickening shaft as I look at Marie, at our fate. She’s finally mine. All mine for the rest of our lives.
She undresses slowly, with such shyness. Her confession that she’s a virgin causes me to want to slow down that much more. My chest tightens yet again at the idea that her first time will be with me. It needs to be special.
I step toward the bed, my eyes locked with hers. The bedroom light is still off, the faint glow of moonlight casting shadows across her body, illuminating her creamy skin. Her hair is a sharp contrast as it fans out around her face on the white pillows. She’s the sexiest, most beautiful fucking thing I’ve ever laid eyes on. And she’s all for me.
As I move onto the bed beside her, I kiss her shoulder softly and her body trembles ever so slightly. I lightly rest my hand on her throat, stroking my thumb over the side of her neck. Her skin flutters under m
y touch.
“Just relax,” I tell her, my eyes trained on hers, which brim over with innocence and curiosity. “I’ll take care of you.”
“I guess I always knew you would,” she answers through a nervous breath and curls her fingers around the back of my upper arm.
“That’s right.” With my palm at her waist, I pull her closer and groan with need at the warmth of her skin against mine. There’s so much more than lust between us. More than love too. I know almost everything about this woman. Her fears, her passions, her strengths and secrets, what makes her laugh, how she hates for anyone to see her cry. I want to know her body as thoroughly as everything else about her. We fit together so well as friends, I just know we’ll be amazing as lovers too.
My hand slides from her waist to the curve of her hips, and I let my fingers stray. They come to rest close to her ass cheek, causing her to sigh out a soft whimper. All of a sudden, I want to know what other sounds she’ll make when my hands, mouth, teeth and tongue explore other parts of her. As her face drifts up to mine, I close the distance and cover her mouth with a brief kiss. I doubt I’ll ever get used to kissing my best friend. Even the slightest touch is hot, electrifying, ravenous. Pulling back, I brush my thumb along her bottom lip. The feel of her hips pressing up to mine, nudging against my cock, it’s intense. I want to be deep inside her, to have her legs wrapped around me, and I will, but for now, I’ll take my time.
My lips graze down her neck and she tilts her head a little, a subtle invitation for me to taste more. Closing my eyes, I breathe in the scent of something floral mixed in with her scent. It’s addictive, and as I move lower, nipping her skin, she arches her breasts up to me. My body responds everywhere, heating my skin to its boiling point. I lower my face to her breasts, tugging a nipple between my teeth.
“Rowan.” She cries out my name, almost breathless.
Every part of her mirrors her words, longing for me, craving more. I almost can’t wait to show her how much more pleasure awaits her. My cock jerks at the thought, hot, hard and desperate. But we have all night.