She looked back at him. Still, her eyes gave nothing away. His confidence was wavering, and he was ready to give up all hope when Paisley closed her eyes, allowing a single tear to fall and roll into her hairline. If he hadn’t been staring so intently at her, he might have missed it.
Braxton was sure he’d said the wrong thing. Panic gripped his heart.
“I should have recognized the signs.” Braxton inhaled deeply. “I’m certain I’ve hurt you over the years with my actions, and I’m truly sorry if I did.”
Paisley didn’t open her eyes, but that didn’t stop the tears from them.
“I’m so sorry, butterfly. So very sorry.” Braxton placed a tender kiss to her lips, then her cheek, and finally his kisses stopped when his lips found her ear. “Please forgive me.”
Forgive me. The words caused Paisley’s eyes to spring open. He wanted her forgiveness, but there was nothing to forgive. She’d played an equal part in where they were today. She could have confronted him over the years, told him how she’d felt, but she hadn’t. She’d taken the easy way out and buried her emotions deep inside. She couldn’t let him feel as if he was the only one at fault.
“Stop.” Paisley’s word was a faint whisper. Her hands cupped the sides of Braxton’s face. “I don’t need to forgive you. You’ve done nothing wrong. You protected your heart by ignoring your feelings. I, on the other hand, allowed myself to fall in love with you and refused to tell you.”
Her words elated Braxton and confused him all at the same time. “You loved me too?” He placed a small distance between them while he attempted to assess her body language. “I think deep down inside I knew it but chose not to see it. The signs were there, I just blocked them out—probably for self-preservation.”
They had talked enough. Now was the time for them to show each other how much they loved one another. Braxton’s kisses were consuming and desperate as he claimed Paisley’s lips. When they broke apart, they were both breathless, but that didn’t stop him from finishing the task at hand.
Slowly, he nibbled and bit at her skin until he reached her rock-hard nipple. His mouth latched onto it, biting and sucking while his other hand squeezed and kneaded the other breast.
Her moans filled the air as her body writhed beneath him. His lips traveled south, sending shivers up her body with each lick and nip at her skin. Braxton stopped right above the edge of the perfectly manicured hair that guided his face to her core—just as the asphalt of a runway leads a plane safely to its final destination.
Braxton’s mouth closed over Paisley’s clit. He gently sucked, causing her body to bow off the bed. She rocked beneath him, indicating how crazy his attention was driving her. Her moans turned into soft cries of pleasure before he felt her shudder beneath him.
“Oh, God. Yes. Yes. Yessssss.” Paisley fell lifeless beneath Braxton. Her orgasm had consumed her body, sending it to the ends of the earth and back. Completely sated, she couldn’t find the energy to move.
Braxton gazed at Paisley's face. Her eyes were half-hooded. She was content with the pleasure he’d provided her. Braxton crawled over her body, giving her one last kiss, on the way, and then rolled to the side. As he started to stand, Paisley reached out, grabbing at his arm.
“Where are you going?” Her words were laced with hurt and apprehension, causing Braxton to stop.
“I’m going to the bathroom to finish myself off,” Braxton declared.
“Why?” Paisley looked perplexed.
Braxton hated that he had to admit this to her, but honesty was going to be the foundation of their future. “Because I won’t be able to lie here next to you and not explode in the next two minutes.”
Paisley reached out, her fist claiming his hard-as-steel length. She stroked it once, twice, forcing Braxton to release a guttural moan of appreciation. When she stopped, his eyes met hers. “Inside me, please,” She begged.
Braxton nodded, reaching toward the nightstand to retrieve a condom. “Don’t,” Paisley exclaimed. “You’re my husband. Don’t cheapen the moment by making me feel like just another conquest. I want to feel you inside me.”
Braxton desired the same thing. He too longed to feel her heat wrapped around his dick without the barrier of latex covering him. Tonight was about her, her pleasure not his, so how could he deny her the request? “Your wish is my command.”
Braxton slowly sank himself fully inside her core. With each inch, he pressed into her, he lost some of the self-restraint he’d held onto. He stopped, catching his breath and refocusing his self-control. He saw the questioning look in Paisley’s eyes.
“I’m about to explode. This feels more amazing than I ever thought it could, butterfly.”
He slid another inch deeper, and her walls clamped around him. “Oh, for fuck's sake, I’m not going to last like this.”
This time when he moved, he withdrew and pushed fully into her again. He couldn’t take slowly inching his way in—not with how tight she was.
Paisley cried out.
“I’m sorry.” Braxton kissed her tenderly as he allowed her to adjust to his size. When her walls relaxed around his dick, Braxton began to move slowly.
With each thrust into her, he claimed her mouth, swallowing her cries of pleasure as he pushed in and retreated out. After only a few strokes, he could no longer control himself. She felt too amazing. And, he was surprised he’d been able to refrain for even this long.
“Paisley,” Braxton cried out her name as he released inside her.
Paisley's arms wrapped around his back, pulling him tightly to
