He stroked down the side of her ribs and over her hip and took hold of his erection. She untwined her fingers and reached between her knees while he stroked himself against her exposed and uplifted labia.
Anna stiffened slightly, aware of how close he was to penetration, and how far she was from being ready for that degree of intimacy. “No.”
No, she wouldn’t be allowing this to be happening so soon, had she not met Liam. And no, her body wasn’t ready to meet Daniel’s as fully as he was asking. No, not without more words passing between them.
Her voice was silenced by the sheets. He pulled away. “Did you say no?”
She nodded her head into the mattress. “I’m not ready.”
A new voice had entered her internal fray, scolding her for being lured by the extravagance of Daniel’s gift into giving more of herself to him sooner than she wanted.
“Not ready for sex?” he asked.
“Not ready for sex.” She looked for him over her shoulder and nudged away the pillow he’d propped under her hips. Rolling to her back, she offered an alternative. “Tongue?”
Her thigh muscles tensed when she bent her knees and assessed him through half-opened eyes. He brought his hands to rest on her knees. With a slight outward pressure, he suggested she drop them open to better his view.
His lips and tongue had started the journey down the centerline of her torso, from her sternum to her navel to her pubic bones when she signaled he should stop.
“Daniel,” she whispered, wishing she’d thought to ask before she had to stop him again.
“Yes?” He paused, still murmuring into the skin of her inner thigh.
“I just wanted to let you know I’ve been tested, and I’m clean. That’s all.”
“You taste clean.” He lifted his head. “Clean and a little salty.”
“And you?” she asked, tapping his head with her fingertips.
“I’ve been diligent,” he stated, holding her gaze.
“By diligent, do you mean you’re clear to engage with me sexually without fear of transmitting any diseases?”
His face registered a bit of surprise and the hint of a wicked grin. “That’s exactly what I meant by using the word ‘diligent’,” he said. “Any more questions, or may I get back to what I was doing?”
She stretched and spread her legs. “Be my guest.”
Any whisperings of discomfort were weaker than the murmurings of desire as she reacted to the probing curiosity of his fingers and the gliding action of his tongue. She lifted her hips to moderate the intensity of sensation and sank her buttocks into the bed when she swelled with arousal.
“How’re you doing?” he asked.
Anna arched her spine and let her head roll to face him, opening her eyes half way. “Very well, thank you. And you?”
He rose above her, licked the closest nipple, and entered her easily with two fingers. As he sucked and licked and teased at her breast, she listened for the rhythm that would bring her to orgasm. He moved his fingers faster, and her breathing changed, tangled itself up near her collarbones. She grabbed his wrist, slowing and guiding his pace until she poured over the edge into climax.
Daniel moved the hand he’d rested on her belly. His erection pressed into the side of her leg, vying for attention. She acknowledged its presence—and his need—when she reached to stroke her fingertips over his length from base to tip.
“What would you like?” she asked, eyes closed, body humming.
He reached to cup her nearest buttock. Her muscles stayed languid underneath. She loved orgasming. How had she ever gone so long without regular infusions of sexual contact?
He spiraled her onto her belly. She undulated, belly down, inviting him to sink into her flesh, wanting to feel encompassed and possessed by the man positioning himself between her thighs.
Daniel added a swath of lotion to her lower back and began to ride and slide, up and down, keeping the lubricated skin to skin contact. The pressure of his long, hard legs meeting the backs of her thighs increased as he slid into the dip of her back. Anna squeezed and released her butt in languid waves. She couldn’t invite him inside her, not yet, and this was an extremely pleasurable alternative. For her and, she hoped, for him.
He sank his teeth into the muscle that connected her neck to her shoulder, and hung on, animal-like, until she growled. He followed up by dragging his teeth over her skin and biting, until he found the spot that provided her the perfect balance between pleasure and pain and him the last few strokes to release.
Anna melted into the middle of the bed, her skin coated with a fine sweat and other slippery substances, Daniel’s heartbeat resonating against her upper spine. He slid away from her and the bed and returned with a hand towel from the bathroom, wiping her back and buttocks before cleaning himself. She lingered in the post-coital lull until he covered them with the top sheet and settled next to her, face up, a proprietary hand cupping her butt.
“We still do that pretty well.”
Eyes closed, she reveled in the sensations that continued to spark and flow through her body. Daniel’s hand tightened its grip then relaxed.
“Yes, we do,” she agreed.
He took a few breaths. “Is there anything you desire before I pass out?”
“Right now, I desire to not move a muscle.”
“Then we’re in complete agreement about a very important topic.”
Daniel’s breathing slowed. His hand twitched. Anna turned her head to face him and opened her eyes. His profile greeted her gaze, the long nose with the slight hook at the bridge, the thick eyebrows, dark brown hairs shot with silver. Fine wrinkles lined his forehead and the corners of his eyes and mouth, but this was very much the Daniel she’d been crazy in unrequited love with for almost two years.
His face softened as he slipped into sleep, his hand still on her backside. He stirred when she lifted her head to admire what she could see of his body
