had met in years. It would be foolish for Kathryn to waste this opportunity to enjoy his company because of philosophical differences.
Kathryn happily awarded the victory to the third genie, complimented the second on her perspicacity and ruthlessly banished the first. Now unencumbered by doubt, she devoted her full attention to Ron's kisses. It didn't bother her in the least that she was gradually sliding down in the sofa. It was much easier to kiss lying down. Especially if she abandoned all restraint.
Kisses on her eyebrows and temples were tantalizing. Kisses on her neck or collarbone were titillating. Kisses on her ears turned up the heat. But nothing excited her as much as a big, hungry, ruthless kiss on her mouth. She wasn't a passive partner. She didn't like lying there while Ron had all the fun. She wanted to participate.
When his tongue invaded her mouth, she countered with an equal energy. Her tongue pressed back against every attack. They had slid down in the sofa until their bodies were in contact from shoulder to knee making the feeling all the more intense.
Somewhere in the midst of this intensity Kathryn realized she hadn't had a necking session like this since her college days. Nor had she enjoyed one half as much. Her two serious relationships had been just that - all too serious. They had none of the unrestrained excitement, the sheer abandon, the crackle of electric energy, the chemistry that existed between Ron and her. It was a sheer visceral reaction, all the more powerful because it was unencumbered by rational thought.
The last shred of control vanished when Ron's hand cupped her breast. Even through her blouse and bra, the feeling was electric. She heard herself gasp for breath, felt her body arch, push her breast more firmly against his hand. The feeling that swept over her was so strong, so overwhelming, she felt dizzy. She hadn't realized how long it had been since she'd allowed any man to touch her. To have someone like Ron, a man whose effect on her was out of all proportion caused her to react much more strongly than she could have imagined.
Hungers she thought buried, or at least forced into slumber by the strength of reason and resolve, gnawed at her with the voracious appetite of a starving beast. Her body trembled when Ron began to unbutton her blouse. Her breathing stopped when he unhooked her bra. It came in uneven gasps when his hands touched the superheated skin of her breast. Her skin had never felt so sensitive to the touch. She was certain all her senses were at least a dozen times more acute than normal. When his fingertips touched her engorged nipple, she felt she was ready to jump out of her skin.
She had to get herself under control. At this rate she would be a mindless mass of jelly in a matter of minutes. She hadn't guessed at the tension that had built up over the years since she'd practically cut herself off from all but the most formal dates with carefully chosen men. She had no suspicion of the need that had gone unfulfilled or the strain it had put on her. She had no idea she was capable of being so strongly attracted to a man or so strongly affected by him. She had foolishly concluded she was beyond any sort of youthful temptation to throw out reason for emotion.
But she was wrong. Ron's attentions to her body proved she was dangerously close to losing control. She didn't know what would happen if she crossed that barrier, but she resolved not to find out.
Then Ron touched her breast with his lips, and her resolve when up in smoke.
Kathryn couldn't remember when, or if, anything had ever affected her so dramatically. There was no question of her being able to think, reason, or make choices, no matter how basic. She could only remain where she was as Ron treated her breast to a profusion of sensations, each seemingly more intense and pervasive than the last. Every part of her body reacted to his touch as if he had a hundred hands and was able to touch her in a hundred places all at once. She felt besieged. Assaulted. Reduced to helplessness.
Despite the feeling that she was losing what little control she had over the situation, she wouldn't have changed anything. She couldn't remember when - if ever - she'd felt so wonderfully alive. The lethargy which had