Hold Me Close - Talia Hibbert Page 0,299

that erection… Her mouth went dry, but she wasn’t sure if anticipation or outright nerves were to blame.

“Zach,” she said calmly, “did you know there is a piercing in your dick?”

He looked down as if shocked. “Well, shit. How did that get there?”

This didn’t seem like the moment to laugh, so she clapped a hand over her mouth—but amusement bubbled up anyway, hysterical and delighted. “I knew your secret piercing was a sex thing.”

“Of course it is. Unsexy piercings aren’t usually secrets.”

“Right,” she said dryly, eyeing the little ring that curved through his swollen cockhead. It was a bright, shining silver, stark against his flushed skin. “Um… does it hurt?”

“No,” he said, then held up a hand. “Actually—I’ve changed my mind. It hurts like hell because I’m not inside you.”

She bit her lip. “Oh dear.”

He laughed and climbed on to the bed. “You look scared as fuck.”

“I’m not,” she lied. “It’s just a piercing.”

As if throwing him off would be that easy. “I wasn’t talking about the piercing, Rae. Relax,” he murmured, his fingers catching the hem of her T-shirt. “You don’t need to be nervous. We’ll take our time. Okay?”

“Okay. Yes. Right.” The last of her words were muffled as he eased her T-shirt over her head. She’d already removed her bra, so now she was naked except for her knickers. She remembered the last time she’d sat before him like this, and the thought must have hit him too, because their eyes met and their lips curved almost simultaneously.

“Are you going to take these off for me, this time?” he whispered, fingering the lace at the edge of her underwear. When she hesitated, he ran his mouth over her jaw, his lips soft and his stubble rough. “Doesn’t have to be now,” he breathed into her skin, low and reassuring. “Touch me.”

Rae couldn’t believe she’d needed the reminder. It had been forever since she’d actually had sex—longer than the eighteen months since her divorce, anyway. Luckily, Zach seemed dedicated to reminding her how this was done. She ran her palms over the fine rasp of hair on his chest and was rewarded with his hands kneading her arse, making her clit swell and her pussy ache. She nudged the flat disc of his nipple with a fingertip, and he pushed out a breath and sucked on her lower lip. Everything inside her turned molten. His big, rough hands stroked her so softly, his mouth was so tender but hungry, and the tension was killing her.

Then her questing fingers brushed the skin just above his hip, and he shuddered. A moan escaped from somewhere deep in his chest. "Christ, Rae,” he murmured, and when she looked up, she was shocked by the decadent need on his face. His eyes were bright, swallowed up by black pupils; his sharp cheekbones were flushed; his lips were swollen and parted and slick.

“Lie back,” she said, the desperate thud of her heart driving each word. “I want to see what else makes you moan.” When he obeyed, she settled between his thighs and licked that soft, sensitive skin above his hip. He jerked, his hands sinking into the mess of her hair, tugging until she looked up at him.

“You,” he rasped, “are going to kill me. I don’t know why I agreed to this.”

But Rae did. She’d been trying so hard to ignore it, this knowledge, but she couldn’t anymore. Wouldn’t. The lines between real and fake had blurred so badly, they were barely visible—yet she didn’t want to run away. Not even when she saw possession in his eyes and felt it in his touch. She realised with sudden, endless relief that she loved him more than she feared for herself. She was stronger than she’d ever been, and she chased what she wanted, and if this connection between them hurt in the end, perhaps it would be worth it.

She didn’t know how to say any of that, though; simply feeling it was exhausting enough. So, she bowed her head and worshipped him, instead.

Her lips traced a teasing path across his skin while he moaned and arched and begged her for more. She smiled to herself and nuzzled his cock, barely resisting the urge to purr like a cat. He smelled like heat and salt and skin and Zach, so she flicked her tongue out to taste.

“Rae,” he moaned, his hips bucking. “Don’t—I’ll—”

“What?” she teased. “You’ll come? Really?”

“Yes,” he gritted, clearly serious. “You have no idea how fucking good you look right