him.
Go slow, go slow, he warned himself. But his body wasn’t listening to his brain. The exotic taste of her was like a narcotic—the more he had, the more he wanted. She returned his kiss with fervor, her fingers tightly gripping his cotton shirt. His body was on fire and he longed to tear away the barrier of their clothes so he could explore every curve, every valley unencumbered.
When she pressed against him, his groin tightened painfully. Still drowning in her kiss, he smoothed his hand over her plush breast, feeling her taut, distended nipple through the soft cashmere of her purple sweater dress.
She murmured a soft, sexy sound that he wanted to believe was encouragement. But just to be certain he lifted his head and gazed down at her parted lips and flushed face.
“If we don’t slow down, this won’t end anytime soon,” he said. “I want you, Kylie. But I didn’t bring you here for this.”
Her mouth curved into a sexy smile as one eyebrow lifted. “Oh, no? You could have fooled me.”
Damn. He swallowed hard, wishing for eloquence. “What I’m trying to say is that I want you, but if you’re not ready to take this to the next step I’ll understand.” He thought it was very noble of him to give her an easy out, when every instinct in his body clamored with the need to carry her into his bedroom before she could think clearly and possibly change her mind.
He didn’t want to stop.
But he didn’t want to risk rushing her, or possibly hurting her even more. She’d been hurt too much in the past.
“Seth.” He loved the way she said his name, in that soft, sultry voice. His stomach clenched. He feared her answer. At some level he suspected he could sway her decision by kissing her again, but he waited torturously, holding his breath. She lifted her hand to his cheek, her skin cool against his fevered skin. “I’m glad you brought me here. Because I want you, too.”
Relief was dizzying. She wanted him. He had to force himself to go slow, to stand and draw her gently to her feet. He took her hand, kissed it slowly as he led her down the hall to his room.
Incredibly, she didn’t hesitate when they approached his large bed. He wished he had words to tell her how special she was, how different this felt from anything he’d experienced before. She bent to reach for the hem of her sweater dress, intent on pulling it off, and he gently took the fabric from her fingers so he could do the honors. Beneath the dress she wore a matching purple lace bra and panties.
“You’re so beautiful,” he told her. He quickly yanked off his shirt, but when she stepped forward, reaching for his belt buckle, he froze again.
“It’s—uh—been a long time for me,” she confessed. He sucked in a harsh breath as the backs of her fingers brushed against the skin of his lower abdomen as the buckle slid free. She opened his fly and then pushed the pants out of her way, sliding her hands up and over his bare chest. “I might be rusty,” she said, in a self-deprecating tone.
“Never. You can’t possibly know how much I want you.” He cupped her face between his hands and lowered his head to gently kiss her, trying to reassure her when words failed him.
She pressed her scantily clad body against him, her arms winding around his waist. Her skin was impossibly soft, and he nearly lost control right then and there when her hands slid beneath the waistband of his boxers, palming the curve of his derriere.
He was aching for her, his erection begging for release. He lifted her up and took the few steps to place her on the bed. Breaking off from the kiss long enough to unclasp her bra and skim her panties off, he barely had time to appreciate how beautiful her breasts were, the taut nipples begging for his mouth, when her fingers fumbled with the waistband of his boxers.
Shucking them off in a hurry, he had just enough sanity left to grab a condom from his pants pocket. Praying she wouldn’t be angry at how he’d carried them hopefully all night, he nearly swallowed his tongue when she took the packet and sheathed him herself.
He followed her down onto the bed, covering her body with his. He wanted to touch her, to kiss her everywhere, but she was urging him