Baden (Pittsburgh Titans 1)

She shifts again, sliding a silky leg against mine, and my arm tightens around her. She’s practically on top of me, and yet I don’t feel she’s close enough. Her weight and softness are heaven, and I’m already thinking of what a future like this would hold.

“Are you awake?” she asks softly, and it startles me slightly. I thought she was still deep under, yet her voice sounds clear.

“Yeah… not able to sleep very well,” I admit. She smooths a hand along my chest. “You feel too good. I don’t want to sleep and miss out on this.”

Sophie chuckles. “Well, I did actually sleep pretty hard for a while. You totally destroyed me with your wicked ways.”

I snort, because she destroyed me right back.

“What time is it?” she asks.

I pull my hand out from behind my head and look at my watch. “About quarter to six.”

“I’m wide awake,” she replies, snuggling in closer. “No going back to sleep for me.”

Me either, so I reach out and flip on the bedside lamp. We both blink a few times at the sudden flood of light, but I roll so I’m on my side facing her. Our legs are still intertwined, but she curls her arm and tucks her hand under the pillow. I lean up on my elbow, propping my head on my hand.

Leaning in, I snatch a kiss. When I pull back, her eyes are closed, and she’s smiling.

They flutter open and she murmurs, “Good morning.”

“Good morning.” I lift my hand, trace my fingertip along her jaw and down her neck where it gets lost in her hair. I pick up a lock and study it in the lamplight before giving her my eyes. “How are you feeling?”

“You mean, physically?” she asks, her lips tipped in a lazy smile. “I feel deliciously used. Mentally… I’m all kinds of happy and exhilarated and a little scared. You?”

My smile is so contented, it should speak enough, but still, I reply, “Ditto.”

That makes her even happier, as indicated by the sparkle in her eye and when she lifts up to kiss me. My hand goes to her jaw, and I hold her there a moment as our lips linger.

When she settles back down, I decide to get something out of the way. “We had unprotected sex last night.”

Sophie’s eyes darken and then drop so she’s staring at my chest. I take it as a sign of embarrassment, so I lift her gaze with fingers under her chin.

“But it didn’t feel unprotected,” I continue. “It felt right in every way. Am I wrong about that?”

“I never thought about using any form of protection,” she admits candidly. “I was so caught up in you, someone could’ve waved a condom under my nose and I wouldn’t have noticed.”

I can’t help but laugh. “I know exactly what you mean.”

We’re silent a second, considering potential ramifications. Finally, I offer, “If it helps, I’ve always been safe before. I’ve never not worn a condom.”

She wrinkles her nose. “I don’t even want to imagine situations where you’d wear a condom.”

Her tiny display of jealousy actually pleases my heart, and I pull her to me. “Never wanted to be with someone before without protection,” I say, so she understands just how different she is from the countless others.

Sophie clears her throat. “Well… my experience isn’t that broad. I had a serious boyfriend in college, and he always wore protection. I’ve been with only two other men, one I saw for a long time, and the other a poor choice after a lot of alcohol while out with Frankie one night. Condoms were deployed.”

“Yeah,” I say, cutting in on the information, “I don’t need details.”

Sophie snickers. “Sorry. It’s just… only three in my past, and all have been done safely. But…”

Her expression becomes worried, and I know what she’s getting ready to say. So I finish it for her. “You’re not on birth control.”

Once again, her eyes shift away.

“Sophie.” Her gaze comes back. “Why so shy about this?”

She sighs heavily. “I am on birth control. To regulate my period. I just didn’t want you to think I was on it because I’m a tramp.”

I can’t help it. I roar with laughter and pull her in for a hard hug, rocking her gently. Christ, she’s adorable.

When I ease my hold, I try to quiet my laugh and adopt a serious look. “Of course, I wouldn’t think that about you. Although you can be my tramp anytime you want.”

Sophie giggles, and I lean in to kiss her, a sweet reminder of how much I adore her at this moment. But her arms circle around me, and the kiss immediately flames hot.

My body immediately responds. Blood racing, breath hitched, my cock twitching. Sophie takes me in her hand and strokes me no more than three or four times, and I’m hard as a rock.