Before You

I wanted her to say it again. I wanted her to tell me to stop.

But I wanted her more.

My other hand was now just below her ribs, and with each swipe of my thumb, her back arched.

I watched her movement, her bending into me, like she was giving me a dance. “You feel so good.”

My eyes took their time devouring her, enjoying the dips of her body as though she were mine. She responded after every inch with a quick intake of air or a shift in position until there wasn’t anything separating us.

I was still fighting. Still hoping to find the strength to back away.

It was impossible.

Especially when there was nothing I wanted more than to taste her.

I reached up until my fingers were on her face, and I held her steady as I got closer, my lips eventually hovering over hers. I looked at her mouth and then back at her eyes. It was the final fight—one that only teased me—and then I slowly brought her mouth to mine.

The second we kissed, every fear I’d had was confirmed.

This was a mistake.

One I couldn’t stop from happening.

But one that felt better than anything I’d ever experienced in my life.

“Billie,” I whispered when I finally took a breath, wanting to feel her name vibrate on my tongue. “I need you closer.” My fingers lowered to her ass, and I lifted her onto the counter, spreading her legs over the hard surface so I could move in between them.

She gripped my shoulders, searching my eyes. “Where did you come from, Jared?” She paused, and I could tell she wasn’t done. “You were sitting next to me on the plane. Just a stranger who saved me. And now, you’re here at my home … and I don’t want you to leave.”

My hands were on her thighs, running to the break of her hips and back to her knees.

I didn’t want to hear this.

Not now.

Not when I knew how fucking wrong this was.

“Billie …”

She stopped combing the hairs of my beard. “Yes?”

“Kiss me.”

She folded forward, wrapping her legs around my waist, clasping our bodies together. Her lips gradually pressed against mine, and I gave her my tongue, slowly sliding it in and out.

While she held on to my face, I explored the rest of her body. And I did it so fucking slow, savoring every spot I examined. Starting at her hips, I went up her sides to the bottom of her ribs. Each brush of my thumbs had her breathing into my mouth, and I continued higher until I reached her nipples.

“Jared,” she hissed, her head leaning back. “My God.”

My lips went to her neck, fingers pinching the hard tips through her bra, and I kissed along the base of her throat and up her chin and across her ear. Each inhale told me how badly she wanted this. By the time I arrived at her mouth, she was breathless. She released my shirt, hands sliding to my belt buckle, stalling at the clasp. I sucked on her bottom lip, my thumb bearing down on her nipple.

“I want you.”

I couldn’t get enough of those words, especially when I heard them in her voice. “Say it again, Billie.” My cock was so hard that I thought it was going to burst through my pants.

“I,” she moaned, her body teasing the tip of my erection, “want you.”

I popped the button of her jeans and lowered her zipper, lifting her just enough to slide them off. “Jesus,” I growled when my eyes hit her legs and the beautiful dip that was directly between them. “I can’t wait to taste you.”

“Jared,” she groaned, demanding my mouth again.

My fingers went under her lace panties, finding a warmth I had dreamed about. “Fuck, you’re wet.”

I grazed her clit. Just one pass, like a flick of my tongue. She breathed out my name, bucking against my hand, and I went lower. While my mouth devoured hers, I circled the tips of my fingers, spreading the wetness before two plunged inside her. My palm went to her clit, and I worked my hand together.

“Yes,” she cried, gripping my shoulders, her legs locking even tighter around me.

Even though my fingers were inside her, my tongue needed to be there too.

I pulled out of her and grabbed her ass once again. I lifted her off the counter, carrying her through the living room and around the corner where I had a feeling her bedroom was located. Once I set her on the bed, she unhooked my belt, and I unbuttoned my shirt. With all of my clothes on the ground, I moved to the edge of the mattress.