I scoop Rose up and get out of there, passing Esther on my way up the stairs. Her expression is another I’m unfamiliar with. A smile, albeit tiny, but perfectly detectable on her usually impassive face. I give her a nod of assurance. “She’ll need to eat soon,” I tell her.
“Just let me know when.” Esther makes no big deal of my softness, continuing down the stairs. She knew. She knew why Rose was locked in the bathroom.
“Esther,” I call, and she turns back, waiting.
“Thank you.”
Now, she doesn’t hide her smile, nodding again before disappearing into the kitchen. I look down at Rose nestled into my chest. Vulnerability doesn’t suit her, but part of me likes it. Part of me loves the notion that I can protect her. The other part of me hates seeing my little warrior so utterly bared. Because it’s gone. Her shield. Her unassailable strength. Ferocity. Gone.
Carrying on up the stairs, I automatically go to my room, setting her on her feet by my bed. She looks up at me, uncertainty in her eyes. That red dress looks all wrong on her. Reaching back for the zip, I unfasten it, taking the material and sliding it down her body until the dress hits the carpet. Better. So much better. Then I catch sight of a tear in the lace of her knickers. I swallow down my anger before it clouds me, taking her hands and guiding them to my shirt buttons, silently demanding her to unfasten them. She begins without question while I shrug my jacket off and pull my tie free. On the last button, she pushes the tails of my shirt aside and gazes up at me as she lowers her lips to my chest. I look to the ceiling, my hands coming up to my face and dragging down my scratchy cheeks. Lord, have mercy, my skin burns under her lips, the fire spreading over every inch of my flesh. I sink my splayed fingers into her hair and massage her scalp, my whole body relaxing under our contact. Dropping my head, I pull her mouth from my pec and lift her from her feet so our eyes are level.
“Yes,” she says before I can ask, her palms holding my face. Her mouth meets mine and instigates the kiss that’ll lead to what will be a pivotal moment for both of us. I hug her to me, our mouths working steady and slowly, as I walk us to the bed and lower her, coming down above her. Her hands go to my trousers and start working the fly, and I lift, allowing her to push them over my arse with my boxers, kicking off my shoes and socks. Our kiss becomes clumsy while I try to wriggle free from the material, being forced to relinquish her mouth and look at what I’m doing. I calmly free myself of the material, and once I’m naked, I lean over her, one fist pressed into the mattress, the other hand taking the top of her knickers. She inhales, and I drop my mouth to her hip and kiss my way down her legs as I draw the lacy material to her feet. A soft moan, a subtle arch of her back. The sight of her calmly writhing under my touch is fucking stunning. I work my way back up her body, dragging my lips everywhere I can. The juncture of her thighs meets my nose, and I place a hand on each knee, spreading her wide open.
“Danny.” She whispers my name so softly, her fingers sliding into my hair. My nose circles the small strip framing her special place, my lips dotting kisses between her thighs. Her breathing becomes louder, her hips flexing. I’ve never smelled anything like her. Blood booms in my veins, need possessing me. Slow. I want to be slow this time. Appreciate all of her. Savor every inch and every second. My tongue is hungry and eager, licking slowly up her center, and her hands tighten in my hair, her body bowing violently this time. I hum, circling her clit, breathing her scent into me. She is like nothing else. I kiss her everywhere, plunging my tongue deeply inside, greedy for her wet flesh all over my mouth. If there is anything more delicious than this, I’m yet to taste it. I introduce my fingers, mixing plunges with licks, bites, sucks. “God, Rose,” I mumble, the tip of her clitoris buzzing with need.
“I don’t want to come,” she croaks, pushing her arse into the mattress, escaping me. “Please, I want to come with you inside me.”
I slip a hand under her arse and lift her back to my mouth, sealing my lips around her and sucking hard. She cries out, the sound drifting into a moan. She can have both, I’ll make sure of it. “You’re going to come so many times tonight, Rose, you’re going to need me to carry you everywhere for the next week.”