The Virgin Promise

It’s dark enough now that we risk holding hands, and Carter rubs small circles on my hand with his thumb. I never knew such a small movement could make me all fluttery like this. I’m all tingles and anticipation.

“You weren’t wrong you know,” Carter says, pausing at one of the scenic overlooks by the river.

“About what?”

“I do want the scoop on you. I want to know more about you. More than just what your major is and why you want to cheer.” He reaches out, tucking a stray strand of hair behind my ear. “I haven’t been able to get you out of my head since that night.”

“Me neither,” I admit. He’s leaning in, and I know he’s going to kiss me, but I can’t stop myself. “Can I ask you something, though?”

He falters for a second, and I smile. I don’t think he’s used to being interrupted when he’s trying to be so smooth. “Sure.”

“The fact that I’m a virgin. I don’t understand why it interests you so much. It almost seems a little odd.”

Carter’s brow furrows. “I didn’t mean it that way.”

“Just…help me understand. Are virgins like…your thing?”

“No.” He chuckles, low and deep, and the sound shivers across my skin. “I’ve never slept with a virgin before. And in case you didn’t notice at the party? I didn’t exactly care about that. I didn’t ask.”

“Then why—”

He cuts me off. “Because I like you. A lot. And…I wasted my first time. I wanted to get it over with. It was terrible, and I’ll always regret not taking the time to do it right. I like the idea of being able to make it special for someone else.” He curls his hand around my waist, pulling me slowly against him. “I want to make you feel so good that you’ll never forget it. And if you choose to give that to me, I’ll make sure your first time is one you don’t regret.”

The worry I’d been carrying with me slides off my shoulders and I let that craving fill me up again. I stop resisting and just let myself feel the want that’s growing under my skin. “Good answer,” I say, and I pull him down to kiss me.

10

The way Carter and I crash through his apartment door, I think we’re going to draw attention from his neighbors. It’s a good thing his apartment wasn’t far because once we kissed it didn’t feel like we could stop. I’m not actually sure how we made it this far.

Carter presses me back against the door as it closes, once again pressing his lips over mine. His kisses go straight down to my toes, unleashing heat in my core like nothing I’ve ever experienced before. If I didn’t suspect that what’s coming next was much better, I’d be happy to kiss him for an eternity. I can feel how hard he is through his suit, and I shiver because I know that soon I’m going to feel that in far more detail. I’m more than ready.

“Tell me,” he says, breathless, barely stopping enough to speak, “was I your first kiss too?”

My laugh bubbles up between our lips. “I’m not quite that innocent. I did have boyfriends in high school.” I quirk an eyebrow at him. “Sorry.”

He leans close so we’re nose to nose, breath mingling. “That’s just fine. I’ll settle for being the first real man that you’ve kissed.”

“I think you’ll have to prove that to me first,” I say, laughing as he pulls me further into his apartment.

Apparently, I’m not moving fast enough, because he sweeps me off my feet and into his arms as he carries me down the hall. “Don’t worry, I plan to.”

We walk through the door to his bedroom, and he stops. He sets me on my feet, doing it in a way that my body slides down his and I can feel every inch of him. He kisses me, this time slow and sweet. “Now that we’re here, we can take our time,” he says. “But tell me that you’re sure. If you’re not ready, this can wait.”

There’s a fire burning in me and it’s been waiting for this for too long. I’ve never had anyone make my body feel like this, in the brief touches I’ve had from those same high school boyfriends. Carter wants this to be special, and I don’t have any doubts that he’s going to keep his word. I want this. I want him. “I’m sure.”

He smiles at me, a sweet smile that sets my heart fluttering and makes my toes curl in my shoes. The light in the room is low. Light enough to see and dark enough so that I don’t feel exposed. For a second, I have a brief flash of how horrifying it would be to do this under fluorescent lights, and I almost laugh. But then I don’t, because Carter’s slipped off his suit jacket, and he’s unbuttoning his shirt.

Now I get to see in perfect detail what I only got a glimpse of, and a feel of, at the party. It may have been a couple years since he was on the squad, but Carter hasn’t lost the body. Every inch of him is lean muscle, and I reach out, giving in to the urge to run my hands across his skin. “Like what you see?” he asks, that sexy smirk firmly in place.

“You might say that.”

He turns me with his hands until I’m facing away from him, and I gasp as I feel his lips on the back of my neck, his fingers working the clasp of my dress. I shiver as he pulls the zipper down, exposing the skin of my back to the air. God, I didn’t know that something like pulling down a zipper could be so fucking hot. His fingers run down my spine, and I get goose bumps. I’m not wearing a bra—don’t need one in this dress. That makes this far more intimate.

Carter’s hands slide up my back and over my shoulders, pushing the fabric of the dress until it falls, pooling around my feet. But his hands don’t stop, sliding on my skin until he’s cupping my breasts, lips working their way from my neck to my shoulder. “You’re perfect,” he murmurs against my skin.

It’s suddenly hard to find my breath. “You haven’t even seen me yet.”

“I don’t need to see you to know you’re absolutely perfect.”

I don’t have a chance to make another witty reply, my voice is lost entirely as his hands squeeze. My nipples harden in the coolness of the air, and his fingers find them, teasing, pulling, sending sparks straight down to that low place in my belly where everything seems to be gathering. But then he comes around me, and he does see me for the first time. It feels like forever while he looks at me. “That’s one hell of a view.” His voice is tight, like he’s restraining himself. And maybe he is, going slow for me, making sure I’m comfortable. He holds out a hand to me, and I take it, stepping out of my shoes as I follow him to the bed.

It feels strange, almost like a ritual, climbing onto this bed when I know what’s going to happen next. I’m suddenly self-conscious, worried that this isn’t going to be what I’m hoping, and that Carter will be disappointed. But then he kisses me, pressing me down into the mattress just like we were at that party, and I forget that anxiety. Who can remember to be nervous when everything feels this good? I want to remember everything.

Carter’s lips are soft on mine, teasing mine open to make way for his tongue tangling with mine. A shudder runs through me, followed by a wave of arousal so acute I stop kissing him just to gasp for air. Soon his tongue won’t be the only thing that’s inside me. I grab at him, pulling him against me. I want to be closer to him, so much closer. He’s going too slow. I wrap my legs around his hips, pulling us together in that way that made me see stars that night.

He laughs against my skin. “Impatient?”

“You have no idea.”

“Well too bad,” he pulls back, looking down at me. “I told you I wasn’t ever going to let you forget this night. I plan on thoroughly worshipping your body before I take you.” He punctuates the words with kisses, to my lips, to my neck, to my chest. “Your only job is to feel.”

Before I can even think to say anything, Carter’s mouth closes over my nipple. Oh. I’ve never thought much about my nipples. I never realized they could be so sensitive, never realized that having them sucked would send new waves of pleasure down to my clit. Heat sears through me and I arch up into him, my only response a moan. God, if this is how it feels now…

His tongue plays with me, circling and stroking and I f

eel the smallest graze of teeth that only makes me want more. He sucks me deep, and the sight of my breast filling his mouth is so strange and so good. I’ve been turned on since we kissed by the river, but I feel myself getting even wetter while he uses his mouth on me. I imagine his mouth other places. He releases me from his mouth, and my skin forms goose bumps that make my nipples even harder. It’s almost too much, but at the same time, not enough. Carter’s mouth never leaves my skin, sucking until he reaches my other breast, my other nipple, and I have to close my eyes.

“I love these,” Carter says, lifting up enough to take them both in his hands. “The perfect size for me to play with.” And he does, pushing them together, squeezing, pulling them outward until I lift my body up to meet his. “I can think of so many dirty things I want to do with these.”

My breath goes short. “Like what?”