Avenged (Altered #2)(50)

I need to feel her. Desperation laced his desire, and she understood it perfectly.

She needed to touch him, too, to know that he was, in fact, in front of her, and they were free.

She stood on tiptoe, stretching to him, pulling at his shirt. In response, he dragged his mouth up her neck to capture her lips.

From that first touch of his mouth, she was lost. He nipped at her bottom lip, and she followed his lead, trapping his upper lip between her teeth, running her tongue along it. He growled, taking her mouth more fully. Each touch pushed her higher, made her more fevered for him.

So good. So damn good. His hands moved to the bottom of her sweatshirt. Too many clothes.

She couldn’t agree more. She leaned back long enough for him to slide it over her head, and then she immediately pulled at the hem of his T-shirt, yanking at it, unable to remove the barriers between them fast enough.

Her fingers dropped to his waist, tugging at the button there. She’d never tried to undo a jeans button from the front, so she fumbled. The shaking of her fingers wasn’t helping, either.

Gently, he pushed her hands aside and undid the fastening with a flick. A quick wiggle and his pants dropped to the ground. A jerk at her waistband and her leggings joined his jeans in the pool of clothing at their feet.

When their mouths met again, the warmth of his skin, touching her from head to toe, made her knees weaken and her stomach feel like fireworks were exploding inside. She swayed, gripping his shoulders with her fingers to hold herself up.

Whoa, baby. I’ve got you. He swept her into his arms as if she weighed nothing, and he carried her to the bed. He nudged the comforter down with his knee and followed her onto the sheets, never breaking contact with her mouth.

His hand cupped her breast, and she came off the bed with a cry, her fingers digging into the sheets beside her.

Slow down. Slow down. He recited the words like a vow. He took a deep breath, shifting back, forcing his fingers to soften on her skin. Too fast. She’s new to this, a virgin. Gentle. Slow.

“No, Nick. Please.” She reached for him, pulling at him, needing to feel more of him against her. After the fear and anxiety of getting out of the compound, she didn’t want to play it safe anymore. She wanted to feel alive, whole. She leaned up, trying to get closer. She didn’t know what she wanted, but she knew that whatever it was, Nick would give it to her.

“Hush, love.” He brushed his knuckle along her cheek then ran his thumb along her bottom lip, purposely slowing their pace. Her eyes drifted closed, savoring the intensity of the feelings. But as he dropped his head to skim kisses along her collarbone, she forced herself to open them again. She didn’t want to miss what he was doing. He continued his path, down her sternum to kiss her ribs, before he covered first her left breast, then her right, with the softest kisses imaginable.

In the wake of his kisses, her skin felt alive, tingling, and an ache had begun in her chest, another in her stomach.

No matter how she urged, he refused to hurry. She might have been frustrated if she thought he was teasing her. But she didn’t feel as if that was his intention. Instead, he was focused, determined not to miss an inch of her.

Nick was a perfectionist, after all.

When he kissed her hip, she sucked in another breath. She wasn’t even certain how she was still conscious. It didn’t feel as if she had enough air in her body. But there could be less pleasant ways to go, if this was going to be the end of her.

His hands trailed up her inner thighs, and as he settled between them, she felt his warm breath on her.

My God. She’s perfect in every way. His finger trailed along her hip. She whimpered. But when he dropped his head farther, his mouth falling on the most sensitive part of her, her hips lifted off the bed, and she cried out.

I’ve never seen anything as beautiful in my whole life.

His thought humbled her, brought tears to her eyes, as his mouth sent waves of fire slicing through her body. What he was doing with his tongue, his lips…it was luscious and dark and joyful at the same time.

He lifted his head long enough to slip a finger inside her, and she cried out his name.

My name sounds amazing on her lips.

The soft and steady movements of his fingers caught her breath. He dropped his head, returning his tongue to where everything about her converged. As he continued, her hips caught his rhythm, as if they knew exactly where this was going.

Her mind skipped, from the things his fingers were doing, to what his tongue was doing…to her breathing, or lack of it, and to the coiling in her stomach, the end she knew would be coming.

Perfect. Nothing has ever been as sexy as Kitty with my fingers inside her.

His thought, so primal and possessive, was the sexiest thing she’d ever heard. Then, he curved his fingers up the slightest bit and her body sang. She came apart in his arms.

He kept his rhythm as she drifted back to him, then he gathered her against him.

In the aftermath, she groggily realized he was still breathing fast, his body tense.

“You…” She sighed. “Your turn.” She made the offer with more bravado than she felt. She’d never even kissed someone before Nick, so returning favors wasn’t in her repertoire. But it was Nick. She’d do the best she could.

“Sleep, baby. Sleep.” Slow. A virgin. There will be other times.

“Nick…” She planned to argue. Yes, she was a virgin, but she wanted him. When she opened her mouth, though, he kissed her.