Begin Again (Again #1)(67)

“Kaden.” I sighed his name, again and again.

His tongue glided in teasing, circling movements. He grasped my thighs and held me tight. I arched my back, almost desperately, as his kisses became even hotter, even more intense.

And then he stopped. I groaned in frustration and was about to protest when he began to spread a trail of hot kisses from the inside of my thighs to my belly, my breasts, up to my forehead.

“You’re driving me crazy,” I whispered into his lips and felt how his stomach muscles twitched at my touch. I let my hands roam over his skin, exploring his body, and wrapped my legs around his hips.

Kaden let out a deep, guttural cry as I pressed against him and began to move my hips.

“You’re wearing too much.”

Before I could blink, Kaden had rolled off me and pulled off his boxer shorts. My eyes wandered over his naked body, his muscles, his tattoos, farther down … He reached out to his nightstand to find a condom, and I watched him as he slipped it on.

Then his body was back over mine, and Kaden stroked my cheeks. “We can stop any time,” he murmured. “Any time. Okay?”

I nodded and placed my hands on his shoulders, to pull him back down toward me.

“I have to hear you say it, Allie.” I felt him trembling above me.

“Okay, Kaden,” I whispered and looked at him. “I want you. I want you so badly, it hurts. Please, please come here.”

He shifted his weight and lowered himself onto me. He kissed me passionately and at the same time I felt him at my opening. I spread my legs even farther apart and gasped as he began to push into me.

He paused for a second. “Is it okay?”

I nodded, and because I was afraid this answer might not be enough, I raised one leg over his hip to pull him deeper inside.

“Oh, God,” Kaden groaned next to my ear. “Oh, God, Allie.”

And then he pushed all the way in.

I gasped and dug my fingers into Kaden’s arms. He withdrew from me slightly, only to push back a second later.

My desire spread so hot and quick that it felt as if my whole body was on fire. I wished this could have been my first time, and consoled myself with the fact that at least in one sense it was a first—I’d never opened myself so much to anyone, never given so much of myself.

His motions were still slow and controlled. But I didn’t want him to hold back: I wanted him to let go. So I whispered onto his lips: “I won’t break, Kaden. Take me harder.”

As if he’d been waiting for these words, a groan broke from his chest and he thrust harder, faster. Deeper. I moaned, dragged my fingernails over his back and pressed against him.

“You feel … unbelievable,” Kaden cried and pressed his mouth against my throat. His hand reached for mine and held it over my head on the mattress. Our fingers tangled together as Kaden penetrated deeper into me.

“Kaden!” I groaned as my orgasm shook my body. Kaden’s hips ground against mine, now without any rhythm or subtlety. Each impact sent another wave rolling through me.

Kaden moaned my name and released his hand from mine to embrace me. He buried his face in my neck and pushed one last time before a shudder ran through his body and his hips began to twitch.

It took a while before my pulse had calmed. I felt Kaden’s heart beating against mine and closed my eyes. I didn’t know how much time had passed. At some point, Kaden rolled off me and lay down alongside me. Leaning on an elbow, he looked into my eyes. Then he leaned over me and kissed me.

“That was … amazing,” I whispered hoarsely and stroked his chest, his shoulders, his arms.

“And how.” He kissed me again, slow and deep, and promised me so much more than just a physical connection. Now it was all too much; I couldn’t handle the emotions. And then it happened.

I had to cry.

Kaden caressed my face, kissed my tears away, and with his powerful presence drove out my dark memories to make room for new ones.





Chapter 27


When I woke up, the first thing I noticed was Kaden’s smell. The second was the fact that Kaden hadn’t let go of me the whole night. He lay behind me, his arm over my belly, his face on my shoulder, and our legs were so tangled with each other and the blanket that I couldn’t move. I closed my eyes and savored his peaceful, rhythmic breathing against my neck.

Kaden White was a cuddler. Who would’ve thought?

A flutter spread in my chest, and I smiled into my pillow. This felt so right. And it wasn’t just about the sex—which had shaken my world—but mainly about the fact that we’d dropped our defenses. We connected. Kaden knew everything about me and still wanted me. A little voice in my head warned me to be careful, but I ignored it.

“Your thoughts are so loud that I can’t sleep anymore,” mumbled Kaden behind me. “Cut it out.”

I giggled into the pillow.

He pulled me even closer. His fingers covered my ribs, and he pressed his lips behind my ear. I trembled.

“I have a weakness for your laugh,” he sighed as he buried his nose in my hair. “To be frank, I have a weakness for pretty much everything about you.”

I laughed again. “Same here. You’re pretty tolerable yourself.”

In one second he had me on my back and was straddling me.

“I’m pretty tolerable?” He raised an eyebrow. His eyes sparked playfully.