It's All Relative(121)

Jessie ran her hands up his chest and around the back of his neck to his hair. Her fingers threaded through the dark strands, grazing his scalp in the process, as their mouths began to move with more urgency, more passion. Kai ignited her body with every movement of his lips, exhale of his breath, and touch of his tongue. She wanted to expand on this feeling blossoming inside her, wanted to know what it would be like to connect with him intimately, without the horror they’d been fighting through. Now that he was essentially a stranger again, in the genetic sense, she wanted to express how much she loved him physically. She wanted to give him every part of her.

As her fingers tightened in his hair, his hands moved to rest on her neck. His thumbs stroked along her jaw, while their mouths moved in perfect sync—exploring, tasting, indulging. Taking a chance, Jessie decided to be the forward one. She was going to ask for what she wanted, now that she could do it with a clear conscience.

Breaking away from his searching mouth, she pulled back to gaze at him with lust-filled eyes. His eyes—those beautiful ocean orbs that had captivated her from the very first glance—stared straight back at her, unafraid, unregretful, and burning with desire. Jessie absorbed the passion emanating from him, then breathily said his name. “Kai?”

He kissed her softly before pulling back to stare at her again. “Yes?”

She smiled briefly, wondering if his thoughts were in line with hers. “Will you do something for me?”

Shaking his head, Kai leaned in for a long, deep kiss. “Anything,” he whispered. His breath tickled her skin, but that one single word amplified the ache deep within her.

Jessie gently pushed him away from her; she wanted him to see her face when she spoke her heart. Her gaze drifted between his eyes while he waited for her to speak with a soft smile on his lips. When she finally did, a similar smile was on hers. “Make love to me?”





Make love to me.

The words echoed through Kai’s head in waves as he lost himself in the beautiful depths of Jessie’s eyes. In moments of weakness, moments of loneliness, he’d fantasized about her say that to him. But he never thought it would happen. There had always been too much in their way before, too many barriers that even the immense love between them couldn’t overcome. And then, on possibly the worst day of Kai’s life, all of the walls had been broken down for them.

So many horrible and painful things had been running through his mind this morning that the one bright spot in all of this ugliness hadn’t been immediately apparent. Jessie had had to point it out. By losing the genetic tie to the man he knew as his father, he’d also lost the genetic tie to Jessie. They were free, nothing more than…step-cousins. And not even that, since his parents were no longer married. They were ex step-cousins. And he could live with that.

Kai could scarcely believe that the woman he’d wanted for months, the woman he’d quite possibly been waiting for his entire life, was now available to him…with no guilt, no disgust, no regret. The joy in his heart made all of the earlier ache evaporate. The sting of betrayal was still there, but he shoved it deep down. He’d deal with that pain later. Right now, he wanted to feel something…incredible. Something life-altering. Kai wanted to show Jessie how much he loved her, how deeply entrenched she was in his heart.

Kai opened his mouth to answer her, but a knot of emotion closed off his throat. Swallowing, he tried again. “I’d make love to you every day, if you’d have me.”

As she gave him a love-filled smile, her eyes began to water. “I’ll have you,” she whispered, softly laughing on the end. The heat in the low sound radiated throughout every part of him, melting the residual chill in his body. He finally felt warm again.

Hating to be apart from her, Kai’s mouth returned to Jessie’s. Their lips never parting, he shrugged the unneeded blanket off his body. Wrapping his arms around her waist, he encouraged Jessie to stand with him. Walking backwards, he led her to the hallway, to her bedroom. The memory of their previous slipup heated his blood, but unlike before, the flashes of desire were welcome; he couldn’t wait to touch her soft skin again.

Jessie’s arms slipped around his neck as she shuffled forward, following his steps. It was difficult to walk backwards, especially in a house that he didn’t have memorized. It was even more challenging with a gorgeous woman sliding her tongue along the roof of his mouth. Kai couldn’t help but close his eyes and groan. He also smacked right into an end table. Laughing as they broke apart, Kai involuntarily sat down on the edge of the table. Jessie took the opportunity to straddle his thighs and press her chest into his face.

Crooking a grin, Kai leaned down to kiss a soft mound through her jacket. Jessie bit her lip then ripped off her jacket. Kai’s mouth started to widen, but then he froze mid-smile. Not satisfied with just her jacket, Jessie also stripped off the tight sweater she was wearing. Desire shot right like a lightning bolt as he stared at the bounty on display for him. And…dear God…she was wearing black lace. He was instantly hard as she dug her hands through his hair and forced his lips to the swell of snow-white skin above her bra cup. Damn, he loved it when she was aggressive.

Cupping her backside as he tasted the sweet flavor of her flesh, he pulled her hips into his. She let out an erotic groan when she pressed against his readiness. Kai loved that he couldn’t hide how much he wanted her, loved that she knew just how much he ached for her. And he really loved the moan she made when she lowered her hips to his and ground against his erection. Kai felt his body throb and had to remind himself to be patient. Taking her on the end table in the living room was probably not what she had in mind. Although, with the desperate way she rubbed against him, the location might not matter much at this point.