Page 44 of Split or Swallow

Eventually, Caspen relaxed.

He stretched out on the mat as they talked, one arm behind his head, the other resting on Tem’s legs. It was a small gesture—and yet Tem felt as if they were deeply connected by it, as if he were literally holding them together with his hand. He didn’t pull her closer or do anything to deepen the moment. But it still felt intimate, and it was exactly what Tem had been craving from him for three long days. They talked for hours, about nothing and everything. Eventually, Tem lay down too.

They didn’t kiss. Instead, Caspen undid the lacings of her dress one loop at a time, pulling it off her body until she was in nothing but her underclothing. Then he pulled that off too, and she was once more naked beneath him.

He still didn’t kiss her. It seemed like all he wanted to do was to touch her. Caspen brushed his fingertips gently up her thighs, over her hip bone, and along the curve of her hip. He traced up the center of her stomach, resting his palm in the valley between her breasts. Tem wondered if he could feel her heart, which was beating so fast she could practically hear it. His hand was moving again, sliding up to wrap around her throat. Her pulse thrummed in her temple, pounding an incessant rhythm into her brain.

Without thinking, Tem’s hand went to his neck. Caspen’s eyes widened at the motion. Then they narrowed, and she heard his voice in her mind:

Squeeze, little viper.

Tem squeezed. She felt the cords of his throat contract beneath her palm, the hard line of his esophagus compressing between her fingers. What would happen if she kept squeezing? Would he let her? She was holding his life in her hand, just as he so often held hers. Tem recognized that this was a moment of trust between them—that she was meant to decide how it ended.

When she released him, he released her too.

They stared at each other for a long time. Caspen was the one to break eye contact, leaning forward and pressing his lips to her jaw. He trailed his kisses downward, gently biting her breast. Tem let out a tiny moan when he did it, and she felt him smile against her skin.

“So sensitive,” Caspen whispered, his fingers brushing over her nipple, coaxing it into an obedient point. “I could make you come just from this.”

Tem scoffed.

“I doubt it.”

Caspen’s nostrils flared.

Then he lowered his head, taking her nipple into his mouth and sucking it between his teeth. Tem gasped. She’d never felt anything like that before. Her hand darted immediately to the back of his neck, her fingers lacing tightly into his hair. She needed something to hold onto—something to steady her against the sheer ecstasy he was making her feel.

Tem couldn’t believe what Caspen was doing. He alternated between sucking her nipple and teasing it lightly, working it back and forth with his tongue. Every few minutes he would stop, using his fingers to soften it before taking it in his mouth once more. He swirled his tongue in continuous, lazy circles, tracing the peak of her breast until Tem was completely wet between her legs. She could feel it dripping onto the mat.

She’d never wanted to touch herself as badly as she wanted to right now. But if she did that, Caspen would win.

I will win regardless, his voice reverberated through her mind.

“No talking,” Tem chastised him. She could barely get the words out.

Just when she was used to one motion, he did something different, sliding her nipple first through the ridges of his teeth before flicking it lightly with his tongue. He was teasing her, she realized, taking her to the edge and then back again, bringing her closer and closer each time. But Tem was stubborn. She wouldn’t let him win this. She tried to think of something—anything to distract her.

Chicken shit. Vera’s insufferable giggle. Mother fussing around the cottage.

It was no use. There weren’t enough distasteful things in the world to combat the euphoria that was spreading through Tem like fire.

Caspen’s mouth completely covered her nipple. This time when he sucked it, he did it for so long and so tightly that she let out a helpless whimper, arching her back and grasping him desperately. As soon as she was sure she couldn’t take another second, he pulled suddenly away.

Tem gasped in surprise.

It was that, finally—the absence of sensation—that brought her straight to the edge. Her fingers tightened in his hair, trying to pull him closer, but his head didn’t budge. Instead Tem watched as Caspen’s tongue closed the distance, gliding over her nipple just once, leaving it glistening in the firelight.

Then he blew on it.

Cool air caressed her gentler than a whisper, and Tem felt the last of her self control finally break as her nipple immediately became so hard it ached. Her body had betrayed her. She could resist no longer.

Orgasm hit her like a tidal wave, crashing forth from the deepest eddies of her body and pulling her into an endless well of pleasure. She rode the wave gladly, basking in the sweet release, allowing herself to come undone just for him. Without hesitation, Caspen plunged his hand between her legs, and the moment he touched her clitoris she cried out, bucking her hips to meet him. Caspen matched her e⁠n⁠e⁠r⁠g⁠y, fingering her hard, his mouth returning to her nipple so he could play with both parts of her.

It was incredible. There was no other word for it. Tem could barely catch her breath; she felt as if she were seeing stars.

“Caspen,” she gasped.

He raised his head so they were at eye level, his fingers slowing into a gentle caress.