Page 62 of The Sound of Harmony

“I like it,” he said, grinning now. “Keep going. Half step up.”

Emma matched his key change without missing a beat. She smiled as if to say, thought you had me, eh?

“We got it, we got it, oh no, we don’t.” Kendrick fumbled, plonking a discordant mish-mash before finding his fingering. “That part? We’ll call it jazz.”

Emma hit wrong notes, found better ones, and laughed as they made music together. This key worked even better than the original, and her melody was straight fire. She was onto something now, leading them toward what sounded like a bridge.

But before she got there, Kendrick caught her hand and brought it to his lips. He kissed her palm, then the inside of her wrist. A surprised breath escaped her, almost a whimper.

She leaned into him. His arms went around her and their lips met. They explored each other’s mouths slowly, tenderly, as they savored the kiss.

It was over too soon. They sighed together, and Kendrick stroked her hair. She could see the desire in his eyes, an intimate longing that burned like flame. Could she answer that desire?“I…um…I’m out of practice,” she said. “I don’t remember all the steps to this particular dance. Don’t know if I can keep time. Don’t know if I can even hear the music. But I’d like to try.”

Kendrick stood and held out his hand. He helped Emma to her feet and kissed her again, more passionately this time. He traced a finger from her forehead, across her cheek, down her neck, to her breast. His hand was over her shirt, over her bra, but she could still feel the heat of him through her clothing. She stood stiffly, not sure how to respond as lust and hesitation battled it out in her body.

He kissed her ear. “I’ll go at your tempo. I won’t do anything unless you ask me to.”

“Talk to me,” she said. “I need to hear your voice.”

“We’ll go slow,” he said. “I’ll give you everything you need to feel safe. Tell me what you want and I’ll do my damnedest to deliver.”

Their lips met again and a shiver of excitement traveled up her spine. Her head felt sparkly, and that electric energy was traveling lower and lower. She felt a familiar tingle between her legs. Yes.

“Tell me what you want,” Kendrick said.

“I want you.”

“But how, Emma? How do you want me?”

She pressed herself against him, one leg pushing between his, her hands on his soft t-shirt, feeling the hard muscles beneath. “I want you. That’s all.”

“Tell me how to please you,” Kendrick insisted. “Should I kiss your neck?”

The stubble on his chin brushed across her throat, stealing her voice. All she could do was throw her head back and pull him closer.

Kendrick moved his lips to the neckline of her t-shirt. “Or shall I kiss you there?”

Emma sucked in a breath. “Yes, please.”

He lifted her shirt over her head and off, revealing her white lace bra. “Shall I kiss that little bit of skin that shows over the cups?” he asked. “Or shall I kiss your shoulder? Or your collarbone?”

He did all that and more. His lips nibbled playfully, making her knees wobble. She tangled her hands in the softness of his hair and inhaled the fragrance of clean shampoo and the earthy scent of their lust. “Yes,” she said. “Yes to all of it.”

“I want you, Emma.” He drew himself up and looked into her eyes. “I want to peel off your clothes and worship every inch of your body. I want to kiss you everywhere until you’re calling out my name. I want to tease you, play with you, and finally, make love to you.”

Emma closed her eyes, feeling every syllable of his words, each one like a caress. The sound of his voice heated her body, ignited her nerves, and made her panties damp.

“But that’s what I want,” Kendrick said, his voice low and husky. “I need to know. What do you want?”

Emma caught her breath. Why was this so difficult? When Kendrick was in another house, in another state, their communication flowed through the phone and she never had difficulty expressing herself. But now that he was here, and they were skin-to-skin, she was having a hard time forming thoughts, much less words. She pulled him in for a kiss instead, meeting his mouth with urgency.

She started lifting his t-shirt. He would understand if she showed him what she wanted.

But he stopped her by gently—ever so gently—moving her hands away. “Tell me. What do you want?”

“I want you.”

“So you’ve said.” Kendrick put his hands on her shoulders and whispered in her ear. “Tell me more.”