Page 127 of Liberating Lily

She gave that a moment to sink in, to wrap around her heart. Nobody ever loved Lily. She was a puppet for her mother to use, someone for Rick to have on his arm, to say and do the right things. For Clem, she was just that annoying sister.

No, people didn’t love Lily, but he did. And Harvey wasn’t a man who said things that he didn’t mean. He wasn’t a man to be easily fooled.

She let the happiness of that fill her until it was overflowing. Lily never thought she could ever feel this happy, this fulfilled. This safe.

Harvey moved his tongue away, back up to her clit, and then a finger slid inside her. Oh, God. She hadn’t thought that things could feel better. That she could actually get more turned on, but she was. She clenched down on his finger, but it wasn’t nearly enough. She wanted more.

“Shh, baby. Easy. I’ve got you. I’m going to take good care of you, I promise. Just give me a bit more. Just a bit more.” And he added a second finger. His tongue moved a bit faster on her clit, back and forth. Then he slowed down, and she let out a whimper. This was pure torture. She couldn’t think of any other word to describe it.

And she didn’t think she could take much more. How much could a girl be expected to endure before she got to come? Her hands clenched into fists around the bedding underneath her, and her head slid from side to side.

Then his tongue moved faster with firm flicks that sent her soaring higher and higher, until she reached that peak. Only this was a peak she’d never gotten to before. She’d experienced orgasms, but they’d been soft, fluttery things that had left her feeling a bit unfulfilled afterward.

This orgasm was nothing like that. It blew the others out of the water.

She actually screamed as she flew over the edge.

It was a noise she’d never made during sex before. In fact, she was having a lot of firsts tonight. The first time somebody had ever put their mouth and tongue on her pussy. The first time anyone had ever offered to make her come without expecting something in return. The first time that someone had made her feel beautiful, precious, and safe.

She floated back down to Earth. Her body was in a weird state of dreaminess, and yet she was fully aware of him touching her.

However, she wasn’t sure she liked it. He was rubbing his hand up and down her belly, but it didn’t feel quite right. She felt too . . . free.

It sounded silly. She was safe here in bed with just him.

There was no danger, and yet her heart was starting to race. Her skin was growing tight.

“Hey, you’re all right,” he told her in a soothing voice. “You’re here with me. You’re safe. I have you.”

The words were just what she needed to hear. But her skin still felt overly sensitive, and she tensed slightly. She felt like she needed to run and hide to keep herself safe.

“Lily?” he asked as she slid out of bed and headed toward the bathroom.

She wanted to stay. She wanted to just be normal for once, but her skin was crawling.

And she had no idea why. Maybe a shower would make her feel better. She glanced at the clock. God, it was after midnight.

This was ridiculous. Go to sleep, Lily.

“Hey, stop and tell me what’s going on.”

Glancing behind her, she watched him get out of bed and immediately felt guilty. He needed his sleep as well. Walking over to her, he turned her toward him, his hands on her arms. This time his grip was firm, not soft and fleeting, and she started to feel better. Her tension and stress eased.

His gaze narrowed. “You like that, don’t you? Was it the way I was touching you? The soft touch?”

“I usually like it. But my skin feels so weird, so sensitive, and I feel the need to run, to hide. I don’t know what’s going on.”

He drew her close, wrapping his arms around her. Oh God, that felt so much better. She felt herself start to settle.

“It’s all right,” he told her. “I know what’s going on.”

Well, she was glad he did because she sure didn’t.

“Sensory overload,” he told her. “It’s like your nervous system just can’t quite take everything. So you go into freeze or flight mode.”

“So, you’re saying I really do have an issue with my nervous system?” It was meant to be a joke, but it didn’t really come out like that.

“If it helps, it happens to a number of people.” He just held her tighter. “What we have to do is lower your heart rate and your cortisol levels. Is me holding you tight like this helping?”