AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Kate put out her hand, palm downwards. “I used to shake every time I even mentioned them. But look at that, steady. I don’t know what will happen with your family. Maybe they’ll reach out. Maybe they won’t. Maybe you’ll want to go back. Maybe you won’t. But I do know that it gets better, no matter what.”
The two of them contemplated her hand for a moment, silence stretching between them, until Emile took her hand in his own and pressed a kiss to the top of her hand.
“Thank you,” he whispered.
Kate didn’t know what to say. She could feel her heartbeat, the strong rhythm overwhelming her in the silence.
Emile kept her hand in his, pulling gently so she was forced to lean towards him, her body out of balance not only from the way he was guiding her towards him but also from the moment. She felt unmoored, like she was standing on top of a precipice and didn’t know whether she should jump.
“Kate, you are remarkable…” he murmured, pulling her even closer to him. She went, willingly. “Tell me to stop and I will. I’ve tried to resist but I don’t think I can any longer…”
His gaze was searching, looking for her agreement. She could see her own craving mirrored there, the desire to jump. Right then, she couldn’t think of any reason why she shouldn’t, but she needed him… needed him to be the one to make the move. Kate nodded her head ever so slightly, and it was like that small motion unlocked something in him.
Emile released her hand, moving his own up to spread his fingers across her jaw, tilting her face to his. Kate felt as though there was no oxygen left in the room, like she couldn’t catch a breath, like everything was suspended. Until his mouth touched hers, scorching her with a kiss that felt familiar and entirely new all at once.
Kate’s brain was whirring endlessly but she couldn’t grasp hold of any one thought. Was this a terrible idea? It felt like the greatest idea in the world, as Emile caught her bottom lip in between his teeth and gave her a gentle nip, the slight pressure making her moan. Would she regret it in the morning? It didn’t feel like she could have any regrets when he pulled her onto his lap so she was sitting astride him. She always tried to do the right thing, to consider all the angles. Right now, she didn’t want to think. She just wanted to feel.
And there was so much to feel. The urgent press and retreat of Emile’s lips under hers. The shuddery sensation that rippled through her when he dropped his head to kiss and bite at her neck. The softness of his T-shirt under her grasping hands, and the solidness of his chest underneath. The firm grip of his fingers on her hips as he ground her against him. The hard press of his arousal underneath her.
Far too soon, he was pulling back, leaving her panting and desperate atop his lap.
“Are you sure?” he asked.
She nodded again. She realized she was sure. How could she be anything but?
“I need you to say it, Kate.”
His fingers were running almost absentmindedly along the top edge of her shorts, grazing the soft skin of her stomach, and she couldn’t help but clench her thighs in response. She needed more. More of his hands on her. More of his kisses. More.
“I’m sure, Emile. I want this.” Kate almost didn’t recognize her own breathy voice as she said the words; she sounded half undone already and he’d only just kissed her. But Emile wasn’t faring any differently, if the groan he let out at her admission was anything to go by.
He tipped his head back so he could look up at her. Kate didn’t think she’d ever had someone look at her so reverently, and it made her feel powerful. She dropped her hands from his chest to the hem of her T-shirt, lifting it above her head until she was half-naked in front of him.
“Fuck. You’re so beautiful.”
She felt it, when she looked at him.
His hands explored her newly exposed skin, tracing over the tattoo that adorned her ribcage. It was of a bird in flight, inked in all the colors of the rainbow. Another way she liked to carry color with her wherever she went. She could feel him running the pads of his fingers along the outline, and it made her shiver. She squirmed as his fingers tickled against her, and he grabbed her waist to keep her steady.
“You can’t do that, Kate,” he murmured. “I’m on a knife edge here.”
His hands kept her still on his lap as he took up exploring her body with his lips and tongue instead, pressing kisses to her bare arms, across her shoulders and down onto her breasts. His progress was achingly slow, as he ran his tongue along the underside of one before switching to the other. Kate felt as if she might climb out of her skin; her hips tried to buck against him, seeking some friction, but his fingers kept her steady in place, much to her frustration.
“Emile…” she complained, and he looked up at her with a wicked grin.
“I thought you wanted this…” he teased as she pouted.
“But…”
“No buts, Kate. I’ve been dreaming of this since the moment I met you. I’m going to take my time.”
Kate wasn’t used to this level of attention from men. The encounters she’d had before were mostly fumbles in the dark; enjoyable enough, but not worth writing home about. But the way that Emile was devouring her with his eyes and with his mouth… it was intoxicating. She surrendered to the sensation as he bent his head and finally,finally, took her nipple in his mouth, sucking gently until she was crying out.
She was lightheaded from the pleasure of it, and he’d barely even touched her. She’d barely even touched him, she realized, dropping her hand to the nape of his neck and toying with the hair there as he lavished her with attention. She let her other hand run down his arm, feeling the straining muscle of his bicep as he held her.
“You’re so delicious,” he murmured against her skin.
“Let me see you, too,” Kate insisted, grabbing at his T-shirt. He sat back to let her pull it over his head and she drank in the sight of him. She’d seen him naked, of course, during Laundry-gate, but then she’d been trying not to look. Now she could look her fill, and she never wanted to tear her eyes away from him. He was so gorgeous. How had he been dreaming of her all this time, when he looked like this?
