She lifted her head to look at him, surprised. “You don’t have to be afraid of that. I think you’re gorgeous.”
There was vulnerability in his eyes. “Thank you, but that doesn’t mean the fear’s not there.”
She nodded, understanding that better than anyone. She pushed up on her toes and brushed her mouth against his, suddenly less afraid. “Ready to go inside?”
“I am,” he said, holding her gaze. “Are you?”
“I’m ready,” she said, quiet firmness in her voice. “Stop me from overthinking this.”
A little smile touched his lips. “I can do that.”
He took her hand and led her to his door. Her heart was pounding as he unlocked it and let them inside. But the minute he shut the door behind them, he turned to her, pinning her with a look of resolve that had her breath catching. “I’m going to do what you asked—what you told me earlier that you’d prefer—but know that the minute you say stop or slow down, I’m going to listen. Every time.”
What she’d asked. For him to take charge. For him not to treat her like Evan had. Her mouth was dry, so she nodded.
“And all those sweet things you don’t want to hear?” he said, bracing a hand on the door next to her and leaning close. “I’m going to keep them to myself after this. But know upfront that I think you’re beautiful and smart and I feel honored that you’re trusting me.”
She closed her eyes and a shiver went through her. “Thank you.”
“Now,” he said, pressing a kiss to the tender spot behind her ear and slipping his hand beneath the hem of her dress, his thumb tracing over her outer thigh. “I’m going to keep my promise to your good friend Eliza. You stay just like this for me, neighbor.”
She opened her eyes at the softly spoken command and found Hill’s gaze sparking with heat. He dipped his head to kiss her, his mouth meeting hers with tender urgency. His tongue teased against hers as his hand traced along her bare thigh up to her hip, sending tingling awareness through her and coaxing her out of her head and into her skin. Her fingers gripped his left bicep, the muscles thick and unyielding. Lord, the arms on this guy. She wanted to rub herself on him like a cat.
But the idea burned up in a flash of heat as soon as Hill’s other hand tracked to the top edge of her panties. Oh, God. Before she had time to contemplate the gravity of what was happening, Hill had broken away from their kiss and was dragging the lacy fabric downward. She could stop him. She knew she could. But she found herself complying instead. She slipped off her sandals, a tremor working through her, and he pulled her panties down and off, tossing them to the side. Her gaze zeroed in on the little puddle of lacy fabric that was now five feet away.
Cool air drifted over her heated skin as Hill traced his hand upward from the soft part of her knee and along her inner thigh. Her body prickled with awareness and anticipation, a sheen of sweat dampening her skin. Hill kept his attention on her face when he moved his hand higher and higher and then finally brushed his fingers over the tender skin of her labia. A full-body shudder of need went through her, and she sucked in a deep breath.
He watched her like she was the most interesting movie ever made, desire flaring in his eyes as he stroked her and found her slick and needy from his touch. He groaned under his breath, the strained sound sending pleasure through Andi, and he eased his finger inside her, thick and callused and hot.
She gasped, the delicious friction making her feet arch with an electric sensation that shot down her legs. Her body clamped around him like a fist.
“God, you feel so good, Andi,” he said, his voice full of grit as he guided another finger inside her, stretching her a little and providing a toe-curling fullness. “So fucking sexy.”
She reached out blindly, gripping his wide shoulders to keep her balance. She suddenly worried her knees wouldn’t make it through this.
Hill leaned down and kissed her again, his fingers pumping slowly inside her in a rhythm that had her hips rocking along with it. His tongue stroked against hers in the same pattern, slow, deep, taking his time. He tasted like the sweet, spicy dinner they’d had and a whole lot of promise. She couldn’t get enough. The fear that had haunted her earlier had been chased into the shadows by Hill’s touch. All she could think about now was how amazing he was making her feel, how much she wanted all of him stretched out over her, pushing inside her, skin to skin, the full experience.
The scent of her own arousal drifted around them, and she moaned softly into his kiss, his fingers like magic. He broke away from her mouth, his eyes hooded, and then just when she thought he was going to come back for another kiss, he lowered himself to his knees, his fingers still working her.
“Hill,” she whispered, not sure what she was telling or asking him.
He looked up at her, face half-lit in the lamplight, and with his free hand gathered the fabric of her dress in his hand. “Hold up your dress, gorgeous. I want to see what this is doing to you.”
Oh. God.
She took the skirt of her dress in her hand and watched as he braced himself on the knee of his uninjured leg. Then he was gazing right at the place where he was touching her, his breath tickling her sensitive skin. He circled his thumb on her clit, his fingers still inside her, and she thought she was going to lose it right there, but then he shifted forward, moved his thumb away, and put his mouth on her.
Some unintelligible sound slipped from her throat at the feel of his hot tongue and soft lips. Her body lit on fire with a new cascade of sensations. His beard brushing against her tender skin. The ends of his hair tickling her thighs. She tried to process it all, wanting to remember every moment, but then his tongue circled her clit and he rocked his fingers into her, obliterating all chance of organizing her thoughts. Pleasure shot through her veins like a drug, her nails digging into his shoulders and her head tipping back against the door, rattling it. She worried she might scale the damn thing like Spider-Man. Because somehow it was too much sensation to manage all at once. Her body didn’t know how to deal with it. This was so much different than her own hand or her vibrator.
But before she realized what she was doing, she’d draped her leg over his shoulder, silently begging for more. Too much, yet she still wanted more.
“Fuck, Andi,” Hill said after a few minutes of using his tongue to drive her wild, his panting breaths a cool caress against her overheated skin. “I could spend all night right here, hearing those needy sounds you’re making. I know you’re on the edge of coming, but I’m enjoying this too much to rush.” He kissed her inner thigh. “You taste so fucking good.”
She groaned, and she could almost feel him grinning at the torture he was meting out. “Hill…”
“Yes?” He dragged his tongue along her crease, making her fingers ball into a fist.