I expect her to slide back down under me, but she doesn’t. She reaches for the hem of her shirt, lifting it over her head, exposing the same black lace bra she wore to Inked, before she tosses her shirt to the floor next to the bed.
I kneel on the mattress, my eyes roaming her body the same way hers are moving across mine. “Come here,” I tell her.
She crawls across the mattress, looking like a sexual goddess instead of the nerdy girl bookworm she portrays herself as.
Once in front of me, she rises to her knees, placing her hands on my shoulders. “Here?” she asks, her voice deep and needy as she leans forward, her lips near mine.
“Closer,” I whisper.
She inches closer, our knees touching, eyes locked on each other. “Here?” she asks again, and my dick’s already hard in anticipation of whatever is going to happen next.
I wrap one arm around her back, flattening my palm on her spine, and pull her forward. Her eyes drop to my mouth, waiting for the kiss she knows I’m going to give her. “Closer,” I tell her again, lifting my hand to her chin, holding her gaze.
As I move my face forward, she tilts her head, waiting for my lips to touch hers. But just as I’m about to plant them on her, I bend my neck, trailing a line of kisses down her jaw.
She tips her head back, welcoming the caress of my lips against her skin. I move my mouth from her jaw to her neck, sucking and nipping the tender flesh below her jaw near her ear.
She shivers in my embrace, her body relaxing in my arms. Arlo’s giving herself to me to explore with my mouth, and I take it unapologetically.
I lean her back, hovering over her, kissing her neck. I make my way to her collarbone. She arches her back, welcoming and wanting more. I smile against her skin and take my time with my exploration of her body.
Her arms fall to her sides as my lips glide lower, finding the edge of her lace bra. Instead of moving the cloth away, I nip at the material, capturing some of her skin. She moans when I make contact with her nipple. Her knees fall to the side, resting on the bed as she curls her fingers into the comforter.
“Don’t stop,” she breathes.
I moan with her nipple in my mouth, separated by the thin piece of lace. Using my teeth, I move the material to the side, exposing her naked flesh, and begin worshiping her body the only way I know how.
My hand drifts down her side, to the waistband of her pants. She lifts, giving me permission, and I take it, yanking her pants down far enough to have full access.
My fingers drift lower, caressing her through her matching black lace panties. She moans, pressing her clit against my hand, wanting more.
I lift up, staring down at her, waiting for her to tell me no as I hook my fingers into the sides of her underwear. But she says nothing as she stares up at me. I’m slow in pulling down her panties, exposing her most intimate parts to me. She blushes but doesn’t cover her face. She isn’t hiding or embarrassed by the way my eyes drift across her skin, soaking in every visible inch.
“You sure about this?”
“Yes,” she whispers before I pull off her panties and pants, leaving her completely bare except for her bra.
I want this. Have wanted her since the moment she walked into my room at Inked, giving me those big green eyes and showing off her sexy bra.
Being here now, kissing her, touching her…it’s surreal.
I slide my body down the bed, settling between her legs, my mouth ready to deliver the most delicious pleasure. She stares down the length of her body, her face soft but her eyes blazing with need and desire.
I move in, placing my lips on her pussy, taking my time not to devour her all at once. The moans fall easily from her lips as her hand finds my hair, holding me to her.
She’s perfect like this.
Vulnerable and trusting.
Something neither of us is good at being, but somehow, with each other, it’s different.
The significance of the moment and the connection isn’t lost on me either.
Arlo is willing to give me pieces of herself she has rarely shared with anyone.
The specialness of it all hits me hard.
This is more than sex. This is the fusing of our connection.
Without much effort from me, she twists her fingers in my hair, pulling at my scalp as her body convulses, a moan falling from her lips.
Nothing in my life has ever tasted so sweet.
18
Almost a week has gone by in a complete blur. Every night after work, I’ve ended up on Arlo’s doorstep, needing my fix after a long, grueling day.
Arlo always greets me in her dark-rimmed glasses, a messy bun, and the yoga pants I’ve grown so fond of in a very short time.
Her tattoo has healed nicely, no longer tender to the touch, giving me more of her skin to explore. We’ve moved slowly, and I am oddly okay with the pace, relishing her like a fine wine instead of chugging her in one sitting.
“What are you over there grinning about?” Lily asks, walking by me as I sit at my workstation, prepping for my next client.
“Nothing,” I mutter, shaking my head and trying to get the vision of Arlo in those damn pants out of my mind.
Lily stops in front of me, crossing her arms and peering down with a shit-eating grin. “You’re a shit liar, Mello. You were thinking about Arlo, weren’t you?”
I shrug, leaning back in my chair. “I can’t stop thinking about her, Lily. It’s your fault. You knew exactly what you were doing when you set us up, but I can’t be mad about it either.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she lies, her smile widening.
“You knew I’d fall for her.”
Lily shrugs one shoulder. “Maybe.”
“Slick fucker,” I mutter.
Jo lifts up her head from the appointment book, where she’s been filling in for Rebel this morning. “There’s a sucker born every day,” she says with a hint of laughter.
I sigh, rubbing the back of my neck. “I don’t even know what I’m doing with this chick. She’s way too good for me. She deserves someone…”
“Don’t you dare say it,” Lily hisses, glaring at me, with her finger aimed in my direction. “Don’t even think about walking away from her unless you have a really damn good reason. And, Mello, thinking she’s too good for you is not a damn good reason.”
“Oh.” I jerk my head back. “Are you the relationship police now?”
Gigi comes to stand behind Lily, narrowing her eyes at me. “What the hell did you just say?”
I scrub my hand down my face, knowing I’m about to catch the wrath of not one cousin, but multiple if I fuck this up. “For fuck’s sake,” I whisper against the palm of my hand.
“Arlo’s crazy about your dumb ass, and now you’re ready to break things off with her?” Gigi asks, hands on her hips, ready to do battle.
“That’s not what I said,” I snap. “I was over here, smiling and minding my own damn business, until Lily had to get all up in my shit.”
“Not smart, brother,” Pike mutters from my side. “Shit’s about to go down, and I’m not helping.”
“Pussy,” I shoot over my shoulder to Pike before returning my eyes to the two women in front of me, ignoring Jo as she shoots daggers my way from the front counter. “I’m not breaking Arlo’s heart. I don’t know how me having a fantasy about her—and enjoying it, mind you—turns into me ending things.”