She pulled off her shirt to reveal a white bra that had seen better days: frayed and with one strap held up with a safety pin, it was clearly past its expiration date. But Seth didn’t care, she was beautiful in rags or the most expensive clothes in existence.
She unhooked her bra before unzipping her jeans that hugged every curve. Her panties were a scrap of cotton, and Seth could make out the dark hair covering her sex through the fabric. He swallowed, his cock pulsing against his jeans.
Rose sent him a shy smile, a flush covering her chest up to her cheeks. Her nipples were a dark pink—rose-colored, which was appropriate—and in the overhead light, he noticed a constellation of freckles on her stomach.
She finally stripped out of her panties and moved toward him. She placed her hands on his chest, but he waited for her to let him know he could touch her in turn. After what she’d told him, he understood why she’d freaked out when they’d first had sex. Anger thrummed in his blood, but then Rose nuzzled him, sighing softly.
“You’re my first, you know,” she said. She tipped her head back to look at him. “My real first. You know what I mean?”
He did, and it staggered him. He wished he had known. He would’ve gone more slowly. He would’ve savored her. But he couldn’t regret any of it, and when he gazed into her eyes, he knew she didn’t regret it, either.
Seth touched her silky dark hair, fingering the blue tips. “I’m honored,” he said seriously. “I can guarantee that your third, fourth, fifth—one hundredth—time with me will be fucking fantastic.”
She giggled. “One hundred times? How about one thousand?”
“Deal.”
He picked her up, avoiding the rickety futon she’d barely let him buy for her, and pushed her against the nearest wall. They both made short work of his clothes, and when her slim fingers encircled his cock, he almost knocked his forehead on the wall in front of him.
She’d gotten way too good at that—she squeezed and stroked as she began to kiss his chest, licking at his nipples. He, in turn, sucked at her neck until he left a small mark. She tasted like woman and a salty-sweetness he couldn’t identify.
He loved the way she said his name, her voice throaty, and how she reacted so strongly to every touch and caress. She was a live-wire in his arms, and in turn, she electrified him.
When he kneeled in front of her, he pushed her legs apart until he could see her. Smell her. She was as pink here as her nipples, and he watched in fascination as her entire body turned a similar shade of pink.
Rose’s fingers tangled in his hair as he licked her in one slow stroke. Her head hit the wall with a thunk, but she only dug her fingers harder into his scalp, egging him on.
“Why are you so good at that? It’s not fair. You drive me crazy.” She panted, talking nonsense. If Seth weren’t otherwise preoccupied, he would’ve laughed.
She swore at him, curse words dropping like dirty gemstones from her tongue, and it only made him want to make her insane with want. He nuzzled her, lapping at her, and before long, he was circling her clit with his tongue as he edged a finger around her entrance.
“Oh my God, oh my God. Just like that. No, nooooo.” She squealed when he pushed his finger totally inside her, and then she moaned so loudly that she clapped a hand over her mouth.
He could feel her thighs trembling, and he knew she was close. With one more lap of his tongue and a twist of his finger, she came. Her sheath contracted as her body spasmed, and he heard her gasp his name before she let out a high-pitched scream. Or yelp. It was hard to tell.
Seth kissed her thighs, her hip, the constellation of freckles on her belly. He thanked his own forward thinking that he’d put a condom in his wallet the day before, and he had the condom on before Rose even noticed.
Rose glanced down at his cock. “Oh, you had a condom? That’s good, because I don’t have any.” She giggled.
He kissed the tip of her nose, her mouth. Pulling her legs up and around his hips, he opened her to him. Her heat seared him, and it was all he could do not to plunge inside her.
“I want you inside me.” Her voice was a hot whisper in his ear. “I want you so much, Seth.”
A second later, he pushed inside her in one stroke until he was lodged to the hilt. Rose dug her nails into his shoulders—she tended to do this every time he was inside her, and he loved it—and then they were kissing as he thrust.
Gripping her thighs, he heard them knocking against the wall with each thrust, but he didn’t care if the entire apartment complex heard them. All he cared about was how extraordinary she felt around him, and how he knew right then that he could never let her go.
“I’m close. Fuck, Rose.” He angled his thrusts so his pelvis pressed against her clit. When he hit the perfect angle, he watched as her eyes rolled back inside her head.
Bingo.
“Keep going, faster, faster, harder, yes, God, Seth!” she yelled when her second orgasm hit.
Seth grunted, sweat beading on his forehead. His own release was close—so close—and when Rose licked his jaw, he felt his body tense. His orgasm hit him with the subtlety of a bomb going off. He slapped a hand against the wall, his body shaking until his muscles and bones all turned to jelly.
They stood like that for a long moment, breathing hard, when Seth felt something cold between his ass cheeks. He jumped, yelping.
Rose burst out laughing. “Callie! No! Leave Seth alone. Go lie down.” She laughed even harder at his expression.
Seth set Rose down as he turned to glare at her dog. “Can’t a guy get a little respect around here?”
“Aw, she didn’t mean it. Did you?” Rose rubbed Callie’s nose and bent to kiss her ears. Callie just gave her a wide doggy smile.
After cleaning up, they pulled out Rose’s futon and curled up together. Although the sex was amazing, Seth had to admit he liked this part almost as much. Which meant he was turning into a total sap. He could just imagine what Max would’ve said: Watch out. You’re not getting out of that trap anytime soon, man.
Seth moved his hand under his pillow, only to find a book there. He pulled it out. North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell.
“Oh, I’d forgotten I’d put that there.” Rose took the book from him, smiling. “This is one of my favorites.” Her eyes widened. “The hero’s name is Mr. Thornton, actually. John Thornton.”
Seth lay on his back, his hands behind his head. “What a coincidence. Is he ridiculously good-looking and a total lady-killer?”
“He’s actually really awkward. He totally screws up the first marriage proposal to Margaret and she tells him to take a hike.” Her smile turned dreamy. “He’s so romantic.”
Seth snorted. He flipped through the book, intrigued despite himself. “Have you read all of the books on your bookshelf?”
“Mostly. A lot of them I got in college…”
At the mention of college, they both stilled. Because of Johnny, Rose hadn’t finished college, had she? Seth hated Johnny even more, which he didn’t think was possible.
“You were an English major?”
“Yeah. Sometimes I think about going back.”
He rubbed her arm. “Why not? You should.”
“I don’t know. I’m too old, and it would be weird…”