7. Clarissa

7

CLARISSA

I t was as if my heart had wings and was soaring through the heavens. My nerves danced with ticklish electrical steps up and down my skin. I was surrounded by the dark night sky and twinkling lights. All I could see was Kyle.

He was all there was in my world, his broad, gleaming smile and his pool blue eyes.

I didn't pay attention to our surroundings. I was barely aware that we left the hotel and that we climbed into the back of a car. We arrived at his apartment, but I couldn't have said where we were because all I was aware of was his presence and the way his lips felt against mine.

I knew he was taking me to his home, to his bed. Everything inside his apartment was dark. I didn't pay attention to any of the furnishings because all of my attention was on him, the way his hand wrapped around mine as he led me through rooms. The feel of his skin against mine.

He passed through a door and then stopped and pulled me against his chest. "You can say no if you don't want this," he said.

My hands braced against his broad chest. "What makes you think I don't want this?" I asked.

"I don't want you to think that you're under any obligation simply because of the internship."

I nodded in understanding. "Why are you saying this? I didn't think that at all. It's not, is it?"

A low chuckle rumbled through his chest. "Gods, no. I need to be sure that you're here because you want to be and not for some misplaced sense of obligation."

"I can't think of any place I'd rather be," I admitted.

He lowered his lips to mine. All of my senses were taken up by Kyle. There was the scent of his aftershave, the feel of his bulging muscles under my fingertips, the faint hint of wine on his lips.

Anticipation danced low in my stomach. Kyle slowly undid the buttons of my blouse and pushed the fabric from my shoulders. His lips followed the motion of his fingers, and I shivered at the sensation of his mouth against my neck and my shoulder. Another shudder hitched my breath as his thumb drew lazy circles over the thin fabric of my bra over my nipples.

I gasped and clenched him to me, afraid that if he stopped, if I let go, I would fall, and when I crashed back into reality, it would hurt, and I did not want that. I didn't want reality if this was a dream. I wanted all of the sensations that Kyle's body ignited in my own.

Kyle's eyes looked at me hungrily as he stepped away from me to begin taking his shirt off.

I reached behind me and unhooked my bra, dropping it to the floor beside my feet.

"Clarissa." My name was a low growl in his chest.

It had never sounded so wonderful before. It was as if I had never heard my name said properly in all of my life.

He pulled me back into his arms and lowered me to the cloud-like softness of his bed. I was falling. I knew this wasn't going to hurt because I was falling into Kyle, and he would never hurt me. I knew it in my very soul that he was the man of my dreams and of my future.

I arched against him when he sucked one of my nipples into his mouth. The sensation was more erotic than I ever could have imagined.

"Do you have any idea how beautiful you are?" he murmured against my skin.

His lips left trails of fire across my skin. He made me feel beautiful, made me believe that men did love a full-bodied woman. His fingers bit into my softness as he positioned himself above me.

I moved instinctually, running my leg over his, smoothing my hands over his arms and shoulders.

He reached between us and tickled my folds with the tip of his cock. I gasped as it bumped against the cluster of nerves that was my clit. He moved himself back and forth, playing in the wetness of my desire.

After positioning himself, he pressed his hips forward.

I gasped as he moved into me. It didn't hurt, not the way the books and the movies tried to make it seem. It felt tight as he pushed slowly into me.

"Damn, you are tight," he growled. His breathing sounded labored, but we were both panting from our efforts.

"Is that bad?" I couldn't tell whether he was complaining or not.

"Definitely not. It means this is going to feel really good."

I pushed my heels down against the mattress as I tried to thrust up to meet him hip to hip. It already felt good, even if there was a slight burning sensation as he continued to press in.

He reached between us, and this time, his finger circled my clit. I gasped as rockets shot off inside my body. I don't exactly know what he did to my body, but suddenly, he was able to glide easier.

As he slid back and forth with his cock, and his fingers drew circles against my folds, I was no longer able to focus. It had been hard enough to think before, but all ability was gone. All I knew was Kyle above me, Kyle inside me, and that's all I could have ever hoped and dreamed for.

I cried out as I lost control, and it felt like consciousness wanted to leave my body as spasms of ecstasy overwhelmed me. Kyle clutched me tighter and continued to thrust with increased power and speed.

He roared and pressed hard against me. We were frozen together, all muscles tense and tight. I was still clenching tightly when his body relaxed. It took me a few moments longer to come down from the climax. I would have collapsed against the mattress, but I was already flat on my back. But it did feel like I melted a bit, lost my form as my entire body sighed with a deep, satiated relief. I had never felt so blissfully relaxed.

"I don't think I can move," I admitted.

"Good, I don't want you to go anywhere," Kyle said as he wrapped his arms around me. "Stay with me."

I traced my fingers down the side of his face as I gazed deep into his eyes. They picked up what little light was in the room and winked flashes of bright blue. I stayed with him, and mostly in bed, all of the next day. It was the best weekend ever.

I hated having to leave, but I needed clean clothes and to wear something different to work on Monday morning, not the same outfit everyone saw me leave the office on Friday in. I stayed through dinner, nothing fancy. It was the company that mattered.

My phone pinged with an alert. "My ride will be here in fifteen minutes," I announced.

"Clarissa," Kyle started. "We need to talk."

My insides twisted. "I hope you aren't breaking up with me already," I said with a nervous laugh.

"Hardly, but we should have a little understanding about what is going on here."

I nodded slowly. He was in a position of authority, I knew that. I knew we had to be very careful. "You don't want anyone at the office to know," I said.

"Exactly. I don't want anyone to accuse me of favoritism or improprieties."

I understood what he was saying. Being with Kyle could be disastrous to my internship. But it could also prove to be something wonderful. I wasn't going to be his intern for too much longer. The program ended in about a month, and I would return to my classes. I'd no longer be his intern. We wouldn't have to keep this thing between us a secret.

"I'll see you in the office tomorrow morning," I said. "This is our secret." I leaned in and kissed him.

He held me tight and returned the kiss with a passion that made me want to turn around and let him take me back to bed.

"Yes, secret. Thank you for understanding," he said before kissing me one last time.

I practically floated into the office the next morning, still high from everything Kyle had done to my body over the weekend. I was a ball of dancing nerves as I stepped into his office for our regular Monday morning meeting.

Alayna looked up and smiled at me as she took a sip of coffee.

"Good morning, Clarissa. Did you have a good weekend?" Kyle asked. His smile was holding back his laughter. He knew very well that I had a good weekend.

"As a matter of fact, I did," I answered.

"I went out on the lake and got a sunburn," Steve announced as he walked in behind me.

The bright red stripes across his face with the pale shape of sunglasses announced he'd spent too much time outside without sunscreen.

"Did you get outside at all?" Steve asked.

I shook my head. "I was stuck inside all weekend." I bit my upper lip, refused to look at Kyle, and prayed I wasn't blushing. "But it was totally worth it."