Chapter 21

Nate blinked. Opened and closed his mouth, conscious that the longer this silence dragged on, the more Eloise would believe she was right. But he had to make sure he said the right thing. He couldn’t be too honest. Tell her that he’d dreamt about peeling her clothes off and kissing his way down to where he’d wanted to taste her for so fucking long. That he was desperate to watch her tumble into bliss while the fire cast alluring shadows all over her skin. He wanted to acknowledge her fears and demonstrate how much he appreciated her sharing them with him. His fingers itched to cup her chin, lift her face towards his, but he wouldn’t force her. He’d never force her into anything she wasn’t ready for.

And, honestly? He had to be careful with himself too, remember that this was temporary.

He reached for her hands, lacing their fingers together. “I’ve been thinking about you for so long. No one else matters. Has mattered for years.” Shit, even that was still a bit growly.

“Why?”

Her question was so soft that Nate almost missed it. They were supposed to be being brave, right? Eloise had certainly held up her end of their deal by admitting her worries to him. He could shake off the chill crawling over his body, banish it with some bravery of his own. Nate tucked her hair behind her ears, his thumb drifting lower to trace the curve of her jaw. “Because they’re not you.”

“Really?” she whispered.

“I like everything about you. The way you love your family. How you want to help everyone. But mostly, I like how you like me for me. Just Nate. You make me want things.”

Her brown eyes met his and some of her uncertainty gave way to heat. “Like what?”

“Normal stuff. I want to make you dinner. Hear about your day. Help you solve problems at work. I want to help you relax and”—his cheeks pulled tight as what he knew was an impish grin stretched across his face—“I want to get lost in you. Drive you crazy. Have you do the same to me.”

“But what if I suck?”

Normally, Eloise’s slip of the tongue might’ve pulled a smile from Nate—from any guy really because sucking could be very, very good—but this was too important for stupid jokes.

“You won’t.”

“How can you be sure?”

“Because we’ll figure it out together. Take our time.”

Eloise sighed, long and loud. “We don’t have time.”

“Tiger, we have plenty of time. It’s still weeks before you have to leave.”

Eloise’s tongue darted out, and she licked her bottom lip. Nate followed the motion with his thumb.

“What do you want to do?” he asked her.

“Do you think maybe you could teach me? Help me figure out what I like? And show me what you do?” she whispered.

He swallowed a groan as a million fantasies materialised in his mind’s eye.

“Please, Nate?” Eloise’s eyes grew hazy with want, and she pressed herself closer to him, her breasts mashed up against his chest. Nate shrugged out of his big jacket, and Eloise did the same. When she slipped into his arms again, her hard nipples pressed through the thin jumper she wore, stealing his ability to speak. Nate closed his mouth and swallowed. Eloise’s nose wrinkled, and she huffed out a long, frustrated breath.

Nate chuckled softly. “I promise I’m not laughing at you.” He ghosted the words across her cheeks, pressing his lips against hers briefly before moving to her neck, cataloguing the way she melted against him, the sound she made when he nipped at her earlobe.

“You’re already so much better at this than I am,” she breathed. “You must think I’m …”

Nate didn’t give her a chance to finish her sentence because he’d bet everything he had, she was wrong, anyway. “All I can think about right now is how you feel pressed up against me and how soft your skin is. How badly I want to touch you. Can I? You don’t have to take anything else off. We’ll go slow, I promise.”

His face was still buried in the crook of her neck, and his senses were overloaded with vanilla. Through the fog of his desire, Nate registered she was nodding. The movement was sharp and jerky.

“Yeah?” He had to make sure.

Eloise’s hand returned to his thigh, heat scorching through him, settling in between his legs. His cock hardened and lengthened.

“Will you show me what you want?” she whispered.

Nate’s mouth was on Eloise’s before his brain had even properly deciphered her request. Her moan vibrated against his lips, and Nate opened his mouth, sinking further into the kiss when her tongue touched his. Her movements were uncertain, more than a little shy, which made him hotter than it should’ve—and Nate made a note to kick himself later for being so very caveman about this. He slowed the kiss down, his tongue moving in lazy, teasing motions. Electricity zipped through his body, his fingers biting down into her ass. Nate ached to drag Eloise onto his lap, show her what she’d done to him, but he didn’t want to spook her.

She moaned his name, the sound all breathy and wrung out, and his heart rate sped up.

“You’ll do it? Teach me?” she whispered against his lips. The ache in his dick increased with every word Eloise said.

All he could do was tell her the truth. A not-so-secret secret to add to the ones they’d already shared. “I’ll do anything you ask of me. Tell me when it feels good,” he said.

* * *

Eloise hopedthe crackling of the fire swallowed her whimper. Nate’s hands moved higher, coasting up her back, and she leant into his touch.

“Is that good?” His left hand was already in her hair, pulling her closer.

“Mmmhmmm.” She sounded a little drunk.

“Good. Now tell me when it’s great.”

“It shouldn’t be all about me, though.” The flickering flames gave off enough light that it was obvious Nate was straining against his jeans. She’d done that. To him. A bolder woman would drop to their knees and find out how heavy he was with their mouth. Eloise licked her lips, a spark of confidence appearing when Nate released a tortured groan.

“There’ll be plenty of time for me later.”

Eloise liked the way his voice deepened when he said “later”, his gaze dropping to the vee-neck of her jumper.

“Come here.” He patted his thighs, and this time she didn’t give herself a chance to hesitate, scrambling onto his lap. “Tell me if it’s too much.”

It wasn’t nearly enough.

Eloise scooted forward, saying a prayer of thanks to whoever invented jeans. Settling against the hard bulge in Nate’s pants, the seam on her pants pressed right on her clit. This was already the most exciting sexual experience she’d ever had.

“Okay?” he asked.

“Uh-huh.” Since when was her voice so husky?

The fire changed direction, throwing a glow across Nate’s face. “Take what you need,” he said.

“What?”

He didn’t mean what she thought he did. Did he? Was she supposed to grind all over him? A steady pulse began to throb between her legs, her body temperature soaring. Nate shifted, the motion pressing his cock right up against her. A loud and breathy moan escaped from her lips. She’d always been very quiet in bed, but the field of data was best described as scant.

“If you don’t move soon, Tiger, I’m going to explode.”

Eloise blushed at the way Nate groaned her nickname and tentatively rolled her hips, not used to being on top. Colours burst in front of her eyes. She did it again, unable to stop the needy sound slipping from her lips.

“Yes,” Nate growled, his mouth against her ear as he pulled her closer, thrusting up against her. “You’re doing so fucking good.”

All her thoughts were going fuzzy, her body moving on autopilot. “More, please,” she whimpered.

Immediately, Nate’s hands were back underneath her jumper, squeezing, caressing her flesh until he palmed her heavy, aching breasts.

“Still okay?” he asked.

“So okay.”

She’d barely finished speaking before he was pushing her bra cups down, rolling and pinching her nipples. He sealed his mouth over hers and thrust his tongue in time with his hips.

“Next time, I’d like to taste you,” Nate said, breaking the kiss. “First, I’d use my fingers, paint your nipples with your sweetness and suck it off you until you were begging for more. Then I’d want your thighs shaking against my face, your hands in my hair as you came.”

All the air left Eloise’s body, her hips jerking, chasing the wave of pleasure that was just out of reach.

“Would you let me do that? Give yourself to me?”

Eloise cried out, fireworks erupting inside her as Nate gripped her hips, held her still over his hard cock. His features were drawn tight, the muscle in his jaw clenched as he continued to rock underneath her.

She could tell he was close, his rhythm changing, his breath growing ragged. She moved her hands to the nape of his neck and scratched at his scalp.

Her name fell from his lips in a tortured groan. It was like he needed something more, but Eloise didn’t know what unless … Tugging on his silky strands, she made sure he was looking at her. She couldn’t explain it, but suddenly she knew what she wanted to say and what Nate wanted to hear.

“I’d let you do anything you wanted to me. I’d give you everything you needed.”

With a final thrust and a soft groan, Nate leant forward and pressed his mouth to her neck, nipping at her lightly. Not enough to leave a mark but enough that it reignited the flame in her chest. He fell back, and his lopsided grin spread lazily over his face. Pride added to her post-orgasmic flush because she’d done that.

No. They’d done it together.

“And you were worried you’d disappoint me,” he whispered. “Made me come in my damn pants like a teenager. We’re going to have a lot of fun together, Tiger. I guarantee it.”