Tate threw his hat on her nightstand then jerked off his shirt. When he began to unzip his jeans, her nerves couldn’t take it anymore.
“Wait!”
Tate paused, looking at her questioningly, and Sutton sat up, her hands unconsciously trying to tie the belt at her waist tighter.
“I’m not on the pill. We need to go into town to buy condoms.”
Tate turned on his heels, leaving the bedroom again. He wasn’t gone long before he came back with several foil packets in his hand, which he placed on the bedside table.
At her questioning look, Tate gave her a grin. “Greer put some in the bag he brought with my clothes.”
“Isn’t that convenient.”
“I thought so.” His hands went to his zipper again.
“I’m kind of thirsty.”
He left again, coming back with a bottle of water then watching as she drank half of it before taking it and setting it on the bedside table.
Again, he went to remove his pants.
“Wait!”
Tate paused.
“Could we have some music?” She pointed at the old-fashioned radio on her dresser.
He went to the radio, fiddling with it several minutes before he found a station she liked.
“Anything else?”
“No … I think that’s it.” Sutton ran her trembling fingers through her wet hair, looking down at her lap as she listened to the sound of Tate removing his pants. She was going to disappoint him; she just knew it.
All the feelings of anticipation had disappeared, leaving behind a feeling of sick dread.
“Sutton …?”
She lifted her tear-filled eyes to his compassionate ones.
“I don’t think I can,” she admitted, keeping her gaze steady despite the gorgeous body that was wreaking havoc with her breathing.
Tate sat down on the bed next to her, reaching out to smooth her hair away from her face. “Are you afraid I’ll hurt you?”
“No. I’m afraid I’ll disappoint you, and you won’t want me anymore,” Sutton replied.
“What happens when we make love is only going to be a part of what makes our relationship a whole. If the rest of it is good, this will be, as well.”
She nodded.
“You don’t believe me?”
“I guess I do.”
“Let me show you how good it can be. Trust me; I don’t let anyone I love down.”
He leaned over her, pressing her gently back into the soft mattress as he placed a kiss on her mouth that was achingly beautiful. The bedroom wasn’t dark, but the only light came from the cloudy sky outside the bedroom window. The summer storm had turned into a drenching rain with lightning and thunder shaking the house.
“Are you afraid of storms?” Tate broke the kiss to whisper into her ear.
“No.”
Tate got up from the bed to go to the window, shoving the curtains farther apart and raising the window until it was half-open before he came back to the bed to lie down next to her. He made no effort to touch her, just lying still next to her.
“What are you doing?”
“Waiting.”
“For what?”
“For you to make love to me.”
Sutton rose up, looking down at him wonderingly. Scott had always had her on her back or told her what to do. She didn’t know how to take the initiative.
“I like to kiss.”
“I do, too.” His laid-back attitude gave her the reassurance no words could have.
Her mouth pressed against his and when he opened to her, she let her tongue slip inside, kissing him the way she had fantasized about during the dark years she had been alone. She brought her hands to his hair, holding on to him as his arms circled her waist.
At first, he let her take the lead until he tugged her to lie on top of him, and then he began to play and torment her with the flicks of his tongue. It was like ‘catch me if you can’.
She rose up higher over him so she could get better access to him. Then she slid her hands down his chest, enjoying the feeling of the curly hairs there. Scott had waxed his sparse ones off. Tate’s made her feel as if she had a man under her hands.
His hands went between them to untie the belt at her waist. Then he pushed the robe off her shoulders. His mouth went to her neck then brushed against her shoulders. She shivered as the lightning filled the room.
Her mouth went to his neck. An instinct she didn’t know she possessed took over, and she bit down. His groan made her feel strong and possessive as she played with him.
“I’m leaving my mark on you.”
He took one of her hands, placing it over his heart. “You did that a long time ago.”
His admission removed her final misgivings and she lost herself in sensations as her hands slid over his body. Her lips traced down from his neck to his chest as his thigh parted hers, pressing upward until it rested against her pussy. Then he began to move it back and forth until it rubbed against her clit. An empty ache had her pressing herself down on his thigh.