She closed her eyes, released a breath.
“Well, when you’re not driving me absolutely batshit crazy,” he added, hoping to take some of the pressure off. He could see how hard this was for her, how frightening. It scared the hell out of him, too. Things between them had been fast and intense. They were both driving headlong into unknown territory, but neither of them were ready to jump out of the car.
A quiet, derisive laugh escaped her. “But fair warning, I have no idea
what I’m doing.”
“If it makes you feel better, I don’t know how to do this either.” He cupped her face and tilted it toward him, catching her gaze. “But I know how I feel when I’m with you. That’s what matters. We can figure out the rest as we go along.”
A softness crossed her face, one he’d never seen on her. It nearly broke his heart in two. This was the woman behind the layers of armor. This was the woman who’d been hurt and betrayed, who’d been let down by the people who loved her. This was her trusting him not to crush her.
He hoped to God he was worthy of the gift.
He slid his hands into her hair, bent his head, and kissed her. Because one more second without her lips on his would’ve been too much.
She melted into the kiss like she’d been needing it just as badly as he had. Her lips parted, granting him entry, and she aligned her body to his. Soft and pliant. But when he slid his hand along her nape and gripped, she groaned, and the sweet turned steamy almost instantly.
He put his other hand to her hip and fitted her against him, his cock stiffening at the feel of her heat. His tongue stroked hers, and he guided her against the column of her porch, pressing her into it. He wanted to slide her skirt up her hips, stroke her, push aside her panties and see if she was as ready he felt, but he reined in the impulse.
She was willing to go public with their relationship, not get naked on campus. He had to remember that they both had professional reputations to maintain. He broke away from the kiss. “How about we take this inside, gorgeous?”
“Good idea,” she said, her chest rising and falling with panted breaths.
She hurried to unlock the door and he grabbed her bag. The door hadn’t even clicked shut behind them before he was dropping the suitcase and lifting her over his shoulder. He kicked the door shut behind him.
“What are you doing?”
He wrapped his arm around the back of her thighs and flipped her skirt up with his other hand, revealing lacy, cream-colored panties. He gave her a quick smack to her ass. “Claiming you.”
She grunted against his back. “Caveman.”
“Sometimes,” he admitted, carrying her down the hallway. “But that gets you wet, so what does that make you?”
She sighed heavily, feigning boredom. “Don’t be so proud of yourself. I’m not turned on by this, you know.”
He smiled and halted his step in the hallway in front of a mirror. With his free hand, he tugged aside her panties, the view of all that pretty pink flesh making his cock go painfully hard against his zipper.
“What are you doing?”
He dragged his fingertips over her, his fingers coming away slick and a tremor working through her body. “You’re such a liar, doc. A filthy liar with a needy, wet pussy.”
The words were crude, but the mirror gave him all the confirmation he needed. Her muscles clenched, her body reacting to the dirty talk like he’d stroked her again. Heat suffused through him and all his blood rushed south.
“You’re disgusting,” she said, but the breathlessness in her voice gave her away.
“You fucking love it.” He swung away from the mirror, carrying her to the bedroom with singular purpose.
When they got inside, he lowered her to the bed onto her back, and she sat up on her elbows, fire in her eyes. He could stroke himself off to that image alone, Elle’s hair mussed, her knees spread, and challenge all over her face. I dare you to fuck me. That was the overt message. But another, more dangerous one whispered at the back of his mind.
I dare you to love me.
Everything in that look said she wouldn’t make it easy on him. She wouldn’t hide that fact. She’d challenge him, keep him on his toes, not let him get away with any shortcuts. He fucking loved that about her. Elle was a lot of things—smart, beautiful, tough. But what drew him to her over and over again was that intense confidence that made him bring his A-game.
She demanded more of him. He wanted to be more for her.
“Take off your panties and show me how not turned on you are,” he challenged.
She cocked an eyebrow at him, reached down to tug off her underwear, and then bold as you please, dragged the material over herself, removing any evidence of how wet she’d become. She parted her knees, giving him an X-rated view that had his tongue pressing against the roof of his mouth.