Chapter 15
By the time Texas and I got home, the rain had tapered off somewhat. But both of us were still soaked, our soggy clothes hanging on us as we entered the foyer. Texas stripped down to his boxers, his t-shirt and jeans in hand as I blushed and turnedaway.
“Wait here, I’ll go grab some towels,” he saidquickly.
I nodded and tried to avoid staring. Several minutes later, he came back with a pair of sweatpants riding low on his wiry hips—still sans shirt.Was he trying to drive mecrazy?
“It doesn’t seem like anyone’s home,” Texas said as he handed me the towel. As I took it, our handsbrushed.
“Thanks,” I managed to chokeout.
“Yeah…” Texas’ voice had dropped an octave or two. Still, I refused to look up at him as I dried the dripping ends of my hair. “Um…why don’t I go get you some clothes to put on? You don’t wanna drip all the way through thehouse.”
Before I could unglue my tongue from the roof of my mouth to say that I thought it would be fine, he was already gone. I sighed and turned away from the foyer, shivering as the air from an above vent blasted down over me. Though the air was somewhat warm, my skin was so chilled that it raised goosebumps along my arms. I looked down at the towel in my hand. It was actually fairly big—one of those beach towels that could swallow youup.
Peeking back over my shoulder to make sure Texas wasn’t coming back, I decided to just strip down as well and wrap myself up. Setting the towel on the ground at my feet, I undid my jeans and wiggled out of them, the thick fabric clung to my skin making me curse quietly as I struggled to pull it off. I reached for the hem of my shirt, tugging it up and over my head and then I tossed it in a pile along with my jeans before reaching for the towel. I wrapped the soft terry cloth fabric around my frame, squirming as my bra’s underwire dug into myside.
Kicking the wet soggy clothes to the side I peeked around the corner.Where was Texas?I shivered again and winced when that damn underwire poked me again. I sighed and twisted, letting the towel slip as I reached for the hooks in the back. I undid them and awkwardly attempted to pull the bra straps down my arms as I struggled to hold up the towel around myfront.
The sound of a sharp inhale and soft dry clothes hitting the floor alerted me to Texas’ return. I whirled around, clutching the towel to my breasts as both straps finally slid down my arms, making holding the towel up rather uncomfortable and difficult. Both of us froze, our eyes clashing—his heated as mine dropped, moving to that damn happy trail again as I bit down on my lowerlip.
“Harlow.” He sounded choked, as though he were fighting withhimself.
I lifted my eyes once more, meeting his gaze. Something passed through us, a wave—a connection I couldn’t explain by any normal standards. Texas took a hesitant step forward as though he couldn’t help himself. His lips parted and his teeth were clenched. “Fuck.” He hissed the curse between his teeth and then the next thing I knew, he was onme.
Texas grabbed my arms and kissed me, pulling me against him hard. His hands slid down to the straps of my bra and I released the towel. My front was completely bare. In fact, all of me was, aside from my underwear. I pushed him back, kissing him just as hard as he kissed me as though all my desire for him had been pent up and now, it was finallyunleashed.
It felt like we’d been building towards this all day—though I hadn’t meant for that to be what today was about. I’m sure he hadn’t either, but I couldn’t wait anymore. His chest touched the front of mine. I could feel his heart race alongside myown.
Texas’ hands found my butt, cupping underneath me and pulling me up. My eyes popped open as he lifted me in his arms. Instinctively, my legs encircled his waist. I gasped when his hardness came into contact with the place between my legs, and he groaned against my mouth. I shuddered in his arms. He pulled his mouth away, panting as his chest pumped up and down. His dark eyes looked meover.
“I can’t carry you if you’re kissing me,” he explained. “I don’t want to dropyou.”
“Do I make you that crazy?” I asked, cheeks flushed and mind slowly growing even more foggy withlust.
His eyes glittered. “You drive me insane, Spider-Monkey.”
Texas walked me down the hall towards my room and once we were inside, he kicked the door shut behind us and let go of my butt. My legs slid down on either side of him as I dropped to the floor. He retook my mouth with a vengeance. His lips slammed down against mine, stealing away my breath. I closed my eyes and reached up, grabbing onto his hair as I arched up on my toes. I curled my fingers into the short dark strands attached to his head and rubbed against him, the heat that had been wracking my body since this morning finally flowing through meunfettered.
"Texas..." His name was a whisper on my tongue, a promise, a plea. He backed me further into the room, his hands on my sides, his fingers sliding against my naked skin. I shivered as they moved to my back and skated down my spine. Everywhere he touched camealive.
Texas pulled away from my mouth as we made it to my bed. "Harlow." He said my name as a question, a request, a plea. My chest heaved as I stared up at him. "I know you've been with the others—not all of them—I just want to know that you're okay with this. We're not—I'm not...I don't want you to think that we're taking advantage of you, that I'm taking advantage ofyou."
"You're not," I said quickly, reaching up to cup his jaw hard in one hand as I leveled my eyes at him. "I know you're not trying to do that. You would never take advantage of me. I trust you, Texas." His eyes watched me, searching for any sign of hesitation on my part. He wouldn’t find any. "I love you," Iwhispered.
His breath caught and a light sheen entered his eyes just a moment before he crushed me to his naked chest. My breasts brushed against his ribs as he squeezed me tight. "I love you too, Spider-Monkey. So fucking much." I started at the dry, choked sound of his voice. He shook against me as he held me and for someone as naked as I was, this felt like a different kind ofvulnerability.
Finally, I pulled away and looked up into Texas’ face. He wasn't crying, but whatever he was feeling, he was feeling it intensely. I reached up, taking his face into my hands as I pressed my lips to his. Softly, at first, and then harder the longer I kissed him. When he started to kiss me back, moving me onto the mattress of my bed, I shuddered in hisarms.
Texas consumed me. His eyes captured mine and kept them locked up in this space between us. His hands trailed down my sides, fingers hovering over my skin for brief moments as if he wasn't quite sure of his welcome. It was so unlike him that I wondered...was this...could this behisfirsttime?
"Texas?" I pulled away from our kiss as he moved over me on thebed.
"Yeah?" His eyes were hooded, drugged. He looked at me as a man that didn't just want me, but as a man that would fall apart if he didn't have me. It made me feel desired, but more than that, it made me feelneeded.
"Is this...I mean...are you a..." I didn't know how to ask the question. I bit my lip, considering.Would he be embarrassed?Iwondered.
Texas chuckled low under his breath. "Is this my first time?" he asked as though he'd read mymind.