Russell jammed his Dopp kit into his luggage. “You, my friend, are apparently a disappointment,” he said to the toiletry bag. “Only one condom.” He shook his head as he zipped his suitcase, as if it was the failure of his travel gear to plan ahead, not his.
Lifting his bag and guitar case from the bed, he looked around the small room he had only slept in for a single night. He seemed to have remembered everything. Heading for the front desk, he exchanged his key card for one that would open the larger room he had booked for tonight. As he moved up the grand, curving staircase, he whistled to himself. Letting himself in, he nodded with satisfaction as he dropped his suitcase in a corner. While not being as large as Colin and Alicia’s suite, it was spacious and…poking his head into the bathroom he confirmed that in addition to a large glass shower stall, it held a huge claw-foot tub.
Perfect.
A tap at the door sent him hotfoot to open it, revealing Kathleen with her huge roller bag and almost equally large tote. “Let me help you with that,” he said, taking the tote off her shoulder. She wheeled the other bag in behind her, her head swiveling around to take in the new room.
“Very nice, Professor.”
“You haven’t seen one of the best parts,” he said, putting down her tote and taking the handle of her wheelie bag out of her grasp and pushing it to join the rest of their luggage.
Her eyes skimmed over the king-sized bed and her eyebrows lifted.
He ducked his head, suppressing a grin. “Well, that too.”
“Ooh. A treasure hunt.” Kathleen scanned the room, opened the closet, looked at him as she closed it, and then moved to the bathroom door. “Very nice. Very, very nice, Professor.”
Moving behind her, he looked at the tub over her head. “I had a feeling you might like that.” Skimming his fingers down her bare arms, he was gratified by the way she shivered under his touch.
“Oh, I think I will like it a whole lot.” Her head leaned back to rest on his shoulder and he wrapped his arms around her waist, breathing in the scent of her hair, closing his eyes as her body relaxed into his. He took a moment to wonder how this had happened so fast—this ease, this comfort with a woman he had only known for a couple of days.
If they had left it to the wedding weekend fling it had started as, he might have chalked the feeling up to the way you can achieve instant ease with someone in a temporary bubble—like making friends with someone at a resort or on a cruise, knowing you’ll part ways soon. But this extra day was new territory.
This felt more like real intimacy.
Kathleen turned in his arms, her eyes heavy-lidded and sultry. Her hands slid behind his neck, stroking his skin with delicate touches, sending a shiver down his spine.
“So. What do we do now?”
Kathleen felt like she had thrown herself off the top of a cliff, heedless and somehow unafraid of the free-fall. Her prior nerves and caution were a thing of the past. Earlier, she had thought the best she could hope for was that Russell would follow up after they went home, ask her out on a date, maybe.
This was way beyond anything she’d thought of.
The room was beautiful, but even better was the time. Instead of a date lasting a couple of hours, he had elected to spend a whole extra day. And a night. With her.
“What would you like?” he asked.
“Oh, no.” Kathleen stroked his cheek, rough with stubble. In all their rushing around this morning he mustn’t have taken the time to shave. “Your turn.”
“Well, if that’s the case…” He bent and nipped at her neck. She pressed her body harder against his and felt his cock begin to stir. She leaned her head back as he kissed and nibbled a path up to her ear. “I think I’d like to see you on top again,” he whispered.
“I think that can be arranged.” Kathleen lifted her arms as he drew her tee shirt up and off, loving the way his pupils dilated at the sight of her lacy bra. “Now you,” she said, nodding at his shirt. He tugged it off, revealing his broad chest. Kathleen traced her fingers over his nipples, pleased when they drew tight. She leaned forward and flicked her tongue against one, then the other, nipping for good measure. Something between a groan and a growl rumbled through him and his arms tightened around her, his hands sliding up her back to wind in her hair and tug her head back. His lips fastened on hers, hungry, searching, demanding. A thrill shot through Kathleen. This was another side of cautious, careful Russell.
“Why are you smiling?” He whispered against her lips.
“Untamed Russell. This is new.”
“Is it okay with you?”
“I like it.”
He kissed her again, his hands cradling the back of her head, fingers still tangled in her hair, tongue sweeping into her mouth. Kathleen ran her hands down his back, cupping his muscular ass through the soft denim of his jeans and squeezing.
“Holy shit, Kathleen.” He lifted her and she wrapped her legs around his waist, practically purring with pleasure as her hips settled against his erection. She felt strong, powerful. She wasn’t falling anymore, but flying. She was so absorbed in the sensations in her body, the deep, hot, thrilling kiss, that she was surprised when he leaned over and she felt the mattress against her back. She hadn’t even noticed him move across the room. His hand moved between her back and the mattress and the tight band of her bra released. Russell pulled back, stripping it off her and tossing it aside before cupping her breasts in his hands, licking and sucking on first one nipple, then the other, sending sensations zinging through her. She tightened her legs around his waist, grinding against him and he moaned against her breast, the vibrations only ramping her desire higher, delicious tension building.
His head lifted and his mouth fastened on hers again as his hands went to the button of her jeans. It released with a soft pop and the zipper hissed down. Hooking his fingers into the waistband, he pulled, and Kathleen released her legs’ grip around his waist so he could shuck them off entirely. Sitting up, Kathleen sought his kisses again while her own hands reached for his belt buckle.
“Wait. One second,” he said, and reached into his back pocket, pulling out a condom packet.
“Is that the famous one condom?”
“None other.”
Kathleen laughed. “Let’s ruin it.”
An electrical storm raged through Russell’s nerves. He had never felt this sort of abandoned recklessness before, but Kathleen’s responses were only making him wilder, urging him to play the part of the demanding, relentless lover.
He never thought he had it in him.
Kathleen took the condom packet from him as he kicked off his shoes and pulled off his jeans and boxer briefs.
“Are you ready?” he asked, kissing her neck in the way he had learned made her shiver deliciously.
“Are you kidding?” Her voice was a thread.
“I’d never kid about that.” His hand swept down over her belly, skimming over her clit and then dipping into her. Soft, wet heat surrounded his finger, and his lips tugged into a smile.
“I thought you wanted me on top,” she said, looking up at him with heavy-lidded eyes and then down where his finger was still pulsing gently into her, curling upwards with each pull.
“So I do.” Pulling his finger out, he climbed onto the bed and pulled her to straddle his lap, his dick sandwiched between them. She squirmed, but he held her in place, hands on her hips. “One more kiss.”
“Just one?”
“For now.”
She leaned into him, lips teasing softly at his mouth. The light touches made the storm rage in him again. Spearing his fingers into her hair he held her head and kissed her deeply, their tongues sliding against each other. Kathleen groaned and pulled away, reaching for the condom packet that had dropped onto the coverlet. With quick fingers, she ripped it open and rolled it on, her lips curling wickedly.
“Not so hasty, there, Irish.” Russell grasped her wrists and held them at her sides. Her pupils flared and her hips shifted to press against him. He tightened his grip, her quick hiss of breath making him realize he was actually restraining her. Appalled, he released her, settling his palms on her hips instead and closing his eyes, trying to contain his racing thoughts.
“It’s okay. We can play that way.” Her breath was a warm tickle in his ear and her fingers slid over his, pulling his hands behind her waist, then releasing him and crossing her wrists at her lower back. He wrapped one hand loosely around both of her wrists, encouraging her to rise higher on her knees and using his other hand to position his now-insistent erection to enter her as she slid back down.
“Are you sure?” he asked, opening his eyes, and she nodded as her hips began to move in slow, steady strokes, teasing and intensifying his desire. His grip on her hands arched her back. He pulled harder, making her soft breasts push towards him. He captured one nipple as she moved, sucking and teasing with his tongue. She moaned and her hips rolled more quickly. His grip tightened on her wrists, pulling her down harder onto his cock. She swiveled, grinding down on to him.
“God. Kathleen.” He was so close already. Reaching between them, he rubbed her clit and sucked on her nipple, dragging his teeth across the tight peak and then soothing with a soft tongue when she cried out.
Her hips were jerking swiftly now, in time to the movements of his fingers. Her thighs trembled and her breath came in swift pants until she squeezed around him and let out a shuddering, breathy wail, her head thrown back, the tips of her hair brushing the hand that still held her wrists.
“Stay with me,” he said, cupping the back of her head with his free hand and thrusting upward. She rocked her hips in time with his, her eyes closed, a crease of concentration between her brows. His breath caught as release rushed through him and he pushed into her with a groan, his forehead coming to rest on the pillow, his entire being shattered and remade in the same shuddering breath.
Kathleen blinked, feeling dazed and loopy. Russell’s head lifted, his eyes scanning her face. She pulled her hands from his loosened grasp to cup his cheeks and kiss him softly.
“That was…”
“Okay?”
“Amazing.”
“Really?” His expression was anxious.
“Not a word of a lie.” Kathleen lifted herself off him and lay back on the bed while he went into the bathroom to dispose of the condom. When he returned, she inched over, patting the space beside her. “Come here.”
He passed a hand over his face as he lay down beside her, his movements careful. “I’ve…never done anything like that. I don’t know what to think.”
“Did you enjoy it?”
He looked down. “Yes.” He said it as if the admission brought him shame.
Placing a finger under his chin, she tipped his head back up. She could get lost in the sincerity of those dark brown eyes. “Good. Because I did too.”
“That wasn’t…I mean, I don’t usually…” His hand waved in the air and Kathleen captured it with her own, bringing his palm to her lips.
“You do know that I wanted you to do what you did, right?” she murmured against his skin.
“I guess so, but…it still doesn’t feel quite right.”
“Is part of what worries you that you enjoyed it even though it felt wrong, somehow?”
He cupped her cheek in his hand. “Maybe.”
“Well, if you feel dirty, maybe we should christen that bathtub…” She sat up, his gaze following her.
“You’re seriously okay?” he asked.
“More than okay. Come on.” Interlacing her fingers into his, she tugged him upright and into the bathroom, plugging the tub and turning on the tap. As the water rose, she turned back to him, placing her hands gently on his chest and looking at him with a direct, sincere gaze.
“There was nothing wrong with what we did.”
“Then why do I feel like I did something I shouldn’t have?”
“Do you think somewhere deep down I wasn’t on board?”
He seemed to mull this over. “No. I believe you when you say you enjoyed it.”
“And you did too. So what’s the problem?”
“Your logic is impeccable. I just…”
“Need some time?”
He took a deep breath in and held it for a few seconds, letting it out slowly. “Maybe.”
“Well, get in the tub. We’ll see if we can relax some of this mindset out of you.”
He climbed in, resting his back against the porcelain. Kathleen got in after him, settling herself between his legs and leaning against his broad chest. As the water rose, she took one of his hands in hers, spreading his fingers and resting her palm against his. His clever musician’s fingers were much longer than hers and she smiled to herself, remembering them wrapped around her wrists. His other hand dipped into the water, drawing it up her side and tracing her breast, warm water trickling across her skin. She tipped her head back to look up at him.
“Would it help you to know that what we did wouldn’t have turned me on if you hadn’t been the careful, good guy you are?” she asked.
He leaned to one side and looked at her face. “What do you mean?”
She shrugged, still playing with his hand. “If you were a naturally domineering man, someone who ran roughshod over people, what we did wouldn’t have been thrilling. It might even have been scary. But because I knew I could trust you…it was hot instead.”
Something shifted in Russell’s brain. Everything she said was making sense, but this was the first thing that got past his reflexive rejection of what they had just done.
No. What he had done.
Her head tilted back to rest on his shoulder. “What’s going on in there?” She reached back to tap his temple with a wet finger.
“I’m trying to take responsibility for something I didn’t ever think I’d do.”
“I was present and participating too.”
“Yes, but…”
“Who put your hands back on my wrists after you pulled them away?”
He paused as she stretched one leg out and turned off the tap with her toes. After the rushing sound of the water, the slow residual drips sounded loud echoing off the tile.
“You did.”
“You weren’t forcing anything. You weren’t taking anything.”
Guilt growled up inside him. “It felt like I was.”
“You were only taking what I was giving willingly. We were giving each other pleasure.”
“If you say so.”
Her fingernails trailed down his thighs. “You didn’t feel me come?”
The image of her, shaking and squeezing him, flushed from the top of her forehead down to her breasts as she came apart filled his mind and his dick stirred.
“Hm. I thought so,” she said, shifting her bottom to acknowledge his physical response.
“How did you get so…” He groped for words to finish the thought.
“…So okay with an incredibly mild not-even-close-to-kink for a nice Catholic girl?”
An involuntary bark of laughter shot out of him and she half turned to give him a mischievous glance. “Yeah. If you want to put it that way, I guess,” he said.
She settled back against his chest, a warm, welcome armful in the hot water. “Therapy. Lots and lots of therapy.”
“I see.” Running his hands up her belly, he cupped her breasts, savoring their soft weight in the water. “I want to be good to you.”
She sighed gently, relaxing further into him. “You are being good to me. I’m enjoying myself…so much.” The pause made him wonder if she had been about to say something else.
“I’m glad.” He slid one hand lower, down her belly and over the strip of pubic hair to caress her clit. “I love making you feel good.”
“And you do it so well.” Her voice was a low purr.
“Your pleasure is my pleasure.”
Her breath hitched as he tugged at the hood of her clit. “Your pleasure is currently my lumbar support.”
He pinched her nipple with his other hand. “Saucy wench.”
“I think you like me that way.” She gasped as his finger picked up speed.
“You know I do.” Tilting his head to the side, he ran his tongue around the edge of her ear, tightening his hand on her breast as she moaned and writhed against him, her undulations increasing the delicious ache in his dick. He bit gently on her earlobe as she inhaled on a hoarse gasp, tense and shuddering, hands slapping into the water. Pressing two fingers to her still throbbing clit, he smiled to himself as she slowly eased back against him.
“I feel like I should be doing something about that lumbar support,” she said, her voice drowsy.
“Later,” he said. “I like you like this, all relaxed and sated.”
“Sated. My satyr has sated me.” She chuckled and grew more and more relaxed, her body resting against his, breathing deeply.
She was asleep.