Jude
along the length of Jude's arm, but he couldn't care less about his arm falling asleep because of the gorgeous girl tucked into his side. Her legs curled around his, tangled at the ankles like the rumpled sheets beneath their bodies. But her eyes stared into the distance, swirling under clouds of hazy bliss.
Giselle's head rested on his chest, using him as a pillow, while she walked her fingers down his body. Her touch kissed his skin with its featherlight embrace, spawning bursts of warmth down the abstract path she drew.
The mattress' weight shifted when Giselle's bare body scooted closer. Her lower abdomen intersected with his hip, pinning him to the bed by her thighs. But he wasn't going anywhere, not when her breasts pushed up against him and all his thoughts slid between his legs.
Years of waiting couldn't accurately depict his blissful state of co-existence with Giselle in his arms and his love confession out in the open. Giselle loved him back; he still loved her as much as he had years ago.
Fiery curls shifted as Giselle's head lifted off his chest. The bleary glaze over her eyes almost caused Jude to laugh, but the blissful smile brightened her features so adorably.
"Hi." Jude smoothed down a rogue curl stuck to her forehead, seeing the flutter of her lashes pushing her eyes open more. "Welcome back to earth, my dove."
"Sorry, got lost for a moment, but you surprised me," Giselle replied, her chin resting on his bare chest. She circled her finger across his pecs, sending a shiver to run down his spine.
"Oh? All good surprises, right?"
"So good. Clearly, you've done that before."
"A couple of times. That's not a dealbreaker. . . right?"
"God, no! You could've told me over fifty times, and I would've understood. . . I've heard that the girls at West Bridge are pretty."
"Well, it wasn't fifty, I promise. More like three girls in total," Jude propped onto his elbow and eased Giselle to sprawl across his chest comfortably. Her eyes held his as her body rolled onto her front, still slinging one of her legs over his to stay close. "None of those connections lasted long, fizzling around three months or less. But they were casual."
Giselle blinked. "Did you want them to be more than casual?"
"Not really." Jude shook his head. "I would never want to string someone along, and my heart wasn't seeking a relationship yet. You still occupied my thoughts. I never made the first move except for my first time, but that was because I drank too much at a party my freshman roommate dragged me to. A few too many red solo cups caused me to end up in the bed of some poor sorority girl, who I left sorely disappointed."
Giselle snorted, immediately slapping a hand over her mouth. "Seriously? You got drunk and hooked up with a stranger?"
"Trust me, I couldn't believe it either. But my inexperience showed, and she nicely gave me some pointers for next time. Although, her guidance was wasted on a freshman summer fling and a brief liaison with an exchange student last spring."
"Then, I came around."
"That you did."
Giselle stared at Jude; eyes still bright. Some sunlight snuck into the room through the drawn curtains, illuminating Giselle's face in a golden glow. She became a radiant goddess in the light of day, wrapped in the post-sex glow he had heard about.
But the sudden downturn of her brows caught Jude's attention. Her mouth soon followed, twisting into a frown as if something had taken her out of the moment. "Jude?"
"What's the matter?" Jude asked, tipping Giselle's chin until their eyes met.
"It just hit me how long you've been in love with me. . . how long you waited for me while I had no idea. You've known since high school?"
"Since sophomore year."
"How did I not notice?" Giselle's voice cracked a little.
Jude sat up, grasping her face between Giselle's hands. "I didn't know if you felt the same, but I hoped there was something between us. I planned to ask you out before the winter formal."
"You did?" Giselle gasped. A darkened flush splotched her cheeks like a rash, and Giselle's shaky hand ran over her eyes. Her hand darted away from Jude's when he tried to grasp their fingers together. "What happened? I mean—did something happen?"
"Well, I bought all the pieces for a simple proposal—flowers and a card—since you seemed preferable to a more intimate proposition. But I made the mistake of asking some of the guys on the tennis team for advice on what to say since I never asked anyone out before."
"No."
"You know where I'm going with this, don't you?"
Giselle nodded, but the color drained from her face. Horror-stricken, her usually sweet eyes clouded in a shroud of lighter, sadder blue. She closed her eyes, bracing, "James."
"James," Jude sighed, looping one of her stray curls around his finger to anchor himself to the present. He wasn't the dejected high schooler watching the girl he wanted in another guy's arms anymore; he got the girl. "James learned about my feelings for you and beat me to the punch with some interference from the guys on the team."
"Why? Why would he do that to you. . . to me?" Giselle's hand snapped and grabbed a fistful of her duvet in a grip. Her face strained, eyes still closed, but anger painted her pretty features in a razor-sharp tension.
"In his words, he wanted to put me in my place. I was the new guy on the team, but I had the potential to usurp him. Coach Cara considered replacing James with me as the future team captain since his grades were slipping. He and I never liked one another, but he wanted to show me I would never have what I wanted," Jude said.
Giselle's eyes fluttered open. "So, him asking me out before you could, was the inciting event to your rivalry, and him basically harassing you for the rest of high school? It was my fault the whole time. Jude, I'm so—"
"No, it wasn't your fault," Jude interrupted before Giselle apologized. No matter how bad she felt for past him, she would never be at fault for what happened. She committed no crime other than being too loveable. "Giselle, it'll never be your fault."
Jude's hand cupped her jaw, but tears welled in Giselle's eyes, barely held at bay when she sniffled hard. Sitting higher, Jude pulled Giselle closer until their bodies molded back together, and the warmth flickered into a gentle reminder.
"This is so much to process. He played us both.”
Giselle’s thoughts ached, overwhelmed. James used her as his pawn, hurting Jude and satisfying his personal ego. Had he loved her, or did he love the perks of having someone loyal who never questioned him to keep his bed warm?
"He's an idiot. He deserves nothing but the receding hairline he'll inherit from his dad and whatever midlife crisis he'll stumble into one day. He could live a million lives and still be undeserving of you."
A noise between a laugh and a sob replied to him, and Giselle's arms curled tighter. "Yes, but I believed him about your rivalry and never questioned him. He never answered my questions, but I never pushed him. I could've done better, especially when I couldn't get him to stop talking bad about you to all his friends."
"I don't blame you for believing your boyfriend over some guy you knew in class," Jude assured her. "You owed me no loyalty. So, don't beat yourself up on my account."
Giselle pushed to seated, cross-legged with her knee brushing against his side, looking down at him. "I don't know how you did it. If our roles were reversed, I would've been an emotional mess, not even half as composed, and determined to play the long game."
"I can't even say I intended to play the long game. I had no idea you and James would eventually break up or that our paths would cross again by some fortunate coincidence."
"We got lucky there, didn't we?"
"We got lucky twice. It was the second time because meeting you was the first time."
"Jude, you. . . I'm going to start crying."
Jude fought a smile. "If someone told me that you and I would find our way back to one another, I would've waited as long as it took. That's how much I love you."
Giselle stared at Jude; he would've gotten lost in her eyes if she hadn't leaned in. Drawn in by her magnetism, Jude met her halfway to the soft collision between their mouths. A gentle parting of Giselle's lips allowed him to push deeper in, cupping her face with his hand and holding her close.
The pace moved unhurried, defined by exploring each other's mouths. However, the kiss lingered, and their mouths held together, content to be in the moment.
Jude's fingers stroked down the length of Giselle's cheeks, encouraged by her quiet sigh that slipped into his mouth. But the press of Giselle's hand low on his stomach demanded his attention, fixated on the hesitant skim of her fingertips across the waistband of his pants.
"Where's that hand going, my dove?" asked Jude, voice raspy when he broke the kiss between him and Giselle. His chest clenched whenever her hand circled back to the center, toying with the hem.
"Mmm, somewhere fun," Giselle replied, sweet as pie and oh so innocent with how her voice lilted. Her tone sang, beckoning Jude to cave.
"Elaborate."
"How about I show you instead?"
"Giselle. . . oh fuck." Jude's head slumped back as Giselle's hands slid down the front of his pants and underwear. The pressure of her hand curled around his semi-hard dick, causing him to harden fully with embarrassing speed.
Giselle stared at him through her lashes, slowly stroking up and down. Her touch prodded his already sensitive length to throb in her hand, and each run from the base to its head elicited a noise from him. Pathetic, needy whimpers slid off his tongue with no remorse, pleading for Giselle to push the boundary.
Each noise from him prompted her smile to widen, culminating in the broken moan of her name. "Please, Giselle. Please."
Giselle's other hand grabbed at his pants and pulled them down. Jude's hips followed the movement, and his remaining clothes sat mid-thigh, revealing Giselle's hand slick with smeared pre-cum from his dick.
She nuzzled her face into his neck. "Did you dream about this in high school?"
"Ah—I—" Jude struggled between panting and the broken moans Giselle seemed to like. "I did more than dream. At the risk of sounding like a freak, I thought about you every time."
"Oh my god. Tell me more."
"I'll tell you everything."
"Was it me touching you only or something else?"
"More than that. You would touch me like you're doing right now. . . and I touched you back, exploring your body."
Giselle chewed on her lower lip. "Go ahead and show me. I want you to touch me like you did in your dreams."
Jude's hand shot forward, grasping at one of her breasts. She hadn't retrieved her clothes, which offered him easy access to tease one of her nipples until the sensitive nub hardened under pressure.
Giselle's breath caught, and the subtle slide open of her legs became a sign of wavering control. So, Jude pushed into her, mouth seeking skin and finding her pulse point, suckling at the skin to Giselle's faint whines.
His hand continued its ministrations of her lovely breasts, spurred on by her noises and the increasing speed of her strokes. Their moves ran wild, unburdened by shame or hesitation like their kiss in the hallway. No, they knew what they needed now.
They needed each other.
"Fuck." Jude's arms moved before his mind caught on, spun on the whirlwind of lust for Giselle. His body pushed into hers, and in a flash, Giselle went from sitting beside him to lying on the bed. "Where are the condoms?"
"Bedside table, second drawer." Giselle's hair sprawled across her duvet in a fiery halo, and she hung toward the edge, head pointed toward her unlocked bedroom door. Her chest heaved hard, but Jude admired every gorgeous angle of her naked body from his position over her.
Jude opened the drawer, expecting to rifle through stuff. However, the nearly empty drawer had nothing but the open package of condoms. He snatched one up and tore the packaging without a pause.
He fumbled with the foil in his hands while he bent down, marking Giselle's breasts with his mouth. His tongue swirling around one of her nipples with a sloppy, wet pop caused her hips to arch off the bed, presenting herself to him for more. Just what he wanted.
He rolled the condom on, hissing from the pressure of latex kissing such sensitive skin, but he never took his eyes off Giselle. Not for a moment. His hands split Giselle's legs wider for his hips, pulling one more to the side and mounting the other one over his shoulder.
"How about I take you like this?" Jude asked Giselle, noticing the haze overtaking her eyes or how her mouth parted in a pleasured grin.
"Are you about to teach me some new tricks? I've been stuck in the same routine for far too long," said Giselle.
Jude's hips rutted a few times, and the slide of his dick across her puffy, pink clit elicited a sharp inhale from Giselle. Poor thing probably ached from his earlier performance on his knees, worshiping her like a good, dutiful, real boyfriend should.
He grinned. "More like I'm about to teach you how good it feels when someone puts your pleasure first."
His head pushed into Giselle. Her body tensed, arching her back from the duvet in anticipation. Jude's hands held her steady while his dick inched further into her, counting every second under his breath until he bottomed out.
His hips rested flushed against her, causing Giselle's eyes to unfocus. Her mouth parted open, and the most beautiful cries reached Jude's ears.
"Still with me, Giselle?" he whispered, dropping a kiss to her ankle propped against his shoulder.
"Please," Giselle panted. Her head lifted so their eyes met; she rolled her hips, screaming desperation for friction. "I need you to move."
Jude nodded. He tightened his grip on her before the first thrust, slow to ease her in. But he, like any man lucky enough to be in Giselle's bed, lost command of his patience soon after.
His thrusts went from zero to sixty, rough and deep and demanding for her attention. Giselle's breasts bounced with every smack of his hips against her aching clit; he stared, utterly transfixed. His free hand snaked up, drawing fast and tight circles over her clit while he chased the high.
A free flow of pleasured cries and moaning from Giselle met the steady, loud slap of skin on skin from Jude's penetrating thrusts. He peppered kisses into the length of her ankle, but his eyes never left her for one moment. Jude stared at her expressions—the heaviness of her eyes after each thrust and the delectable pink flush to her cheeks—drinking it all in like a man stranded in the desert.
"God, you look so perfect taking every thrust. You have no idea the mess you've made of me, my dove. . ." Jude panted, upping his pace when Giselle's hands fisted at the duvet with a strangled moan.
"Jude, I—" Giselle stammered. Yet, everything crashed to a halt when the front door interrupted the squeaks of the bed frame and their bodies grinding together. "Oh shit. My parents."
Giselle tried to sit up, but Jude's hand on her chest held her still. Her eyes widened when the noise migrated closer, somewhere around the kitchen, and she whimpered. But Jude's hand gently covered her mouth.
His thrusts slowed to an agonizingly slow pace. "Shhh. It'll be okay. We didn't lock the door, but they won't know as long as you're a good girl and keep those pretty noises down, alright?"
Giselle nodded, whimpering softer behind his hand. Her eyes held onto his, but Jude didn't stop his thrusts, not even with the continued noises from the kitchen. Beyond the slickness from his thrusts and the occasional creak of the bed, the room's silence hung heavy.
Stay quiet.
Nothing bad will happen.
A few minutes passed as the noise wound down and faded back toward the front door. The resounding shut from the front door confirmed the departure of Giselle's unsuspecting parents. Good riddance to them.
Jude removed his hand from Giselle's mouth as she slumped into the bed, moaning, "Close one, but you can fuck me harder again."
"Your wish is my command," Jude laughed and dropped Giselle's leg from his shoulder. But his hands grabbed her hips and climbed on top of her, chests pressed together. "Wrap your legs around me."
Giselle obeyed his command, legs curling around his hips and arms winding around his back. At the first shudder of his hips, her nails dug in. Fuck yes.
Jude grunted, thrusting hard and fast as he promised. The resuming of the breakneck pace while Giselle's nails sank into his back brought Jude to the edge, losing ground and his control quickly.
He panted into her ear, "Kiss me. I need your mouth, please."
Giselle turned her head so their mouths collided, muffling Jude's heavy breaths. Heat pooled unbearably low in his stomach, mounting until the pressure became too much and brought him to a finish.
Jude moaned against Giselle's mouth as he came, cum spilling into the condom with a hot rush. But he refused to stop his hips thrusting wantonly against Giselle's, not when she clenched hard around his dick.
"Jude, I'm almost—oh—oh—yes!" Giselle screamed as her legs tightened their grip, soft moaning filling the room in the aftermath of her finish. Tremors racked her body while Jude continued his thrusts, a little more shallow and gentler than before.
She rode out her orgasm with Jude guiding her to the finish line, holding her the entire time in his arms. Her body glowed with a slight sweat, but she never looked more beautiful to him.
Jude's forehead pressed against hers, catching his breath. "Giselle, wow. . ."
"I know," Giselle laughed breathlessly, and she kissed his nose. "Please tell me we'll do that again?"
Jude's hands rubbed her sides, but he nodded. "And again. And again. Now that I've gotten a taste of you, I'll never be satisfied with anything half as sweet. You're it for me, Giselle."