Just a Taste (13 page)

She pulled away from him and stood. “We should clean up the dishes.”

He jumped up and grabbed her again. Her ass leaned on the edge of the table as he pressed his body to hers. He wanted to push her back onto the table and strip her, but he knew she wouldn't go for it. Liam trailed openmouthed kisses down her neck. Her breath hitched.

He shifted again so his thigh pressed between her legs. She gasped with a high little squeak, and then gripped his shoulders as she began to wiggle her hips. In his head he pictured her dancing through her bedroom, hips shaking in rhythm, and how much he'd wanted to be up against her. Feeling her writhe beneath him quickly became a top priority.

Dragging his mouth away from her skin, he cleared his head. When he spoke, his voice was gravelly with need. “Do you want to stop?”

Her eyes fluttered open. “Huh?”

His dick throbbed against his zipper, making coherent thought more difficult. “Carmen.” He waited until she focused on him. “Do you want to stop?”

“No,” she answered quickly. She leaned forward and kissed him again.

He grabbed her hand and pulled her through the apartment to his bedroom, flipping on lights as they went. In his room, he kicked a pile of dirty clothes out of the way so she wouldn't trip. In his head, he heard his mother scolding him for being a slob. But then he turned to Carmen and pulled her back into his arms and all thought fled.

Liam began unbuttoning her shirt, kissing his way down, when Carmen's hands stopped his. He looked at her in question.

“Before we go any further . . . I . . .” She closed her eyes. When she reopened them, she looked scared.

Crap. That was never a good look in the bedroom. “What?”

“I don't really know what I'm doing.”

Whoa. “Are you a virgin?” He scanned his memory for any mention Gus had ever made about her having a serious boyfriend and he came up empty. Was it possible that she'd made it to her late twenties without sex?

“No, but I don't have much experience. I just . . . don't want you to expect, I don't know.” She collapsed on the bed and flopped back, throwing her arm over her face.

For as sexy as she'd been all night, he looked at her now and saw that she was pretty damn cute. She had performance anxiety.

Liam crawled over the top of her until his thigh was nestled between hers. He stayed propped on an elbow and with his other hand shoved her arm aside. He traced a finger down her cheek. “Do you want to do this?”

She nodded.

Thank God. “Then don't worry about it. Just do what feels right.” His hand trailed a path down her neck, over her shoulder, and then down the side of her body. She trembled beneath him and he wanted so much more. “If I do something you don't like, say so and I'll stop. And if there's something you like that I'm not doing, tell me.” Not that he could imagine not doing everything to her.

She cringed. “That's just it. I don't even know what I like.”

“Then we'll figure it out together.” He lowered his head and kissed her as he tugged her shirt out of her skirt. Warm, smooth skin greeted him. He really needed to get rid of all these clothes. He reared up and yanked his shirt over his head and tossed it in the pile on the floor.

Then he reached down and finished unbuttoning her shirt. Beneath the simple black top was a scarlet satin and lace bra. The cups barely held her breasts. Lying under him, skirt barely keeping her decent, she was sin personified and he was more than ready to go to hell.

Carmen couldn't breathe. She watched Liam unbutton her shirt and although instinct made her hands twitch with wanting to stop him, she held back. There was something fascinating about his pale white skin against hers. His hands, always so strong and capable, were incredibly gentle.

He stared at her chest and she was so grateful that she'd splurged on the new underwear, something that made her feel sexy under his scrutiny. But she was painfully aware of the stretch marks marring the skin on her abdomen. His tongue traced along the top edge of the bra and her skin pebbled with goose bumps. He inched his way down until he stood next to the bed. Still staring at her, he tugged off her cute pumps and ran his hands over her feet.

“Uh, Liam?”

“Hmm?” His hands wandered up her leg. Her skirt was at her hips, so she knew he was looking at her new red panties.

“Can we turn out the lights?”

He froze. His gaze shot to her face. “Why? I want to see you.” She closed her eyes and drew a slow breath. How could she explain this? He would think she was a total freak. A shadow crossed over her as the mattress shifted with his weight. She felt his body next to hers.

Again, his fingers traced over her face. “There's nothing to be nervous about.”

This went so far beyond nervous that she didn't even have words. This was self-consciousness and loathing for her own body. As content as she'd become with her body, and she believed she'd come to terms with it, she wasn't ready to reveal it to him. Certainly not on their first time. Beyond the stretch marks, she was jiggly after not having time for the gym in longer than she could remember. She didn't have a toned, athletic body. She wasn't just curvy, she was plump.

He sighed, kissed her cheek, and then he was gone.

Yeah, he thought she was a freak. But then the lights beyond her eyelids disappeared. She opened her eyes to the darkness of the room. And then Liam was back, cast in shadow from the hall light. He'd turned off the lights for her. The tightness in her chest loosened a bit and she smiled.

She scooted back on the bed as he neared. His silhouette filled her vision as he climbed on the bed, his jeans rubbing against her bare thighs. Moonlight filtered through the windows and lit his face enough for her to see his grin.

“Better?”

“Much.” Her whisper was harsh to her own ears. Her pulse picked up again as Liam's hands got busy.

He spread her shirt wide and palmed her breasts. His hard thigh nestled between hers, applying a glorious pressure that made her want to purr. His mouth found hers while his right hand squeezed her breast, lightly pinching her nipple. What had been smooth, comforting satin now felt far too restrictive. His hand left her breast and pulled her skirt up.

He stroked her through her wet panties. Her hips began to move against him. She fisted her hands in the blanket, unsure of what else to do with them. Liam sucked at her neck, sending tingles through her and coalescing where his hand met her body.

Again, Liam pulled away and her immediate thought was that she'd done something wrong. She followed him up, forcefully pushing her body to sit. Her shirt slid down her shoulders. He stood before her, shoving his jeans and underwear off. His dick sprang free.

Her eyes widened and she hoped he couldn't see. It had been so long since she'd seen a naked man. Even when she'd had a boyfriend, she'd been too nervous to really look. His skin, so white in the moonlight, practically glowed. He reached down and tugged her sleeve until the shirt came away from her body.

It took another second for her to realize he wanted her naked. She reached around her back to release her bra. He leaned down and whispered, “Let me.”

He bit down on her earlobe. With one quick flick, he had her bra unclasped and drew it away from her. Her boobs drooped without the support of the cups and Carmen wanted to cover them. Liam, on the other hand, appeared to be fascinated. He knelt in front of her and took a nipple into his mouth.

The warm, wet pleasure of his tongue caressed her and her head lolled back. She wanted him to do this everywhere. Nothing had ever felt so good.

He eased her back against the mattress and then pulled at the waistband of her skirt. She lifted her hips so he could remove it. Like with his own clothes, he took the skirt and underwear simultaneously. She was completely bare and her stomach churned. She wanted to tug the blanket over her, but that would require movement and she was paralyzed.

When he covered her body this time, the silky, hard length of his dick poked her thigh. He kissed her again and the same wonderful dizzy feeling filled her. Her brain overloaded as Liam's hands went everywhere. He said nothing, but an occasional pleased groan slipped past his lips. She had a hard time believing those sounds were in response to her body.

He made his way back up her body and his face hovered over hers. His eyes lasered on her. “Are you okay?”

She still couldn't talk, so she nodded.

“You're sure you want to do this?” The question sounded a little strangled.

Liam, always the gentleman. As if she would stop now. She was enough of a weirdo without being
that
girl. And she did want this. “Yes,” she whispered.

He reached over to the nightstand and she heard a wrapper. This was it. She was going to have sex with Liam. Every muscle in her body tensed. When he came back to her, she spread her legs wide to make room for him. He settled between her thighs and she braced for his push, for the weight of his body against hers.

Instead, his hand found her again and stroked her and he went back to kissing her neck. His skin was hot against hers. She reached up and touched his chest, her hand dark in the shadows of the room.

His breath was ragged against her as she moved her hands to his head and then down his shoulders. The tingling built and coiled in her when the shock of his fingers entering her caused a gasp. She tilted her hips up.

More.
She wanted more of this.

Forcing her voice to work, she said, “I'm ready, Liam.”

Without a word, he moved his hand and shifted his weight. She felt the head of his dick pressing against her. Once he was in place, he curled his arm beneath her and held her close as he pushed into her in incremental bits.

Please
screamed through her head. She rocked her hips, bringing him closer and deeper.

“Fuck.” The word came out harsh and shaky. He didn't move, just nestled between her, covering her, penetrating her.

She felt so full and overwhelmed. And then he began to move. He pulled out and slid back. He kept his face buried in her neck.

Carmen lifted her knees and awkwardly tried to hook her legs around his hips, but there was nothing for her to latch on to and they kept slipping away. He grabbed her right thigh and held it at his hip and drove into her faster. Their skin became slick with sweat.

She waited for the coiling to go away, for some explosion to tell her this was right, that it was good. Her mind raced ahead, telling her what she should be doing.
Raise your hips. Move your hands. Moan.

But she could do none of that. Liam rose on his forearms and kissed her. Pulling back a mere inch from her lips, he said, “Relax.”

She squeezed her eyes tight. God, didn't he understand? She couldn't. And she wanted to more than anything right now.

He stopped moving and she felt his penetrating gaze boring into her. Tears pricked at her eyes.

“Christ.” He leaned his forehead against hers. “Do you want me to stop?”

She refused to open her eyes. She shook her head no. Because she didn't want him to stop.

“Carmen.”

She finally opened her eyes.

“I don't want to do this if it's not good for you.”

“It's good. It is.” She inhaled deeply and felt his chest hair rub against her nipples. “It's okay . . . to finish.”

“Crap.” He started to roll away.

Her arms and legs wrapped tightly to hold him. She tugged until he was on top of her. She could never talk if she had to look into his eyes. Hoping her voice would last, that her words wouldn't crack, she talked. “It feels good, Liam. Please don't stop. I
want
this. I just can't get where you're going. But it's good.”

A slow breath released from him, fluttering against her hair, and he began moving again. She closed her eyes and enjoyed the feel of him moving against her, his muscles bunching and flexing.

When his whole body went rigid and he shook, a new sensation filled her. She did this, brought him this pleasure. It was a different kind of satisfaction.

He collapsed against her and she smiled as she stroked his back. It only lasted a moment, but it was a moment longer than she'd had with other guys. He rolled away, taking all of his warmth with him. Through the slit in her eyes, she watched the rise and fall of his chest, still faster than normal.

He groaned as he sat up. “I'll be right back.” He stumbled as he walked away.

She shot up and began looking for her clothes, which was difficult in the dark, but she wasn't about to turn the light on. Feeling with her foot, she encountered clothing. As she bent to see if it was hers, Liam groaned from the doorway.