She angles her body closer to mine, and I remain still, allowing her to take the lead. She’s looking at my mouth again and I know I’m not going to be able to resist. Anchoring one arm around her, I lean down and kiss her. I’m not used to going this slow, hell I’m not used to having a girl in my bed at home after just having dinner with my mom. But I like it. Avery’s pouty mouth is so soft against mine, I can’t resist deepening the kiss, tasting her again. And when my tongue touches hers, her soft moan punctuates the silence, and desire races through me. Before I have time to consider my next move, I’m on top of her, caging her in with my body, kissing her deeply and crushing my hips against hers. The way Avery moves her body under mine, sliding her hands up and down my back, angling her hips to meet mine is incredible. She’s warm and soft and I want more.
She breaks the kiss suddenly. “Jase, what are we doing?”
My hand freezes over her ribs, feeling her heart ricochet against them. She wants to talk now? “I’m trying to get to second base.” I smile weakly.
She laughs softly, burying her face in my shoulder. “I meant what is this…with us?”
“What do you want it to be?” I brush the stray hair back from her face.
“I, I don’t know,” she admits.
“Okay.” She’s not giving me much to go on. “Do you need me to stop?”
This time her voice is firm. “No.”
Thank God.
“Now, about that second base.” Her voice is careful and she fixes her mouth in a polite smile.
A smirk overtakes my mouth. This girl is too much. I’d die if she didn’t want me to touch her there. Her tits are lovely in the most distracting way possible. I’d barely been able to keep my hands off them in the hot tub, peeking out from the little bikini, but now there’s only a thin cotton T-shirt separating us, and she’s coaxing me on. Shit, I can feel her ni**les rasping against me when she moves.
The little smile still playing at the edge of her lips, Avery lifts her shirt over her head and tosses it to the floor. Holy. Shit. She makes no move to cover herself, though her cheeks hold a hint of heat. Her chest rises and falls heavily with each breath, and her eyes stay glued to mine.
“You’re amazing,” I whisper, trailing a knuckle over her collarbone as my eyes travel down. “So beautiful.”
She swallows heavily and her hands scramble to remove my shirt next. I yank it over the back of my head and toss it to the floor, then lower myself down on her again. Why had I never noticed the brilliance of skin to skin contact? She’s warm and soft and still moving against me. This couldn’t have been more intimate if I was inside her. Her warm skin rubbing against mine, the rise and fall of her heavy br**sts with each breath is enough to undo me.
I lightly trace a fingertip across her nipple while delicately palming her other breast. Avery sucks in a breath and a tiny whimper escapes on her exhale. I’m trying to be soft, careful with her, to make myself go slow. I sense this is a big moment between us, and I don’t want to do anything to wreck it. But I’ve never been this turned on, and I have to fight off the urge to go farther. I’m not used to being this controlled. Her ni**les tighten under my touch and her heart is pounding in her chest. I press soft kisses all along her neck, enjoying the feel of her body squirming under mine.
My hands caress and explore and stroke while my mouth seeks hers, devouring, needing to possess her in this one way. For now.
Chapter 15
Avery
In the morning, Jase’s mom redeems her cooking abilities by making the most delicious homemade waffles with fresh blueberries. We gather around the table, eating quietly, but I can feel Jase’s eyes constantly wandering to me. He and I haven’t said much to each other after last night’s extremely heated make-out session. I didn’t think Jase was used to going too slow, but I was proud we kept things under control. Even though our shirts were off, our pants stayed firmly in place. Which wasn’t easy, especially since I could feel Jase’s arousal straining against his jeans. Sheesh. I need to keep my mind out of the gutter. I focus on taking another bite of the waffles in front of me.
“So…what should we do today?” Jase asks.
“You guys do whatever you’d like,” his mom answers.
Jase turns to look at me, measuring my reaction.
I shrug, my expression relaxed and open.
“Well, I thought we could hang out with you today,” Jase says to his mom, “And then tonight I could take Avery out and introduce her to a few of my friends.”
“Yeah, that sounds great. I’m open to whatever.” I feel surprisingly at home and comfortable being with Jase and his mom. There’s none of the awkwardness of being a house guest, or trying to force polite conversation just to fill the silences. We’d broken through that pretty quickly last night – gotten into some pretty heavy topics, which Jase navigated us through with ease. He has an easy-going nature about him that makes people feel instantly comfortable. I like being around him. I feel accepted and at ease, which for me is really saying something. These last few years, I haven’t always felt comfortable in my own skin, let alone in the company of a guy like Jase. I’m glad I met him and gave him a chance. Despite what I’d heard about his reputation, he’s been nothing like the hard-partying, womanizing frat boy that Madison made him out to be. And truth be told, I actually like that he has a past he isn’t proud of. It might make it easier for him to accept mine knowing he isn’t perfect, either.