Page 54 of Dark Verse

I chuckle lightly, “All true. The most solid of all reasons to not. But…and just hear me out…what if, maybe it does?”

Ven’s eyes go wide behind her glasses at my words, but I don’t say more, letting her consider what I’ve said.

Her tone is soft and reluctant as she says, “Maybe. But what if I give you a chance and it all blows up in our faces?”

“Give me a chance to fuck it up before you start catastrophizing.”

Her smile is subdued, and I see the wheels turning in her mind.

“One chance,” she whispers.

I attack her mouth with mine. I half expect her to be hesitant, but instead she matches my aggression. Soon we’re both panting. Ven is pushing me back so she can straddle me, grinding into my lap. Our clothing is still completely on, and just this friction between us has me wanting to explode in my pants, but I force the idea away. I want this to last all night, but my body is fighting that. Wanting instant gratification.

“Slow down, baby,” I say.

I shift our position so I can cover her body with mine. From here she can’t grind her hips into me so firmly.

“Slow,” she nods, arching up to kiss me. She closes her eyes and takes a deep breath before looking up at me again. “I can do slow.”

“It’s been a while,” I admit, pulling back from her lips to look her in the eyes.

“Yeah, me too.” She smiles up at me. Her fingers run through my hair, her hands resting on my shoulders as I hold my body over hers. “Slow is good.”

Leaning back in, I deepen the kiss, her smell filling my senses.

“How long?” she asks, her words breathy.

“I haven’t felt the need to pull out the measuring tape since high school.”

Ven chuckles, rolling her eyes. “You know that is not what I meant.”

“I know.” I bite her earlobe, her breath hitching. “A while.”

“Give me a number.”

“Two is a number,” I say.

“Two is nothing. Try eight.”

“It’s been eight years for you?” I ask, unconvinced.

I do that math in my head. There is no way this 27-year-old has gone eight years without sex.

Oh.

“No. Eight months.” Her expression shifts to something more contemplative. “It’s been two years for you?” she asks.

My throat works like I want to swallow hard, something like embarrassment coming over me, but I force the impulse down.

“Yeah.”

“Oh shit. So this is like your virginity 2.0.”

My laughter runs through my limbs, and that moment of embarrassment shifts away.

“Sure.”

“Okay, rewind.” She sits up, and I shift backward so I’m sitting fully on the couch. Ven might be fully clothed, but at this angle I can see directly down her shirt.