Page 73 of The Roommate Subtext

“Cufflinks.” She released him to unfasten his cufflinks and set them on her nightstand. He put his glasses next to them. Then he finally slipped his tuxedo shirt off, followed by his undershirt, and stopped to remove his shoes and socks. Each new inch of skin that he revealed cost her more of her capacity for logical thought.

When he was down to only his slacks, he brushed her eager hands away. “Now you.” He turned her around and pressed his lips to the nape of her neck. “How do I get you out of this dress?”

“Over my head.” She closed her eyes, heartbeat pounding as he pressed open-mouthed kisses down her spine. He got as far as the middle of her back before she added, “Please,” and was rewarded by a smile she could feel curving against her skin.

He gathered the dress at her hips, inching the silky material upward to reveal first her calves, then her legs, then her hips and the curve of her ass. He kept going until he was able to lift it completely off. Still behind her, he took a shaky breath and swore for only the second time she’d ever heard. “Fuck, you’re beautiful.”

Maggie turned to face him, wearing only the black lace underwear, still in her heels. He looked her up and down, his eyes wide. “I can’t believe this is all you were wearing all night under that dress. God, I really would have taken you in that coat closet.”

He drew her against him by the hips, his mouth drifting along her jaw to her ear, sucking gently at the tender skin beneath. Her pulse thrummed with anticipation, and he cupped her breasts and rolled her nipples between his fingers, eliciting her gasp. “Beautiful,” he murmured.

“For fuck’s sake.” She let her head loll back, his kisses and his touch making her burn up from the inside out. She grabbed him by the back of the head and pulled his lips back up to hers, kissing him open-mouthed, needing him to feel every ounce of her desperation. Then she climbed onto the bed. She paused, suddenly sheepish. “Shoes.” She hadn’t realized she was still wearing her heels, strappy and well-fastened up around her ankles.

“I’ve got them.” He walked to the end of the bed and lifted one foot, pressing a kiss to her ankle before unfastening the strap. It was intimate enough to take her breath away. He let the foot drop and repeated the gesture, then removed his slacks and set them on the chair with the rest of his tuxedo.

“Boxer briefs,” she said aloud without conscious thought, and he looked down at himself before meeting her gaze with a grin.

“Is that a problem? Because I was planning to take them off.”

Maggie laughed. “Not a problem. Just observing.” She tilted her head to get a better look at him where he stood next to the bed, eyeing the outline of his substantial erection. “Definitely observing.”

Blake gave her another cheeky smile. He was surprisingly relaxed in bed. If she’d anticipated this, she might have slept with him sooner. He climbed up onto the mattress with her, and before she could make some kind of joke, he rolled her onto her back and kissed her.

Fuck. Kissing him felt very different when he was lying on top of her. His weight pressed her against the mattress, heavy enough that she felt perfectly trapped and enclosed. She skimmed her hands down his back to feel the flex of his muscles, his skin hot beneath her touch. He was clearly strong, even without the build of an athlete, and her hands lingered on the divot of his hips right above his waistband.

He kissed his way down, past her collarbone, mouthing hot and wet along her skin, then sucked her nipple into his mouth. She gasped, one hand going to his head, fingers tightening in his hair. He groaned, and she loosened her grip. “Sorry,” she said.

“It’s—it’s good,” he managed before closing his lips around the peak once more, and she gave his hair another tug. He moaned again. This time she could pick up on the pleasure in the sound. Apparently, he liked having his hair pulled. But then he bit down on her nipple and all thought left her in a rush. She rocked her hips up against him, and his lips curled in a smile before he switched to the other breast. God, he made her wet.

She tugged him up by the hair again, rewarded by his moan of pleasure, and brought his mouth to hers for another kiss. “You’re good at this,” she said against his lips.

“Thank you.” He grinned. “Did you think I’d be bad? Were you resigning yourself to a night of mediocrity?”

Maggie laughed out loud. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d laughed this much with someone in bed. “I was trying to manage my expectations in general.”

“I see, I see.” He rolled to one side of her and traced a light circle around her nipple with his fingertips, brushing the very edge of the dusky brown skin. “What do you like?”

Maggie blinked. Nobody ever asked her directly before. Usually they just muddled their way through. “You want a list or something?”

He smiled again. The edges of his eyes crinkled delightfully when he smiled. She hadn’t appreciated that crinkle enough, nor the dimples on his cheeks, but she was appreciating them now. It was almost enough to make her blurt out the truth to him: I like to be dominated. Hold me down. Spank me. Don’t let me come.

Shit, she couldn’t say that, so she swallowed. He may be flirtatious and fun, but this was still Blake, and she didn’t want to scare him right out of her room. “You don’t have to be too gentle. I’m not fragile.”

He brushed the juncture of her thighs, where her black lace underwear drew a triangle pointing to where she most wanted him to touch. “Can I take these off?”

She nodded emphatically. “Please.”

He tugged them down, his eyes never leaving hers as he tossed the remaining scrap of fabric to the floor. She parted her legs, wanting him to touch her, please, just touch her.

His fingers teased the edge of her folds for a moment, long enough for her to squirm, because he was still looking at her. His eyes were still locked with hers when he dipped his fingers between her legs and rubbed her clit.

“Fuck,” she swore, hips twitching, her vision going blurry all at once as the wave of arousal and need crashed over her. “God, yes, right like that.” Her hands twitched in the covers, tangled up with them, gripping the bedsheets as he worked her over. She threw her head back and closed her eyes, unable to bear the intensity, her world narrowing to his touch and the desperate arousal.

“You’re beautiful,” he whispered, his hand not stopping even as he crooned sweet words. “Absolutely beautiful, Maggie.”

“I want—” she gasped, still lost in his eyes. “I want—”

“What do you want?” he whispered.