Page 44 of Come A Little Closer

He suddenly groaned and dropped his forehead against mine, standing still instead of continuing our advance to his bed. “So that’s what Sayra told you about last weekend?”

I frowned as I looked into his eyes—or eye, considering that they’d melted into one for how close he was to me. “She might’ve mentioned that women love you, and that you love them right back.”

“Not love,” he corrected immediately, pulling away a little bit so I could actually see both eyes again. “I won’t pretend that I’ve been a saint. I haven’t. I had no reason to be, but I’m not unfaithful. If you agree to give me a chance, I won’t even look at any other women. It’s just not who I am.”

“How can you be so sure?” I asked.

He suddenly grinned and started moving again, pushing me back on his bed and following me onto it. “I haven’t been with anyone since the day you walked into my office, and I haven’t even thought about it until right this minute. I didn’t even notice.”

“You haven’t been with anyone?”

As soon as he canted his head and smirked, my heart dropped, but it started racing when he spoke again. “I suppose that’s not entirely accurate. I have been with myself. A lot, but always while thinking of you.”

My mouth popped open. “You…”

“Yes,” he said before he brushed a surprisingly playful kiss to my lips. “More often than I’m proud of, but I swear, I haven’t been with anybody else. Didn’t even think about anybody else.”

My eyes widened and I swept my tongue across my lips, my heart still racing, but the way he was looking at me made me feel bold again. Brave. Unbroken. “Can I watch you sometime?”

“Excuse me?”

I blushed to the top of my head and the tips of my toes, but I pushed ahead anyway. Last night felt like it’d been the start of a new journey for me.

These last two years had been all about figuring out how to be on my own. I’d had to leave the only place I’d ever lived on a bus I’d had to navigate the schedules of for the first time. I’d had to find a place to stay and learn how to decide what I wanted for dinner regardless of what anyone else might feel like eating.

After that, I’d had to teach myself how to look for a job, interview, and start working. The learning curve had been steep, but I’d managed. I’d done that part. Now, it seemed I’d entered a new phase of finding myself—gaining the confidence to start a new relationship.

Part of that self-discovery would be sexual, and it sent a rush of excitement through me to know I could actually talk to Niall about that kind of thing. More specifically, that I could admit to being curious without fear of being knocked down or ridiculed.

Swallowing my hesitation, I looked right into his eyes as I finally gave voice to something I thought I might want. “It’s just that, I, uh, I haven’t ever seen a man, uhm, pleasuring himself and I think it might be hot. Especially if it was you.”

A soft groan tore out of him as he nodded. Then he pressed another hard kiss to my lips. “Anything you want, Tallulah.”

My heart stammered, but as I’d suspected, he hadn’t judged me. There had been no trace of even hesitation before he’d agreed, and it made me want more. “After we, uh, you know, could I try to, uh, go down on you?”

He groaned again but dropped his chin in a nod before he reached for the buttons of my shirt. His shirt, technically. “You don’t ever have to ask me that question like you doubt the answer, baby, but now that you have, just know that this might not last long.”

“Why does it have to?”

“I don’t know. It’s polite?”

“Polite?”

“Yeah.” He undid the buttons one by one, his gaze never leaving mine. “I suspect the thinking behind it is that if I come before you, I’m just going to roll over and go to sleep.”

“Would you?”

He scoffed. “Never.”

“Then don’t be polite with me. Ever. I insist.” I’d never told anyone what I wanted in a sexual situation, but with Niall, it felt good. It felt right.

He grinned, lowering his lips to mine and speaking between furious kisses as he reached for the condom he’d dropped on his nightstand last night. “Only if you promise to keep being honest with me.”

I smiled against his mouth. “It’s like you can read my thoughts sometimes.”

Parting the two sides of the shirt, he broke the kiss to dip his head to my chest, laving at my breasts as his hands hooked into my panties and he rolled them off. At the same time, I reached for his underwear and pushed them off in turn, my head spinning at the thought that we were naked together again, but this time, it was actually going to happen.

My entire body was aching for him, and my mouth watered when he sat back on his knees to roll the condom on and I finally got my first look at him. Niall was gorgeous, inside and out, and it turned out that his cock was no exception.