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My lips twitch with amusement. When I press a soft kiss against her palm, she slowly lowers her hand.

I’m about to tease her about it when I realize her eyes are really wide. Not just the turned on or surprised kind of wide-eyed, but really wide-eyed. And she’s still breathing heavily.

I slide my fingers out of her tights and put my hands back on her hips, pulling back enough that I can watch her face. “Hey. You okay? We can slow down. I know I basically pounced on you as soon as I kicked my brother out.”

She startles. “What? No. No, it’s not that. I—” But then she pulls back and swallows roughly. “Actually, it’s probably a good thing your brother interrupted us.”

My brow furrows in confusion, but when she doesn’t say more, I decide we need a better setting for this conversation. Lifting her off the counter, I carry her over to the couch. And when I sit, I keep her on top of me in my lap. “Whatever it is, let me solve it.”

To my surprise, that makes her laugh. “You already are,” she says.

When I frown once more, she finally sobers and slumps with a sigh. “I’m just…not very good at this,” she mumbles.

“This being…?”

A deep breath for courage, and then she answers quietly. “Sex.”

I roll my lips together to fight a smile. “Yeah, I find that very hard to believe. Why do you think that?”

When she slaps her hands over her eyes, my eyebrows shoot to my hairline.

“Because I haven’t really done it?”

Now my eyebrows are definitely at my hairline. “You’re a virgin?”

She peeks between two of her fingers. “No. But it feels like I might as well be. I’ve only done this twice.”

My jaw drops at that. Of all the things I expected her to say, that wasn’t on the list. I can’t imagine that she doesn’t have men falling at her feet, wanting more of her. I know that’s how I feel. So is she saying no to those men, or is she just blind to her appeal?

I weigh my words carefully. The last thing I want to do is scare her off. “Charli, we don’t have to do anything. You know that, right? There are no assumptions here.” I slide her shirt up where it slipped off her shoulder again. “Just because I kiss you like the world is ending doesn’t mean I expect anything.”

“No, no, I want to,” she reassures me, and a big part of me is relieved at the instant and emphatic answer. “I just…want to be honest. I don’t want you to have high expectations.”

I let out a breath and shift her back a little bit. “Okay, time-out. Let’s start over here. What do you want?”

She’s chewing on her lip again, debating her answer. My hands automatically start to brush over the tops of her thighs in reassurance. After a moment, there’s a flash of heat in her eyes and she says, “I want you to make me come.”

I hope she can see the shiver that runs through me. Because fuck, that sentence coming out of her mouth is hot.

“Okay,” I say. “I can do that. How do you want me to do that?”

Her brow furrows. “Um, any way you can?”

A smile slowly spreads across my face. I decide this conversation has progressed to the point that I can get close to her again, so I slowly lean forward to press a kiss to her jaw. “Oh, sweetheart. I can make you come a million different ways.” Brushing my lips over her jaw, I press a kiss under her ear. “With my fingers. With my tongue. On my cock. With my fingers and my cock. The options are endless.”

I love feeling her breathing pick up, especially now that it’s not from being overwhelmed. She’s simply turned on.

But I still want to finish this conversation, so I back up and meet her eyes again. “What have you done already? With sex? Be specific.”

Her gaze drops to my lips before she drags it back to my eyes. “Um…well, I’ve had…fingers. Used on me.” When she makes a face, I gather she didn’t enjoy it. “And sex, obviously.”

I force my mind past the knowledge that she’s never had her pussy eaten. I can obsess over being her first later. “Did you enjoy sex?” I ask instead. When she shakes her head, I follow it with, “What did you think you would enjoy?”

She pulls in a deep breath. “I don’t know,” she admits. “I don’t know anything.” Then she makes a face. “Well, that sentence is unappealing.”

I laugh, adoration swelling in my chest. This girl.

“I bet you know more than you think,” I assure her. “Sex is pretty primal. And with the right partner, instincts take over pretty quickly.” I cock my head. “Tell me what you want out of this, Charli. I want there to be no questions here.”