Moon - New Moon Part 34

When he came back, Rinna was standing at the side of the room, eying the blankets and pillows.

She looked up as he approached, her expression uncertain. "You're planning to sleep next to me?"

"I'd like to."

"Just sleep?"

"Well, I was hoping for a little more," he admitted. "You can decide how much."

He saw her swallow. Making himself busy, he turned off the TV, then the lamp, leaving the hall light on so that it provided some low light.

After kicking off his shoes, he lay down with his clothes on, his breathing shallow as he watched her think about her next move. Aware of her tension, he stacked his hands behind his head, trying to look as casual as possible.

When she sat down gingerly on the edge of the blanket, he made no move to reach for her.

In a conversational voice, he said, "You told me it felt good when I kissed you and touched you. I was hoping you might do that to me."

"What do you mean?"

"Turn the tables. See how it feels to be the one in charge."

He lay without moving, hoping she'd accept the invitation. And when she moved closer, he grinned at her.

"I won't move my hands," he promised. "You're free to do anything you want-or not."

She looked like she didn't quite believe him.

"You won't reach for me?"

"Cross my heart and hope to die."

She made a small sound. "We say that!"

"Something we have in common."

She bent her head, and he saw her looking at his lips. He closed his eyes, waiting, struggling to keep his breathing even.

When she leaned over and gently brushed her mouth against his, he made a sound of encouragement. She moved her head back and forth, her lips b.u.t.terfly light.

"I'm not very... experienced," she whispered.

"Just do what feels good to you."

"How do I know it will feel good to you?"

"Because that's the beauty of it. The things you like doing, I'll like, too."

She pressed her lips more firmly against his. Then drew back so she could stroke her tongue along the seam. When he opened for her, she slid her tongue just inside, caressing the inside of his lips. He felt his breath quicken, felt his body harden.

It took every ounce of will power he possessed not to reach for her and pull her body against his, but he kept his hands where they were behind his head.

He heard her breathing accelerate as she sucked on his lower lip, then left his mouth to string kisses over his cheek and jaw, and he was glad he'd shaved while he was upstairs.

"What should I do now?" she whispered.

He cleared his throat. "Well, I've been lying here hoping you'd roll up my s.h.i.+rt so you can play with the hair on my chest and my nipples. Or the hair under my arms. That would feel good, too."

"It would?"

"Oh yeah."

He felt her fingers trembling a little as she carefully rolled up his s.h.i.+rt, her hands stroking his chest as she worked. She combed her fingers through the dark, crisp hairs she found there.

"That's nice," he murmured. And when her fingers glided over his nipples, then plucked gently at them, he heard a sound of appreciation rise in his throat.

"You like that?"

"Yes."

She leaned over, touching one nipple with her tongue before sucking it into her mouth, and he clenched his fingers so as not to break his promise and pull her down on top of him.

Raising her head, she stared down at him. "It makes me... hot and tingly to do that."

"Me, too. When you touch me like that, it makes me want to do the same things to you. And I know you want that, too. I can see your nipples standing out against the front of your s.h.i.+rt. They're tight and throbbing, aren't they?"

When she didn't answer, he went on. "Don't be afraid of the good feelings. Don't be afraid of what you want to do with me. When a man and a woman care about each other, making love feels very, very good."

"It already feels good. But..." She lowered her eyes, focusing on the lower part of his body where an erection strained behind the fly of his jeans. "I made you..."

"Hard," he finished. "Because of what you were doing."

Her shoulders tensed. "And now you want to put that thing inside me, don't you?"

"There's no use lying about it. You know I want you. But my p.e.n.i.s, that 'thing' as you call it, doesn't control me. I wouldn't want to be inside you unless that was what you wanted, too."

She was staring into the distance with unfocused eyes, and he didn't know if she'd heard him or not. "You could hurt me now," she whispered.

"But I won't. Never." He had told her to leave Falcone out of the conversation, but he heard himself say, "I need to ask you something. Did Falcone force himself on you more than once?"

"Only once. I... ran away after that."

He breathed out a sign. "Good." Clenching his hands behind his head, he said, "Did you know that the first time a woman has intercourse, it's likely to hurt? No matter if she wanted to do it or not. There's a membrane that has to break the first time. And usually that hurts."

He saw a flush spread across her cheeks. "I... didn't know. n.o.body told me. I thought every time would be like that."

"No. The next time you do it, it will be because you want to. And it will feel good."

She looked like she wanted to believe him.