Resounding Kisses

by Jessica Gray

  When the first detonation went off, she grabbed his hand so hard it hurt. “Easy.” He watched her face, seeing the awe on it and it made him fall for her even more. The second detonation went off and then the third. The building imploded upon itself, almost as if in slow motion, and the tension between them spiraled out of control.

  He could feel her curvy hips pressing in his groin and his heart threatened to beat right out of his chest if he didn’t do something soon. As dust rose from the demolished building, he turned her in his arms and kissed her.

  Ravenously. Passionately. Without apology and without concern for the others who might be watching. He needed to kiss her like he needed to take his next breath.

  Chapter 15

  Ivy kissed him back with a passion she’d only imagined before. Watching the building come down had released something inside of her and suddenly she wanted nothing more than to have this gorgeous man make love to her.

  “Ivy? We need to go somewhere else. Somewhere we can finish this.”

  She looked up at him, seeing the question in his eyes and nodded. “We can go back to my place.”

  “What about your roommate?” he asked, not willing to let her out of his arms just yet.

  “She was leaving for the weekend. She won’t be back until tomorrow night.”

  Before she could finish speaking, Ter had her hand in his and was forging a path through the crowd. He didn’t stop until they reached the car, where he settled her in the seat and then drove them back to her apartment as quickly as possible.

  Ivy opened the door to her apartment and dragged him to the couch, but he stopped her. “Where’s your bedroom? I don’t want our first time together to be on the floor or the couch.”

  Her body tensed up and she jumped back into the old patterns she’d learned about how sex was supposed to work between her and a man. “Come on.” She took his hand and pulled him towards the couch, but he resisted.

  “Where’s your bedroom?” he asked again, brushing the back of his finger down her cheek.

  “We don’t need a bed for this,” she insisted. She’d always needed to be in control and something inside told her that if she let this get too intimate, she wouldn’t be able to play her role and they’d both end up disappointed.

  She tried once again to lead him towards the couch, but he pulled her to a stop and then turned her to face him. “Ivy…” He searched her eyes. “I want to make love to you in a bed.”

  He must have felt how tense her muscles were, because he dropped his hands to her shoulders and began to knead them. “What are you so afraid of?”

  She watched him and then sighed. “I’m afraid to disappoint you.”

  The look in his eyes was shock. “Lovey, you won’t disappoint me. Ever. Not if you are yourself.”

  Tears sprang to her eyes. “Maybe I don’t know how to be myself? And then you’re disappointed and then you never want to see me again?”

  He kissed her forehead. “Sshh, lovey. That will not happen. I have a suggestion. Why don’t you turn off that beautiful brain of yours and just relax?”

  “But…” Ivy began, having never had sex where she hadn’t done all the work. She reached for his shirt, but he captured her hands in his own.

  “I want you to hand over control to me. Let me do all the work while you lay back and enjoy yourself.” His eyes were so sincere, so loving and caring. The concept he proposed to her was so foreign and yet so tantalizing, she couldn’t help but hope that maybe this time she’d actually get something out of the exchange. “You don’t want me to…”

  “I don’t want you to do anything. Why is that so hard for you to understand?” His hands traveled down her back, leaving sparks in their path, until they rested on her hips, burning right through the soft material of her dress.

  How was she supposed to form a coherent thought if he was doing this? “I’ve never…I mean, well, I have, but I’ve always been the one who had to do everything.”

  He lowered his voice, his hands firmly on her hips as he said, “I don’t work that way, lovey. I want to worship you and for that, I need you to hand over control to me and let me show you how much I adore you. Will you do that for me? Please?”

  Ivy felt like laughing as she nodded. “I guess I could try.”

  “Good.” Ter pulled her close and kissed her. The intensity of the kiss was simmering just beneath the surface. “Your bedroom?”

  Ivy turned and took his hand, leading him down the hallway and into her bedroom. When she reached for her clothing again, he grabbed her hands and pushed her back to sit on the bed.

  “Let me do that.” She nodded and closed her eyes when his hands explored her over the top of the dress.

  “Ivy?” she opened her eyes and met his emerald gaze. “Just how much experience have you had?”

  She shook her head. “Not much. To be honest, sex is never all that good. I like the lead up to it, but it always kind of falls flat after that.”

  Ter chuckled. “Lucky for me, you’ve only been with idiots who didn’t appreciate the sensual woman they had at their disposal.” He leaned close and whispered in her ear, “I promise to show you everything you’ve been missing and more.”

  She shivered. It was a tantalizing promise and she so wanted to believe it. “Okay.”

  The next moment, she felt herself pulled to a standing position. He reached for the hem of the dress and pulled it up her body. By the time he got the dress over her head, she was burning in all the right places.

  “God, you’re so beautiful,” he groaned as she stood in her bra and panties in front of him. He opened the clasp of her bra and let it slip down her shoulders. His eyes darkened with desire as he gasped at the sight of her plump breasts, her nipples already taut for him. He nudged her back onto the bed and laved her breasts with his tongue and his lips.

  Ivy felt like she was a fine instrument, one he played expertly and her body responded with shivers, sighs and moans of pleasure. Every time she tried to take back control, he lovingly but firmly pressed her back into the sheets and reminded her to relax and enjoy.

  When he grazed his teeth over her nipple and she arched her back towards him, she bit back a cry. “How does that feel, lovey?”

  “Hmm… so good.”

  “Tell me what you feel,” he insisted.

  “It’s a feeling so intense, it almost hurts. It sends shivers all over my body.”

  “Hmm. Shivers, I like that.” He lay beside her and laved her nipple with his mouth while his hand moved down her stomach. “And now?”

  “Oh my god.” She moaned when he caressed her hips and first her outer then inner thighs. “This is hot. I feel so…”

  “How exactly do you feel?” His mouth wandered to her other nipple, giving it the same attention, he’d given the first one.

  “Wet.”

  “Wet?” He licked and rolled her nipple in his mouth. “Where exactly?”

  His hand was now hovering over her most intimate parts and she gasped. “Right there, where your hand is. Between my legs.”

  He released her nipple for a moment and looked into her eyes. Oh my god, she could drown in those eyes. “That sounds serious. I must check for myself, lovey.”

  Humorous. Another point on her list. But she couldn’t finish the thought, because his finger slid into her wet folds and grazed her most sensitive parts. She wanted to scream with pleasure. And then with disappointment. Because, as soon as his fingers had taken her to new heights, they left her again.

  “Definitely dripping wet,” he said, and she opened her eyes to watch him lick his finger. “You taste so sweet, lovey. I need more of that.”

  “You need what?” Ivy was confused. What the hell did he have in mind? But she didn’t have to wait long for the answer, because he kissed his way down her stomach to the vee between her legs. It was pure instinct to arch into his kiss and to widen her thighs for him.

  He moved between her legs and buried his head deep. One finger slipped i
nto her, while his tongue teased her mercilessly.

  She felt it coming, an orgasm with the ability to shatter her into pieces. “Ter – rence!” She tried to resist it, to make him stop, to somehow clutch to the last bit of control she had. But Ter’s tongue and fingers wouldn’t pause, wouldn’t stop teasing and torturing her, making love to her, showing her all the places on her body that could sing just for him.

  Every muscle in her body tensed and she tightened around his fingers, pressing her core harder against his mouth as she came apart with another cry. “Ter – rence! Oh my god. Stop! No, don’t stop! Ohohohoh.”

  When she’d calmed down enough to breathe again, she heard the echo of her own screams in her ears and tensed. What will he think of me now? I totally lost it.

  He came up, grinning from ear to ear and kissed her softly on her lips. “Wow. That was so sexy. I totally love the way you screamed my name as if you were singing it.”

  “You loved it? But I…and you…I mean. You’re still fully dressed.”

  Ter pulled her up to sit, his eyes so full of love she almost couldn’t believe it. “Yvonne Kafando. I love to make you scream with pleasure. I love to make you come apart. I love everything about making love with you. ” He grinned. “And we’ve just started.”

  ***

  He’d known that beneath her hard shell was a sensual woman. But he’d never expected her to blow him away like this. After she’d finally stopped trying to be in control, she’d been absolutely uninhibited and her body had responded to his touch in a way he hadn’t thought possible. Explosive.

  When she’d screamed out his name in that particular sing-song way, he’d feared his heart would explode in his chest. Surely, one man couldn’t feel that much love? Especially this soon.

  And now she was still afraid she’d disappoint him because he hadn’t had an orgasm yet. His throbbing member painfully reminded him of that little fact.

  “I want to feel you inside of me,” Ivy said and looked at him with her expressive brown eyes.

  “You will, lovey.” He chuckled, his eyes growing darker. “If you beg me a little harder.”

  “I have to beg you?” She grinned.

  He placed little kisses down her neck and her shoulders, grazing his fingers over the swell of her breast. Goosebumps appeared on her skin and made him even hotter – if that was possible. His body was hard enough to pound nails and if he didn’t move things along a bit faster, it would be over before it even started.

  “Begging would help to speed things up,” he said while taking off his clothes and levering himself above her. He rolled on a condom and poised his hard length at the entrance to her body until she arched into him. “Ter – rence!”

  “Mmm, I love that sound.” He stilled himself, his gaze drifting from her eyes, down to the delicate curve of her neck and the swell of her breast. She squirmed beneath him, her nails digging into his back as she tried to push him inside her. But as much as he wanted to feel her warmth, he wasn’t sure she was ready for him.

  He supported his weight on one elbow while he kissed and suckled the soft skin of her neck until moans of pleasure escaped her lungs. She aroused him to the point of mindlessness like no other woman ever had, and he lowered his head to take a taut nipple into his mouth. Ivy’s response was immediate. “Yes. Please. More.”

  “More of what, lovey?” He groaned between suckling and biting her nipple.

  “More of everything. More of you. Please take me. Now. Please. “

  Without giving her a warning, he thrust into her to the hilt and was rewarded with another scream. “Ter – rence!” He almost lost it at the sound of her sexy voice and when she toppled over the edge with his next powerful stroke, Ter watched her eyes go wide just before she tipped her head back and screamed his name again. Muscles tightened around him and her convulsions triggered his own powerful release.

  When she could speak once again, she smiled up at him. “That was…”

  “…unbelievably good. So good, in fact, we must repeat it to make sure we didn’t just imagine it was perfect.” He smiled down into her brown eyes and kissed her tenderly. Then he pulled her into his arms so her head rested on his chest.

  “I have to fly back to Chicago Monday morning.”

  Ivy turned. “You do?”

  “I do. We have three performances in Chicago next week. I thought maybe you’d like to come with me.”

  She shook her head and her fingers sank into his skin, as if she was trying to hold on. “I wish I could, but I have to work this week.”

  Ter texted his brother to let him know he’d be spending the night at Ivy’s place. It was all so normal with her – and yet not. The imminent separation had them both feeling a little sad.

  He thought about something special for their last night together and secretly called Grant when Ivy was in the bathroom.

  “Hey Ter, I hadn’t expected to hear from you. Something wrong?”

  “No, it’s perfect. I now understand what you feel for Sam. I’m so deeply in love with Ivy, it almost hurts. And I need your help?”

  “My help, little brother? What can I do for you?”

  “I want to take her to a special place tonight. Romantic. Classy. At the beach. Do you know of any place?”

  “I’ll ask Sam. She’ll know. I’ll text you.”

  “Thanks, Grant.”

  “Bye. Take care.”

  A few minutes later, Grant made good on his promise and sent him a text. Velveteen Kitchen. The Hamptons.

  He made reservations and surprised Ivy that evening with the order to put on something nice and then they drove out to the Hamptons.

  After a lovely dinner, they walked along the beach hand in hand. “This place reminds me of home.”

  “You live on a beach?”

  “Well, my parents used to take us up to Sandy Beach every summer and for vacations. But when I was thirteen, they moved up there for good.”

  The sun had long since set and Ter stopped walking and pulled her down to sit beside him in the sand. He looked up and then lay down on his back, pulling her down so that her head rested on his shirt and they both admired the night sky. Out here, the lights of the city didn’t interfere as much with the light of the stars.

  After a long silence, he pointed above, showing her the brightest star. “See that one. That is the North Star.”

  She snuggled tighter against him. “Yes. It’s about the only one you can see in New York.”

  Ter squeezed her shoulder. “Every night I’m away from you, I will look up at the North Star and think of you. If you do the same, we’ll be connected and it will be almost as if you were with me.”

  “I will definitely do that.” Ivy said. “I would have never thought you to be the romantic type. But this is soo romantic.”

  “I never thought so myself, but with you, everything is different. You have captured my heart and I want to do all those things with you I always found cheesy. Like holding hands, looking at the stars and thinking of you.”

  After several minutes, Ter pulled her to her feet. “We need to head back.” He drove them back to her apartment and then kissed her goodbye at the doorway.

  “You don’t want to come in?” she asked, her teeth sinking into her lower lip.

  “Better not. I have to be at the airport early in the morning and Grant’s already warned me we have to leave on time.”

  “I understand.” She closed the distance between them and they kissed one last time.

  Chapter 16

  Ivy opened the apartment door to see that Bella was already home and waiting for her. “Hi.”

  “Hi, yourself. Where have you been?”

  “Ter took me to the Hamptons for dinner.”

  Bella’s eyebrows rose. “Wow. It sounds like you two have been having all sorts of fun.”

  Ivy’s lips formed a smile she couldn’t dispel. But then she remembered he’d just left and she didn’t know when she’d see him again.

  “What
’s the sad look for?” Bella asked.

  “He’s going back to Chicago in the morning and I don’t have any idea of how this is supposed to work. I mean, my work is here, but his will take him all over the place. And what if he meets another girl at one of his concerts? I might not even know…”

  “Whoa. Slow down here, Ivy,” Bella cautioned her.

  Ivy took a deep breath and nodded. “Sorry.”

  “Look, he’s a keeper, right?” Bella didn’t even wait for her answer before she continued. “Take it one day at a time. There’s no need to worry right now about everything that might go wrong.”

  “I’ll try. Good night, hon.” Ivy went to bed and once again, she envied her best friend for being so laid back. She really wished she could be more like her, but she’d been raised in a very strict home where obedience and respect for her parents wasn’t just expected, it was demanded. Her parents had always worried about everything and she’d been taught to prepare for the worst. It wasn’t like she had an off-button for that part of her.

  The next morning, she woke up to a text from Ter telling her how much he missed her already. As if that would help. She thought about him all day at work, a miserable day where she’d made it through, but just barely. She missed him so much.

  He called her in the afternoon, but she was in between meetings and they couldn’t talk for long. And when she’d gotten off work, he was already preparing for his concert. With her heart full of love and sadness, she went outside in the evening, looking up into the sky and trying to find the North Star.

  When she found it amidst the city lights, she instantly felt the connection to Ter and could almost hear his deep, gravelly voice in her ear. That night, she slept a lot better in the certainty that he was far away yet still connected with her. Maybe things would somehow work out. Maybe she shouldn’t worry so much.

  In the morning, she found another text from him, telling her how much he loved her and she hugged the phone to her chest. He loved her! She should have been scared, but all she could feel was the rightness of the moment. It was right. And it was real. She knew it.