Take My V-Card

by Layla Valentine

  “Please,” I whispered, my legs shaking with the force of my desire.

  “Patience, my love,” he murmured against my skin, sending deliciously torturous vibrations through my body.

  Shuddering, my breath shaky, I writhed beneath him, silently urging him to show me mercy, to grant me sweet release.

  Finally, after a blissful eternity of torture, he moved his hands and mouth to my center, pressing an open-mouthed kiss to my quivering quim. Bucking against his rough tongue, I cried his name out into the dark, sobbing for more.

  He gave me what I begged for, sliding his fingers deep inside my molten core. Mad with desire, I slid over them, rocking my hips in time with his flicking tongue and fingers.

  All at once, every molecule of my body went rigid, vibrating at a frequency too high for mortal awareness, and then collapsed with the force of a million stars. My breath rushed from my lungs in a wordless scream, ricocheting off of my bare walls.

  “Damn,” he breathed, gazing up at me from between my legs. “Wow.”

  I giggled breathlessly, unable to do anything else. My body was weak and limpid, deliciously warm down to my bones. As I stretched across the bed, I could feel the whole of the universe ripple through my satiated cells.

  “I could listen to you do that forever,” he murmured huskily as he moved over me, peppering my body with kisses as he moved up to my mouth.

  “I could let you listen to me do that forever,” I replied, my consciousness still spinning somewhere ethereal.

  He groaned in my ear as he nibbled my neck, pressing himself against me. He was hard, hot, and ready all over again. Eagerly, I pulled his face to mine, devouring his kisses with a feverish thirst.

  I spread my legs for him, but didn’t let him inside; instead, I pushed him onto his back. I had been fantasizing about this moment for months, arguably years, and I wasn’t going to let it pass without doing everything I had dreamed of. He bit his lip and his eyes darkened as I sheathed him, his hands wandered over my slick skin, fondling my every curve.

  “Oh God,” I moaned as I began to ride him. “I almost forgot how you felt inside of me.”

  “I’ll have to keep reminding you,” he told me, his voice full of passion.

  “Yes, please… Oh, God, yes.”

  Ripples of pleasure began again, spreading outward and upward from my core, bouncing off of the limits of my physical being to crash back down again, compounding, intensifying exponentially, driving my hips like a piston over and around him.

  “Rhona… God, Rhona. I love you.”

  His words tore through me, ripping every last inhibition away, and with a cry of passionate bliss, I pulsed around him as he pushed back, riding him over the edge as we came together.

  Far above us, the northern lights lit up the sky, brighter than ever before.

  Epilogue

  Six Months Later: Rhona

  “You weren’t kidding; this place is gorgeous!” Nina rubbed her swollen belly as she turned in a slow circle in the middle of my new foyer.

  “Blake has great taste,” I said happily as I led her and Sara through to the open, sunny living room. “He did all the shopping around while I was wrapping things up in Iceland.”

  “Yeah, he did all right,” Sara said with a little shrug as she flopped onto one of the squishy white couches. “Please tell me that his isn’t the only name on the deed.”

  “No,” I said seriously. “I insisted on paying my half of the down payment and getting us both on there. Not that I had to insist very hard,” I admitted with a sly little grin.

  “He’s still spoiling you rotten?” Nina asked gleefully as she sat herself gently down onto the couch.

  “Positively rotten,” I happily confirmed. “He gives me everything I want and need, half the time before I even know that I want or need it. I figure I have a couple more months before the novelty wears off, but I’m enjoying it for the moment.”

  “When it does, just do what I did,” Nina said with a smirk as she gestured at her belly. “Trust me, it works like a charm.”

  “I’m not going to have a baby just to get him to buy me presents,” I laughed, rolling my eyes. “Besides, I want to get married before I start a family, and I don’t think he’s ready for that yet.”

  “Why not?” Sara asked.

  “I don’t know,” I confessed. “He’s been a little bit evasive about the whole thing. I don’t bring it up often, but once in a while I start thinking about it, and I have no filter around him so it all just spills out, and then he changes the subject.”

  “I’m sure it doesn’t mean anything,” Nina said quickly. “He’s probably just taking his time to wrap his mind around it. It’s kind of a huge deal, you know?”

  “Yeah, I’m not worried about it. I’m completely happy where we are right now, I don’t need to push things.” The words were right, but my tone was just the tiniest bit strained. Sara noticed immediately.

  “You lie,” she accused.

  “Not really,” I insisted. “I really want to be okay with things exactly as they are right now, no pressure. But I’ve always wanted to have a family, and I really want to do all those things in order, and…” I trailed off with a helpless shrug.

  “Well, he should ask you,” Sara said adamantly. “But if he doesn’t, you should ask him.”

  Nina and I both cringed, and Sara rolled her eyes.

  “Why should the boys get all the fun? Marriage proposals can be super fun and creative and exciting.”

  “Well, in this case, he should ask because he knows I’ll say yes, and I’m not sure that he would.” Verbalizing that twisted my stomach in knots, and Nina reached out and squeezed my hand.

  “He would,” she said firmly. “But you shouldn’t ask him. Not yet.”

  “Why not? I mean, I’m not planning on it, but…?”

  “Just… Look, honey, if you’ve ever blindly trusted me before, I’m asking you to do it now. I’ve got the pregnant-mom brains and I will crack under pressure, so please just accept what I’m saying.” Secrets brimmed just under the surface of her eyes, threatening to break through.

  “All right,” I agreed, unwilling to stress her out. “I’ll let it go, for now. Besides, we’ve got a great thing going on, haven’t we? Amazing house, amazing jobs, amazing sex…”

  “Oh! That reminds me,” Nina interrupted.

  “The amazing sex part?” Sara asked, raising a brow.

  “No,” Nina laughed. “The amazing jobs part. How did you convince them to let you move back home?”

  “I didn’t have to,” I told her with a grin. “AdFast offered me an executive director position in their San Bravado offices. All I did was tell Charlie, and he promoted me and moved me home in a heartbeat.”

  “Nice!” Sara approved. “You’re a big shot now.”

  “I guess I am,” I said happily. “It’s not even that much more work, it’s just a different kind of work, you know? More global thinking, more coordination work, and way more delegation. But it’s super cool to watch how my ideas get implemented all over the world. It’s powerful.”

  “You can literally change the world with the push of a button,” Nina sighed. “I’m almost jealous.”

  “Almost?” I teased.

  “Yeah, almost. I wouldn’t be able to handle all of that, not now, probably not after the baby’s born, and then after that, there’ll be the school functions and everything, and I think it’s better if I just stick to what I know for right now…just so I don’t forget it all. I swear my brain is just off right now.”

  “This is new?” Sara said, sticking her tongue out at Nina.

  Nina tossed a pillow at her, and Sara caught it, laughing. I watched the two of them, letting a glow of contentment wash over me. I was home, I was loved, I was successful. And all before my self-imposed time limit! We spent the whole day catching up on everything we had missed in each other’s lives since my tiny three-day vacation during Nina’s wedding, and the conversation wrapped a
round me like a secure hug.

  My three-person housewarming party lasted long into the night. Blake wasn’t due home until the next morning, as he was off doing business things with business people, but I didn’t mind. If there was anything I had learned during my tragic-turned-amazing dating life, it was that romantic relationships aren’t the only important ones. Home, to me, was the family I chose; and I had chosen some amazing sisters.

  Blake arrived early the next morning to find me and my two best friends fast asleep on the big couch with the menu of an action flick playing over and over again on the big screen TV. He flung the drapes open with a flourish, waking us with a blazing beam of light from the low morning sun.

  “Awake the house! Your man has returned, successful in his quest!”

  “I do love a successful quest,” I murmured as I pushed my tumbling curls out of my face. “Good morning, darling.”

  “And a fine morning to you, you feisty wench!” He lifted me out of my nest of blankets, making me squeal as he tossed me in his arms, cradling me like a princess.

  “You’re in a mood today,” I laughed. “Who flipped your theater switch?”

  He answered me with a loud, firm kiss, evoking gagging noises from Sara.

  “Eww, get a room!”

  “I have twelve rooms, woman, and you’re in one of them!” he shot back.

  Sara made a face at him, and Nina giggled.

  “Come! There be vittles in the kitchen.”

  “Vittles? Mixing genres a bit recklessly, aren’t we?” Nina said as she yawned and stretched languidly.

  “Gotta keep you girls on your toes,” Blake said with a grin.

  He carried me into the kitchen in spite of my giggling protests, and deposited me into a chair with a light thud. Coffee and pastry sat at the ready on the table, and the scent alone awakened my senses.

  “What’s got you so happy this morning?” I asked around a bite of raspberry Danish.

  Blake grinned slyly. “Okay, I wasn’t going to tell you, but I have to, it’s too good.” He leaned forward, his eyes alight with excitement. “Have you ever flown in a helicopter?”

  “No…?”

  “You won’t be able to answer that way tomorrow,” he sang, almost bouncing in his chair.

  I laughed, delighted. “You’re taking me somewhere in a helicopter?”

  “Yep! Best place around for stuff and things.”

  “Which stuff, and what things?” Sara asked.

  “That’s a secret,” he told her.

  “Whisper it to me, I won’t tell,” she pleaded.

  Blake shook his head. “Nope, nope, nope. Nina knows, you can ask her, but only after we get airborne.”

  “Why does Nina always get to know?” Sara pouted.

  “Because Nina knows how to keep her mouth shut,” Nina replied.

  Sara flicked a piece of Danish at her, and she laughed.

  “When do we leave?” I asked as the excitement of the unknown adventure began to charge me up.

  “At eight, assuming you’re dressed and ready,” he told me. “Nina and I will pack for you, so don’t worry about that.”

  I cast a theatrically suspicious glance from one to the other, and I could clearly see that Nina was about to burst with the secret. Choosing mercy, I bolted my breakfast and hurried to the shower. Once in there, I took my time so that the two of them could pack whatever they wanted out of my closet so as not to ruin the surprise.

  I found classy, comfortable pants and an equally classy, comfortable sweater waiting for me when I emerged from the bathroom.

  Taking the hint, I put on the pants and carried the sweater, trying to figure out where we could possibly go that would require a sweater in this weather. I came up with too many options and no way to narrow it down, I gave up guessing and decided to just sit back and let him surprise me.

  After a long day of secrets, a flurry of goodbyes, and seething curiosity from Sara, Blake drove us to his office. On the roof, a helicopter squatted like a fat dragonfly, waiting for us. Vibrating with the thrill, I let him help me on board. Two earpieces and a pilot later, we were climbing high into the sky above San Bravado.

  The city spread out beneath us, a galaxy of lights. Blake wrapped me in his arms as we gazed out of the window, watching the landscape change below. The city gave way to clumps and clusters of earthly stars nestled in the darkening foothills, which slowly petered out as the mountains became too treacherous to build on.

  Still we flew, until there were no artificial lights as far as the eye could see from our high perch. In the sky above the middle of nowhere, we came to a gently sloped peak which clung to the last vestiges of the sunset.

  My heart pounded in my chest as the pilot set us down gently in the middle of the clearing. Blake leaped off ahead of me, reaching up to whirl me down by my waist. The pilot lowered a large picnic basket to the ground beside us, shot a salute, then lifted off again. As the fluttering rhythm of the helicopter faded in the distance, the world fell silent.

  “Where are we?” I breathed, pulling my sweater on.

  “Heaven,” he said with a soft smile. “Or as close as we can get, anyway.”

  He opened the basket and pulled a blanket out, spreading it across the short, weathered grass. A bottle of champagne followed, along with a simple yet elegant picnic dinner. I barely caught a glimpse of wrapping paper before he shut the lid again with a secretive smile.

  “Those are for later,” he explained.

  “What is all this?” I asked with a laugh.

  “A surprise. I hope it’s a good one. The best one, actually, I’m shooting for first place here.” He laughed nervously, then cleared his throat. “Champagne?”

  “I’d love some, and I think you need some.” He wasn’t the only one. My suspicions had reached a peak as high as the one I sat upon, and butterflies were whipping up a tornado in my chest.

  The breeze whistled through the trees around us, blowing petals and loose grasses in waves around us. Blake lit a lantern, setting it in the middle of the blanket, then moved close to me. We were quiet, eating the light dinner and sipping the champagne as we watched the sun disappear. I was comfortable in our shared silence, content to simply exist beside him.

  Soon enough, the only light we had was the little circle which spread from the lantern. His warm lips pressed to my temple for a moment, then he moved to the basket. Bringing it near my feet, he opened the lid to reveal the packages wrapped in shiny paper within.

  “Surprise,” he said softly, his eyes warm and glowing. “Open them.”

  A trembling smile kissed my lips as I pulled one long package out of the basket. It was heavy in my hands, and he flinched when I fumbled with it.

  “Oh, expensive and heavy! What could you be?” I opened it carefully, then whooped in delight. “A telescope! Up on top of the mountain! This is perfect, it’s the best surprise!”

  “Don’t say that yet,” he laughed. “You’ve got a couple more in there.”

  As thrilled as a child on Christmas morning, I tore into the next package. It was an unmarked red box about the size of a book. Curious, I opened the lid. As I saw what was inside, my breath rushed out all at once.

  “The Black Peaches,” I whispered in awe. “Pit tickets, backstage passes, after-party?!” Wide-eyed, slack-jawed, I whipped my head up to stare at him. “We’re going?!”

  “We are,” he said with a grin. “We’re going to meet up with them in Iceland. I know you’ve been missing it.”

  “Oh,” I chuckled. “Not too badly. Honestly, the only thing I miss about Iceland…” I took a breath, turning my face up to the glittering canvas above, “…is the night sky.”

  “The northern lights,” he said softly, stroking the back of my hand. “I can’t think of a better backdrop for a concert, can you?”

  “Not one,” I said happily. “I take it back; this is the best surprise.”

  “I hope not,” he said, his voice trembling slightly. “There’s one more
in there for you, Rhona.”

  In spite of the cool wind which blew just on the warmer side of shivering, a trickle of sweat snaked down Blake’s temple. I’d never seen him so nervous.

  My heart rattled against my ribcage, making my every breath shudder with the force of it. Reaching into the basket, my hand closed around the final present; a tiny cube, small enough to fit in my fist.

  I held it in my hand for a good long moment, not making a move to open it. I gazed at it, knowing that if I opened it and it wasn’t what I thought it was, the disappointment would ruin our evening.

  “Rhona,” Blake whispered desperately. “Please open it.” His voice was hoarse, his eyes wide and glistening, his fist clenched around a bunch of grass.

  I took a deep, shuddering breath and began to peel the paper away. The velvet box caressed my skin as it tumbled into my hand. My hands shook so badly that I nearly couldn’t get it open. When I did, I instantly began to cry.

  “Are those good tears or bad tears?” he asked, sounding as if he was going to cry himself. “I would have gotten a diamond—I will if you want me to—but I thought… It’s an aurora borealis opal. I can take it back—”

  “Don’t you dare,” I said through my tears. “Blake, it’s perfect. It’s gorgeous. The whole sky is living in there. This is mine?”

  “If you want it,” he said eagerly, clasping my free hand in his. “If you want me. For good, I mean. Not that you can’t have it if you say no. I had it made for you, it wouldn’t work on anybody else.”

  “Blake,” I laughed as tears spilled down my face. “Are you trying to ask me something?”

  “God, yes, I’m terrible at this,” he said, his voice shaking with nervous laughter. “Rhona, I absolutely freaking adore you. I’ve messed it up over and over again, and I know I’m not everything you deserve, but God I want to be. You make me want to try, Rhona. You always have. All I have is because of you.”

  He paused, swallowing hard as a single tear spilled over his lashes. “You’re Persephone, and I was the frozen ground. You touched me and I grew. I want to be that for you; I want to take your hand and give you wings, I want to fly with you through the galaxy, I want to watch the stars with you forever and ever. Please marry me. I can’t see me without you, and I really don’t want to try.”