Sour

by Jennifer Woodhull

  He lavishes attention on each sensitive, greedy breast before returning his lips to mine. As good as it feels to have his mouth on my body, his lips on my lips are the best thing that has ever happened to anyone. When he puts his mouth on mine, I can cup his beautiful face in my palms and graze the perfect stubble along his jaw. From now on, when someone says picture your happy place, this sensation is where my mind will go.

  His hand has made its way inside my shorts, his fingers breaching my seam and expertly massaging the sensitive skin, pleasure radiating through my body. My hips rotate and sway in response to his touch.

  His kiss slows as his lips curl up into a smile against mine.

  “Tell me how that feels, beautiful.” He whispers against my lips as expert fingers deftly explore slick folds of impossibly sensitive skin.

  My breathing is heavy as he slides his fingers around the center of my most sensitive place and it’s hard to form cohesive thoughts, so I don’t reply.

  “Come on, sweetheart,” he deposits a sweet little kiss against my lips and his fingers slide down, entering me, and sending me to a new level of mind-boggling pleasure. “Tell me what it feels like.”

  “It feels like…good. So good.”

  He slides his fingers deeper, crooking them toward the front so that he’s pressing on a sensitive spot inside that is sending me impossibly higher.

  “It feels like good, huh?” He chuckles. “So, I shouldn’t stop?”

  “Please don’t stop…just…don’t. Nothing can feel better than this.”

  “Is that right? Challenge accepted.” He kisses me, hard, and takes his hand away from its work between my legs. I let out a pained little moan, and a moment later when he returns his hand to the place that is quickly becoming addicted to his touch, I’m vaguely aware that he has pulled my shorts off.

  His lips leave mine and graze my breast as they make their way down my body. When he deposits soft kisses low on my belly, my heart races. I’m nervous at him seeing me, all of me laid completely bare to him, but I’m so turned on, my need for pleasure outweighs those thoughts.

  “God, Elle, you’re so fucking gorgeous.” He growls the words, then in one swift motion, his mouth is on me and I’m lost.

  He drags long, slow strokes up my seam with his tongue and I begin to cry out. His tongue presses my most sensitive spot as his fingers continue to work their magic deep inside. My fingers rake through his perfectly messy hair and I relax back as the pleasure takes over.

  I climb higher, and when he closes his lips and begins to gently suck, I’m a goner. Heat radiates from my every pore, my body tenses and quakes, and my hips buck wildly. I don’t want to cry out, but I can’t stop the words.

  “God, yes, Noah!”

  As I come down, he deposits soft, sweet kisses on my sex before skimming my belly, my chest, my neck with dozens more. I’m still panting when he kisses my lips.

  “So, nothing could feel better, huh?” He smirks and I love his smug face.

  “Okay, you win.” I grin. “That was…you didn’t have to do that.” I’m a little embarrassed at how out of control I became, but I’m still reeling with aftershocks of the most amazing orgasm ever, so I’ll take it.

  “Believe me when I tell you that watching you come is one of the best things I’ve ever experienced. I enjoyed watching you lose some of that control you love so much, sweetheart.” He grins.

  As he lays against me, I can feel that he’s still rock hard.

  I don’t know what we’re doing, exactly, but we’ve come so far it seems a bit late to turn back now.

  “Thank you for taking such good care of me, but I feel like I should probably do something for the situation you’ve got going on.” I slide my thigh against him, and he presses into me.

  “You don’t have to do that. I did what I did because I wanted to, and I enjoyed it thoroughly. I didn’t do it, so you’d return the favor.” He presses a kiss to the corner of my mouth, and I realize I feel even more drunk than I did earlier.

  I slide my hand down between us until my fingers can graze the outline of his cock. “Maybe I’d like to return the favor.” I scratch my nails down the fabric of his shorts and he groans. “If you would let me?”

  Noah’s eyes are dark and hazy as he nods a slow, silent acquiescence.

  I press my hands into his chest, and he leans back until he’s reclining on the other end of the massive sofa that has turned into a sexual playground for this obliteration of the boundaries of our friendship.

  I tug at his shirt so I can get my eyes on his spectacular chest and abs, and he peels it off over his broad shoulders. I pull at his pants and he lifts his hips so I can pull them all the way down, freeing a thick, smooth, beautiful cock. He settles back against the arm of the sofa, elevated enough to watch me. I wrap my fingers around his thick shaft and a soft groan escapes from low in his throat. I plant one hand at his base and slide up and down with the other. I briefly consider that fitting this monster inside of me might pose a significant challenge, but it would be incredibly fun to figure out how to make it all work.

  I lower my face and stick out my tongue, swirling it around his tip.

  “Fuck” he moans softly as I lick the drops that are forming there.

  I swirl my tongue around his tip again, then raise my eyes to meet his, which are glued on my every move. I part my lips and take him in, letting my tongue press the underside of his shaft as I take in as much of him as I can possibly accommodate.

  “Christ, I’m never going to last,” he whispers as he reaches out, his fingertips gently resting on the edge of my jaw.

  I move like that, up and down, closing my lips just enough to apply pressure, and suck gently. When I feel his muscle begin to twitch, I move faster. Soon his legs and torso begin to tense.

  “Fuck, that feels…fuck! You have to stop sweetheart…I’m not going to be able to hold back.” I meet his eye and smirk as I let my lips slide off his tip, then, still fixed on his gaze, I press my tongue to his tip and slide down again, increasing the pressure and speed until he succumbs to the pleasure. “Fu-uck!” He tenses, and I feel his release, thick and warm and knowing I made that happen is intoxicating.

  When he comes down from the climax, I walk over to the bar and grab a couple of towels, cleaning myself up with one and bringing him the other. As he cleans up, I find my shorts and slide them back on. He follows my lead, finding his pants and tee and slipping back into them before sitting back on the sofa.

  I walk back to the bar and grab a couple of bottles of water. When I return to where Noah is seated, I stand, trying to establish a safe distance. What just happened made me feel way too many things, and the sooner I realize it was a mistake, just a slip-up of some sort, the sooner I can get my mind right about the gorgeous god-like man in front of me being nothing more than my very best friend.

  “Come over here, Elle. Sit down here with me.” Noah holds his hand out, and I just stare at it.

  “We should probably go to bed. Early morning tomorrow.” I mumble the excuse.

  “Come sleep in my room.” His eyes are so soft and sweet as he looks up at me.

  “That’s a bad idea, Noah. We…I don’t even know what that was, but we can’t sleep together.” I shake my head and cross an arm protectively across my chest.

  “Elle, we’ve slept together plenty of times.” He cocks up an eyebrow, challenging me with his damned logical response.

  “Yeah, but…we…I mean, that…,” my hand gestures toward the other end of the sofa where he played my body like his personal Stradivarius.

  “Well, just come sit with me for a little while. Please?”

  I feel a pain in my chest and am sure it’s my heart collapsing.

  “Okay.”

  I put the water bottle down and sit beside him, but it was all just a clever ruse. He wraps his arms around me, leans back on the sofa and pulls me to his chest.

  “Now, this is much bette
r.” He puts his jaw against the top of my head and holds me tight against his chest. It reminds me of another time we laid together like this on the sofa at his place, and as if he can read my mind, he starts to speak.

  “Remember that weekend when you broke up with the asshole and you showed up at my place? We laid like this that night.” I press my palm to his chest and sigh. “You were so upset, and I wanted to go find the dickless piece of shit and end him, but even more than that, I wanted to hold you and do whatever I could to make it better.”

  “You did make it better.” I whisper. He also made me fall in love with him that weekend, but I don’t tell him that part.

  He opens his mouth to say something else, but I speak before he has the chance to. “He said…I was a starfish. I rock my head from side to side on his chest. I’ve never felt that low before, but you…made me feel like the most important person in the world.”

  He grasps my chin, turning it and I rest it on his chest, looking up to meet his eye. “You are the most important person in the world to me. You’re strong and funny and gorgeous. You’re the sexiest woman I’ve ever known, and the last thing you are is a starfish. You are so damn sexy, the way your body moves, and those sounds you make. Christ, Elle, how can you not see how perfect you are?”

  He leans down as if to kiss me, and even though it’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done, I press my palm to his chest and push myself back out of his reach.

  “Noah, we can’t. We…I don’t know what happened earlier. Maybe we were drunk, or maybe it’s being in this crazy place, but that’s not who we are. We can’t just casually make out. We’re friends. When you,” I pause, swallowing hard, “You said you’ve been thinking about maybe settling down. When you start dating someone else…if we have a physical relationship, it will complicate our friendship and we can’t do that. I can’t lose you and that’s what would happen.” I push up from his chest, and Noah winces like he’s in pain. “I think we should go to bed. Two beds. Our own beds, I mean.”

  Noah’s fingers dig into my back. “Elle…just…please just stay here a little bit longer. I promise I won’t try to kiss you again, even though I really, really want to.” His lips become a hard line. “I’m just not quite ready to let you go. Just stay here with me for a while, okay?”

  I give him a soft smile and pat my palm against his chest. “Okay…for a little while.”

  I rest my head against his chest, and his hands close around my back as his chest falls with a big, deep, sigh.

  When Noah dozes off, I take the opportunity to make my escape, skulking off to my room and locking myself inside.

  I shower and put on a clean shirt and panties, curling up in a ball in the bed alone.

  It was a stupid game that went too far, that’s all.

  Noah’s the kind of guy who goes through women like most guys go through disposable razors. It was just a release. I was just convenient. I enjoyed it, and now it’s over. I can be a grown-up, mature, adult lady about all this. I can see it for what it was—a spectacular, mind-blowing orgasm the quality of which may ruin my opinion of all other men forever. It was a one-off. Unrepeatable.

  Tomorrow the bizarre bubble of this evening will burst, and things will be back to normal.

  For Noah, anyway.

  For me, things will never be normal again. I’ve experienced all the attentiveness and care, the tenderness and skill with which Noah Adler makes love to a woman, because if I stop lying to myself for just a split second, that’s what it felt like. I doubt I’ll ever be the same again.

  Chapter 20

  Noah

  Well, damn.

  When I wake up, my chest fells cold, and I realize it’s because I’m on the sofa alone and Elle is gone.

  I have completely fucked this up.

  I didn’t mean for things to happen this way. When we decided on truth or dare, I just thought it might be a good chance to try to kiss her. I mean, I’ve waited long enough to make my move, haven’t I? It seemed so simple. I’d get a kiss, to tide me over until tomorrow when I get to tell her everything I’ve been planning. It might even get her to start thinking about what she’s feeling too.

  The problem is, there is no such thing as one kiss from Elle Bailey.

  When I pulled her close and captured her lips, she gave the softest, sweetest little moan and melted into me and I was done. There was no way I was going to be able to let her go.

  When I challenged her, she said just about the sweetest word I ever heard. More.

  Watching her writhe and moan in response to what I was doing for her made me feel like some kind of superhero—like there’s nothing on earth I couldn’t do. Even better than that, though, when she gave in to the pleasure, when her orgasm overtook her, she cried out. My girl screamed my name and damn if there’s nothing I wouldn’t do to hear that again and again.

  I really wouldn’t have minded if she didn’t want to take care of me. That’s not what it was about. When she insisted, she wanted to, though, well, I’ve never been as grateful for anything, ever. Her soft, strong fingers wrapped around my cock felt so damn good, and her lips on me were the most spectacular thing I’ve ever felt. I was experiencing absolute ecstasy, an oblivion of pleasure, and my beautiful girl looked at me, her eyes full of fire, and I know she was enjoying the power she very clearly had over me.

  Half an hour ago, I had my arms wrapped around the woman I love. I was about to tell her everything.

  Now, I’m sitting here, on my own, trying to decide what to do next.

  I grab my phone. It’s just after midnight, which is a little after nine back home. There aren’t many people I can talk to about what’s going on with me and Elle, but there’s one, at least, who’s an expert, so I decide to give him a call.

  I pick up my beer, walk out onto the balcony and dial.

  “Hey dude, everything okay?” Andy asks when he answers.

  “Yeah…no. I think I blew it with your sister.” I lean against the railing with the hand that holds my beer and look out over the lights of the strip below.

  “What’d you do, Noah?” His words are a caution. His tone reminds me of him warning me he didn’t want to have to fuck me up, and I chuckle a little.

  “Well, we were hanging out, having a great time, and we decided to play truth or dare.”

  “What are you, twelve?” That’s the same thing Elle said. I’m starting to regret making this call.

  “We were bored…and pretty drunk.” I take a deep breath. “Anyway, one thing led to another, and I dared her to kiss me.”

  “So that didn’t go well, I take it?” He laughs.

  “No, it went pretty well.” I have to be careful here. He’s a good dude, but this is his sister we’re talking about.

  “So, if it went well, what was the problem?”

  “Well, we,” I clear my throat. “We kissed, and then kissed some more, then…things went a little farther.”

  His voice gets an edge. “And she was on board with that?”

  I shut my eyes, tight, and continue. “Yeah, she definitely was. I didn’t take advantage of the situation, Andy. I wouldn’t hurt her, you know that.”

  “Yeah, I know you wouldn’t. So, since you’re talking to me, I’m guessing, what, she bolted?” He chuckles.

  “How’d you know?”

  “Dude, you’ve known her a long time, but I’ve known her my whole life. Elle likes thinks that are clear. Ambiguity and change are not exactly her happy places. You’re trying to take her from a place that’s clear, you being her friend, to a place that’s uncertain. I’m not surprised if she’s acting weird.”

  “Okay, makes sense.” I pace across the balcony. “So, what do you suggest?”

  Andy asks if we’re working tomorrow, and I tell him about the trip to the Grand Canyon I’ve spent so much time planning. I’m taking her to the place with the best view, and I plan to have her open her envelope there.

  “You know,
when we were kids, Elle was maybe ten, we had this border collie named Larry Tate…,” Seriously? I have to know more so I interrupt him.

  “Wait, your dog was named after Darrin’s boss from Bewitched?” I laugh.

  “Yeah, Elle was obsessed with having magical powers.” He scoffs.

  I think of my girl, red hair in pigtails, her cute little freckled face screwed up in determination as she practiced magic spells and it warms my heart.

  “Anyway, Larry Tate used to hide in his doghouse. So, Elle decided she could put a hinge on the roof so we could just open the top and scoop him out.” Andy laughs. “Dad told her to wait until he got home so he could help her. Her stubborn ass wouldn’t wait, though, so she starts pulling out the nails from the top, and one was bent. She stood on top and pulled so hard, the kid-sized toy hammer she was using slipped, flew back, and socked her in the eye.” He starts laughing, hard, at the memory. “Her face swelled up so fast, her whole eye was black and blue.”

  “Poor, little Elle.” I chuckle. “Did she cry?”

  “Are you kidding me? She hid. She went into our parent’s room and put on a ton of mom’s makeup which was just a tan, smeared mess on her cheek. She looked nuts!”

  “What did your parents say?” I’m laughing now, picturing her trying to cover up a giant black eye like nobody’d notice.

  “We sat down to dinner, and when Dad saw her cheek, he asked what happened. She grabbed her dinner roll, and without saying a word, slid off her chair onto the floor. She ate the rest of her dinner under the table as if that was perfectly normal.” He lets out a little puff of air. “See, Elle was embarrassed. She didn’t know what to do, so she hid out until it passed. When everyone left the dining room, she came out, grabbed a slice of strawberry pie, and locked herself in her room. With Elle, if she doesn’t want to talk about something she’s worried about, or embarrassed about, you just have to let her work it through in her own time. You can bring it up, but if she shrinks back, you just gotta let her do her crazy-ass thing.”