Cadence Defined: A Dahlia Project Novel, page 14
I pressed my lips to her shoulder, trailing soft kisses along the hollow at the side of her throat as I reached around to cup her breasts through the black strapless bra. The material was rough against my palms and felt nothing like the basic cotton she had worn all those years ago.
This was mother fucking lace.
Sexy.
Intimate.
And all woman.
My cock strained in my pants and I thought I might come on the spot. I wanted nothing more than to toss her on the bed and fuck her senseless. Reining in the mad desire I had for her, I forced myself to do exactly as I’d promised, memorizing every delicious inch of her body. My mouth moved across her shoulders, working my way down her back and over her hips.
More lace. And a thong no less.
I groaned.
“You’re unbelievable. You don’t know what you do to me,” I uttered as I raked my tongue over the curve of one cheek, then the other, before moving down and up each of her legs. “I’ve missed this so much. Your taste. Your scent. Your goodness. You’ve always been my light even when all I could see was the dark. I’m going to take care of you now. Show you how sorry I am. It’s just me and you, sweetheart. That’s all it ever was.”
Working back up her body, I finally turned her to face me. Pure lust thrummed through my veins, and I felt my jaw tighten, desperate to see everything that was underneath the few scraps of black, sexy lace. I reached around to her back with slow, purposeful grace and unclasped her bra. Those perfect mounds and dark pink nipples spilled free.
I cupped her neck and ran my tongue down the base of her throat until I captured one hardened peak in my teeth, relishing in her startled cry as I rolled the other nipple between my thumb and finger. I lured her back toward the bed until the backs of her knees hit the mattress. Legs buckling beneath her, she sat down.
“Lie back,” I told her. She hesitated, her eyes fraught with worry, and my stomach sank. I nearly swore, hoping like hell she wasn’t having second thoughts now. “Cadence, don’t look at me like that. Don’t tell me to stop.”
“Then don’t talk. When you apologize…” she trailed off. Her expression was pained before a flash of determination sparked. “I don’t want to be confused about the past. I want this, Fitz. I need it. I need you. No more talking. Just touch me, please.”
“No talking? I’m sure I can think of something to keep my mouth occupied,” I teased as I coaxed her back, eager to remove that final barrier of clothing so I could taste her like I never had the chance to all those years ago. If she didn’t want to remember the past, that was okay. I didn’t want the chains of history to hold us down any more than she did. I would give her this moment and show her all the pleasure we could share. Seventeen years ago, we had been a mess of fumbling limbs. Now I wanted to teach her all the things we could become.
Sliding down the lace, inch by beautiful inch, I tossed them aside and dropped to my knees between her legs. Grabbing her ankles, I pushed her legs apart, careful to gauge her expression as I did. Desire pooled deep in her emerald eyes, the delicate blush moving from her cheeks to her breasts, and I knew she wanted this.
Tearing my gaze from her face, I allowed myself finally to look down at her now exposed sex.
So fucking gorgeous.
I slid the pad of one finger gently over her clit. Her back immediately arched and an elicited gasp wrenched from her throat.
“Oh!”
I parted her folds and slowly sank one finger inside her heated well, a sharp hiss escaping me.
“God, you’re exquisite. So wet. So ready. So dammed tight.” I slid another finger in, stroking her inner walls while my thumb traced slow, leisurely circles over that pulsing bundle of nerves. She gasped again, and I sank down to her, unable to go another minute without tasting her. “Tell me you want me, sweetheart. Tell me you want this.”
“Yes, yes! I want it,” she shamelessly begged.
Wedging my shoulders between her legs, I rested my face against her inner thigh and inhaled her scent. Dipping down, I swiped my tongue over her entrance in one long lick. She tasted as sweet as she smelled. Her hands reached down and grasped the ends of my hair, searching for something to hang onto as I explored every nook and crevice of her most intimate parts. I dipped into her core before laving her oh-so-sweet spot, making her writhe beneath me. I pressed my tongue flat against her, rolling until that beautiful nub began to pulse. It was only a matter of time before she came apart.
“That’s it. Let go, baby. Let me taste you on my tongue. I want you to feel it. I want you to feel all the things I was meant to make you feel.”
“Oh God. Please!”
She pushed up against my mouth. I glanced up to find her head lolling from side to side, golden hair splayed out on the bed, desperate for the release that was so near. Cadence without inhibition was intoxicating. I could drown in her. Her hips bucked, but I held her still and brought her to new heights.
I felt her body stiffen and heard her sharp inhale. When she came, she screamed out my name, and it was the most glorious fucking thing I’d ever heard. The way she responded so readily to me was one of the things I remembered most about her. I loved her carefree trust and the way she allowed me to take her to places she’d never been. Before long, she’d realize I’d only taken her for a stroll around the block. I had a trip around the world planned for her tonight.
I toed off my shoes and shed my pants, leaving only my boxer briefs in place. I eased her body up the bed and blanketed her with my weight, sinking us deeper into the mattress. My throbbing cock pressed against her abdomen as I worked my hand up her thigh, peppering light kisses along her collarbone.
“Do you feel how hard you make me?” I whispered.
“Fitz, I…I,” she panted through glazed eyes. I lifted my head to look at her. A mix of embarrassment and longing stretched across her features. “It’s been so long. There’s only been…”
She trailed off, hesitating as she traced a finger over my arm tattoo. I trembled from the contact, remembering the yearning I’d felt for her on the day I’d gotten it.
“There’s only been what, sweetheart?” I prompted.
“You, Fitz. I don’t know how to do this with you now,” she told me, her voice just a husky whisper. “I’ve only ever been with you, but I’m sure there were all kinds of women for you between then and now. It’s crazy. I didn’t seem to care about my sexual inexperience when I was eighteen, but I care now for some strange reason. Go easy on me, okay?”
I froze at her words, seeing the raw vulnerability in her eyes.
There’s only been me?
Fuck.
There was something caveman-ish about the way that fact thrilled me. She was mine. Just mine. I was the teacher of everything. But it was also scary to know how easily I could hurt her. I desperately didn’t want that to happen. If things didn’t work out with us for some insane reason, it would be so, so bad. It could be even worse than seventeen years ago.
She knew this, yet she was here, trusting me once again with her body. We had so much history and so much hurt we were up against. That didn’t make our situation ideal, but there was just something about her. Something about the way she curved into me, the way she smelled like vanilla and sunshine that made none of the what-ifs matter. She was the only woman I could ever remember wanting to hold on to for more than a fleeting moment of time. I knew, without a shadow of a doubt, I still loved her. We belonged together. As bad as things could potentially be, I also knew there’d be so much good.
“Cadence, I love you. I’ve never stopped loving you. All other women were nothing but a temporary high. Every time I closed my eyes for the past seventeen years, I was with you. It’s always been you. I’ll stop now if you want me to, but sweetheart, I’ve never wanted anything more than I want you right now.”
She reached up to cup my face.
“Then what are you waiting for?” she asked, echoing the words she had spoken to me so many years before.
Not wanting to spend another moment hesitating, I got up from the bed and opened the nightstand drawer to remove the box of condoms I had placed there earlier.
“Were you planning this all along, Mr. Quinn?” she teased, but there was a hint of suspicion in her question as well.
I chuckled.
“I know how it looks, but no. I shot over to the corner store while you were schmoozing donors. After dancing with you, I figured I should grab them just in case.”
I shed my boxers and made quick work of the condom. Before climbing back onto the bed, I took a moment to appreciate her naked form spread out before me. Cadence was always beautiful, but a naked, luminous Cadence was something poets could write sonnets about.
I crawled up her body and she bent her legs, cradling me between. Positioning myself at her entrance, I pushed forward, barely sliding through the arousal between her lips. Her slender arms clung to my neck encouragingly and I pushed all the way in. I sucked in a gasp so hard it made my lungs hurt. The effect she had on me hit me like an earthquake. Lacing my fingers through her hair, I captured her mouth with mine.
“Fitz,” she whimpered as my forehead rocked against hers.
“Do you remember what I told you the first time you gave yourself to me?”
When she responded, her voice was thick with emotion.
“You said I was beautiful, and you loved me.”
“I meant what I said then, just as much as I mean it now. I love you, Cadence. Nobody has ever fit me the way you do. You’ve haunted my dreams for seventeen years. I’ve wanted to touch you. To feel you. To kiss you. To fuck you. I let go of you once. I won’t ever do it again,” I declared, the words a breath of a whisper against her lips.
She moved her hips, matching my thrusts as she gripped my shoulders. The girl I once knew was innocent—untouched. But this… this was Cadence defined. It was like she couldn’t get close enough, and it was a feeling I understood all too well. I felt it too. I had to remind myself to go slow when every fiber of my being wanted to fuck her hard and claim her as mine once and for all.
Her nails raked down my back to my ass. I felt the bite of them against my skin as she made those little gasping noises that made me impossibly hard. Nothing had ever felt or sounded so damn good. She was perfect—my treasure. There was just the right amount of give-and-take as I drove into her deep and hard. The air in the room seemed to come alive—the energy and the connection the truest thing I’d ever felt. I could worship her all night long.
I tried to keep some modicum of control, but it was to no purpose. I could feel her body building, the pleasure mingling with my own as she moaned my name. Our bodies were slick with sweat, pleasure bound, and full of need. When I felt her start to come apart again, I pinned her arms above her head. I plunged into her, possessing her, the tightening of her perfect body making me feel like I could live forever.
My body raced, my dick pulsing with need, hard and desperate. Hunger ravaged through my veins and every muscle in my body tightened, rippling with an unbearable force. I slammed home and my world flashed white. So bright. A blinding light that left me quaking in her arms.
We lay there panting for what seemed like hours, but it was probably only minutes. After a time, I rolled off of her and she snuggled into the crook of my arm. Her arm draped across my torso, so warm and familiar. It was where she was meant to be.
She looked up at me, her eyes searching for something. What it was, I didn’t know. I reached out and brushed my thumb across the bottom of her swollen lip. Old hopes mingled with new ones filled my mind, thoughts of what once was and what could be.
“You’re beautiful,” I said softly. She reached out and pinched my arm. It wasn’t a hard pinch, but it surprised me nonetheless. “What was that for?”
“Just making sure you’re really here. Is this real? Are you really with me?”
“I was a fool to walk away from you, but I’m here now. This is as real as it gets.”
“I need you, Fitz. I’ve always needed you,” she whispered into the quiet room. “No matter what happens, don’t ever forget that.”
18
CADENCE
Sunlight streamed through the sheer white curtains on my bedroom window. I looked at the red neon numbers on the clock and saw it was after eight. I rarely slept in that late. But, then again, I had quite the workout last night. I gave in to a good stretch and all but purred as I recollected the memories.
I’d heard tales from female friends about how the best part of sex was oral, but I’d always had my doubts because it seemed a little too intimate for my tastes. However, last night I learned how wrong it was to assume. Fitz had taken me to new and impossible heights. I didn’t think it was possible to orgasm so many times in one night. He’d taken me on the bed, then again on the sofa in the sitting area where he licked strawberries and cream from my body as if I were a feast he wanted to savor.
My experience with him had shaken the foundation of my very soul. Nothing could have prepared me for it. It was more than just sex. The way we moved together and the way he demanded I yield everything to him had caused sensations to take over so much more than just my body. He’d taken over my heart as well. The young man who stole my heart when I was a teenager had done it once more. I had, without a doubt, fallen in love with Fitzgerald Quinn all over again. Only this time, it was stronger.
The hours had passed much too quickly. I could have stayed wrapped in his arms all night long, but around midnight, I reminded Fitz why we should leave. His son would probably do more than just raise an eyebrow if he found out his father had been out all night.
I crawled from my bed and headed to take a shower. As I allowed the hot stream to flow over my head and shoulders, I recalled the conversation from the night before. Fitz had insisted on taking me home while I insisted on handling it myself.
“Let me take you home,” he said.
“I’ll just grab an Uber.”
“No, Cadence. It’s late. You’re a beautiful woman. You shouldn’t be all alone at midnight. What did you tell me about creepers? My car is already here. I’m taking you home.”
“Still trying to save me, Mr. Quinn?”
My teasing jest ended up delaying us for another hour as Fitz felt the need to take me again right there on the floor. As a result, I didn’t get home until well after one in the morning. Allowing him to bring me home had been a mistake. I’d been too drunk on him to actually think it through. While I currently didn’t have the risk of him running into Kallie, his knowing my address made me vulnerable. It meant I truly only had a little less than a week to tell him the truth. I couldn’t risk him coming here unannounced and possibly finding out about her before I was ready.
After I finished the shower, I put on a t-shirt and yoga pants before pulling my hair back into a French braid. I didn’t bother with makeup, having no plans to leave the house. Today was for catching up on house chores—especially laundry, which was piled a mile high in the first-floor laundry room off the kitchen.
I flipped on the stereo and began to separate the mountain into piles of colors and whites. After tossing the first load into the washer, I went to the closet in the front hall and pulled out the vacuum. Just as I was about the start it, a knock at the door sounded behind me. Turning, I peered out the sidelight. My stomach sank when I saw Fitz smiling at me through the narrow window.
Shit! What is he doing here?
It was exactly what I’d been afraid of happening. For a moment, I debated not opening the door, but he already knew I was inside. I glanced around the room. Framed pictures of Kallie were literally everywhere. Panic jarred my bones. There was no way he could come in.
Slowly, I stepped up to the door and unlocked the deadbolt. Opening the door just a few inches, I smiled and tried to hide my apprehension over his being there.
“Fitz, what a surprise!”
“I brought breakfast,” he said with a crooked grin, holding up a bag with the logo of a popular bagel joint stamped across the front.
“Um, actually. I was just cleaning. The house is kind of a mess. Can I get a raincheck?”
“Don’t be ridiculous. I don’t care if the house is messy,” he insisted and moved to push open the door. I braced my foot firmly at the bottom so he couldn’t push it open without a lot of force. I scrambled to think of an alternative plan—one that didn’t include Fitz stepping foot inside my house—all while ignoring the little voice in my head screaming at me to tell him the truth.
“No, really. How about we take it over to Arlington Ridge Park instead? It’s a nice day out,” I suggested, hoping like hell I sounded convincing.
He cocked a puzzled brow but nodded.
“Alright, I guess that could work too.”
“Perfect. Let me just go change, and I’ll be right out.” Quickly, I shut the door in his face. Locking the deadbolt again, I pressed my forehead against the back of the door. I said a silent prayer to anyone who would listen, begging for some kind of guidance. It was clear I had no idea what I was doing.
Less than ten minutes later, I sat in the passenger seat of Fitz’s sleek black Audi as we headed toward Arlington Ridge Park. Tension filled the space due to my refusal to let him in the house and it made for awkward conversation. When we didn’t turn off George Washington Memorial Parkway when we should have, I turned to him in confusion.
“Where are we going?”
“To my house in Alexandria.”
My eyes widened in fear, the earlier panic I’d felt coming back in full force.
Shit! Austin.
I couldn’t let him see me.
“I’m not ready to meet Austin yet, Fitz,” I rushed out, unable to cover up the high-pitched sound of anxiety.
“He’s not home. He’s out shooting hoops with a few friends and will be gone for most of the day.” He reached across the middle console to give my hand a light squeeze of reassurance. “I won’t push you until you’re ready. It’ll be okay.”
