Shuttered Affections (Cornerstone #1) (20 page)

“He’s such an infuriating tease.”

“Such beauty should not be hidden away,” Aiden whispered
against my skin.

I felt so sensual as I stood in the moonlit room, partially
disrobed in front of this man with eager desire in his eyes.

His hands slowly touched my stomach. He let his fingers
wander upward to skim the crease under my full breasts. He continued his
fingertip assault as he gently brushed over the peaks of each globe, bringing
my nipples to full arousal.

He glided his fingertips up to trace my neck, then gently
pushed the robe off my shoulders, causing it to fall to the floor in a pool of
satin.

Aiden still sat on the edge of the bed while I stood naked
in front of him. Lightly touching my hips, he pushed me away gently as if he
wanted to get a better look.

In an attempt to be confident for him, I stood tall and
didn’t cover my nakedness.

“Turn for me, Julia. Please? I want to see you,” he begged.

Well, even with my attempt at confidence, I still managed to
feel a full body flush take over me as discomfort stole every stitch of poise I
tried to show. I absentmindedly bit my lip and twisted my fingers together as I
looked at him.

“Juliana. You are the most beautiful woman I have ever met. Please,
don’t ever be embarrassed around me. Just remember how much I adore you.”

He spoke with such resolve. I knew he meant every word.

I smiled at him and slowly turned on the balls of my feet. Feeling
much more self-assured, I slowly traced my hands up my waist, my sides, to the
nape of my neck, then entwining my fingers into my hair, lifting a few curls up
into a bunch on top of my head.

As I heard a quick intake of breath hiss through his teeth,
I felt sexy, potent. I felt like I was exactly what he wanted and I knew I
needed his approval more than anything.

He went utterly quiet.

Just as my worry increased with every silent second that
passed, I felt his fingers trace my spine, starting at the crack of my ass and
continuing up in a slow, aching pace. I gasped and suddenly realized he never
got a chance to see my back.

I dropped a few curls, knowing my hair would cover the space
between my shoulder blades. Turning my head to look over at him, I breathed a
sigh of relief when I realized he hadn’t seen.

The silence was deafening. I needed something, anything, to
assure me of myself, and to assure me he didn’t see it.

“Aiden…”

“Shh, love. Just give me a moment,” he said in a whisper,
his tone giving nothing away.

I turned my head back to look away, apprehension causing a
shiver to roll up my spine. I could feel flutters of doubt in my stomach as he
continued to stare at my backside—a rejection from him would surely hurt
my heart. The realization of how weak and needy I was made my emotions go wild.

Immediately, he turned me back around to face him. With the
abrupt movement, I put my hands on his shoulders to gain my balance. My hair
flowed around us like a curtain as his arms snaked around my waist and held me
steady against him.

I emitted a soft gasp when his lips touched my stomach and his
hands brushed my backside—just a soft brush that sent chills racing down
to my sex, tightening all the nerves and sending me into a downward spiral.

With my arms still wrapped around his neck, I bent down and
kissed his forehead.

As I straightened back up, he pressed his lips against my
stomach again, this time just below my breasts. His face, all scruffy and
unshaved, tickled me and caused me to giggle. Responding to my tenderness, I
felt him smile against my skin and stick his tongue out to lick me.

I thrust my hips forward as I tilted my head up. My eyes
fluttered shut while I enjoyed his sensual touch, his tongue, those wonderful
lips.

He cupped my breasts gently in his palms and then closed his
mouth over a nipple.

My breath escaped in a hiss as pleasure exploded through my
body.

“God, I love your breasts,” he murmured as he switched to
the other nipple and began his tantalizing assault with his tongue.

I twined my fingers into his hair, holding him tighter
against me.

“Julia. Angel mine.” I looked down at him. His endearing
nickname for me tugged at my heart. “I want to taste you. Will you let me taste
you and make you come?”

All I could do was nod. He immediately smiled and stood,
picking me up in the same motion, his mouth still sucking my nipple, and gently
laid me on my back.

 
“You’re so
beautiful. My eyes can’t get enough of you.” He spoke soothing words that made
me feel special as he climbed on top of me.

“I love it when you tell me I’m beautiful,” I stated honestly.

With steady fingers, I trailed my hands down the front of
his gorgeous, toned body. I marveled at his chiseled chest and that sexy tattoo
that started on his right pectoral and wrapped around his arm and shoulder. Damn.
His muscles weren’t large, but they were definitely perfect—very cut and
defined.

I grabbed onto his biceps, wanting nothing more than to feel
his power.

He slowly began his descent, causing my skin to erupt in a
constant flurry of crackling warmth. My back arched, seeking more of his attention.

I sucked in a quick breath of air when his lips closed
around my nipple again and his tongue began toying with my peak. He nipped at
the bud, grazing my puckered skin with his teeth.

The sharp, tantalizing feel of his mouth on me caused me to
moan, throwing back my head to give him better access.

He continued his way downward, down to the depths of my
soul. His warm breath tickled over the small triangle of curls just above my
wetness. He glided his hands under my thighs, grabbing the backs of my knees
and pulling my legs over his strong shoulders.

He began to tease me, kissing my inner thigh. Out of pure
reaction to being tickled, I started to close my legs, but he firmly pushed
them apart.

“Keep yourself open to me, Angel. I want all of you. I want
to taste every inch of you,” he commanded.

“Please,” I begged.

“Please what, Julia. Tell me. What do you want?” Now he was
really trying to drive me crazy with his breath so close to my sex. Just the
thought of his tongue touching me was going to make me climax.

I moaned in pure need.

“Tell me, Julia. Do you want me down here?” Right then, he
quickly licked from my opening to my clit and then pulled away.

“Yes,” I breathed. Now I was panting and writhing under him.

“Yes, what? Julia, look at me. Tell me,” he teased.

I picked up my head and looked at him positioned between my
legs. Staring into his eyes, I begged, “Yes, please. Lick me. Taste me. Make me
come. Please.” I was sounding very demanding but I didn’t care. I needed to
feel his warm mouth on me. Now.

I heard a low chuckle that quickly turned into a sensual
growl as he used his thumbs to separate my folds, exposing my swollen, damp
sensitive area. The sensation of his tongue coming in contact with my clit sent
electric currents up my body, through my belly, and to my breasts.

He splayed his hand over my belly to keep me still and
continued his assault with his tongue. My fingers threaded in his hair and I
could feel every one of his muscles tighten as if he was trying to control
himself.

“Mmmm. You’re so very wet, Julia, and you taste absolutely
divine,” he murmured as he took a breath.

As I tensed and tightened my grip in his hair, he thrust his
finger inside me and I let out a strangled cry. His tongue continued as he
inserted two fingers inside and quickly moved with more force.

I trembled uncontrollably, my legs shaking, my mouth dry,
and my senses screaming for reprieve.

“More. I need more,” I gasped as he continued to pleasure
me.

In response to my pleading, Aiden sucked my clit into his
mouth and sent me over the edge.

I moaned helplessly as my orgasm started to build and swell.
My body began to quiver as waves of pleasure rippled through me like an
incoming tidal wave. Exquisite pleasure bombarded me and rained down over my
body.

My sob echoed over the room and I fought for breath as
pleasure overtook me, robbing me of my sense of reality.

Aiden slowly rose up and looked at me adoringly.

“You taste so wonderful, Angel,” he said with a seductive
grin on his face.

I grabbed the back of his neck and said, “Come here. I want
to taste myself on your lips.”

My kiss muffled his groan of pleasure, the sweetest sound of
agony. He was hungry and he was mine.

“Mmmm. You taste good with my wetness all over your lips and
tongue,” I said as I licked the side of his mouth.

“Oh, Julia. You’re going to be the end of me. I’m dying to
be inside you. I want you,” he said as he ground his hips into my center. I
then noticed that he must have put his boxer briefs back on when I went to the
bathroom, which was a problem that needed to be rectified.

“Take me. Please, Aiden. I want you too,” I told him
honestly. I still wasn’t sure about how fast we were moving. But I knew I
wanted him. I wanted to feel his warmth deep inside me.

“Are you sure, love?” he said as he looked at me with
caution in his eyes. “I don’t want to force you to do anything you’re not ready
for.”

“I’ve never been so sure about anything in my life,” I said,
as I looked him straight in the eye. Truth was—I knew we were moving too
fast. But I also knew I never wanted anything more than I wanted him at this
moment.

At that declaration, he sat up on his knees and began to pull
down his boxer briefs. Within moments, his erection sprang free and I smiled
with a huge Cheshire Cat grin. He was perfect.

My gaze fixed hungrily on his cock. I wanted to wrap both
hands around it and taste him.

He climbed over me and settled between the juncture of my
thighs. He gently cupped my cheek with his hand and looked into my eyes.

“It’s going to be difficult to take it nice and slow, but I
want to savor every minute of you and how you will feel wrapped around me.” His
words were my undoing. I wanted him inside me and I wanted him now.

“Oh, yes, Aiden. Inside me. You. Now,” I nearly growled as I
lost all patience and control.

“A little impatient, are we, Angel mine?”

Oh, he was such an infuriating tease.

“Yes. Very.” I began to pant as I thrust my hips and grinded
my slit against his cock. “I need you, Aiden. Please.”

He let out a low chuckle as he shifted up and backed away.

“What? Where are you going?” I nearly leapt out of my skin
at the feel of his withdrawal.

“Shhh. It’s okay, Julia. I just… shit. I don’t think I have
any condoms,” he said with disappointment in his eyes. “I wasn’t expecting or
planning this, so I didn’t take time to go get any.”

“Um… I’m on birth control and I’m clean. I was tested just a
few months ago,” I said with a bit of embarrassment in my voice.

“I’m so glad you’re a woman who takes care of herself,” he
said with adoration. “I can assure you, I’ve never been with a woman without
wearing a condom.”

Worry began to tickle the back of my mind. Did that mean he
wouldn’t have sex with me unless he wore a condom? God, but I wanted him
now
.

He slid over me again and let his mouth fall next to my ear.
“Tell me, Julia. Would you like me to be inside of you without a condom? Skin
against skin? Do you want me to come inside of you, filling you?”

I nearly lost it with his words. “Yes! Aiden, please. Make
love to me. I’m begging.”

“I could never say no to you, Angel. Your desires are mine
to behold. I’ll always take care of you. Now, wrap your legs around me and look
into my eyes.”

I did just what he said and lost all connections with earth
as he buried himself inside me.

“I had a certain professor completely wrapped around me
like I was his life raft at sea.”

“Oh!” I gasped as he slipped inside, filling and stretching
me, my body still quivering from my previous release.

“Shit. You’re so tight. How is this, Julia? Is this what you
wanted?” he asked with clenched teeth. He paused for a moment with himself only
halfway inside, relishing the feel of me wrapped intimately around him. I could
tell with his harsh breathing that he was trying to control himself.

“Yes, God, you feel so good, Aiden. Move. Move inside me,” I
pleaded.

He eased back with exquisite care. Closing his eyes, he
paused, and then thrust into me again, filling me just a little more than
before.

“Would you like more, Julia?”

“Yes,” I growled as I stared him in the eye.

This time, he didn’t take his eyes off me as he pulled back
out, almost completely, and plunged forward again. I cried out in pure pleasure
as he stilled.

“Again?” he teased.

“Damn it. Yes, Aiden! Move!” I shrieked.

“As you wish, Angel mine,” he whispered in my ear.

He pressed further inside me, causing a strangled moan to
escape my throat.

His tantalizing rhythm was slow and methodical. He shifted
and moved his hips but didn’t seem in a hurry. With each thrust he sank deeper
and deeper, until he was inside me to the hilt.

His forearms were pressed into the bed on either side of my
head. He snaked his hands behind my head, bracing me, cradling me. My fingers
grazed his muscular back as my nails dug into his skin. His hips flexed and
rolled against me as his rhythm increased, persistent and merciless.

I spread my legs wider, arching upward to give him better
access.

He was staring at me intently, as if he thought I was the
most desirable woman in the world. Leaning down, he framed my face in his hands
and kissed me lovingly.

“You. Are. Mine. Julia,” he said as a staccato between each
thrust. “Tell me. Tell me you are mine.”

“Yes,” I said, with my head thrashing from side to side in
pure pleasure.

“Yes, what? I want to hear you say it,” he growled.

“Yes, I am yours, Aiden. Only yours. Oh…” I moaned as he
began slamming into me with full force. Sounds of skin slapping against skin
echoed through the room.

Not breaking his rhythm, he sat up on his knees and lifted
my ass up slightly. Bringing my legs up to rest on his shoulders and holding my
hips, he continued to slam home, this new position hitting just the right spot
to cause my body to convulse uncontrollably.

His possession took me by surprise. I could feel him start
to tremble as his climax was closing in on him. The thought of him coming
inside me made my insides clench and arousal to bloom again. Surprise snuck its
way into my thoughts because I’d never had an orgasm while a man was inside me,
fucking me. But regardless of my shock, I knew with only a few more thrusts he
was going to make me explode all over him.

His animalistic rhythm became wild and fierce. His jaw was
tense and his eyes were infernos, burning me up with his gaze.

“Oh, God, Aiden, I’m going to come again,” I panted.

“Me too, Angel mine. Come with me. Let’s. Come. Together,”
he said between thrusts.

His smile of satisfaction was glorious and he threw his head
back, slamming his hips into me, hard, relentless. He lifted until he was
almost completely withdrawn from me and then slammed back inside, sending
shockwaves over me.

He came back down, positioning his elbows above my shoulders
again, and increased his pace until he was pounding against me, hard and fast.

“Yes, Aiden. Ahh…”

My mouth opened again, but his lips pressed to mine muffled
my scream. My entire body bowed, writhed, and I came completely apart.

“Oh, Julia.” His groan splintered the air with pure pleasure
just as my own world shattered into a million pieces—spasm upon spasm
rippled through my body.

He slowed and took a more tender pace as I milked the last
of his release.

Aiden collapsed on top of me and rested his head on my
shoulder. His hips twitched, continuing to pump against me in short, jerky
motions until he finally stopped and his harsh breathing rasped against my ear.
His lips grazed the base of my neck as his pants warmed my skin.

“Oh, my. That was…” Words failed me as I tried to think of a
word worthy enough of this pleasure.

I began to stroke my fingers through his beautiful, silky
hair.

“Mmmm…” he mumbled into my neck.

“Yeah…” I mumbled in response. It was all we could
articulate at the moment.

I trailed my fingers lightly along his back, grazing just
the tips of my fingernails against his soft skin, causing him to groan with
pleasure.

We lay there, sated, for what seemed like hours, but in
reality, was only a matter of minutes.

He stirred against me and said, “Don’t move.”

He carefully lifted his weight off me and withdrew. Warm liquid
slipped down my center and toward my rear.

Within moments, he came back with a soft, damp towel and
pressed it to me to clean me up. Such a gentile and caring gesture made my
heart swell.

Aiden quickly got back into bed and covered us both before
settling against my back and holding on for dear life, like he was worried I
would float away. Pushing my hair up and out of his way, he nuzzled his face to
the center of my back and pressed light kisses along the tattoo that decorated
my skin—the tattoo he had yet to notice.

Saturday morning sunshine shone through the windows, making
me very hot and sweaty. I cracked my eyes open and it took me a moment to
realize where I was.

Well, no wonder I was hot. I had a certain professor
completely wrapped around me like I was his life raft at sea.

Lying on my stomach with my hands wrapped under my pillow,
Aiden’s face was resting lazily on my bare shoulder, his arm draped
possessively over me. His legs tangled with mine and the bed sheets so messily,
I couldn’t tell where my legs stopped and his began.

The sun was shining through his muted drapes, making me
wince slightly at the bright invasion before smiling at what a beautiful day it
was going to be.

Despite the sweltering heat emanating from this sexy man, I
slept better than I had in years. Then again, I haven’t made love to anyone
since… yeah, I needed to make sure my thoughts didn’t travel down that path.

Another thing dawned on me in that moment. I didn’t have any
more nightmares throughout the night. Usually, I would wake up two, sometimes three,
times per night with the horrible night terrors. It had to have been the
combination of exhaustion and sex that caused me to sleep so well.

Glancing at the clock, I noticed with amazement it was
already ten in the morning.

I never sleep this
late,
I thought to myself.

God, he was so comfortable—my own cocoon of safety.

Just as I attempted to stretch my muscles without waking
him, he lifted his head and graced me with the sexiest, sleepy grin.

“Morning, Angel.”

“Good morning, yourself,” I responded with a grin.

He sat up, propping himself on his elbow, and began tracing
lazy circles on the back of my bare shoulder. I just lay there on my stomach,
closed my eyes, and enjoyed the attention.

Brushing my hair aside, he bent down to press a kiss on my
sensitive skin.

Suddenly, I heard him gasp. I was so wrapped up in my
post-coital morning bliss, I forgot about my hidden secret that decorated my
back. Now, in the bright daylight, there was no chance he didn’t see it.

He went utterly quiet.