Page 113 of Stealing Sunshine

“I’m just trying not to scare you. I can be a lot when it comes to relationships, and I’m stressing myself out toning it down.”

I ignore the way my thighs have stuck to the leather and push myself off the table. My legs are wobbly for a moment before I stabilize myself.

“I might come off as sweet and innocent, Bryce, but there’s a time and place for everything. I’ll always be kind and gentle and understanding to those who deserve it, but I’m not afraid to be demanding and confident when the moment calls for something a bit stronger. You’ve mentioned my backbone before, so don’t think for one minute that I won’t use it when it comes to this,” I tell her, my voice steady.

She tips her head back to keep eye contact, and when her pupils expand, eating at the electric blue, my pulse skips.

“And what exactly isthis?”

“Thisis you being too cautious,” I start, placing my hands on her shoulders and pushing her until her back touches the edge of the table. “Thisis you thinking your needs come second to mine.”

She grips her knees and heaves in a breath.

I bend forward until our faces are at eye level and finger the button of her jeans. Her throat strains with a swallow.

“This,” I continue, unsnapping the button and tugging down the zipper, “is me returning the favour from last week like I’ve wanted to since you first got between my legs.”

“Daisy.” She chokes on my name.

Thinking back to her words about Kristen in my old bedroom, I taunt, “It’s baby when I’m between your legs.”

Her head drops back completely, and I grin while dropping into a squat and tugging at the band of her jeans. She lifts her hips, and despite being nearly painted on, they come down easily.

The black lace panties that cup her between her legs are thin and tight as they stick to the curve of her pussy. I drop onto my knees and ignore the slight pain that follows before trailing the backs of my fingers up her thighs. The skin rises with goosebumps as I trace the shape of each peach inked there.

“I saw these tattoos in your room,” I confess.

Bryce shivers when I reach the stems of the peaches and linger there, not half an inch from the black lace. “How?”

It’s like she knows the answer already but needs to hear it from me.

Shifting further between her legs, I drag my knuckle along the centre of her panties. They’re slick, just as wet as mine, yet there’s one difference. The small hoop at the top of her seam that bumps against my knuckle isn’t something I’m used to, and it excites the hell out of me.

“I snooped in your room a couple of days after moving in. And I don’t regret it.”

Before she can respond, I have her panties shifted to the side and her bare pussy in front of me. Pink and glistening, the sight of her excitement makes my belly tighten with desire.

Her breathing is so laboured I risk a glance upward to make sure she isn’t close to passing out. The feral gleam in her eyes asshe fixes her gaze on me proves that she’s more focused than ever.

“When did you get this?” I rasp, tapping the black clit piercing with my nail. It looks like a nose ring but with a ball in the centre of the hoop.

She hisses, hips lifting to chase the sensation that just sparked. My eyes threaten to cross, and I lean in to give the metal a soft kiss.

“Fuck, baby,” she gasps.

Her fingers strangle her bare knees, and I part my lips over that small ball, taking my first taste of her. A moan claws its way up my throat.

“When did you get this?” I repeat my question.

She releases her knees and reaches one hand behind her to grip the table while the other finds my shoulder. “Three years ago.”

I hum against her pierced hood. The metal hoop is cold, but against her hot skin, it’s not noticeable as I slip my tongue beneath it and lift. When I pinch it between my teeth and tug gently, Bryce whimpers, the sound so high-pitched and desperate it rattles my brain. Driven by the need to hear it again, I repeat my motions before blowing a stream of warm air over the spit-slicked skin.

“Stop toying with me,” she demands weakly.

I smile against her and abandon the piercing, continuing to explore. She slides an inch down the stool, giving me more room to work. It’s as much for my benefit as it is for hers.

Parting her lips with my tongue, I dip a finger inside her entrance and close my eyes at the tight grip. She moans, clenching around the intrusion as I slowly work my finger out and then back in again.