Page 85 of Possession Under the Southern Stars

I groan with relief, slide my arms around her, and tighten them, flattening one hand on the base of her spine so I can pull her toward me. She sighs, tilting her pelvis up so she’s moving against the base of my erection, and gives a little moan against my lips. I touch my tongue to them, and she opens her mouth, allowing me to delve my tongue inside. We exchange a long, slow, luscious kiss that soon has me tingling all over.

I lift my head and murmur, “You unravel me, Hallie.”

She looks up at me with her big, brown, melted-chocolate eyes that are filled with affection. “And you me.” She glances past me, at the salad on the counter, at the oven, which is heating up, and the pan with its olive oil, ready to fry the salmon. “Is dinner nearly ready?”

“No, I was going to start cooking when you turned up.”

“Then I know what I want for a starter.” She takes off her jacket and hangs it over a chair, then, eyes sparkling, she takes my hand and leads me across the living room.

Chuckling, I follow her, and she says, “Bedroom’s this way, I guess?” as she heads for the door on the other side. “This is a fantastic apartment.”

I admire the way her butt moves through the soft fabric of the dress as she walks. “Yeah, I love it.”

“So much light. Mine is so dark. I keep thinking that I want to get somewhere with windows.”

My eyebrows rise—was that a hint about moving in with me? She just laughs, though, so I don’t think it was, but it does make me think about what it would be like to have her living here.

I’ve never lived with a girl other than my sister. Elora, Joel, and I shared an apartment closer to the museum, but when she got her own place with Zoe, I bought this place, loving the space, the view, and all the large windows that let in the light.

Joel travels a lot, but still stays here when he’s in Wellington. We’ve both known that eventually he’ll want his own place, probably when he meets a girl, but it was always something for the future, and we were content to share so it didn’t mean him leaving a flat empty while he was away and wasting money on rent.

It would be odd sharing with a girl, though. I gesture down and to the left, and Hallie leads me along the corridor. I don’t know how I’ve managed to avoid it for so long. Ginger, of course, was married and had a house, but we never met there. Once or twice she came to my apartment in town, but usually we met in hotel rooms, wanting privacy from family, friends, and colleagues. And although I had a few relationships before that, none of them lasted more than six months, or were serious enough to even raise the discussion of living together.

But of course there’s no point in thinking about it with Hallie, or even considering dating her, until we sort out the problem of working together.

My spirits sink a little, but I push the thought to the back of my mind as we go into the bedroom, and Hallie turns to face me. She pulls up the skirt of her dress, and as I watch, peels it up and over her head before dropping it to the floor.

My pulse immediately doubles in speed, blood thundering through my veins at the sight of her tiny cream lacy panties and matching bra, and all that light-brown skin. As she reaches behind her to unclip her bra, I grab a handful of my tee at the back of my neck, tug it over my head, and toss it away. She pulls the straps of her bra down her arms and lets it drop, while I push my track pants down and kick them off. We remove our underwear together, and then we’re both naked, and in seconds we’re crushing our lips together in a sizzling kiss, while our hands roam over each other’s bodies.

Sex with Ginger was fast and fun, but I discover it’s completely different when you’re in love with someone rather than just in lust. Yes, it’s sexy and hot and physical, but my heart is engaged in a way it’s never been before. When Hallie sighs and moans, I don’t just feel smug at the thought that I’m turning her on. I feel pleasure at our obvious connection; I feel warm and content and happy to be making her feel good.

But it’s getting harder to form thoughts; my brain is turning to mush, and my heart feels as if it’s swelling inside me. I haven’t eaten much today, and the beer has gone straight to my head; at least I think that’s what’s making me dizzy. Maybe it’s desire, and the fact that all the blood in my body is rushing to my groin.

Hallie seems as hot for me as I am for her, and that’s such a huge turn on. I push her toward the bed, we both climb on, and then, still kissing, I lower her onto her back and stretch out by her side, half leaning on her.

We kiss for ages, not speaking, just connecting in that beautiful, intimate way, tongues tangling, breaths intermingling, and our sighs fill the room as a darker urge to claim and possess her rises inside me. I want to make it last for hours, but we’re running hot, and there’s no way either of us is going to be able to wait.

I lift my head and look at her. Her eyes are half-lidded and hazy. Strands of her hair have come loose and lie spread out on the pillow. Her lip gloss has vanished, and her lips are blurred from kissing.

“I want you inside me,” she says.

“First things f-first,” I say, my voice hoarse with desire. I’m always careful to make sure a girl is ready for penetration as I can only imagine how uncomfortable it is if there’s no lubrication.

To my surprise, she shakes her head, takes my hand, and moves it down her body between her legs. I discover that she’s already swollen and moist, and my fingers slide easily down into her.

“And… um… I have a Mirena coil,” she says. “It’s up to you, and I don’t mind if you want to use a condom, but if you don’t… You can trust me.”

My heart bangs against my ribs, and I’m sure she can feel it racing. “You can trust me too.”

“I know.”

We look into each other’s eyes. Then, without another word, I move on top of her. I maneuver the tip of my erection down into her, she lifts her legs around me, and I push forward gently, sheathing myself in her hot, glorious, velvety softness.

We both groan, and I rest my forehead against hers, closing my eyes. I’ve never had sex without a condom before, and the sensation of being inside her, skin on skin, is fucking amazing.

My eyes still closed, I start counting to ten out loud, and Hallie giggles, then cups my face and kisses me. I return it, beginning to move, and she tightens her legs around me and moans her pleasure as she moves to meet each thrust I give.

Ahhh… this is blissful, and I wish I could do this for the rest of time. The late sun is spilling across the bed, covering us in a layer of toffee-colored light, and its warmth on my skin feels sensual and erotic. I feel that I should change positions, make it interesting, take my time, but the truth is that I love missionary because I can look into her eyes, control the pace, and change the angle to make sure I’m arousing her as I thrust. I’ll take my time later, I promise myself, and have her in fifty different positions; right now, I just want to be inside her, and watch her as she comes apart.

---