Page 23 of Ice Cold, Red Hot
Asshole. “Maybe.”
“I’m honored.”
“Shut up and get one.” My body was on fire beneath him as he opened the box and pulled one out, ripping it open with his teeth.
I watched him roll it down his considerable length, my body vibrating with need. I wanted him inside me. It didn’t matter what ridiculous things he said or how smug he looked, I wouldn’t be able to say no now. I knew exactly what it was to have Shepherd Renshaw fucking me, and I wanted it too much to stop.
“You ready, baby?”
There it was again. The sweetness, the care. Gone was the cocky guy who’d ripped open the condom. Shepherd stroked a hand down the side of my face and bent down to kiss me softly as he carefully notched at my entrance again.
He pushed inside—gently, as his mouth worked mine. I clung to him, feeling the hard muscles of his back flexing as he pulled back slowly, then pushed in again. A little deeper.
Shepherd repeated the motion, never letting up on my mouth as he moved deeper and deeper into me, teasing me until I couldn’t take it any more.
“Deeper,” I moaned. “Shepherd…”
He pushed all the way and froze there, letting me adjust. I didn’t need the time physically—my body was one hundred percent into this, wrapped so fully around thegirth of him all I could do was hold on. It was my mind that needed the time. The sensation of fullness, of completeness was so overwhelming, I needed a second to process it. And honestly? To keep myself from coming just from that.
“Oh god,” I finally managed. “It’s so…”
“I know, baby. Me too.”
He began moving again, slowly at first, building into a rhythm as I clung to him, everything inside me flexing and pulling like I wanted to keep him inside me forever.
We moved like that, on and on, and soon, Shepherd was whispering things as he fucked me. “Missed you so much, Celeste… seeing you every day and not being able to touch you is fucking killing me… you’re all I can think about…” I wasn’t even sure he knew he was talking, but those words—the ones I’d needed to hear for so long—sent me over the edge.
Stars exploded in my vision and for a few minutes I lost all sense of space or time as I floated.
Shepherd must have come when I did, because as I came back to myself, he was slowing his movements, breathing hard, and finally—slumping to rest on his elbows as his body lay on top of mine.
“Holy fuck,” he said softly just before kissing my temple.
“Exactly,” I agreed, my arms still wrapped around his warm, strong body.
“Let me just…” He rolled off, disposed of the condom in my wastebasket, and then pulled me against him and pulled my comforter over us both.
I lay silent for a little while, our breathing in sync as he cradled me against his chest, my back in the curve of hisbody, my butt pushed up against his hips. It was so comfortable, so intimate—it felt like we were made to fit together this way. I wanted to relax into it, but I couldn’t.
“So,” I whispered. “What now?”
His arms tightened around me and I felt him press his face to my neck, and then he let go, moved away.
I rolled to face him. “What happens now, Shepherd? You gonna pretend this never happened?”
His eyes held mine, but he didn’t say anything for a minute. I saw his jaw tighten, his eyes steel. “I don’t know.”
I sat up, pulling the comforter against me. “What does that mean?”
He squeezed his eyes shut and then looked up at the ceiling, pressing himself to sit against the headboard. “It means… it’s complicated. You’re a TA in my department. It’s my senior year. I’m captain. I can’t afford distractions.” His voice got harder with every word.
“That’s what this was, then? A distraction?”
“Don’t twist my words around.”
“You said the word yourself. And you know what’s funny? That’s exactly what I said to Nat when I got here. That I can’t afford distractions.”
Shepherd stared at me, but it was too late. The floodgates had opened.
