Page 20 of Can't Help Growling in Love
“Good morning, listeners…”
I let myself fall into the familiar routine, my eyes on the screen. But when I pause for a minute to roll the ads that help fund the station, I glance up to find June watching me through the booth’s window, her eyes bright with interest. Heat rises in my cheeks. She’s focused on me, sitting still, her elbows perched on the desk.
And I like it. I’ve been hiding for years, but her attention is different. The warmth that spreads through my body has little to do with the heater in the corner of the room.
The morning news segment draws to an end, and I cue up another half hour of music, then add three more songs just to give myself a bit more time to talk to her.
Dropping my headphones on the desk, I’m out of the booth so fast, June blinks up at me in surprise.
“Come here.” I take her hand and lead her over to the couch. “Can you stay a while?”
She offers me the most brilliant smile. “Yeah.”
It’s still so new, being able to touch her. I sit on the couch and lean back. June stops between my knees, looking down at me, then leans over to kiss me. Her still-damp hair brushes my cheeks, so I reach up to tangle my fingers in it. June makes a low sound in her throat then climbs on my lap, fitting her body to mine.
My mind goes blank at the feel of her in my arms. I cup the back of her head with one hand and grip her waist with the other, tugging her closer. She kisses me deeply, as if the fifteen-minute break we just had never happened. We simply pick up where we left off earlier, and it’s so fucking hot, I can’tthink, can’t do anything but return her drugging kisses one by one. Her taste drives me wild. The way her scent intensifies when I suck on her lower lip has all my blood rushing south, until I’m hard and throbbing, my dick straining for more contact.
I lower my hands to her ass and move her against me. June whimpers, then rolls her hips over my length. It’s the best fucking feeling, having this beautiful woman writhe in my lap, chasing her pleasure. She’s a perfect, lush handful, and I want to hear more of those soft sounds she’s making, but I’m hurtling toward an orgasm waytoo fast.
Breaking the kiss, I widen the distance between us an inch to give myself some breathing room.
“I’m sorry.” My face flames, and I duck my chin to lean my forehead on her shoulder. “Um, give me a sec.”
When I glance up again, she’s grinning.
“You sure you want that? I was thinking we’d better do something about the situation.”
I squeeze my eyes shut, wondering how to explain myself. There’s no easy way out of it, though, and she deserves to know the truth. She’s probably had at least several partners in her life by now—not that I want to think about them. But if her sweet scent is any indication, she’s just as turned on as I am and likely wants to fuck. Or at least get each other off. And my track record with that isn’t great.
“Hey.” She shifts back to sit on my thighs, palms my cheeks with both hands, and gives me a serious look. “Do you want to talk about this?”
She’s no longer smiling, and I hate that I killed the mood already. I always manage to do that. It’s why I don’t hang out with people.
“It’s not…” I start to say but stop. I don’t want to brush this off. I likeJune, and I thought maybe things could be different this time, but the swirling vortex of anxiety in my brain says otherwise.
Any moment now, she’ll demand to know what’s going on, or ask if she’s at fault, and I’ll have to make up some excuse.
June waits me out, though. She puts her hands on my shoulders and remains silent. I only swallow, unable to speak. She climbs off my lap—but doesn’t leave. Instead, she snuggles up to my side, puts her hand on my knee, and leans on me.
I’m dumbstruck. This isn’t how these things go. I expected her to leave, to write me off as a loss, take her gear and go. Yet she seems perfectly content to sit next to me in silence.
“You can put your arm around me if you’d like,” she says softly after a minute. “Or not. Do you want me to go? You can tell me, I don’t mind.”
“No,” I blurt out immediately. I glance down at her. “Don’t go.”
“Okay, then.”
She pokes my biceps lightly with her finger, so I put my arm around her shoulders like she said. I can’t resist leaning down for a sniff of her hair, then nuzzle my cheek over the top of her head. June lets out a sigh and sinks back, the tension in her body releasing.
“Just for the record, that was a really hot kiss.”
As she speaks, her jaw moves against my chest. It’s the first time I’ve experienced this. I wonder if that’s really what couples do, stick so close to each other that they can feel the other person talk.
With her cheek pressed to me, she’ll experience the same sensation. If I can make myself speak, that is.
I close my eyes, shutting out the radio station, and squeeze June closer. I wantthis. So I take the leap and tell her the truth.
“I’m, uh…” I swallow thickly, then force the words out of my mouth. “I’m a virgin.”
