Page 14 of Down Knot Out
Gaze dropping to his lips, I lean closer. “Blake’s very smart.”
“Don’t tell him that,” Nathaniel whispers, his breath feather-soft on my face. “We’ll never hear the end of it.”
I giggle and start to kiss him when his phone buzzes. With anyone else, I’d think the moment was broken, but Nathaniel silences it without checking the screen, his attention unwavering.
“Sorry,” I say, though I’m not sure what for.
For dumping my issues on him? For the electric thing happening between us? For wanting him to touch me so much I might combust?
“Don’t be.” His fingers thread through my hair to massage the back of my neck.
I swallow hard, heart racing as his pheromones intensify, surrounding me in leather and clove.
“Oh, look.” Nathaniel’s other hand lifts, pointing across the water. “Out there.”
At first, all I see are waves and white foam…
“Oh!” The exclamation bursts from me as a glossy black fin breaks the surface, followed by another, then another. “Are those whales?”
Nathaniel’s fingers trail down to my nape. “Looks like a pod of orcas.”
A larger one breaches, body suspended above the waves for a heartbeat before crashing back with a splash visible even from our distance.
“Look at them!” I clutch the front of Nathaniel’s polo shirt. “Whales!”
They continue their journey parallel to the shore, fins breaking the surface as they swim past.
I sit transfixed, joy bubbling up inside me, all the worries forgotten. “They’re so beautiful.”
“Yes,” Nathaniel agrees.
But when I turn to share my delight with him,he’s not looking at the water. His dark brown eyes focus on me, burning with an intensity that steals my breath.
Time suspends. The whales, the ocean, the entire beach stilling.
“Nathan—” I begin, but don’t finish.
His warm mouth finds mine, lips moving with deliberate pressure, tasting of coffee, chocolate, and cucumber.
Heat spreads through my core, my Omega instincts singing at the contact. My lashes flutter down, and my hands find purchase on his shoulders, kneading the slender muscle beneath his polo shirt. He smells so good, the leather-clove scent intensifying with his arousal.
His tongue traces the seam of my lips until I part for him with a small whimper of desire. His hand tightens in my hair, not painful but commanding, holding me to him as if I might otherwise float away.
Behind my closed eyelids, I see stars despite the daytime, my body melting into his touch like it was made for this. Made for him. The blanket beneath us, the containers from our picnic, the open beach curving outward in either direction…all of it fades under the skill of his mouth on mine, the press of his body as he shifts closer.
When we separate, both breathing harder, a flush heats me from cheeks to chest. My lips tingle, sensitive and swollen.
Nathaniel’s dark eyes meet mine, pupils expanded with desire. “I’ve wanted to do that since we left the Homestead.”
I lick my lips, tasting him. “What took you so long?”
His laugh transforms his face, and my heart skips. “Anticipation heightens the pleasure.”
His mouth finds mine again, hungrier this time, and my body responds, heating beneath the padded jacket. Nathaniel’s hand slides around my neck, thumb tracing my jawline in a possessive gesture. The kiss deepens, grows more urgent, and I melt into him. Then his hand moves to my waist, fingers splaying across the thin fabric of my T-shirt.
“Is this okay?” he murmurs against my mouth, his voice gravel-rough with restraint.
I nod, not trusting words. His hand drifts lower, skimming my hip, tracing the curve of my thigh. Through the fabric, his touch burns, desire pooling between my thighs. It’s been too long since the shower with him and Blake, and now I regret all the nights I slept alone, wishing his hands had been on me.
