Page 20 of Sweet Torment (The Sweet 1)

“Really well. There were three bonuses and I’m pretty sure I got all of them right.”

“That’s great, bae.”

“Bae?” She giggles.

“Is it okay if I call you that?”

“If that’s what you want.”

“I’ve never had a bae before. I like it.”

I kick the door closed and carry her to the sofa. “No tutoring tonight. What do you want to do?”

“It’s probably not the best idea to go out. I was thinking we could stay here.” She glides her hands up my arms and around my shoulders. “Maybe you could tutor me in a different subject.”

“Claud …”

“Not full-on sex. I’m talking about the prerequisite stuff. Kissing.” She presses a soft kiss to my lips. “Touching.” She glides her hands over my chest. “Exploring.” Her hands move lower toward the fly of my jeans.

I grab her wrist when she tugs to open my pants. “And what happens when we get carried away and I have you shoved against the wall again?”

“I’m the one who needs the tutoring so you tell me what happens.”

Damn, restraint is draining. I take her hand in mine and kiss her inner wrist. “We’re going to do the safe thing and watch a movie.”

Claudia dramatically exhales as she falls against the back of the couch. “God, my boyfriend is a twenty-three-year-old man who acts a hundred and three.”

“Well, this twenty-three-year-old man can’t take another hard-on without getting off. My balls can’t decide if they should explode or implode.”

She sits up and reaches for my pants again. “Duke… let me make you come.”

“Ah, fuck, I can’t take this. You’re killing me.”

“It’s my fault you’re in this kind of misery.” She yanks open the button on my jeans and lowers my zipper. “Let me help you get some relief. You’ll feel so much better.”

I move her hands and push my dick back in my pants when it juts out. “There’s nothing I’d love more, but I can’t let you.”

She lowers her head. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry. I love that you want to make me feel good. Trust me. I’m going to let you as soon as I can.”

Hands. Mouth. Pussy. Ass. I’m going to wear all of it out.

“Forty-nine days,” she whispers.

“It’s going to be so good when it happens because we had to wait.” I’ll know it was worth every minute of holding back when I finally get to slide my cock inside her.

“You’ve never had to wait for sex with anyone else. You wanted it and they gave it to you right then and there.”

“I don’t want to talk about that.” When you’re young, drunk, and fucking a girl who spread her legs for you, you never once consider having a conversation about it years later with the woman you love. You don’t think about how you’ll one day need to explain how you used another woman’s body for your own selfish pleasure. And you damn sure don’t contemplate how you’ll justify taking an act intended for true love and turning it into nothing more than a way to get your rocks off.

I never knew how much I’d regret the ones who came before her.

“I know you’ve screwed around with other girls. I may be young but I’m not stupid.”

“I don’t think you’re stupid or naïve, but it’s never a good idea to talk to your girlfriend about what you’ve done with others in the past. No good can come from it. It’ll only stir up bad feelings.”

“Phew.” She wipes her hand across her forehead. “I’m glad you feel that way. That means we won’t have to have the conversation about how many boys have fucked me.”

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