Chapter 23

I was drunk.

I didn’t know how it happened. One minute I was tanning, laughing with Melissa while drinking beer, and the next minute, someone (Jackson? Oliver? I was pretty sure it was Jackson since we were now pals) shoved a bottle my way and I was drinking one of the dangerous concoctions.

I had tasted it before. What was its name? ~Summer~ something? ~Fruity delight?~

I’d had it at the party when I first spoke to Graham. I didn’t remember his warning, though, because I sipped too much and now my head was spinning around.

I was smiling and swinging with Graham to a House song. That was how drunk I was—I couldn’t even jump.

Instead, I was drowsy from splashing water at Graham and from the sun and heat, and from drinking since early hours. It was getting dark already and everyone was gathering their stuff to leave, while I continued swinging with Graham.

My head was pressed to his chest and his hands were secured on my waist and lower back. I nuzzled my nose to his chest and planted a kiss on his heart.

“I like you like this.” He leaned his head down, and his sparkling green eyes scanned me.

“Drowsy and drunk?” I tilted my head to see him.

“Yes.” He smiled with adoration. “You are sweet.”

I gaped at him, scandalized. “I’m always sweet!” I protested. He’d said he liked me because I was sweet, beautiful, and intelligent.

My stomach was scorching with something, spreading to my chest, arms, and legs. It was consuming me.

“Because that didn’t sound condescending at all,” Graham mumbled.

I smiled. “People say I’m sweet. You said it too.” I pointed at his chest, digging my index finger into his pec.

“You are, but you are sweeter and more affectionate while drunk,” he mused. “All your walls are down. I like it. You also touch me more, not that you can’t keep your hands off me normally.”

I giggled, slumping my head forward and resting my forehead on his chest. “You like being touched,” I commented, running my hands over his stomach. He contracted his abs, sucking in a breath.

He was quiet for a second as I trailed my hands over him. “Surprisingly, I don’t,” he said huskily. “My parents weren’t affectionate when I was little. It feels weird when people are touchy. Kind of need my personal space.”

I made a move to remove my hands, but he grabbed one since his other arm was busy keeping me up, and plastered it to his smoldering skin.

“But when you touch me,” he whispered. I felt tingles in my fingers, in my back, and in my stomach. “I crave it. Don’t stop it.”

Though the admission made me giddy, the first part upset me. I promised myself I would touch him more. I would hug him, and I would caress his face. I would explore and kiss and stroke his entire body.

It was strange that he loved it since he’d been deprived of touch, but maybe that was why he was hungry for it. Even more than approving words.

He needed the physical connection.

“You two doves,” Jackson teased, carrying towels. “Time to go, unless you want to swing until morning.”

“Jealous, asshole?” Graham retorted over my shoulder. Jackson laughed.

“Nope.”

Graham snaked an arm around my waist and led me to the car. He opened the door for me, and I scooted to my seat, getting comfortable. I loved the feel of leather under my overheated skin. I closed my eyes briefly.

“Am I that boring?” Graham asked from the other side. I didn’t realize he had hopped in. “You keep falling asleep around me.”

I fluttered my eyes open and looked at him. He was smiling down at me and brushing my cheek with the back of his hand.

“No,” I whispered. “Too much to drink.” I had peed three times already. How much liquid did I have left?

Graham shook his head and powered up the engine. “Told you to take it easy.”

I didn’t remember him saying that, but it was too late already. The effects were upon me.

He put on soft music to allow me to relax and sleep. I was thankful for that. I didn’t think I could keep my eyes open for another moment.

I ended up falling fast asleep.

***

I woke up in Graham’s arms as he carried me upstairs. I snuggled into his chest, sighing him in.

“Mmm,” I mumbled. “Comfy.”

Graham put me down on a bed and it felt different than my own. For one, the mattress was softer and the covers silkier. When I opened my eyes to examine, I discovered I wasn’t in my bedroom. I frowned at the realization.

With a yawn, I asked Graham, “Where are we?”

Graham started to remove his shirt, and the blood inside me seemed to rush faster at the sight of his bare torso. I had seen it the entire day, at least two hundred times, but I wasn’t tired of it.

Nope. Not at all.

“My bedroom,” he answered.

He crawled to me and removed the dress I’d put on. I allowed it, leaving me only in my wet bikini.

“It is early, and I thought your parents wouldn’t like it much if I took you home in this state,” he explained.

“What state? Sweeter and more affectionate?” I teased, rolling on his bed.

He chuckled. “No. Drunk.”

“Good idea.” I smiled as he moved closer, running his hands around my exposed body. His fingers traced over my stomach, under my breasts and thighs. They lingered on my waist. His touch awakened my heart, though my head was still slow to process.

“We can take a nap and then I can take you home,” he offered.

I bit my lip. “I like the idea.”

I rolled over, snuggling in his bed as he climbed behind me, running his hands on the sides and back and stopping at my neck. He massaged my shoulder.

I moaned in contentment.

“Or we could do other things,” he whispered darkly against my nape. The hairs there stood up.

His hands drawled to my neck where he untied my top. Then, he moved to the back where he removed the other strings. He shoved the top to the side, leaving my nipples exposed. He rolled me to my back and didn’t waste time before licking beneath my breast, nipping at my skin as he climbed to my nipple.

I gasped loudly, grabbing his hair and arching my back for him, offering him more access. His other hand played with my other breast, rubbing circles and puckering it.

“I like this idea better,” I moaned as he sucked my nipple hard until it stung.

“Did you enjoy taunting me with that small bikini?” he growled as my heart pounded against my throat. “You had no idea how hard it was not to grab you and fuck you in my car.”

I parted my legs and bent them, resting the soles of my feet on the bed. I threw my head back, feeling my slit soaked. Graham’s hot breath over my breasts sent tingles all over my body.

He positioned himself between my legs, raising my hips to remove my bottom. He tugged it down and thrust it over his shoulder. I found out he was naked too when he climbed to bed.

When did he remove his swimming trunks?

He pressed his hard body down. I was sprawled on his bed with him on top and felt how hard he was. His erection was thick against my thigh. A gasp left me as he sucked hard on my other nipple.

One hand slid down my navel to my entrance. He felt how wet I was, and he closed his eyes for a second, savoring the sensation. I started grinding my hips against his finger, urging him to slip it inside. His finger teased my entrance before moving to my clit to play with it.

I moaned hard under Graham’s power.

“These are perfection,” he said, kissing each of my breasts before moving to my neck, licking all the way up to my jaw.

I grabbed his shoulders, tilting my hips higher and pressing our bodies closer. His finger glided inside my pussy until he reached my G-spot.

He kissed my jaw and then my mouth, groaning. His kiss was hungry and desperate. His tongue entered my mouth, penetrating just like he’d started doing with his finger. In and out, twirling around mercilessly.

My muscles got tight. I felt my release building up between my legs. It was close when Graham stopped.

I growled at him. “Graham.” My voice was broken and breathless.

I rocked my hips against him, seeking my climax, but Graham only laughed and kissed me hard again. It was not enough.

“Desperate?” he joked. I felt anything but playful.

“Yes,” I whimpered. “Please, Graham.”

“How far can I go?”

I closed my eyes, feeling my pulse throbbing. Was I ready for more? I craved his touch and his body. My head was foggy and dizzy and spinning. I felt my sensitive skin prickling. After what Graham confessed earlier, I knew this moment was as important to him as to me.

And I trusted him.

“Can I fuck you?” Graham asked, positioning his tip over my entrance.

Then he pushed all the way in, and I cried at the shocking pain.

It hurt like nothing before.