Page 29 of Ranger’s Protection

I shift on the bed, getting a better position, covering her body partially with mine. She's warm and soft beneath me, and every small sound she makes drives me closer to losing control completely.

"Graham," she breathes against my mouth.

"Yeah?"

"Touch me. Please."

Fuck.

My hand moves from her jaw down her neck, feeling her pulse racing under my fingers. She shivers and arches into the touch. I keep kissing her while my hand explores lower, over the collar of her hoodie, down to where it ends at her waist.

"Can I take this off?" I ask against her lips.

"Yes. Please yes."

I sit up enough to help her pull the hoodie over her head. She's wearing a simple white t-shirt underneath, and I can see the outline of her bra through the thin fabric. See the way her chest is rising and falling rapidly. See the flush spreading down her neck.

She's fucking beautiful.

"You're staring," she says, self-conscious suddenly.

"Yeah. I am. Because you're gorgeous and I can't stop looking at you."

"I'm not—"

"You are." I lean down and kiss her again, cutting off whatever self-deprecating thing she was about to say. "You're perfect, Delilah. Every inch of you."

My hand moves to her waist, sliding under the hem of her t-shirt to touch bare skin. She gasps at the contact, her stomach muscles contracting under my palm.

"Still okay?" I ask.

"Yes. Don't stop. Please don't stop."

I push her shirt up slowly, giving her time to change her mind. She doesn't. Just lifts her arms so I can pull it off completely. Her bra is plain white cotton, and somehow that makes it hotter. Makes her more real. More herself.

"Beautiful," I murmur, tracing the edge of the bra with one finger.

"Graham, I need to tell you something."

The seriousness in her tone makes me pause. "What?"

"I've never done this before. Any of this beyond kissing." She's looking at me with those wide eyes, vulnerable and uncertain. "I'm a virgin. And I know that's weird at twenty-five, but I just never... nobody ever wanted me enough to—"

"Stop." I cup her face with both hands, making sure she's looking at me. "First, it's not weird. Second, plenty of people wanted you… They were just idiots who didn't deserve you. Third, I want you. So fucking much I can barely think straight."

"You do?"

"Yeah, Delilah. I do. And knowing you've never done this before doesn't change that. If anything, it makes me want to take my time. Make sure your first time is good. Make sure you feel how much I want this."

"I want this too," she says quickly. "I know the timing is crazy and we just met, but I want this. Want you. Please."

"We'll go slow," I tell her. "And if you want to stop at any point, you just say stop. Okay?"

"Okay."

I kiss her again, slower this time. Taking my time to taste her, to learn what makes her gasp and what makes her moan. My hands explore her body, over her ribs, along her sides, mapping every beautiful curve.

When I reach behind her to unclasp her bra, she tenses slightly.