Free All I've Ever Needed (After the Storm) by Jewel Moore Page B

opened the top buttons of his shirt and ran her hands over his smooth shoulders as he lowered the other strap and slowly eased the zip of her dress downwards.
    “Take it off, cara ,” he commanded as he stepped back and pulled his shirt free.   He shrugged out of it and reached down to open his belt as she let the dress slowly fall to the floor.
    She felt the urge to cover her breasts as she stood in front of him in nothing but her tiny red thong, but something in his gaze made her feel beautiful .
    “Magnifica,” he breathed, stepping out of his trousers and reaching for her once again.   “Perfezione.”
    His erection pressed against her as he lowered her onto the queen-sized bed.   His weight pressed her down into the bed and for a moment she felt a little panicked when she remembered the initial pain of his penetration the first time they’d made love.   But it hadn’t lasted, she remembered, and relaxed as his lips covered hers and his tongue pressed its way past her lips.
    Stephano reigned in his excitement with iron control.   The feel of Natalie’s soft skin against his was driving him out of his mind, but he refused to repeat his shameful performance of two weeks ago.   Her perfume filled his nostrils and he realized that the scent was so subtle only someone who was intimately close got the pleasure of it.   Somehow it made being this close feel more special.   He was doing something other men didn’t have the pleasure of sharing.
    He cupped her breast, liking the way it filled but didn’t overflow his large hand.   It was the perfect size.   He loved its springy firmness and the fact that her nipple was already erect.   He groaned deep in his throat and tweaked into marble hardness.   He heard her moan as he trailed soft kisses on her dewy skin on his way to capture the distended nub of flesh in his mouth.
    He loved the way she responded to the simplest caress.   He didn’t know how many past lovers she’d had but he felt almost as though he was making love to a virgin.   She stroked his shoulders softly but did nothing to arouse him.   He was used to sexually-mature women who gave as much pleasure as they got and though he had enjoyed that very much, there was something special about the novelty of having a woman who allowed him to take the lead and didn’t challenge for control.
      She gasped as he used his teeth and lips to nibble and tug on the erect points of one   breast and then the other.   He could do it all night, he thought, just to hear her throaty moans and feel her fingers digging into his shoulders.   Pulling the flesh deep into his mouth he gave it one last long suckle and then slowly let it go.
    “No!” she protested, cupping the back of his head and trying to keep him in place.
    He resisted and made his way downwards, dipping his tongue into the hollow of her navel and continuing southwards.
    ***
    A tiny sliver of sunlight filtered through a gap in her heavy bedroom drapes as Natalie woke up spooned by Stephano.   His arm was heavy around her waist and she felt so happy it brought instant tears to her eyes.   She had never woken up with Michael in bed with her.   He’d said that he wasn’t used to sharing a bed and couldn’t sleep with someone next to him.   She’d believed him and hadn’t known what she’d missed until this moment.
    Sex with Michael had been okay, with nothing to compare to; with Stephano it had felt the way it was described in romance novels.   Stephano had acted as though his only thought was pleasing her.
    She and Stephano had talked and made love, talked some more and then made love again before he’d fallen asleep.
    She had wanted to ask him about the other woman a thousand times, but hadn’t wanted the perfection of the night of happiness she’d decided to grab for herself.   If he told her the truth about the woman, it would hurt too much.   If he lied, it would hurt even more.
    Long after he had fallen asleep, she had lain