Behind the Scenes

Chapter Fifteen

Author's Note

NSFW. 18+. You've been warned. ;)

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Thunder rumbles off in the distance as we mount the castle steps. Surprisingly, we're mostly alone. Whether it's because it's a weekday or the threat of rain has kept people inside, Belvedere Castle is quiet. 

          We head to the top of the tallest tower and look out at the park below.

          "Smile," Joe says, pointing his phone at me. I pose with my arms out, as if I might capture Central Park in an embrace.

          "Will you send me that?" I ask.

          "Yeah."

          The fact that he wants to capture these moments together gives me butterflies. I smirk and turn around to rest my forearms on the parapet. I expect Joe to come stand beside me, but he doesn't. I wait another moment or two, then glance over my shoulder at him. His eyes are on my ass. I act like I haven't noticed as I smile down at my clasped hands. 

          Several more seconds pass, and Joe still hasn't joined me. I straighten up and turn around. I catch his eyes as he slowly drags his bottom lip between his teeth. I stare at his lips--pale pink and full--and my pulse flutters wildly in my throat. 

          "What're you looking at?" I ask innocently as he steps toward me. He releases his lip from between his teeth as he comes to a stop with his front nearly flush with mine. His eyes drop down to my mouth. He shoves his thumbs through the belt loops at my hips. 

          His mouth is an inch from mine as he says, "You know," in a low, gruff voice, and then he's inside me. The kiss steals my breath away as his tongue explores my lips in new, lascivious ways. The fingers on his right hand press deep into the flesh just above my ass before moving lower. He slips his hand into the back pocket of my shorts and squeezes, pushing my pelvis into him. I gasp at the lewdness of it, of feeling him hard beneath his clothes and in such a public space. I'm wet in an instant, and I grind my hips into him. Joe moans and lifts my entire ass cheek in his palm. 

          "Wait, wait," I pant between kisses. Joe pauses his exploration of my mouth. I look around, making double-sure there's no one around who could've seen us basically dry-humping each other. Joe follows my gaze, his hand still cupping my ass but leaning his top half away from me slightly. He strokes my jaw with his thumb.

          "You're right, I'm sorry," he says with closed eyes. His chest rises and falls as he works to catch his breath. He presses his forehead to mine and inhales through his nose, flexing the muscles in his jaw. 

          But I don't want him to be sorry, and I don't want him to stop. I bite my lip and tell him the one thing pushing through the muddle in my head that appears whenever I kiss him.

           "Hotel."

          Joe's eyes shoot open and he stares at me before abruptly releasing his hold and stepping back. I feel suddenly bereft without having him against me, and I grab his forearms to keep him close. 

          "I didn't-- I don't--" he says. His Adam's apple bobs up and down as he swallows and tries again. "I don't expect anything like...that," he says, and the concern etched in his face and in the tone of his voice warms the parts of me that were left cold when he pulled away. "I like you and I want to spend time with you, but we don't have to do anything you don't want to do."