First Crush, My Forever

Chapter 57

  The door closes behind us with a quiet click, the air shifts and I feel my pulse jump. The house is dim, shadows stretching long across the floor from the soft glow in the kitchen. Taytum stands just inside, her eyes locked on mine like I am something worth devouring. My chest tightens, my nerves and my want collide in my stomach but I know with her I have nothing to be scared of. I kick off my heels near the couch, but don't move further. I just wait there, heart pounding, as she slowly approaches me.

  Taytum doesn't say anything at first. Just walks toward me, slow and steady. Her eyes roam my body in a way that makes me feel both powerful and vulnerable. The dress I'm wearing has always been one of my favorites, but the way she looks at me now, like I am everything, makes me feel beautiful in a way I haven't in years.

  "You okay?" she asks, her voice low and deep and careful.

  I nod, swallowing down the nerves that flutter in my chest. "Yeah. Just... my heart's racing."

  Taytum smiles, steps closer, and reaches up to brush my hair back. Her touch is soft, reverent, and I lean into it. I need her touch. I need her. "Mine too," she says as she cups my cheek, her thumb brushing along my jaw, and everything inside me settles into that touch.

  I kiss her. I don't think, I just act, because I know if I wait too long I might let fear steal this from me. Her hands slide to my hips, pulling me in, and I feel the heat between us spike.

  Taytum kisses me, slow and deep, like she is savoring me. Her hands slide around my waist, then lower, gripping gently, possessively. My body melts against hers, my fingers tugging at the fabric of her shirt, needing something to ground me.

  We kiss like we've been waiting for years. Her mouth is warm and steady, but there is hunger in it too, a slow-building need that makes my knees weak. We stumble back toward the hallway, kissing like we can't stop. Like we are starving for one another.

  When we make it to my bedroom, I reach behind me, fingers trembling just a little as I reach for the zipper of my dress. "Will you... help me?"

  Taytum steps behind me, her lips brushing my shoulder as her fingers find the zipper. She slides it down, slowly, lips following the path of skin she revealed. When the dress slips from my shoulders and pools at my feet, I feel the air kiss my skin. I hear her sharp inhale behind me.

  "Dani..." She presses her lips to my shoulder again, warm breath spilling across my neck. Her hands glide up my bare sides, then around to my stomach, pulling me back into her chest as my heart thuds. When I finally turn to face Taytum, her gaze sweeps over me like I'm art, like I'm sacred, and my breath catches but I also see hesitation.

  "I'm okay. I promise." We kiss again, slower now. With trembling hands I unbutton Taytum's shirt and slide it off her toned arm, letting it fall to the floor. She pulls off her sports bra, tossing it to the side. My hands explore her body as my palms skim her chest, her stomach. My fingers tracing the muscles in her back, her tattoos, the rise and fall of her breathing.

  I walk us towards the bed in a haze, lips and hands and gasps. Taytum carefully lays me back with this tenderness that almost unravels me. Her hands roam everywhere, my thighs, stomach, ribs, her mouth leaving heat and hunger in its wake. She traces my collarbone with her mouth, then drags her lips lower, a trail of heat marking every stop and when her lips find my breast, I gasp, arching into her. Her hand cups my breast, thumb brushing over the lace of my bra. My body is already aching, already trembling under her touch. She unclips my bra, letting it fall to the bed and my breath catches when she kisses the curve of my breast, then again when she sucks my nipple gently, her tongue circling. My back arches and I let out a sound I don't even recognize.