Page 36 of Hidden Ties

“You lost.”

“I-I did?”She bit her lip hard then lied, “It’s your fault. You hit me with a shell. You wanna play again?”

“No.” He let his own need finally become apparent. “I want to play something else.”

Licking the part of her lip that she had just bitten, she nodded before finally admitting the cold hard truth out loud.“Me, too.”

Her admission was all he needed.

Sal lifted then sat her on his hard belly. The fast action took her by surprise, even though she’d had her own plans of plastering herself to him. It wasn’texactlyhow she thought he would make his first move,but this works.

Wiggling on him to make herself comfortable, she thought she had gone to gamer girl heaven.Oh, this definitely works.

Suddenly, Sal’s hands gripped her hips, stopping her.

“Stop it,” he gritted out. “You’re going to make me finish before I can get you wet.”

Valerie stared down at him unabashedly. “Oh, you aresolate to that game.”

When a satisfied smile played on his lips, her eyes drifted down to them, causing a knot to form low in her belly. Strong hands then slipped down from her waist to the top of her thighs before he spread his fingers out and hooked his thumbs under her panties.

“Kiss me.”

He spoke the words with such need that showed he needed this as much as she did, and Valerie didn’t have to be told twice. This was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for her, and she wasn’t about to let it slip away after waiting for well over twenty years.

Expecting his mouth to be hard, she gave a low moan at how soft it actually was. Barely skimming her mouth across his lips, she grew braver when Sal stayed still. She pressed her lips against his harder and almost swooned when he finally took control. Melding his lips to hers, he parted them, so his tongue could swipe in to tangle with hers.

Jerking her mouth away once she picked up the fresh minty flavor, she straightened to stare him down, which wasn’t easy since, technically, he was already down. “You jerk. The least you could have done was to have brought me a mint, too. I’m the one who has Cheeto breath.”

“Don’t worry; you taste like you,” he promised, erasing her fears.

Damn.Who knew Sal could go and say something to make her even hotter?

Figuring she could give him a break with that save, especially since he was doing marvelous things with his thumbs on her clit instead of the controller, she went back to kissing the asshole.

“I like kissing,” she admitted against his lips, instantly regretting it when Sal pulled his lips from hers.

Opening his eyes, he gave her a scrutinizing gaze. “Why does it sound like a surprise to you?”

Nervously, she laughed, really wishing she had kept that as an inside thought, especially considering he had stopped his petting altogether, and she had been on the verge of already climaxing.

“Valerie …”

“Have you never kissed anyone before?”He didn’t mean for his voice to come out as harshly as it sounded, but it did. The passion she made him feel, along with the shock of realizing she hadn’t been kissed before, was what had caused it. Knowing it was true, he still wanted to hear her say it.

“I haven’t.” It had taken her a few moments until she was finally brave enough to admit her secret. “The boy I had a crush on in high school told me I was too abrasive for guys to want to kiss me.”

“Well, you didn’t graduate yesterday, did you?” He couldn’t help it. He was still in disbelief.

“No, but I think older guys think I’m abrasive, too.” Valerie shrugged before asking, “I mean, I don’t think I am. Do you?”

Wisely, Sal kissed her to shut her up. He had been an outcast in school, too. That some guy she liked had told her she was abrasive at a young age and right after puberty made him feel bad for her. I mean, she definitely was a bit abrasive, but the dick didn’t have to tell her that.

Using his body, he flipped her onto her back, then rose onto his knees and tugged her panties off before pulling off the shirt he had given her to sleep in. Looking down at her body, he couldn’t believe the masterpiece he had just discovered. Underneath the baggy clothes was a sleek body that made him wish he hadn’t wasted six months getting the girl next door intohis bed. She had a narrow waist with perfect breasts that had him dipping his head to take a peach-colored nipple into his mouth.

Valerie made a sexy sound he had never heard a woman make before. It was filled with need, want, and delight.

The sound filled his chest with pride. He’d been with few women until the last six months. Then he had been with plenty. But each time he had, he’d asked himself if they wanted him for him or because he was one of the only available bachelors left in the Caruso family.