Page 57 of Origins of Eternity

Iro looked up at her adoringly, and that was how Arwen would describe it. She cupped Iro’s cheek and couldn’tnotlook at her.

“You’re so beautiful,” she said.

“Arwen, I want to. You have no idea. But I don’t think we should tonight.”

“Oh, you thought I wanted sex,” she said, shaking her head. “No, I just wanted to kiss you, and for a while, really.”

“It’s okay that I want to wait?”

“Of course, it’s okay. It’s only our second date. And my options to make out with you were to try that awkward kind ofsideways thing since we’re both on the couch, to lie down, or to sit on your lap. I went with the lap.”

“I’m glad you did. But youarehard to resist. I just want you to know that.” Iro finished talking, and her lips were on Arwen’s in seconds.

They sat like that, with Iro’s hands moving up and down her sides, over her back and her thighs, and over her stomach, but Iro kept everything chaste, including her kisses, until Arwen deepened the kiss with her tongue. Iro moaned into her mouth, and Arwen wished theyweren’twaiting because she wanted to hear that moan when they were both naked in bed. Iro’s lips moved to her neck, and Arwen looked skyward. It hadn’t ever felt this good before.

Kissing someone, just kissing someone, shouldn’t feel this good, but it did with Iro. Her mouth seemed to know just where to go, just what to do, and how hard or soft to do it. One instant, she was sucking on Arwen’s pulse point, making it hurt just a little, and the next, she was licking over it and kissing the flesh to make it feel better.

“God, you’re so good at this,” she admitted as she held Iro’s head to her neck.

“You know I want you, right? It is certainly not a question of want,” Iro said and placed her lips on Arwen’s collarbone.

“I want you, too.”

“I want to wait because I don’t want to rush this,” Iro added and licked across Arwen’s chest. “When we do that for the first time, I want it to be perfect for both of us. I want us to both be ready, and I want us to know that it’s only you and me.”

“Who else would it be?” Arwen asked.

Iro looked up at her and said, “I mean that it’sonlyyou and me, Arwen. Meaning we’re not dating; we’re together.”

“Oh,” Arwen said. “You want to waitthatlong?”

“Thatlong? How long is that to you?” Iro asked, pulling back to look up at her.

“I just meant that some people don’t say that they’re together for a while because one or both of them want to date around, or at least have the option to.”

“Doyouwant that?”

“No,” Arwen replied, cupping her cheeks. “I wantyou. But it’s been two dates, and I have a terrible track record with relationships, Iro. I want to do this right, though, and I don’t want there to be any pressure on either of us, so if you want to… date someone else, I want you to–”

“I don’t,” Iro stated.

“Oh, thank God,” she replied. “I was about to say that I want you to feel like you can, but that would’ve been a lie. I don’t want you to date anyone else. I just don’t know that I’m ready to say that we’re together yet. Is that confusing?”

“No, I understand. You want to make sure we take our time. I want that, too. We’ll get there when we get there.”

“But you don’t want to have sex until we do get there?”

“I want to make love, Arwen,” Iro said and kissed her. “I want to know that you and I are both ready; that we’re not acting only on lust but the fact that we both can’t imagine going another minute without sharing that experience together.”

Arwen leaned down then and kissed her deeply, and they stayed like that for a while before she felt her hips begin to move on their own and decided to get up and off Iro or risk them going too far too fast.

“How about that paper?” she asked.

“I’d love to, but can we do it another night?”

“Youaretoo tired, aren’t you?”

“Yes. I concede: you were right.”