The Hidden (The Hidden Trilogy) (33 page)

I swung my legs around and brought my feet out of the water, onto the concrete lip of the pool’s ledge. I placed my hand on Thomas’s shoulder, using his body to push myself up.

He frowned, but held out his hand for support as I stood. “Where are you going?”

I grinned and lifted my shirt over my head, tossing it on the bleachers behind us. “Swimming. Isn’t that why we’re here?”

He smiled and stood, lifting up his shirt to take it off. “That might be why you’re here, but that’s not why I’m here.”

My eyes were glued to his abdominal muscles as he lifted his shirt over his head. The way they stretched as he moved…
damn
. I tried not to lick my lips as I stared.

I blinked several times, swallowing the lump in my throat. “Oh?” I hitched my thumbs under the waistband of my sweatpants and pulled them down. “Then why are you here?” I stepped out of my sweats and turned around to set them on top of our shirts.

I jumped slightly as his arms wrapped around my waist, his warm chest pressed against my back. He nuzzled into the hollow of my neck, leaving a trail of kisses along my shoulder.

“I wouldn’t miss a chance to see you practically naked,” he murmured in my ear.

My breathing hitched as his hips pressed into my backside, pushing his erection against me. His left hand disappeared behind me, and I felt him tug on the strings of my bikini, wrapped around my neck.

My hands shot up to keep the two triangles of fabric covering my breasts in place. “What are you
doing
?”

I felt him grin against my neck as he kissed it. “Nobody can see us. We’re in the corner, facing a wall. There are no security cameras in here…”

“But we’re not alone,” I retorted, as quietly as I could.

“So?” he breathed against my skin. “That’s what makes it so hot.”

My thighs clenched at his words, and my already weakened resolve damn near broke in half when he traced a thumb across my nipple, over my bikini. I gasped as he pinched it lightly, instantly making both of them hard. He tugged on the strings again, trying to get me to drop it.

I bit my lip, torn between wanting him to continue and being wary of others watching. “Are you
sure
they can’t see us?”

“I’m positive. It’s darker out here than it is in the pool, and even if they
could
see us, all they’d see is my back. I’m completely blocking you.”

“Well…” I bit my lip harder, trying to summon up the courage to just let go.

He slipped his hand under the fabric covering my breast, cupping my bare skin. “I love these,” he murmured into my ear. “And I especially love these,” he breathed as his fingers found my nipple.

I moaned and let the fabric drop, exposing both of my breasts to the warm, humid air of the pool house. “What–” I closed my eyes and leaned my head back, reveling in the feel of his mouth on my neck. “What did you have in mind?”

“I want to touch you.” Both of his hands hovered above each breast, his palms grazing my already hard nipples. I shivered from the touch.

He cupped my breasts, squeezing lightly as he pressed his hips into me. His right hand left my right breast, and I whimpered at the loss of contact.

He laughed quietly against my neck. “
Shhh
. I’m not going anywhere.” His hand skimmed down my stomach, towards my bikini bottoms. He traced his fingers along the hem, dipping his fingertips underneath to graze my skin.

I writhed against him in frustration, making nearly inaudible grunting sounds. I needed his fingers lower and he
knew
it. He was toying with me. “
Please
,” I breathed.

I felt him smile against my skin. “Please what?”

“You
know
what,” I groaned.

“Yeah, I do. But I want to hear you say it.”

I bit my lip to keep from moaning. “Touch me.
Please
.”

“
Where?
” Lust gave his voice a harder edge. “Tell me
where
.”

I took his hand in mine and guided it down to my sweet spot. “Rub my clit,” I breathed, moaning as his hand slipped down my folds.

“
Fuck
, Em… You’re so wet.”

I let out a strangled moan as he worked his fingers faster, circling my flesh. “Don’t stop.” He ground his shaft against my ass, and I gasped as his fingers moved lower, sliding into me. “
Oh, God
.” I reached up and grabbed the back of his neck, feeling my knees go weak as my body tensed.

He wrapped his free arm around my midsection, supporting me as he continued to slide his fingers in and out, using the heel of his palm to rub against my clit. “Come on me.” His hot breath sent shivers along my body, pushing me over the edge as I came. Hard.

My legs turned to jelly as I collapsed against him, my breathing ragged as aftershocks of ecstasy spasm through me. I looked down, surprised to see the bottoms of my bathing suit were still on. I’d just assumed they’d exploded at some point within the last two minutes.

Beth’s delighted squeal quickly brought me out of my orgasm-induced haze, and my face burned as blush spread like wildfire. I couldn’t
believe
what we’d just done. “Oh my god, they didn’t see us, did they?”

Thomas casually glanced over his shoulder to check as I tied my top back in place. “No, we’re good.”

“Oh, thank God.” I huffed out a quick breath and turned to face him, smiling as I saw a certain appendage standing at attention. “Now what’re we gonna do about that?” I asked, nodding to the giant tent protruding from the front of his swim trunks.

He smiled. “You could always give me a hand…”

I bit my lip and peered around Thomas. Everyone in the pool was playing or roughhousing, completely oblivious to our acts.

With my bottom lip still between my teeth, I smiled up at him and undid the drawstring of his shorts, pulling the fabric loose. I grazed my fingers along his skin, trailing down into his soft patch of curls before I gripped him in my hand. It never ceased to amaze me how warm this part of him could be.

Or how soft
, I thought, as I released his straining erection from the confines of his shorts.

I worked his hard, thick length in my hand, using a slow, steady rhythm. He sucked in a quick breath at the sight, his eyes sliding closed. My heart picked up speed as I felt the familiar waves of desire wash over me.

I don’t think anyone in the history of the world desired someone as much as I did Thomas. It was a disease, slowly eating away at me until I couldn’t take it anymore, until I thought it might literally kill me.

A bead of moisture collected at the tip, threatening to spill down his broad head. I paused mid-stroke and wiped my thumb across the little slit, eliciting a moan from Thomas. My breathing became labored as even more wetness pooled between my legs. His eyes locked onto mine as I brought my thumb up to my lips, slowly sucking his seed off my skin.

He growled and grabbed my ass, lifting me off the floor as my legs wrapped around his waist, crushing his mouth to mine. With lightning-fast speed, my back was against the cool tile of the darkened hallway leading to the locker rooms.

Between fevered kisses, our heavy panting filled the silence. His fingers gripped my backside as he thrust against me, the stiffness of his cock providing wonderful friction against my core. I squeezed my legs around him tighter, threading my fingers in his hair as I writhed against him, a muffled moan escaping me.

Reaching down, I stroked his cock. He broke the kiss and cursed. I pushed my bikini bottoms aside, running his head up my slit. 

“Please,” I breathed, feeling him grow slick with my arousal as my hips undulated against his shaft. “I need this.”

He froze, his erection still throbbing between us. “Are you sure?” 

I nodded and pushed the fringe out of his eyes. “Yes.”

He sighed and set me down, then tucked himself back into his shorts.

Frowning, I adjusted my bottoms. “Why’d you stop?”

His hand wrapped around mine as he led me out of the darkened hallway, his brow cocked as he looked down at me. “Did you really want your first time to be in the pool house hallway? ’Cause we can always go back…” 

Oh… 

Thomas laughed. “That’s what I thought. Now let’s go back to my place.”

Chapter Fifty-Three

Thomas leaned down and kissed me, his lips moving softly against mine. My body instantly tightened with want, and I felt it deep within my belly.

God, his skin was so
soft
. Like velvet. I scooted towards him, pressing my naked body against his. It felt like trying to press myself up against a rock. A smooth, warm, incredibly sexy rock.

Noticeably absent were Thomas’s hands on my body. While he did a hell of a job kissing me, he had his hands balled up near my head, fisting the sheets. The momentary diversion allowed another, more important thought to break through my hormones and bubble to the surface of my mind.

Did Thomas have a condom? Because I didn’t bring one.

Wait
–
do
we even need one?

I broke away, peering up at his face as it hovered above me. “Do we need to use a condom?”

“No, but if it makes you more comfortable…”

I shook my head. “If there’s no point, then…I guess not.” I craned my neck up and kissed him again, only he didn’t seem responsive this time. I moved back a little to look at him. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, just…are you sure you want to do this?”

I nodded, pushing his hair away from his face. “This is what I want.
You’re
what I want. That’s never going to change.” For
me
, at least. I knew someday it would change for Thomas–someday he wouldn’t want me anymore. Why would an eternally youthful Thomas want to be with a wrinkly, ninety-year-old me?

He wouldn’t, that’s why. 

But enough of that. I needed to stop worrying about tomorrow and focus on today. I needed to live in the moment. 

He nodded and dropped his mouth to mine, kissing me again. My heart began to race. This was it. We were
finally
going to make love tonight. Come tomorrow morning, I’d no longer be a virgin.

I tried keeping my breathing even, but failed. Instead, it came out shallow and rapid.

He broke away, his breathing erratic as well. “Are you okay? I’m not crushing you, am I?”

“I’m okay.” He didn’t really feel that heavy. His arms supported most of his weight, so it wasn’t uncomfortable. In fact, it was
very
comfortable. It felt right, natural.

He placed his arm under my neck as he positioned his hips against mine. “Are you ready?”

I tried to nod, but felt tugging on my hair. “Wait– I think my hair is stuck.”

“Sorry.” He lifted his arm so I could move it.

My eyes locked onto his face, heartbreakingly beautiful in the dim light filtering out from the bathroom. “I’m ready.”

The tip of him pushed against me as he tried to work himself in, his hardness incredibly warm. My heart thundered and I automatically tensed, anticipating the pain. I was a total wuss when it came to pain.

Thomas’s brows pulled together in concentration as he grunted softly, then laughed. “You have to relax, Em.” He kissed my forehead. “It’ll hurt more if you’re tense.”

I looked up into his eyes, the darkness unable to dim the intense blue of his irises. “What if I’m not…
good
?”

“That’s just not possible.” He said it with such conviction that I almost–
almost
–believed him.

“You don’t know that. I’m… I’m afraid you’ll be disappointed.” He’d had a three-hundred year head start on me when it came to sex. For him, this would probably be like forcing an Olympic swimmer to practice in a kiddie pool–an inflatable one, at that.

He dipped his head and kissed along my jaw. “I promise,
nothing
about being inside you will disappoint me.”

I bit my lip, preparing to ask him something I’d wondered all along but was too afraid to know. “How many women have you been with?”

He froze with his face still in the hollow of my neck. “Do you really want to know?”

Oh, man, this was gonna be even worse than I thought. I grimaced and said, “No…but I need to.” It was a morbid curiosity that wouldn’t go away. It’d been slowly eating at me, and I
had
to know. Even if it might kill me. “I need to know what I’m up against.”

He laughed and lifted his head. “You’re not up against anything. There’s no competition, Emily.
You win
.”

I rolled my eyes. “Just tell me.”

He sighed and climbed off me, lying on his back as he stared up at the ceiling. “I can count on one hand the number of women I’ve been with.”

My eyes widened briefly before narrowing. “You’re lying.” He
had
to be.

He rolled onto his side and faced me. “I’m not. I was married to my job and moved around a lot. It didn’t leave any time for relationships. Just the occasional fling.”

Yeah,
that
made me feel better. “Were they…like you?”

“Not all of them.”

No competition my
ass
. Knowing that he’d slept with even one Healer irked the shit out of me. I knew how beautiful they were.

I dropped my gaze. “How long has it been since you…?”

“A long time. Over forty years.”

My brows lifted. “Seriously?”

He gave me a solemn nod. “I’d never lie to you.”

I had to admit, it made me feel a tad better to know that he hadn’t been with anyone else since I was born.

He propped himself up on his elbow. “What about you?”

I frowned, not understanding the question. “You know I haven’t been with anyone.”

“I know you haven’t
slept
with anyone.”

Oh. Got it loud and clear now. “I’ve kissed a couple guys, but that’s it,” I said, trying not to squirm under the weight of his stare.

At his doubtful expression, I said, “It’s true. You’re the first person to touch me…
there
.”

“What about vice versa? Am I the first person you’ve touched
there
as well?”