Then, his hand gently cups my cheek and he strokes it with his thumb.
Just one small move, but it reminds me that I’m here with him. I’m safe, and I’m with Salukh. It’s his mouth under mine. And I’m giving instead of being taken from.
The memories fade, and then it’s just Salukh, his warm body hard against mine, his scent in my nose and his thick hair brushing against my arm. His mouth is soft, his lips together. I kiss him gently, just to prove to myself that I can. He’s got a pleasant taste to him – a bit smoky like fire, a bit spicy and musky like his scent. And I want more. I kiss his mouth over and over, small, gentle kisses that let me play without asking for more than I’m willing to give.
All the while, his thumb strokes my cheek, caressing me, reminding me that he’s here, and this is good.
My kisses slowly grow more urgent, and now, when I kiss his mouth, my tongue strokes against the seam of his lips, encouraging him to open for me. It takes a few brushes of my tongue to let him know what I’m wanting, and then he gives me more. My tongue strokes into his mouth, bolder than I feel. This is a big step, the next rung on the ladder back to normalcy.
His tongue strokes against mine in response, and I feel the ridges on it drag against my own tongue.
I pull away, surprised. Why do I always forget that the sa-khui seem to be ridged everywhere? I’ve seen just how everywhere those ridges are. Yet the stroke of his tongue against mine felt startling.
“Soft,” he murmurs and nuzzles my nose.
“Hmm?”
“You’re so soft everywhere,” he tells me. “Your little tongue especially. I like it.”
It’s oddly flattering to hear that. I smile and lean in to kiss him again, letting my ‘soft little tongue’ lead the way. I slick it back into his mouth and this time, when his tongue caresses mine, I’m not startled. The drag of those ridges against my smooth tongue make happy little prickles move over my body, and soon I’m kissing him not because I feel like I have to, but because I’m into it.
I love kissing Salukh, I decide somewhere between all the lust-hazed kisses. I love his mouth. I love the way he lets me take the lead. I love the taste of him and the teasing flicks of his tongue.
I decide I really, really like the tongue.
We kiss endlessly, our mouths meshing together in gentle, easy caresses. There’s no hurry in any of this, no rush to move on to better things. There’s only the pure enjoyment of mouth to mouth, our noses occasionally bumping. After a time, I grow dissatisfied with just kissing his lips. I want more of him.
Heck, I want all of him. I’m greedy.
So I lift my mouth and instead of pressing my next kiss to his lips, I change the angle and gently nip at his strong chin. I can feel the tremor that rocks through him in response, and it encourages me to do more. To tease more. To explore more.
My hands slide to the thick mass of his hair. It reminds me a bit of a horse’s mane back on earth – thick and a bit coarse, but still beautiful in its own way. I brush it aside to expose one ear, and give it a cautious lick. No matter how sexy I find him, he’s not human, and maybe his ears aren’t erogenous zones like they are to us.
His body stiffens and his hands fall away from me.
I back up a little, mindful of his big, powerful horns. “Was…was that bad?”
“No,” he rasps, and he reaches up to caress my cheek again. “It was too good. I did not trust myself not to grab you and scare you.”
Oh. I nod understanding. “Then, can I do it again?”
“If you like.”
“Did you like?”
He nods slowly, and his hand glides over my shoulder, then down my arm. Then, it moves around my waist and he pulls me back down against him.
All righty, then. He likes it. I bury my hands in his wonderful hair again and lean in to nibble on his earlobe. His ear, like the rest of him, is bigger than I anticipate, but the lobe feels soft and human enough. My teeth gently scrape over the skin, and then I move my tongue over it.
His face presses up against my shoulder and the muffled moan that escapes him is still loud enough to make me freeze. I sit up, clap a hand over his mouth and look over at Josie. After a moment, it becomes clear that she’s still asleep, and I relax.
“I am sorry,” Salukh whispers. “I will control myself better.”
I trace my fingers over his mouth again. “I kinda like you out of control…but let’s not wake her up.” If Josie hears us making out, not only will I be mortified, but the spell will be broken.
I want things to keep going.
When I’m assured Josie’s still asleep, I lean in and lick his ear again, exploring its shape with the tip of my tongue. To my amusement, it’s ridged at the top of the shell. I drag my tongue over it and am pleased when he gives another muffled gasp against my shoulder. He’s definitely sensitive here. I do my best to torture him, using my tongue and licking and sucking at the sensitive bit of flesh. His fingers dig into my nightgown and he holds me tight against him, but it doesn’t bother me. I like it. I like that he’s silently giving me all these messages about how much I’m turning him on.