Duke(23)

He kissed her hand again. “Was he easy with you? Did he do it right?”

It’d been a nightmare, but she didn’t tell him that. “He was a virgin, too. Neither of us had a clue what we were doing. We figured it out, but… let’s just say I wasn’t sure what the big deal with sex was. I’d meant to wait until our honeymoon, but then we fought, and made up, and I’d been drinking, and… it happened before I meant for it to. He broke it off the next week, proving my mother right about men not wanting used property for a wife, even if they’re the one who used it.”

She wasn’t sure what he’d ask next, but was sure she wouldn’t want to answer whatever it was. So, she asked, “What about your first time?”

He shook his head and grinned at her. “Remember what I told you? Don’t ask questions unless you can handle the answer?”

“How about you give me the answer in a way I can handle?”

“I was fourteen, she was sixteen. She knew what she was doing, and I’d fooled around enough I had a good idea. It was phenomenal. First time didn’t last but a few minutes, but within five minutes I was good to go again, and we went at it for hours.”

“How many people have you been with?” Gen didn’t know why she asked, but if he started at fourteen and had one a year, that’d be around twenty people. She had a feeling it had been more than one a year.

“I have no idea, Beautiful, but if you and I work out, I’ll only be with one person for the rest of my life.”

“I’ve been with three people.”

Keith pulled into an empty bank parking lot, turned and touched Gen’s chin. Her heart stopped and she had to pull air into her lungs and hope it would start again.

“They were right to keep me from you in high school. I was so fascinated by you, but I knew they were right. I knew you were too good for me, and I knew I couldn’t… if you hadn’t belonged to your brother, though, I’d have gone after you whether it was right or not.”

“You never even talked to me!”

“Right, because if we’d started talking I’d have had to kiss you. Couldn’t take that chance.”

“You still haven’t kissed me, and we’re talking now.”

Keith’s eyes went dark, focused. His hand cradled Gen’s cheek, the fingers of his other hand threaded through her hair, and he turned her head as he lowered his lips to hers.

Gen had never been kissed like this. His mouth open, tongue invading, demanding, territorial. Her hands went to his shoulders and she clung to him for dear life. Heat pooled in her girl parts, her heart raced, and one leg came under her so she could push up, into him. Into the kiss.

He broke away and pulled her face to his shoulder. “Fuck, Gen. I promised you were safe from me tonight, but I had no idea you’d kiss like that.”

Gen froze, suddenly terrified, but he massaged her neck. “Not tonight, baby. Not when you’ve been drinking. I won’t go back on my word, just saying it isn’t gonna be easy.”

“Bethany thinks my mom screwed us all up, made us think sex is more important than it is.” God, she couldn’t believe she’d said that. She needed to just stop talking until she sobered up. She’d practically begged him to kiss her, challenging him like that. It was like standing with a stick and poking the bear, just to get a reaction.

“Do you think your mom screwed you up?”

“Frisco is apparently a horn-dog, screws anything that moves. When he finally settled down it was with three people. Maria and I apparently went the other direction. Maria has kids, but… I can’t talk about that, it’s Maria’s thing, but let’s just say even I know her thoughts about sex are messed up.”

“And you?”

“You know about how things ended with my first, and the last two cheated on me. As in, they had sex with someone else after they promised it would only be me. A couple of boyfriends I hadn’t had sex with yet have also cheated on me, so…”

“Fuckin’ A, Gen.”

“Yeah, for once I think you’re using the right word.”

Duke laughed, kissed her forehead. “Let’s get you home.”

“No one’s ever kissed me like that.”

He stilled. “Like what, Beautiful?”

God. Why was she sharing this with him? Maybe she really was more drunk than she realized. “Like that. Wild. Raw. Animal.”

Gen clamped her mouth closed before she told him it was possible she’d had a mini-orgasm from his kiss.

“I want you to keep sharing with me, Beautiful. Want you to tell me where your head is, what you’re thinking, how you feel about what I do to you. Can you promise me that?”