Ava
The bed is warm when I stir awake. I instinctively reach out my hand, only to be met with the softness of the pillow barrier I’d created last night and – Surprise Surprise – an empty bed.
I frown, sitting up, my eyes surveying the expanse of the mattress noting the rumpled sheets and the faint scent of cinnamon clinging to the linen, the only evidence that he had been here.
I force out a sigh, running my fingers through my now tousled hair as the weight of crushing disappointment settles heavily in my chest. I swallow hard against the lump forming in my throat.
He’s left me before; why did I think this time would be any different…
The sound of a door creaking open and slamming shut behind me stops my thoughts trail, and I whip my head towards the source of the noise.
Broad shoulders fill the doorway of the walk-in closet as Nikolai steps into view, every gloriously scarred and tattooed inch of his torso upwards on full display.
The pyjama bottoms he’d worn last night to bed are now gone, and in their place are a pair of grey sweatpants that do little to keep the very indecent thoughts my mind weaves at the mere sight of him at bay.
“You’re still here”
The words slip out of me in a way that sounds a little bit too relieved.
Am I seriously this thankfully, because he kept his promise?
Leaning casually against the doorframe, Nikolai folds his arms across my chest, tilting his head sideways, his gaze one of scrutiny.
“You thought I left”
There’s nothing accusatory about the way he says it yet my chest burns all the same.
“Can you blame me? The bed was empty when I woke up”
The corner of his mouth twitches into a half smile, the kind that only comes about when he’s amused. He eats up the distance between us in six easy strides, rounding the bed and standing in front of me. His palm presses against the curve of my jaw, and I find myself unexpectedly leaning into his touch.
“I don’t break my promises, Solnyshko.” He says gently, his thumb tracing lightly over my bottom lip and I shiver “At least not to you”
Something about the way he says it while looking at me so…so tenderly, makes my heart clench. I look away, pretending to smooth over his sheets instead of meeting his gaze.
“Right,” I mutter more to myself than him.
Nikolai tightens his grasp on my chin, forcing me to meet his gaze,
“I mean it, Solnyshko. Besides,” His eyes crinkle and my gaze drops to his lips as he starts to lean in, “If I left I would not have had the opportunity to tell my wife how beautiful she looks first thing out of bed,” His voice turns dark and so does his gaze, “Or kiss her breathless before breakfast”
His lips are only a few inches away and are about to touch mine when I turn away.
Nikolai’s brows knit together, confusion swirling his dark gaze as he searches my face.
“Morning breath” I mumble weakly, the excuse barely passing my lips.
I’ve heard how unpleasant it can be to kiss someone without brushing my teeth, and I can’t imagine that’s how I want this to go.
Nikolai’s kisses have been nothing but pleasant to me, and the last thing I want is for this one kiss to ruin the earth-shattering other kisses we’ve shared.
“I’ll just go and brush my teeth and then we ca…”
He kisses me then. Effectively shutting me up and knocking the air right out of my lungs. He pulls away, just enough to press his forehead to mine, our lips partially touching, hovering.
“I don’t give a fuck” he whispers softly, sending a chill down my spine. His hand tangles in my hair again, keeping me close, and when his lips find mine again, I don’t complain.
My husband kisses me like a man who has all the time in the world. Exploring my mouth with lazy strokes of his tongue which I meet with equal hesitation.
This kiss feels different from all our other kisses. It’s slow, lazy, and sensual. The kind only lovers share but that can’t be because Nikolai and I are most certainly not lovers.
My hand smooths over his chest, the warmth from his skin seeping into my fingertips. When he shudders, I curve my finger around his neck, pulling him on top of me until my back is pressed into the mattress and his weight is the reason.
He follows easily, using his arms to brace himself on either side of my head, to keep from crushing me with his weight. We’re so close and yet it’s not enough. Our mouths take their time, exploring one another with slow languid strokes. He cups my face gently, holding me to him as he deepens the kiss.
It should scare me how good this feels, but my fear is drowned out by the mind-numbing sensation having him on top of me ignites inside of me.
Having him on top of me feels like the most natural thing in the world, and when he swipes his tongue over my top lip, then my bottom lip, I moan in approval.
Nikolai is big, every part of him, and I have to part my legs to accommodate his size as he trails a path of kisses down my neck, open-mouthed and wet.
“I like kissing you”, he pants against my skin, the words a breathy confession. “I don’t ever want to stop.”
So don’t.
I bite down on my bottom lip as he slides his hand down my side, his fingers toying with the hem of my tank before pushing it up and making contact with my skin. This feels weird and yet oddly safe. It feels safe to have him explore me like this because I know my husband won’t take more than I am willing to give.
He doesn’t move up, just touches me. He strokes my stomach with his thumb, and my fingers toy with the stands of hair at the nape of his neck, which earns me a growl.
He likes it when I play with his hair. It’s something I noted during our second kiss.
His lips pause just above the swell of my breast, and just when I think it’s over, he covers my right nipple through the thin fabric of my tank top with his mouth. The heat of his mouth seeps through the material, warmth blazing all over my skin and a shiver races up my spine when he flicks the hardened peak with his tongue.
“Ah”
The moan that leaves me is so embarrassing but I don’t care. My back arches off the bed and I throw my head back against the mattress as I push my hips into him.
“What are your plans today?” Nikolai suddenly asks me, his tone trying to sound casual, but the roughness in his voice betrays him, sending a pleasurable tingle up my spine.
Is he seriously trying to start a conversation when his mouth is on me… like that?
“Plans?” I squeak just as he takes my other nipple into the heat of his mouth and brushes his thumb over the other.
He hums around the sensitive peak, the vibration sending a jolt straight to my core.
“Da, Plans” (Yes)
It sounds like he’s teasing me but I can’t tell through the emotion clogging my throat.
I can barely think, let alone string together a coherent sentence and to think last night I was building a barrier to keep this exact thing from happening.
I must’ve been out of my mind.
“Do you seriously want to know my plans right now?”
His lips curve into a smile against my nipple.
“I’m simply trying to get to know what my wife intends to do with her day”
“Can’t we talk about this another time?”
His teeth graze the sensitive peak making me squirm.
“Nyet” and then he blows softly on the sting, “Plans, Solnyshko. Tell me”
(No)
“I…I’m going to see Cara later today,” I manage to say, though my voice sounds breathless.
“Cara?” He repeats, his hand sliding down to grip my hip, “And what are the two of you going to do?”
I attempt to shrug but it’s useless. “I don’t know, probably talk, grab some coffee. It’s been a while since we talked and I miss her”
Cara and I have barely spoken this last week and it’s honestly been hard not being able to talk to my best friend.
Last time we spoke she told me she’d be busy working on her art project and while I understand the stress of creating the perfect artwork, especially one that’ll be suitable for snobby Mr Bennett, Cara and I have never gone more than a few days without talking before, excluding the time I didn’t have a phone.
I haven’t even told her I was back yet. I planned on surprising her in her dorm room later.
“This Cara.” He pushes my tank top up until it’s over my head and on the floor, “She means a lot you Da?”
He flicks one hard peak with his tongue before taking it into his mouth again this time without my tank top in the way.
Pleasure takes me in waves rolling through me as he sucks the tight bud.
“She’s my best friend”
My first friend.
“Besides Cara, I’ve never had any real friends. Not really. In high school, some girls tried to befriend me, but when I found out it was because they were trying to get with my brother, I cut them off faster than you could blink.”
Meeting Cara on the first day of University was a miracle, and the fact that she even decided to talk to me despite the obvious warnings I knew she got not to befriend the daughter of a weapons dealer was even more serendipitous.
Nikolai hums around my nipple before releasing it with a soft pop.
I frown, “Are you even listening to what I’m saying?” I ask, meeting his gaze through the wave of lust tightening in my abdomen.
“Not really”
“Then why are you making me talk”
“Because I love the way your voice sounds”
And here comes the butterflies again. I swear one can open a zoo in my stomach with the amount of times a day I feel butterflies flapping in there.