Out of all the kisses she'd received, this was the most tender and cautious, like he was concerned about injuring her, and it melted her heart just a little bit. Unable to help herself, she leaned in close, until they were flush against one another, and straddled his lap, feeling the minute he registered what she'd done.

He froze, pulling away from her so abruptly their mouths disconnected with a wet smack, and he stared up at her. "What—I—" He closed his mouth, teeth connecting with an audible click, and sat back. The pallor of his skin was stained with a blush that steadily bled down his throat and disappeared beneath the collar of his shirt.

"Sorry." She began to move back. "I thought—"

He caught her round the hips, keeping her there. Right on his lap, feeling the solid heat of his erection, the twitching muscle of his tense thighs. "No." He shook his head. "It's fine. You're fine. I just—I wasn't expecting it."

"In a bad way?"

"In a good way."

The heat that had burned her cheeks was back with vengeance, heating her entire face and further down. "Really?" she couldn't help but ask. Blood pounded in her temples, whooshed in her ears, as he leaned forward and kissed her throat.

"Yeah." He sounded breathless as he rubbed her hips with his thumb, just beneath the fabric of her tank top. That alone made her blood sing. He shifted, the lump of his hard cock grinding into her, and she couldn't stop the embarrassing whimper from escaping her lips.

She leaned down and kissed him again, tasting his lips, nipping when he pulled back only to dive back in. Her head spun as his scent dominated her air supply, all her focus on the heat of his mouth and the soft sucks he applied to her lips.

Feeling bold, she grasped the top button of his shirt. "Can I?" she whispered against his cheek, feeling the heat there, the slight tackiness of the sweat.

"Go right ahead."

He leaned back, both of them watching as she fumbled her way through unbuttoning his shirt, her fingers numb and trembling with her nerves. Finally his shirt fell away as she pushed the fabric off his shoulders, revealing the football-hardened muscle beneath his acne-scattered skin. He was built like the linebacker he was, imposing, dominating almost.

She could only imagine how more mouth-watering he'd be if he continued on his path and her heart constricted at the idea of seeing grown-up Derek like this. Vulnerable, stripped, and hungry for something only she could give him.

Across his chest was a good amount of dense, dark hair. She'd never seen a boy's chest hair this close.

"Are you okay?" His voice was surprisingly small, meek almost, like he was concerned of her opinion. "Is there something wrong?"

"N-no. I'm just…a little overwhelmed."

"We can stop, if you want. You don't—"

"No!"

The word burst out of her, startling them both, and heat flooded her face. "No," she repeated softer this time and inhaled brokenly, held it, and exhaled. "I want to. Believe me, I want to. I haven't been able to stop thinking about it, actually."

"Your first time should be with someone you love."

"I know you care about me, and that's enough for me. Neither of us expected this but now we can't do anything about it. I know you won't hurt me. I trust you, Derek. Do you trust me?"

She leaned back to peer into the penetrating depths of his eyes, searching for an answer.

In lieu of a verbal reply, he closed the distance between them and kissed her so hard she nearly toppled over, only his hands on her lower back keeping her in place. The intensity of the kiss made her melt. It felt like he was pouring all his emotions into it as he reached between them hesitantly and tugged at the bottom of her sweater.

"Can I see you, Chloe?" he asked against her cheek, his breath hot and uneven against her skin.

See her? It took her a moment to comprehend the meaning of his words, and she hesitated. He'd have to see her anyway so why not now? He was shirtless, all muscle and flesh on display, so it was only fair turnabout anyway.

"You can say no. It's okay. I just—" He stopped, swallowed as red bloomed across his cheeks. "I wanna make you feel good."

Her head swam with indecision. She'd always been on the small side and had been teased mercilessly in middle school and early high school for her flat chest. She ducked her head down, chewing her lip.

"It's okay. You have nothing to hide."

Taking a deep breath, she nodded.

"Are you—"

Before he could ask if she was sure one more time, she reached between them and yanked both the sweater and tank top over her head, smoothing her staticky hair down nervously. Her skin tightened with goosebumps as she shivered on her knees, the cool air slithering over her skin.

"Oh," he breathed before he shifted, taking her with him as she stood and laid her gently across the bed beneath him. There was a softness, tenderness, in his eyes that she hadn't seen before, and it took her breath away.

His hands wrapped around her waist, just below the ridges of her ribs, and then further up, across her stomach, as he peppered her face with sweet, smacking kisses. His fingertips nudged the underside of her bralette, searching for the swell of her breast beneath the fabric.

Heart hammering, she froze, uncertain. Blood thundered in her ears as he pulled away, hovered above her. There were flecks of light brown and blue in the depths of his eyes. His mouth tipped up in a half-smile, that damn half-smile that plagued her since he'd marked her in the hallway.

"You have nothing to worry about."

She nodded, swallowing hard, as she sat up enough to pull it off. Her heart hammered in her ears as she waited for his reaction, hunching her shoulders against the chill of the air.

He was silent for a moment before he kissed her gently, his hand settling over her breast, encompassing it's entirety easily. And then he squeezed. Her stomach flipped over as she squirmed, her nipples so hard they ached. He rhythmically kneaded her breast and used the pads of his thumb and pointer finger to pinch her nipple.

The noise that escaped was high-pitched and squeaky, embarrassing, but he seemed to delight in it. "Gentler," she whispered when she flinched away as he bore down with too much pressure.

A look entered his eyes—hunger. Primal hunger. It took Chloe's breath away. "Can I use my mouth?"

As soon as she nodded, his mouth wrapped around her breast and the squeak that escaped her morphed into a full-blown guttural moan as she tipped her head back. Her clit pulsed in her panties as he sucked, alternating between his tongue and teeth gingerly, and his free hand pulled and twisted her other nipple with the softest of pressures.

She felt like she was boiling alive, each nerve in her body singing and humming with tension and pleasure.

"Fuck," she whimpered, running her hands through his thick hair, and tugging sharply when he used a bit too much force that felt exquisitely on the edge of pain.

He growled against her skin.

When he pulled away from her chest, her heart skipped a beat and she almost whined pathetically, but his next request made her heart altogether stop.

"Can I eat you out?"

She hesitated. She hadn't shaved—never had, never would—and she was uncertain of his opinion on body hair. What if he was expecting her to be clean-shaven? What if she smelled unpleasant?

"Only if you want," he added quickly. "I just—" His face colored slightly as he ducked his head, hair hanging in his eyes. "I wanna make sure it doesn't hurt as bad as it can. I read it's supposed to be easier if you, uh, cum beforehand."

Without a word, she reached between them, fumbled with the button of her jeans and unzipped her fly with numb fingers, pushing the denim down her legs with weak hands. As soon as her jeans passed her hips, she felt herself turn pink, uninvited warmth flooding her face. He was face-to-face with her boy-shorts, powder-blue and scalloped with white lace, her only matching panties.

He didn't look down as he hooked his fingers in the waistband of her boy-shorts and tugged them down slowly. The gusset stuck to her before giving way.

Finally.