Page 44 of Once Upon a Star

His eyes searched mine for a moment. I stood my ground, looking back at him, hopefully showing him, I truly meant what I said. I watched concern, worry, surprise, awe, and then understanding and acceptance come over his face all in a blink of an eye. I saw the moment he surrendered to what I was asking, to what I was giving. I had the satisfaction of seeing a slow smile creep onto his face before he brought his lips to mine.

The kiss was electric and unlike any kiss I had ever experienced. His mouth took possession of mine as his tongue dove inside my mouth. I clung to him as our tongues danced around each other. I moaned into his mouth and he let out a throaty laugh. His hands went to the bottom of my shirt and he tugged it over my head. He only broke from kissing me long enough to get it off me.

His mouth went immediately back on mine, his hands glided up my stomach to my breasts, massaging them none too gently. I loved that he was a bit rough. He had been so sweet, so kind before. I could feel his need and desire in how much he wanted me, in how he was touching me and it only made me want him more.

My hands went to his pants and tugged them down. He wiggled his hips to help them and his boxer briefs fell to the floor. As they did, he pushed my pants and panties down. No sooner were they gone that he lifted me up and put me on the counter. The coolness of the counter was a stark contrast to the heat coming off our bodies.

I looked down at him, wearing only a T-shirt, his erection peaking out from under it. I reached to take off the shirt but I didn’t get a chance as he brought his mouth back on mine. The kiss was just as intense, just as amazing as before. His hands roamed over my body and it felt like he was touching me for the first time. His hands glided over me as if he was worshiping me as his mouth did the same to mine. I wrapped my legs around his back and pulled him closer to me. I wanted to be as close to him as I could, I wanted us to be one.

Bash’s hands moved to my ass and pushed me toward the edge of the counter. I did as his actions demanded. Our mouths never stopped kissing as he put his hands on my hips. I barely registered him moving me off the counter, until I was in the air and then dropping down on top of him. He was in the perfect position and he glided his way inside me.

I cried out at the feeling of him filling me so completely. I had wanted to be one with him and in that moment, I felt as if we were. I tilted my head back and screamed my pleasure. Bash’s mouth went to my neck, sucking and teasing it as he pleasured me. My hands ran up and down his back, over his shoulders, and anywhere I could touch him. My legs tightened around him and pushed up against his butt, the movement telling him I loved what he was doing but I wanted more, deeper, farther, faster.

My hips started moving frantically over Bash and he moved with me. I dug my hands into his hair, tugging on it as I moaned his name over and over again. When he sucked on my ear and then whispered, “I love you,” it was too much for me to take. I moved down on top of him one more time and cried out as I came. My whole body tightened around him as wave after wave of pleasure filled me. It had been incredible with him but it had never been anything close to that. At that moment, I understood what it was like to give my body and soul to another person and have them do the same in return.

I felt Bash tighten his arms around me as he followed me over the edge. He kept whispering “I love you” over and over again until it felt like a mantra. When I could move, I looked down at him and smiled. Cupping his face in my hands as I had at the start of this, I said, “I love you, too.”

Chapter 25

Sebastian

Ara said she loved me. I couldn’t believe she had actually said those words. It was as unbelievable as her coming up to me and kissing me and everything that happened after.

She hadn’t reacted to my confessions. At times, I wasn’t even sure if she had heard me. I tried to be understanding. It was a lot to take in. It was a lot for me to admit but I knew it was the right thing to do. I hadn’t told her before because I thought she hadn’t wanted to hear it. I thought I wasn’t ready to tell her. But in the cabin, in the place we first fell in love, after the time we shared, I was. I hadn’t regretted doing it. Still, it was nerve-wracking waiting for her to do something, I worried she was going to hate me or never talk to me again. But even if she did, I would let her go, knowing I had done everything I could to try and get her to understand why I did what I did.

Her reaction, her admission, our making love was more than I ever could have hoped for or expected. In her words and actions, she was showing me that she believed me, that she loved me, and that she wanted everything that I did. I wanted to go singing into the forest and tell the whole world that Aracely Thomas loved me.

The closeness between us was even stronger as we got dressed and then made dinner. We moved as a unit. I boiled the water for the pasta and she got the salad and bread ready. We didn’t talk much but I didn’t think we needed to.

When the pasta was cooking in the water, Ara opened a bottle of wine, poured us both a glass, and went and sat down across from me at the island. I looked over at her and it seemed like the most magnificent and natural thing in the world. Part of me was shocked she was sitting there with me, that she loved me, but another part of me thought I always was supposed to have this. It was a strange mixture of shock and contentment.

“This might be too late to ask, but are you a good cook?” Ara asked.

“I’ll have you know that besides being an excellent cook, I am also an excellent dancer,” I said and Ara laughed.

“You are not,” she replied incredulously.

“Really. I learned it years ago. Being on set can be boring. It helps to find something to do. I made friends with one of my co-stars and it turned out she was a professional dancer. She taught me a few moves.”

“Oh, I bet she did,” Ara said.

“Not in that way. Her girlfriend would have kicked my ass if I had done anything inappropriate and she was about twenty years older than me.”

“I have so many questions,” Ara said.

“Ask away,” I said and chopped up some onions.

“Do you miss being on set? What was it like? Is it hard to memorize all your lines and to get into character?”

“I miss the friends I made on set. You’re with everyone in a very intense setting for long hours but only for a short period of time. They become like family but then when they are gone, you really don’t stay in contact.”

“Why is that?” Ara took a sip of her wine.

“People move onto other projects, get involved with other people. They’re so busy with that next project, there isn’t time. I did the same thing. I went from one movie to the next, not really caring where they were. It was busy and exciting but it didn’t allow me to make many friends.”

“It sounds isolating.”

“Sort of, but I made the best of it.”