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And she wanted to see him.

So she left the light alone and instead scooted closer to where Jude was stretched out on the sheet. His eyes were drifting lower than her face again. He clearly enjoyed the looks of her body, at least whatever he could see of it beneath her thin gown.

That realization gave her the courage to bunch up the bottom of her gown and pull the whole thing off over her head. She was completely naked beneath it. She smoothed her hair down and tried not to feel self-conscious about her nakedness.

Her body was naturally small, and she didn’t have particularly lush curves. Her breasts were rounded with rosy nipples but definitely not large. She hoped Jude wouldn’t be disappointed.

He took a slightly ragged breath as she dropped her gown over the side of the bed. He stared at her breasts, her still-folded legs, and then back up to her chest. Because she was watching, she saw his erection grow beneath the fabric of his thin pajama pants. He’d been partly hard since they’d gotten into bed, but he grew fully aroused as he stared at her naked body.

That made her feel better too.

He reached up and stroked a hand down the length of her hair, which had fallen forward over one shoulder. His gaze shifted to her hair as he caressed it. Then he wrapped his fingers around a bunch of it in a loose grip.

There was something startled, almost awed, on his face as he focused on her hair. She was glad she’d left it loose.

She leaned down farther toward him, instinctively going for his mouth since kissing was usually a first step toward sex. But something stopped her. She wasn’t sure what caused her hesitation, but instead, she pressed a kiss on the side of his neck beneath his beard. Then on his shoulder. Then on his chest.

She liked his chest hair. It wasn’t particularly thick, but it wasthere. Dark and coarse and scattered. She ran her hand against it, enjoying the texture on her palm.

He’d gathered all her hair into one hand now and was holding it back so he could see her face as she kissed his chest and caressed the firm muscles in his arms. He was in good shape but not bulky. He obviously didn’t spend a lot of time lifting weights.

He was breathing more heavily now, the sound evident in the quiet room. When her hand reached his flat abdomen, the muscles there had tightened palpably.

She leaned down farther to kiss his belly.

He was staring at her fixedly as her hands drifted down to his waistband. The soft fabric of his pants clung to the shape of his erection.

Since he still wasn’t making any moves, she hooked her fingers around the waistband and gently pulled his pants down. He lifted his hips to help her. She dropped the pants over the side of the bed with her gown.

He had dark hair on his legs and at his groin. He was circumcised. A good size but not intimidatingly so.

She shifted her eyes back up to his face.

“Everything okay?” he asked, thick and low.

She licked her lips as she nodded. “Yes. You… you look good.”

That made him smile. “So do you.”

She relaxed a little and smiled back.

Maybe she should get right into intercourse, but although she was definitely getting excited, she wasn’t fully aroused yet. Jude, however, was obviously raring to go.

He shouldn’t have to wait. She needed him to have a really good time since there was no telling how often he’d get to do this. So she touched his erection, stroking her fingers lightly up and down the length of it.

He inhaled sharply. His hips shifted on the bed. He reached for her hair again, gathering it into one of his hands.

Getting more excited at his responsiveness, she bent over farther, holding his shaft upright so she could give it a little lick.

He huffed, his whole body giving a tight jerk. A quick glance at his face proved his reaction was a good one, so she took the tip of his erection in her mouth and sucked.

He made a throaty sound, halfway between a gasp and a moan. He seemed to be trying to lie still but couldn’t do it. His legs kept shifting. He fumbled his free hand until he was gripping the bedsheet.

Thrilled with his response, she wrapped her fingers around the base of his shaft and slid her mouth down around the top. She couldn’t take him in very far—she’d never been any good at that—but she sucked as rhythmically as she could.

“Oh sweet Jesus,” he hissed, his back arching and his hand clenching tighter in her hair. His hips started to rock, although he was clearly refraining from thrusting into her mouth.

Arousal and excitement were pulsing now in her ears, her throat, between her legs. She couldn’t believe she was doing this to Jude Gregory, making him feel likethat.