I couldn’t hold back any longer, so I let go, and kissed her lips. We only had hours. I was going to spend them being with my girl, in every possible way.
Poppy moved her hand from mine and explored my chest with her fingers, never breaking from our kiss. I ran my fingers over her back, pushing her closer to me. She shivered under my touch. I dropped my hand to the hem of her dress at her thigh. My hand traveled upward, until I worried I was going too far.
Poppy broke away and rested her forehead on my shoulder. “Keep going,” she instructed, breathlessly. I did as she asked, swallowing the nerves building in my throat.
“Rune,” she murmured.
I closed my eyes at the sound of her sweet voice. I loved her so damn much. Because of that I didn’t want to hurt her. I didn’t want to be responsible for pushing her too far. I wanted her to feel special. I wanted her to understand that she was my world.
We stayed like this for a minute, locked in the moment, breathing, waiting for whatever came next.
Then Poppy’s hands drifted to the button on my jeans and I opened my eyes. She was studying me closely. “Is this … is this okay?” she asked cautiously. I nodded, speechless. Taking her free hand, she guided me to undress her, until all our clothes had been shed onto the floor.
Poppy sat quietly before me, her hands fidgeting on her lap. Her long brown hair was flowing over one of her shoulders, and her cheeks were flushed with red.
I’d never seen her so nervous.
I’d never been so nervous.
Reaching out my hand, I ran my finger down her hot cheek. At my touch, Poppy’s eyes fluttered up, a shy smile pulling on her lips.
“I love you, Poppymin,” I whispered.
A soft sigh escaped her mouth. “I love you too, Rune.”
Poppy’s fingers wrapped around my wrist and she carefully lay back on the bed, guiding me forward until I was beside her, my torso moving to cover hers.
Leaning in, I peppered soft kisses over her flushed cheeks and forehead, ending in a long kiss on her warm mouth. Poppy’s shaking hand pushed into my hair and pulled me closer.
It felt like only seconds later when Poppy shifted beneath me, breaking the kiss. She placed her palm on my cheek and said, “I’m ready.”
Nuzzling my face into her hand, I kissed the fingers resting on my cheek and absorbed her words. Poppy leaned over to the side and took something from the drawer of her nightstand. When she handed me the small packet she’d retrieved, I fought back a sudden rush of nerves.
I stared at Poppy and her cheeks flushed in embarrassment. “I knew this day would come soon, Rune. I wanted to make sure we were prepared.”
I kissed my girl until I built up the nerve to do this. It didn’t take long, with Poppy’s touch calming the storm inside, until I knew I was ready.
Poppy opened her arms, guiding me above her. My mouth fused with hers, and for the longest time, I simply kissed her. I tasted the cherry lip balm on her lips, loving the feeling of her warm bare skin pressing against mine.
I pulled back for air. I met Poppy’s gaze and she nodded her head. I could see on her face how much she wanted me, as I wanted her. I kept my eyes locked on hers, and I did not break away once.
Not for a single second…
Afterward, I held her in my arms. We faced each other as we lay under the covers. Poppy’s skin was warm to the touch and her breathing was slowing back to its normal rhythm. Our fingers were linked on the pillow we now shared, our grips tight, hands slightly trembling.
Neither of us had spoken yet. As I studied Poppy watching every move I made, I prayed that she didn’t regret what we’d done.
I watched her swallow deeply and she drew in a slow breath. When she exhaled, she dipped her eyes to our clasped hands. As slowly as possible, she ran her lips over our entwined fingers.
I stilled.
“Poppymin,” I said, and her eyes lifted up. A long strand of her hair had fallen over her cheek and I gently pushed it back, tucking it behind her ear. She still hadn’t said anything. Needing her to know what we’d shared had meant to me, I whispered, “I love you so much. What we just did … being with you like that…” I trailed off, unsure how to express what I wanted to say.
She didn’t respond, and my stomach rolled, fearing I’d done something wrong. As my eyes closed in frustration, I felt Poppy’s forehead against mine and her lips whisper kisses onto my mouth. I shifted until we were as close as we could possibly get.
“I’ll remember this night for the rest of my life,” she confided, and the fear I felt was pushed far from my mind.
I blinked my eyes open and tightened my hold around her waist. “Was it … was it special for you, Poppymin? As special as it was for me?”
Poppy smiled a smile so wide that the sight stole my breath. “As special as special can be,” she softly replied, echoing the words she’d said to me when we were eight years old and I kissed her for the first time. Unable to do anything else, I kissed her with everything I had, pouring out all of my love into the kiss.
When we broke apart, Poppy squeezed my hand, and tears built in her eyes. “Kiss three hundred and fifty-five, with my Rune, in my bedroom … after we made love for the first time.” Taking my hand, she laid it on her chest, directly over her heart. I could feel its heavy beats under my palm. I smiled. I knew her tears were tears of happiness, not sadness.
“It was so special that my heart almost burst,” she added with a smile.
“Poppy,” I whispered, feeling my chest tighten.
Poppy’s smile fell, and I watched as her tears began falling to her pillow. “I don’t want you to leave me,” she said brokenly.
I couldn’t stand the pain in her voice. Or the fact that these tears were now sad ones. “I don’t want to go,” I replied, honestly.
We didn’t say anything else. Because there was nothing more to say. I combed Poppy’s hair through my fingers, while she ran her fingertips up and down my chest. It wasn’t long before Poppy’s breathing had evened out and her hand had stilled on my skin.
The rhythm of her steady breathing lulled my eyes to a close. I tried to stay awake as long as possible, to savor the time I had left. But before long, I drifted to sleep, a bittersweet mixture of happiness and sadness flowing through my veins.
It seemed like I had only just closed my eyes when I felt the rising sun’s warmth kissing my face. I blinked until I opened my eyes, seeing a new day breaking through Poppy’s window.
The day I was leaving.
My gut clenched when I saw the time. I was leaving in an hour.
When I glanced at Poppy, sleeping over my chest, I thought she’d never looked more beautiful. Her skin was flushed from the heat of our bodies, and I smiled on seeing our hands still joined on my stomach.
Suddenly nerves flooded through me when I thought of the night before.
She looked so contented as she slept. My biggest fear was that she would wake and regret what we’d done. I wanted her, so badly, to love what we had done as much as I did. I wanted the image of us together to be as ingrained in her memory as it would be in mine.
As if feeling my heavy stare, Poppy slowly opened her eyes. I watched as the recollection of the night before flashed across her face. Her eyes widened as she took in our bodies, our hands. My heart skipped a beat in trepidation, but then a beautiful slow smile spread across her face. Seeing this, I shifted closer to her. Poppy buried her head in my neck as I wrapped her in my arms. I held her close for as long as I possibly could.