Webs in Houses

Chapter Twelve: Of Rejections and Distractions

'My bedroom, one minute,' Elliot breathed against my lips as we heard someone yell that they were getting up to get another drink from the kitchen. He pulled away suddenly and strode out of the kitchen in a hurry. 

I was left standing in a daze with a racing heart and swollen lips. I swallowed and tried to get my breathing under control, at the same time trying to keep myself calm. Before I could start overthinking I left the kitchen and had almost made it to the stairs without anyone stopping me when my name was called. 

'Cass, where are you going?' Sophie asked light-heartedly, not suspecting anything. My heart slammed against my ribs. 

'Bathroom,' I said without stopping and leapt up the stairs two at a time. 

When I reached mine and Elliot's floor I took a deep breath and knocked on his door. It swung open immediately and he grabbed my hand and pulled me inside swiftly. He closed the door quietly and I was stood awkwardly in the middle of his room, fiddling with my hands, not sure what to do with them. 

He didn't have a slanted ceiling like I did and his room seemed bigger because of it. The plain blue curtains were drawn and the room was quite dark. His clothes laid scattered on the floor, socks, jeans, t-shirts. A few textbooks were stacked on his desk and then my eyes flitted to his unmade bed. Blood rushed to my cheeks and my breath stuttered. 

I looked up at Elliot and expected to see a smug smirk on his face. Instead I saw puzzlement mixed with some intense emotion I couldn't name. He took a few slow steps closer until he was standing so close I could see the black speck in his right eye. 

His warm hands cupped my jaw, so big that the tips of his fingers were able to brush circles at the back of my neck. He tipped my head up with his thumbs on my chin and didn't waste another second. As soon as his lips were back on mine liquid warmth flooded my stomach. My hands tangled in his hair where they had been only minutes earlier and he moaned softly as I tugged on it impatiently. 

The sound gave me more courage and I laid one hand on his chest and pushed him gently down on his bed. Our lips disconnected as he fell down on it and I climbed on top of him so they could reconnect. One of his hands cupped my cheek while the other moved down to rest on my hip. 

An involuntarily whimper left my lips as I felt fire on my hipbone where my top had ridden up and where he was drawing circles with his thumb. At the sound he flipped us over so smoothly and elegantly that my breath left me. 

I wrapped my legs around his waist to get him closer. He broke the kiss and traced kisses down my neck. I shivered at the feel of his hot breath fanning over my skin and opened my mouth in a silent moan. I was wrapped in a bubble of his intoxicating smell and my hands knotted in his hair as he kissed lower, grazing his teeth on my collarbone. His hand traced down my side and tugged my shirt up slowly as his head lowered. 

It was as though someone had grabbed me by the neck and pulled me back into reality as he lifted my shirt further, exposing my stomach and brushing a feather light kiss to the skin. Suddenly feeling bashful and ashamed I sat up and pulled back so I was sitting upright against his headboard. His eyes were glazed over and he was breathing heavily. I swallowed as he crawled after me, staring at me intensely. 

'Stop,' I said breathlessly, placing a hand on his chest as he went to kiss me again. He stopped closing in and studied my face for a few seconds. 'I don't want this,' I lied. My nerves felt raw, my body throbbing with fear. Truth was I didn't want him to see me. I didn't want to disappoint. 

'Bullshit,' he said, his voice husky. He leant closer, his breath brushing my lips. 'I'm gonna kiss you again,' he said and my breath stuttered. 'Okay?'