Neon & Nets (Venom Next Gen #1)

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Twelve

Sofia

Knight Hale just called me babe. Is this real life?

Other guys calling me babe has always been a serious ick. It usually sounds so… dismissive. So infantilizing. Baby is even worse, because, hello? Babies aren’t sexy? What the fuck?

But coming from Knight’s lips, it hits differently. And the expression on his face like he’s worried about me when it should be the other way around? Total swoon. Hearing him call me babe makes my whole body tighten up, specifically in my lady bits. It’s the way he said it. The tone he used. Not like he can’t remember my name, but more like I belong to him.

I swallow and look up at this man who’s always done it for me, whose beautiful hazel eyes are fixed on mine. I clench again, around nothing. I’m as turned on as I was in the pool when his hands were on my thighs. Maybe more turned on, because my head and my body are in agreement this time.

A thought pops into my head that has never, ever been there before. Not when it comes to a man. Because it’s only this man who makes me go places I’ve never gone before.

But it’s true.

I want Knight. Inside me.

Right fucking now.

“It’s not an ick,” I murmur. “Not at all. It’s more like a… yum?”

He blinks, lazy and slow. “Is that so?”

Still holding his scraped arm, I lift my face toward his. Just like the other night, his mouth is mesmerizing. I truly can’t believe he did this for me. He planned the whole thing. And because Viktor ruined it, he even took the fall for me.

I also can’t believe how spectacularly my experiment has failed to this point, even when I tried so hard to control all the variables. I thought that cartoonish lamb headband would be a dealbreaker, but now I’m appreciating how confident he is. And there should be zero overlap between men who are currently wearing girlie animal slippers and men who make my nipples hard, but it seems that everything I have ever known is a lie, because here we are. Plus, he’s wearing gray sweatpants. That’s like catnip for horny women.

A few small bruises are forming on Knight’s face. I reach up to cover one with the pad of my thumb. “Does this hurt?”

Knight’s Adam’s apple bobs. “You could… you could kiss it and make it better.”

I bite my lip.

“You don’t have to,” he amends.

But I want to. I want to kiss him so badly. I lean forward and press my lips to his cheek. “Better?” I whisper.

“Mm-hm.” His eyes flutter shut. “So much better.”

I kiss another, and another, until I reach the corner of his mouth. “Do your lips hurt?”

“Yeah.” His voice is low and rough, but he still hasn’t moved. He’s waiting for me to decide how much I want. “So much. You might… have to kiss them a lot.”

I cup his cheek with one hand and press my lips to his, gently at first. Knight lets out a little groan of pleasure.

I pause. Pull away. Swallow. “Knight? Is this okay?”

His laugh is incredulous. “More than okay. You could do whatever you want right now.”

I sit back on my heels, my mood instantly souring. “You don’t have to do this out of pity, you know.”

Knight’s eyes snap open. He stares at me, then down at his lap. The outline of his cock is pressed against the soft gray fabric of his sweats. It’s big and hard and dammit, I want to see it. I want to touch it. But not because he’s feeling sorry for me. “Pity is not a factor in this situation,” he says.

I can’t speak. All my blood has rushed southward, pooling hot between my thighs.

“We don’t have to do anything.” Knight’s voice is strained. “Or if you want to do… something… and then pump the breaks, that’s fine. But if you want anything from me…” He gulps. “Please tell me. Tell me what I can do for you.”

“I wish I knew.” My stupid mouth moves faster than my brain. Knight’s full lips curl downward. I guess we’re doing this, then. Which means I have to tell him the humiliating part. I have to set the expectations so neither of us is disappointed in the end. “The thing is, I… I just want you to know… there’s no pressure. To make me, um. Arrive. If we decide to do… things.” I clear my throat. “I’m kind of a problem. Too much, I guess. Guys say I’m too much. So sex has never been a big deal to me because I’ve never…”

Knight’s eyes bulge. He squeezes my hands. “Are you trying to tell me that you’ve never had an orgasm?”

“Not with a man.” I choke on a laugh. “Not that there’s been a lot of them. Men… that is.” Goddamn it, why couldn’t I just climb into his lap and dry hump him like a reasonable person? Take what I’ve always wanted with confidence. “You’ve met my mother. We’re a really sex positive, open family. I’ve just never found a guy who…”

This should be the part where he leaves. Where he tells me that if I can’t keep this fun and casual, what’s the point? Maybe he’ll say that there’s no use trying to do anything for me, so I should give him a blowjob and be done with it. That he deserves to be serviced because of what he just did for me. But that sends my mind reeling because that’s another thing I’ve been told multiple times I can’t do. They always hold my head and yank my hair and gag me until my eyes water. Then I choke and give up. One time I almost threw up.

But when I look at Knight…

He doesn’t say any of those things. Instead, he leans against the back of the sofa. He reaches for my thigh, then hesitates. “Is it okay if I touch you?”

I nod. I don’t trust my mouth anymore. I feel totally vulnerable and raw. Which means there is also a distinct possibility that I might cry if he says the wrong thing.

His palm settles on my leg, warm even through the material of my sundress. He circles his hand there, his touch warm but firm.

“Is it okay if I ask questions? I’m really turned on right now, and it seems like you’re in a similar position, yeah?”

I nod again.

“Could we… do something about that? Could we try? Do you want to try… with me?”

I whimper. “Yes. But I might not—”

“You don’t owe me anything,” he assures me. “I won’t ask you to come just because I decree it. We’re just going to see what feels good, okay?”

“But if I don’t, it will break my heart.” Because this time, it’s with you . Now I’ve gone and done it. I’ve admitted too much just because he’s my friend. He’s always been my friend. But despite our history, my head spins at the thought of Knight inside me, fucking me, telling me to come on his cock. Unfortunately, I know from experience that just because something sounds like a good idea doesn’t mean it will be enough to get me off when it comes. Not when I’m feeling so exposed and thinking too much.

I watch his hand trace its circles on my thigh. “Can you take your shirt off?” I whisper.

Without missing a beat, Knight yanks his shirt over his head and flings it aside. A more reasonable person might be wondering if we’re in the throes of murdering our friendship, but I’m too busy processing the mixed signals of fuzzy puppy slippers, terrycloth headband, washboard abs, and the dark spot on the front of Knight’s sweatpants. Never in my wildest fantasies did I ever think I would want to get my hands inside a man’s pants, but here we are.

I lean forward, tracing the lines of his muscles with my fingers. Knight’s flesh shivers beneath my touch. I knew he was hot, but I was not prepared for this.

It’s like this man was chiseled from stone. I hope he doesn’t judge my body too harshly.

“You said you’ve never gotten off with a guy. Do you ever touch yourself, Sofia?”

“Um… yeah.” My purple sparkly vibrator is on standby at all times.

He looks down at me with such earnestness my heart cracks open. “Can you show me?”

My hand stills on his stomach. “You want to watch me masturbate?” I don’t want to put on a show for him. I don’t want to feel like an exhibit. People can be so weird about my body—my heavy, round breasts, my jiggly butt, my thick thighs—they fetishize it, even when they’re attracted to me. With this man, I want to feel like a human being with a heart and a soul, not just a sum of my parts.

“I want you to show me how you like to be touched,” Knight says. “Where it feels good. Maybe the other guys you’ve been with just haven’t been paying attention.”

“But you will touch me, too?” I ask.

His pupils are so wide that his eyes look almost evergreen. “Only if you tell me I’m allowed to.” His obsession with consent is hot as hell.

Knight let me see what’s under his shirt, so I guess we’re doing this. I shimmy out of my dress and toss it aside, like he did with his shirt.

My underwear is not the sexiest set in the universe. If I’d known that sex was in the cards, I would have worn something cuter. I’m wearing boy shorts to keep my thighs from rubbing beneath my skirt. As for a bra… there aren’t a lot of options for bras my size that work with sundresses, and the one I picked out this morning has ruching at the top, so removing my dress leaves my breasts bare. Immediately, I start worrying about sag without the benefit of an underwire, but he doesn’t seem to mind.

Knight makes a sound like he’s just choked on his own tongue. “Sofia,” he groans.

“Yeah?” Fearing the worst, I palm my breasts, trying to make them smaller. But Knight reaches up and pushes my hands away. Then he just stares as I search his face for signs of disgust.

“You’re so fucking spectacular.” Knight leans closer. “Can I kiss you?”

I tip my chin toward him. “Please.”

Knight leans forward, settling his weight against me. His cock is hard between us, but I can’t feel him properly with so many layers of fabric between his skin and mine. He rocks against me, kissing my mouth, my throat, my shoulders. Then he lifts himself up with both arms.

“Show me,” he says .

I don’t have to ask what he means. I roll my nipples between my fingers, and his mouth descends upon me, his tongue laving over my swollen flesh and my fingertips. I whimper; my nipples are sensitive, and every jolt of sensation makes my pussy clench on thin air.

“I feel so empty. I want to be filled right now,” I blurt. “Oh my God, I’ve never said that before.”

Knight pulls back. He blinks a few times and takes a few deep breaths. “Then I’m glad you said it to me.”

Did I speak too soon? I don’t want this to be over already. Also, I have never in my life come from penetration alone.

“Do you have a toy?” he asks.

I nod.

He gets to his feet and holds out a hand toward me. “I want to see.”

It takes me three tries to get off the sofa since my knees are al dente in light of our current activities. Knight keeps me upright, peppering me with kisses as we stumble to my bed in the next room. The backs of my knees hit the mattress, and I almost go down.

“Steady,” Knight says, easing me down. When I’m no longer in danger of falling, he kneels and hooks his fingers into the band of my underwear. He removes them with something akin to reverence.

He’s so sweet. So kind. So unlike any man I’ve ever been with before. I should have known it would be like this with him. How could I not have known? What the hell was I waiting for all these years? Since he’s a professional athlete, I just assumed… he would be selfish and cavalier. My eyes prickle with tears. I’ve wanted this so badly, and for so long, and somehow it’s better than I thought it would be.

As I slide up the bed to lean against the pillows, Knight climbs up and kneels between my legs. He laughs when he remembers that he’s still wearing his slippers and finally kicks them off. He must have spaced on the headband, so I reach up and snatch it off his head so I can toss it aside.

“If I wasn’t here,” he asks, his gaze fixed on mine, “what would you do?”

I reach a trembling hand for my bedside dresser and retrieve my favorite vibrator. “Usually, I’d use some lube, but… you know.” I run two fingers between my legs and hold them up. “You’ve got that covered.”

Knight catches my wrist and pulls my fingers to his lips. He takes my fingers in his mouth and sucks them clean. “You taste amazing.”

A fresh surge of lust leaves my thighs sticky. “Case in point,” I whisper.

With one hand, I rub my clit. With the other, I power on my vibrator and work the tip inside of me. The wet sound it makes is obscene.

“Is one better than the other?” Knight asks. “Penetration or stimulation, I mean?” He’s watching so intently that I swear he’s taking mental notes.

“Stimulation is better. But both is best.” I move my vibrator in smooth strokes, taking it deeper every time. “Blended orgasms are the strongest.”

Knight settles on his stomach. He nudges aside the hand holding the vibrator and takes over. “Like this?”

“Ugh,” I pant.

He chuckles. “I’ll take that as a good sign. Here, let me…” He uses his nose to push my other hand aside and licks my clit.

I cry out as I bear down on the vibrator. His mouth is so much better than my hands. Knight’s tongue is on my clit. Just the thought of it makes me want to levitate .

He moans against me and fucks me deeper with the vibrator. When his teeth graze my clit, my back arches off the bed, and I come harder than I ever have before in my life.

Knight doesn’t stop. Rather, he redoubles his efforts. I think I’m screaming his name, and I want to tell him to stop, that it’s too much, that I can’t take any more, but I’m already coming again. Or maybe I’m still coming.

That’s never happened before. I’ve had multiple orgasms in one self-care session, yes, but not back-to-back like that. I swear, I go momentarily blind with pleasure.

Knight eases up and lifts his head, although he leaves the vibrator inside me. That’s just how I like it, so that I can keep experiencing the aftershocks as I come down from the high of release.

“More?” His mouth is slick and shining. “Can you come again?”

Impossibly, I think I can. I nod.

“Is there anything I should do differently this time?”

I hesitate before nodding again. “Can you… your fingers… in me?” Words. Words are so damn hard.

“Instead of the vibrator?”

“No, um.” I throw one arm over my eyes. Even though I feel more self-confident with Knight than I have with any other man, it’s still hard to ask for what I want. “L-lower”

“Oh.” I feel his fingers probe my pussy, then drift lower. They hover just above my puckered hole. I want to feel completely full. Just this once. I trust him not to hurt me. “Do you only want one, or—?”

“Yes, please.”

Knight’s mouth teases my clit again, and his finger probes into my ass, gentle, uncertain. He takes a breath and glances up at me. “Damn, Sofia. You’re so fucking perfect. ”

The resulting sensation is too much for me. This time, I come so hard that the vibrator slides out of me.

“Stop,” I pant. “That’s enough. I want to touch you, too.”

Knight kisses the inside of my thighs. “I have bad news, then.”

“What?” I remove my arm so that I can see him.

Knight sits back and gestures to his groin again. There is no evidence of an erection this time. For a horrifying moment, I think I’ve turned him off, that he’s disgusted by me… until he dips his head. “That was so fucking hot,” he whispers. “And I am so embarrassed. I promise, my stamina is usually better. But when it comes to you, Sofia, I can’t control my body.”

“Did you…”

“Come in my pants like a horny teenager?” He flops onto the bed beside me and cuddles up skin to skin. “I sure did. Oh, I’m giving you the moistest of hugs right now, which is an unintentional checklist item.”

The batteries for my vibrator must have died, because the hum has gone silent, and I’m pretty sure neither of us turned it off. “Are you implying that giving me multiple orgasms might qualify as an ick?” I ask incredulously. “I’m pretty sure any woman would disagree with that one.”

“Maybe.” Knight kisses my cheek. “If it didn’t work this time, I’m happy to test the theory in the future. Anytime.”

I want to ask him what this means for us. I want to ask if what we just did means as much to him as it does to me. I want to ask if we’re together now, or if we’re friends with benefits, and if so, can I get the full list of the perks? The weight of his body pressing into mine. The steely feel of his dick penetrating my slick folds until I moan. The feel of him releasing deep inside me. I want it all.

But instead, I let the moment hang between us, the memory of it already etched in time—something I know I’ll carry with me, whether or not he feels the same.

I don’t want to pierce the romantic haze if he gives an answer I don’t like, so I don’t ask. I just kiss his nose and tell myself that I won’t make a big deal about this new aspect of our relationship.

I’m just going to enjoy it for however long it lasts.