Rick closed his eyes and savored the sensation of Georgina’s hands roaming over his skin. Christ. He needed a cold shower. He needed to be inside her. He needed to calm down. Otherwise he would last less than a second.

“It’s not going to hurt, is it?” Georgina whispered.

“Sweetheart, I’m not going to hurt you. I promised you that.”

“But it’s supposed to,” she said.

“What?” he frowned at her, not comprehending.

“You know. The first time.”

He leapt up as though she’d thrown a bucket of freezing water over him. “You’re a virgin!”

“No need to announce it to the neighbors,” Georgina said in an angry whisper.

“You should have told me,” Rick said hotly. “Jesus.” He raked his hands through his hair, staring at her in horror.

“Pray tell me, how exactly was I supposed to tell you. Oh yes.” She raised her voice into a whine and chanted. “Yes Rick, I’ll come out to dinner with you, and, by the way, I’m a virgin, but I’m hoping that you’ll take care of that.” She dropped her voice back to normal and scowled at him. “Is that what I was supposed to say?”

“Christ, Georgina.” He kept staring at her, unable to look away. “You could have stopped me before we got this far.”

“Why?” she snapped. “Why should have I done that?”

“Because it’s too great a responsibility.”

“Are you telling me that you’re afraid to sleep with me?”

Rick tore his gaze away from her. He picked up his shirt and began to pull it over his arms. “I’ve never been anybody’s first before,” he said. “I’d be terrified of hurting you.”  

“Why are you putting your shirt on?”

Rick lifted his hands, palms up, as though he wanted to ward off some kind of attack from her. “I think we need some time out.”

“This is not a bloody management meeting,” Georgina yelled.

“What?”

“Time out. That’s a management term. When someone decides a meeting is heading to a wrong direction and needs to refocus.”

“That sounds about right,” Rick said.

“Oh, piss off.”

“I’m sorry. I think it’s better for both of us if I leave now. I’ll call you, all right?”

“Coward,” she yelled after him. There was some kind of thud against the bedroom door after he’d closed it behind him. He assumed it was nothing worse than a pillow.

Jesus. He rolled his shoulders as he bolted through the front door and down the stairs. What a close call. A virgin. Georgina had no idea of what that did to a man. Gut-wrenching excitement at being the first man to possess her, combined with the overwhelming burden of setting a standard that others could never match.

But what really made him scared was all those things he’d said and done. All those soft touches and soothing words. 

Tenderness.

Georgina had no idea that he had just shared with her a piece of himself he had never shared with any woman before.

Had not been able to, because he hadn’t known about tenderness until his child had taught him.

Back to top