Chapter 270: Sensitive areas
Silas did not do much wood carving. In fact, he did not carve at all for that night, he wished to simply sit and hold Arabella close to him.
It took a good ten minutes for the scarlet color around her face to subside, just as long as her heart needed to simmer down.
She sat in his arms, back against his chest, very similarly to the way they sat upon Chance’s back earlier.
At some point, their breathing rhythm synchronized, their tongues still as no more words needed to be said.
The two of them simply basked in each other’s warmth.
From time to time, Silas would thread his fingers through her hair and brush it softly as he inhaled her essence.
Arabella’s muscles relaxed completely, allowing him full control and knowing full well he wouldn’t try anything that could make her uncomfortable.
Not that he didn’t wish to take initiative, Lord knew his hands itched and ached to feel her tender skin under them but rushing her was never even on his list of desires.
Her eyes rested on the wooden canvas that’s supported by his desk, following the carved waves that weaved lines of history without words.
"Do you feel comfortable?" he murmured right in her ear.
In response, she merely hummed and rubbed the back of her head against his chest when nodding.
"Would you like to leave?"
"No," that time around she shook her head slowly.
"Are you scared?" he asked in the littlest voice a man like him was able to muster.
"No," she repeated the word.
"Even when I play with your hair," he half asked, lips still so close to her ear.
"Yes," she barely whispered.
"And what if...," his hand left her hair and gravitated towards her cheek, "I caressed your cheek like this...," he dragged the last word of his sentence as he stroked her skin ever so gently.
His hand had barely grazed her that her entire body shuddered, prompting all ten of her fingers to curl around his clothes.
"What is it?" he stopped mid stroke to inquire.
"No... It’s just that... Well," even her voice quivered.
"I noticed it the last time I touched your cheek this way," with that he resumed the caressing in an even softer manner than before.
Her breath hitched in her throat again as her eyes fluttered open and shut in seconds. Her knees buckled and back arched as her bottom squirmed thus further pressing against him.
"Yes... Exactly like this," Silas didn’t spare her and abused the power he seemed to have over her cheek, "Will you tell me why you react this way?"
"I suppose...," her voice still brittle, Arabella tried, "My cheeks are simply that sensitive to the touch," she continued to wriggle in his hold since he never stopped.
"And is that normal?" his timbre as soft and smooth as silk, its breathy tone did not help her condition.
"According to the studies I had to undergo, yes. Different people have different sensitive areas around their bodies," she explained, but by then her eyes remained shut.
"What kind of studies did you have to follow that teaches such things?"
The young woman hesitated, digging her fingers into him which he did not mind in the slightest.
Eventually, however, she relented, "I had to take an intimacy course when I was back home,"
As their bodies were connected, Silas sensed the shift in her stance. The way her shoulders slumped coincided with the free drop in her tone.
"Something tells me you did not enjoy those lessons," he suggested, leaning forward a little to meet her gaze.
"It wasn’t the worst, but it was most certainly embarrassing,"
Her entire face flushed red once more. Silas did not press with questions on that matter but kept on fondling her cheek.
"I wasn’t aware of this at all," he chuckled, "The only sensitive areas of the body I was taught about were hit points. Basically, parts of the body to hit first in order to incapacitate an enemy that we want alive,"
"Oh...," she regained some control over her eyes, but they darted from left to right at his confession, "That is very interesting,"
"Would you tell me more about this?" he asked, bringing his lips near her ear once more.
"Well," she took a deep breath before exhaling, "I have only been taught the biology of humans and the differences between men and women. When it comes to intimacy, men can be... Aroused by various means such as exciting specific areas of the body and the same goes for women," her fingers uncurled from his clothes and went to rest upon her own lap, "Some areas are common between most people. For example, touching a man’s thigh could yield such an effect, but some areas are not so obvious or typical,"
"What about women? What are some of the areas that yield arousal in them?" one of his fingers trailed along the outline of her ear, making her shiver in the process.
"The lessons mainly focused on a man’s pleasure more so than women, but I can say the neck is a commonly known sensitive area for women,"
"Are the cheeks uncommon?"
"Probably,"
By then, they both whispered to each other, their breaths heavy.
A very short moment of silence befell them until Silas broke it, "Tell me, what do you feel when I stroke your cheeks?"
"I...," she wriggled a little more in his arms.
"Please," when she took too long to answer he murmured right in her ear.
"I am not sure how to describe the feeling, but it starts in my eyelids... I lose control over them then the sensation slithers down to my stomach, unleashing what feels like butterflies. From there...," she inhaled deeply again, "It spreads all across my body, taking control over my muscles. It makes me feel weak in the knees and...,"
"And what?" he gently urged her when she trailed off.
"It prevents my lower half from sitting still," she admitted very sheepishly.