“Reece,” he breathed when we parted, shoving his fingers into my hair. “I want?—”
“I know,” I panted. “Me too.”
I hauled him against me, crowding him backwards until he bumped into the far wall of windows with athud.His hands were wild, gripping my back and ass and yanking me hard against him.
When he dropped his mouth open, inviting me in, Itook.With one hand braced against the glass, I wrapped my other palm around the front of his throat and tipped his chin up for the perfect angle.
He groaned into the kiss, gripping the sides of my face in return, and I went light-headed with need.
I couldn’t help but paw at him, roaming my hands over his shoulders, chest, and stomach until it was my turn to grab him by the hips and tug so there was no space between us at all.
Like this, with all of our shared heat, it was so easy to forget he wasn’t alive—that he wasn’t mine to hold forever.
“Fuck,” I panted, dropping a line of kisses along his cheekbone, behind his ear, down the length of his neck. “Do you know how long I’ve wanted this?”
“Probably not as long as I have,” he panted, before gripping the collar of my shirt and pushing me backwards so I was the one retreating, all the way until the backs of my knees hit the bed and I tumbled down, knocking into the window.
“Not possible,” I growled, gripping his hips when he climbed onto my lap to straddle me.
Charlie blanketed over me, burying his face in my hair, neck, and chest. “Possible…” he breathed. I would’ve argued some more if he hadn’t continued, “Hold me, Reece? Don’t let me disappear.”
The request was so needy, so vulnerable, like admitting he wanted to stay, that he wanted something beyond what he’d never thought he’d have again, cut him open, too.
In answer, I banded my arms around him and yanked him close.
We were both hard. Feeling the stiff length of him through our joggers had me crying out to reach down and pull us both out for some much-needed relief, but he trembled and flickered, face hidden in the crook of my neck.
“Hey,” I whispered, pressing kisses into his hair. “Are you okay? We can stop. I’m sorry if it was too much.”
“It’s not too much,” Charlie answered, glassy eyes finding mine. “It’s just overwhelming. Even before I died, I neverthought I’d get to have this. And then you showed up. Iwantthings now, Reece. I want to find my family and go places with you and kiss you and make love to you, and it’s terrifying, because you’re going to leave.”
His words punched me in the gut. “I’m not leaving,” I answered reflexively.
“Of course you will.” He said it with such sad gentleness—there was no blame in his voice, only heartache. “You have a life. Iwantyou to live your life, and you can’t do that holed up in this lookout with me, when I’m not even sure how long I’ll be here for.”
My fingers dug into him, clinging on. “I’m not leaving, and neither are you. We’ll figure something out. I’ll figure something out.”
He stopped trembling and smiled at me again. “I used to curse whatever it was that kept me here all those years. I don’t anymore. Not even a little. Even if this is all we ever have, I’m happy we had it.”
Hot tears splashed my cheeks. “This isn’t all we have, Charlie,” I said, voice rough. “I don’t know how I know that, but I do. In my bones, Iknowthat.”
Charlie searched my face before nodding. “I’m not letting go.” The tight band wrapped around my chest eased just a touch. “I’d go with you anywhere, remember?”
I nodded, unable to find more words. “C’mere,” I whispered.
Slowly, I pulled him back down to kiss him again. He melted into me, and for what felt like ages, we exchanged languid, open-mouth kisses, hands running along each other’s skin in heated touches. Gingerly, he began grinding his hips into mine, pressing our cocks together.
I gripped his waist with one hand to guide his unpracticed movements. He exhaled the softest“Oh,”into the space betweenus with each rocking motion and leaned into where I bit and sucked at his neck.
He smelled like cotton sheets and sex, and I’d never wanted anything more.
“Reece,” he whined. “This is… I don’t know what’s going to happen, I don’t know whether Ican,but it feels—it feels like—like I’m going to come.”
He sped up, knees digging in on either side as he ground his still-clothed cock into mine at a frantic pace.
“Take what you want from me, baby, please,” I begged, enraptured by the way his eyebrows bunched in pleasure, eyes glazed and soft. “Use me to feel good.”
He threw his head back and braced his hands on my shoulders for leverage so he could thrust harder into the movement.
