I turn to him and my hands go to his shirt, trembling as I unbutton it.
His chest appears, hard muscle, warm golden skin, a sculpted stomach that makes me gasp.
“I need you,” I whisper.
He growls softly.“I love the way you look at me.”
I pull off his shirt and pull him into a kiss.
When he turns us, the mirror catches us both, and I gasp.
His back.
The tattoo.
Angel wings made of fire, spanning his whole back. A kneeling warrior in the center.
The number 343 inked over his spine.
“So beautiful,” I breathe, running my fingers over it.
“Baby…” Ethan cups my face between his hands. His thumb strokes my cheek, gentle and aching with restraint.“I want you.”
My breath shudders.
“Ethan… I…”
I don’t even finish the sentence.
He pulls me into a kiss so deep it steals every thought I’ve ever had. His hands slide down my sides, mapping every inch of me like he’s memorizing the woman he’s about to cherish. My fingers dig into his shoulders, feeling the heat of him, the power of him, the way he holds me like I’m something too precious for this world.
He lifts me, effortless, like I weigh nothing, and my gasp is swallowed by his mouth. My legs wrap around his waist on instinct, and the sound that rumbles in his chest vibrates through my entire body.
“Summer…” he groans against my throat, voice ragged.“You undo me.”
He carries me toward the bed, every step slow, deliberate, like he’s savoring the anticipation as much as I am. The firelight flickers over his skin, catching the edges of his tattoo, painting him in gold and shadow.
He sets me down on the edge of the bed but doesn’t let go. His forehead rests against mine, breaths mingling, hearts racing in the same wild rhythm.
“Tell me to stop,” he whispers, even as his lips brush mine again and again, barely there touches that feel like promises.
“I won’t.” My voice trembles with truth.“I want you. I want this. I want… you.”
His jaw flexes, something tender and fierce crossing his face.
“Then hold on, sweetheart,” he murmurs, voice low and reverent.“Because I’m about to show you exactly what you deserve.”
His mouth claims mine again as the world tilts and softens around us, the warmth of his skin, the strength of his body, the way he touches me like prayer and hunger at the same time.
The room fades to firelight and breathless whispers, to hands that worship and a love that feels like coming home.
And then, I fall into him.
Into heat, into safety, into us.
And the night dissolves into everything I never knew I deserved.
CHAPTER 24
