“Stars are basically massive balls of gas, mostly hydrogen and helium, and they generate energy through nuclear fusion. But when the bigger ones run out of fuel, they collapse and explode in these enormous supernovae. That explosion releases all theelements they created, carbon, oxygen, iron, everything, out into the universe.”
I glance at him. “Still with me, love?”
He nods again, tucking his hair behind one ear, never letting go of my hand.
“Those scattered elements, dust and gas, eventually gather again, forming new stars, new planets. So everything in our solar system, everything we are, comes from that stardust. From stars that lived and died long before Earth even existed.”
I pause, wondering if I’ve gone too far down the science rabbit hole, but then he smiles at me, warm and unguarded.
“Have I mentioned,” he says softly, “how you somehow manage to make chemistry sound romantic?”
I chuckle. “It’s a gift.”
That cheeky, fluttery-eyed look crosses his face, the one that always makes my heart stutter. “And what does that gift usually get you? I bet you've made loads of people fall for you with explanations like that.”
“Actually,” I reply, eyes locked on his, “only one comes to mind.”
“Liar,” he laughs, then pushes back his chair and circles the table, grinning now, wicked and beautiful. Before I can react, he slides onto my lap, straddling me with practiced ease.
I barely have time to register what’s happening, completely caught off guard.
The second he settles on my lap, it’s like a jolt of electricity shoots through me, lighting up every nerve ending. My hands fly instinctively to his waist, just as his fingers curl around the back of my neck. He leans in, our foreheads touching, his breath warm against my lips. Strands of his hair brush my skin, and when he rubs his nose against mine, it steals the breath from my lungs.
He smells like vanilla and the salt of his skin, sweet and earthy and utterly him, and it short-circuits my brain. I’m completely at his mercy. And he knows it.
“What do you want to do, Remi?” he whispers, teasing, lingering just long enough to make me ache, before crashing his mouth onto mine, velvet and cider-sweet, tongue sliding between my lips in a kiss that makes the world drop away.
But even as my body reacts, one thought cuts through the haze:
Before I lose myself completely, there’s one thing I need to be sure of.
Clinging to the last shred of self-control, I pull back just enough to speak. My voice is rough with want. “Seb, baby… you’re killing me.”
He grins, triumphant, ready to dive back in, but I manage to get the rest out before he does.
“If we’re going to do this, if we go all the way tonight, I need to know you’re sure. Really sure. About us. That this is what you want. I can’t let it happen if you’re not ready. It wouldn’t be fair to either of us.”
He blinks, momentarily stunned, then shakes his head like I’ve just said the most ridiculous thing imaginable.
“Remi,” he says, soft but certain. “If I wasn’t sure about you, do you think I’d have come all the way to Cornwall? To your family’s house, no less? I dropped everything to be with you. Because I trust you. Because I want this, us.”
He shifts in my lap, his voice growing more earnest. “I’ve never done anything this impulsive for anyone. Of course, I want to move forward. Honestly, I was afraid you might be the one hesitating, but I was wrong. And right now?” He leans in again, lips ghosting mine. “Right now, I’m the happiest I’ve ever been.”
For him, that’s the end of the conversation. He presses against me with renewed hunger, grinding down until I feel him,hot and hard through the fabric of our clothes, dragging against my own unbearable need. My head falls back as the stars above blur and scatter, and all I can do is hold on.
His tongue finds mine again, urgent, possessive, and his legs tighten around my waist, arms locked around my neck. I slip my hands beneath his thighs and lift him effortlessly, holding him against me like a koala clinging to a tree.
He lets out a breathless gasp, but doesn’t pull back. Instead, he kisses me even harder, anchoring himself to me like he never wants to let go. I stumble into the house, somehow managing the stairs two at a time with him wrapped around me, both of us moaning into each other’s mouths, wild and reckless and completely gone.
By the time we crash onto my bed, tangled limbs and fevered breaths, a sudden flicker of clarity cuts through the haze, sharp, unexpected.
I’ve never actually had sex with a guy.
Still kissing him, I break into a short, breathless laugh. He pulls back just enough to meet my eyes, half amused, half mock-offended.
“Wow,” he says, smirking. “I’ve never had that effect on anyone before. Guess there’s a first time for everything.”
He pouts at me, comically, irresistibly, and I swear my heart flips in my chest.
