“One more,” he growls, his pupils blown wide with lust as he stares down at me. His chest heaves with exertion, sweat glistening on his brow and along the column of his throat. “I want to feel you come on my cock one more time.”
And then he moves.
There’s no gentleness this time. No slow buildup. He drives into me with punishing strokes, his hips snapping against mine as he fucks me like he’s making up for eight years of absence in this single moment.
“Look at me,” he demands, his voice rough. “Watch me while I fuck what’s always been mine.”
I can’t look away.
The headboard slams against the wall, while the bed creaks beneath us. His fingers dig into my thighs, holding me open, exposing me to him.
The pleasure is almost too much as he hits my G-spot over and over. When his thumb finds my clit, rubbing in tight circles, I come with a cry.
“Fuck—” His own release hits him hard, his body jerking as he paints my womb with his sperm.
His hands slide up my back, pulling me up against his chest, and he rolls us again—this time keeping me on top with his cock still buried inside me.
My body clenches around him, but he doesn’t move, doesn’t pull out. Instead, his arms wrap around me, holding me close, and kissing me.
He strokes my hair, my back, and my hips. The kiss lingers, soft and deep.
Eventually, our lips part, and I rest my cheek against his chest. His heartbeat thuds steadily beneath my ear, lulling me into a drowsy haze.
I don’t know when I fall asleep. I don’t know when he does. All I know is when I wake up, he’s still inside me.
“Merry Christmas, baby.”
Lifting my head, I look at Ethan. “What time is it?”
“I’m not sure, but I know it’s Christmas.”
I lean down to kiss him. “Merry Christmas, Ethan.”
“Marry me,” he says suddenly.
“What?”
He reaches over to the nightstand. “I bought this eight years ago,” he says, revealing a solitaire diamond. “I was going to give it to you Christmas morning.”
Tears blur my vision as I stare at the ring and think of the future we should have had.
“Cassidy Morgan,” he continues, “will you marry me? Will you help me raise Axel? Will you give us the life we should have had all along?”
My mind flashes to the life I’d once imagined with him. For years, I’d convinced myself that dream was dead, buried alongside my trust and hope. Yet here it is again, reborn in this unlikely place, on this precious morning.
“Yes,” I whisper, then louder: “Yes, yes, absolutely yes.”
He slides the ring onto my finger, and it fits perfectly.
I admire the way the diamond catches the moonlight, then settle back against Ethan’s chest with a contented sigh. “I can't believe you kept it all these years.”
“I couldn’t let go,” he admits. “A part of me always hoped we’d find our way back to each other.”
Eight years ago, I would have received this ring in a very different way. Now it carries the pain we’ve endured, the growth we’ve experienced apart, and the healing we’ve begun together.
“Ethan,” I say softly, lifting my head to look at him. “What happens when the roads clear? You live in L.A., and I’m in Atlanta.”
“I’ve been thinking about that too.”
