His lips crash against mine, and his fingers grip my hips, pulling me as close to him as we can get to one another, allowing me to feel every inch of him.
We spent the past four weeks building to this moment, to a singular blip in time that I will always remember, that I will always cherish. The feel of him as his heart beats against my palm and the heat of his skin as I drag his shirt off his body.
There are memories that won’t just always be remembered, but are impossible to forget.
That’s how I know that Arlo Larson is my forever. Because with each touch, each kiss and caress, I cannot imagine a future without him in it. In the moments between losing pieces of our clothing and baring ourselves to each other, flashes of a bright future rip through my imagination.
I want to savor each one and embed them in my soul so I can make every single one come true. He treats me like a queen, his lips lingering on my skin, his teeth grazing each curve.
Then he moves inside me, with me, stealing every single last thought and breath until nothing more exists between us, until our lives intertwine and the world fades away.
All because the universe decided enough was enough and directed me down a path I never would have chosen toward a life I never dreamed possible, catapulting me into a love that I’m only just beginning to scratch the surface of, full of passion and devotion.
That darn skunk began something by darting into the road one day, and I can’t help but wonder if he knew this would happen when he sprayed us earlier.
I’m pretty sure animals have that sixth sense that we humans just don’t have.
I’ll have to reward him later, a long time later. After we burn our clothing.
Oh, and after we take that tomato bath.
CHAPTER 28
Best.Night. Ever.
All right, okay.
Yeah, no, it was the best night of my life. I didn’t just connect with Arlo on a whole other level, if you know what I mean, but we connected on a spiritual level.
So now I sound like one of those hippy girls with a daisy in her hair, which I would be fine with. I’d need a long, flowing lace dress, but preferably not white because, let’s face it, I’m not there yet.
That’s what having an incredible partner does to a gal. It makes them dream of the future and white dresses.
Swoon.
We took that tomato bath, and honestly, I’m not really sure it worked. That led to a midnight call to the local grocer asking for dish soap and baking soda, which helped. The scent still lingers, and after our soapy chemical shower, we burned our clothing at two in the morning in the beautiful junkyard that isn’t at all a junkyard but a small garden with used parts full of plants.
I was far too cold to stay there too long, and in the end, I came in, where I promptly fell asleep across Arlo’s chest.
We slept in, enjoying the Sunday vibes, waking to a stream of sunlight shining through the skylight.
Sore in all the right places, I burrow further into Arlo and the heat that wafts off of him.
“Morning.” His voice drifts over my senses as his chest rumbles, making everything inside of me tingle in happiness and pleasure.
“Afternoon,” I correct, unwilling to open my eyes and find out that everything that happened in the last twenty-four hours was a dream, because I refuse to allow that to become an option.
I’m making my dreams manifest like a yogi.
Arlo grunts, leaning over to grab his phone to check the time before he drops it and allows it to clatter back to the floor. “It’s almost one.”
“Any important messages?” I snuggle further into him.
“My sisters are spoiling Lark as though she is officially theirs.” His voice is hesitant, almost as though the words he speaks is a future I’m not ready to promise.
But it is. I’m ready and willing to make that promise.
I lean up, propping myself on my hands as I stare at him from beneath my lashes. “Isn’t she?”
