“Fuck,” he growled, rolling over to reach into his night stand drawer. He was on his back, and I couldn’t wait.
“Forget about the condom, Braden,” I ordered. I didn’t want that stupid barrier, I wanted to feel every inch of his thickness. Maybe it was stupid, maybe I was putting too much faith into him, but I was too drunk on him to care. Crawling on top of him, I slid straight down onto his long, hard cock.
”Elle,” he half-exhaled, half-moaned, his eyes flying open as he looked at me. “Are you on the pill?” he managed, his eyes fluttering closed again as I slowly rolled my hips. His hands gripped against my skin, stilling me as he opened his eyes.
“I’ve got an IUD,” I told him. I rolled my hips again, loving the way his brow furrowed together and how electric his eyes seemed as he watched me move against him. His hands gripped my hips and he started moving me faster and faster. I rode him as hard as I could, almost collapsing on him when the second orgasm hit me.
Braden lifted me off, and I let out a whimper of protest. He positioned himself behind me and grabbed my hips. I watched over my shoulder as he sank back into me, his eyes watching as he pulled out and buried himself inside me again and again, harder and harder until I couldn’t breathe, until I was screaming his name and coming around his cock again.
He came soon after, driving into me. He let out a low moan, and I could feel him pulsing as he shot inside me.
We collapsed, barely tugging the sheets around us. Braden pulled me into his arms. I fell asleep with my head on his chest and his hand gently stroking my back.
* * *
The next morning, I awoke with a headache that almost rivaled the one I’d woken up with after Tessa’s bridal shower. I was still naked, still in Braden’s bed. Daylight filtered in through the small window, illuminating the room enough for me to see that Braden wasn’t in the bed with me.
I could hear low voices murmuring and someone walking around upstairs, in the kitchen. I became acutely aware of the fact that Becky was probably home now too. She’d had a rare night free when one of Aiden’s friend’s mom’s picked him up from the reception, and she hadn’t come home. I tugged the blankets up over my chest, my mind racing with everything that had happened in the last twenty-four hours. I knew that Braden had meant every single word that he’d said, and I was tired of fighting my feelings for him. Our reunion was everything I knew it would be and more. I knew there wouldn’t ever be another love like ours, and I didn’twant another one. I wanted this one.
But the overwhelming weight of guilt pressed down on me, robbing me of my happiness. In the light of day, all I could think about was the broken heart I’d caused Alex, and how screwed up the rest of my life was. I still didn’t know what I was supposed to do about work, and I knew I couldn’t live with Alex anymore anyway.
I brushed away the few tears that managed to escape when I heard Braden coming down the stairs. He was dressed in a pair of Calvin Klein pyjama bottoms and carrying two steaming mugs of coffee. He sat down beside me on the edge of his mattress. “Morning,” he said, his voice low and deep. I sat up, my hands wrapping around the hot mug that he held out to me. He kissed me softly, while I savoured the feel of his lips on mine.
“Morning,” I practically croaked when he pulled back. I cleared my throat, my cheeks flushing. “Is Becky home?”
“Yeah, she just got in actually,” Braden chuckled. “Looks like you weren’t the only one doing the walk of shame this morning.”
“Who says I’m ashamed?” I challenged, arching a brow at him. There was no way in hell I could be ashamed of what we shared last night. I could be ashamed about how quickly we shared it, and how I’d hurt Alex in the process—but I could never be ashamed of the actual act. He grinned and shrugged, but I could see the uncertainty that he tried to mask behind his dimpled smile. “Who did she go home with?”
“She wouldn’t tell me,” Braden scowled. “Besides, I didn’t really want to hear it. I don’t have time to kick someone’s ass today. I’d rather spend the day with you, doing exactly what we did last night,” he added, taking the mug from my hands and setting it down on the bedside table.
He kissed me again, his lips sliding against mine as he laid down beside me, almost leaning on me without putting any of his actual weight on me. His hand moved up to touch my face. He pulled away to look at me, his fingers stroked my jaw and brushed across my lips, already swollen from our activities the night before.
We made love again. Slowly, this time. Tenderly. Each time he pulled out and sank back into me, he did so at a leisurely, thorough pace, stroking spots that had me climbing higher towards an orgasm in no time at all.
When we’d finished, I curled up against his chest and let my hands trail down the hard muscles, my fingers tracing against his inked skin.
I’d been a part of Braden’s life for a long time, and I knew the hands on the clock were pointed to the time of Deanna Miller’s death. I’d also seen Deanna wear pearls similar to the ones in the design. I wasn’t sure if the skull and the roses had special meanings too, or if Braden had just included them because they looked awesome.
“What are you thinking about?” he asked, his lips lifting in a small, affection smile.
“Just admiring your work,” I told him, running my hands along his arms. They were also essentially covered with colourful designs. Some places had been outlined but not completed.
“You do that,” he grinned cockily, his fingers running up along the side of my breast. “I’ll keep admiring your work.” My eyes fluttered as his lips traced soft kisses along my neck. Even though my body was aching from the strenuous workouts we’d already engaged in, Braden could still evoke pleasure and make me shiver with want.
“We really need to get to back to the farm though. We need to clean up before the party rental place shows up.” I argued breathlessly.
My stomach flipped with nervousness at the prospect of showing up with Braden, having everyone see that we’d arrived together. I didn’t want to have to defend what I was doing to everybody. I didn’t want them to think I was some massive skank who couldn’t even wait a full twenty-four hours after her relationship ended before screwing someone else. Technically, we still lived together, and I was going to have to deal with that fact sooner rather than later.
“Oh God,” I buried my face in my hands, my heart rate thudding out of control.
“What is it?” Braden’s playful expression faded away, concern lining the blue of his eyes.
I couldn’t speak. I felt like something was squeezing me into a tight little ball, forcing the air out of my lungs.
“Breathe, Elle,” he said, his voice strong and calm, his fingers pressing gently into the flesh of my wrist. The pressure grounded me, and I listened to him. I knew I had to. The only way to get past those panic attacks was to remind myself that they were fleeting, that if I just focused on breathing, I could escape the feeling of being suffocated. When my breathing slowed down, Braden released the gentle pressure and brushed my hair away from my wet cheeks. “Do you want to tell me what that was about?”
Swallowing, I adverted my eyes. “I just got to thinking about Alex.”
