“My next chapter.”
She smiles against my skin. “I can live with that.”
I pull back just enough to look at her. “No more halfway.”
“No more almost.”
I brush my thumb over her bottom lip. “You ready to build something real with me?”
She nods. “Yes.”
I kiss her again — slow, certain, unafraid as I weave my hands through her hair, my lips brushing against hers. And then I need more. I lift her into my arms and carry her down the hallway to my bedroom.
I can feel her heart racing, her breath hitching as I trail kisses down her neck, my hand sliding up her waist to lift her shirt over her head. I lightly dust my fingers over her t-shirt, then cup her breast gently through the cotton, teasing her nipple beforesliding a palm under the hem and pulling down the cup and taking her soft nipple into my mouth.
She sighs, her body responding to mine as I nip and knead, her breath becoming ragged. I work at the button on her jeans, pushing them down her thighs. I'm too eager to wait, spinning her around and guiding her over my bed. I knead her soft ass cheeks, yanking her panties down and fastening my mouth on her warm pussy. I lick her in slow, hard strokes, tonguing her slit and biting gently, adding my fingers to the mix as I sink one, then a second into her. My hand works against her, my mouth sucking at her soaked slit, until her legs begin to quiver.
I hold her waist with one hand, grinding her pussy against my face until she comes hard, her body shaking and her knees buckling. I own her body, slamming her against mine, cradling her against me as I spin and guide us back onto the bed. She kicks off her jeans, and I grip her panties, tearing at the fabric, tossing it aside before I press my cock against her pussy. She slides against me, the feel of her hot core against my thick cock driving me crazy. A mix of lust and need floods my system, desire burning brighter, burning deeper.
"Oh my God," she hisses as the tip of my cock presses at her entrance.
"Your sweet pussy is soaked for me, Tessa." I spread her ass cheeks, one finger probing her tight ring of muscle as I clamp my teeth onto her nipple. I pull on it softly, looking up at her. Lightning bolts of awareness shake me. I know. I know without a doubt. It's her. The girl of my dreams. The only woman I want in my future. Forever.
"Oh my God," she gasps, her hips urging my cock into her body. My fist tightens at her waist, my lips moving to her other nipple before one fingertip sinks into her ass. She sucks in a violent breath as my cock pushes past her entrance, making her mine forever.
"Tessa—" I suck at her nipple. "Tessa, Jesus, you’re so warm and tight. So wet and so hot and so perfect for me. I can't control myself around you—you drive me crazy every damn day. You're so beautiful and sweet and perfect, the way you look up at me with those big, round eyes." I pump harder, my rhythm staccatoing with each word. "You're mine, Tessa. You've always been mine." My hand slips between us, the rough pad of my thumb rubbing her clit in waves.
Her orgasm builds, her eyes shedding tears. She loves me, I can see it in the way she gazes into my soul. And she doesn't even know how much this means, what this is.
"Sweet, sweet Tessa. So beautiful wrapped around my cock, my finger inside that pretty little ass. I want to claim every inch of you, sweet girl. Are you ready for me?" I gnash down on my lip, my fingers speeding up against her clit as her orgasm rushes closer, my cock stiffening as I hit a deep spot inside her.
"I want all of you, Tessa. Show me how much this pussy needs me." My words throttle through her, her orgasm coming fast as she falls over, losing herself in me, quaking and shivering and crying in a violent storm on top of me.
My lips trail across her face, hips pumping as I lick away her tears, suck at her throat, and whisper, "I'm yours, Tessa." She clamps down on my bottom lip, catching me in a kiss with long, languid strokes that send fireworks up my spine. She crawls up my body, arching against me, grinding her core against me until another orgasm begins to build.
"I'm gonna lose my mind with you." I suck at her ear, hands sliding between us as I stoke her swollen clit and then come deep inside of her.
I'm mesmerized by the sight of her, her face soft with pleasure, as I push my fingers into her mouth. My eyes darken with desire as they fall on the heavy flesh of her breasts, cups still pushed down and propping them out. "Feels like I've waiteda lifetime to meet you. Don't wanna waste a fucking minute." I pull her down, kissing her, molding her against me, sucking all the air out of her lungs. "You're mine now, Tessa.”
Fresh tears trail down her cheeks as she nestles against my hard body. She snakes her fingers across my chest, cuddling closer into me.
“Stay with me tonight–in my bed?" I rumble at her ear.
She answers the only way she can. "Yes, Sawyer."
And for the first time since the fire a decade ago, the heat inside my chest doesn’t feel like something destroying me.
It feels like something alive.
Chapter 15
Tessa
one week later
The firehouse smells like smoked brisket, cinnamon rolls, and whatever Axel burned on the grill but refuses to admit he burned.
String lights stretch across the rafters. Folding tables crowd the bay doors. Someone’s kid is chasing a dalmatian puppy in circles around the ladder truck while three firefighters argue about cornhole scoring like it’s a federal offense.
