Page 99 of Keller

"Keller." My name sounds wrecked coming from her lips. "I'm going to?—"

I don't ease up, doubling down instead. Faster with my fingers. Harder with my mouth.

She shatters.

Her back arches off the couch as her pussy clenches around my fingers in rhythmic pulses. A sound tears from her throat, raw and uncontrolled. I work her through it, gentling my pace as the waves crest and slowly subside.

When her body finally goes limp, I press one last kiss to her inner thigh and crawl up beside her.

Quinn's eyes are closed. Her chest rises and falls rapidly. A flush spreads from her cheeks down to her collarbone.

I pull the throw blanket over both of us and gather her against my chest.

"That was..." She trails off, shaking her head against my shoulder.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

Her hand finds mine beneath the blanket. Our fingers lace together.

The television still plays, forgotten. Mickey Haller argues something important to an empty room.

Quinn's breathing slows. Evens out. Within minutes, her body goes heavy against mine. The tension drains from hermuscles. I close my eyes and let the release and the safety sweep me away with her.

The weight of her body seeps into my bones as the rhythm of her heartbeat pulses against my ribs.

I jolt awake to darkness,not realizing I'd fallen asleep. The TV is black, the room totally dark.

Quinn shifts against me, her breath warm on my neck.

"Hey." Quinn's voice comes out thick with sleep. "What time is it?"

I fumble for my phone. The screen burns my eyes. 1:47 AM.

"Late."

She stretches against me, her body warm and loose beneath the blanket. Her hair tickles my chin.

"Bed." She pushes herself up on one elbow. "Real bed. This couch is killing my back."

I follow her down the dark hallway, guided by her hand in mine. The house settles around us, all creaking floorboards and distant hum of the refrigerator.

Quinn disappears into the bathroom. I hear water running, the soft sounds of her getting ready. I strip off my pants and shirt, leaving them folded on the chair in the corner. My boxers stay on.

When she emerges, she's changed into sleep shorts and a thin camisole. The fabric clings to her curves in the dim light from the window.

"Left side or right?"

"Right."

She slides beneath the covers and holds them open for me. I settle beside her, and her body finds mine immediately. Her leg hooks over my thigh. Her palm rests flat against my chest.

"Today was good." Her words drift up through the darkness. "I got to wake up to your note this morning, and I get to go to bed with you holding me."

"Yeah," I respond, not sure what else to say. I don't know what this is between us, but something about her, about us, quiets something that hasn’t been quiet since I was eleven.

Her breathing slows and then deepens. Within minutes, her body goes slack against mine.