He doesn’t have to ask me twice.I fall into his arms, nuzzling against his chest as he envelops me. My eyes fall shut, and I breathe in spicy cologne mixed with fresh laundry scent that I’ve grown to associate with a dopamine hit.
I swallow against him, my mind unable to distract it from the single lingering thought it’s toyed with all day.What happens now?We haven’t discussed it or even broached it, really. The only conversation we’ve directly shared about this side of the getaway was in the bar.
“That means that for the next week, you’re mine. But we’ll do it in a way that makes it easy to walk away when the time comes.”
Those words were a beacon of hope when he uttered them last week. Today, they’re about as comforting as a knife shoved between my ribs.
I’m so out of my league here that I don’t know how to act or what to say. He knows I want to see him again. I’m ninety-nine percent sure he wants to see me again, too.So, what’s with the dramatic departure like we’ll never see each other again?
A lump settles in my throat as I try to channel my inner Gianna.
“Okay,” he says, blowing out a resigned breath. He kisses the top of my head and then pulls away. “I gotta pick up Otis from Jasper’s because he and Markie are going to visit Mia for a couple of days. And I need to return a shit ton of phone calls and texts that I’ve been ignoring since someone turned into a sex goddess.”
I tuck my chin and giggle. “Well …”
He heads for the door, and I follow, mildly more comfortable with this than I was two minutes ago. But it’s still a little nerve-racking.
“What day is it? Wednesday?”
I nod. “Yes.”
He pulls the door open, letting the cool breeze infiltrate the cabin. “How about I come by in the morning? I’m sure you have a bunch of stuff to catch up on, too.”
“Yeah.” Nothing that I couldn’t do while sitting on the couch with you … or on you. My stomach churns in disapproval of his plan. “Definitely.”
Brooks starts to walk out but stops before his shoe hits the porch. He pauses, his head hung, before he faces me. His eyes are wary, his lips pressed in a thin line, and it’s not a good look for me.
“I can only speak for myself,” he says slowly. “But I really didn’t expect to come home feeling like this.”
“Well, I can speak for myself and say that I didn’t either.”
Slowly, a lopsided grin graces his kissable lips. “Let’s catch up on life and clear our brains, and then we talk about this tomorrow. Sound good?”
“Yeah. Sounds great.”
He steps onto the porch.
“Hey!” I say, catching his attention one last time.
He looks at me over his shoulder. “Yeah?”
“I’m going to be in a black lace mood tomorrow. Just so we’re on the same page.”
Brooks turns away from me before I can see the smirk that I’ll guarantee is written on his face. But the breeze is too chilly to watch him walk to his truck. So, I close the door and miss proving myself right.
The cabin is so quiet. I can’t help but wonder if it’s always been this quiet or if it just seems that way because I’ve been with Brooks for the last few days. He certainly makes the world more colorful, so it makes sense that he could make it noisier, too. But this silence—the very thing I came to the cabin to enjoy—feels empty. Hollow. Terribly lonely.
I find my computer and carry it to the kitchen table. Then I grab my phone and bring it over, too. Quickly, I scan my inbox, delete spam, and tag each remaining message into groups.Students first.I open the top email while I call Astrid.
“You’re alive!” she says, laughing instead of a traditional greeting. “So, how was it? Give it to me in five adjectives.”
I laugh, too. “Five adjectives, huh? Let’s see … I’d go with huge, spicy, hard, frequent, and bliss.”
“Damn.”
“Listen, I don’t know what sex is like for most people, because I only know what it was like for me with the other guys I’ve slept with. But Astrid—this is a whole new level.It’s a whole new world.”
“I was going to ask if you enjoyed yourself, but that’s been answered. So, tell me things. Where did you go? What happened?”
