I exhale slowly.Patience. Patience.“Yeah. Of course, baby.”
I navigate the way on autopilot and pull into my driveway a few minutes later.
It’s not late, but it’s a school night, and the neighborhood is dark and quiet. Down the street, Mrs. Rasmussen’s dragging her recycling to the curb. My little house watches as I shut off the engine, and it ticks quietly.
“Ames,” I begin. “I’m sorry if?—”
“Nothing to apologize for,” he assures me quickly. “It’s all good. I just need a good night’s sleep in my own bed.” He’s halfway up the path to my door before he stops and turns. “This… isn’t my home.”
My patience wobbles a little as I glance around, feigning surprise. “No?” I demand. “’Cause you’re the one who put the wreath on the door. Who picked the color for those shutters. And helped me plant these flowers lastyear.” I tilt my chin at the tulips lining the path, which are bobbing their heads in the evening breeze.
I wish I could connect the dots for him and show him this place has been his as long as it’s been mine, even if neither of us realized it.
But he’s not ready to see it yet. So… okay.
Fucking patience. I guess.
“I’m also pretty sure,” I continue, letting my voice go deep and rough, “it’s time for my next lesson.”
Ames’s blue eyes are washed-out silver in the moonlight as he stares up at me. “Lesson?”
“Mmm. I mean, not to brag, but I think I’ve aced handjobs and showers.” I step closer and slide my fingers into his belt loops. “Surely you have more to teach me?”
“I…” He licks his lips. “As a matter of fact…”
I bend my head and capture his mouth in a kiss. And Ames kisses me back, right there in the quiet yard, bracing his left hand on my chest and lifting up on his tiptoes to press our lips together harder.
He wants me just as badly as I want him, I know he does, so I let him take what he needs without demanding more than he’s ready to give.
Because eventually, Ames is going to realize I’m not going anywhere. That I’m his the same way he’s mine, and that we’ve belonged to each other all along.
If only he can be brave enough to let it happen.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
AMES
“Come on,”Robbie says, tugging me inside the house and kicking the door shut behind us. “I was thinking about getting you alone all through dinner.”
“I can’t imagine why,” I say innocently, though my heart’s racing.
It’s pretty much been racing all night. All day too. And yesterday. And the day before. And…
Fine. It’s been at superspeed since our first kiss. At this point, I probably need medical intervention.
“What comes next in the curriculum, Professor Axford?”
I laugh despite myself. “You’re ridiculous.”
“Sometimes. And you love it.”
I run a hand over Robbie’s face and think,Yeah, I really fucking do… and then a bolt of nauseous panic grips me.
The average person might think I’ve never been happier than I have this past week with Robbie. And they’d be right.
In most ways, our relationship looks like it always has.We get together nearly every night for dinner, except these days, Robbie’s right behind me, pressing his hard cock against my ass while I stir the risotto. We watch TV on the couch, except now his hand’s in my underwear or my mouth is on his cock, to the point where I’ve developed a Pavlovian dick response to hearing the meteorologist on the eleven o’clock news saying, “We’re in for a wet one tonight!” We text constantly—except now Rob’s thirst traps of his abs aren’t accidental and come with captions like “This is your fault” and “fix this pls.”
It’s amazing. Exactly what I always dreamed of.
