His pants come off next. I try to keep my expression neutral, but I fail because he’s hard and looking at me like I’m the only cure.
“Your move, Addison.”
I hold his gaze as I reach for the hem of my dress and pull it over my head in one smooth motion. I’m not wearing a bra, and I watch his expression shift from smug to hungry in a single breath. I hook my thumbs in my panties and slide them down, stepping out without breaking eye contact.
“Checkmate,” I say.
“Fuck.” The word comes out strangled. “You’re?—”
“Adequate?”
He closes the distance between us in two strides and kisses me hard enough to steal the air from my lungs. “Fucking gorgeous,” he says.
His hands are everywhere—my waist, my hips, cupping my breasts,like he can’t decide what part of me he wants to touch first. I press against him and feel the length of him against my stomach.
“Jump in,” he manages against my mouth. “The water is warm.”
“At the same time?”
He pulls back, grabbing my hand. “On the count of three.”
“One, two, three,” I say.
We take off running, jumping in, holding hands.
We land in the pool, and Louis doesn’t let go of me until we’re back at the surface, laughing and sucking in air. The water is warm, and my body relaxes as we tread water.
One of Louis’s hands slides around me, and our mouths slide together. My arms wrap around his neck, and when we’re like this, the world and everything that comes with it feels a million miles away.
“This. Us. It feels good.” I meet his eyes. “I’ve built my whole life around being independent. My art, my career, my identity. None of it ever required anyone else. And now I can’t imagine going back to who I was before I met you. That terrifies me.”
His thumbs trace circles on my hip bones beneath the water.
“You want to know what scares me?” he asks.
I nod.
“That I’ll fail you. That you’ll give up everything for me, and I won’t be able to protect you from the shit that comes next. My family, the council, the press—they could try to destroy you. Not because you’ve done anything wrong, but because you’re not what they planned for me.”
“I know what I’m agreeing to,” I say.
He cups my face, tilting it up so I have to look at him. “You shouldn’t have to deal with the shit that follows me everywhere. You deserve someone who can give you everything without conditions or complications. Being with me makes you a target, Addison. Most people can’t handle that.”
I grip his wrists. “I’m not most people.”
“Even if it costs you everything?”
“Even then.” I exhale slowly. “It’s going to make a hell of a story.”
“Anything for the plot, right?” he says, winking.
“Anything for the adventure,” I tell him. “Anything to be with you.”
He kisses me, and this time, it’s much slower, like he’s trying to memorize the shape of my mouth and the taste of my tongue. I meltagainst him. The warm water swirls around us, and I feel heat from the inside out.
His mouth trails down my jaw to my neck, and I tip my head back, giving him access. Louis is kissing and sucking and gently nibbling my skin until I’m practically squirming against him.
“Louis.”
