“Hi,” he whispers back with a shy smile that I want to kiss off his face.
“I have a better idea for where to store your things. Come with me?” I ask, feeling sheepish about this now in the light of day, with Corey looking up at me, guileless and sweet. I hope he doesn’t think I’ve gone too far.
I hold my hand out for him, and he takes it, his small fingers lacing mine perfectly. I glance at Aidan, and both he and Rain nod back at me before Rain goes up to the flat to join the others helping Emma, while Aidan goes into the café to grab Nancy and take her upstairs, too. I wave at Nancy through the window, and she grins widely, waving back frantically. She knows what I’m showing Corey, and that UncleAidan is staying with her while I do so. I know I don’t need to worry about her getting upset.
I lead Corey across the road, over the green, past the duck pond where we had one of our earliest conversations, and into my driveway. Instead of going into the house as Corey expects, I tug him in the direction of the garage, rounding the corner and through the gate, picking up the garden path down to the orangery.
“Where are you taking me?” he asks, amusement lacing his voice.
“It’s a bit of a surprise,” I hedge. As we approach the line of trees shielding the orangery from view, I stop walking and pull Corey in front of me. Standing behind him, my chest to his back, I wrap one arm around his waist, delighted by the sharp intake of breath I hear, and place my other hand gently over his eyes.
“Keep them closed,” I say quietly, as though speaking too loud will burst the magical bubble we’re in together for the first time in too long. Maybe ever. The spell we seem to be under cast from the sure and certain fact that he’s not going anywhere, there is nothing he needs to protect us from, and we are both, perhaps, ready for what comes next.
I move us forward, Corey taking small,ginger steps so as to avoid tripping and falling.
“I have you, baby. I won’t let you fall,” I murmur next to his ear, and almost instantly, I feel the subtle tension ease from his body. I think we both know I mean those words in every sense.
I guide him up the two crumbling steps into the building and stop him when we reach the centre of the space.
“Ready?” I ask. He nods and presses the side of his face closer to me, and I can’t help myself. I press the softest kiss imaginable to the delicate skin in the crook of his neck. My chest puffs up with pride when I see the goosebumps my featherlight touch left in their wake.
“OK. Three, two, one.” I remove my hand from over his eyes, and he blinks them open, taking a second to adjust to the light again. Corey sucks in a gasping breath as he turns slowly, taking in every aspect of the space.
Three walls of glass give him a panoramic view of the garden and the speck of sea you can just about see on the horizon. The drafting table, the easel, and…
“What’s that?” he asks, pointing to the smaller easel beside his, and the cushion pile in the corner beyond.
“I thought that if you wanted to use this as your art studio—” He turns to look up at me abruptly, his eyes sparkling in the warm, golden glow of the afternoon sun. “Then maybe you might like to be able to paint with Nancy sometimes, too?”
He looks back over to the corner and spots the small painting already pinned to the corkboard attached to the low wall behind the cushion pile. He moves to get a closer look. Three grey seals of varying sizes with pink accessories and names inscribed above their heads – Princess Nancy with a small pink crown, of course, Super Dad with a pink cape, and Rabbit, complete with a pair of pink bunny ears.
Corey straightens, and before I know it, he’s rushing back to me and launching himself into my arms. He sobs as I hold him close to me, a thick lump forming in my own throat.
“I love you, Nash,” he whispers into the air between us, his voice, although quiet, evidently affected by his emotions. “God, I love you so much.” Relief is heavy and enlightening all at once.
“Oh, baby, I love you too. My little rabbit. I’m so glad you’re home.” Hauling him more securely into my arms, I carry him over to thedrafting table, where he opens his legs enough for me to step between them, quickly wrapping them around the backs of my thighs, holding me in place. I take his hands in mine and kiss each palm, then hold both his hands to my chest, directly above my heart.
“I have loved you every day for months, baby, and I’ve been waiting for the day you came back to me. And now you’re here,” I say, releasing his hands so I can cup his face. He keeps his hands where I left them, covering the organ in my chest that beats only for him. “I never want to let you go again.”
“Then don’t,” he whispers as he leans forward, so softly against my lips that I feel his words more than I hear them. “I love you so much, Doc. Now kiss me, please, and welcome me home.”
I don’t hesitate another second.
Twenty-nine
Corey
The way he kisses me says ‘hello’, and ‘safe’, and ‘mine’. Its possession and protection, and I could cry at how good it feels.
He presses forward more firmly, claiming my mouth, pushing his hot, thick tongue into my mouth with determination that leaves me breathless. He swirls it with mine, and I can taste nothing but him. His kiss consumes me, and I wrap my arms around his neck while he pulls me even closer to him, my hardening dick rubbing against his strong torso. I go pliant in his arms, and it’s far too easy to imagine being swept away by his passion for the rest of my life.
Nash holds me to him as though he’safraid I’ll disappear, and when I squeeze my thighs tighter around him, a growl escapes him. The sound alone is enough to make my cock pulse, dangerously close to exploding. Nash seems to sense this, and he slows our kiss before taking a subtle step away, preventing me from getting the friction I need.
“Not here,” he rasps, lust and need roughening his voice. I did that. The thought is intoxicating, and I wonder how else I could drag a reaction from him?
I whine in protest, and he silences me with another press of his lips to mine. He steps away before I can lean into it, though, and I pout.
“Behave, little rabbit,” he growls. “We need to go and get your stuff and bring it over.”
