He nods once. “I plan to shave it off as soon as I get back home.”
I nod at that, but my vision blurs the more I stare at the lock in my hand.
He slides his arms around me, pulling my frame so we’re chest to chest, his warm skin against mine. The slight tremble of his movements tells me that the uncertainty of all of this, of our futures, might terrify him as much as it does me.
“Well,” he says, clearing his throat roughly, “I know one thing for sure. One thing we can count on when there’s so much we don’t know about the future.”
“What’s that?”
“How much I love you,” he whispers into the dark, and I squeeze my eyes shut, burying my face into his neck.
“How much I'll support you, no matter what,” he whispers again, tightening his hold on me. “I know some day we’ll be backin Copper Ridge, back at our farmhouse, sitting on the front porch watching the sunset, and we’ll think back to these days, to these really scary times right now, and laugh at how foolish we were for being scared.”
I chuckle a little at that, my laugh watery and thin. “We’ll say we were such stupid kids, not realizing how fast the time would go.”
“Right,” he agrees. “And when people ask us how we did it, you know what we’ll tell them?”
“Hmm?”
“That all that mattered to us was that we had each other. It’s going to hurt, yeah, but the future we make for ourselves will be worth all the hurt. Whether it’s one hundred miles apart or ten thousand, we’ll still make it work, Mags. There isn’t a life out there for me if you aren’t in it. Simple as that.”
CHAPTER 12
Magnolia
Imust have cried myself to sleep at some point, held tightly in Lukas’s arms, because when I try to stretch while in a half-sleep daze, my body’s still tightly pressed into him. Cheek against his bicep, one hand curled over his stomach, the tips of my fingers tucked into the waistband of his briefs. Like I’m terrified if I let go, he’ll be gone for good.
When I peek an eye open, and the sleep starts to dissipate, I see Lukas, fast asleep next to me.
I study the slow rise and fall of his chest, of the tattoos that cover his upper arm and trickle down to his forearm. With only the light of the moon shining on him, I have to squint to find the small indents left over from his surgery. I run the tip of my fingers over the wrinkled spots before raising my hand, gently sweeping back the mop of shaggy hair that falls over his forehead.
My heart aches deep inside my chest the longer I watch him. I love him so much it physically hurts, even when he’s right next to me. How much more will it hurt when we’re oceans apart?
With a slight lift of the covers, I tuck my hands into the waistband of my underwear, lifting my hips to slide them down my legs. I do the same to my tank top, bringing it up andover my head and tossing it off the side of the bed. Turning to Lukas, I slide my body over his, stretching until my knee hits the mattress on the other side. My bare chest brushes against his, and with his eyes still closed, he reaches a hand up to rest on my lower back.
“Lukas,” I coo, keeping my voice soft. I press slow kisses to his neck, his jaw, before moving to the other side.
His other hand comes to my opposite hip, and he curls his fingertips, digging into my skin. One hand slides over to palm my ass, and he releases a throaty moan when he realizes I'm naked. “My dirty girl,” he rasps, his face moving to find me.
I brush my lips against his as I swirl my hips, his cock quickly hardening beneath me. His grip on my body tightens, and he pushes me against him, his breaths becoming ragged the harder he grinds us together.
I sit up, and when I look down at him, his eyes are wide, and they leave my face after a brief glance to stare at my chest.
His hands slide up my waist, palms covering my breasts. He brushes his thumbs over my nipples, and I arch into his touch, covering his hands with mine to force his grip tighter.
Rising on my knees, my fingers curl under the waistband of his briefs, tugging them over his hips and down his thighs. I don't even bother sliding them down the rest of his legs before my hand moves to grip his cock. I grind myself against his shaft, my pussy so wet I slide back and forth with ease. The hand that strokes him moves faster, and I bump against my clit with each tug, a needy whimper escaping me when it does.
Lukas sits up abruptly, his lips finding my chest, and he pulls a nipple into his mouth.
He licks, bites, nips against my skin, each tender move bringing me closer to the edge. He drags his tongue along my neck, my collarbone. With his broad palm splayed against my ribs he dips me back so he can kiss my stomach, the center of mychest. His thumb grazes underneath the swell of my breast, and he blows gently, eyes darkening when his breath turns my wet nipples into stiff peaks.
“Lukas,” I whine, my head thrown back. He drags a hand up my throat, fingers curling around my chin to pull me back to him.
“So beautiful,” he murmurs against my lips. “My perfect girl.”
I rock my hips possessively, using my grip on his shoulder to push harder, firmer, and I can feel myself growing needier, desperate for my orgasm.
“Fuck, baby,” he whispers, his words a little broken. “You’re so wet right now. Are you going to come like this, sweetheart? Grinding your needy pussy against me?”
