“Beautiful.” The word coming from his final grunt was so many things—a plea and a promise and…everything.
The word was everything.
“Thank you,” she whispered against his earlobe.
“Thank you, Trav.”
They were sweaty and spent as he rolled off her, pausing to press a kiss against her temple before he said, “Condom,” and left the bed.
The bathroom light flickered on and she closed her eyes. Reality began seeping in centimeter by centimeter.
She’d just had amazing sex. With Travis.
Travis.
The faucet turned on and off and…no, they couldn’t stay like this.
The kids were coming home. They’d need her. Then Evelyn might come looking and figure out what they’d done.
Rachel usually kept her phone with her for clients in case they had an emergency.
She should get dressed and go back to work.
That’s what she should have done, but instead she climbed between the sheets, and that small movement took everything she had, because her bones had turned to mush. Sleep pulled at her.
Gah, sleep called. Maybe she could take just a little nap.
Nothing big.
Her eyes fluttered closed. She was pretty sure she was three-quarters of the way to REM when the bed moved, and Travis was there.
“Open your legs,” he said, the words gruff but filled with peace.
She did as he asked because…what else was she supposed to do?
She opened her eyes as his warm-washcloth-covered hand stroked between her legs.
Travis cleaned up his own messes? She stilled but didn’t say anything. Unsure of what to say.
Finally, she settled on, “Thank you.”
He tossed the washcloth off the bed and settled in behind her, holding the spot of the big spoon.
Not taking the time to dress, they were both naked, and she was so tired, and he was so warm, and this was so intimate.
What they’d done was intense and fun and…yeah. But this? This was beyond that.
“What are you thinking?” he asked.
“How do you know I’m not asleep?” she responded.
“You think really loud.” He snuggled in deeper.
“I’m just wondering why you get to be the big spoon,” she said as the sleep that she’d nearly had before started to pull at her again.
“You’re such a goof,” he murmured against her hair.
“Hey, Trav?” She yawned.
