“Where are we supposed to put them? We don’t hav—” I stop talking as he leans over the other side of his bed and lifts a box off the floor. Not just any box. Our box. Once again tonight, I am at a loss for words.
“How?” I ask him, completely dumbfounded.
“A few days before you left Draveport to come to HHU, I flew there to get our box. You didn’t think I would plan to do this without the rest of our wishes, did you?” he asks, as if my questioning him is entirely ridiculous.
“You flew all the way to Draveport to get our box of butterflies?” I’m bewildered by the level of commitment this man has to making me happy.
He cups my cheek. “I would fly across the world a thousand times over if it meant seeing you smile, Vixen.” I lean into his warm touch, the happiest I’ve felt in such a long time.
“Thank you,” I whisper and place a kiss in the centre of his palm. He smiles, and I feel completely whole. He picks up two birthday candles from his nightstand and places them in our cupcakes. Lighting the first one, he hands it to me while I wait for him to light his own. We make our second wishes, closing our eyes and blowing out the candles. Eating our cupcakes, we sit in silence, as if it’s a part of some grand ritual. Everything is done the same way as we once had. We won’t bury the box this time, but I trust Aussy to guard it with his life, as if he’s guarding my heart.
“I have one more thing for you,” he tells me and opens up his nightstand drawer. He pulls out a long, black velvet box tied with a silk black bow on top. My eyes jump to his.
“Aussy, no!” I protest. “I didn’t think we were getting each other gifts!” I exclaim, feeling embarrassed that I didn’t get him anything.
“You are my gift, pretty girl. There is nothing I could ever want more,” he assures me. “This,” he shakes the box, “I’ve had tucked away for three years now.” He fiddles with the bow on top of the box. “I’ve never stopped thinking about you, Vix.” He hands me the velvet box.
“Happy birthday, baby,” he says softly. I take the boxfrom his hands, my own fingers trembling. When I open it up, I see a beautiful, north star pendant on a silver chain.
“Aussy…” I start to say, but he shakes his head.
“Now, no matter where you are on our birthday, you’ll always have a third wish with you. Your own shooting star.” I don’t hesitate, I jump across the bed, arms flying around his neck.
“I love you,” I tell him. Not caring if it’s too soon, not caring if he doesn’t say it back. I’ve waited so many years to feel the way I feel in this very moment with my best friend in the entire world. I’m not letting another second slip away.
“You-you do?” he stammers, and I nod, smiling. Finally feeling whole.
“I love you, Austin,” I repeat, and he leans forward, taking my face in his hands, searching my eyes for the truth in my words. “I just wanted you to know. I know it’s a lot, I know we’ve just started… this, whatever this is. But I need you to know how I feel about you. I love you.” I’m breathless and talking fast. Anxiety is starting to form within me.
“I love you too, Vixen,” he says. “This,” he points between us, “Isit.” I swallow the lump in my throat. He grabs me by the waist and pulls my body beneath him on the bed, crashing his mouth into mine in a claiming, possessive kiss. I pull back, just an inch, heat flushing my cheeks.
“Are you sure you want to do this? I thought we were taking things slow?” I bite my lip, placing my hands against his chest. My eyes drop to his mouth, avoiding the fire in his gaze. A hand cups my face, my chin lifting ever so slightly so that my eyes find their way back to his.
“I have never wanted anything more in my entire life, Vixen.” Gripping the back of my neck, he pulls my face close to his.
“It’s you and me, always.” His lips press against mine, hard and demanding, stealing the very breath from my lungs like a man starved. He reaches down with his other hand and grips under my thigh, lifting my leg and pushing his hard length into my core as if he’s been waiting for this moment to claim me, until I am ready to surrender to what is inevitably meant to happen.
This is really happening. For so long, I tried to deny how I felt for him. Throughout my entire life, I have tried to push away any semblance of hope I had of connecting with another being who looks at me the way Austin does. He has a hunger within him that can only be satiated by the taste of my undoing. He’s going to ruin me, and I’m going to surrender without thinking twice.
Our kiss deepens as he runs his hand up my neck, gripping the back of my head and fisting my hair. Breaking contact, he backs away, slowly, and stands at the end of his bed. He grabs my calves and pulls my body down with such force. His dominance fills the air, thick and intoxicating, and I can’t stop the whimper that escapes me.
Hovering over my body with our mouths connected once again, tongues clashing, unwilling to break away for even a second, our bodies move, heat building between us. He releases his hold on my hair and stands over me, lust in his eyes and a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips, as if he’s admiring the view.
He drags his fingers down the length of my body, meeting the hem of my dress. Lifting my arms above my head, permitting him to undress me, he lifts the dress and drags it off of me with a gentleness you wouldn’t expect from someone of his stature.
“No bra?” He quirks an eyebrow. I shake my head, and a cheeky grin stretches across his face like a teenage boygetting to second base for the first time. He runs a thumb over my pebbled nipple, giving it a little pinch.
“Fucking perfect, Vixen.”
Austin trails his finger down the center of my body, meeting the edge of my panties. He rubs the outside of the fabric in a deliberate, circular motion, soaking up my arousal. My arousal for him.
“Is this what you want, Vix? You’re so wet, like your pussy is begging to be devoured. To bemine.”
I nod my head, my breathing heavy and laboured. I’ve never wanted anything more. He removes my panties from my pussy and grips my hips with both of his hands, dragging my body to the edge of the bed. Trailing kisses from my calf to my inner thigh, our eyes never leaving one another, he glides his fingers between my legs and runs two fingers straight through my glistening heat. He slides them up and down, coating himself with my wetness.
Pushing one finger inside of me, I arch back against the mattress, desire rolling through me in waves. It’s everything I’ve ever wanted, yet not nearly enough. Need blooms inside of me, my lust for this man pooling in my core.
“You like that, Vix?” he asks as if he doesn’t already know I would give anything for him to keep going.
