He kissed both my eyelids, then looked into my eyes as he pushed in, his hands braced on either side of my shoulders. His muscles were tense, a furrow forming between his eyebrows as he slowly slid into me. My breathing stuttered, the sensation of being filled by him again too good to just lie still, so I started moving and he lost the fight against restraint, thrusting the rest of the way into me and claiming my mouth for another kiss.
The rhythm he fell into almost immediately was punishing but so satisfying at the same time. He wasn’t holding back or treating me like I was fragile. He was taking what he needed and, in turn, giving me exactly what I needed too.
As soon as I felt him swell deep inside me, I went flying over the edge again, holding him to me and whispering incomprehensible words as I came down. Zach thrust two more times. Then that tell-tale low, deep growl rumbled through his chest, and the next thing I knew, he was rolling off me but keeping me in his arms as he lay down on the bed.
There was probably a lot we needed to talk about after all that, but right now, I just let myself hold him. Talking could come later. Maybe even only in the morning. For now, I just wanted to relish the fact that I was back in the circle of his arms, where I was very much starting to believe I was always meant to be.
CHAPTER 31
ZACH
Iwoke up with a start, not surprising considering the fact that I’d slept like I’d been tranquilized. Reaching blindly for my phone on the nightstand, I expected it to read five a.m., but instead, it was two minutes afternine.
What the…
I hadn’t slept this late in, well, probably eight years.
Maybe emotional breakthroughs withtheex and incredible sex are medically significant.
Adeline shifted slightly in her sleep beside me, and when I glanced at her, every functional thought evaporated from my brain.Fuck, she’s stunning.
Morning light shone in brightly through the windows, spilling across the bed and catching her hair where it was fanned out across the pillow. It looked like it had gold dust sprinkled in it.
She was curled toward me, looking soft, warm, and relaxed. Her brow was smooth, her chest rising and falling gently beneath the sheets. My heart tripped over itself as I watched her sleep, some protective beast rising up from deep down inside me.
I’d thought I’d lost her forever, but last night, all those years had simply disappeared. It had been the damnedest thing, but as soon as I’d slid inside her, it’d felt like no time had passed at all. I still knew my way around her body like she was my own personal design, and she still drove me crazy in a way no one else ever had.
Physically, we were as compatible as ever. I’d thought that might’ve changed, but nope. Maybe her stomach was a bit softer now and her breasts a bit bigger, her hips a little wider, and that kind of thing, but she was still the sexiest woman I’d ever laid eyes on.
Watching her now, she felt likemineall over again, and now that I had her back, I was never letting go. I knew exactly what it felt like to lose her and that just wasn’t going to happen a second time. Not now and not ever.
As the thought struck, my phone started vibrating almost violently against the bedside table. I lunged for it before it could wake her, turning the screen to see Alex’s name.
No one called someone who was on vacation at nine in the morning unless death, a lawsuit, or a media storm was involved. Except for Alex.
A phone call from him could mean anything from a catastrophe to nothing, and it was all equally likely. I hit the side button a little too aggressively and accidentally answered instead of silencing it.
“Shit,” I hissed quietly, immediately sitting up. “Alex?”
“Whoa, are you still sleeping? Are you sick?”
“It’s early,” I whispered furiously. “What did you expect?”
“It’s nine thirteen, and more importantly, it’s you. You never sleep in.”
“Because one of you is always calling.” I carefully slipped out of bed, checking to make sure that Adeline remained asleepbehind me. Then I pulled on some sweats and padded quietly across the room. “Just hold on.”
Once I made it into the hallway, I moved a little ways down from the room, but I had zero intention of going too far away from her. If she woke up, I wanted her to know I was close by.
“What’s going on?” I asked. “I thought you could cover everything that needed to be covered.”
When he paused, I suddenly knew this wasn’t about the party Theo had thrown at the Manor in my absence ending up on the news. I also had a feeling this wasn’t media related at all.Which leaves death or a lawsuit. Fuck.
My stomach bottomed out, dropping straight out of my ass when the pause lasted for so long I had to prompt him. “Alex?”
“Yeah,” he said finally. “I’m afraid I’ve got some bad news, Zach. Louis is contesting the divorce.”
Every muscle in my body went rigid. “What?”
