I kiss her.
I kiss her, and I let her know everything I feel, all of my plans and thoughts and ideas for what we’re going to be five, ten, thirty years from now in that kiss.
I don’t say it with words because words are going to scare her. All I can do is show her.
And when we break the kiss and her chest is heaving, but the touch of anger is gone off her face, I press my lips to her hair as I pull her into me, and I whisper there:
“You’re kind of cute when you’re mad, you know that, pip?” She scoffs and tries to push away from me with two hands on my chest, but I hold on tight, only giving enough room between us so I can stare down at her.
“We fight, we talk, okay?” I ask, my face going serious. She just stares at me. “Okay, Zoe?”
And then she smiles. A big smile. A wide smile.
She likes that.
“Okay, Zee.”
“Now, let’s go eat so I can take you back to the hotel and get you out of that dress,” I say, taking her hand and pulling her into the restaurant.
But I don’t miss the blush on her cheeks when I do.
FORTY-ONE
SPARKS FLY
-ZANDER-
Her fingers are twined with mine as we leave the restaurant, headed back toward the Jeep and then to our hotel room for the final night of this trip.
Every bone in my body hopes it won’t be our last.
As we’re walking out, I can’t help but wish I could fit something more into this last night.
One last way to convince her we’re good.
One last moment off her bucket list.
And then, like it’s a sign from above, the sky opens, rain falling in buckets.
“Ahh!” Zoe shouts, hands going to her hair that’s already clinging to her in wet strands, as if her little hands will help shield it at all. “Let’s go!” she says, turning toward the lot we parked in.
But I grab her hand, tugging her into me before she can go.
“Zander!”
“We’re already soaked, baby,” I say, an arm wrapping her lower back, another moving into her soaking hair. “Might as well make the most of it.”
And then my lips are on hers.
She doesn’t put up even a hint of a fight, her arms wrapping my neck, lips moving on mine in a sweet moment I hope she’ll never forget.
I know I won’t.
The kiss breaks and her eyes are still closed as the fingers on one hand move to brush wet strands away from her face, then I start to move, swaying to music that’s not playing.
“What are you—” she starts with a smile, but I shake my head.
“Dance with me, Zoe.”
“In the rain?”
“Everywhere. Anywhere,” I say, and the words sound like a whisper in the loud rain.
I expect her to argue.
I expect for her hatred and fear of spontaneity to take over, for her to say she’s too wet or too cold or people might see.
“Okay,” she whispers, for real this time, but I’m always so fucking in tune with Zoe that I can hear her.
Anywhere, everywhere.
And so we dance.
We sway on the sidewalk, dancing in the rain to music that’s playing in our heads, people running for cover all around us, but my eyes never leave Zoe’s.
And hers never leave mine.
It’s only when she shivers finally, the rain cold, winter getting closer the more north we head, that I dip my head, water running down my nose as I take her earlobe into my mouth.
“Is it time to take that dress off you?” I ask, my face in her neck.
She shivers again, but it’s not from cold.
“Yeah,” she whispers.
And then I take her hand and we walk in the still pouring rain to her Jeep.
FORTY-TWO
FALSE GOD
-ZANDER-
We walk back into the hotel, and it feels like a near mirror to the first time I had Zoe.
Walking in, Zoe nervous, me on my way to change her damn mind.
Except for this time, she’s shivering from the cold rain, and I just know this is my last chance to show her who we are before we go home.
“Come on,” I say, moving toward her as she walks into the room. “Let's get you out of this.”
Her smile is nervous before she speaks. “Trying to get me naked so quickly, Mr. Davidson?” she says.
“Your lips are blue, Zo. Trying to save you from hypothermia,” I say with a laugh.
“Oh.”
I shake my head, moving her toward the bed once the wet dress is off, leaving her in just panties.
Light-pink lace panties that I can’t wait to peel off her.
Jesus, this woman is a dream.
My dream.
Pulling back the sheets, I motion until she crawls in, her ass swaying as she does, my cock hardening further as I tuck her in.
“You’re not coming in?”
“You’re my priority, Zoe. Get warm while I get undressed.” Her eyes rove my body as I strip slowly, not because I’m trying to give her a show, but because my button-down and pants are so wet, they’re nearly impossible to take off. She giggles a sweet sound as I struggle with my pants.
“Are you laughing at me?”
“It’s pretty funny watching you,” she says, her teeth still chattering a bit as I open the blanket and climb in naked, pulling her cold, damp body to mine.
She shivers again.
“You’re so cold!” she says in a shriek and a giggle. A sound that reminds me just how crazy I am for her.
As if I need another reminder.
“Warm me up, then,” I say, pressing my lips to her neck.
Her body softens near instantly, arm moving over my shoulder, leg moving over my hip.
And then I put my lips to hers.
It’s not insane, passion-driven, crazed with lust and the need to consume her.
It’s slow.
Sweet.
Like we have all the time in the world.
Her hand moves into my hair, twining with the wet strands, and I move a hand up and down her back, chasing goosebumps.
Slowly, almost imperceptibly, the kiss begins to change.
It could happen over seconds or minutes or hours, but slowly, her breathing quickens.
Slowly, her hips tip up, trying to get some kind of friction.
Slowly, my hand moves to her ass, grabbing her there.
Slowly, her lips move from my lips to down my neck, sucking and kissing and nipping.
We don’t speak as my hand moves between us, feeling how she’s already wet for me.
We don’t speak as her hand moves between us, grabbing my hard cock and running it along her wetness.
And we don’t talk as I slide into her, both of us letting out a sound of pure satisfaction.
And then we don’t speak as I start to move into her, her arms and legs wrapping me as I do.
But I keep kissing her.
I kiss her, and with each thrust, with each kiss, I try to tell her everything.
Everything she means to me.
Everything we’re going to be.
Everything we need to be.
Until it becomes too much, until I can feel her starting to tighten around me, when I feel my balls starting to tighten.