My hands grab his face, gripping his stubble-lined jaw. His palms curl around my ass, jerking me closer, our hard-ons rubbing together, our chests slamming.
Breath comes fast and wild. Bodies grind. Lips fuse, and we are one.
This is happening. Nothing will stop us.
We kiss till we can’t breathe, till we have to wrench our mouths apart.
It’s as if we both realize at the same time that we aren’t running out of time. That we aren’t trying to fit everything into an hour or so.
We have the greatest gift of all.
More days.
I slow down. He follows my lead. We find a new rhythm, tender and tantalizing. Indulging in passionate, toe-curling kisses that make my mind go hazy.
Then, we break apart, panting, staring, our eyes asking is this real?
I give a quick smile and dive back in for more of Declan.
I brush my lips across his, darting the tip of my tongue against the corner of his mouth. Teasing, playing. Drawing out the sexiest little shudders from Declan.
A desperate sigh here. A euphoric moan there that floats on the night air, drifting out to the stars. It feels like dream kissing, like this is how I’d imagine him and me when my eyes are closed and I’m falling toward slumber.
Sensuous, almost otherworldly.
But so real at the same damn time.
We linger in this in-between state, our lips sliding slowly, our tongues flicking gently, the sound of our soft breaths the only noise. It’s almost like we both know we can have it all. We can have the fire and the heat, the warmth and the tenderness.
We can have it with each other.
My thumb travels along Declan’s jaw, and I separate to whisper, “Love the beard.”
The corner of his mouth hooks into a grin. “I had a feeling you might, so I grew it back for you,” he says, then hums appreciatively as he holds my face. “You shaved this evening, didn’t you? Right before you saw me?”
“I did. I know you like my face smooth.”
“I like you every way, Grant. But even that makes me happy. That you shaved for me.” He nuzzles his nose against my neck, inhaling me again like he did at the tapas bar, when he stole a whiff of me, like he was getting high. This time, he takes a long, deep breath. “My God, I’m so far gone for you,” he says, and I think this might be cloud nine.
Right here.
My heart kicks in my chest, my bones buzzing. Pretty sure I feel the way champagne tastes. I pull apart, needing his skin against mine. I reach for the hem of my shirt and tug it off, tossing it to the floor.
A ragged groan comes from Declan. He stares greedily at me before he covers my pecs with his hands. Curls them over me like he owns me. He flicks at the barbell on my nipple, making me shiver, then making me moan as he drags those rough hands down my torso, spreading over the ladder of my abs, tracing the outline of one of my new tattoos.
“You’re so fucking sexy,” he rasps, letting go and ripping off his shirt too. “Bedroom. Now.”
After I toe off my shoes, I arch a brow, loop my fingers into the waistband of his jeans and tug him toward the stairs. “Gotta make it up another set of stairs if you want me naked in bed.”
He kicks off his shoes. “Mmm. I do. Want you spread out on that bed. You sent me that pic to tempt me.”
“And you have a problem with that?”
“No. I fucking love it.”
“Good. I’ll keep tempting you then.” I turn and head up the stairs, letting him enjoy the view of my ass.
He whistles appreciatively. “Damn. Look at your ass, babe.”
“Five years in the majors doing even more squats every day will do that to a rear end.”
With a laugh, he curls his palms over my ass. “God bless your daily workouts.”
Seconds later, we enter my bedroom, and I flick on the light, slide off my ring and set it on the nightstand, then spin around to savor the view. “Declan Steele. In the flesh. In my bedroom,” I say, amazed, utterly amazed, that he’s here for me. My hands take their sweet-ass time traveling over his chest, his abs, his arms.
My lips get in on the action too, as I dip my face and kiss his pecs, licking his nipples, biting, drawing out harsh moans. His hands grip my head as I explore him with my tongue, then I lift my face, our eyes finding each other. His are shimmering with raw desire, and longing too.
But it’s a new kind of longing. Like he can’t believe his luck. “No place else I’d rather be than with you,” Declan murmurs.
“Be with me,” I say, and the double meaning isn’t lost on him.
“I will,” he answers, in a voice stitched with truth.
My eyes sail down his body, stopping at my favorite part—the hard ridge in his jeans. “Mmm. Hello, big guy. It’s been a long time. But it is nice to see you again,” I say to the outline of his dick.
He laughs, as I grab the waistband of his jeans, my fingers sliding under the material, exploring his happy trail. I pull him close as I fall back onto the king-size bed, bringing him on top of me.
I scoot up across the mattress, and we kiss again, rough this time, fevered, the kind of kissing that’s a prelude to fucking. “God, it’s all so good,” he hums. “I just can’t stop kissing you.”
“Don’t stop,” I say as my hips roll and I seek his touch.
Our eagerness has its own pulse, and it’s spiking as his lips roam across my face, over my jaw, under my chin. I shudder, my body nothing but a lightning rod for desire.
Wrapping my arms and legs around him, I pant out his name, gasp out swears, murmur my Gods.
It’s all so good, so right.
But I need to get closer.
As close as I can.
I can’t stand it any longer—not fucking him.
Breaking the kiss, I push up on my elbows. He raises his face, looking lust-struck, those brown eyes blazing with heat.
“How are we doing this? I’m so aroused right now, I’ll top, I’ll bottom. Whatever you want,” I say, laying it out there for my guy.
“Both,” he says in a burst of desire. “Let’s fuck each other, babe. I want it all with you. Want to feel everything. Just everything.”
I nod savagely, my throat dry, my body an inferno.
Everything is new again.
Everything is a first.
It’s heady and powerful, this night.
Last time around, the sex felt like the start of my adult life. This feels like the start of the rest of my life.
My heart thunders.
My pulse races, powered by more than the physical. It’s powered by the future I can feel starting to unfold with him.
We scurry off the bed, stripping down to nothing. I’m caught in a blur of lust and pure joy as we undress the rest of the way in seconds. Our clothes hit the floor, and I need a moment to admire the man standing in front of me.
“You look so fucking good,” I growl as I stare at him, eating him up with my eyes, devouring the sight in front of me.
Declan Steele dressed in nothing.
My mouth waters as I gaze at his thick cock, hard, pulsing, a drop of pre-come on the tip like a filthy promise. “Missed you so much,” I tell him as I grip his cock, and my entire body shudders. Hell, my soul trembles as I stroke his throbbing dick. It all feels so right.
“Yes,” he rumbles, his hips rocking into my fist. “Did I ever miss you.”