She craned her head around. “Deke, don’t you even say that.”
He gave that gorgeous ass of hers a nice smack. “You don’t get to tell me what to do when we’re in the club. I can have fun with my role as your himbo.”
“You are not…” she started and stopped when he slapped her ass again. “Damn it, Deke. We should talk about this.”
“You say that because you already came,” he pointed out, reaching for a condom. They were going to address that and soon. She was on birth control and he hadn’t had a sexual partner since his last checkup, but he’d already discussed a lot with her this evening so he rolled that sucker on and climbed up behind her.
“You’re not some piece of ass,” she insisted.
That was his baby. He was the one who confessed he’d fucked up their young lives, and she was defending him against himself. She needed to understand that no matter what happened, he was okay with it as long as they were together. “We can play any way we like. Maybe I like the thought of being your on-call guy. You just call me up and I’ll be there, baby. I’ll be thinking about fucking you all day.”
She whimpered as he forced her legs further apart and gripped the sides of her hips. “It’s going to be hard to do your job if you think about fucking me all day.”
Oh, she wanted to test him, did she? He rubbed his cock against her pussy. It was so fucking wet, and he could still taste her on his tongue. “Well, it might take me a while to find a job out here unless Big Tag wants to start a West Coast branch. Don’t move, baby. Fuck, you feel good.”
“Deke, I love that you’ve been honest, but I’m not sure it can work,” she said even as his cock started to penetrate. She took a short breath, her hands gripping the bindings.
He’d done a number on her. He’d lied to her all those years ago, and that could make a person shy about jumping in again. “We’ll make it work, and we can go as fast or slow as you like.” He gave her a good example of how nice slow could feel. He slid his cock deep inside, letting her feel every inch. “If you want we can get married tomorrow.” He pulled out and then back in, three quick strokes. “Or I can find a place out here and we’ll date.” He slowed the pace again. One easy stroke, and then again. “Any way you like.”
The way she was bound made it easy for him to move her body in the rhythm he chose. She sighed as he eased in and out. “You know I like it both ways. All the ways, Deke. All the ways with you.”
That was what he wanted to hear. “You don’t have to decide. You only have to let me stay close. Husband. Boyfriend. Casual date.” He picked up the pace. “I can do them all. I won’t stay casual for long. I’ll make you want me in your bed every single night. I’ll make you think of how good it would be to have me fuck you every night before you go to sleep and to wake up with me inside you all over again.”
She pressed back against him. “I think I need fast right now. God, Deke, I need you.”
He needed her, too. He fucked into her, giving her what they both required. They needed to be connected. He let himself feel for a moment, feel the way she cradled him, the heat she sent all along his skin, the safety there was in this one woman. She felt so good, but something was wrong with the position.
He pulled out, drawing back so he could manhandle her a little. He’d prepared for this moment.
“Hey,” she began.
He gripped her legs and flipped her over on her back, never having to reposition her bindings.
Maddie’s eyes were wide as she looked up at him, her legs spread and nipples hard. She loved it when he was the tiniest bit rough with her. With her arms over her head, her body was perfectly laid out for him. She was the most tempting woman in creation, and he was not about to resist.
He covered her body with his, bringing their mouths together. Kissing Maddie made the world drift away. When they were together, the world narrowed down to the two of them, and nothing else mattered. He kissed her even as his cock found her pussy and he thrust home.
Her legs wound around his waist, and she met his rhythm.
Then all he could think about was the woman he’d loved most of his life and how perfect she felt wrapped around him.
Deke moved inside her, letting her silky heat draw him in again and again. He fucked her in the sweetest way, merging their mouths, their bodies, their souls.
She gasped and her legs tightened around him as she came, her whole body going taut. He kissed her, taking in her cries and calls. Then it was his turn. He felt his balls draw up, felt every bone seem to melt as the wave hit him.
He collapsed on top of her, still connected. A sense of peace flowed over him, and he was ready.
Ready to commit to her and everything that meant. Ready to start the rest of his life.
And he was ready to share everything with her.
She was quiet as he unbound her hands and refixed the hook, quiet as he moved to the bathroom and dealt with the condom. His baby was thinking, and he was going to give her even more to think about. When he pulled back the covers, she let him pick her up and tuck her inside. She curled against him when he joined her.
He breathed in her scent, so familiar and comforting to him. He wasn’t sure how he’d lived without her.
“I thought we were going to eat dinner,” she murmured.
“Not yet.” He had a story to tell her. “I was scared when I realized I’d gotten cut off from my squad.”
She went still. “Deke, you don’t have to tell me.”
“I think I didn’t want to tell you because I could pretend it wasn’t real if you didn’t know. Not what happened to me but the fact that you still don’t know how close I came to breaking. More than close, really. I was willing to tell them anything. I’d decided to. I wanted them to kill me because I couldn’t take another second of the pain,” he admitted. She was the first person besides Kai Ferguson he’d ever said the words to. Not even his parents knew what he’d gone through. And yet, it was okay now. He wasn’t back there. The memories weren’t as sharp with her in his arms. He’d survived and now it was a story, a piece of him that should be made known to the woman who should know all of him.
“Deke,” she began, and there were already tears in her eyes.
He brushed them away and kissed her forehead. “The only thing that got me through was the thought that I could see you again. You were in my dreams. I might have been a prideful, foolish boy, but I have always loved you, Madeline. So let me tell you what happened. Share it with me so it doesn’t feel like something I should hide from you.”
She nodded and settled back down, her arms around him.
And Deke told her everything.
Chapter Thirteen
Four hours later, Maddie still couldn’t quite stop thinking about what Deke had been through.
Or what he was offering her. He wanted to stay no matter what happened. Even if they figured the whole case out tomorrow night, he wanted to remain in California with her so they could try to make this relationship work.
I cost us too much time, baby.
He’d whispered the words as they’d lain there in bed. Was it her time to let fear cost them?
“Does it meet your expectations?”