But he doesn’t touch me where I want him to. Instead, he reaches for a washcloth that he douses with soap and then rubs it together so it’s sudsy before running it across my breasts. The friction of the fabric against my nipples makes me moan, and then his lips seal over mine, silencing me with his tongue. The washcloth falls to the shower floor with a splat, and Tyler’s hand slips down my front, over my slickened folds, and two fingers thrust inside me, making me cry out. My heart pounds as the spray hits my overstimulated nipples, and he fingers me, making me forget I just had an epic orgasm as my body turns greedy with need. From his position at my side, his erection presses into my hip. I wrap my hand around his cock, stroking up the length of him. He rewards me by adding his thumb to my clit, stroking me at the same pace I do him, and just when my walls clutch his fingers, his hands fall to my hips, and he kisses me. “Ride me.” His voice is gravel, sending shivers down my spine.
He sits on the tiled floor, palming his erection, the shower hitting his legs. I straddle his waist and lower myself as he guides himself to my entrance. I sink down on his cock as his eyes close, and his head falls back with bliss. He knits our fingers to provide me support and balance, giving me all the control as I move over him, discovering every angle and pace that makes his eyes darken and others that make his control so weak, he has to close his eyes again.
“Chloe,” he calls my name as I speed up, and then his control snaps, and his hips move against mine, thrusting up into me as the need in our bodies builds, reaching highs that teeter between pain and ecstasy before we explode together.
I kiss him lazily, my breaths coming out in bursts as my heart works to settle, and then I’m laughing and hugging him and letting the water from the shower warm me as the heat of our movements wane.
Tyler kisses along my collarbone and up my neck. “When we get back to Seattle, I’m having a shower like this installed in my bedroom.”
“We’ll never get clean.”
“Exactly.”
I kiss his mouth, feeling his smile. And those same three words nearly fall out again, but this time, I erase them with a kiss and then slowly stand.
We take turns washing each other’s bodies, and then I shampoo his hair, and he conditions mine. And though I’m starting to feel guilty for how much water we’ve wasted, I’m still disappointed when he turns off the shower.
Our walk to the Golden Gate Bridge is filled with stories of our childhoods. I learn about how he chose Brighton to gain some space from his parents, and how he hates tomatoes but loves ketchup. I repeatedly ask him to say blueberries and basil and bananas because the roll of his tongue when he says each of them is nearly as endearing as when he says my name. We talk about some ugly things like the time he was beaten up in middle school after moving to America and how his Uncle Kip worked to change his view of women, but years of memories with his grandma kept him grounded. And I tell him about when we were nine and Nessie got separated from us while we were at the state fair and was missing for the longest five hours of my life. But throughout our walk, our fingers remain linked. And even when it gets uncomfortable to discuss something, we continue, peppering in a heavy dose of humor and stopping to kiss so many times we add well over an hour to our adventure. But it only makes it better. I can feel the memories burning into my brain with each smile and shared secret.
The sun warms my face as we follow the trail of hikers up to the bridge. The thick layer of fog that threatened to ruin our view as we began our trek has nearly vanished, leaving a picturesque view of the bay and Alcatraz Island in the background, with the blue sky and orangey-red paint of the iconic bridge. “I’m really glad you were able to take today off,” I say, spinning to take another picture.
His fingers skim my side as I take a couple more pictures of the bay. “We still have two weeks before football starts,” he says. “What if we just stayed for a few more days? Or we can drive up the coastline and add a few days?”
“What about things with Avery?”
He shakes his head as we walk to the middle of the bridge, the cars passing loudly to our left. But they’re barely even a thought as I turn the camera on Tyler and manage to get two photos of him smiling before he grabs my waist and pulls my back against his chest. He drops his face to the crook of my neck and smiles. I snap the picture and another with him kissing me. “I fired him,” he tells me.
I nearly drop my phone. I twist in his arms, a new wave of regret hitting me as I consider how this might have gone entirely differently had one of us had the sense and patience to talk it out in a more constructive manner. “Will that impact your chances of charging him?”
His hands are still on my waist as he shrugs. “Charging him would be a mild flavor of justice, but it wouldn’t get the funds returned. He’s spent the money, and we could try suing him, but we’d likely never see a penny of what he’s stolen.”
“What do you want to do?”
He raises his eyebrows a few degrees. “Bankrupt him. It would take a few calls with his other clients and a couple more to have him blacklisted so no one’s willing to do business with him. Then, I’d turn to the casinos, get him banned from every single one, and Jericho’s games, too.” He lifts just one shoulder. “It would spread, and he’d be chased out of the city. Plus, the people he’s working with deserve to know. He’s likely fucking them over as well.”
“Are you sure he did it? No doubts?”
“Positive.”
“Then do it.”
He blinks back his obvious surprise.
“He stole ten million dollars from you, and like you said, chances are he’s stealing from his other clients. It seems like it would be immoral for you to not tell them.”
Tyler pulls me closer, his hands pressing against the small of my back. “Forget Avery. Are you excited about your event tonight?”
My smile is instant and spreads to his lips. “Stupid excited.”
“Are we going to stay up all night watching it before we get a replay of the shower?”
I grin. “We can, but it’s actually the most visible before the moon fully rises, so ten until midnight.”
“And we’ll be outside?”
I nod. “Astronomers will be inside the observatory, but we won’t all be able to fit, and with a meteor shower like Perseids, the best view is outside. Plus, as much as I love this, it’s far outside of my field of study, so this is just icing on the cake.” I glance at the sky. “Especially if it’s clear again tonight, we’ll have a great view.”
He brushes his lips against my temple.
“I’m hoping Cooper and Nessie still come. I hate when he’s mad at me.”
“He’s not mad at you. Trust me. He just needs some time to breathe and cool down.”
His words are meant to comfort me, but I know he’s wrong. Cooper was irate, and while I might be able to share some of that blame with the situation, it’s my omission that lit the match. Still, I want to believe Tyler’s assurance.
“Let’s get a car to take us to Ghirardelli Square,” he says, glancing at his watch. “We’ll grab some lunch and ice cream, and then we’ll need to head back so we can get ready for your big night.”