“Hell yes that was great. Did you like it?”
“Nope.” I peck his lips with a kiss and his features melt. “I loved it.”
“Good.” A smile ticks on his lips. “You scared me for a second.”
“I want to do things you haven’t done before.” I stroke his rough cheek with the back of my hand like petting a cat. “Is that possible?”
Ace glances out of the tent for a moment as if he was considering this, and I give a dark laugh.
“I didn’t think so.” It kills me to think that Ace has been with other girls—that he will be again one day.
“You’ll make everything better—everything already feels new.” He melts a kiss off my lips. “Plus, I’ve never done it in a tent before.”
“How about at the falls?” I’ll die if he says yes. I want to be the only one to ever share this with Ace.
“Nope, never at or in the falls.”
“Good. I call the falls.”
“Oh, you do, huh?” He tweaks my ribs a second.
“So you’ve done everything.” I glance down a moment. “I feel like a newborn, like a kitten.”
“A kitten?” He drizzles his lips over my neck. “How about I give you a couple of balls to play with to keep you busy.” He growls into my ear.
“I bet you will.” I wrap my arms around him until we’re facing one another. “Do you feel different about me?” Crap. What the hell is he supposed to say? You had me at that last orgasm? “I mean”—I’m not entirely sure what it is I mean—“do you think we can still be friends without all the weirdness we’ve just created?” Nice. Equate making love to him as weirdness. That’ll go over well.
Crap.
“No, you’re still weird to me.” He bumps his nose to mine, and, strangely, he still very much feels like regular old Ace. “I thought maybe one good roll in the tent would cure it but, nope.”
“Be quiet.” I swat him over the shoulder. “You’re still you.”
“And, you’re still you. Only now I know what the inside of you feels like.”
“What does it feel like?” The smile glides off my face in hopes he’ll say something profound that I could squeeze the fantasy that he might love me out of.
“It feels like home.” His chest vibrates over mine when he says it, and I melt in a puddle of everything I wish we could be. “Like I was made to be there.” His dark eyes drift over mine as if he were sad to say it. “I think this summer fling was the most brilliant idea you’ve ever had.”
Summer fling. Brilliant or tragic—only fall will tell. Speaking of fall, it’s coming all too soon.
“Hey”—I tap his bare ass, and a smile spikes on his face—“you ready for round two?”
I’m not sure whose bright idea it was that we don’t bother with clothes as we streak over to the falls, but I can’t stop giggling as we climb down the boulders disguised as shadows in this post-midnight world.
Ace takes my hand and guides me carefully down the jagged embankment. It’s not until we land at the base do I notice the metallic square in his mouth.
“I see you’re making every effort to try to protect me. I bite the metallic wrapper from his mouth and snap it between my fingers. “You’re always one step ahead. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. And, trust me, I’d rather not use it, but I doubt you want to carry my child so soon in life.”
“Aww,” I tug at his chin a moment. “I’d love to populate the world with a million baby boys that look just like you.”
“And what if they were girls?”
“They’d better have your dimples—and your navy eyes. I’d let them get away with murder.” A hard protrusion grazes against my thigh. “Let’s get in the water before you get arrested, wielding that snake around like a weapon.”
“You think you’re funny, don’t you?” He scoops me in his arms and walks us to the ledge of the granite base where I used to dive in as a child. Come to think of it, the last time I swam here was with my mother.
“Three,” he says, sailing us off into the air. Gravity wraps her arms around us and sinks us into the cold mouth of the water as it swallows us whole. I pop up for air with a scream locked in my throat.
“You!” I splash a wall of water in his face, but he turns and deflects my efforts. “I’m going to get you.”
“I’m going to let you.”
He pulls me in by way of my cheeks, landing his fire-hot mouth over mine. Ace pulls back a moment, washing his gaze over my features.
“God, you’re so beautiful, Reese.” It streams from him as if it were the greatest tragedy.
“Thank you,” I say it dull, unsure of what the right answer might be. All I know is, right about now, my insides are throbbing to have him again. I hold up the condom in my hand, still wrapped in its shiny packaging. “You think this works underwater?” Not that I’d care. I’d have his babies if he let me, starting tonight. I’m on an Ace Waterman high and both the future and my uterus be damned.
“It’d better.” He takes it from me and swims us over to the rocks while biting the wrapper open.
“Here, let me.” I take it from him and secure it over his tip, carefully pressing down until it covers him like a slimy water balloon. “It barely fits. I think next time you should opt for the next size up.”
“There is no size up.” He lands in the water next to me while floating us directly under the soft flowing falls. “Reese”—he runs his heated kisses all over my face—“I want you to remember this always.” He pulls me up until my legs are wrapped around his waist.
I touch my forehead to his. “I promise you that every day I live, I’ll replay our time here at the falls.”
The sky explodes in a lime green ball of powder, followed by a barrage of errant fireworks that light up the night like demonic stars.
“Since this is your first time, having a girl at the falls”—I say it playfully—“I want to make sure you remember it.” I bite down on a smile as I guide him in. “Don’t let me hurt you.”
His chest thumps. “What if I want you to hurt me?” His dimples go off. The moon shines over him like a blessing, and my stomach singes just looking at him.
“Ask and you shall receive.” I fan my nails over his back like wings, and he takes in a breath through his teeth.
“Oh my, God! Did I hurt you?” I spike up in the water, effectively evicting him from my body in the process. Not only am I a novice, trying to pull some serious sadistic moves, but I’m lucky I didn’t pluck his penis off in the process.
Ace pulls his lips into a line. “You’ll have to try harder. But, first, I want you to reach down, and put it back in.”
“Yes, sir,” I say never taking my eyes from his.
Ace flutters his lids as I gently sink myself over him.
“Nice.” He moves us closer to the falls stealing molten kisses off my lips as we cut through the water. His fingers tighten over my waist and he thrusts himself in and out. I ride over his hips while the water sprays over my shoulders like a baptismal rite. I arch my head into the violent stream as my body jostles in rhythm to his.
Ace and I are making new memories, making moments I’m hoping we’ll both never forget. And if he tries, I might just have to lure him right back to the falls and remind him of the magic we once had—that we can have, forever.
He thrusts into me hard, and each time it feels as if his body is saying I love you straight into mine.
He loves me, again, and again, and again.
Our weeklong adventure bumps by in breaths, in the tug and pull of limbs, in kisses that spell out forever and eternity, with the poetry we write with our hearts.
Ace makes eggs and bacon for us each morning, well, late afternoon when we finally rouse from our delicious slumber—not that there’s been a whole lot of sleeping going on.
I made it a point to leave my phone in the car so I wouldn’t have to hear the annoying beep from the barrage of texts I’m most likely receiving. For the most part I trus
“Where does your family think you went?” I comb his hair back with my fingers. I could have said his dad, but I wanted to include Neva in the mix without saying her name. I’m sure just verbalizing it would conjure her up like a demon. God knows she’s doing her best impersonation in every other way.
He lets out a breath as he stares up at the tent. “I told them I was going to screw Reese Westfield in the woods for a week.”
“Right.”
“No I did, but they didn’t believe me because what are the odds?”
“Very funny.” I swat him with a pillow.
“Gavin knows.” His expression sobers up and my heart thumps at the thought of anyone knowing outside of the people I told.
“That’s okay.” It makes it real. My chest pounds at the idea of Ace and I having something real.
“You don’t look okay.” His dark brows narrow in on me and I trace my finger over them, content to be here doing just this.
“I was thinking maybe everyone should know.” I give a little wink to defuse the idea.
“Every cell in my body knows,” he teases, rolling me on top of him.
“Oh, yeah?” I laugh into his mouth as he grazes his teeth over mine. “What if I said that wasn’t enough?”
“All of me isn’t enough?” His dimples dig in, and I have a tiny orgasm by proxy. “Thanks a lot for insulting the hell out of me.”
“Very funny. That’s not what I meant.”
“I think you just want to show off to the other girls at Yeats—make them feel bad that they haven’t seen my mattress moves.”
“I would never do that because for one, you’d have a line around the block, and secondly, I need you to save all of your mattress moves just for me.”
“Come here.” He rolls me onto my back. “I’ve got a new move for you.”
“Are you ready to make love to your sweet innocent bride once again?” I love calling myself his bride. I’d die for it to be true.
“Nope. I’m going to fuck you.” He slaps my bottom playfully. “Get on your knees.”
“Oh, sounds kinky,” I say, complying with his wishes.
“It will be.” His dimples twitch as he fiddles with his never-ending condom supply. It’s safe to say, Ace estimated just the right amount of prophylactics to bring along for the ride. “Bend over.” He gives a wicked grin.
I do as I’m told, landing on all fours.
“On your elbows.” He taps my thigh until I’ve lowered my body. “Open for me.”
I part my knees and brace myself, readying for anything he’s about to offer. Ace rubs his fingers over me and my head arches back in a fit of pleasure. He plunges a finger into me, and a groan wrenches from my gut. Ace said there wasn’t anything he hadn’t done, well, he didn’t argue when I asked, so I can only assume he’s done this with some other girl and a flood of jealousy washes over me. I wish I were his first like he were mine, but, right now, I’m just feeling lucky to be his anything. Ace pulls his hand away and plunges into me with himself a little slower, guided and careful.
“Don’t let me hurt you,” he strains it out as if he were trying to control his breathing. “Does this feel good?” He moves in and out, and I choke out a yes. “Good.” His warm hands land over my back creating heated circles as he throbs into me over and over. His fingers drift down until he’s rubbing over my bottom and my eyes spring wide open. Ace dives his finger in slowly, and I try to protest the idea but it comes out far too unintelligible. “You like that, don’t you.” He gives it in a heated whisper. He wraps around with his other hand and touches me right at that tender spot and I start to lose it. “Wait for me.” He presses into me with his body at a quickened pace, his hands matching his rhythm and my body flexes in uncontrollable spams without my permission. Ace grabs ahold of my waist and bears down over me until a wild groan rips from his throat.
He lands over me softly and holds me like that.
“Damn”—he peppers me from behind with his soft kisses—“you’re hotter than a firecracker.”
“You’re hotter than a firecracker and a little dirty, too.” I bite down on a smile.
“You’re the dirty one because you liked it.”
“I did like it.” I spin into his damp chest. “I like anything you’re willing to give me, Ace.”
Our eyes lock, and the world stills for a moment.
“One day I’m going to give you everything.” He presses a sad kiss to my lips and doesn’t move.
“I thought you’ve already given me everything.” I reach down and rake my fingers over his soft curls. A part of me wants to hear him offer me the one thing that I long for.
“Not everything.” He collapses his arms around me again. “There’s only one thing left to give.” He doesn’t say anything else just starts to fall asleep with his head tucked against my shoulder.
I hope to God the next thing he wants to give me is his heart.
He already has mine.
Ace
The days and nights blur into one beautiful oblivion as Reese and I eventually lose track of them. We’ve dwindled down the food supply I lugged up here by the fourth day, and, after that, I’ve made frequent trips to the vending machine.
“I’ve got another Snicker’s bar to my name, but, after that, I think we should declare a carbohydrate ceasefire and spearfish in the stream,” I tease as she gets back in the tent with her hair slicked from the shower. Reese smells like paradise, vanilla and spring flowers. I probably smell like a sack of shit because instead of heading to the showers I opted to take a quick nap.
“The Snicker’s is perfect.” She lies down, using my stomach as a pillow “It’s Tuesday by the way,” she says it dejected. “For the second time.”
“Shit.” I get up on my elbows to get a better look at her. “That means we’ve been gone eleven days.”
“Best damn honeymoon ever.” Her hand wiggles between my legs like a fish.
“I couldn’t agree more.” I pull her up next to me. “Do you think your dad has a bounty out on me yet?”
“Maybe.” She leans in and bites down over my lip. “But I don’t want to go home. I’d rather be here, doing this with you.” She grabs ahold of my dick and rubs the tip with her thumb. “Nothing back home compares to this.”
“I agree.” I pull my lips across her cheek in one slow line. “I really do, but I’d better get you back to the castle before the king has my balls on a spit.”
“There’s no hurry, Kennedy is covering for me.”
“I promise you, Kennedy is not that good a liar.”
“Crap.” Her eyes widen a moment. “You’re right.”
She tries to sit up, but I reel her in by the waist. “Where you off to so quick?” I hold back the grin waiting to erupt and graze my fingers over her chest before taking off her T-shirt. “I think we should at least give this place a proper goodbye.”
Her hair spills over her chest like a waterfall at midnight, and her nipples peer out like twin pink pearls.
“Where are my manners?” She lies back and slips off her shorts in one svelte move.
“Who says you’ll be lying down?” I pull her up until she’s seated over my hips. I pull on a rubber in record time, and she laughs as I graze up behind her. “Get up here, girl.” Reese rises before sinking over my cock—purposefully slow—watching me with those glowing eyes as I penetrate her, inch by inch. My head knocks back, and a groan rips from me. “Just like that.” I take in a quick breath as her knees lock tight around me. “I’m going to rock your world, literally.”
Reese pulls me in by the back of the neck and drowns me with sugared kisses. Her tongue lashes mine as we rock back and forth, her body falling softly over me in rhythm. Reese and I linger, we hold each other and make it last, before picking up our tempo again. It’s been hardly two short weeks and already we know the nuances of each other’s bodies, the ways to touch, to tease, to bring each other to life in our own unique ways.
I reach down to make sure she’s with me, right where she needs to be before I release inside her. Reese arches her head back, and I bow into her with a kiss over her chest. It takes all my strength not to say I love you—because damn it all to hell, I do love Reese.
After a long while of holding one another, getting lost in the rhythm of our breathing, of our hearts, we pack up and fill the trunk of the Cougar with all the crap I managed to lug up here. Unfortunately, my bruised ego caused Reese to miss the ride and now she has to drive back in her own car.
“Ace.” She gives a hard sniff in my arms, and I pull back to find tears streaming down her face.
“What’s going on?” I brush her tears away with my thumb and tighten my grip around her.
Shit. I did this. I never should have taken advantage of her.
“Nothing.” She gives a soft hiccup. “I’m just happy.”
“You always cry when you’re happy?” More like un-happy. I bet she’s sorry about everything that’s happened. Knew it. I never should have agreed to anything, and if it were anyone else I would have run in the other direction. This is more than some one-night stand. This took our friendship to a whole new level and turned it into a bona fide relationship whether we want to admit it or not.
Reese doesn’t answer. She just rains hot tears over my shoulder, and I hold back the urge to cry right along with her.
“It’s going to be okay,” I whisper.
And for the first time ever, I think I just lied to Reese.
Reese follows me back down toward Loveless, and I can’t help steeling glances at her in the rearview mirror. After days of fusing my body to hers, my boys are already going through some serious withdrawals. I take a turn toward Wilson Bridge just as the sun is getting ready to set and catch a glimpse of the lake bathed in pinks and golds. If the landscape could describe what went down between Reese and me in that tent, that would be it—beauty beyond words that only God could accurately depict.
My body aches, every muscle is crying out for Reese.
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