by Ana Ashley
"Which one?"
"About the moving thing."
My heart rate suddenly sped up, and my breathing stopped.
"Yes, I would consider it." Charlie smiled.
"Yes?"
"Yes."
24
Charlie
A year later
"Babe."
"Hmmm, sleep," I muttered under my breath. I was far too comfortable to wake up.
"Babe."
Strong hands caressed my back until they came around the sides and tickled me until I had no choice but to wake up.
"Fuck you, Kris, I was having a nice dream," I said between giggling like a schoolgirl and trying to escape his torture. "What happened to waking me up with kisses?"
"It didn't work. I've been kissing you for the last twenty minutes, and you didn't even stir. I was starting to feel like a creep."
To be fair, in the last six months since I'd moved to Lydovia to live with Kris, there wasn't one day I hadn't woken up to kisses and soft touches.
I moved to catch Kris's hands and felt no resistance when I laced our fingers above Kris's head and took his mouth in a hungry morning kiss.
Our erections rubbed against each other, gliding easily with the help of our combined pre-cum.
I straddled Kris and took both our cocks in hand.
"Leave them there." I nodded toward Kris's hands.
"I love it when you take charge," Kris said, pushing his hips up to encourage me to continue stroking us both.
How we even had any energy left was anyone's guess when the reason I was struggling to wake up was because Kris had kept me up late the night before.
"You do, do you?" I teased, applying less pressure now but continuing to stroke us both.
"Fuuuck, Charlie. Please, baby…"
"What do you want?"
"You know what I want," Kris said between short breaths.
"Okay, okay, but only because I'm hungry and breakfast is on you today."
Kris opened his mouth to reply, but after a year together, I knew exactly what to do to bring my prince to climax.
"Do you have any regrets about moving here?" Kris asked while we caressed each other lazily in our post-orgasmic bliss.
"No." And it was the truth. The last year had been such a rollercoaster ride for me, and it hadn't always been easy, but it was definitely worthwhile.
After Hannah and Ellie's wedding when Ceecee's article had come out, my life had changed completely.
I'd attended the president's ball as Kris's plus one. That had been my first exposure to Kris's life as a royal. I'd been terrified, but just as he'd promised, Kris had been there every step of the way.
Going back to work had proved a challenge. Everyone was interested in the department store manager that had stolen the heart of the prince of Lydovia.
After I had lost track of how many times I'd served a customer who'd turned out to be a member of the press trying to interview me, I'd decided I had no option but to quit. Originally, I'd panicked because, without a source of income, I couldn't help Tom pay our rent and bills. That was until Kris had convinced me I didn't need to worry about money.
I hadn't been happy about it, and Tom even less, because when Kris had more or less moved into our apartment, Tom had declared he was allergic to love and went to visit Aunt Gina. After two nights in bed with Kris, I'd been ready to agree to anything.
"Right," Kris said, slapping my bare ass, "up time."
I groaned. I loved spending whole mornings in bed with Kris. Yes, it was indulgent, but after spending six months mostly apart while we'd lived in our respective countries, I just wanted Kris all to myself.
When Kris promised an afternoon out doing something fun, the last thing I thought I'd end up doing was hanging halfway down a wall attached to a piece of string attached to a metal bar.
Okay, it wasn't quite like that, but I hadn't gone climbing since that day after I'd met Kris at the Old Mill, and that fear I'd had the first time had returned.
I knew I wouldn't fall and that Kris had made sure our equipment was safe, but there was something about the possibility of falling that really played on my mind.
"You're doing great, baby. That's it," Kris shouted from the bottom of the wall where he was belaying.
"A picnic would have been nicer," I shouted back.
My legs shook as I struggled to put my weight on them rather than using my hands. I could almost hear Kris's voice in my ear, "You have more muscles on your legs than on your fingers, use them."
"Yes, honey, I am trying, but this is fucking hard," I muttered to myself.
Despite my muscles aching under the unusual strain, once I was past a certain point, I focused on reaching the top. I wasn't going to be defeated by a wall or goddamned gravity.
"You're nearly there, baby," Kris shouted.
I could see the last few moves to the top would be challenging because I didn't see how I could make such a big jump between the holds, but then I remembered how I'd overcome that the first time I'd climbed. I looked around and studied the wall. There were a few good footholds, so all I needed to do was take small steps until I could reach the big handhold at the top.
I took a deep breath and gathered the last bit of energy I could find, and within seconds, I'd reached the top.
"Wooooooo," I shouted, one hand punching the air in victory.
As I was about to ask Kris to lower me down to the floor, I saw an envelope stuck to the top of the wall. It had my name written on it.
I looked down and saw Kris tightening the rope so I could sit on it safely. It still took a moment until I was confident in releasing both hands from the wall.
I opened the envelope, and inside was a message written in Kris's handwriting.
My dearest Charlie
A year ago, today, and so shortly after we met, you put all your trust in a stranger to keep you safe. You faced the challenge of climbing the wall like you do everything in your life, head-on, plenty of fear, but even more courage.
I knew the moment you bumped into me that you were special. There was something about you I couldn't seem to shake off, and I was as attracted to you as a moth is to a flame.
You always say I give you too much, but that's not true, my love. You have given me your family, your art, your view of the world, and especially, your heart.
Charlie Williams, would you do me the honor of marrying me?
Your love always,
Kris
I could barely read the last part of the letter because of the tears in my eyes, and I couldn't even clean them because my hands were dirty with chalk.
I looked down to see Kris on one knee, one hand holding my rope safely and the other holding up a ring box.
All I could do was nod.
Moments later, I was being lowered down. My feet hadn't quite reached the ground when I threw myself at Kris.
"Yes, yes, yes," I said between kisses. "A thousand times yes."
Kris held me tight and spun us around.
"I love you so much, baby," Kris said against my lips.
"I love you too. If only I'd known that to catch a prince, all I needed was to fall on one," I said, feeling happier than I ever thought was possible. "Now untie me so we can go make out in the shower."
"With pleasure," Kris said as he put one ring on my finger and the other on his own.
I'd never seen Kris move so fast. I could only hope that Kris's private hire of the gym included the showers and changing rooms.
As I held Kris's hand and felt our engagement rings rubbing against each other, I had a vision of our wedding day in the palace gardens with both Kris and my families together, watching us marry under a wooden arch decorated with purple wisteria.
Thank you for reading Kris and Charlie’s story! The next Chester Falls book will be coming out on January 28th, 2020.
To pre-order right now, click here!
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About Ana
Ana Ashley was born in Portugal but has lived in the United Kingdom for so long, even her friends sometimes doubt if she really is Portuguese.
After getting hooked on reading gay romance, Ana decided to follow her lifelong dream of becoming an author.
These days you can find her in front of her laptop bringing her stories to life, or in the kitchen perfecting her recipe for the famous Portuguese custard tarts.
Ana Ashley writes sweet and steamy gay romance set in America, often in small towns where everyone knows everyone. She also publishes sweet and steamy gay romance with a European twist as Ana Newfolk.
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Also Available
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