Chapter 46

“Iremember going to a keg party when I finished my final exam.” I take a swig of my beer. It’s warm, since I’ve been nursing it for a good hour and a half. I have plans for tonight, and beer isn’t getting in the way of them.

Roman chuckles. “I probably went to all of two keg parties in college.”

“I went to way too many keg parties,” Flip says.

“I don’t like beer.” Ash sips his rum and Coke. “Or keg parties.”

“They are usually full of bad decisions, vomit, and regrets,” Tristan says.

Roman excuses himself to the bathroom, and Tristan glances around before he shifts his attention to me. “Roman seems like he’s rolling with things pretty well, though? You never ended up with a black eye.”

“We’re aware that punching each other won’t solve the problem. And yeah, he’s coming around.”

“Hindsight is a real asshole,” Tristan observes.

“That’s absolutely true,” I agree. “You and Rix doing good, though?”

“Yeah. Bea’s a fucking miracle.”

“You looking forward to her moving in full time?” I ask.

“She’s almost there already, but I’m looking forward to her officially giving up the second bedroom, you know? It’s like confirmation that we’re on the same page.” Tristan scans the room, maybe to make sure no one else is paying attention. “I’ve been looking at rings. I know it’s probably a little early, but Bea’s applied to a couple of programs for the fall. She’ll have to make a decision soon.”

“That’s good though, right? That’s what she wants?”

“Yeah, and I’m all for it. She’s good at the finance stuff—great, actually—but it’s not where her heart is. There’s no reason for her to stick it out in a job she sort of likes when I can afford to send her to school for something that brings her joy. Hell, I’d pay for courses for the rest of her fucking life, if that makes her happy. But I can’t piss a circle around her all the time, you know?”

“The smell would be a lot. And Hemi wouldn’t be happy about the public indecency charges,” I offer.

“Right? But I can put a huge fucking rock on her finger so all those potential douchebags know she’s mine. I figure at the end of summer we’ll have been dating a year, and she’ll have lived with me for a few months—but not so long that she’s totally sick of my shit—so I can lock her in.”

I chuckle and pat him on the shoulder. “I don’t know that you need to worry about locking her in. She’s pretty damn in love with you. I can’t see her getting sick of your shit anytime soon.”

“I really fucking hope not, because Bea’s it for me. I would do anything for her. You know?”

“Yeah, man. I do.”

Roman returns from the bathroom, wearing his worried-dad frown. He looks over at the ladies. “How many pitchers of margaritas have those girls had?”

“The last two have been non-alcoholic,” I tell him.

“That’s a relief.”

Roman polishes off the rest of his beer. “You sticking around?”

“Until Aurora’s ready to go, yeah.” This part is hard to get used to. He’s my best friend and my girlfriend’s dad. I’ve watched out for her a lot over the years. But her staying at my place, that’s new.

“You want to knock on my door in the morning and we can head to practice together?” he asks without looking at me.

It’s an olive branch. We’ve been driving separately.

“Fuck, finally. Let’s take your SUV, Hollis, and you two can drive my ass for the next couple of weeks.” Tristan shakes his head. “It’s been seriously inconvenient for me to drive while you worked your shit out.”

“I feel like I had a right,” Roman says.

“I’m not saying you didn’t. I’m just saying it was inconvenient, and you two can share the responsibility while you’re making it up to me.” Tristan grins.

I shake my head. “You’re an asshole.”

“I know.”

“See you two in the morning.” Roman sets his beer bottle on the table behind us and stops to hug Aurora before he leaves.

“Speaking of people who need a girlfriend, it’s about time Roman jumped back in the pool,” Tristan says.

“Agreed. Especially now.”

“I don’t even know what his type is,” Tristan muses.

“He doesn’t talk to women when Aurora is around,” I explain.

“What about the one from the gala? Has he gone on that date yet?”

“Not that I know of. She lives out in Illinois or Wisconsin, so I don’t know if that has any real potential.”

“They seemed to get along pretty good on the dance floor. At least before shit hit the fan. Speaking of shit hitting the fan—what the hell are you going to do about Scarlet? I can’t see Hammer being all that excited about you going on a date with your ex.”

“Scarlet saw the interview and gave me a pass on the date. I reimbursed her.”

Tristan cough-chokes on his beer. “You gave Scarlet fucking Reed a hundred thousand dollars to get out of a date with her?”

“Seemed like the right thing to do. It wasn’t her fault I couldn’t uphold my end of the bargain. If I’d taken your advice like I should have and manned the fuck up, I wouldn’t have been in the auction. Aurora would have and should have been my date that night.”

“That was an expensive lesson.”

“And totally worth it since I got the girl.”

Aurora’s eyes find mine from across the room. She’s so fucking beautiful, and she’s mine. I will spend the rest of my life loving her. She looks around, maybe checking to see who’s watching out of habit. Then she rolls her eyes and sashays across the bar toward me.

“And I’m out. I’ll see you later.” Tristan claps me on the shoulder and walks away.

I drink in the wide smile and impish look on her face as she approaches. “How’s it going, Princess?”

“My dad left?” she confirms.

I nod.

She links her hand behind my neck. “I feel weird about being affectionate with you in front of him,” she admits. “I don’t want to throw it in his face, but also, kiss me, please.”

I pull her close and press my lips to hers. It feels damn good to love her without reservation.

She fiddles with the top button on my shirt. “I’m suspiciously sober considering the number of margaritas I’ve consumed.”

I run my fingers down the back of her arm. “I wonder why that is.”

Her bottom lip slides through her teeth. “Switching to virgins was smart.”

I arch a brow.

She clears her throat. “The number of times I’ve masturbated to that facial expression is obscene. Take me home and put me to bed, please.”

I tap her lightly on the ass. “Go say bye to your friends.”

“Okay!” She kisses my cheek and bounces across the restaurant to where the girls are sitting. A round of hugs follows, and then we link pinkies and step outside into the cool evening.

She threads her arm through mine and rests her cheek against my biceps. “As much as I wanted to celebrate today in bed, and I absolutely still do, it was so nice to be out with our friends.”

I press my lips to her temple. “Loving you out loud feels so much better.”

“You are the best boyfriend in the universe.” She squeezes my arm. “And my dad seems to be handling things.”

“He is.” I open the door to our building and usher her in out of the cold. “We’re driving to practice together tomorrow.”

Her face lights up as I hit the elevator button for the penthouse floor. “Really? Who suggested it?”

“He did.” The elevator zips upward.

“I’m so glad to hear that.” She runs her hands up my chest. “You and my dad have been so close for so long, and this changes that, but I didn’t want the damage to be permanent, too.”

“We both love you too much to let that happen.” I kiss her softly.

The elevator dings, and I release her as the doors slide open, taking her hand instead.

The second we’re inside my place, Aurora drags my mouth down to hers. Unfortunately, Postie and Malone are on us, trying to trip us as they weave between our legs.

“They’re adorable, but they’re cockblockers,” Aurora says against my lips.

“Let’s feed them. Then I have something for you.”

“You mean orgasms, right? You have lots of those for me.”

“I’ve been willing to provide those all week,” I remind her.

“They came with stipulations.” Her fingers curl around my belt buckle.

I grab her wrists and spin her around, raising them above her head as I press her into the door. She parts her legs, and my knee slides between them. She sighs and rolls her hips.

“One stipulation.” I drag my lips along the edge of her jaw, breathing her in. “And it was reasonable. It still is.”

“I know. I can’t separate sex from feelings when it comes to you,” she whispers, eyes brimming with emotion. “It feels like my heart and soul are on fire when you’re inside me.”

Her truth soothes the broken parts of me. “I feel the same way.” I release her hands and slide my fingers into her silky hair. “That’s why I needed you to be in this with me before we got here again.”

“Thank you for being patient.” She rests a warm palm against my cheek. Everything about her in this moment is soft, open. “I love you.”

Her admission unravels me and heals my heart. I memorize this moment: the gentleness of her words, the truth in her eyes, how beautiful she is, hands on my skin, grounding me, tethering me to Earth.

“I’ve been waiting to hear those words.”

“I’ve been waiting to say them. Now give them back to me, please,” she whispers.

I take her face in my hands, emotion making my voice hoarse. “I love you, Aurora.”

Her smile widens. “With all my heart,” she murmurs and pulls my mouth to hers.

The kiss lasts all of five seconds, though, because my cats are back to being pests.

“Let’s feed these two.”

“And then orgasms?”

“Surprise first, then orgasms.”

She sighs. “I’ll get their treats if you get the food.”

“On it.” I head for the fridge.

Aurora gives the boys treats, which they gobble up in two seconds, while I plate their soft food. Once our hands are washed, I lace our fingers. “Come on.” I guide her down the hall, past the spare bedroom, to my home office.

Nerves twist my stomach as I flick on the light and push the door open.

“Hollis,” she breathes as she moves into the room. “This is… You redecorated.”

The room formerly contained a single desk and an unused exercise bike. As far as home offices went, it was pretty uninspiring. But I usually sat at my dining room table with my laptop if I needed to review paperwork or contracts. If Aurora joins Hemi in the PR office, she’ll need space to work outside of office hours, and maybe so will I in the future.

“I want this space to feel like yours, too.” I want it to feel like home. Like she belongs here with me.

“This is amazing.” She crosses over to the double desks. One side has a black executive chair—that’s mine. The other chair is baby blue and plush, designed for function and comfort. The walls have been painted a pale, icy blue and new art decorates them, including a banana-duck print. Two custom lounge chairs face the window overlooking the harbor. “You even picked coordinating throw pillows,” she muses.

I wrap my arms around her waist from behind and kiss her cheek. “I thought this would be a nice place to have coffee on work-from-home days.”

“I love that.” She tilts her head up, and I press a soft kiss to her tempting lips. “Why are you so perfect?”

“I’m far from it.” I want to stay wrapped around her, but this is only the beginning, so I step back and link our hands. “There’s more. Come.”

“More?”

I guide her down the hall to my bedroom. “Eyes closed, Princess.” I move her in front of me, covering her eyes with one hand while I open the door with the other. She holds my forearm as I urge her forward. My reflection stares back at me from the full-length mirror across the room. Aurora’s cheeks are flushed.

Nervous anticipation makes my chest tight, but I need her to see how serious I am. I drop my hand to her hip. “You can open your eyes.”

They flare as her nails bite into my arm in the most delicious way. “Oh, Hollis.” She spins in my arms, awe on her perfect, stunning face. “You did this for me?”

“For us,” I correct. “It’s decidedly self-serving.”

“It’s incredible.” She pushes up on her toes to kiss me, then scans the bed.

“You bought throw pillows.”

“I know you like them.” She has a ridiculous number on her bed. I’ve discovered they can be useful and not just a nuisance.

She flits across the room and grabs the one in the middle. “You got me a princess pillow.”

“I did.”

“You like me a lot.”

“I definitely do.”

She hugs the pillow to her chest with one arm and follows me across the room to the new dresser. I open the top drawer. I’ve already folded and put away all the things she’s left here over the past few months. “Those are yours. I didn’t want to clear a couple of drawers to make room for you. I want this to feel like it’s as much yours as it is mine.” I skim her cheek, needing the contact to ground me. “I know this is all very new and we need time to figure us out, but I’m also aware that Rix is moving out, and your sublease is only a year. Whenever you’re ready to be here, here is ready for you. But no pressure. It’s okay if you need more time than that.”

She sets the pillow on the dresser top and settles her palms on my chest, her soft smile warming me. “You bought me a dresser.”

“You have a lot of clothes,” I point out. I hope this isn’t too much.

“This is true.” She runs her hands over my shoulder. “You’re really serious about me, aren’t you?”

I swallow past the lump in my throat. “Too serious?”

She shakes her head. “The perfect amount of serious.” Her smile grows soft. “Tell me something real and true.”

“Loving you is so easy. But hiding that feeling, denying you, was the hardest, most painful thing I’ve ever done, and I’m so glad I never have to do it again.” I tuck her hair behind her ear, tracing the delicate shell. “Tell me something real and true.”

Her chin trembles as she rests her palm over my heart. “You settle my soul, Hollis. Your heart is my home, and I never want to leave it.”

Our lips meet, a gentle brush, a wordless promise. The wash of need is sudden and consuming as we press closer, hands gripping hair as we angle our heads and deepen the kiss.

She untucks my shirt and pulls it over my head, then does the same with hers. “You know what I want to do now?”

“I have a pretty good idea.”

She unclasps her bra and tosses it aside, then pops the button on her jeans. “I bet my ideas are better.” She shimmies her pants and underwear down her legs and kicks them off, leaving her in a pair of socks with a blue and black stripe around the top.

She tucks her fingers into the waistband of my pants and tugs me toward the full-length mirror.

“You planning to tell me what this better idea is?” I ask as she adjusts my position.

She shakes her head as she slides my belt through the buckle and pulls it free from the loops, dropping it on the floor at my feet. Her tongue drags across her bottom lip as she opens the button and pulls the zipper down. And then she grabs the princess pillow and tosses it at my feet, sinking to the floor.

She smiles up at me. “I’m going to show you with my mouth how much I appreciate your thoughtfulness.”

I smirk. “Aren’t you sweet?”

“The sweetest.” Her grin is saucy as she frees me from my boxer briefs and wraps her palm around my length. I have to close my eyes for a second and gather myself. It feels like I’ve been without her softness for an eternity, and I’m not adequately prepared for this.

She places a kiss on the tip.

“Fuck, Princess,” I groan.

“My mouth, Hollis,” she replies.

My eyes open as her full lips part. Her tongue slides along the weeping slit and circles the head before she takes me in her mouth. One hand moves to my thigh, and her gaze shifts to the side—to her naked reflection, kneeling on a pillow, her lips wrapped around my cock.

She pops off, lips brushing the head as she speaks. “I like this mirror.” And then her lips are sliding down my cock, pulling me deeper. She moans around me, one hand dropping between her thighs. I stroke her cheek, gaze bouncing between her right in front of me and her reflection in the mirror.

She moves my hands to cradle her face, and her eyes lift to mine.

I arch a brow.

She moans and slides three fingers into her pussy.

I pull my hips back until the ridge hits her bottom lip.

“Yes, please,” she murmurs.

I push back in, slow strokes at first, going deeper on every pass, until the head hits the back of her throat, and she moans. Her fingers move between her thighs, eyes darting between my face and our reflection in the mirror. I’m close. So close. I start to pull out, because I’m one thrust away from coming. But her free hand rises, and she grabs my ass, nails sinking in as she pulls me forward until she’s swallowing my entire fucking cock.

I come so hard I grab the edge of the dresser to stay upright. Her nails retract from my ass, and I pull out. She sucks in a gasping breath and smiles up at me. “I always wanted to try that.”

“For fuck’s sake, Princess.” I crush my mouth to hers.

And then she’s pulling me onto the floor with her. I tuck the pillow under her head and bury my face between her thighs, fucking her with my fingers and tongue until she’s fisting my hair and screaming my name.

And then I carry her to the bed, roll a condom on, and settle in the cradle of her hips.

“I need you in me, Hollis,” she murmurs, her trembling fingers skimming my cheek. “Please.”

“Everything for you, Princess.” I drag the head through her wetness.

Aurora arches, canting her hips up as I nudge her entrance. I pause, memorizing the moment, how gorgeous she looks with flushed cheeks and lust-drenched eyes.

And then I push inside in one smooth stroke.

We both moan as I bottom out inside her. “Fuck, I missed you,” I groan against her lips.

“I missed you, too.” She runs her fingers through my hair. “I missed this feeling.”

It’s so much more than physical connection. Being entwined with her feels like home. I stroke her cheek. “So did I.”

“Let’s never take it away from each other again, okay?” she murmurs.

I shake my head. “Never.”

“I’m yours.” Her hands slide down my back.

“Mine forever now,” I promise.

“Every part of you.”

I roll my hips, and she moans softly.

“I used to imagine how good it would feel to have you inside me like this. Right here, in this bed. But it’s so much more than that.” She puts her hand over my heart. “You’re inside me here, too.”

“I didn’t know what I was missing until you,” I murmur against her lips.

She wraps herself around me, feet hooked at the small of my back. And we move together, a slow tide rising, until it washes over us, blanketing us in bliss. In a promise of forever.