“You sure you don’t want a hand?” I glanced around the kitchen, raising an eyebrow at the mess. “Maybe to clean up a bit.” He’d made me dinner every night when I’d been at work; I was starting to feel guilty. “It’s the least I can do since you cooked.”
He looked about to protest, so I just turned and started to get on with loading the dishwasher.
“How did it go last night?”
He’d taken a seat on one of the stools and was watching me. “Hmm?”
“With your mum. You fell asleep virtually the second you got through the door, I didn’t have chance to ask you.”
I frowned, remembering something. “Did you put me to bed?”
Two spots of colour appeared on his cheeks and he quickly turned away to check on what was cooking. “I helped you upstairs, you were dead on your feet. But you put yourself to bed.”
“Thanks.” I finished putting the pots in the dishwasher and stood up to lean against the worktop. “It went okay last night.” It was probably the first time I’d sat down and really talked things through with Mum since before I went away.
He stood and faced me. “Did you tell her how you were feeling?”
“Yeah.” I sighed and cracked my neck from side to side, remembering that fun conversation. “There were a few tears.” On her side as well as mine. “She was horrified to hear I wasn’t comfortable in my home any longer, and I was gutted that I’d upset her.” I hadn’t meant to say that bit aloud. I glanced down at the floor and closed my eyes, unable to meet his gaze. Tears pricked my eyes as I remembered how she thought she’d let me down. “Fuck.”
“Hey.” Warm hands cupped my jaw and tilted my head up. “You don’t have to hide from me, Jasper. It’s okay to be upset.”
“I know, I just...” I opened my eyes, and he wasright there. “Finn...” I wanted to kiss him so badly in that moment, needed to feel his strong arms wrapped around me. My gaze dropped to his mouth. “Can I—”
“Yeah.” He met me halfway in a kiss that started out slow, tentative, and not what I was looking for tonight. Sliding my hands around his waist, I pulled him flush against me, the moan I let out enough for him to deepen the kiss.
My body came alive under his touch, tiredness slipping away as heat rushed through me. Moving to cup Finn’s arse, I ground against him, smiling when I felt his cock hard alongside mine.
“We shouldn’t,” he whispered, pulling back to rest his forehead against mine.
“Why the fuck not?” Standing in his kitchen, both of us obviously enjoying ourselves, no reasons sprung to mind.
He sighed, warm breath ghosting over my lips, but didn’t move away. “I’m essentially your landlord. I like having you here. If we mess this up, then it’ll be beyond awkward, and I don’t want to come home to that every night.”
I hated it when he had a good point.
But I wanted this.Him. Needed it.
“I get what you’re saying, Finn. But I’m not asking for a relationship.” Even though I secretly thought we’d be great together.
His eyebrows scrunched together. “Friends with benefits?” He said it like it was the worst thing ever.
“No.” I shook my head. Trying that with Finn would be a terrible idea. I knew I’d never be satisfied with that, and he didn’t strike me as an FWB kind of guy either. “I don’t think that’d end well for us.”
“Then what?” He looked thoroughly confused, which wasn’t the mood I’d been aiming for at all.
“Just for tonight. Ineedthis.” I tapped his chest, then mine. “I think you do too. It’s been a tough few days and I want to escape everything for a while. I can’t think of a better way than sex.” I tugged him forward until we were back to touching. “Can you?”
Closing his eyes, he drew his bottom lip between his teeth. I had no idea which way he was going to go on this, and the anticipation was killing me. “Finn?”
His eyes snapped back open, and he pressed me against the edge of the sink. “You think we can do this and not ruin things?” He ground his hips a little, coaxing my dick back to life, and I moaned.
“I do.” I gasped as he did it again, slower this time. “We’re both big boys.” That earned me a chuckle. “If we’re clear going in that this is just sex, just a way to let off some steam that I think we both need, then I don’t see why we can’t just have this night.”
Finn hummed as if considering, but he stayed pressed against me, hands still cupping my jaw. Tracing my cheekbones with his thumbs, he finally met my gaze. “Okay.”
“Yeah?” My voice came out ragged, my pulse rapidly speeding up as he leant in to kiss me again.
“Yeah.” He whispered it against my lips, then kissed me like I’d wanted him to all night. Stubble scraped my skin, a sharp contrast to the softness of his mouth. Heat swept through my body, lighting me up inside, and I clung to him, wanting to feel all of his weight pressed into me.
