CHAPTER 38
Cami
We’d had plenty of mind-blowing sex in Crystal Cove.
Kitchen counters. The beach. Moonlit nights in the outdoor shower.
But damn.
Nothing has ever felt like this, wild and wrecked and long overdue.
Distance, pain, and missing each other must’ve lit a fuse we couldn’t put out.
And considering all that’s happened—the silence, the fear I’d lost him, the heartbreak at the gala—of course, it felt different.
Deeper.
Because that pent-up desire we’d fought so hard to suppress was already spilling over, molten lava impossible to contain.
After our hotreunion, we stumbled into his shower and made love again. Slower. Quieter. Steamy. Breathless against tile.
Now, an hour later, I’m stretched out across his chest, cheek nestled beneath his collarbone, naked, warm.
His fingers drift lazily up and down my spine. My eyes flutter closed, and I feel more sated than I’ve ever been.
Who knows where we go from here, or even if we need to know yet.
It’s only been a little over two hours since our world imploded.
When I slid into Knox’s car, I didn’t know where I wanted to go, only that it needed to be far from that gala, far from what we’d lost.
Once Knox parked beside his Rover in the underground garage, I sent Dad a quick text.Made it home safe. Love you.
Not a full lie. Knoxishome.
And right now, I want to linger in his arms, linger inusa little while longer.
The rain has thinned to a lazy rhythm against the windows as we lie in silence. If I could press pause on the universe, it would be now.
A pair of meows pierce the quiet: tiny, pitiful, and undeniably offended.
We’d shut Stripe and Shadow out before our shower, and apparently, the betrayal still stings.
I exhale a sleepy laugh. “We should probably let them know we’re alive.”
Knox chuckles. “Believe me”—his lips find my temple, slow and lingering—“after all those moans and groans? Yeah, they know.”
I hum in response, too content to move. “They won’t quit until we open that door. Relentless little monsters. Remind you of anyone?”
He laughs, the sound low and spent, vibrating against my cheek. “Let’s give it a few more minutes.” His hand curls around my hip, a soft caress idly wandering over bare skin. “You ruined me during round two.”
“Technically, that was round three.” I grin against the solid warmth of his chest. “Round two was in the shower.”
“Right.” He groans, palm still grazing my skin. “And I’m sure there’ll be more rounds ahead. We’re making up for lost time.”
Another chorus of meows slices through our chuckles, louder this time, scratchy and dramatic, as if tiny paws are body-slamming the door.
I lift my head, and our gazes lock. “We should get up.”
