“No. Well, yeah, but in this moment, I mean.” God. She didn’t even know how much that wrecked me.
“You make it easy to forget everything outside of right now,” I said, my voice lower than I meant. “The work. The pressure. The noise.” She tilted her head up, eyes soft. “That’s exactly how I feel with you.” We didn’t talk much after that. We didn’t need to.
The playlist I’d put on shuffled into something slow and nostalgic, piano and low vocals filling the space between us.
She slid off the couch and offered her hand. “Dance with me.” I stood, took her hand, and we danced. Right there in the middle of my living room, barefoot.
And I swear that was the most intimate moment we’ve shared so far.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
sam
We dancedin his living room, and I didn’t know if it was the wine, the weeks of tension, or the way he said I want you like it was a promise, but something cracked open in me. And when he carried me to the bed, something settled too.
He undressed me with care. There was no rush this time, no hunger. He just seemed in awe of me. As if every inch of skin revealed were a secret, I was letting him keep it. And when he kissed me, his hands framing my face, I swear the world disappeared. “Are you okay?” he whispered, already inside the moment, but waiting for my yes. I nodded, breath catching. “More than okay.”
We moved together as if it were always meant to be this way. No fight for control, no game to play, just warmth, trust. Skin on skin, heart to heart. I traced the lines of his shoulders, felt his muscles shift undermy touch. He looked down at me like I was something sacred.
Like I washis.
And that’s when I felt him, pushing into me, slow, deep, almost grounding me. I gasped into his mouth. It wasn’t lust that stole my breath. We weren’t just having sex this time.
This was different. Something I’ve never felt with him until now. Now that I think about it, I haven’t felt this with anyone before him.
His body moved against mine with a rhythm that felt like music, slow, sure, and steady. I wrapped my arms around his back, fingers pressing into his skin like I could anchor myself to the moment. Tohim.
He kissed me again, as I rolled my hips to meet his moves. And this time, it was less about wanting or desire. It was more about being there, present in this exact moment. His lips brushed mine, soft moans and hushed gasps escaping between us as our foreheads pressed together, our breath mingling in the space that had grown impossibly small between us.
“I don’t want to stop feeling like this,” I whispered, not even meaning the sex, though that was incredible, but the softness of it. The surrender. “You won’t,” he said, his voice rough with emotion. “I’m here. I'll always be here. If you want me.”
I believed him. Not because he promised me anything, but because of the way he held me. Like I wasn’t a secret anymore or a mistake. Like I wassomething he’d been searching for. Which says a lot about an almost forty divorced man.
I cupped his jaw as his pace slowed, more a rocking now than thrusting, every movement drawing me deeper into the safety of him. I felt the tremble in his shoulders when I whispered his name, felt the way he shuddered as I kissed his throat. “I want you.” And when I came, it was quiet, trembling, overwhelmed by all the sensations. He followed seconds later, burying his face in my neck as he gasped my name like a vow.
Something like…love?
“Are you tired?” he asked softly, fingers trailing down my arm. “Not really,” I murmured, shifting so my cheek rested against his chest. “I feel like if I fall asleep, I’ll miss it.”
“Miss what?”
“This,” I whispered. He hummed low in his throat. “I’m yours, Samantha. I’m not going anywhere.”
“I know,” I said, even if a small part of me didn’t. But it felt right. He felt right. Theo turned his head slightly, resting his chin against the top of mine.
“Tell me something I don’t know.” I smiled against his skin. “I still don’t know how to fold a fitted sheet.” He chuckled. “No one does.”
“Your turn.” He was quiet for a moment. “I’m scared to ruin this.” My breath caught. “Why?”
“Because I haven’t been in a serious relationship for a while, and the last one, well, it didn’t end with a happily ever after.” I lifted my head to look at him. “First of all, that wasn’t your fault. And you have nothing to worry about with me. You haven’t ruined anything.”
“I hope I don’t,” he said, brushing a knuckle along my jaw. “It’s just that… You matter to me. Way more than I expected. And I don’t want to do anything that would jeopardize it.”
“You won’t,” I said, threading my fingers through his. “Just don’t stop showing up.” His eyes softened. “Deal.” We lay there for a long time after that, fingers laced, hearts slower, the weight of our honesty settling gently over the bed like a second blanket.
And when I finally closed my eyes, sleep came easily, for the first time in a very long time.
Sunlight spilled in through the curtains, brushing warm gold across the white sheets and the edge of Theo’s jaw. I blinked slowly, letting the moment settle before moving. His arm was draped over my waist, heavy with sleep, and his chest rose and fell in a rhythm that made me want to stay right where I was forever.
