"I want to show you," I said.
"Show me what?"
"How much I trust you. How much I want this. How much I want you."
His breath caught. I watched understanding settle into his features, watched his pupils widen as the air between us thickened. His hand slid from my jaw to the back of my neck, fingers threading through my hair.
"You don't have to prove anything to me," he said. "I already know."
"I'm not trying to prove anything." I reached for the bottom of his shirt, my fingers grazing the warm skin above his waistband. "I want to feel it. With you. All of it. No walls, no guards, no waiting for the other shoe to drop."
Thane searched my eyes. Then he nodded slowly. "Okay."
He pulled his shirt over his head in one smooth motion, and I let myself look at him. Today I wasn't wondering how long I had before everything changed. Instead, I saw only him—the broad slope of his shoulders, the soft dusting of hair across his chest, the way his stomach tightened when I pressed my palm flat against his heart.
"I love you," I said.
His eyes went liquid. "I love you too, Kier."
I kissed him again as I pushed his jeans down his hips. He stepped out of them, kicking them aside, and then his hands were on me—sliding under my shirt, pushing it up, stripping it away in one fluid motion. The cool air hit my skin, but I didn't shiver. I was already burning.
"Bed?" he asked.
"Yeah."
We moved together, shedding the last of our clothes as we went. His boxers hit the floor near the end of the hallway. My socks got lost in the dark of the bedroom. By the time we reached the mattress, we were both naked, both breathing hard, both trembling with something that felt bigger than our pure need.
Thane lowered me onto the bed and followed me down. His body covered mine, his weight pressing me into the sheets. A comfort, an anchor, a promise I could feel in every point of contact. His cock pressed against my thigh, hard and heavy, and I arched into him, needing him closer.
"Tell me what you need," he said against my throat.
"You. Just you."
He kissed down my neck, slow and deliberate, his tongue tracing the column of my throat before his teeth grazed my collarbone. I gasped. My fingers tangled in his hair, holding him there as his mouth moved lower.
He took his time. Each kiss was a question, each lick an answer. When he reached my chest, he circled my nipple with his tongue before drawing it into his mouth. The suction was perfect—firm enough to send a jolt straight to my groin, gentle enough to make me moan.
"Fuck," I breathed.
He hummed against my skin, and I felt the vibration everywhere. His hand drifted lower, dragging across my stomach, fingers brushing through my pubic hair before wrapping around my cock. I was already hard, leaking againsthis grip, and he stroked me slow and steady, matching the rhythm of his mouth on my chest.
I couldn't do anything but feel. The heat of his breath, the slick glide of his palm, the way his thumb swiped across the head of my cock, spreading the moisture that had gathered there. My hips bucked into his hand, and he groaned in approval.
"Look at me," he said.
I forced my eyes open. His face was flushed, his lips swollen, his eyes dark with hunger.
"I want to watch you fall apart," he said. "I want to remember every second of this."
"Then fuck me."
He kissed me hard, swallowing my moan as he positioned himself between my legs.
“I don’t want anything between us, Thane.”
The look on his face nearly undid me. He understood what I was offering. His gaze held mine, warm and searching.
"Kier?"
