Page 119 of All I Feel

“I want a lifetime of this, Tessa. A lifetime of you. Of us.”

Her eyes sparkled, and her lips parted. “Ace.”

A victorious smile spread across my face. She was there again. I might’ve been ready to take from her, but I couldn’t ever seem to do that without giving to her in the process.

Knowing she was close, feeling myself on the verge, I dropped down to my forearms and took her mouth. She whimpered as my tongue dipped inside. We continued to move against one another—mouth, tongues, hands, hips, and legs—as it built and built. And once it hit, Tessa’s nails dug into my shoulders, panting, as I buried my face against her neck and groaned through my own release.

I worked us both through to the other side, and we stayed connected like that for a long while afterward. Tessa was holding on with her arms and legs wrapped around me while I soaked up the warmth and softness and scent of her body.

Eventually, I pressed a kiss to her cheek. “I love you, Tessa.”

“I love you, too.”

“Hang tight while I get rid of this condom.”

She gave me a nod before I gave her a peck on the lips.

After I’d tossed the condom and gotten us both cleaned up, Tessa and I were back in my bed. I’d resumed my previous position, my body over hers. Tessa snaked a leg around my thigh, the other around my hip.

I kissed along her neck, inhaling as I did, and realized I just couldn’t get enough of her. Tessa’s fingertips drifted lightly along my spine.

Eventually, I pulled my face from her throat and looked down at her, still wondering how I’d gone for so long not acting on what was so clear to me now.

Tessa’s features softened as she took in the look on myface, lifted her opposite hand to my hair, and tangled her fingers in it. “This is what I want a lifetime of.”

“Cuddling after sex?”

Her lips tipped up in a smile. “That, too.”

“So, what did you mean?”

Tessa pulled her fingers from my hair, watched as it fell over my brow, and her grin grew. She brushed the hair back again and explained, “I want a lifetime of being able to run my fingers through your hair.”

I’d give her anything she wanted. And feeling her hands on me—anywhere she put them—was something I enjoyed immensely. “It won’t be me that stops you.”

Her expression grew satisfied. “I’m so glad I have this weekend off. With the exception of when we all went out to celebrate Hawk’s birthday at the beginning of last month, I’ve had weddings every weekend. It was nice to sleep in today.”

I cocked a brow and sent her a questioning look. “I don’t know if I’d call what you did this morning sleeping in.”

She rolled her eyes. “You know what I mean. I just liked that there was nowhere for me to go this morning, so I could take advantage.”

“And you have just one more wedding next weekend, right? Then the chaos of the season is done.”

“Yep. We’ll just be going into a different kind of chaos.”

“What’s that?”

Tessa allowed my hair to fall over my brow again so she could study it. When she’d gotten her fill of the look, her fingers were back in it. “The holidays. We have Thanksgiving and Christmas. Plus, a ton of our friends have birthdays. And I’ll be swamped at the salon as we approach the holidays. Everyone wants their nails donebefore they head to their holiday parties. We’ll have a lot to keep us busy.”

For a long while now, I’d known what I wanted to do and was simply waiting for the right time. This seemed as perfect a time as any.

“Well, then I guess there’s just one question.”

“What’s that?”

“Do you still have it?”

Her fingers stopped their movement in my hair as her head tipped to one side. “Have what?”