Page 72 of Ruck Me Harder

“What’s wrong?”

“I don’t have any condoms.”

Right. He was going on a three-week work trip. It’s probably a good thing he didn’t pack any. There would never be a situation where he would need them.

My face falls. “I didn’t think to bring any.”

I know I should have been more prepared, but when I booked the first flight out of town, I threw a few things into a backpack and hopped on the plane. I didn’t plan.

My stomach twists. “We could…”

“It’s okay,” he says, pulling me close. “There are plenty of other ways I can get you off.”

“Or… We could skip them.” My stomach swoops. “We’ve both got our test results back. I’m on birth control. It’s not…”

His eyes darken. “You’d go without? With me?”

“I want to feel you. All of you.”

I’ve never risked going without a condom before. My periods have always been irregular. I’ve been on birth control forever, starting the medication years before I became sexually active to help regulate things. Condoms protect against more than just unexpected pregnancy. Even seeing a partner’s test results didn’t make me feel comfortable.

Until now, I’ve never felt truly safe in a relationship. There’s always been a power imbalance. My star has always shined brighter and that meant my ex-partners would try to overcompensate. It didn’t leave me feeling good about myself. There’s a reason none of those relationships worked out.

He doesn’t care about that. He doesn’t care that I’m in the spotlight and doesn’t try to steal that spotlight for himself. He doesn’t want to use me to prop himself up. And he doesn’t have an interest in one-upping me in any way.

He respects me, period. I’ve never had that before. I didn’t really believe it was possible—until now.

Tony threads his fingers through my hair, kissing me roughly. The heat in his kiss makes me light up inside. Warmth builds in my chest as I wrap my arms more tightly around him. His muscles flex and bulge beneath his tattoos, making the designs ripple.

I could spend hours cataloguing the fine lines and colors of the ink. One day, I’ll ask him to tell me the story behind each one, when he got them, the meaning behind them. One day, I’ll know everything there is to know about him.

And where before, that might have scared me… Now, I’m ready for it. I want to know everything.

My hands slide down his back to his ass, my fingers digging into the firm flesh. One day, we’ll have to see whose ass is better. My thighs are probably stronger than his, but his arm muscles put mine to shame. He can’t tackle though, and there’s no way I could do one twist or flip, much less as many as he does. There’s a reason we’re better at different things. If we were exactly the same, it wouldn’t be half as much fun.

When Tony kisses that spot beneath the hinge of my jaw, I melt into a puddle in his arms. He smiles against my skin and his cock nudges the inside of my thigh again.

“You’re sure about this?” His voice is gravelly, as rough as sandpaper.

Nodding, I make sure to meet his eyes. “I’ve never been more sure of anything.”

He pulls back slightly, working a hand between us until the head of his cock is at my entrance. I prop myself up on my elbow so I can watch as he slides bare inside of me.

The thick, blunt head is shiny with pre-cum, and as I stretch around him with nothing between us, the heat of him lights me up from inside.

Tony’s eyes flutter shut and he has to work to keep them open. I cup his cheek, the rough scrape of his stubble on my palm grounding me.

He snaps his hips forward, filling me in one fluid thrust, and now it’s my eyes rolling back in my head. Letting out a soft grunt, he drops down again until our torsos are touching, my breasts pressed to his chest.

“I love you,” he murmurs into my ear.

Automatically, I clench around him, and he groans.

“I love that too,” he says, laughter in his voice. He gives an experimental thrust of his hips, the smooth glide of his cock sending pleasure through me. “But I love you more.”

“I love you more,” I counter, my hips rocking against his. I’ve said the words before, but I’ve never meant them so wholeheartedly. Before, it might have been puppy love. Now I know what true love feels like. I know what I stand to lose. I don’t ever want to live without him.

He fucks me slowly, like he needs to commit this to memory as much as I do. His kiss tells me all the ways he’s going to love me.