Page 45 of Learning at 40

“So responsible,” I tease.

“Actually, I borrowed these from Mason.”

“Ew. I don’t want to consider what borrow means. Nor do I want to think about that on Mason.”

Zack has been sheathing himself as I speak, and his head snaps back in my direction.

“You better not think of Mason when I do this.” Two fingers impale me with a sharp rush, and my breath catches. “Sore?”

“Ready.” Shamelessly, I’m wet again, and it’s not from the lake water. He moves his fingers in and out twice before removing them.

“And you definitely better not be thinking of Mason when I do this.” In one swift move, he’s slipping into me again, his dick rock hard. He doesn’t rush, but the effect is still the same. Long and deep, he slides forward until he’s to the hilt.

“Or this.” He latches onto a breast and sucks it until the nipple nearly hurts. Between the cold water and the chill in the air, the nubs are already sharp and peaked. Zack moves within me while his tongue warms my breast and I melt under him. My fingers comb through his wet hair and down his goose-bump-covered back.

“You feel so amazing, angel,” he groans, releasing my breast to look up at me.

“So do you.” The words mingle with a sharp exhale from me. We rock into each other, taking a little more time to enjoy the motion that matches the waves near our feet. Eventually, his fingers move to my clit, and he rubs in short, tight circles until my lower belly flutters.

“So close,” I warn almost too late as I’m suddenly cascading over him, loose and relaxed in a release that seems to drag like the water lapping along the shore. I whimper, tipping back my head and arching my back, forcing him deeper inside me with my hands on his firm ass.

“So deep,” he mutters, licking at my neck before increasing his thrusts. He rocks hard and fast until he breaks, and the rush of him inside me teases me once more. He braces himself on his elbows as he comes down from the high. His forehead lowers as his chest heaves.

“Fuck. I think I see stars.” He laughs as he quickly pulls out of me but rolls me to my side, so I’m tucked into his. Pressing a tender kiss to my forehead, we lay like this as our breathing settles and the night breeze flitters over us. It’s a night I want to last forever when I know nothing does.

+ + +

We must doze a bit because I shift with a start when Zack sits upright.

“Shit,” he mutters, swiping both hands down his face. “What time is it?”

I bite back the snark on my lips. Do I look like I wearing a watch?

“I told Bryce I’d be back by two.”

Having no clue what time it might be, I scramble to my feet and reach for my dress, quickly covering myself. Zack slips into his shorts and shakes out the sleeping bag before flipping it over his shoulder. Still groggy and a little stiff, I head for the stairs and climb at a slower pace with Zack on my heels. He might want me to go faster, but he’ll need to pass me because my legs can hardly carry me.

As we near the top but remain just under the crest of the cliff, Zack captures my wrist. “Wait. Just wait.”

I turn to face him, and he tosses the blanket on the stairs behind me. Remaining a step below me, he aligns our bodies, cups my jaw, and kisses me once more. The kiss quickly heats, and an urgency takes over. Why does it feel like he’s saying goodbye before we top the cliff? His mouth becomes desperate, urgent even. His hands slowly lower, roaming my neck and my shoulders before he breaks free of my lips and spins me.

He brushes aside my hair and sucks at the back of my neck.

“Zack?” I question. What is he doing?

Then he bites the juncture of my neck and shoulder, and my knees buckle. He catches me around the waist as my legs fold a bit and then lowers me to my knees on a step covered by the sleeping bag. He tugs the collar of my dress over my shoulder, sucking at my skin. A slight ripping sound hints at the strain of material before the fabric slips to my upper arm. He continues to suck at my shoulder. Down the shoulder blade. A hand rounds for my front, covering a breast.

“One more time,” he whispers to my skin as he continues to kiss me with a wide mouth and soft caress of his tongue.

“I thought you were late.”

“I need you one more time.” With a hand on the middle of my back, he presses me forward. My knees are a few steps lower than my elbows, and Zack stands a step lower than me. He lifts my dress, shoves down his shorts, and slides inside me again.

“Jesus. You’re so warm. I can’t . . . it’s so good . . . it’s—” His voice catches. “I’ll pull out.” The comment stills me, but Zack is on his own mission. “I promise. I swear I haven’t been with anyone in more than a year.”

I don’t want to think about what that means. “It’s been three for me.”

Zack stops moving. He knows Quincy died a year ago, but he’s adding up the dates, putting together something I’m not ready to explain.