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He was coming hard.
He was making sure she was right there with him, almost moving the couch in the process.
Her hand fell away, her shout letting him know that he did what he set out to do.
When he pulled out, he felt more wrecked than he had in ages.
He refused to admit how much she snatched out of him, but when she turned and flopped on the couch, her eyes landing on him, she saw everything.
And that soft smile, the one she had that touched something so deep inside of him he’d said he’d never let another woman see again, well, she didn’t only see it, she was the one driving it.
“Are you okay? Why don’t you sit next to me?”
“I need to take care of the condom,” he said, walking out of the room and towards the bathroom in the hall. He’d come back for his clothes because he had to just get the hell out of there.
For a man who said he wasn’t sure he was cut out for relationships, he sure the hell was ready for this one to move forward.
He took care of the condom, ran the water, washed up, then decided he needed to take a shower. He splashed more water on his face to clear his head, then walked out to get his clothes.
She had them in her hand and was moving toward him.
“Round two in the shower?” she asked.
He snaked his arm around her. “How is it you can read me so well?”
“Maybe I just want to take advantage of this time together, but know that we’d both feel self-conscious if we didn’t clean up.”
He laid his lips to hers, soft, gentle, tender.
“Marly,” he whispered.
“Yeah,” she whispered back.
“This thing we’ve got.”
It was the way she looked at him when they broke apart for air. The way her hands softened instead of tightening. The way she didn’t seem to brace for impact for fear of something dropping out of the sky and landing on her head.
That was the part that scared him.
So he did what he did best. He pushed the fear down and kissed her again, deeper, slower, making the most of every second of those ninety minutes.
“It’s strong,” she said, her fingers tracing his jaw. “And scary. Big, bad, scary feelings that you’re not sure you want to have but can’t really control them. Right?”
Leave it to her to make it easier for him.
“How do you know?”
“Because I feel the same,” she said cheerfully. As if she’d just won the biggest case of her career. “And knowing I’m not alone is all I need for the time being. Don’t let it haunt you. Don’t let it bring you down. Don’t let it do anything to come between us. That’s all I ask.”
He kissed her lightly on the lips. Just a peck. But it was enough to say that he might be worrying for nothing.
26
RIGHT DIRECTION
“When are they showing up?” her mother asked her an hour later.
“Soon,” she said. Marly wanted them to come together, but it was out of Colson’s way to bring her back home.
