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Briar’s mouth curls into a smile against mine.
“Know some place we could go?” I ask.
“Just so happens that I do.” Sliding her hand into mine, she leads me back to her apartment.
In a hazy blur of an instant, we find ourselves bypassing her confused roommate and stumbling backward into her bedroom. She kicks the door shut as I taste her mouth all over again, and I pin her against the wall, pressing my hardness into her hips.
She exhales as I work my way down, pressing fevered kisses along her neck before tugging her shirt over her head.
Briar’s hands work my belt and zipper, fumbling as if we’re chasing the clock despite both of us knowing there’s no need to rush.
“You came back,” she says as if she’s just now realizing what’s going on, like it’s hitting her for the first time.
“How could I not?” I cup her pretty face, tracing my thumb along her bottom lip.
“Did you mean it?”
“Mean what?”
“When you said you loved me?” She blinks, her voice soft as clouds.
“Of course.” I tamp down any hint of insult in my voice. “I don’t say things I don’t mean.”
“But it’s not, like . . . love-ish? It’s actual love?”
I flash an amused half smile her way. “I love you. There’s no ish about it.”
Slinking her arms over my shoulders, she rises on her toes and nuzzles against my neck, breathing me in.
“If you need more convincing, though, I’m happy to show you . . .” Gliding my hands down her sides, I cup her ass before lifting her in my arms and carrying her to the bed. I lay her down gently in the center of her plush mattress and press my mouth against her bare stomach.
“If you insist . . .”
Running my fingers along the waistband of her leggings, I tug them down along with her panties and toss them aside before turning my focus to the delicate arousal between her thighs.
I’m a goner with the first taste.
Hoisting her thighs over my shoulders, I devour her like she’s my last meal, my hands gripping her hips as she arches the small of her back in the moments before she comes.
“Oh my god,” she exhales, her body limp beneath me. “That was . . . I didn’t think I could . . . I don’t normally come that quickly . . .”
Crawling over her, I silence her with a kiss that tastes like everything that’s right in this world.
“I’ll let you rest,” I tease her, “but only for a minute. We’ve got lost time to make up for.”
CHAPTER FORTY
BRIAR
Present Day
“I still can’t believe you’re here.” I’m lying in Dorian’s arms, every atom in my body electric, and I’m pretty sure I haven’t stopped smiling since he kissed me on the sidewalk mere hours ago. “That you came back for me.”
“I can’t believe we have Nicola to thank for this moment . . .” He sniffs a laugh.
“Ah, true. We’ll have to send her flowers or something,” I tease. “Though honestly, I’m pretty shocked by that move. Was pretty sure she hated me from the second I set foot on that island.”
“She did.” He runs his fingers through my hair, brushing a wild strand from my forehead. “But don’t take it personally. She hates everyone. And she’s used to being the only girl around . . . except for Augustine, of course.”
“I’m sure she feels protective of her brothers.”
“That’s maybe being a little too kind.” He rolls his eyes. “Protective of the family fortune’s probably more like it.”
“Money makes people do crazy things.” I drag in a long, deep breath and press my cheek against his bare chest. Inhaling his scent, I close my eyes and commit all this to memory. I never want to forget what this moment feels like, smells like, sounds like, or tastes like. It’s warmth. Sunlight after rain. Sheer contentedness. “Had I known then what I know now, I never would’ve agreed to help your brother. I was blinded by all those zeros. And if I’m being completely honest here, the idea of spending my summer at the ocean instead of in some cubicle was also a huge motivating factor.”
He kisses the top of my head, and I open my eyes to glance up at his handsome face.
“I’m so sorry I broke our promise,” I say.
“You didn’t break it. You weren’t dating him. Technically.”
Exhaling, I study the same guarded turquoise stare that lured me in the night we first met.
“You sure?” I ask. “Because I can’t stop thinking about—”
Cupping my face, he tilts my chin and silences me with a punishing kiss.
“You’re talking too much,” he says with a mocking glint. “Making up for all the talking we didn’t do on the island . . .”
“Fair enough.”
He runs his fingertips along my arm, leaving a trail of goose bumps. “I never want to feel like that again.”
