“No, I’m here, and I shouldn’t be ignoring you. I’m sorry, Ver.” He smiles at me, and I feel bad that I’m sitting here complaining to myself about him. He doesn’t deserve that; he has a kind heart, and that’s the main thing, right?

“Are you nearly finished? We could go back to mine, as you suggested” I smile at him.

“Will your brother be there?” Just mentioning Ethan brings back an uneasy feeling I’ve been pushing down all day.

“Stepbrother,” I point out. I don’t know how I feel about him at the moment. He overstepped a mark today. Plus, I can’t completely ignore how my body reacted to him. “I don’t know, but I have warned him to stay out of our way tonight.” Determined to make it up to Marshall for all my doubts, I lean a little closer to him as I give him my best sexy smile. “If we leave now, we could have dessert at mine,” I tease. A smile spreads across his face as he nods and lifts his hand to get the waiter's attention.

“Can we have the check, please?”

Pulling up outside mine and jumping from his car, we rush to the house. Marshall holds me from behind as I unlock the front door, and we walk in. I look around, expecting Ethan to come out and cause an issue again, but we are met with silence. Maybe he has listened and gone out for the night.

Marshall grabs my hand and drags me to the stairs. The difference in him in the restaurant is hopefully a sign that we will have fun tonight and enjoy time just the two of us.

The second we are in my room, he pulls me against him and starts kissing me whilst helping me out of my clothes.

“You are so beautiful,” he moans against my neck as his lips cover me in small kisses. He grabs my breasts to start massaging them. I push my chest out, wanting as much stimulation as possible, whilst I undo his jeans, eager to get to the foreplay and sex.

Marshall turns us around, and we fall onto my bed, laughing. He stands, grabs a condom from the drawer, putting it on as quickly as possible. As soon as he is on top of me, his hand lands between my legs and starts rubbing over my sex.

“I can’t wait to sink into you. I’ve been thinking of nothing else all day,” he moans before thrusting two fingers into me.

“Slow down,” I gasp as he starts working his fingers in and out of me hard and fast. I wasn’t prepared, and it’s certainly not a comfortable feeling. But even when he slows down a little, it still hurts. Realising it’s one of those nights, I need to talk him through it.

“You like that, Ver?” Marshall asks as he kisses me.

“Yeah, but not so hard,” I flinch as I feel his fingernail scratches me on the inside. “Can we take it slow? We have all night,” I start, but Marshall's lips cut me off as he presses them hard against mine and sticks his tongue into my mouth, stopping me from talking. This is not going the way I wanted it to go.

“We’ll take it slow later. I need you, Ver.” Marshall starts to move, and I know what’s coming next.

“Not yet, I’m not.”

Marshall thrusts his dick into me and starts thrusting his hips hard as he chases the orgasm he needs. I cry out from the discomfort, but he takes it as a moan of pleasure and picks up speed.

“Yeah, beautiful, that’s it. That’s what I needed. Fuck you feel so good,” he moans; his head’s against my neck, and I know this is the best I’m going to get. I try to move slightly, hoping to get him to rub against the right spot, but he speeds up further, and I know what’s about to happen.

“Marshall, wait, I.”

“Fuck, yeah,” he calls as he cums, pushing his hips so his dick is deep inside me. Or at least as far as it will go. He doesn’t have the biggest cock.

Marshall collapses on top of me and gasps for breath, feeling happy now he’s cum. All I can do is hope for a round two or at least a little more hand action if he actually finds my clit this time.

“I love you,” I whisper, smiling at him.

“I love you too.”

Why does it feel like he’s saying it more out of habit than meaning it? I knew things were changing a few weeks ago, but tonight has been a wake-up call. Things are not right between us. Is it my fault?

Marshall lies beside me as he continues to gasp for breath and removes the condom before dropping it in the bin. I rest my head on his chest, hoping he will stay awake a little so we can talk.

“I love having sex with you.”

“I hope you love me for more than just that,” I only particularly joke. Maybe that’s the issue? Is he here for the regular sex?

“Of course, Ver.” He wraps his arm around my shoulders and holds me tight for a moment before they loosen again, and I notice his breathing slows.

“Marshall, are you?” I look up to find him already asleep. Letting out a sigh, I go back to leaning against him.

I’m not remotely tired as I look at the clock on the wall. Five minutes have passed since we exited the car, and he’s asleep. The whole thing, from start to finish, probably lasted a whole three minutes if I was lucky. I know there are times I don’t orgasm when we have sex, but I don’t ever remember him being this selfish before.