Page 142 of Nocere

Chapter Sixteen

"I really liked meeting Marita today," I told Sam while setting my overnight bag down beside her bed. "Despite the strange situation."

"Marita was my only friend for a long time. We don't see each other much," she admitted after pulling her sweater over her head. "I know I asked you ten times on the ride home, but are you really okay?"

"Yeah. I am." I nodded then dropped down to sit on the edge of the bed.

"Not just about the situation with Anita, but in general. Are you okay, Rosie?"

I nodded again, then unfurled my fingers to show her the medication bottle in my palm. "At night," I told her and she lifted the bottle to inspect it.

"Good." She kissed my cheek before handing it back to me. "With anxiety medicine, maybe you'll actually sleep."

"You don't sleep either."

"I sleep in short bursts. 'Tis the life of a doctor, baby." She sat down beside me, her hands tucked between her knees. We sat quietly for a moment, before I reached over to give her jean-clad thigh a squeeze.

"Don't anesthetize your heart, Sam. Because I love what it's given me so far," I confessed, my voice just above a whisper.

"I'm trying not to. For you. And with you." She drew in a deep breath after, and I turned my hand over in her lap. She placed hers in mine and I gave her a squeeze.

"I recognize that you're trying. I can feel how you feel about me." I met her gaze and she held mine as if absorbing every word that tumbled from my lips. "When you're ready, I hope that you'll tell me some day."

She blinked away the thick tears that leapt from her lashes when she nodded.

"I'm still going to tell you every day that I love you." I brought her hand to my lips, and spoke against her flesh. "Every day I'll say it. Over and over until you're able to accept it inside of you so deeply that you can't keep out how it makes you feel to hear it."

Her breath rattled when she exhaled and she watched me, as if hanging on every syllable and expression. I thought about the Sam that I met at Ainsley's house, and the one who took me on a hike. The cocky confidence that she wore crumbled away over the past few weeks in time with my worry for her.

"I love you, Sam." I pointed at my mouth and her gaze followed. "I love you and you deserve to be loved." The latter part of my confession struck an echo of Rebecca's voice when she told me the same. Every day for nearly twenty years. "You deserve happiness."

"You make me happy," she croaked, her voice cutting out in the end.

"You make me happy, too." I kissed her hand then turned to cup her face.

Without much warning, she grabbed me around the middle and lifted me into her lap. I straddled her thighs, and she kept me in the kiss while her hands caressed my back. Our connection intensified and she gripped my rear, pressing me to her before unfastening the buttons down the center of my dress. I cupped her breasts, toying with her piercings how she liked, with gentle twists and tugs that made her belly flip-flop against me.

We melted into the bed sheets, a mess of kisses and touches of a tender quality that we never shared before. Sam's tongue probed my mouth after she pulled my dress over my head and tossed it aside. Her hand slid down my center, inching behind my panties until she cupped my burning pussy in her assured palm. I mirrored her gesture, popping the button of her jeans to reach behind them. She tensed, her abs hardening against me as I found the firm metal of her piercing. Her mouth moved slower, until she ended our kiss to brush her lips against mine. Her movement against my core paused and I felt her tumbling away.

"Together," I whispered, nipping at her while I rubbed her in easy circles.

"Rosie," she said, her voice soft. "Are you sure?"

"I am. Are you?" I brushed my thumb over her lips.

"No," she whispered, but kissed my thumb.

"We can stop, honey…"

"No." Sam pressed her forehead to mine, her hot breath against my lips while she slipped two fingers inside me.

A moan escaped me and I lifted my chin to claim her mouth. The fire returned to her as our tongues danced together. I knew part of her movements aimed to distract me, but I didn't let it. I kept up the slow, gentle circles around her clit and it served to keep her unlocked.

We tumbled into a round of gentler lovemaking, with our bodies colliding and rolling against each other in the faintest manner. Her luscious movements, sweet lips, and soaked center urged me up the peak of pleasure and the way her legs trembled against me, I knew I'd brought her with me. Sam's pelvis pressed toward my hand and she nipped my lip as she came, her eyes closed and head tilted back. I lost myself at the same time, my lips against the curve of her neck as I let out a soft moan.

When we calmed, both of us a mess of breathlessness, we retreated from each other's centers to embrace. I made to urge her to rest her head on my chest, but she wouldn't. Instead, she rolled onto her back and guided me to rest the same way we always did—my head on her shoulder and hand between her breasts. This seemed to settle her, and she buried her fingers in my hair. I closed my eyes and she pressed her lips to my forehead. Her doting continued, and she curled up against me, her knees bent and tangled with mine.

We must've stayed like that for an hour, until the rumble of thunder drew our attention to the window. Sam started and I rubbed her naked stomach in soft circles. In the darkness, the harbor lights illuminated the bedroom, casting long shadows on the walls. Rain pummeled the balcony, and the wind forced some heavy drops against the windows. I returned my focus to her and noticed the way her facial features smoothed to softness. The tension left her for a moment, lending light to the sharp curves of her beautiful face. I loved her so much, and part of that scared me. Sam pulled me out of my tiny, controlled existence. Out of a solitary life where I spent my time obsessed with safety and comfort, keeping things small and as uncomplicated as possible. Now, I didn't mind complicated as much, and navigating the labyrinthine nature of emotions with her seemed more valuable than anything I'd ever experienced. Although I knew she cared about me, and it felt like she loved me, I wondered if she felt the same way about everything else.

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