Page 112 of Undeniable

I scooted backward just enough that I could see his sated smile.

“I think we have time for one more,” he teased, and I scoffed. He made a futile attempt to keep me right where I was, but I quickly stood and jumped just out of reach. We were both exhausted and covered in each other’s releases.

But I almost reconsidered when I glanced back to see him spread out in front of the fire, his muscular, lean body on display as he lay atop the thick cream-colored rug. It would have been enough to make anyone reconsider, especially if they knew just howgivinghe was. But then I noticed the clock over the stove and cursed under my breath.

“We promised them we’d be back soon, and we haven’t even started packing,” I tried to argue, but James’s hungry smile told me he didn’t care at all that we’d promised his friends—ourfriends—that we’d be back in time for their New Year’s Day celebration.

James had surprised me with the weekend away as a belated Christmas gift. But when I told Amanda about it, she made me promise that we would absolutely not miss New Year’s Day at their house. Or else.

And Amanda’s bad side was the last place I wanted to be.

James stood and prowled toward me. “I think they will underst—”

I pressed a finger to his lips, and he took the hint, ceasing his argument as his arms wrapped around me. I felt the moment his fingers slipped through his release that was already tacky against my back.

His nose scrunched, and I couldn’t suppress my laugh.

My hand slipped away from his mouth, and he didn’t hesitate to slant his lips over mine. An involuntary moan slipped from my lips, and James easily deepened the kiss.

It was never enough. We couldn’t go a day without touching and teasing. It felt like we were making up for the thirteen years we were apart. And each day was better than the one before. We fit together so easily; it had all become so simple. It was almost too good to be true, but it wasn’t. It was just good.

“Okay,” I said, pulling back and attempting to put some distance between us. James wasn’t having it, though, and instead held me tighter, eyeing my lips like they were candy.

“Freaking insatiable,” I muttered as he finally freed me.

He chuckled and gathered the pillows and blankets from the floor. “You know it, my entitled princess.”

I rolled my eyes and flipped him off over my shoulder as I walked into the bedroom. “Thanks, you selfish prick.”

His laughter followed me into the bathroom, where I jumped in the shower, only quick enough to rinse my body and make sure all the cum was gone.

As I stepped out, James walked into the shower, stopping only long enough to grip my chin and kiss me quickly. Even that small gesture made me melt.

“Devon’s bringing his mom, right? She’s finally back home?”

“Yeah, she’s back. She’s doing great and is healthy enough to be back in Austin. She was impatient to get back here since Devon’s sister started college.”

We discussed who else would be at Amanda, Josh, and Reed’s, including Piper, my friend from college and the woman Devon had begun dating. And of course, Hazel and Luke wouldn’t miss it. Unfortunately, Shelby wouldn’t be there, and neither would her boyfriend, Will, but it was with good reason. She was finally meeting his parents.

As I fixed the tangled mop of hair on my head and applied my makeup, James finished his shower, and we continued discussing… everything. We talked about what I had planned for the volleyball off-season and the visit our parents planned for the following weekend.

But when he stepped from the shower, small rivulets of water sliding down his toned chest and a towel tied haphazardly around his waist, I knew there was something bothering him.

I opened my mouth to ask, but he beat me to it. He stepped up to the counter next to me, stopping in front of the second sink, and held my gaze in the mirror.

“I quit my job.”

A second passed. And then another and then another until I finally processed the simple statement.

His attention never wavered from my face. He leaned forward, hands pressed into the marble counter and his eyes steadfastly on mine.

Based solely on his expression and body language, I knew the concern I saw in his features had nothing to do with the decision he’d made but with my possible reaction. So, I calmly asked, “When?”

My question relieved some of the tension in his shoulders, and he straightened, brushing a hand through his still-damp hair.

“I put in my notice right before Christmas, so I won’t be going back tomorrow.”

“And you’re just now telling me? Why wouldn’t you tell me before?” I questioned, my calm slowly fading.

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