Page 172 of Promise Me Not

A shivering freaking tomato.

I’m exposed like never before, and while it’s a little unnerving, it’s exciting in a whole new way.

His hand travels to the apex of my thighs, but a slight pinch forms at the edges of his gaze, his awareness and connection to my mind unmatched, only confirmed when he whispers, “May I?”

I don’t have to ask what he means, so I give him something better than a yes, something I know he’ll love. I soak in some of the bravery his presence provides and stretch back a little more, tipping my hips a little higher. “You’d be the first.”

Before my eyes, his entire demeanor shifts.

His gaze grows tender, the weight of his hand featherlight. His thighs shake beneath my ass, and when his shoulders lower an inch, I smile up at him.

“First,” he breathes, his gaze moving over my face before falling between my legs. His thumb comes up, sliding along my clit, and I buck into it. Slowly, his lips curve, and the light of a moment ago is smothered. “I get one of your firsts.”

“You have a lot of my firsts, and you don’t even know it.”

Mason groans, his torso bending as he lowers himself into position. “We are making a list later, but right now…I’m going to taste you, and you’re going to come in my mouth.”

He gives no other warning than that, swooping down and swiping his tongue between my folds, up and over my clit, and then he takes it into his mouth.

My entire body comes alive as he sucks my clit between his lips, his tongue doing wild things on the inside, and my thighs are vibrating. A ball of heat forms in my belly. It’s so hot even my eyes burn, and it only grows, and with each spiral, it winds my nerves tighter.

Mason slides a finger inside, curling up into me, and then his teeth are teasing my clit. He bites, and I gasp. He licks, and I shake.

And when he closes his mouth over me again, I shatter.

My cries are loud and wanton, my body trembling, exploding, and it doesn’t stop. He keeps sucking, and I keep writhing, and before I know it, my thighs are clamped around his head, squeezing, my fingers tearing at his hair, and he growls against me, begging for more.

It goes on forever, and only when I’m nothing but a bag of bones, unable to keep my head above water, does Mason release me.

A satisfied smirk tilts his glossy lips, and he climbs from the tub, lifting me into his arms.

He towels me off, brushes my hair, and then he tucks me into the hotel bed, climbing in beside me. “Sleep, baby. I can promise you, you’re going to need it.”

I’m out within seconds.

Mason

I sigh,leaning on my elbow and smiling at my two favorite people, sitting on the edge of the creek that runs through the back of my aunt and uncle’s property. It’s too cold to get in this time of year, but that doesn’t stop Deaton from doing his damnedest to try.

We’ve been in Alrick for two days now, and Payton was finally ready to step out of the room, not that I was complaining about being locked away with her. There’s nothing I want more than uninterrupted time with her and Deaton. God knows I’ve missed too much already, but there’s something about watching them with my family that’s just as pleasing.

“That’s got to be a record.”

I look over to find Chase smirking from where he’s lying beside me. “What?”

“You’ve sighed, like, ten times in the last ten minutes.”

Chuckling, I push up onto my ass, hanging my elbows over my knees. “Guess I’m feeling pretty sappy.” I swallow, admitting, “I was starting to worry I’d never get here.”

“You worried for nothing, my man,” he says softly. “There was no way she could walk away, even if she wanted to. It’s so obvious, I don’t know how the others didn’t pick up on it a long time ago.”

My lips twitch with a smile, and I look back toward the water, to my little family, but Chase’s words repeat in my mind, and I look his way. “When did you know?”

“When I showed up at her place that night and you were already there.” He looks away. “I had no idea why she was so upset. I assumed she was having a bad day and needed someone, and I could relate, so I ran home after practice, got some things together, and headed out. When I first saw you, I thought she asked you to come, too, and you just beat me there. I was like, okay, cool, and I didn’t feel so bad about it taking me so long to get there, and then you took off.” He shakes his head, sitting up and mimicking my position. “I was confused as hell, but she was crying, so I left it alone. Later, I learned she didn’t call you at all, and that was right about when she told me it was the one-year mark since Deaton passed. The second she said it, I was like, fuck. I wanted to be there for her, but after all we went through last year, man…” Chase sighs, looking me dead in the eye. “I love you. You’re my brother, and I just couldn’t, so I took off. It wasn’t until I was halfway home that I realized I was making another fucking mistake. I knew you better than that. And pissed off at my presence, angry that she called me, and confused about why, none of that mattered—you’d have still wanted me to stay so she wasn’t alone.” He looks away. “I swear, it seems to be one fuckup after another for me nowadays. Starting to think that’s all I am.”

“You’re not, man, and you figured it out.” He meets my eyes again, guilt in his own. “You were there for her when she wouldn’t let me be, and even though I was a dick about it?—”

“Even though you reminded me what your right hook felt like.” He forces a smirk.

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