Page 136 of Old Acquaintances

The thought of this never ending, of never being separated from him again, sets me off. I tighten against him, groaning, “Please don’t leave again.”

He releases me and I lay back, breathing, against the concrete, my feet in the water. He brushes them when pushes off the edge and sits beside me. Suddenly, he’s standing and I’m in his arms. My legs hook against his waist, and he has one hand on my butt, holding me in place, the other on the back of my neck, pulling my mouth to his. We stumble into the dark kitchen. I don’t open my eyes until he drops me.

Tucker closes the door to our bedroom. He locks it.

My heartbeat skips.

I pant, cold and wet, standing in the dark room. Silently, he peels off my wet top and it slaps to the ground. His fingers catch the sides of my underwear, and he pulls them down, bending to help me step out of them. My muscles clench with need and he licks his lips, touching my stomach where it’s tight.

“Eli,” I whisper. He’s running a light finger over my belly button and staring at my body like he wants to memorize it. “Please.” My body shivers.

“Hold on,” he says. He stays quiet walking to the bathroom and returns with a towel. He wraps it around my back - as if that’s what I’m craving - and rubs it down my arms. He driesevery part of me with the towel, my hair and my collarbone and my breasts, until he gets between my legs and I shudder. When my feet are dry and he’s standing, I reach for Tucker’s shorts, pulling them down fast.

He’s setting the tempo, and I want this to speed up.

But, when I see him in front of me, I realize how much there is to savor. I’ve missed out on so many nights like this, moments I could have had if I realized sooner how much I loved him. He might have loved me like that, too. He sure acted like it.

I take the towel from his hands, and he stands still while I reach on my toes and rub it over his hair. I pat it on his shoulders. His chest. I sweep it along his hipbone, my heart fluttering at the sight, and cover his length. I stroke him once with the towel. He lets out a moan and his eyes close. I stroke him again, watching his face relax. I let the towel fall and wrap my hands around him, at which he sighs, “Dammit, Ella.”

I try not to laugh. “I’m glad I never broke this.”

“Me, too.” He scoops me up immediately and tosses me on the bed.

Tucker grabs my legs and parts them, kissing my center and I scream. My hands fly to my face. I’m still bucking against his mouth when he flips me onto my stomach.

“Quiet,” he whines.

I’m cold and alone, rubbing myself into the sheets, and I hear him rummaging through his bag. He returns with the sound of ripping foil.

My face presses into the mattress and his tongue returns. My butt hikes into the air and I feel him holding it higher, gripping my cheeks. He licks my seam and nips at my glutes and then he’s inside. His hand covers my mouth this time, holding back my squeal. He pushes once more and pulls me to a kneel, gluing his front to my back.

My head tips and Tucker pulls my hair back, kissing myneck and finding my mouth.

“I’ve thought about this for so long,” he whispers, grinding, groaning. His tongue in my mouth matches the movements of his thrusts.

“About us?” I want to know exactly what he feels.

“You.” He stops moving and his mouth lands on my shoulder. He shifts us so that we’re lying on our sides. Spooned together, he twitches inside of me while his hand tucks under my head, moving to my lips.

I’m licking, biting, gasping, wanting him and forgetting that I have him. His other hand tightens against my breast. He drags it down my torso to where we are joined.

“Please don’t stop.” I press his hand harder into me and then grip my knee, holding my leg up, giving him room to work inside.

“Ella, this is all it can be.”

I groan, “This is more than enough - you’re more than enough.”

He resumes, slowly. “I just want it to last as long as possible.”

“It’s lasted our whole lives,” I sigh. “It can last the rest. I’ve never wanted anyone but you.”

His fingers move in circles on my mound, his strokes become more rapid. He’s wrapping his arms around me. My knee falls to the side, snug into my chest, squeezing him, and I emit a silent scream. Tucker grunts, holding me to him, and relaxes as I fall back to Earth.

He was right.Ido it again,wedo it again, and now I sit beside his reclined body, dragging my hands over the chest I thought I knew so well. I’ve laid my hands on his chest dozens of times, pushing him away from me, holding on to him in a game.

Seeing him this way is like finding a new compartment inyour ten-year-old car or learning some feature on your phone. Something other people know and enjoy, and you think,God I wish I knew about it.I could have used it. Really used it.

I say, “I wish we’d been huggers growing up.”

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