Page 39 of Hyde

The last word explodes from his mouth when his ass hits the floor, misjudging the space he had when I jerked my knee up to squash his dick. Peering over the edge of the mattress, I glare at him and try to pull my wrists free from his grip.

“God, I love you,” he groans, reaching his free hand down to rub his tailbone.

I freeze.

“You do?”

Looking up at me, he stops his inspection of his rear and reaches over to pull me down on top of him.

“In a very different way than I cared about you when you were a kid, yes, Le-Lee. I love you,” he tells me as I straddle his stomach, grinning down at him like an idiot.

“I love you, too,” I needlessly reply before our lips touch.

Just then there’s a knock on the door.

“Ms. Sorenson? I apologize, I heard a crash and wanted to make sure you were alright.” A man’s tentative voice comes from the hallway.

“Yes, Father! I’m sorry, I rolled off the bed,” I fib, trying to place his voice. “Good night, Father Mosley.”

“Oh, and Ms. Sorenson? If you could please turn down the volume of whatever show you’re watching on your device. Many of us are early risers,” he requests, and even with his serious tone, I can picture the good-humored face of the man I met earlier.

“Of course, Father. Sorry about that, too,” I reply, biting my lip against the giggles that threaten to burst forth.

Once there’s silence again, I chance eye contact with Joe.

“You’re going to Hell,” he whispers.

“Come with me?” I ask, raising an eyebrow.

“At least until you get us kicked outta there…” he kisses me as he moves us into a sitting position so we can make our way back onto the bed.

I know there would be so much more space if we would spoon, but I want to see Joe’s face as we continue our conversation.

“Why?” he asks me, referring to my earlier declaration. “You always have cared about me and I’ve never understood it.”

“I’ve thought about this over the past few years and even in my own head it sounds weird. I mean, I’m surrounded by good people who love me, but with you, I think my first feelings were how comfortable I was around you. And happy too. You never minded playing with me, so at some point I started thinking of you as ‘mine’,” I whisper back, focusing on his chin when I get embarrassed by my feelings.

“And when you’re my age? How do you think you’re going to feel about the old man you’re saddled with?”

“I can’t imagine a time that I won’t love you with every part of my soul,” I fervently reply.

“Babe, you have to be prepared for when we get back,” Joe counters, placing a finger over my lips when I try to speak. “Gunner’s going to kick my ass, and I’m going to take it.”

“No,” I growl out. “That’s totally ridiculous. We’ll tell them, they’ll yell, I’ll probably cry and…”

“And then your dad. Is. Going. To. Kick. My. Ass. It’s going to happen. And you aren’t going to say a word about it.”

“I won’t allow it,” I insist, getting a soft chuckle from Joe.

“Now, that’s Riley speaking, through and through,” he retorts. “I’ve always loved how you do everything hard. Love. Fight. Cause mayhem. Laugh. And care about everyone in your orbit…”

“Except some people,” I mumble, thinking of the bitch who got us into this mess.

That comment earns me another kiss. “And hold a grudge.”

“Of all people, Mom and Dad can’t get hung up on our age difference,” I defiantly whisper against his lips.

“The thing that really sucks, is that your mom probably won’t cook for me for a while,” he mournfully pouts.

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