Page 107 of Escaping Our Reality

He drags his hand over his jaw. “Don’t beat around the bush, Lulu. I like you when you get to the point.”

“Fine. That’s the question then. Do you justlikeme?” Despite my best efforts, nerves get the best of me, and I catch myself rubbing my scar. I quickly put my hand down by my side.

“That’s not the question you really wanna ask.”

I lick my lips. “Do you love me, Ry? Are you in love with me?”

He pushes off the counter and slowly closes the distance between us. His chest grazes against mine. “You are the love of my fucking life, Luella Margaret Hill. Never before. Never after. You’re my one and only.”

Holy. Crap.

I press my body against his. We’re still not touching each other with our hands. Only our bodies. “Ask me.”

His jaw twitches, and his throat makes a loud gulping noise. “Tell me something. Something no one else knows.”

“I love you, Ryland Joseph Crutchfield. Never before. Never after. You are my only reality.”

His chest rattles. It sounds like he’s purring.

I look down, mesmerized that our bodies are only separated by a thin piece of material.

“That’s not the only question you wanna ask me,” he whispers.

He’s right. It’s not.

Every part of my body is heavy with desire. Weighed down. Like trying to move in water. “Are you gonna have sex with me tonight, Ry?”

His sigh of relief would be comical if it weren’t such a serious moment. “Hell, yeah, I am.”

He gives me no chance to respond before hauling me into his arms and punishing my mouth with his. I wrap my feet around his waist, obsessed with how the motion spreads my innermost parts wide open. If that pesky underwear were gone, I bet his body would slip right into mine. He walks us back to my bedroom, only bumping into the wall twice, which is quite an accomplishment considering how ferociously we’re attacking one another.

I lower my feet to the ground, anchoring myself as his kisses become more controlled, more time-consuming. Deeper. Better. His calloused fingers massage my breasts, making me moan. I can’t stand it anymore. I quickly reach my hand down the front of his boxer briefs, grabbing him, and spreading his own moisture around the mushroomed head of his cock.

In one split second, Ry backs away from my touch. He drags his hands through his hair. Tossing his head back at the ceiling, he screams. “Are you kidding me right now!”

Who is he talking to? Me?

He looks like he’s just been stabbed. Or shot. Or hanged. “Lulu, we can’t have sex tonight.”

The horror. “Why not? I swear I’m ready. I’ve been ready.”

“I don’t have a condom,” he waves his hand at the bedroom door. “Condoms are in my truck. My truck is on the other side of the county.” He swears underneath his breath. “Let me go find a store that’s open.”

I smile, biting my lip. “I have condoms.”

His eyebrows rise into a new zip code. “Excuse me?”

“I bought condoms a few weeks ago. I didn’t know when our moment would come so I wanted to be prepared. I don’t wanna use condoms you bought for some other girl. In fact, those things get thrown out the second you get back to your truck, understand?”

He nods, watching me as I open my nightstand. I set all the boxes on the bed. He looks at the boxes and then at me and then back to the boxes again. He’s taking forever to pick what he wants. I’m suddenly very aware of my nakedness, so I press my legs together and casually fold an arm across my chest.

He looks back at me. Back at the boxes.

“What’s wrong, Ry? You’re killing me.”

“You bought nine boxes of condoms.”

“Yeah.”

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