Page 61 of The Bookbinder's Guide to Love

She’d been born into a life where the only way she survived was by being on her own. Her friendship with Liberty and Poppy had given her a sisterhood and found family, but they each lived alone. No one had stayed in her space since she’d left Tawdra’s and the bedroom she’d shared with Milly.

Sera chewed her lower lip between her teeth as she unlocked the door, fumbling the key and dropping it.

Wes bent down, picking it up and unlocking the door for her. “Let’s just try it tonight.”

He had done it again. The way he had in the tavern, giving her a nice, safe out. This didn’t feel like leading lady energy to her. It didn’t feel like she was putting herself first at all. It felt like she was once again taking the safe path and missing the spectacle.

She wanted more than the safe path with Wes.

“I want this, Wes. I might not know how it’s going to turn out. But tonight, I did some soul-searching, and as much as I’m scared to ever plan for the future, I’m also excited by what it can bring.”

“Me too,” he said.

She led him into her house and he closed the door behind them. Her house, as always, felt warm and welcoming. She drew her strength from this space she’d curated to reflect the woman she was.

Not the woman she always let the world see, but the true Sera. And that was why bringing Wes to this space felt like a leap into the unknown. But there was no going back. He had already left a mark on her home and on her. She hadn’t let herself see it until tonight when he’d asked to stay.

She was making it seem as if not letting him sleep with her in her bed was going to preserve some barrier between them. But that barrier had disappeared the night of Ford’s funeral, and no matter how much she mentally tried to wedge it back between them, it wasn’t going to happen.

This time he wanted to take her in her bed. Not like they were at the tavern; he wanted sex to feel like it meant something. But frankly, being in the hallway brought him back to their first night together. He remembered the feel of her hot pussy on his cock, and he couldn’t think about anything other than getting back inside her.

She’d taken her coat off and her boots and he watched her standing there. He saw in her eyes that hint of vulnerability that made him want to protect her. To wrap her in his arms and make promises he wasn’t sure he knew how to keep. Things like he’d keep her safe and keep anyone from hurting her again.

Even himself.

But he still felt like an edgy bastard deep down, and protecting Sera wasn’t going to be easy since he still felt so out of control.

Fuck.

She tipped her head to the side, watching him for a moment before she held her hand out to him. He still wore his coat and boots, and there was no elegant way to take them off, so he just did it in a frantic moment. When she reached for him with that look on her face, he knew she wanted him. And that made it impossible for him to think of anything but getting her completely naked. Something he hadn’t done yet. He’d settled for clothing shoved out of the way so he could get inside her as fast as he could. Like he had to capture the moment immediately or he’d miss it completely.

And this time...with the woman who was letting him stay the night. Not because they were both grieving and had no one else to cling to, but because they’d both decided to.

“Wes?”

“Sorry. I’m trying not to be a total horndog and just fall on you. I want this time to be romantic...”

“In what way?” she asked.

“I don’t know. Like in romantic movies? But truthfully, they always cut away from the couple, and the only people I’ve seen doing it are in porn...which I’m not sure counts as romance.”

She caught his hand and kissed his knuckles. “I don’t know. I just know when you touch me, I like it and I can’t think of anything else but how good you feel. And right now...that’s all I need from you.”

She put his hand on her chest where the scoop neck of her top left her skin bare. It was cold to his touch as he moved his hand over her skin. The moment he touched her he’d stopped thinking, but his feelings weren’t as easy to control. When he touched her, he was very aware that this was Sera.

Not some chick he’d picked up in a bar.

Sera.

He kissed her neck, her familiar scent of lavender setting him ablaze, then lifted his head to watch as he drew his finger along the line of her top. Her skin was soft to his touch. She arched her back, thrusting her breasts forward toward him. For a brief moment it was hard to believe he was here with this woman. That he was going to stay the night. Not because of the ice or because he was too drunk to drive home. But because she’d asked him to.

God, he was such an emotional wimp. All he could think about was making this night one they both would always remember. The first night he’d stayed at hers.

He continued to take his time, touching only her exposed chest. She had such soft skin and it was radiant, pale.

He slowly pushed the shoulder of her top down on one arm, letting the gaping fabric expose more of her flesh. He pushed his hand inside and down farther until he could cup her breast. Her nipple was hard, pushing into the center of his palm. He circled his palm over it, making it harder and eliciting a moan.

His erection was hard, straining against his jeans, so he lowered his zipper, giving his hard-on room. He put his hand on her waist and ran his fingers around until he found the fastening at the back and lowered the zipper until her skirt fell to her feet.

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