Page 102 of Not Catching Love

“Fuck it. Fuck them all. Maybe they find out and I lose my license and do something else. Maybe I quit. Maybe I … I don’t know. All I know is that not being with you doesn’t make sense. If I’m fined or stripped of my license … I’ll figure it out. I love you, Xander. And the fact I had to be away from you for so fucking long doesn’tmake sense. I want to make you happy. That’s it. That’s top of my dream board.”

“Shiiiirt sleeves,” Seven groans. “You better say yes, Z, or I will.”

“Not if I get there first,” Molly adds.

But even with their threats, I can’t make the words form. I fall against Derek, face in his neck, cursing the stupid damn stupid seat belts for making it impossible to crawl into his lap.

“What do you say, bug? Can we make this work?”

“We always could.” I grit my teeth so I don’t do something annoying like cry. Again. I’m so sick of crying. “I love you too. I love you so much it might kill me.”

He chuckles, hand a steady anchor on my back. “Let’s call that plan B. For now, tell me you’ll be mine, and we’re good.”

“I’m yours. I’ve always been yours. I can’t believe you finally caught up.”

I’d been prepared to stick it out another six months. Another year. Another ten. It didn’t matter to me. Public or notpublic. I’ll take whatever I can get. Sherwin can tell me that’s unhealthy all he likes; he doesn’t know Derek.

“Thank you for waiting for me,” he whispers. “I’m going to spend forever proving I was worth it.”

Derek doesn’t need to though. “Dare-bear, I’ve always known.”

Chapter Thirty-Three

Derek

Xander barely gives me time to take a quick shower before he’s dragging me toward my bedroom door. There are no complaints coming from me because I’ve missed Xander more than I would have thought I could. When I went to Ghana, the distance was acute, and I felt it every day as much as I tried to turn off from the emotion. This was a thousand times worse.

Having Xander missing me as much as I missed him, remembering his smiles and how he fits in my arms, it was a lot.

Four months was a lot.

One month into the trip already had me regretting it. I would have canceled and come home early then if the work I was doing wasn’t so damn important. Every day, I had to focus on the people I was helping and not how much my heart ached, otherwise, there was a very real possibility I would havebeen on a flight home. The time apart was worth it though. It made it very fucking clear that Xander is worth whatever cost I have to pay to be with him.

Including my license.

Waiting the full two years is no guarantee our relationship will be deemed ethical anyway, and I’m too tired to fight something that’s this right.

Xander kicks open my bedroom door behind him and tugs me into the room. Manny dropped off some basic groceries for me earlier, and it looks like that smart-ass made my bed too. I owe him one for that.

It doesn’t take long for Xander to strip off my towel and shed his clothes. My gaze doesn’t leave his incredible body, and he’s drinking me in just as greedily. The second his underwear is kicked off, he grabs both my hands and tugs me forward as he drops back onto the bed.

I land on top of him, all warm skin against mine, and the contact is so sudden after months without that I hold him against me for a moment while it sinks in.

“Kiss me,” he begs, voice already raspy.

I lean down and touch my lips to his. We both moan into the kiss, and electricity flows from it right to my toes. My cock hardens, trapped between our bodies, thickening the second Xander opens his mouth and swipes his tongue against mine.

It’s a blast of heat and something sweet on his tongue. As we kiss, I sink my fingers into his soft hair, missing the way it feels and how he responds to my touch. I’m lying between his thighs, his legs bracketing my hips, and the tiny thrust he gives as he drags his hard length over my skin is intoxicating.

“Missed you,” he whispers. “Missed you so much.”

I hum, brushing kisses all the way along his jawline before sucking on the silky skin at his throat. His head falls back on a soft sigh, hands carding through my hair and holding me in place.

As much as my dick is buzzing to hurry things up, there’s something weighty and indulgent about taking my time to be with him like this. To savor the kisses and the intimacy. To give Xander the connection he constantly craves.

I spend time with my hands exploring his body while he does the same. From his hair to his back, along his arms, over his chest, where I tease his nipples into hard peaks. I grip his ass and explore his hips, his waist, his cock. We kiss with me on top, then him on top. I’m in control before he takes over, and then once he’s done, he hands control back. My skin is sticky with his precum, and I’m sure he feels the same, but we keep kissing and touching and then kissing some more.

My tongue learns every ridge and groove of his body before Xander does the same. Looking down, with him nestled between my legs, tongue dragging over my balls, and shrewd eyes watching my every reaction, has my body overheating.

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