Page 14 of My Forbidden Valentine

"Fuck!" There's impatience in his tone, desperation, it turns me on even more. "I'm not going to last like this Emma. You're doing so well."

"Don't stop please!"

He puts his hand on my clit as he thrusts into me, over and over again. His fingers on the most sensitive part of my body, his cock thrusting in and out of me, everything is too much but not enough at the same time.

"Come for me Emma, don't hold back."

And I do, screaming out his name and expending all my energy in savoring the electricity that runs through me as each of his thrusts sinks deeper and deeper, making me euphoric and lose all of myself at the same time. He doesn't slip out of me, instead he leans over to cover his body with mine. I hear his heartbeat matching the intensity of mine. He brushes his hand over my hair, soothing me, making me feel cherished, craving him again like I never craved someone before.

"I love you Emma. I don't think I'll ever be able to live without you." He traces my lips with his fingers. "I can't stop touching you."

"I love you too, August. I'm so glad I was stood up on Valentine's Day. Without it I don't know how long it would have taken us to find each other."

"I don't have any doubts that we would have though." He kisses me and there's so much tenderness that it seems impossible to think just a few days ago he was simply my dad's grumpy best friend.

Epilogue - One year later - Emma

It's freezing in Hope Peak and I can't wait to get home. It's been fun to help the businesses all around Hope Peak. August was right, there were a lot of people that needed help with some kind of organization. Sometimes I come up with systems to make their business more efficient, sometimes I'm just helping people declutter their wardrobe. It's unconventional, but it suits me just fine. I'm always up for a challenge, and I love the variety that comes with working with different customers. It's never one-sided either. I collaborate with my clients to find solutions, getting to know them or their business better before offering advice, which I also love. I've never been this happy with my career. Today, I'm at Peak Produce helping Mae to organize her inventory and come up with a system to prevent waste. She's been handling it fine, but it's getting more difficult for her to be on top of everything, especially since she wants to spend more time with her grandchildren and not at the grocery shop.

I wave Mae goodbye and make sure I don't leave anything of mine at Peak Produce. If I leave even a single note, I’m certain it’ll be scrutinized and put on display for the whole world to see, or at least for our small town, whichismy whole world. When August and I started dating, it's all everyone talked about. I'd be lying if I said it was all sunshine and roses but I’ve beentoo in love to give a damn. I still can't believe my dad accepted our relationship so easily. I remember how nervous we both were when we went to my parents' house to share the news, repeatedly going over what we were going to say. August made sure he didn't sound too abrupt in his speech—though in his first draft, he had written "I want her to be mine." I laughed so much when he showed them. But in the end, we shared our relationship, and my dad supported us. I guess he trusted us both to know what we wanted. And we do. It's been perfect sharing my life with August.

I run to the car as snow falls. It's Valentine's Day and August promised to make us ramen. Ever since we went to the city and ate some, August has been eager to recreate the dish at home. When I asked him why he surprised me with a sinful smile. "I want to see you eat ramen again."

Who am I to refuse ramen? It's not just him who adored the dish, I too can't stop thinking about it. I was never big on Valentine's Day but for some reason, with August, it feels special. He doesn't want to push us to buy expensive stuff that we don't need or to go to a fancy place on the worst night to go on a date night. No, he is just happy with being at home with me, making it slightly more special than usual but not overpowering. That's exactly my kind of Valentine's Day.

When I get home, the scent of broth cooking greets me and I instantly salivate. I'm greeted by Marshmallow who seems to be waiting for me, I squat down to pet him like I usually do. He’s been living here ever since I moved in, he was used to the garage but we did a couple of test trials and found he liked it here too. August still can't make him purr, we quibble about it a lot, it's adorable how jealous he is of our cat's preference for me. August arrives, his tattooed arms out in the open, it gives me a thrill every time. I stand so I can take off all my layers.

"You can take everything off while you're at it." He says. And he smirks. That's something that has changed too. He has been smiling more, even if it's just to tease me. He's always going to be my grumpy man and I've learned to deal with that, to give him the space he needs, to show him I'm not going anywhere. But he reserves some smiles for me and it makes me feel so special every time he does.

"Shouldn't we eat first?"

"Not really."

"Come on! I'm starving August. You promised me delicious ramen."

"And now I'm promising you delicious sex."

"Later!"

His eyes wrinkle and I know he's just messing with me.

When I taste the ramen, I moan, it's even better than the one we ate at that restaurant. How did he pull this off? August has been treating me with all kinds of home-cooked meals but this is just another level.

"I was hoping to hear that again." He stares at me with those dark eyes that have seen all of me.

"What?"

"That sound."

"You hear that all the time." We still can't keep our hands off each other, the way August always knows exactly where I need him at any given time has made sex addicting.

"No. This one is different. This one is reserved for ramen."

I choke on my ramen laughing loudly.

"You're crazy."

"Crazy for you."

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