Page 92 of Hooked On Them

“Let go,” I growled, feeling her tightening around me, sensing she was close. “Come for me, Nora. Just for me.”

Her eyes flew open, locking with mine, something vulnerable and fierce in them simultaneously. I slipped a hand between us, finding her clit with my thumb, circling in time with my thrusts. The added stimulation was all she needed. Her body went rigid beneath me, and her walls clamped down on me as she came with a choked cry. She buried her face against my shoulder, her teeth scraping my skin.

Watching her come apart, feeling her pulsing around me, the sound of my name muffled against my skin was too much. My orgasm built at the base of my spine, coiling tight before snapping. I buried myself deep inside her as I came, her name falling from my lips, my body shuddering with the force of my release.

I was careful not to collapse on her, aware of my weight but unwilling to separate yet. She seemed equally reluctant, her legs still wrapped around me, hands stroking lazily up and down my back.

Finally, when my arms began to tremble from supporting my weight, I eased out of her and rolled to my side, pulling her with me so we faced each other. I brushed damp hair from her forehead, studying her. Words seemed inadequate at this point, so I didn’t speak, and neither did she.

She traced patterns on my chest with her fingertip, a thoughtful expression crossing her face before she finally spoke. “You surprised me tonight.”

“Good surprise or bad surprise?” I caught her hand, bringing it to my lips.

“Definitely good.” Her smile was sleepy and satisfied. “I didn’t know you had that in you, Captain.”

Her calling me that right now held a different weight somehow. Like I washercaptain. “There’s a lot you don’t know about me yet.”

“I’m starting to see that.” She shifted closer, tangling her legs with mine. “What brought this on?”

I considered the question, wanting to give her honesty. “I wanted to be selfish. To have you to myself.”

Something flickered in her eyes. “You don’t have to always be the good guy, Miles. Not with me.”

“No?” I brushed my thumb across her lower lip, still swollen from my kisses.

“No.” She nipped at my finger playfully. “Sometimes I like it when you’re a little bad.”

Heat pooled low in my belly again, desire rekindling despite just coming. “I’ll remember that.”

She yawned, and I pulled her closer, arranging us so her head rested on my chest, my arm around her shoulders.

“Stay,” she murmured against my skin, already sounding half-asleep. “At least for a while.”

I pressed a kiss to the top of her head, taking in the scent of her: sweat and sex and the lingering traces of her shampoo. “I’m not going anywhere.”

As her breathing deepened into sleep, I stared at the ceiling of her room. The restlessness that had driven me here was gone, replaced by a different kind of awareness. Things had shifted tonight—between Nora and me, between me and the guys, and within myself.

I’d stepped out of the role I usually played, taken what I wanted without apology, and found that Nora wanted that version of me as much as the careful, considerate one. The realization was both freeing and terrifying.

I’d spent years calibrating every action, measuring each decision against what was best for everyone else. I might have been needlessly holding back. But tonight? Tonight, I’d followed my gut, letting desire override diplomacy.

I pulled the blankets higher over us both and surrendered to sleep, wondering when exactly looking out for her had transformed into something that felt dangerously like falling.

Chapter30

Final Boss Battle

Dominic

The sign on the store entrance said, “Dreams & Wonders,” but it might as well have spelled out “Hell & Nightmares.” Christmas music blasted from hidden speakers, mixing with the shrieks of overstimulated children and the desperate murmurs of last-minute shoppers. Holiday retail hell at its finest.

I adjusted the bags already hanging from my forearms and took a deep breath. “Into the pit we go.” I trailed behind Carter and Miles as they breached the threshold of the children’s boutique.

This whole shopping expedition had started as Carter’s half-assed joke during breakfast. “We can’t show up empty-handed for Christmas,” he’d announced to Brett, like we were distant relatives rather than the three guys impregnating his daughter. Well, technically just me doing the impregnating, but the family tree was getting more complicated by the day.

Brett had tossed Carter the SUV keys with narrowed eyes and a grunt that clearly translated to:I’d rather you leave than stay here making googly eyes at my daughter.

Two hours later, we’d managed to find a bottle of scotch that cost more than my first hockey stick for Brett and Mateo. We’d even picked up a fancy ring light for Nora’s sister, Josie, and a fancy pen for her boyfriend, Gabriel.

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