Page 94 of Heart Strings
“Your hands.”
Lo carefully removes her trousers and my jumper to reveal a bandage on her hip that I’ll avoid, but I brush her hair off her collarbone and hook a finger in the strap of her bra, slowly taking it down one side at a time. Brushing my nose along her exposed neck, her jaw as I do. Some of the tension in her shoulders melts away when I unfasten her bra and the cups fall. She shivers as my hands brush her pebbled nipples.
Lying on my side behind her, my hands explore her voluptuous body, still relearning every swell and dip. I want to memorize every perfect inch of her. Lo guides my hand first to her mouth, sucking two fingers, then places my fingers beneath thewaistband of her knickers. Soon she’s clenching, keening, quivering under my touch. I grind against her for some relief, but this is all about her. I don’t need anything else. Her pleasure—her escape, her grounding, her emotional rest—is more than enough for me.
Then she whispers, “I want you, Aidan.”
“I’m here. I’m yours, babe.”
“I’m yours.” She hauls me closer, smothering me in a fiery kiss.
It only takes a few moments to slide on a condom that I grab from her nightstand. My hands trail up the small of her back to hold her firmly in place as I slide in from behind. Cielo moans and brings them back to circle her clit—I do so love it when she tells me what to do.
Despite the injury, she still takes me so well, eagerly rocking back till I’m deep and we form a cautious, slow rhythm. I can’t help but look down, admiring the way her round arse jostles with each gentle thrust. Tension coils deep in my stomach as I try to make this last for her, but the intensity builds quickly. Her body is rigid, breath coming in short gasps. She’s close, but she’s holding on to control too tight to let it happen.
“Give in, Lo,” I whisper in her ear and give the lobe a soft nibble. “It’s okay to let go.”
With a shudder and a delicious moan that I feel deep in my own body, she gives in. Climax surges through me a moment later. It’s so intense that I can’t even speak, I just repeat her name over and over.
I fall onto my back and Cielo curls into my side, resting her head on my chest. My heartbeat must be frantic under her ear,but I feel at peace when she brushes a lock of hair from my forehead.
Lo is the strongest person I know; she inspires me to be a braver man. We can face whatever the future holds together when the time comes, but in this moment, we’re safe. We’re home.
Chapter 40
Lo
“Are you readyfor this?” Aidan asks.
“As I’ll ever be.”
Before I turn on the laptop, I place the soy candle strategically where it will be visible in my webcam frame. Beside it rests the envelope containing my test results.
Aidan waves his hand in front of his nose. “Ugh. That thing really does smell like Fionn’s football socks.”
“I warned you.” The first night he stayed over after my biopsy, I explained that my mom had sent the candle as a more health-conscious option. So he lit it. I told him that if he wasn’t so perfect otherwise, I would have dumped him on the spot for making my entire apartment smell like his brother’s gym bag. The scent still lingers despite keeping the windows open for the past three nights.
The Godzilla avatar on my mom’s contact information in the chat window earns me an amused look, but Aidan doesn’t comment.
It’s no secret that I’ve avoided this conversation with myparents, thinking that I know how it will go. But he’s taught me that sometimes people surprise you, if you allow them to. He fusses with his hair in the little preview window for the video chat. It’s sweet that he’s nervous, but I hate that my mom makes us both feel that way. I scoot closer to him until we’re both in the frame and hit the call button.
“Cielo, I’ve been trying to—” She cuts herself off abruptly when she realizes Aidan is sitting next to me. “Oh dear god, you’re pregnant.”
“No, no! It’s not that. But I do need to talk to you about something important.”
I glance at my phone. To save myself the stress of going through the whole process twice, I asked my dad to join us on the chat. He hasn’t connected yet, and I don’t blame him after I’d all but told him to leave me alone after the wedding. But Aidan says I have to give people a chance to surprise me.
I don’t know if we’ll ever repair things, but thanks to Aidan, I now know that sometimes, with a little work and a lot of humility, it might be possible.
Aidan lifts his hand in greeting. “Hi, Mrs. Valdez.”
“Hi.” There isn’t any warmth in it. She narrows her eyes. “May I speak to my daughter alone, please?”
“Anything you have to say can be said in his company,” I say, taking his hand in mine. “And we’re waiting on one more person.”
Right on cue, the video chat chimes and my dad pops up on the screen. Just seeing his face makes my chest squeeze with guilt at not having spoken to him since the day after Lark’s wedding.
“Hey, Dad.”
