Page 143 of Love Me Steadfast
Gripping his hair and a fistful of the comforter, I try to get him closer, unable to taper my desire. “William,” I pant. It’s so decadent, intense.
“Come on my tongue, sweetheart,” he says. “I need to hear that beautiful song of yours.”
I give into the thirst spinning faster and faster inside me, letting everything go. Pleasure pure and sweet rips through me, tearing my emotions loose as I come apart, making me gasp and sob at the same time. I cry out for him, and he’s there, wrapping his arms around me and holding me tight.
“Fucking beautiful,” he says in that rich tone that unlocks more memories. Of stolen afternoons in his truck and late nights in his room. Of kisses in the rain and lake water drying on my skin beneath a summer sun.
I tug down his sweatpants. “Please, Will,” I pant. “Nothing between us.”
He caresses down my hair, concern in his indigo eyes. “You’re sure.”
“I promise I won’t break,” I say, hooking my leg around the back of his thighs to bring him closer.
He presses a kiss to my forehead, his lips trembling. “I love you.”
“Show me,” I say.
He presses a kiss to my lips that tastes like a promise. Like forever.And then he’s inside me, rocking his hips, the weight and pressure of him everything I need.
“Yes,” I pant. “It’s so perfect.”
“This is all I’ve ever wanted, sweetheart,” he says, thrusting that final inch, sending a rush of pleasure through my core. “You and me. Together. Just like this.”
“Forever,” I manage just as a sob steals my breath.
He kisses away my tears. “Forever.”
Chapter Forty-Five
WILLIAM
ONE YEAR LATER
I firea quick pass to Curren who is racing for our makeshift end zone, his little legs pumping. The ball drops perfectly into his outstretched arms, and he sprints the remaining few yards to score.
“Nice, buddy!” Zach calls as Curren does his celebratory chicken dance.
“Isn’t Zach supposed to be on our team?” Charlotte asks, huffing hard after our play, her hands on her hips. The diamond I slid onto her finger two months ago flashes in the evening light. Charlotte wanted a simple ceremony, so we gathered our closest friends and family at our favorite picnic spot by the blackberry patch and tied the knot.
With a laugh, I lean over and steal a kiss. She still sucks at sports, but it just makes me love her more.
“Dinner’s ready!” Barb calls out from the picnic area.
Our family gathers around, filling plates and crowding onto the picnic tables, Ollie and the Hutton’s new puppy sticking close to the food.
Charlotte and I sit with Henry, Sofie, and Zach with Tanya on his lap. Theo, Ray, Morgan, and Crosby sit with Skye and Jesse. Barb, Curren, and Rowdy, sit across from CJ, the new conservation officer he’s training, who is tucked in awfully close to Linnea. She’s beaming at something he’s just said while Rowdy’s been scowling at him since the moment he showed up.
“What’s the story there?” I ask Zach in a low tone.
“CJ apparently took Linn to coffee yesterday,” he replies. “Rowdy’s just being his normal protective dad self.”
Sofie raises an eyebrow. “Dad’s been so busy up north, I’m glad he’s finally getting some help.”
“At least Everett won the election,” Henry says, his brow quirked. “Someone’s gotta stop those bastards.”
Zach claps his hands over Tanya’s ears too late.
Henry cringes. “Sorry, little lady,” he says to Tanya, who is too busy mowing down a wedge of watermelon to have even noticed.
