Page 210 of Pucking Wild

She laughs, her hands stroking my back. “I love you, Ryan.”

I groan. “Again.”

“Don’t get greedy,” she teases.

“Too late,” I reply, my hands drifting down to cup her perfect ass. “You know that’s my fatal flaw. I’m greedy when it comes to you. I want every kiss…” I brush my lips against hers. “Every smile…”

“They’re yours,” she replies, her face glowing with joy.

“Every orgasm,” I add with a smirk.

“There I draw the line,” she says, pushing against my shoulder. “You know how much I like playing with my toys. And you travel a lot. I can’t possibly give them all to you.”

I consider for a moment. “That’s fair. How about when I’m away, I still get to watch? We haven’t experimented with video calls yet. That could be fun.”

“Sorry, puppy. This show is live action only,” she teases, her strokes shifting from loving to seeking, her hands brushing down my abs and over my hips. “What if I promise to think of you when I come and you’re not around?”

I groan, sinking against her as I kiss her neck. “Don’t go breaking my heart—”

She stills, pushing me off her gently to hold my gaze. “Don’t break mine.”

“Never. Tess, I’m gonna be so good to you.”

“We’ll be good to each other,” she replies, kissing up my jaw. Her hands slip under my shirt to stroke the warm skin of my back.

I weave my fingers into the curly hair at her nape and give it a pull, loving the little hiss she does, the way her eyes heat as she gazes up at me like I’m the only thing she sees. Smirking down at her, I add, “And if we ever do get married, we’re having mac and cheese at our wedding.”

She laughs, her hands slipping down to cup my ass, pulling me tight against her. Then she angles her mouth up and whispers in my ear, “Make it lobster mac and cheese, and I’ll even wear white.”

It’s a gift and a promise. She’s offering me hope. I just have to trust her and love her. This woman is mine. My friend, my soulmate. She already wears my jersey and sleeps in my bed. Someday, she may even share my name. As we sink to the floor, unable to wait for more, the name rings true in my mind:Tess Langley.

My Tess. The cataclysm that came and shook me up. Now she’s mine to love. Mine to cherish. Mine to make happy for the rest of my lucky fucking life. I smile, kissing her perfect lips.

Nothing has ever felt so right.

EPILOGUE

One Year Later

My alarm goes off and I groan, rolling to my side. It’s too fucking early. But it’s game day, and I have to get up. I snatch for my phone, determined to silence it before it wakes Tess.

As soon as my fingers wrap around it, I go still. That’s not my alarm sound. It’s music. Like a ringtone. I pull my head out from under my pillow, blinking in the semidarkness as I check the screen. It’s my phone, and it’s definitely an alarm, but it’s playing the chorus of ‘Marry Me’ by Jason Derulo.

Gasping, I shut it off and roll over, totally expecting to see Tess sitting up in the bed like a no-sleep gremlin, holding out a ring box. But she’s not there. Her side of the bed is empty.

I drag a tired hand over my face as I sit up.

She’s been hinting pretty strong these last few months that she was ready to propose. She’s been making a game of it, twisting me up just to wind me back down. I’ve about reached my fucking limit. I’ve assured her I’m happy either way. We’re a year into this thing, and there’s no end in sight. I am so in love with that woman, it’s not even funny. Tess ismine.

But a promise is a promise. I’m not proposing. Ever. If she wants me, she knows where to find me.

I set my phone down and swing my legs off the side of the bed. The moment my feet touch the floor, I’m wide fucking awake. There’s a trail of red rose petals starting under my feet and leading across the bedroom, disappearing down the hall.

“Tess, you better be out there,” I shout, tiptoeing through the rose petals.

They go down the stairs and around the corner into the kitchen where—

I stop, eyes wide, looking around as I take in a garden’s worth of red roses. “Oh…fucking hell.”

---