Page 172 of Charlie

"We have a themed party every solstice and equinox, a costume party on Halloween, a Christmas ball, and an Easter brunch with an egg hunt," Lach says, listing them off on his fingers.

"Are we going to keep sitting here talking about things we could discuss in a much more comfortable setting, or are we going to grab our shit and move in together?" Cam asks, the tilt of his mouth softening the impatience in his words as he gets out of the car.

"I'll go with Lach. Jack, you go with Charlie." He turns to me and helps me out of the car. "You may as well get everything you have. We'll take the truck back home, so there will be plenty of room."

Home.

Is this how people usually feel when they think of home? Peace. Warmth. Happiness. Safety. Feelings I haven't felt in a really, really long time. I look up at Cam, the tenderness in his eyes washing over me like cool rain after a hot summer day, wiping away the remnants of doubt and anxiety planted inside me all those years ago.

"We're going home," he whispers, reading me like an open book. He smooths his thumb over my cheekbone and presses his lips to mine, lingering in the beauty of this moment. His hand is warm on my back as he leads me around the car, handing me off to Jack as he heads inside to help Lach grab the essentials.

"You can be honest with me, you know," Jack says once we're alone, head down, pushing at the pebbles under our feet with the toe of his boot.

"What do you mean?"

"About yesterday." He still doesn't look up, but I can see the blush creeping up his neck and into his cheeks.

"I was honest," I say simply, not wanting to feed his insecurity by saying the wrong thing.

"But—"

"There are no buts, Jack. There are no stipulations when it comes to my love for you. We can weather any storm as long as we stay committed to open communication."

"Is this a storm then?" He asks, finally meeting my gaze.

"Not even close." I smile, reaching up to push a strand of hair away from his face. "You know those days when it's sunny and cloudy simultaneously? It's sprinkling, but you don't even notice because there's the brightest double rainbow you've ever seen stretched across the sky above you?"

He nods, his lips trembling with emotion.

"That's what this is."

"I love you so fucking much," he whispers, wrapping me in a hug and burying his face in the crook of my neck. "Promise me you'll tell me if it starts looking stormy," he says, his voice muffled.

"I promise."

He kisses my neck and sets me back on the ground. "Let's get your stuff and go home, Sassenach."

There's that feeling again. I can't keep the grin off my face as I pull him down the path, knowing I'll remember this day for the rest of my life.

It only takes us ten minutes to gather all of my belongings. I leave Arty's commission for last, carefully rolling it and sliding it into a protective tube.

"I have a special place for this," Jack says, taking the tube from me.

"Really? I was wondering where I was going to put it. I didn't want to take up the kitchen table."

He sets the tube on the couch and walks toward me, the expression on his face changing to something dark and delicious. "Should we give the cottage a proper goodbye?" I step back, bumping into the wall, my breath wooshing from my lungs as he closes in, towering over me.

"What would that entail?"

"Your moans echoing off the walls as you get yourself off one last time with this." He pulls my vibrator from his back pocket.

"Why do you have that?" I try to snatch it away from him, my cheeks on fire.

"I found it in the nightstand when I was packing everything up. Show me, Charlotte. Please."

"Jack—"

"Don't tell me you don't want to. Your pupils dilated the second I pulled it out of my pocket. Is your clit begging for it, Charlie?" He pulls my wrists over my head, pinning me against the wall. "Is your pussy wet and ready?" I moan as he rolls his hips, the hardness of his cock pressing between my legs, torturing me.

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