She could have lied to save face. But he deserved the truth. Deserved to know he’d become her favourite person. Deserved the confirmation that this was as real as it could be. ‘I love you.’ Her voice was steady, her words slow.
‘You thought a good time to tell me this was when I was about to go down on you?’
And Alex… Alex was always beautiful. But just then, on his knees, looking up at her with the wide, unrestrained smile she was sure only she got to see, he wasdevastating.
The heart-aching mix of amusement and softness in his face had her falling right into their usual rapport, suddenly desperate to escape the vulnerability of the moment. ‘Literally couldn’t think of a better time.’
‘Is this a drunk confession?’
Would it matter if it was? For her—and she’d assumed for him—those had been nothing more than excuses to share her truest self without fear of judgement.
‘If that’s what you need to believe. But I wasn’t the one about to deep throat a bottle of champagne.’
Alex stood, and if it was an attempt to get closer to her, it didn’t work—their height difference stayed the same, merely reversed.
‘Say it again, Princess.’ His hand trailed over her cheekbone and came to rest on the back of her neck, lifting her head to look at him.
‘I love you,’ she whispered, fingers trailing over the floral outlines on his chest, still floored by seeing her work on his skin. ‘I didn’t mean to.’
Alex snorted, a sound so normal, sohuman, that it felt wrong coming out of that godlike face. ‘Thanks.’
‘But you broke down my defences with every secret meeting. With your stupid smirk and your snarky comments and your drunk confessions. With the meanings behind your tattoos.’ Now that she’d started, it snowballed, reasons escaping her. ‘With the way you love your dog. Your absurd loyalty to Michelangelo. And every other time you let me see a little bit of you behind the bluster.’
As she was speaking, Alex pulled her towards the bed, unzipping her dress and easing the straps over her shoulders, letting the fabric fall to her waist. He worked it over her hips, and as promised, quickly divested her of the shapewear underneath until she was in front of him in only the simple black thong she’d worn to avoid the panty lines inexplicably still visible through the thick layer of lycra on top of them.
‘Is this comfortable?’ Alex asked. One hand hooked into the waistband while the other reached behind her to palm at and squeeze as much of her bare skin as possible.
‘Yes.’ Her voice rasped through her throat as he scraped his blunt nails across her ass.
‘Good. I’m buying you more. Because you look fucking spectacular in this.’
‘They’re three for nine pounds at Asda,’ Sarah supplied helpfully, breathing heavily while her heart ached a little at his simple consideration. He’d undressed her enough to know that comfort was a far more important factor than aesthetics when it came to choosing her underwear. As much as he’d seemed to love the lacy lingerie, he’d always been equally wild when faced with the simple pieces she favoured.
Alex flopped onto the bed, stopping her musings.
‘Is that it?’ Sarah popped a hip, attitude filling her voice. ‘I tell you I love you, and I don’t get eaten out?’
‘No. You tell me you love me, and you get an upgrade. Up you get, gorgeous.’
Not happening. She’d tried it once and—
No.
A one-off with a woman from a dating app wasn’t going to ruin the night for her. Not exactly as safe a space as Alex, but still. They weren’t doing that.
‘I’ll crush you.’
‘What a way to go.’ He pointed to his mouth. ‘Up.’
‘Alex.’
Their stare down lasted thirty seconds before Alex’s brows furrowed. ‘Sarah, sit on my fucking face.’
‘Why?’
‘Because I love you, and if I don’t get my mouth on you in the next ten seconds, I might die. Sorry, was that not obvious?’ he asked, when Sarah’s lips parted. ‘What with the tattoo, and the way I look at you, and just generally adore you and have for weeks now?’ Uncharacteristically serious eyes met hers, slightly at odds with his sardonic tone.
Even so, affection streamed from his face, and Sarah’s heart fluttered at the sight. ‘You thought a good time to tell me that was when you’re about to go down on me?’
