“Thanks,” I said, feeling my lids get heavier.
“I should be the one thanking you.” Emery went back to the bathroom and tossed the rag in the hamper before coming back and sliding into bed beside me, pulling me against him.
“Why?”
“You got me out of my head,” Emery answered, grazing a finger across my ribs. “I struggled with my attraction for you. A part of me still does. But hearing what you wanted helped me decide.”
“Good. Because I wanted you. Still do.”
“For more than just tonight?” he asked.
“Definitely.” I turned my head on the pillow. “You still have to pound my ass.”
Emery chuckled. “I had everything planned for tonight. Dinner, sex. Instead of letting it happen naturally, I obsessed over getting every detail just right.”
“Then I came in and screwed up your plans,” I said. “Chaos in your perfect world.”
He cocked his head at that. “I don’t see you that way at all.”
“Oh yeah?” I stretched and yawned in the process. “How do you see me?”
Emery watched me a moment, silent, and then he grabbed the blanket and pulled it up to cover us. He settled back in place and closed his eyes. I thought he wasn’t going to answer, but then, “You’re not chaos. You’re more like a breath of fresh air. I didn’t realize until tonight how planning everything can be so tiring. It’s nice to sit back and let the pieces fall where they’re going to. You know what I mean?”
“Yeah.” I snuggled into the blanket and finally let my eyes fall shut. “I do.”
This was the last summer before I went to college. I wanted to have no-strings fun. And, finally, Emery had stopped overthinking everything and let it happen.
Chapter 12
Emery
I was traveling down a dangerous road, one that would probably lead to a crash of epic proportions, but if I drove carefully, anticipating the hurdles before reaching them, maybe it would turn out okay.
Because it was too late to turn back now.
Cason lay in my arms, asleep, and I stared at his profile, admiring the curve of his lips and his long lashes. Not even an hour had passed since we’d screwed, and I already wanted him again. I wasn’t a religious man, but if I were, I’d compare him to the apple in the Garden of Eden. Sinfully delicious. Forbidden.
I had taken a bite anyway.
And nothing had ever tasted so sweet.
He’d asked me to be his first. To give him a safe space to let loose and explore his sexuality. Once I had stopped overthinking, I’d seen how amazing it could be. I liked Cason telling me what he wanted and how he wanted it. I had to make hard decisions every day at work, and it was freeing to have that burden lifted when with him.
No planning. No obsessing over everything being perfect. Just relaxing and enjoying another person’s company. And sex… god, the sex. I didn’t know if the sneaking around had made it more exciting or if it was just Cason, but it had been the best sex I’d ever had.
Knowing I had work in the morning, I forced myself to stop looking at him and go to sleep. I woke at six to shower, and then I started a pot of coffee. Before it finished brewing, Cason joined me in the kitchen, a sheet wrapped around his shoulders and his hair adorably messy.
“Morning,” he rasped, sliding onto the barstool.
I went over and kissed him on the temple, rubbing his back. “Good morning. How did you sleep?”
“Great. You?”
“Same.” I grabbed two mugs from the cabinet and filled them with coffee, adding cream and sugar to his before setting it in front of him. “I’ve been thinking.”
“Oh no. Not again.”
I smiled. “I’m not second-guessing things. I just think it’d be a good idea to set ground rules.”
