He fucked me hard, his fiery gaze flicking between my swaying breasts and relentless mouth. Bowen was always good in bed—or, in this case, on the floor. But watching his muscles flex and strain, his every thrust more desperate than the last, and knowing I was the one driving him to the brink of insanity was more than enough to ignite my own orgasm. A wave of pleasure slammed into me, stealing my breath. His hand fell away as my eyes screwed shut, and my back arched off the floor. Bowen’s rhythm never slowed.
“You are so fucking beautiful,” he rasped, his strokes coming shorter and more precise. He continued talking, his words jumbled, more like broken syllables than full sentences.
As he continued to pump into me, I sagged beneath him, riding on the gentle ocean of my release. However, as I floated back down, the strangest sensation of familiarity washed over me. And not in the way that I’d been with him intimately before. We’d practically had sex every time I’d seen him since we started dating. But this was different. Not a memory. Just a feeling.
The burn of the area rug on my naked back.
His body moving over me.
The weight of him as he finally came and collapsed on me.
Call it déjà vu, but I definitely felt—
“I love you so fucking much,” he panted into the curve of my neck.
Cue the record screeching.
My eyes popped open and whatever orgasm-induced déjà vu I’d been experiencing vanished into thin air because I had most definitely never heard that before.
Not from him. I mean, almost a few times. Though never that straightforward and clear.
But oh my God, they were the sweetest words I’d ever heard. “You do?”
“Shit. I swore to myself I wasn’t going to blurt that out during sex like a sap.” He propped himself up on an elbow and caught my eyes. “It’s just… Short of biting my tongue in half, there was no way I could keep it in.”
My throat filled with emotion as I lay there, staring up at the most incredible man I had ever met. And I basked in the knowledge that he not only was falling in love with me but had already reached the ground floor. Which in this case was not rock bottom but rather the highest of highs.
Bowen was in love with me.
He shook his head. “Relax. You don’t have to say it back.”
“Are you kidding me?” I palmed either side of his face. “I absolutely have to say it back because I’d be a liar if I didn’t. I love you.” I pecked his lips. “I love you.” Another kiss. “I love you so fucking much, Bowen Michaels.”
He smiled, wide and brilliant. “Yeah?”
“Absolutely. I never stood a chance after I saw that handkerchief.”
He threw his head back and laughed, loud and rich.
“Then with the safety pin?” I fanned myself. “A man who’s prepared for anything. What more could a woman ask for?”
He tickled my side. “Are you done being a smartass yet?”
Squirming beneath him, I laughed. “No. And you should be aware that me being a smartass is a permanent thing. But you love me, so you’ll have to find a way to get used to it.”
He stared deep into my eyes, something warm passing through his. “I’m not sure I’ll ever get used to this. But I am really looking forward to trying.”
Funny enough, I was looking forward to it too. So, so much.
I crinkled my nose and brushed it with his. “You do know this doesn’t get you off table construction duty.”
“Well, shit. You saw right through me.” Standing up, gloriously naked, he took my hand and helped me to my feet. We dodged the strewn pile of screws as he led me down the hall, through his bedroom, and to the bathroom, where he flipped the shower on.
As we waited for it to warm, he wrapped me in his arms and kissed up my neck and down the other side.
Turning my head to allow his lips more space to roam, I said, “Now that you’ve professed your love for me—and I’ve trapped you for the foreseeable future—I’ll need you to come to my dad’s surprise going-away party with me tomorrow night.”
His head popped up and a playful grin tipped his lips. “You want me to meet your dad?”
“He’s been grilling me about the man who stole my heart. Plus, Mark will be there. Two birds, one stone and all.”
“And the friend? Wow, that sounds serious.”
“I mean, you do love me…so fucking much, I believe was the verbiage. Though, if we’re moving too fast for you, I can always keep the home inspector who has been flirting with me on deck. It’s never bad to have a backup plan.”
“Woman,” he growled.
“I’m kidding. My favorite home inspector is happily married. His son though…”
