Chapter Eight
chapter eight
PAIGE
Nate and I spend the day exploring Bath. We visit the Roman Baths, which I haven’t been to since I was a teenager. We have lunch at a delicious Moroccan restaurant, and then we have afternoon tea at the place he reserved.
Everywhere we go, I recall and share small tidbits about my mom, and Nate listens, asking questions and sounding like he genuinely cares. The day is wonderful, and it’s not until we’re back at the room that I realize I haven’t thought about my disaster of a love life once. When I’m with Nate, I’m so focused on him that it’s like the rest of the world disappears.
Nate showers first while I call Ana and fill her in on my time here. She begs for details on Nate, but I insist we talk once I’m home, not wanting to risk him overhearing.
When he comes out, wearing a white T-shirt and basketball shorts, with his hair wet and messy, it hits me that this is the first time I’ve seen him this casual. Yesterday, he was in a designer suit that fit him like it had been made just for him, and today, he was sporting khaki dress pants with a powder-blue button-down shirt, the sleeves rolled up to his forearms.
Dressed up, businessman Nate is sexy and powerful, but right now, he’s downright delicious. His shirt is taut across his chest, and…
“Are those tattoos?” I ask, cutting across the room.
“Paige?” Ana’s voice reminds me we’re still on the phone.
“I’ll call you back,” I say and then hang up, needing to check out the tattoos that are peeking out of the sleeve on his left arm.
He glances down at his toned forearm and then lifts his sleeve, exposing the gorgeous ink on his arm. At first glance, it looks like a beautiful forest with the sun peering through. There’s a body of water with a reflection of the trees on the surface. But when I look closer, I see three hands, all joined together, hidden in the water.
“My brothers and I got these when we were younger. Dustin had just turned twenty-one, so Carmine and I were taking him out to celebrate with a bunch of our friends. Because we’re close in age—me being the eldest, Carmine barely a year younger, and Dustin less than a year younger than Carmine—we hung out with the same group of people.”
“Wow, your mom must’ve been brave to have three boys, all less than a year apart,” I note .
“Yeah.” He chuckles. “Carmine and I were in the same grade, and Dustin was one grade behind. Mom is tough, doesn’t put up with our shit, but she loves us hard.”
“She sounds like a good mom.”
Nate nods in agreement. “The best.”
“Sorry, I got us sidetracked. So, Dustin’s birthday celebration?” I prompt for him to continue.
“That night, I was driving,” Nate says, his tone solemn. “A drunk driver flew through a red light and hit us, and we were all rushed to the hospital. Carmine had nothing more than a few bruises since he was on the passenger side. But Dustin and I required surgery. My blood type is rare, so my dad and Carmine had to donate, and then Dustin had to have a kidney transplant because he had already lost one when he was younger. Carmine was a match, so he ended up donating it to him, which saved his life.”
“Oh my God,” I breathe. “Your parents must’ve been a wreck. All three of their babies in an accident.”
“Yeah, my mom swears it took ten years off her life.” Nate chuckles softly. “Afterward, we went and got these tattoos to symbolize our bond. My brothers are my best friends. We made sure they were where they couldn’t be seen unless we wanted them to be. I also have one on my chest.”
He lifts his shirt without warning, and I damn near hyperventilate when his abs are exposed, one by one, until all six of them are on display, along with his chiseled chest.
Strength is what we gain from the pain we survive.
The words over his heart are simple, a contradiction to the deep meaning.
“After the accident, Dustin couldn’t work because he had some issues with the transplant.”
“Is he okay now?”
“Yeah, he’s perfectly healthy, driving his wife, Valerie, insane.” The way Nate smiles tells me just how fond he is of his family.
“But at the time, it was touch and go, so I took on his job on top of mine.” He drops his shirt and scrubs his hand over his face. “I felt guilty because I had been driving even though it wasn’t technically my fault. At one point, I was working eighty-hour weeks.”
“And that’s when you caught your girlfriend cheating,” I say, remembering what he told me about his ex and how she slept with his best friend when he was working long hours.
“Yeah,” he confirms. “She said I didn’t give her enough attention.”
“I’m sorry,” I say, placing my hand over his heart.
“Part of me blames myself because I did what she accused me of. I neglected her. But she never once mentioned it. If she had told me…”
“I get it,” I tell him. “I knew John moving here without me wasn’t a good idea, but I let him go.”
Nate nods in understanding. “After I caught her cheating, I lost myself for a while. I was drinking and partying. I hit rock bottom, but my family was there to pick me up. They’re my strength. I don’t know what I would do without them.”
“I love that,” I say, swallowing down the ball of emotion lodged in my throat. “That’s what I want. A family. A home. I felt it when my mom was alive, but when she died, it’s like she took the magic with her. Now, I have no one but me.”
“You could have me,” Nate says softly, framing the sides of my face.
“Only temporarily,” I murmur, torn between wishing I’d never met Nate and wanting to simply enjoy every moment I have with him.
He releases a harsh breath and nods.
“But we have London,” I point out, forcing a smile to lighten the mood.
“And Bath,” he adds, his eyes filled with want as he looks down at me.
“And Bath,” I agree, my stomach knotting at the thought of never seeing Nate again. Of my getting on the plane and him turning into nothing more than a memory.
Our eyes lock for several seconds, and a silent agreement is made between us.
Tonight is all we can have.
Tonight, we can be selfish and take what we want.
But tomorrow, we’ll have to part ways.
And then our mouths collide in a needy and desperate kiss, our tongues caressing one another. Nate tastes like lust mixed with heartbreak, and I vow to stay in the moment. Tomorrow, when I’m alone once again, I’ll allow myself to grieve him, to miss him, but for tonight, I’m going to enjoy him.
His taste.
His touch.
The way he makes me feel.
Nate lifts me into his arms and carries me over to the bed. He lays me gently on my back and then breaks the kiss so he can remove my clothes. First, my shirt comes off and then my bra.
When my breasts are exposed, he takes a moment to give them attention. He licks one nipple, eliciting a moan out of me, while he rolls the other between his thumb and forefinger, pinching it with the perfect amount of pressure to send waves of pleasure straight to my core.
He takes my pants and underwear off next, leaving me completely naked under him. I’m about to tell him to take his clothes off, but before I can get the words out, he sits up and drags his shirt over his head, giving me a spectacular view of his body.
“You make me want to work out,” I murmur, reaching up and gliding my fingers down the ridges that make up his six-pack.
“You’re perfect just the way you are,” he says as he pushes his shorts and boxers down his legs and tosses them to the side.
His cock springs free, bobbing against his stomach, and my mouth waters at the sight in front of me. I haven’t had sex in five months, and I’m desperate for some dick.
Nate spreads my thighs farther apart and then drops his hands to either side of my head, his body lowering to mine. He holds himself up enough not to crush me, but with his body flush against mine, I can feel his hard length pressed against my belly.
“Are you sure about this?” he asks, his eyes meeting mine. “I don’t want to ruin the mood, but you just got out of a relationship…”
“That was over before I even got on the plane,” I admit out loud. “I appreciate your concern, and I’d be lying if I said I was one hundred percent over him because feelings can’t get shut off like a light switch. But I want this…” I reach between us and wrap my fingers around his shaft, stroking it from root to tip to make my point. “I want you.”
I must convince him because without another word, his mouth presses against mine for a quick toe-curling kiss.
When he pulls back, I whimper, not wanting him to stop.
But then he peppers kisses along my jawline and then whispers, “I’m just getting started,” into my ear, and his words, mixed with his warm breath, send a bolt of electricity through my body, hitting me straight between my legs.
I tighten my thighs around his hips, craving the friction. It’s been too damn long since I’ve gotten off by anything other than my toys and fingers.
He brushes his lips down my neck, stopping to suck on the sensitive areas of my flesh while I run my fingers through his hair, wanting to touch him anywhere I can.
When he doesn’t stop at my breasts and he keeps descending, kissing my belly and then my hip bones, I’m confused—until he gives the hood of my pussy a kiss and then pushes my thighs apart, exposing me.
“Nate,” I breathe, tugging on his hair. “What are you doing?”
“I’m about to eat this pussy,” he says, his gaze trained on said pussy.
I pop up onto my elbows just in time to see him lean in and inhale my scent. His eyes close as a moan rumbles through him, and, holy shit, I’ve never been so turned on.
He parts my lips and dips his face, blocking my view, and then his warm, wet tongue slides up my center, making me drop onto my back with a groan.
Every guy I’ve been with treated going down on a woman like it was a chore. They wanted their dicks sucked, so they put up with eating a woman out.
But as Nate devours—yes, devours—my pussy, it’s clear that this isn’t just a chore to him. Moans, which he doesn’t attempt to hide, come from him as he licks and sucks on every part of me.
“Fuck, you taste so good,” he murmurs, only pulling back long enough to thrust two fingers into me.
Between him massaging my clit, the perfect way his fingers are fucking me, and the feel of his beard scratching my heated flesh, a climax quickly works its way up. I’ve had plenty of orgasms over the years, but not a single one has prepared me for the expert way Nate rubs my inner walls and flicks my clit.
I want it to last forever, for him to spend hours eating me out—that’s how good it feels—but my body is too worked up, and it’s been too long.
And when he pushes the flat of his tongue against my swollen nub, I explode. The most intense orgasm I’ve ever experienced hits me like a tidal wave, wave after delicious wave, as my entire body coils and then comes undone. I scream out Nate’s name as spots cloud my vision, so I close my eyes.
Nate doesn’t stop until I’m so sensitive and wrung out that I lazily push him off me, unable to handle another second of his mouth on me. My heart is pounding in my chest, and I briefly wonder if you can have a heart attack from an orgasm.
When he sits back on his haunches, his beautiful brown eyes meet mine while he makes a show of licking my juices off his lips, and my stomach knots at the thought that tonight is all we have. Tomorrow, I have to go back to the hotel and deal with the rehearsal and dinner afterward. Saturday is the wedding. Maybe we could spend some time together on Sunday if he’s not busy. But then Monday, I leave. I have a car scheduled to pick me up at four in the morning because I have an early flight. And that will be it. Nate will go his way, and I’ll go mine.
“Get out of your head,” Nate says, climbing up my body. “It’s just you and me in this moment. All the other shit will be there tomorrow.”
He presses his mouth to mine, parting my lips so his tongue can delve in, giving me a taste of myself, while I reach down and wrap my fingers around his shaft.
He’s already hard, and I’m wet, so it doesn’t take much to guide him into me. He’s thick and long, and he stretches me like he was made for me.
When he’s all the way in, I hook my legs around his waist, and he starts to fuck me with the same amount of passion he ate me. Every thrust is deep and purposeful, meant to bring me pleasure as well. Nate is the most selfless lover I’ve ever been with, and I’m already envious of the woman who will get to spend her life with him.
My orgasm starts to build again, and I feel Nate’s cock start to swell inside me. We’re both close, our bodies working with each other to bring us pleasure.
“Paige,” Nate whispers against my lips, his facial hair tickling my flesh. “I don’t want to ruin the moment, but you feel so good, and I just realized it’s because I forgot to put on a condom. Fuck, baby, please tell me I can come in your perfect cunt.”
Shit! I knew it felt too good to be true. I suck at taking birth control, and I hate the thought of something being put inside of me, so I’ve always insisted on guys using condoms to prevent pregnancy.
“I’m sorry,” I mutter. “I’m not on anything. You have to pull out.”
Nate groans but nods in understanding. Then, he picks up his pace, fucking me deeper, harder, and for a moment, I think he’s going to say fuck it and come in me. And when my climax hits and I come for the second time, I don’t even think about the consequences until he pulls out and takes his shaft in his hand. He strokes it a few times, and then ropes of cum spurt out, painting ribbons of white across my belly.
“I need more,” he murmurs, dropping his hands on either side of me, not giving a shit that with his body pressed against mine, his cum is spreading all over us. “More of you. Tonight can’t be the only night I get with you. I’ll take any day or night you’ll give me. Please.”
The desperation in his voice causes me to choke up. I’ve never had a man want me like this—like I’m the air he needs to survive—and it makes me want to throw my fears out the window and give him everything…all of me. Because this is what I’ve always wanted. To be someone’s everything. And in this moment, as Nate looks at me, it’s as if I’m just that to him.
But I know this is the oxytocin and dopamine talking. Tomorrow, when we’re no longer orgasm-drunk, we’ll be thinking clearly.
So, I say the only thing I can say even though it hurts like hell. “Tonight is all we can have.”
Nate sighs but nods because he respects my boundaries enough to accept them even if he doesn’t agree with them.
“Then I’m going to make the most of it.” He presses a kiss to the corner of my mouth and then sits up. “First, we shower, and then we’ll call for new sheets because you soaked the hell out of them when you squirted.”
“What?” I gasp, scrambling back.
Sure enough, in between us is a huge wet spot.
“Oh my God,” I groan in embarrassment. “I swear that’s never happened.”
“Good.” Nate smirks. “That means none of those other assholes were able to make you come as hard as I did.”
He’s not wrong.
“On second thought.” He glances from the wet spot back up to me. “We’d better keep the sheets on the bed for now because I have every intention of making you squirt all over my face again.”
Without giving me a chance to argue, he scoops me up into his arms and carries me to the shower, where he makes me come again before he does exactly as he promised and makes me come all over his mouth…twice more.
And the entire time, I have to keep reminding myself that tomorrow, despite wanting to keep Nate forever, I’m going to have to let him go.