7. Hallie #3
I kiss down his chest, mapping the constellation of old scars and new muscle, learning the landscape of him.
When I reach the waistband of his boxer briefs, I pause, glancing up for permission.
He nods, lifting his hips so I can pull them off, and then he's bare before me, hard and wanting, and I realize I've never felt powerful like this before.
Like I'm the one in control. Like he's the one desperate and shaking.
I wrap my hand around him, and his head falls back against the pillow. "Hal, you don't have to?—"
"I want to."
I take him in my mouth, just the tip at first, and the sound he makes is obscene. His hand finds my hair, not guiding, just touching, grounding himself. I work him slowly, paying attention to his reactions, learning what makes his breath hitch and his fingers tighten.
"Stop, stop, I'm too close," he gasps eventually, tugging me up. "And I want to be inside you the first time I come tonight."
He flips our positions in one smooth motion, caging me beneath him, and fumbles for his jeans. I hear the crinkle of foil, watch him roll on a condom with shaking hands.
"You sure about this?" he asks, settling between my thighs. "We can stop anytime."
"I've never been more sure of anything."
He enters me slowly, giving me time to adjust, and the stretch is perfect, the fullness exactly what I needed. When he's seated fully inside me, he pauses, pressing his forehead to mine.
"Okay?" he whispers.
"Move. Please move."
He does, establishing a rhythm that's slow and deep and devastating. I wrap my legs around his waist, changing the angle, and we both groan. It's not graceful or choreographed. It's messy and real, our bodies figuring each other out, learning the give and take.
"You feel so good," he says against my neck. "So perfect. Made for me."
"Harder."
He complies, driving into me with more force, and I meet him thrust for thrust, chasing something just out of reach. His hand slips between us, finding where we're joined, and the added pressure makes me see stars.
"Come for me," he orders. "Want to feel you."
The command tips me over. I come apart around him, his name a broken prayer on my lips, and the sensation drags him with me.
He buries his face in my neck as he follows, and I hold him through it, this man I've known my whole life, this man I'm pretty sure I've been in love with for longer than I want to admit.
We stay like that for a long moment, tangled together, hearts pounding in sync. Eventually he eases out of me and deals with the condom, then pulls me against his chest, my head tucked under his chin.
The silence is comfortable. Safe.
Until he says, so quietly I almost miss it, "I've wanted to do that since I was sixteen."
I freeze. My heart, which was just starting to settle, kicks back into overdrive.
"What?"
"You heard me." His arms tighten around me. "That day you came to the shop in your sundress, the yellow one with the little flowers. You were bringing Ryan lunch and you smiled at me, and I realized I was completely gone for you. Have been ever since."
I push up on my elbow to look at him. "Caius."
"I know. Brother's best friend. Poor mechanic.
All the reasons this is a terrible idea.
" He cups my face, thumb brushing my cheekbone.
"But I'm done pretending this is fake, Hallie.
I'm done watching you doubt yourself when you're the most amazing person I know.
And I'm definitely done sharing you with assholes who don't deserve to breathe the same air. "
My eyes burn with the sudden sting of tears I refuse to let fall. My voice comes out barely above a whisper. "But... the rules. We had rules."
"Screw the rules." His voice is rough, urgent, those blue eyes blazing into mine and steals my breath. "You said it yourself, remember? That night at the bar. The rules were bullshit from the start."
My chest tightens, panic and hope warring inside me. "Ryan will lose his mind when he finds out."
"Then let him." Caius doesn't even hesitate, doesn't look away. "I'll deal with Ryan. I'll deal with all of it."
"But this could ruin everything." The words crack on the way out. "Your friendship with him. Family dinners. Everything we've built. What if?—"
"Or it could be everything." He kisses me softly. "Your call. But I'm all in, Hal. Have been for thirteen years. Just been waiting for you to catch up."
I should be scared. This is my brother's best friend, the guy who's been in my life forever, the relationship that could implode spectacularly and take half my family with it.
But all I feel is relief. Like I've been holding my breath for years and can finally exhale.
"I'm all in too," I whisper.
His smile could power the entire town. "Yeah?"
"Yeah."
He kisses me again, slow and sweet and full of promise, and I let myself fall into it. Into him. Into this terrifying, exhilarating thing blooming between us.
We'll deal with Ryan tomorrow.
Tonight, I just want to be the girl who chose something for herself. Who took a risk. Who let herself be loved the way she's always dreamed about.
And if that makes me the bad girl for once?
I'll take it.