Chapter 7
My heart races as I look into Quincy”s eyes, feeling an overwhelming love for him that leaves me breathless. The passion of our kisses sends a jolt through my body, filling me with hope and electricity.
His voice is husky as he says, “Come home with me?”
I squeeze his hand, my fingers intertwining with his. Without hesitation, I reply, “Yes.”
Quincy grins and pays for our dinner even though we never touched it. I can feel his excitement as he leads me to his car, promising we”ll pick mine up in the morning because he doesn”t want me out of his sight.
Quincy speeds through the empty streets of Jefferson, his hand is warm in mine, our fingers entwined.
Every few minutes, he glances at me, his eyes glowing, a smile tugging at his lips. “I can”t believe you”re here with me.”
I squeeze his hand, joy and longing swirling inside me. “I”m here. I”m really here.”
As he drives, Quincy pulls me in for kisses every time we stop at a red light. Desire pools in my core with each searing kiss. At one point, we kiss for so long that the driver behind us lays on their horn, and we laugh as Quincy shifts gears and drives through the intersection. Quincy looks at me with his sparkling green eyes and speeds home as if nothing else in the world matters.
“God, Claire,” he murmurs, his grip on the wheel tight. “I can”t believe this is real. I’ve wanted you for so long, but I never thought I’d see you again.”
“It’s like that for me, too,” I whisper, my chest swelling with happiness. “It feels like a dream.”
Quincy squeezes my hand. “Promise me something,” he says. “Promise me we”ll face it together, no matter what happens.”
“Of course,” I reply without hesitation. “I promise. And promise you’ll always talk to me.”
“Oh, Claire. Always. I swear on everything that I’m not going to make that mistake again,” he says, his voice tight.
As we pull up to Quincy”s apartment building, my heart is pounding with anticipation. The night ahead holds so much promise, and I can hardly wait to experience it all with him. We may have been apart for years, but our love has never wavered, and now we can make up for lost time.
My heart aches with love for this man. “We have all the chances in the world now. I”m not going anywhere.” I brush my lips against his, savoring their familiar warmth and softness. “Take me upstairs?”
Quincy”s eyes darken with desire. “Thought you”d never ask.”
We tumble out of the car and race up the stairs to his apartment hand in hand, laughter bubbling from our lips. The future stretches out before us, ours for the taking.
As soon as we”re inside, Quincy presses me back against the door, capturing my lips in a searing kiss. He runs his hands greedily over my body before settling them on my hips and pulling me against him. I can feel the long, hard length of his arousal, and I whimper into his mouth.
My nipples pucker painfully beneath my thin camisole top, straining for Quincy’s touch and tongue. Quincy growls softly when he notices, then dips his head to capture one between his teeth over the fabric. I arch into him helplessly, craving more contact.
“Bedroom. Now,” he commands gruffly against my ear.
Taking my hand, he leads me through the dark apartment, our path lit only by slashes of moonlight across the floor. The seconds it takes to reach his room seem endless, and my whole body thrums with want.
As we enter the shadowy bedroom, I’m momentarily blinded when Quincy turns on the light. I reflexively reach for the switch on the wall to turn it off again, but Quincy”s hand covers mine, stopping me.
“Leave it on, baby,” he murmurs, his voice low and husky. His hands trail down my arms, leaving goosebumps in their wake. “I want to see every inch of you.”
My cheeks flush with a burst of embarrassment and angst. It”s been years since Quincy has seen me fully naked. I”m heavier now, fuller in the hips and thighs. What if he”s disappointed?
Sensing my hesitation, Quincy tips my chin, forcing me to meet the intensity of his gaze in the dimness. “You are even more beautiful now than you were at eighteen, Claire. Lush, with feminine curves in all the right places. Tonight, I plan to worship each and every one of them. You have nothing to hide.”
His words send a spike of heat straight between my legs.
Quincy”s eyes soften. He brushes a strand of hair back from my face tenderly. “You are everything I”ve ever wanted, Claire. I love you. Let me show you how much.”
His simple declaration makes my heart expand with love. I know that he’s telling me the truth.
Slowly, excruciatingly slowly, Quincy begins to undress me. His fingers graze each new patch of exposed skin—my collarbone, the swell of my breasts, the dip of my waist, the spread of my hips—as he unbuttons my blouse and unzips my skirt.
I tremble under his attentive touch, a flush spreading down my neck to my chest.
At last, I”m down to my underwear. Quincy slides my bra straps off my shoulders, then sinks fluidly to his knees before me. He presses a soft kiss below my navel, above the waistband of my panties.
His large hands span my hips as he hooks his fingers gently under the elastic and pulls the delicate fabric down my thighs, knees, and calves until I can step free.
I stand fully naked before him now, my curves fully illuminated by the light. When Quincy looks up at me from the floor with pure reverence, as if I”m a goddess deigning to grace him with my most intimate form, I understand that he loves me exactly as I am.
“You take my breath away,” he whispers fervently. “I”m the luckiest man in the world.”
He trails hot, open-mouthed kisses up the sensitive skin of my inner thighs, making me shudder with delight. When he reaches the juncture between my legs, I gasp and clutch his shoulders to remain standing. He kisses me close without touching my core, and I writhe with desire for him.
“Please,” I moan, running my hands through his blond hair.
“Lie down for me, baby,” Quincy murmurs, his voice gravelly with desire.
I crawl onto the rumpled bed, my heart pounding and every nerve on fire.
Quincy”s eyes blaze as they rake over my naked form. “So damn beautiful,” he says reverently.
He strips the remainder of his clothes unhurriedly, holding my gaze. I bite my lip as I hungrily take in his muscled body. The man looks like a statue you see in a museum. Desire coils hot and urgent inside me.
At last, he crawls onto the bed, bracing himself above me on his forearms. I whimper softly as his hard, thick cock presses hotly against my belly. Instinctively I arch my body toward his, needing to be one with him.
“I”m going to make love to you all night long,” Quincy promises huskily, his lips brushing mine in a feather-light caress.
“Please,” I whisper, shivering with anticipation.
After so many long, empty years apart, I”m finally back where I belong—safely ensconced in Quincy”s strong arms, enveloped by his warmth, aching and willing beneath him in his bed.
I cry out in blissful relief as he enters me in one long, smooth glide, stretching and filling my aching core completely. This, my body says, is what’s always been right.
“Oh god, baby, you feel incredible,” Quincy groans as he begins to move.
He lowers his mouth to claim mine in a demanding kiss. His thrusts are slow and deep, dragging along my inner walls maddeningly. I groan into his mouth as our bodies move together in hot synchronicity.
He shifts my hips to the perfect angle, hitting that sweet spot inside me. The sensation is so intense that stars burst across my vision. I dig my nails into the flexing muscles of his shoulders, clinging to him tightly as waves of pure euphoria crash over me.
“Never wanna stop,” he pants harshly against the delicate skin of my neck. His body shakes above mine, his breathing jagged as he pumps deeper inside me. “I want to stay buried inside you forever.”
His hips move urgently, and I wrap my legs around his waist, pulling him deeper, holding him as close as possible. My body thrashes against his, hungry for more of him. I need to feel him deeper, harder. Everything I have is for Quincy.
“Don”t hold back. Give me everything,” I urge passionately, holding him tightly as our bodies crash into each other, lust burning into love.
Quincy”s eyes blaze into mine for a suspended moment. Then his body seizes and stiffens as he drives into me faster and deeper, groaning as I cry out his name.
“I’m so close! I’m coming!” My voice echoes in his bedroom as my body shakes.
Shared ecstasy crashes over us, leaving us breathless, spent, and clinging to each other.
Quincy collapses heavily on top of me, his heart thundering against my chest as we struggle to catch our breath. I stroke my fingers through his sweat-dampened hair, overwhelmed by love and satisfaction.
When Quincy rolls off me with a groan, I immediately miss his strong body on top of mine. But then he tugs me close, curling me against his side and holding me securely.
“I love you so damn much, Claire Matthews,” he whispers fervently against my temple, punctuating the declaration with a tender kiss. “That’s never gonna change.”
I smile up at him softly, tracing the beloved and familiar lines of his handsome face with my fingertips. “I never stopped loving you, not really,” I confess. “Deep down, I knew it was always you, Quincy. You”re it for me. Always were, and always will be.”
His eyes glow with emotion, and he captures my lips in a kiss brimming with promise and passion.
“You”re my forever girl, Claire,” he vows when we finally separate, a bit breathless. “My always.”
My heart swells near to bursting. I snuggle closer, perfectly content wrapped securely in his embrace.
I laugh, tracing a finger down Quincy”s bare chest. “We have all night to get reacquainted. And the rest of our lives, for that matter.”
Quincy”s eyes darken with desire, and he captures my hand, bringing it to his lips in a playful and reverent gesture. “Don”t tease me, woman.”
I arch an eyebrow. “Who says I”m teasing? That’s a promise.”
Quincy groans low in his throat, a distinctly masculine sound of appreciation. He rolls me beneath him again and settles his weight between my thighs. His green eyesburn into mine as he props himself up on one elbow to gaze down at me, his expression soft but serious. “Does this mean you”re staying in Jefferson for good?”
I hear the hint of vulnerability in his question and reach up to cup his stubbled cheek in my palm. “Yes,” I tell him without hesitation. “Your brother already offered me an office job. I was planning to accept if things worked out between us...” I bite my lip coyly. “I”d say they worked out pretty spectacularly, wouldn”t you?”
Quincy huffs out a laugh, relief breaking across his handsome face. He kisses me sweetly. “Damn right, it did. I love you, Claire. I always have, even when we were apart, and I always will. You”re it for me.”
My heart swells with emotion, and tears of joy prick the corners of my eyes. I cradle his beloved face between my hands. “I know,” I whisper. “And I love you too, Quincy. You’re my always.”
No more words are needed after that. Our hearts have made an unbreakable promise.
I’m home.