Chapter 44
There are very few things in life I can recall without thinking too hard. One was moving to Colorado when I was just ten years old—it felt like home after everything with my parents’ divorce. Another was the first time I laid eyes on Ayden.
I’ve said it before, but it really was love at first sight. At that age, it might’ve felt like just a crush, but I know that if fate had been different, I’d already have a ring on his finger.
Now is about to be another one of those moments. He’s simply sitting across from me, finishing up a bowl of ramen, but it’s the way his eyes light up when they meet mine. Like my life does when I look at him, they brighten when our gazes collide.
I’m hopelessly love-sick for him. I’ve fallen, and fucking hard.
“You’re staring,” he says, slurping the last of his noodles. “I don’t know why Xeraphine complained about Kai doing it. I fucking love it.”
He’s been on about that vampire book for days. I still can’t believe the amount of consoling I had to do after he finished. It wrecked him.
Leaning back, I rest my elbow on the arm rest of my chair and press my cheek against my fist. “I’m making up for lost time. Plus, you’re cute when you eat.”
He rolls his eyes, wiping his mouth with a napkin. “You stare all the time.”
“You’re cute all the time,” I say matter-of-fact.
He shakes his head, biting down on his bottom lip in the process. Fuck me—I’m starving for him.
It’s New Year’s, and this is our first night alone since Alysa came over a week ago. I’m thrilled she’s here, but I’m also needy for my man.
“You ready to go?”
“Mhmm,” he hums, waving down the waitress.
I pay, and we head out to the truck. We’re about an hour from Maple Falls, in a town known for its outdoor activities. Downtown is packed tonight—they’re holding a midnight parade with fireworks.
I’d have taken him, but I’m being possessive and want him all to myself. Tonight especially, but truthfully, that’s how I feel every day. If I never had to share him again, I’d be happy. I know that isn’t realistic—we can’t lock ourselves in the cabin forever, tempting as that sounds.
“So, what’s the plan?” he asks as I turn onto a one-way road lined with trees. String lights hang all the way up, so we aren’t driving through the dark with just my headlights.
“You’ll see.” Pulling over, I flick on the cab light and reach under the bench seat. “Do you trust me?”
He nods without hesitation. “Always.”
I pull out a length of rope and a folded cloth. Undoing my seatbelt, I slide closer to him. “Lean forward. Hands behind your back, eyes closed.”
The way his neck flushes red, creeping up to his cheeks, has my cock stirring to life.
Slowly, he closes his eyes and tucks his hands behind him. I blindfold him first, then tie his wrists. “This is just to keep you from peeking. It’ll take me a moment to set things up.”
“I’d behave,” he says, shifting into a more comfortable position.
“You’d be tempted, sunshine. Anyone would be.”
I’m behind the wheel again, easing us back onto the road, driving farther down the path, past a small gate and a handful of campsites.
The spot I’ve chosen is surrounded by mountains, trees pressing in, thick and endless.
There’s no lake, but a frozen pond gleams faintly under the starlight.
I remember reading on the website that people ice skate here, but we won’t be indulging tonight.
Tonight, I’ve got filthier plans.
Rolling up to the spot I rented for the evening, I pull the truck in and park, but keep it running. “I’ll leave the heater on and play some music so you can’t hear what’s happening.”
“You’re being so cryptic…” He pauses, then grins. “I love it.”
I hum. “Hopefully you’ll love what I’m about to do, too.”
Tilting toward him, I take his chin and direct his face to mine. He leans in, already knowing what’s coming. I smile into the kiss—brief, teasing—before turning on the radio and slipping quickly out of the truck.
Grabbing the large totes in the bed, I rush over to the small porch attached to the dome-shaped structure, then get to work.
Twenty minutes later—longer than I planned—I open Ayden’s door. Warm air spills out, the sudden chill making him tense.
“Sorry about that, sunshine.” I rest a hand on his shoulder, lean him forward, and undo the knot. Since I never buckled his seatbelt back in after tying him, I help guide him carefully out of the truck.
I reach across, kill the ignition, and shut his door.
“How close are we to midnight? I feel like I was in there for an hour.” He laughs. “Just kidding.”
“We’ve got about fifteen minutes. We’re good.”
After taking him to the back of the truck, I exhale a shaky breath.
He’s going to love it. Stop stressing.
Sliding up behind him, I wrap my arms around his waist and tuck my hands into the pouch pocket of his sweater—well, my sweater that he stole. He pulls my hands fully in, threading his fingers with mine.
“It’s simple.”
“Simple is amazing.”
I hum and nod my head. “Ready?”
“Yes, please.”
Only removing one of my hands from the pocket, I pull off the blindfold.
I keep him held tightly to my front. I want to feel his reaction, not just see it. Aligning my head with his, I rest my chin on his shoulder as he sucks in a shocked breath through his open mouth.
“Oh, Keo…” A soft pillow of fog follows his breathless words.
I may not look like the romantic type, but I sure as shit try.
I’m grateful it didn’t snow tonight, and the sky’s relatively clear. Converting the truck bed the way I did would’ve been a nightmare if it had been filled with snow or rain.
Layers of comfort cover the six feet of the bed: a thin blow-up mattress that ate most of my time, two sets of blankets, another one for us to wrap ourselves in, and a line of pillows toward the cab.
Battery-powered lights—Britt called them fairy lights, but fuck if I know—are strung around so we can see each other without drowning out the fireworks.
One of the four sets don’t work, but I saw it too late and wasn’t going to waste more time fixing it. Hopefully he won’t notice.
He squeezes my hand, and I turn my head, ear brushing his shoulder, to look at him. “You like it?”
“Like? Pfft. Love. It looks insanely cozy.”
“I hope so. And before you ask, no. We aren’t sleeping out here.” I take his chin and turn him toward our right. “We’ll be in that.”
The dome tent sits there, plain on the outside, and anything but on the inside. I picked this place for that exact reason.
“I didn’t think it could get any better.”
I chuckle. “You said we needed to go camping together. Some might call this cheating, but to them I say—fuck off.”
That has him laughing and wiggling out of my grip to face me. He wraps his arms around my neck and pulls me down for a kiss.
“I love it. Thank you.”
I smile against his lips and bring him back for another, then grab his hips and spin him back around. “Come on.”
We crawl onto the soft bedding, and I’m grateful it holds our weight. I’m not small, and neither is Ayden at six feet, but the blow-up mattress supports us without dipping.
I rest my back against the window lined with pillows and drape my arm over his shoulder. He leans against my chest and pulls the blanket over us.
He sighs as he snuggles in, and I hate to admit it—it sounds almost sad.
“What’s up, sunshine?”
When he shakes his head, I grab his chin and tilt his face to mine.
“Talk to me.”
He smiles, genuine and soft. “It’s nothing you did… Sometimes a wave of sadness just hits me when I think about missing out on this. On us. How happy we could’ve been all this time.”
I gaze down at his lips, letting my thumb drag across them. He places his hand over mine, slowly guiding it down to my wrist.
“I… wish I could redo a lot of things…” That night, not so long ago, flashes before my eyes, and I force myself to push it away. “Your graduation. I should’ve acted like an adult, stayed, and talked with you. Maybe we could’ve kept it a secret until we were older… then told our parents.”
Shifting my gaze up, I meet his slightly furrowed eyes and immediately recognize my mistake. “I don’t want to hide us, Ayden.”
“I know, I know…”
“I want to take you out. Around Maple Falls, yes, and beyond it. I want people to know you’re mine and I’m yours. Those who judge us… they can go fuck themselves.”
His smile lights up my life.
“I feel the same. Fuck them if they judge us.”
“Exactly.”
He chuckles and sits up, letting me capture his mouth again. The moment he parts his lips, I slide my tongue in, and the sound of pleasure rolling from his throat has me groaning.
“Ayden, the fireworks.”
His arm hooks around my neck while his other hand finds mine, guiding it down into his lap. “Your possessiveness,” he breathes against my lips, “has me hard—and I’m not fucking sorry about it.”
The second I feel the truth to that statement, I grab his cock through his jeans. He presses against me, damn near crawling into my lap.
“You want me to take your cock out?” I murmur, dragging him between my spread legs.
His forehead rests against mine. “Yes…”
Grinning, I guide him to turn and sit between my thighs. His back presses to my chest, my lips brushing against his ear.
“Do you feel what your need does to me?” I pull his hips tighter, grinding him against my own throbbing erection. My pants are a nuisance, keeping him, I’m sure, from feeling the full effect he has on me and just how badly I want him.
“Yes… please, Keo.”
I nip at his neck, my fingers working his fly open with practiced ease. “Guess I can show you some fireworks before the show even starts.”
He laughs at my stupid joke just as my hand slips under his waistband and wraps around him.
“Oh, fuck!”
“Mmm, so sensitive.” I angle him up, just enough for the tip to peek over his briefs, and run my thumb across the head, smearing the precum already there. “Goddamn, sunshine, I love how eager you are for me.”
I tug his boxers down, and he shifts just enough to give me full access. My strokes stay light, teasing. “I’ve got plans for us after the fireworks. Think you can go a few rounds for me?”
We’ve only tried twice before, and were successful, but he’s not had a lot of practice coming multiple times. But by the way his breath hitches tells me he’s game to keep going and try regardless.
“Y-Yes, Keo. Please.”
Releasing him, I hold my hand out. “Spit.”
He wraps his lips around three of my fingers and sucks them in deep.
Fuck. My cock pulses, jumping so hard I feel my zipper press against it through my briefs.
Drool slicks down my fingers, and when he finally pulls off, he spits into my palm.
I don’t hesitate to slide my hand back under the blanket and wrap it around his length. His head falls against my shoulder, one arm looping up and over my neck.
“So hard for me.”
The way he breathes through his moans has me wondering if I even give a shit about watching fireworks. He’s tempting me to cart him off inside and fuck him until we are both a mess.
Twisting my wrist as I stroke him, I lean down to suck on his neck. I bite, then run my tongue over the spot that’s already turning red.
I’ve been leaving love marks all over him, because I like seeing proof of me on his body when he walks around naked.
With my free hand, I pinch his nipple. He lets out a loud, filthy sound. Oh yeah, he likes that. He fists my hair, gripping at the roots like he needs it to stay grounded.
“I remember…” I murmur, nibbling on his ear. “When you used to be quiet. Now listen to you—nearly screaming for me.”
His chest heaves as he pants. “I-I’m… baby, please, I’m going to come.”
I lean over, pulling my hand from his nipple to tap my phone and check the time. “No, not yet.”
The pause in my stroke has him whimpering, and fuck. I love it. I’m addicted to it. I’m a goddamn dog, ready to heel at his smallest command.
He thinks I’ve got all the control, but he couldn’t be more wrong. It’s him who has me in a chokehold. He’d never ask, but if he wanted me to crawl to him, I would—without hesitation. Because hearing him like this, seeing him come undone and smiling… that’s perfection.
I’d do anything for it. I’d kill for it. Getting on my knees for his happiness, his pleasure? Pfft. Just another fucking day.
“Please, god, Keo—”
“Shh…” I squeeze just under the head of his cock and drag a slow stroke down his length. His body shakes, and as I take his chin and turn him to face me, I smile.
“You’ll come… right…” My movements return to a pleasurable pace, and just as his back arches, midnight hits. “Now.”
This hadn’t been my plan, but shit—if he wants to set it up like that, I’ll make it happen. I’m just glad the fireworks aren’t late, because honestly, that might’ve been embarrassing.
The first boom explodes in the distance the same moment his cock pulses. He calls out as he spills over my hand, down his length, across his thighs, and onto the blanket beneath us.
I don’t give him a second to catch his breath. My mouth slams to his, and he shifts in my hold, arms winding tight around my head. His legs shake as he fumbles to kick off his pants, and I wrap an arm around his midsection, helping him strip until he’s straddling my thighs.
I don’t bother wiping away the mess of his release. Instead, I grab his ass with the same hand, spreading it across his skin. We’re going to be a mess tonight anyway—no point in staying clean now.
He pulls back just an inch, breathless, and whispers, “Happy New Year, baby.”
Sliding my dry hand up into his hair, I grin. “Happy New Year, sunshine.”