Chapter 24 #2
There was something almost obscene about how good Sloane looked doing something so ordinary.
Cooking and simply existing casually in her own home.
Reese had seen her in race gear, in pressed jackets, in rooms where power clung to her, but this?
This was different. This felt private. And Reese knew how incredibly lucky she was to experience it.
Sloane shifted, reaching for a lemon, and Reese had to bite the inside of her cheek. Desire rolled through her, sharp and immediate, but threaded with something warmer. A sense of landing right where she was supposed to be.
Sloane glanced over her shoulder, smiling like she’d heard her anyway. “You’re staring.”
“That’s because you’re so fucking sexy right now that I don’t know what to do with myself.”
“Me? Really? Like this? Well, I have an idea.”
“Yeah?” Reese leaned against the counter, facing Sloane. “And what is it?”
“You can start by grabbing the sesame oil from inside the fridge door. I’d be very appreciative.”
“I can do that.” After a successful sesame mission, Reese stepped in behind her, hands settling at Sloane’s waist, her chin brushing Sloane’s shoulder as she leaned in.
Up close, the temptation was almost unbearable.
The heat of her skin, the curve of her body, the quiet intimacy of the moment.
“Just how important is it that this food finishes cooking?”
Sloane grinned as she stirred. “I mean, this is a very important stir-fry, Reese. Our nightly nourishment depends on it.”
She kissed Sloane’s neck slowly, feeling her muscles relax beneath the touch. “What if I promised another kind of nourishment?” She encircled Sloane’s waist and placed her palms flat against her stomach, then slid them downward toward her thighs.
“Reese Maddox, you’re instigating.”
“Because you look so good. What about after dinner?”
“Hmm. I think I’m free,” Sloane said, reaching behind her and touching the back of Reese’s neck.
The stir-fry finished cooking, plates were filled, and they carried everything to the small table near the windows where the light had softened into evening.
Conversation drifted easily, bits of the day, a story Sloane told that made Reese laugh, the quiet comfort of sharing food in a space that already felt familiar.
At some point, between bites and shared glances, Reese felt it bloom fully in her chest—this sense that this wasn’t just a good night, or even a good relationship.
It was something rarer. Something reliable.
She set her fork down, suddenly needing to say it out loud.
“I’ve never had this before.”
Sloane watched her like she knew exactly what Reese meant. “Me neither.”
She picked up Sloane’s hand and studied it. “You understand me. You challenge me. You thrill me. And you make everything matter.”
Sloane swallowed.
“Since I met you, I’m the best version of myself, and I only see that continuing.”
“So, what do we do?” Sloane asked.
“We’re honest with each other, which means I need to be honest right now.”
“Okay,” Sloane said, sweeping a strand of hair from Reese’s forehead. “I’m right here. Tell me.”
“I’m in love with you.”
“You are?” A small smile debuted.
“Oh, there is zero doubt in my mind about that. In fact, I’m so confident in my feelings that I want to tell everyone.
I’d be so annoying about it, too. I’d boast about it.
” Sloane laughed as she listened. “I want to walk down the pit lane holding your hand and kiss you in front of the whole world the next time I have a podium finish.” She threaded their fingers.
“And then I want to come home and have chicken stir-fry and watch a movie or explore whatever city we might be in that week.” She took a deep breath, seeing the whole thing playing out like a movie in her mind.
She wanted it all for them so badly. “And when it’s time to retire from racing, I want to find our own little corner of the world and be boring and happy and laugh and make love and maybe get a dog or two.
Maybe three. I might want three dogs. We’ll see.
” She exhaled. “There. That’s the life that I want. And it’s with you.”
Sloane laughed. “Wow.”
“I know. Three dogs is a lot.” She blew out a breath. “Seriously though. I hope I didn’t freak you out. But you should know where my brain is. What my heart is telling me without question.”
Sloane placed a hand on Reese’s cheek as the sun set over the water through the picture window, showcasing purples and oranges.
“Well, here’s the thing.” She looked into Reese’s eyes.
“I have fallen very much in love with you, Reese Maddox. I’m gone on you.
I mean that with every ounce of conviction in my body.
And I want it all, too.” She closed her eyes as if steadying herself.
“And it’s a big step for me to admit it out loud, because it’s scary for me at the same time.
But I love you too much to let anything get in the way of telling you. ”
The smile that took shape on Reese’s face was a manifestation of sheer joy like nothing she’d ever experienced.
Racing highs were a real thing, but they didn’t compare in the slightest to what she felt in this moment.
“Come here,” Reese said, giving Sloane’s arm a tug.
Sloane allowed herself to be pulled onto Reese’s lap, where she cradled the back of her head, leaned down, and captured Reese’s mouth in a kiss that began soft and heartfelt and shifted steadily to hot and urgent.
As their mouths danced, Sloane went up on her knees, straddling Reese, for better access, the movement knocking the breath from Reese’s lungs in the best way.
The kiss deepened, mouths fitting together like they’d been practicing for all time.
Sloane tasted like citrus and ginger, and the wine from dinner, and Reese knew she’d never get enough.
“God, you feel good,” Sloane breathed.
Sloane’s hands fisted in Reese’s shirt, grounding herself there, and Reese answered by holding her closer, as if distance had become an intolerable concept. When Sloane sighed into her mouth, low and unguarded, Reese felt it everywhere.
“Should we?” Reese asked around kisses.
“Definitely should.” Another mind-blowing kiss. “Let me give you a tour of the bedroom.”
Reese arched a brow. “And by tour, you actually mean …”
“Hundred percent.”
When you love someone, the touches linger longer, the kisses grow more insistent, and the release carries a depth that feels almost overwhelming.
Sloane felt it immediately—that everything between them had slowed and sharpened all at once, as if saying the important words had tuned her senses to a finer frequency.
Reese’s hands explored her with intention now, not searching, not guessing, but learning her again through the lens of certainty.
They stayed up into the early morning hours, bodies moving together in a quiet, reverent rhythm, the night unfolding without urgency.
Sloane let herself sink fully into it, into the way Reese held her like something precious, into the way every kiss anchored her to this woman who was nothing short of amazing.
Pleasure built patiently, wave after wave, until it left her undone in Reese’s arms, breathless and trembling, held through it all.
Later, when the world outside had softened toward dawn, Sloane lay tangled with Reese, limbs warm, heart impossibly full. Love changed everything, she realized, and she would always remember the night they’d finally claimed it.
The lazy morning belonged to them, and the idea that they had absolutely nowhere to be was not only novel, but it was also cause for celebration.
Sloane was up first. She threw on jeans and a faded yellow T-shirt, then walked the couple of blocks to the Cat’s Pajamas, where she grabbed them lattes to go and a variety of amazing pastries Autumn had assembled in a cute little blue box.
“What is that?” Reese asked when she arrived back at the house.
She was awake and stood in the kitchen, wearing only her underwear and a blue T-shirt featuring a duck wearing glasses.
Her hair was wild from a good night’s sleep, and her lips slightly swollen from, well, everything they’d done right before. She looked absolutely perfect.
Sloane smiled, shifting the box to one hip as she nudged the door closed with her foot. “Breakfast. Or possibly brunch. Time is a suggestion today.”
Reese crossed the kitchen barefoot, peered into the blue box, and made a low, appreciative sound. “You went to a place called the Cat’s Pajamas?” She looked up, eyes warm and amused. “You’re trying to make me fall in love with you all over again.”
“Too late for that,” Sloane said easily, setting the lattes on the counter. She handed one over, fingers brushing Reese’s, the contact still sending a quiet thrill through her. It felt different this morning, lighter somehow, but deeper too. Like everything fit just a little better.
Reese took a sip, sighed, and leaned in to kiss her, slow and unhurried, as if they had all the time in the world to get it right. “This,” she said, gesturing vaguely between the coffee, the pastries, and the two of them, “might be my favorite version of us.”
Sloane bumped her shoulder. “Mmm. Mine, too.”
They ate at the counter, sharing bites, laughing when powdered sugar ended up on Reese’s nose without her realizing it, talking about work, their favorite vacation spots, and why Sloane believed she could absolutely outrun a goose if it came down to it.
Outside, the day stretched open and unclaimed.
And for once, Sloane didn’t feel the need to plan ahead or brace for what came next.
She just sat there with the woman she loved, sunlight creeping into the room, thinking that if this was what the morning after looked like, she was more than ready for whatever followed.
“What if we took a walk around the neighborhood after this?” Sloane asked. “We can end up on the beach. Watch the waves. Grab a lemonade. I guarantee you the people-watching alone will be well worth it.”
Reese pulled off a section of croissant. “I want to do all of that. The answer is a resounding you’re on.” She popped it in her mouth.
“Stop making croissants sexy,” Sloane said.
“I will not. And now that I know I can, I’m going to do it more.” And oh, she did, too. Deliberating, tugging a flaky bite of the freshly baked middle and placing it slowly in her perfect mouth, the same one that had Sloane clawing the sheets and screaming her name last night.
“You’re out of control.”
“What are you going to do about it?” Reese asked, blinking innocently, and showing off her long lashes.
“Come here. Let’s find out.” Sloane turned her around and backed her against the counter as the smile faded from Reese’s lips and her eyes darkened with a look Sloane recognized: desire.
She placed a soft hand between Reese’s legs and watched her face as she stroked softly once.
Twice. “Oh, you’re quieter now,” Sloane said.
“And this is in the way.” She slid the rectangular piece of fabric to the side and began to play.
Reese dropped the croissant onto the counter and grabbed the edge with both hands.
“Fuck,” she breathed, eyes closing.
“Yes, I am about to fuck you,” Sloane said. Reese’s body was always so responsive in the morning, and today was no different. “But I want to make sure you want it first. Do you want it?” Sloane asked, trailing a finger down Reese’s cheek. She kissed the smooth skin on her neck, inhaling her scent.
Reese was already rocking against her other hand, the T-shirt riding up with each small movement, offering a glimpse of her abdomen. “I do want it.”
Sloane began to move her fingers in a circular pattern between Reese’s legs, purposefully avoiding her clit, getting ever so close and moving off again, reveling in what it seemed to be doing to Reese. “You’re even wetter now. You must like this.”
“I love it when you touch me.” Reese’s voice was breathy, her breathing shallow. Her hips began to move faster, seeking Sloane’s hand, pressing into it, desperate for more attention, more pressure.
“What is it you want?” Sloane said in her ear.
“I want you to fuck me,” Reese said. “I need you to.”
“How bad?”
“So bad. Baby. Please.” Reese bit her bottom lip and closed her eyes. Sloane liked the image very much. So much that she slid inside, filling Reese, pumping her with two fingers and then three. She allowed her thumb to brush Reese’s clit ever so briefly, nodding when Reese twitched and whimpered.
“Was that good?”
“Mm-hmm,” Reese said, eyes still closed as Sloane moved in and then out again in a rhythm that left her very much in control. Reese’s quiet little cry that accompanied Sloane’s every thrust was extra motivation. She brushed her clit again. “Please. More.”
Sloane began to pass over it and back, softly with her thumb at first until accelerating as Reese’s hips moved faster in a frenzy.
“Yes. Just like that. God. Oh, fuck. Yes, Sloane. More, more.” She rode Sloane’s hand, leaning back against the counter.
Finally, Sloane increased both her pressure and her speed until Reese bowed and cried out as she tumbled.
“Oh fuck, oh fuck. That was too good.” She slid her hand under Sloane’s jaw, her breathing still ragged. “God, your voice does things to me.”
“Yeah, well, your body does things to me. She palmed Reese’s breast through the T-shirt. “I don’t ever think I’ve known a sexier person. Especially one with a duck on her shirt.”
Reese laughed quietly. “I hope that means we can do lots more of this.”
“Breakfast sex?”
“All of it.”
Sloane smiled sincerely. “You have no idea how much more I want of this.” She stepped in, and they shared a lingering kiss that made Sloane go up on her tiptoes for maximum access to those lips that drove her wild.
Her midsection fluttered, her thighs quivered, and she wanted to live in this moment forever.
Alas, they had the day ahead of them, and with as little time as they had together over Reese’s visit, she didn’t want to miss showing Reese her little piece of the world.
“Should we take a walk to see the neighborhood?”
“We have to, or I’d be hugely sad. Let me shower and change, then we can see what this ridiculously pretty neighborhood has going on.”
“Perfect. I’m going to sit here and drink coffee and watch you walk away.”
Reese understood the assignment because the walk was something to behold. The way the T-shirt shifted to the side with each sway of her hips, revealing the tight cling of the baby blue underwear to the bottom of her ass.
Sloane took a sip of her still-warm coffee and smiled. Yeah, this was going to be a great day.