Chapter 23 Nate #2
Her fingers curled against my shoulder, gentle but unmistakably sure.
The nearness of her—her warmth, the way she fit into the space that used to be between us—made everything else seem distant and unimportant.
I brushed my thumb along her cheek, slow, like I needed to memorize the way she breathed before I earned anything more.
“We don’t have to rush,” I told her quietly, meaning every word. “Tell me what you need, and I’ll match you.”
Eliza’s eyes softened in a way that hit me somewhere deep and unguarded. “I don’t want to rush,” she said. “But I don’t want to stop, either.”
That was all it took.
I kissed her—careful at first, like a promise, then deeper as she leaned into me, fingers sliding into my hair. She let out a soft sigh, which made my pulse trip. Every slow brush of her mouth told me she wanted this, wanted me, and damn, I’d been holding myself back for so long.
Our breathing synchronized, every exhale mingling in the hush between words.
The world outside faded, leaving only the quiet certainty of her presence.
I pressed my forehead to hers, letting myself linger in the moment, memorizing the way her eyelashes brushed her cheeks and the flush beneath her skin.
Each heartbeat drew me deeper, making it impossible to imagine a reality where we hadn’t found this quiet peace together.
Her hands traced my jaw, my shoulders, my chest—tentative, then bolder, like she was remembering what it felt like to want someone without fear. Each touch undid me a little more.
“Eliza…” My voice broke in the middle of her name.
“Don’t stop,” she whispered. “Please. I don’t want to stop…”
I nodded and kissed her again, this time slower, allowing the moment to linger warm and full between us.
I eased her back against the pillows, giving her every chance to pull away as I pressed my body to hers.
She didn’t. She lifted her hips toward mine in a silent response that settled any doubt I had.
We stayed like that—pressed tight, hands everywhere, kissing as though we’d never stop. She pushed lightly at my shoulders. “Sit up,” she murmured.
“Tell me what you need. Slow? Or…?”
“Not slow. Not now.” She laughed as she trailed her hands down my chest to tug at the hem of my shirt until it was over my head and on the floor. “I want to touch you, too. Can I?”
“Yes. God yes. Touch me. Do anything you want.”
I slid my hands over the warm skin of her thighs and up, raising her dress over her head. She tugged it off and tossed it to the floor.
Her breasts were gorgeous, full, and lush, with rosy little nipples peeking through the cream lace of her bra. I darted my tongue out for a taste. Immediately, she arched into my touch with a sexy little moan.
“More,” she moaned as she shoved the cup of the bra down for me.
“Like this?” I sucked hard at her bared nipple, smiling as she ran her hands into my hair and yanked me closer.
“Take me to bed.” She pulled out of my arms. “I don’t want Lois to watch us.”
I stood, sweeping her into my arms to carry her through the house to my bedroom. “I’ve been thinking about this,” I whispered against her lips.
“I have too. I want you, Nate.”
Her arms wrapped around me as we crossed the threshold, the soft quiet of the room settling around us like a secret.
I paused for a heartbeat, drinking in the sight of her—hair tousled, cheeks flushed, eyes bright with anticipation.
The air felt charged, every movement deliberate, and every glance loaded with meaning neither of us had dared to voice until now.
I set her gently down on the bed, the mattress dipping beneath our combined weight as she reached for me again, pulling me close and erasing the last bit of distance between us.
I reached for the nightstand without breaking the kiss and pulled a condom from the drawer. She exhaled—a soft, relieved breath that felt like trust.
“Good,” she murmured, thumb brushing my lower lip. “Thank you.”
“I’ll always take care of you. Always, Eliza,” I said, because there was no universe where I wasn’t careful with her.
The rest of our clothes fell away in a quiet blur of warm skin and whispered yeses.
There was nothing rushed about any of it.
Just the kind of closeness that felt inevitable.
Her fingers trailed over my shoulders. My mouth traced the line of her throat, the curve of her collarbone, each touch asking and waiting.
I slipped a hand between her legs, cupping her in my palm, middle finger tracing her slick opening, then up to find her clit.
“Nate.” Her voice was nothing but soft breath in my ear.
“I want to make you feel good. Can I?”
She looked up at me, her eyes bright and unguarded, and for a heartbeat, neither of us spoke.
Everything else—the uncertainty, the walls we’d built—had fallen away.
I traced my thumb along her cheek and saw the way she smiled, so sweet and so beautiful, the kind you save for moments that feel like beginnings.
I felt her heartbeat thrumming beneath my hand, steady and real, and knew this was something we could choose, again and again, no matter what came next.
She nodded, eyes wide, mouth open as she panted softly.
Touching her like this was something I’d never let my imagination get far enough to follow through with. I felt like I was living inside a fantasy. It didn’t feel real. The scent of her blended with her perfume, and it was all I could do not to fall apart.
I kissed her, hard, deep, loving how her lips reddened, and her cheeks flushed when I pulled away.
She arched into my touch, her breath catching as I moved with a tenderness that made my own heart ache.
Every response from her felt like an answer to a question I hadn't known I was asking.
I watched her lashes flutter, her lips parting with a shuddering sigh, and I pressed a lingering kiss to her temple—wanting her to feel cherished, wanted, seen.
I slid down, kissing a trail between her breasts, over the soft curve of her stomach, and lower.
“Open for me,” I said, smiling against her skin as she threw her legs over my shoulders. “Yeah, just like this.” I licked straight up her center, groaning at the taste. She was hot, wet, perfection, and I knew I would never get enough of her.
She clutched my hair and let out a moan as she rocked her hips closer to my mouth. “You’re so beautiful,” I groaned against the heat of her.
“Please. Get inside me, Nate. I need you.”
“You’re sure?” I whispered.
Her answer wasn’t a word—it was the way she dropped her legs to the sides and tugged at my hair.
She nodded, her eyes searching mine for a final moment of reassurance.
“I’m sure,” she said, voice low but certain, and any last thread of hesitation unwound between us.
We moved together, slowly, letting the trust grow in each gentle touch, every whispered word, as if building something sacred in the quiet dark.
I rose to my knees and slid the condom on. Watching as her lips parted, breath hitching.
I traced a slow line up the center of her body as I leaned over her, my weight on one arm, savoring the way her skin responded to each gentle touch as I settled myself between her legs, rolling my hips to rest between her spread thighs.
“Say the word, Eliza,” I murmured, tucking my face into the side of her neck. “I need to hear it again.”
“Yes,” she whispered, wrapping her arms and legs around me. “Now. Please.”
The space between us felt sacred, charged with anticipation and the quiet certainty that we were exactly where we needed to be. In that small space, every heartbeat seemed to echo with the promise of all the things we hadn't said but deeply felt.
I sank inside her body, hardly believing I was lucky enough to be right here, sliding inside the most beautiful woman I’d ever met in my life.
She writhed beneath me, hitching her legs tighter around my waist, begging me without words to get deeper. So, I did, my pulse racing out of control as I slammed my hips into hers.
“God, you feel so good, Eliza.”
“More,” she moaned, biting my shoulder and digging her nails into my sides.
I propped myself up onto one elbow so I could watch her as I pulled back, then pushed back inside.
Again and again, as her mouth fell open and she threw her head back.
I ground against her when our hips met, grunting as I held myself back.
I’d never felt anything like this before, never been with anyone as amazing as Eliza.
I slid my hand between her legs, pressing with my thumb. Her back arched, and she let out a muffled scream as she slammed a hand over her mouth. It was my name on her lips. Mine. It pushed me over the edge. I took her hand from her mouth and kissed her through it.
The rest unfolded slowly and deeply, like something we’d both been waiting for. Every shift, every touch, every pressed-together moment felt like a promise neither of us said out loud. She held my gaze when I kissed her again, and it wrecked me in the best possible way.
And when the world finally settled around us again, I pulled her into my chest, breathing her in—her hair, her warmth, the soft sound she made when she curled closer.
No rush. No fear. Just us.
She was quiet for a long moment, curled into me like it was the most natural thing in the world. My arm was around her bare shoulders, my hand resting over her spine, feeling the rise and fall of each breath.
I stared at the ceiling in the dark, trying to catch my breath—not from what we’d done, but from what it meant.
Because I was falling for her. Not a crush. Not a phase. Not whatever people called it when they wanted something easy.
She shifted slightly, her nose brushing my collarbone, and I kissed the top of her head without thinking.
“You okay?” I asked quietly, brushing my fingers through her hair.
She nodded, then hesitated. “Yeah. That was more than okay. Just like everything else—you are good at what you do.”
I smiled into her hair. “Stay,” I said finally. My voice was soft but sure. “You don’t have to leave tonight.”
She went still in my arms.
“I mean it,” I added. “I’ll make cocoa or tea or pancakes or anything you like in the morning. Lois will let you pick the playlist for breakfast prep. I’ll even give you the good side of the bed.”
Eliza’s soft laugh warmed the quiet between us. “There’s a good side of the bed?”
“There is now.”
She looked up at me, her eyes unreadable in the dim light, but her voice was soft.
“Okay.”
That one word settled something in me I didn’t know had been wound tight. I pulled the covers up over her, made sure she was warm, and reached for her hand under the quilt. She laced her fingers through mine without hesitation. We got up, taking turns in the bathroom to get ready for bed.
I’d never wanted to move this slow and stay this close all at once.
We settled back in bed, side by side, the quiet of the house wrapping around us like another blanket.
For a while, there was only the sound of soft breathing, the gentle creak of the mattress each time one of us shifted.
I could feel the weight of the day melting away, replaced by a certainty that neither of us was in a hurry to break the spell.
It was easy, natural—like we’d done this a hundred times before.
She was already half-asleep by the time I whispered, “Goodnight, Eliza.”
She didn’t answer—but she didn’t let go of my hand either.
And I didn’t sleep for a long time. Because all I could think about was how good it
felt to have her in my arms, in my house, in my life. And how I’d do just about anything to keep her here.