Chapter 21
21
RYLAN
Joss was nearly to the front door of her apartment building when I pulled to a stop, my tires squealing on the pavement as I double parked. She jerked her head up, and I hated the fright I could see in her eyes before she realized it was only me. Her shock quickly changed, her smile growing faster than I could roll my window down and yell out, “Hey gorgeous!”
“Rylan!” She raced my way, climbing into the cab and not even bothering to close the door before she was leaning over the center console to kiss me. “I didn’t think you’d be able to come.”
I kissed her back, relishing the way her cold lips felt against the heat of mine, the way her mouth tasted when I slipped my tongue inside and ate up the moan that rose from her throat. “Wouldn’t miss this for the world.”
Behind me, a horn honked, startling Joss enough for her to pull away. Her cheeks flamed as she grabbed for her door and settled herself into her seat. Once she was buckled—and not a moment before—I drove away, around the corner until I found a parking spot.
“I thought for sure you’d be another hour at least,” she told me after I shut off the engine and grabbed her hand.
Grinning, I kissed her knuckles. “I may have run a few stop lights to get here.”
“Rylan!” She ripped her hand from my grasp, then gripped my face between her cold palms. “Don’t you ever do that! Ever! Do you hear me?”
“Joss, baby.” I pulled her to me, cursing my big mouth. “I was kidding.”
She cut me off with a kiss, her lips pressed hard against mine. Her grip on my cheeks tightened and she pressed her forehead against my own.
“I didn’t run any lights, I promise,” I told her, our breath mingling together. “I wouldn’t do that to you.”
Joss slammed her eyelids closed, and I swore I could feel her trembling. If there was one thing I was always conscious of, it was her anxiety around driving and traffic. I should have known better than to joke about this. Smoothing my hands down the back of her head, I nudged my nose against hers, trying to get her to calm. When she finally opened her eyes, she wouldn’t meet my gaze.
She fingered the short hair on my face. “How—” Her voice broke, and she cleared her throat. “How did you get here so fast?”
Telling her the full truth wasn’t an option. She didn’t need to know about my rolling stops, or the one light I probably shouldn’t have gone through. I squeezed her tighter and kissed her nose. “Told Van I had a hot date so I could get away.” When she giggled, I pushed on. “He told me you were on the phone with your husband .”
That finally got her to look at me. Her wide, beautiful eyes stole my fucking breath. “I was talking to Chey!”
“Mmm hmm.”
She scoffed, slapping my shoulder as she rolled her eyes. “I was! She finally texted me today while I was at work, so I called her back just as soon as I could.”
“How’s she doing?”
Joss grimaced and dropped her hand to finger my collar. “She didn’t really say. She asked about me, and then Van interrupted, and she had to go.”
“Damn him.”
“I know, right?” She laughed again, but this time it didn’t feel so carefree.
“You’ll talk to her again soon, right?” I offered, wanting to get that smile back on her face. “Now that you have a number?”
She nodded, blinking rapidly as if to hold back tears.
I hated it when she cried. She’d opened up about missing her friend around Christmas, and I hated that there was nothing I could do to stop her tears as they fell. Finally having contact with her best friend, even if she didn’t get to have a full conversation, was a relief for me, and hopefully for her too.
“Hey.” I tipped her chin up so she’d look at me again. Only the tiniest smile curled her lips. “You have any peanuts?”
That brought her smile back, even as she shook her head. “They’re at home.”
“Well.” I shifted, edging her back a little so I could reach behind my seat. “How about we use these then?”
Joss squealed when she saw the can of unsalted peanuts I’d been keeping in my truck for just such an emergency. “You bought peanuts?”
“Of course, I did, gorgeous. How else am I supposed to convince Frank to be my friend?”
Without warning, Joss grabbed my face and kissed me, a hard press of her lips that left me aching in more ways than one. She pulled back just as quick, her beautiful eyes sparkling and her face glowing in the dying sunlight. It made me want to say to hell with Frank. Made me want to take her back to her apartment so I could kiss every inch of her skin. But the bird seemed to be watching from overhead. He let out a caw that had Joss grinning from ear to ear.
“I think he heard the peanuts.”
“I think he heard us come home,” I countered, and I watched as something flickered across Joss’s face.
She didn’t acknowledge whatever it was. Instead, she pulled back and grabbed her purse. “We better not keep him waiting.”
Excitement flowed through my veins, enough so that I didn’t stop her when she jumped out. I hopped out and met her on the sidewalk, offering her my arm before we set off, Frank cawing overhead as we headed toward the park.
Once there, Joss let go of me and took the can of nuts, giving it a little shake. Frank flew down and landed on the bench beside us, tilting his head as he begged for a peanut.
“Frank, go find me something shiny.” Joss gave the can another shake, and Frank took off into the air. It wasn’t more than three minutes before he was back again, landing at her feet and tossing the not-so-shiny pink mitten on the concrete near my boot.
“That’s not shiny,” I pointed out, trying to keep the laughter out of my voice. Frank didn’t like to be laughed out, or so I’d been told.
“Frank.” Joss put her hands on her hips and stared down at the corvid. “I said shiny. That’s not shiny and you know it.”
He cawed at her, tilting his head back and forth before snatching the mitten and tossing it at me again.
“Thank you, Frank.” I bent to take the mitten and the bird took flight, making a bunch of racket as he went.
“Find me something shiny, Frank!” Joss repeated as the bird flapped away. He returned a moment later, keeping far away from me as he dropped a pop can tab into her waiting palm. “Good boy!”
Joss shook a nut free from the can and held it out. The crow snatched it up before flying away. When he came back again, he dropped a matching pink mitten at my feet before settling himself on the back of the bench.
I reached for the second mitten, then peered up as Frank started cawing in a way I’d never heard before. It sounded like laughter.
“Mommy!” A little girl not more than six years old came racing around the playground equipment and pointed as she stopped. “Mommy! That man has my mittens!”
“Oh shit!”
Turning to Joss with wide eyes, I opened my mouth to speak but nothing came out.
“Here, give them to me.” She snagged the mittens from my hands, then raced toward the girl and her mom. I watched as she handed them over, then pointed my way. I couldn’t hear what they were saying, but I could hear Frank as he clapped his wings behind me.
“Look what you did,” I hissed at him, feeling like a bit of a fool for talking to a damn bird. “Stealing some poor little kid’s gloves and getting Joss in trouble. You should be ashamed of yourself.”
Frank bobbed his head before taking off, leaving me alone with the full can of nuts I was pretty sure he didn’t deserve.
“Damn bird.” I sat on the bench Frank vacated, being sure to look it over in case he decided to take a shit before he took off.
A few minutes later, Jose came back, shaking her head. I rose to greet her, and she rushed into my open arms.
“Can you believe that?” She grinned up at me, then lifted onto her toes to press a kiss to my lips.
“That Frank stole some kid’s gloves and tried to blame it on me?”
“Have you ever seen an animal as smart as him?”
“Smart?” I shook my head and pulled her tight against me. “More like, smart ass .”
She slapped my shoulder before breaking free from my grasp. “Frank, you naughty bird! Get down here!”
Ever the dutiful corvid, Frank came down to Joss’s side.
“Frank, you owe Rylan an apology.”
He made that noise again, the one that sounded like a laugh. Joss shook her finger at him.
“That’s not nice.”
He did a little dance—probably putting a curse on me, if I read it right.
Joss crossed her arms, glaring down at the bird. “Frank.”
The crow spread its wings, then bowed its head. I wasn’t surprised in the least when he flapped hard and took off into the sky.
But I was surprised at what he did next.
“Holy shit!” I wanted to duck my head and hide, but I was frozen in my spot. “Holy shit! Joss! Look! He’s on my fucking shoulder!”
Joss let out a laugh, then reached up to give the bird a little pat on the head.
“Frank, give Rylan a kiss.”
I’m pretty sure my eyes popped out of my head, but still, I couldn’t move. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?”
Frank seemed to debate that command as well. Probably because he was jealous of me for taking Joss away from him.
“Oh, come on, Frank. Give him a kiss or you don’t get a peanut.”
At that, the bird lifted a leg and set it back down—almost like he was trying to stomp his foot. Joss laughed at the crow, then let out a squeal as he finally did what he was told. He gave me a little peck on the cheek before immediately taking flight.
Flapping his wings, hard enough to hit me in the face.
“Oh, no.” She rushed forward, as if her presence would stop what had already happened. She gripped my face in her palms, looking me over to ensure I was okay.
I could have let her do that all day.
Wrapping my arms around her waist, I pressed my lips to hers until she was laughing.
“Rylan!”
“That was amazing,” I told her, lifting her off her feet before setting her back down. “I can’t believe you got him to kiss me!”
“You are very kissable.” She grinned, only to have me wipe it off her face with another searing kiss. Somewhere over our heads, Frank cawed.
“Give the bird his nut, gorgeous,” I said against her—though I didn’t bother to let go. “Don’t want him coming back and pecking my eyes out.”
“Probably a good idea.”
Did I mention Frank’s jealousy?
Yeah, apparently, I wasn’t the only one who noticed.
She wriggled out of my grasp and grabbed a peanut from its can. Frank barely had a chance to swoop down and snatch it from her palm before I grabbed her other hand, spinning her back toward me until she was wrapped up in my arms. I swayed while I held her, dancing to the song I’d had in my head for months.
My heart hammered in my chest as I breathed her in, and my stomach fluttered like it did every time I had her like this. Joss walked her fingers up my chest to my chin, leaving electric waves racing across my skin beneath my clothes.
“Rylan.” She tilted her head up, tracing her fingers along my jaw until she cupped my cheek. She blinked once and swallowed hard, but before I could ask her what was wrong, my world trembled as she told me, “I love you.”
The earth stopped spinning on its axis. Goosebumps that had nothing to do with the chill in the air raced across my skin, chasing the electricity Joss’s touch left behind. I licked my lips, trying to get my voice to work when she brushed her fingertips over my bottom lip.
That touch shook me out of my stupor. I tugged her as close as I could get, then crushed my mouth against hers. Joss let out a moan that had my body coming back to life. I spread my hands down her sides and snagged both her thighs before I was pulling her up and into my arms. She gasped as she wrapped her legs around my waist, and I took that moment to tell her the truth that had always been in my heart.
“I love you so much, Joss. Can’t begin to tell you how much.”
“Rylan.” She didn’t finish her thought. She brought her mouth back to mine, parting her lips so our tongues could tangle as our breath mixed. She held onto me the way I held her—like letting go would break this spell.
I couldn’t let that happen.
Couldn’t let her go.
Out on the street, a horn honked. A voice yelled out, “Get a room!”
Joss broke our kiss, mumbling a hurried, “My place, now,” before she was kissing me again.
Begrudgingly, I let her down, only for her to grab my hand and haul me back to her place in double time. Once inside, she spared no time stripping off my clothes, her mouth on mine.
I lifted her, carrying her to her room as I tore her coat open and undid her pants. We were naked in seconds, a ball of tangled limbs and panting breath as we kissed once again.
“I love you,” Joss whispered, her hands smoothing over my skin, her voice the music to the song in my heart. “I love you so much it hurts.”
“Stole the words right out of my mouth, gorgeous.” I grabbed her thigh, hiking it up over my hip, then dragged my fingers over her smooth skin. She gasped as I touched her, threw her head back as I dipped a finger inside her wet hold, and I took advantage, dropping my mouth to her neck.
I sucked along her throat, timing each thrust of my fingers with each swirl of her hips until the song she was singing rang out into the night. Her moans drove me crazy, urging me to touch more of her, to kiss each inch of her, to crawl inside of her and make her mine.
When she shuddered around my fingers, I rolled her onto her back, spreading her legs before pressing a kiss to her swollen lips. Then I was tasting her, licking up her arousal until the taste of her coated my tongue. Joss called my name and grabbed my hair, tugging wildly as she jerked in my arms. I tightened my hold, keeping her from pulling away as I slid two fingers into her and sucked her clit between my lips.
She was wild and free and the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen, and I fell for her even harder as she fell apart in my arms. I sucked and pressed and plunged my way inside until she was a heaving mess, her breath panting from her and her limbs lying limp at her sides.
Joss tried, and failed, to lift her hands to touch my face. I laughed as I crawled up her body, pressing kisses to her skin as I licked and sucked my way to her lips.
“I want to taste you,” Joss whispered as I settled myself between her open hips.
“Think that’s gonna have to wait, gorgeous.”
She smiled, but it seemed as weak as her attempt to touch me. “I think you’re right.”
“Wanna make love to you,” I told her before dipping down to nip at her lip. “Wanna feel your pussy grip my cock as I watch you come.”
“Rylan.” Her cheeks flushed the deepest pink, and she tried to cover her face with her hands.
I snagged her wrists and held them over her head, groaning as the position pressed her breasts into my chest. I traced her nipple with my finger, dipped down to suck it into my mouth. Joss let out a moan that had my dick aching, but I couldn’t stop.
“Rylan, please.”
“Please, what, gorgeous?” I switched to the other side, tugging her tight nipple with my teeth. She gasped and bucked her hips.
“Oh my God, please.” She bucked again, and I swore I could feel the slippery mess between her legs start to coat the head of my dick. “Please, oh my God, don’t stop.”
With my free hand, I tugged at her other nipple, sucking and biting the one in my mouth. She gasped and bucked and whined, pleading with me to give her something, but she wouldn’t say what. She bucked her hips, bucked them again, then let out a keening whine that had me lifting my head, which left her gasping because I didn’t take her nipple out of my mouth.
“Rylan!” She arched her back and thrashed her head back and forth. That deep blush of hers spread across her cheeks and down her chest as her mouth dropped open and her eyes rolled back. She shuddered against me, the wet mess of her coating my dick as the final buck of her hips shifted her enough that I slid inside. “Ahh!”
Her walls clamped around me, making it hard for me to push further in. But soon, she went limp in my arms. I curled around her, shifted her leg until I had her at the perfect angle. Then I pulled out, thrusting in again in slow strokes, swirling my hips as I watched her come to, watched her body light up.
“I can’t move,” she whispered as I dipped to kiss her lips. “Please, don’t stop.”
“Never gonna stop, gorgeous. Can’t stop loving you.”
“I love you.” She found some well of strength and lifted her arms, draping them around my neck and pulling me closer. She kissed me as I made love to her.
As I made love to my wife.
I’d been dreaming of this since I met her. Since I caught sight of her in that pretty floral dress and her cowboy boots. Since I saw her crying by that fountain. Since I first touched her skin.
Joss was mine, and I was never letting her go again. I would keep her forever, and I would always, always be hers.
I came with such force, a roar ripped from my throat. Joss kissed my neck, up my jaw, until her mouth was on mine and her hands held me to her. I kissed her back, smoothed my fingers across her face, only to find moisture I hadn’t expected.
Edging back, I looked down at the gorgeous woman beneath me. “What’s wrong, baby?”
Her bottom lip trembled before her face broke. She tightened her arms around me, hugging me to her as she cried, “I don’t want to lose you.”
“Lose me?” I pulled at her arm, leaning back so I could see into her beautiful, tear-filled eyes. “You’re not going to lose me.”
Her fingers fluttered down my side, to the bandage I still wore over the wound I’d gotten earlier this week. “I was so scared,” she whispered. “When they told me you were hurt, I thought I’d lost my chance to tell you I love you.”
“Never, baby.” I dropped to my side, curling my arms around her and pulling her to my chest. “You’ll never lose me, and I’ll always be here with you.”
“I love you.”
Burying my face in her hair, I let out a heavy breath. “I love you, Joss. Always and forever.”
Joss clung to me until our heated skin cooled and we fell asleep. But our fears over losing each other wouldn’t let up. Throughout the night, we found each other, falling into a rhythm of our own making as we made love time and time again. And each time, we said the words we’d been holding back for too long.
I love you.