Chapter 25 Alex
ALEX
Ipacked up the picnic faster than I think I’ve done anything in my life.
The whole time, my hands were steady, but my heart?
My heart was doing somersaults.
Eleanor waited beside the car, arms wrapped around herself against the cooling air, light from the lone street light catching in her hair like embers.
I couldn’t believe this was happening.
Any of it.
Her kiss.
Her wanting me.
Her asking me to come home with her.
It had been a long time since I’d been with anyone. A long time since anything felt simple or natural or . . . possible And God, I wanted it.
I wanted her.
We got into the car, and the moment I started driving, the silence settled warm and electric between us. Nothing tight or anxious, just charged. Like the air right before a summer storm.
I kept my eyes on the road longer than necessary, trying not to stare, trying not to let my brain run too far ahead.
But then I risked a glance.
She was looking out the window, cheeks flushed, lips still a little swollen. Then she turned toward me with just a small movement and gave me a shy, soft smile.
Then she lifted her hand and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
And I swear to god, that tiny gesture just about ruined me.
How could something so small hit so hard?
Because it was her.
Because everything she did felt like it vibrated straight through me.
I gripped the steering wheel tighter, a helpless laugh pushing up in my throat.
I am done for.
It hit me in a flash. The realization, sudden and solid, that I was already wrapped around her finger. Completely. Hopelessly. Happily.
She had no idea.
And honestly? I wasn’t sure I wanted her to.
Not yet.
I just wanted this moment, this impossible, unbelievable moment, with her beside me, my hand resting lightly on her knee, the air humming between us, the road stretching ahead like the beginning of something big.
We turned onto her street, my pulse kicking up another notch.
She exhaled softly, smoothing her hands on her thighs.
“I’m . . . a little nervous,” she said.
I glanced at her again. “Me too.”
Her smile warmed, honest and relieved.
The porch light glowed ahead as I pulled into her driveway.
My heart pounded.
This was happening.
This was real.
Then her face turned up to mine, nothing outside of her blue eyes existed. I lowered my head and kissed her. And to my utter delight, she kissed me right back.
I deepened the kiss and pulled her close. My tongue entered her mouth, and she opened to me and met my kiss. Then she bit my lip before sucking it into her mouth. I was gone. I needed more of this woman.
She pulled back, and it was all I could do not to chase her mouth with my own.
“Do you want to come in?”
I nodded. Then we both got out of the car.
The cool night air hit me with a dose of reality.
I was about to do this. Even without being certain, I somehow knew that this was important.
This was a big moment for both of us. A moment of choosing our own happiness and what might be, in a world that often forces us to put others’ happiness above our own.
This was the partnership of choosing yourself and choosing another simultaneously.
I followed her up the stairs to her porch, mesmerized by the sway of her hips. She unlocked the door, and it opened into the same pristine house I had seen when I picked her up. Somehow, I was having trouble seeing her and Ava in this space.
“Can I get you anything to drink?” she asked with a nervous edge to her voice that I did not care for one bit.
“Sure.”
“Water, iced tea, diet coke, rosè?”
“Water is fine.”
I walked over to the mantel that was lined with framed photos.
There was one of Eleaor and someone I would guess was her sister when they were younger, next to one of her and Ava.
That one made me look a little longer. Both of them looked magazine-ready, not the full-of-life people I knew each of them to be.
“Do you want to watch something?” Eleanor asked as she entered the living room carrying two glasses of ice water.
She sat on the couch and picked up the remote.
“It’s up to you,” I said as I joyed her on the couch. I sat close, hoping to help her settle the nerves that seemed to have popped up since our time at the picnic. I gently tucked a loose strand of golden hair behind her ear.
She relaxed and let out a breath before looking into my eyes.
She licked her lips, and I was done. I leaned forward and pressed my lips to hers.
A little moan escaped her mouth as she opened to me.
The energy I was almost afraid we left behind at the lake was back.
She slipped a hand up into my hair and deepened the kiss.
Letting my hands explore her, I learned every dip and curve of her softness I could. What I would give to have her naked and beneath me, but there would be time for that. I was going to enjoy this. Right now.
My fingers toyed with the edge of her shirt, aching to see what was underneath, but I wouldn't push her.
She broke the kiss and sat back, looking at me. Her lips were slightly parted, with her chest heaving.
I tucked a piece of hair behind her ear as I watched, trying to gauge my next move. But then she shifted and straddled me, sitting on my lap.
"Is this okay?" she asked.
I couldn't have spoken words if I tried. I just nodded and reached up, cupping her face, bringing it down to mine in a kiss, pouring into it all the passion I felt. Her hand gripped my hair as she ground against my erection. Oh, god. It felt amazing.
My touch grew bolder as she continued to rock against my erection. I slipped my hand up her soft belly and cupped her breast. Her hand closed over mine and squeezed. I reached into her bra and pulled her breast out of her bra and tank top and closed my mouth over the dusty pink tip.
She moaned, and it broke something inside of me.
I shifted up so we were lying on the couch and stretched out over the top of her, kissing her chest and neck, and we were .
. . dry humping, yes, we were dry humping like two horny teenagers.
I couldn't bring myself to stop. Not when it felt this good.
I pulled back enough to look at her. The heat in her eyes was enough to drive me wild with desire. Then she reached up, her fingers weaving through my hair as she gripped my head and pulled me back down. The kiss was messy, all tongues and teeth and passion as we continued to grind into each other.
My lips made their way down her throat and her chest before I was there again, sucking a nipple into my mouth. Her rocking against me has become more intense. I match her and look into her eyes, she is looking at me with a small crease between her eyebrows, her breath coming in quick pants.
She was going to come.
"That's it, baby, you can let go," I said before pulling her peak into my mouth again.
She threw her head back and moaned. I could not believe this was happening. As she continued grinding against me, my own release came barreling through me. I was going to come in my pants like a horny teenager.
As I did just that, her phone vibrated on the table.