Chapter 30 #2
A blush spreads across her cheeks, down her neck to her chest. "Even with all this?" she asks, gesturing to the stretch marks on her stomach, the softness of her hips.
"Especially with all that," I say, bending to press a kiss to each mark, each curve she tries to hide. "Every part of you tells your story. And I love every chapter."
Her breath hitches when I bite her shoulder.
She tangles her fingers in my hair, pulling me closer.
My mouth moves over her skin, tasting, marking.
I want her to feel it for days. This isn’t just comfort.
This is need, raw and driving, the urge to possess, to claim, to make damn sure she never doubts she belongs to me.
When I look up, her eyes are shining with unshed tears, but her smile is radiant. She reaches for me, and I go willingly into her arms, into the warmth of her embrace, into the future we're building together one moment at a time.
She touches me like she’s worshipping, and it nearly undoes me. When her fingers fumble with my belt, I cover her hands, needing to feel that pulse of surrender, that need to be taken.
"Slow," I whisper against her temple. "We have all night."
She nods, but there's an urgency in her movements that tells me what she needs—connection, proof that this is real, that she's alive and safe and here with me.
I understand that need. I feel it too, pulsing beneath my skin like a second heartbeat.
I lay her back against the pillows, taking my time as I remove her jeans, sliding them down her legs inch by inch. Her skin is pale in the soft hotel lighting, goosebumps rising in the wake of my touch. I press kisses to her ankles, her calves, the sensitive skin behind her knees.
"Axel," she whispers, her voice catching. "Please."
I look up at her, spread out before me in nothing but simple cotton underwear. No pretense, no performance, just Sadie, trusting me with her body, her heart.
"Tell me what you need," I say, my hands steady on her thighs.
She reaches for me and pulls me up until we're face-to-face. "I need to feel something good," she whispers against my lips. "I need to feel you. All of you."
I kiss her deeply, pouring everything I can't say into the connection. My hands find the clasp of her bra, waiting for her nod before unhooking it and sliding it from her shoulders. Her breasts are full, marked with the silvery lines of pregnancy and motherhood. Beautiful. Perfect.
"God, look at you," I murmur, cupping their weight in my palms. "So fucking gorgeous."
A flush spreads across her chest, up her neck to her cheeks. Not embarrassment, pleasure. Pride, maybe. I bend to take one nipple in my mouth, swirling my tongue around the sensitive peak until she arches beneath me, a soft moan escaping her lips.
"You like that?" I ask, already knowing the answer from the way her body responds.
"Yes," she gasps, her fingers threading into my hair.
I lavish the same attention on her other breast, listening to the small sounds she makes, learning what makes her breath catch, what makes her press up against me seeking more.
Her hips lift restlessly, seeking friction. I slide one hand down her stomach, tracing the waistband of her underwear.
"These need to go," I tell her, hooking my fingers under the elastic. She lifts her hips, helping me slide them down her legs until she's completely bare beneath me.
I take a moment just to look at her, to memorize every curve, every freckle, every mark that tells the story of her life. The stretch marks on her hips from carrying Poppy. The tiny scar on her knee from a childhood fall. The softness of her stomach that she tries to hide.
"You're staring," she whispers, her hands moving as if to cover herself.
I catch them gently, bringing them to my lips. "I can't help it," I confess against her knuckles. "You're the most beautiful thing I've ever seen."
The vulnerability in her eyes nearly breaks me. I press a kiss to her lips, then begin moving lower, trailing my mouth down her neck, between her breasts, across the softness of her stomach. I can feel her muscles tense beneath my lips.
"Relax," I murmur against her skin. "I've got you. You're safe with me."
She exhales slowly, some of the tension leaving her body. I settle between her thighs, pressing kisses to the sensitive skin there, working my way inward until I'm right where I want to be.
The first slow lick has her gasping, hips jerking upward. I place one hand on her stomach, steadying her as I explore with deliberate patience. I find the spots that make her moan, the rhythm that has her thighs tensing around my head.
"Axel," she whispers, her voice breaking on my name. "God, that feels…"
"Good?" I ask, looking up to meet her eyes. The sight of her, flushed, lips parted, watching me between her legs, nearly undoes me.
"So good," she confirms, one hand reaching down to tangle in my hair.
I smile against her, then return to my task with renewed focus. I slide one finger inside her, then two, curling them in the way I learned she likes. Her inner walls clench around me, hot and slick.
"That's it," I encourage as her breathing quickens. "Let go for me, Sadie."
Her thighs begin to tremble, her back arching as I bring her closer to the edge. I can feel her getting tighter around my fingers, her body tensing with impending release.
"I'm close," she gasps, her grip in my hair almost painful.
"I know, baby. I can feel you," I murmur against her. "Come for me. Let me feel you come."
The words push her over the edge. She cries out, her body arching off the bed as pleasure consumes her. I work her through it, gentling my touch as the aftershocks cause her body to tremble.
When she collapses back against the pillows, I press one final kiss to her inner thigh before moving up to lie beside her. Her eyes are closed, her chest rising and falling with rapid breaths.
"Okay?" I ask, brushing damp hair from her forehead.
Her eyes flutter open, the smile that spreads across her face brighter than anything I've seen from her. "More than okay."
She reaches for me, pulling me down for a deep kiss that quickly reignites the fire between us. Her hands find my belt again, and this time I don't stop her as she unbuckles it and works my pants down my legs.
"These too," she says, tugging at my boxers.
I help her remove them, watching her eyes widen as she takes in the sight of me fully naked, fully aroused for her.
"Come here," she whispers, pulling me on top of her.
I settle between her thighs, the heat of her against my length making me groan.
I position myself at her entrance, rubbing the head of my cock through her wetness.
Her answer is to reach between us, guiding me to where she wants me. I push forward slowly, giving her time to adjust as I fill her inch by inch.
"Fuck," I breathe as I bottom out, completely enveloped in her heat. "You feel amazing."
Her hands clutch at my back, her hips lifting to take me deeper. "Move," she urges. "Please, Axel."
I begin to thrust, setting a slow, deep rhythm that has her gasping with each stroke. Her eyes stay locked on mine, creating an intimacy that's almost overwhelming.
"That's it," I encourage as she meets each thrust. "Take me. All of me."
She moans, her nails digging into my shoulders. I can feel her getting wetter around me, her inner walls fluttering with building pleasure.
"Mine," I whisper against her neck, the word slipping out before I can stop it. "You're mine now."
"Yes," she gasps, her legs tightening around me. "Yours."
The simple agreement makes me thrust harder, claiming her. I increase my pace slightly, driving deeper, hitting the spot that makes her cry out.
"And I'm yours," I tell her, needing her to understand this goes both ways. "Completely yours."
Her eyes go soft, almost shy. I capture her mouth in a deep kiss, trying to convey everything I feel for this woman who's claimed my heart so completely.
"I'm close again," she whispers against my lips, her body tensing beneath mine.
I slip a hand between us, finding the sensitive bundle of nerves that will push her over the edge. "Come for me, Sadie. Let me feel you come around me."
She shatters with a cry that she muffles against my shoulder, her inner walls clenching rhythmically around me. The sensation is almost too much, but I hold back, wanting to give her more.
As her tremors subside, I roll us carefully, keeping our bodies joined as I settle her on top of me.
"What…" she starts, her eyes wide with surprise.
"Ride me," I tell her, my hands settling on her hips. "I want to watch you take your pleasure."
Color floods her cheeks, but there's no hesitation as she braces her hands on my chest and begins to move. The sight of her above me, taking control of her pleasure, is the most beautiful thing I've ever seen.
"That's it," I encourage, guiding her with gentle pressure on her hips. "You look so fucking perfect like this."
She finds her rhythm, her head falling back as she rocks against me. I reach up to cup her breasts, rolling her nipples between my fingers until she's gasping with each movement.
"Axel," she moans, her pace becoming erratic. "I can't… I'm going to…"
"One more," I urge, my thumb finding her clit. "Give me one more, Sadie."
Her entire body tenses, then she's crying out, collapsing forward as her third orgasm washes through her. I catch her against my chest, holding her close as she trembles in my arms.
I'm close to my own edge, my control fraying with each pulse of her body around mine. I roll us again, cradling her beneath me as I begin to move with purpose.
"I love you," I tell her, the words falling from my lips like prayer. "God, Sadie, I love you so much."
"I love you too," she whispers back, her eyes locked on mine as I chase my release. "Let go for me. I want to feel you."