Chapter 16
The week had gone by way too fast for Henley.
Usually she was happy to have time go by quickly, especially when Jasna was away from home.
But this week had been one of the best of her life.
She worked in the mornings and had a few sessions at The Refuge each afternoon, then she and Finn spent every night alone in his cabin.
She’d finally gotten her slow, tender lovemaking, and it had been more than worth the waiting.
An impatient and lustful Finn was a dream come true, but a loving and patient Finn blew her mind as he leisurely tortured her with pleasure.
She’d ended up begging him to let her come.
To get inside her. To fuck her. But even when he relented, he’d somehow found the control to keep his thrusts slow and steady, driving her to the edge of her orgasm time and time again before backing off.
By the time his control broke, she’d threatened all sorts of things she’d never carry through with…the least of which was never having sex with him again.
Then he ran a hot bath for her and carried her into the bathroom.
Since they wouldn’t both fit, he’d sat next to her as she soaked and told her more about his time when he was in the Coast Guard.
Slowly but surely, he was opening up, telling her things about himself and his past that he admitted he’d never shared with anyone else.
If she hadn’t been head over heels in love with this man before, she was now.
But what made her feel truly secure that their relationship might stand the test of time was that Finn wasn’t perfect.
If he was, she probably would’ve been waiting for the other shoe to fall.
She didn’t need a Stepford boyfriend. She wanted to be with someone who felt safe enough to be moody, yet not take it out on her.
Who got irritated with work, but didn’t just bitch about it ad nauseum without finding ways to ease his stress.
He complained about her dropping dirty clothes on the floor, but not in a way that made her feel like shit about the habit.
They argued about the best way to make pasta, disagreed about what they liked to watch on TV, and had different thoughts about what was going on in the country politically, but she adored that they could have such differing opinions and thoughts, yet still love each other as much as they did.
Today was Thursday, and they had this last night alone before Jasna came home from camp.
Henley had received numerous texts from her daughter when they were allowed to use their phones in the evenings, and she’d been relieved to see her daughter’s excitement about all the things she’d been doing.
She may have been reticent to go to camp, but now that she was there, it was obvious she was having a wonderful time.
She was still over-the-top excited about going to the shelter on Saturday, telling Henley that she’d already looked at the website to see what dogs were available. Henley had a feeling if they weren’t careful, they’d come home with more than one new member of the family.
“What are you thinking about so hard?” Finn asked as he came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, resting his chin on her shoulder. She’d been standing on the back porch of Finn’s cabin, staring into the trees as she sipped her coffee.
She didn’t turn, leaning back into Finn, giving him some of her weight. “Just that I’m happy. This week has gone by fast, but it’s been really really really good.”
He nuzzled her neck under her ear. “Yeah, I kind of got the feeling you felt that way last night when you grabbed my hair and wouldn’t let me come up for air when I was between your thighs.”
Henley chuckled and finally turned in his arms, being careful not to spill her coffee, then smacked his chest. “I didn’t hear you complaining,” she retorted.
“You wouldn’t have been able to hear me if I did, since my mouth was otherwise occupied.”
Henley laughed long and hard. When she had herself under control, she said in a serious tone of voice, “You know, I used to think I knew what good sex was. But I was so wrong. I had no clue. You, Finn Matlick, make me feel things I’ve never felt before.”
“When you’re with someone you love, everything’s better. Even standing on the porch, watching the world come to life in the morning,” he said solemnly.
“I love you,” she said.
“You’ve given me back my love of being alive,” he returned.
She smiled. “We’re being sappy this morning.”
“Yup,” he said with a small shrug.
“We’re gonna need to figure something out,” Henley told him.
“Figure what out?” he asked.
“How to make love with Jasna in the house.”
He grinned. “You think you can be quiet?”
“Um…maybe?”
Finn burst out laughing.
Henley mock-scowled at him. “That’s exactly what I mean! We have to figure something out. Because I like being with you, Finn. I like having you inside me.”
He sobered. “We will. We might end up being daytime lovemakers instead of nighttime, but I’m okay with that if you are.”
Henley thought about it for a moment, then nodded. “I can work with that. Jasna goes back to school soon.”
“Exactly,” Finn agreed.
She smiled up at him. “Although there’s something to be said for lying in your arms and not having sex too.”
“Never done it before you, and I’d have to say I agree.”
“You haven’t?”
“Nope. Before you, I was a love-’em-and-get-out-of-Dodge kind of man. Didn’t see the point in staying when I didn’t want to lead anyone into thinking we might have more than we did,” Finn said with a shrug.
Henley wrinkled her nose.
“What?” Finn asked.
“I’m jealous,” she admitted. “I don’t like to think of you with anyone else.”
“Same,” he agreed. “So how about we make a pact from here on out to never talk about past partners again.”
“Done.”
“Good. You’re going out with the girls today, right?” he asked.
Henley nodded. “Yeah, Alaska, Ryan, Luna, and I are all going to lunch, then we’re taking Luna to that shop that sells all the British stuff because she wants to get some of that chocolate we bought last time.”
“Cool.”
“You want me to pick up something from town for dinner?” she asked.
“If you’d like.”
“What do you want?”
“Don’t care. As long as I get to be with you on our last night alone for a while, I don’t give a shit what we’re eating.”
Henley couldn’t help but smirk.
Finn rolled his eyes. “You have such a dirty mind.”
“I can’t help it!” she protested. “Especially after what you were just talking about.”
“How about this—I don’t care what you bring home for dinner, because I’m gonna eat my fill afterward.”
Henley chuckled. She loved this man. So damn much. “What are you doing today?”
“Chores, as usual. The vet’s coming by to check out that scratch on Melba’s side that she got in the paddock the other day…
which will be a pain in the ass, because you know how much she hates being examined.
Then I thought I’d swing by the shelter to check out the available dogs.
I want to check out the temperament of the one pittie they have, as well as the hound mix.
The last thing I want is Jas falling in love with one of them, only to have them end up being aggressive or untrainable. ”
His concern for her daughter made Henley’s insides melt.
“I love you,” she whispered.
He smiled at her. “I love you more. Now, we need to get moving so you aren’t late for work. Are you sure you’re all right with Ryan picking you up?”
“Why wouldn’t I be? She’s going to come straight from here, after she finishes up the rooms on her schedule and after Luna’s done helping her dad with lunch. She can drop all three of us off after we shop. It’s fine.”
“I was just making sure. And since you won’t be driving, don’t worry about dinner. We can make something here, or I’ll grab something from Robert.”
“All right. My poor car isn’t getting much use just sitting here, since you drive Jasna and me around all the time,” she said.
Finn shrugged. “It’s my pleasure to take you both wherever you need to go.”
“You’re kind of a control freak,” she teased.
“Yup. And you love me anyway.”
“I do,” she agreed.
Finn took the coffee cup out of her hand and brought it to his lips and downed the rest of the drink.
“Hey!” Henley complained. “I wasn’t done with that.”
“Now you are,” he said with a grin. “And you still need to get in the shower. Oh, wait, so do I. I know—we can shower together to save time and water.”
“You think we’ll save either of those things if we get naked together in the shower?” Henley quipped as Finn led her back inside the cabin.
He didn’t answer, simply smirked as he led them toward the bedroom.
Henley chuckled. Did they have time for a quickie?
Not really. But her first appointment wasn’t for an hour and a half, and Mike never expected her to be in the office at a specific time.
She didn’t protest as Finn dragged her into the bathroom and grabbed the hem of her shirt, lifting it up and over her head.
“You owe me a coffee,” she teased as she stepped into the warm shower.
“We’ll stop at that coffee place you love,” he said absently as he pulled her against his warm, naked, wet body. His cock was hard between them, and Henley could only smile.
This was what she’d dreamed about when she was in her early twenties. This was what she’d always wanted with a partner. Someone to laugh with, who wanted her as much as she wanted him, and someone to share her life with.
Then he was kissing her, and Henley couldn’t think any more.
Hours later, when she was sitting at lunch with her friends, Henley could still feel Finn between her legs. He’d made love to her hard, fast, and passionately in the shower. And even though they’d been spontaneous and were in the freaking shower, he hadn’t forgotten a condom.
Not once had he gone back on his word to always protect her.
But as she’d told him before, she was ready to be done with them. She had an appointment for the next week with her OBGYN to discuss birth control options.