Epilogue One Year Later
“Do you have the cookies?”
Rolling my eyes, I raise up the container and tell Rhys, “Yes, I have the cookies.”
He makes a face as he gets our coats out of the front closet. “Well, you don’t have to be condescending about it.”
“As if I’d ever forget the cookies!” It’s not as though he placed several sticky notes around our apartment on the bathroom mirror, the coffee maker, and the front door.
“I know, I know,” he concedes, pressing a kiss to my forehead. “I just really love your cookies, that’s all.”
Smiling, I take my navy blue winter jacket from him and reply, “And I love that you love my cookies.”
“Your cookies aren’t the only thing I love,” he says with a wink.
“Oh, I forgot. You also love my banana bread.”
Laughing, he pulls me in for a hug. Burying my face in his coat, I breathe in his cologne and sigh dreamily.
Ever since we admitted our feelings to each other at Christmas last year, life has been absolutely perfect.
For the first half of the year, we were inseparable, bouncing between our apartments literally every night.
Once summer hit and our leases were about to end, we decided to look for a place for both of us.
We just moved into a townhouse across town two months ago, and then subsequently adopted a pair of kittens named Macaroni and Cheese from the local cat rescue.
As much as our lives have changed, they still remain the same with our silly little jokes and his obsession with my baking.
He gives me a squeeze before letting go. “If we keep this up, we’ll never get on the road.”
I toy with the zipper on his coat. “Are you sure you want to stop?”
With a low growl, he backs me into the wall. With one hand at my shoulder and the other on my waist, he murmurs, “You need to stop being such a tease.”
“We were just talking about cookies.” In my attempt to keep my voice even, it falters a bit as he tips my chin up.
“I’m not thinking about cookies right now.” He dips his head and captures my lips with his. No matter how many times we kiss, it never ceases to not make me weak in the knees.
Before we get too caught up in each other, I break the kiss.
“We really should get on the road. Wouldn’t want to keep our families waiting.
” They decided to do a joint holiday and bring both families together this year.
Our parents are thrilled and loving that they get to enjoy each other’s company more often now.
His lips hover over mine. “Are you sure?” Nuzzling my nose, he smiles. “We probably have about fifteen minutes to spare.”
A year later and Rhys is still making me tingle between my legs simply from his words. As much as I hate to possibly be late to dinner, I have to agree with him. “Perhaps we have fifteen minutes, give or take.”
He grins as he lifts me up and my legs wrap around his waist. “We might need twenty to do what I’m planning.”
Giggling, I reply, “Only twenty? Are you off your A-game?”
He squeezes my butt, causing me to squeak, to which he laughs. “Oh, is that how we’re playing it today?”
“Not just today. Always.”
Tossing me onto our king size bed, he shakes his head and tsks me. “I suppose it’s my own fault.” I giggle until he climbs up the bed, looming over me with a hand on each side of my head. “Time to learn a lesson,” he says in a low voice.
He brings his face closer, hovering for a couple of seconds before bringing his lips to mine.
He kisses me, long and deep, just the way I like it.
As our tongues tangle, he slips a hand down my body until he’s touching the hem of my skirt.
When his fingers dance teasingly up my inner thigh, I sigh against his mouth, a familiar warm feeling flooding through me.
Touching me over my panties, he chuckles against my lips, “Ready for me, hmm?”
“That's just a coincidence,” I tell him, then shut up when he moves my underwear aside to slide two fingers through my folds.
Teasing me with swirls over my clit, I let out a long moan, clutching to him.
Rhys is an absolute master with finding that one spot, and he never disappoints.
The pleasure builds up until I don't think I can take any more.
“That's right, Hadley. Let go for me.”
I come on his fingers, crying out while my nails dig into his back. As I'm slowly coming down off the high of my orgasm, I notice he’s already fully naked. “Damn, that was fast.”
Grinning, he replies, “Now it’s your turn.”
We make quick work of getting me out of my clothes.
Rhys gets between my legs, hand leisurely running up and down his cock.
I spread my legs more as he slowly presses the tip against my entrance, then pulls back.
He continues this delicious torture, a little bit in and out, until he’s fully seated inside of me.
I grab hold of his head with both of my hands and bring him down for a kiss.
Our bodies are skin to skin, his hot chest pressing into my breasts as we move together.
The pace is unhurried, as if we have all the time in the world to be enjoying each other, even though that’s not the case.
Once we’re connected, it’s as though nothing else matters.
It’s just him and me, cherishing each other, deeply in love and wanting to show it.
As the pleasure increases, so does the speed.
As he moves faster, our eyes meet and he nods, knowing I’m close.
The pleasure blooms until I’m crying out, my walls clenching around his cock as the orgasm takes me.
He follows me with his own, collapsing on top of me, whispering sweet nothings into my ear as he catches his breath.
A little while later, we’re lying side by side, my arm draped over his chest and his arm holding me close. He says, “Did you learn your lesson?”
“Not even at all.”
Rhys sighs. “LIke, I said, it’s my fault.”
“Why?”
“Because I asked you to marry me.”
Smiling against his bare chest, I reply, “Yep. You’re stuck with me and my sass.”
“I wouldn’t have it any other way.” He presses a soft kiss to my forehead. “Now I suppose it would be a good idea for us to freshen up before we head out.”
“Yeah,” I say. “Plus we have to rehearse in the car how you’re going to propose.”
A few weeks ago, Rhys and I were talking about the future and realized that there are some things we need to do first. One of them is getting married.
So, instead of Rhys getting down on one knee, we sort of just spontaneously hopped into the car and picked out an engagement ring.
Instead of simply telling our families, we decided to make a show of it by having him propose on Christmas in front of them all.
“Do you think they’ll be surprised?”
“Nope. They’ll wonder why we haven’t already eloped.”
We laugh together for a moment and then Rhys says, “You know, maybe we should go ahead and–”
I poke him in the side and he yelps. “You know damn well that we wouldn’t be able to get away with that.”
“You’re right. And there’s no way I’m going to miss watching you walk down the aisle in your beautiful dress.”
I sit up to look him in the eyes. “And I don’t want to miss staring ahead and you in your tux.”
“I love you,” he says, his fingers brushing against my cheek.
“I love you more.”