Chapter 39 London #2
I stare up at him, my heart pounding and settling all at once, everything I hoped and wished and prayed for coming to fruition in this very moment. "What took you so long?" My eyes well and I grow tired of the tears that won't seem to stop now that they've begun.
But this time, I have Archer to wipe them from my cheeks, his hands cupping them, his thumbs rubbing gently. "I'm so sorry, London. For the things I said, for the way I treated you, I'm sorry."
I shake my head. "You could have done worse and it would have been justified. I was the one who messed up, Archer. It's me who should be apologizing."
"You already did," he reminds me. "With a boom box."
I pinch my eyes shut, hating the memory that follows—him shutting his door and breaking my heart one final, but well-deserved, time.
"For the record," he adds. "It was the single most romantic thing anyone has ever done for me." Archer presses his lips to my nose, kissing me gently. "I wish I would have reacted differently. I wish I would have realized then how much you mean to me."
I open my eyes and stare up at him, my heart beating evenly in my chest, all this feeling so fucking right, despite how hard it was to get here.
"You can wreck my life anytime, my little tornado."
"Shut up and kiss me, big guy."
Archer grins before doing exactly that, his mouth meeting mine, something so drastically different in the way he touches me, the way our bodies melt into each other’s, the way I want nothing more than to get closer to him, not out of the undeniable chemistry we've always shared, but because of something much deeper this time, something that I can only assume is love.
He backs me straight into the wall, my body hitting it with a thud.
Archer's arm wraps around my waist and my hands slide up his neck and into his hair.
He lifts me from the ground, his body pinning me there, the heat of us becoming one.
We stay that way for a few minutes, not quite getting enough of each other, until the door to my apartment opens and the sound of it shutting pulls me away from the sexy man grinding into me.
With Archer still holding on to me, I settle my sights on Grace, who is holding a brown sack of food in her hand, her eyes wide.
"Well," she says. "Um. I see that I'm interrupting something here.
" Grace walks farther into the apartment and drops the bag on the counter.
"I'm just going to leave this here, for when you two are finished.
" She puts her thumb and pinkie finger to her face, mimicking a phone, and mouths, "Call me later," and slowly backs away, slipping out the door she entered through, not even waiting for an explanation.
I laugh into Archer's neck and sigh, taking him in. "Oops."
His dark eyes meet mine. "You hungry?"
"Not for what's in that bag."
Archer swallows and asks me, "What are you hungry for?"
"You," I tell him, not even a second passing between his question and my answer. "We've spent more time apart than we have together and I don't want to waste another moment. I missed you, Archer. So fucking badly."
"Do you remember your safe word?"
"Bagels," I confirm.
"Good." His gaze scans my face. "Do I have permission to make love to you?"
I inhale and consider his words carefully.
The last time we hooked up I told him not to, but it wasn't because that isn't what I wanted, it's because I was afraid of what things would turn into if we got too deep.
But here we are, surviving the worst, finally showing up authentically for each other.
"I give you my permission," I mutter finally, no longer afraid of my feelings for him.
Archer's cheeks turn up as if he was afraid I might have a different response, and he continues holding me as he carries me into the bedroom and sets me on the edge of the bed.
He kneels in front of me and unbuttons my jeans, guiding them over my ass and off my legs.
He trails his hands up my now exposed skin, up my thighs.
"You're so fucking beautiful, London." Archer shakes his head. "I can't believe you're mine."
I press my foot to his chest, stopping him. "Your what?"
His brows bunch together.
"Ask me, big guy."
Archer sighs dramatically but then clears his throat, standing completely up, holding my foot in his hands. "London, will you grant me the immense honor of being your boyfriend?"
"Hmm." I squint my eyes. "I mean…I guess so."
"You guess so?" Archer narrows his gaze. "You're really out here trying to break my heart, aren't you?"
"Archer," I say, no longer wanting to tease him, at least not like this. "Be my boyfriend."
He winks at me. "If you say so, girlfriend."
I release my leg and pull my shirt up over my head, tossing it onto the floor, no doubt driving him insane by my lack of tidiness.
I reach for his waist, undoing his pants as he takes his shirt off to reveal his tattooed, chiseled stomach.
My nipples perk at the sheer sight of him and I skim my hands up his chest, feeling the ridges of his abs, then going all the way down to grip his cock.
I take him into my fists and lick his tip, looking up at him.
Swirling the edge of him over my lips, I spread them and guide him into my mouth, moaning when he hardens against me.
Archer holds on to my head, his tattooed fingers in my hair, sliding me along his growing shaft. He takes a big breath and bucks his hips before saying, "Lay back on the bed."
I scoot on my elbows, my eyes never leaving his as he climbs onto the mattress with me and skims his fingers up my thigh and to my core.
"You're already so wet for me." He positions himself beside me and slips his fingers into my soaked hole, rubbing his thumb on my clit.
I turn toward him, keeping my legs apart and grabbing hold of his cock to take him into my mouth again. I moan onto him and revel in his thickness, and the way his hand rocks waves of pleasure over me. Hungrily, I suck every inch of him I can and whimper, my hips moving, my pussy clenching.
"That's it, baby. Fuck my fingers." Archer curves them upward and it's my undoing, my climax coming hard and fast and out of nowhere.
I stop sucking, his cock still in my mouth, and focus on my orgasm as it consumes me whole.
Archer moves away to climb between my legs, grabbing them with his tattooed arms and lowering his head to my center.
With my body still shaking, he licks my pussy, his tongue dipping into my hole and trailing to my aching clit.
He pinches it between his lips and releases, dragging his tongue all over it until I accidentally orgasm again, the second one beginning where the first one ended, with almost no break in between.
He smiles against me and blows on my throbbing center before finishing his journey up my body.
"Fuck," I blurt out with my entire body quivering.
"Yeah?" Archer lines his cock up with my hole, sliding the tip around and pushing into me, slowly at first, and then all at once. "You were made for me, little tornado." His voice is thick and gravelly and I want nothing more than to hear him tell me all the ways I was made for him.
"Keep talking," I pant and reach for his face.
He kisses me, his tongue darting into my mouth, one of his hands holding him up and the other braced on the side of my face. Archer breaks away. "You like hearing someone other than yourself talk for a change?" He rocks his hips, in and out, slow and steady, the buildup painfully decadent.
"Mmhm," I moan.
"Your body is mine, baby. Your mouth." Archer plants his lips on mine.
"Your skin." He kisses my cheek. "Your tight little pussy.
" He groans and pumps into me. "Your every breath.
" He grabs my right leg with his left arm and spreads me wide.
"Every fucking whimper, every moan, every desire, every dirty little thought, I want them all.
" His brown eyes bore into mine. "For as long as you'll have me, London.
You are mine, and I am yours." He thrusts into me. "Do you hear me? Do you understand me?"
I nod and bite my lip, my fingers dragging down his chest.
"Say it," he all but growls.
"I'm yours," I say breathlessly. "I'm yours. All of me, I'm yours."
"God, I missed this." He looks down to watch his cock penetrate me. "I missed you." Archer turns his attention back to me and lets go of my leg. He grabs a pillow and positions it under my ass, pivoting me up toward him and leaning closer.
"Fuck, Archer, you feel so fucking good. I'm not going to last." I drag him toward me and dig my nails into his back.
"Then don't." He maintains his slow pace, almost slowing down even more, giving me a chance to truly feel every inch of him as he makes sweet fucking love to me, my heart just as full as my lustful pussy.
"Come for me, little tornado. Come with me.
" Archer moans and crashes his mouth onto mine, desperately eating up every noise that escapes me as I pull him into me, his cock growing even harder as it spreads me open, the sensation both pain and endless pleasure.
Archer thrusts deeper, his cock spilling into me and my pussy clenching around him, our orgasms hitting us in tandem. I cry out into his mouth, and he moans loudly, his heavenly sounds making my orgasm somehow more intense.
I tremble under him and he pumps his hips slower and slower, until we're left there, glistening with each other’s sweat and struggling to catch our breaths.
Archer rests his forehead against mine and kisses my nose. "I love you."
I tilt my head up, forcing him to look at me, my gaze darting back and forth between his eyes. "I love you, Archer Sin. I've never been more sure of anything in my entire life. I love you."
I don't know what the future holds for us, I don't know if we can ever truly repair the damage that has been done, but I do know one thing for certain. As long as my heart continues to beat in my chest, it will belong to this beautifully grumpy man.