EPILOGUE
LINA
I wake up slowly. No alarm, no aide knocking on my door, no schedule waiting to swallow my day whole. For the first time in freaking years, I have absolutely nothing I have to do.
Holy shit. I’m not the President anymore. The thought hits me and I just… lie there. Staring at the ceiling of our bedroom, letting it sink in.
Yesterday, I stood on the steps of the Capitol and watched my successor take the oath.
Smiled for the cameras, waved goodbye, got in a car that wasn’t part of a motorcade, drove to an airport without a security perimeter, and flew to this house in Connecticut that Levi bought six months ago. Our house.
It still doesn’t feel real. But then a warm hand slides over my stomach, and I smile. Now that feels real.
“Morning.” Levi’s voice is raspy with sleep, his breath warm against my shoulder. “You’re thinking too loud.”
I giggle. “Sorry.”
He pulls me closer, spooning me from behind. His chest is warm against my back, his arm heavy and solid around my waist, his scent all over. “What’s going on in that big brain of yours?”
I smile huge. “I’m not the President anymore.”
He chuckles. “Nope.”
“I don’t have anywhere to be.”
“Mm-mm.”
“No one is going to brief me on anything.”
“Thank fuck.” He nuzzles my neck, pressing a kiss below my ear. “Does that mean I finally get you to myself?”
I laugh. “I think so.”
“Good.” His hand slides up from my waist, cupping my breast.
My breath catches. “Baby, we had sex three times last night.”
“And?” He rolls my nipple between his fingers, and I feel it straight between my legs. “I’ve been waiting months to wake up with you. You think three times is gonna cut it?”
“Levi…”
He shifts behind me, and I feel his cock, already hard, pressing against my ass. His hand slides down my stomach, over my hip, between my thighs.
“Always so fucking wet for me,” he murmurs against my ear. “Fucking love that. Love that you wake up ready for me, sweetheart.”
I pant, “I was dreaming about you.”
“Yeah?” His fingers stroke through my already drenched folds, slow and teasing. “What was I doing?”
“This.” I press back against him, grinding my ass against his cock. “Exactly this.”
He groans. “Spread your legs for me, baby.”
I do, and he doesn’t waste time. He positions at my entrance and slides inside me from behind in one long, slow stroke that completely fills me.
“Oooooh!”
“That’s it, love.” He starts to move in slow, lazy thrusts. Morning sex, no rush. Nowhere to be. All the fucking time in the world. “This is how I wanna wake up every day, sweetheart. Inside you.”
I moan, pushing back to meet him.
He kisses my shoulder, my neck, the spot behind my ear. “Every morning. My cock buried in your tight little pussy while you’re still half asleep.”
“Levi!”
“You feel so fucking good, Lina.” His hand finds my clit and starts rubbing circles that match his thrusts. “So wet. So warm. So mine.”
I gasp. His pace picks up to a deep, relentless rhythm. The wet sounds of him sliding in and out, fill the quiet room. I can feel every inch of him, the thick drag of his dick hitting places that make my toes curl.
“I love you,” he says against my neck. “I love you so fucking much, my Lina.”
My heart. My whole damn heart!
“I love you too, baby,” I whisper.
Six months. Six months of sneaking around, stolen moments, the Secret Service looking the other way. Six months of falling deeper and deeper for this man who looks at me like I’m the only woman in the world. And now he’s mine. All mine. No more fucking hiding.
He groans, his hips stuttering. “Say it again.”
“I love you.”
“Again.”
“I love you, Levi. I love you. I love… oh God!”
His fingers pinch my clit, and I’m right there, right on the edge,
“Come for me,” he growls. “Come on my cock, baby. Let me feel it.”
My orgasm is long, slow, deep, and intense. It rolls through me like a wave. I’m clenching around Levi, crying out. Then he’s following me over the edge with a groan, his cock jerking as he comes inside me.
“Best morning ever,” he mumbles against my hair.
I laugh. “It’s only 8 AM.”
“And I’ve already been inside you twice, babe.” He pulls out slowly, and I feel the warm trickle of his cum sliding down my thigh. “Day’s off to a great start.”
He grins against my shoulder. His hand slides back between my thighs, fingers pushing his cum back inside me.
Oh my God. This man!
“You’re insane.”
“About you? Yeah. Always.” He kisses my cheek. “You hungry?” He rolls out of bed, gloriously naked. All tall, broad, tanned, sexy as fuck. “I’m making you pancakes.”
I stare. Of course I stare. Silver hair is sticking up in every direction, morning scruff, cock still half-hard and glistening with me. My man’s fucking gorgeous.
He pulls on a pair of sweatpants, no underwear, and holds out a hand to me. “Come on, sweetheart. Let’s feed you.”
* * *
Our kitchen is warm, bright, and spacious.
Morning light streams through the big windows.
There’s coffee brewing, bacon sizzling, and Levi is standing at our huge stove in nothing but his sweatpants, flipping pancakes.
And I’m sitting at the counter in one of his t-shirts, watching him. This is my life now.
“Stop staring at my ass,” he says without turning around.
I laugh. “I’m not staring at your ass.”
“You’re definitely staring at my ass.” He glances over his shoulder, grinning, and winks at me. “Not that I blame you. It’s a great ass.”
I huff. “Modest, too.”
He chuckles, sliding a plate in front of me: perfect golden pancakes, crispy bacon, fresh fruit. “Eat.”
I take a bite and freaking moan.
“Good?” He’s watching me, smiling huge.
“Sooo good.” I take another bite. “Where did you learn to cook?”
“My mom.” He pours himself coffee and leans against the counter across from me, the movement of his muscles under his sun-kissed skin distracting me. Still. Always… “She believed every man should be able to feed himself and whoever he loves. Said it was the bare minimum.”
I smile softly, reaching out to squeeze his hand. “Smart woman.”
“She was.” His eyes go soft. “She would have loved you.”
My heart squeezes for my big guy. “Yeah?”
“Oh, yeah.” He grins. “Beautiful, strong, smart, stubborn as hell. You two would have ganged up on me.”
I return his smile. “I would have loved that, Lev’.”
We eat in silence for a minute.
“So,” Levi breaks the quiet. “What do you want to do today?”
I blink. “What?” I stare at him.
No one has asked me that in eight years. Every minute of every day has been scheduled, planned, and accounted for. Even my “free time” was.
“I don’t know,” I admit. “I have no idea.”
“Okay.” He nods, like that’s perfectly understandable.
“We could go for a walk; there’s a trail through the woods that’s beautiful.
We could watch a movie. Or drive into town, get lunch, and pretend to be normal people.
I’ve got a whole list of things you missed while you were running the free world.
” He pauses, eyes glinting. “Or we could go back to bed and I could eat your pussy for a few hours.”
I choke on my coffee. “Levi!”
He chuckles, raising his hands. “Just throwing out ideas.”
“You so stupid.” I throw a grape at him, and he catches it, popping it into his mouth, still smiling teasingly, devilishly. So freaking handsome I can’t help but stare. “All of it,” I finally say.
He tilts his head to the side. “All of what?”
“The walk, the movie, lunch.” I set down my coffee and rest my chin on my fists, elbows on the marble counter, and wink. “Then you can take me back to bed.”
His grin is blinding. “Yes, ma’am.”
* * *
Later that night, we’re curled up on the couch. There’s a fire crackling in the hearth. A movie playing on our massive TV that neither of us is watching. I’m tucked into my man’s side, with his arm around me, and I feel fucking amazing.
“I have something for you,” he says quietly.
I look up, smiling sleepily. “Yeah?”
He nods, reaching into his pocket and pulls out a small velvet box.
My heart stops.
“Lev’…”
“Before you freak out,” he says quickly, “it’s not, I mean, it is, but… just open it. Please.”
I take the box with trembling fingers and flip it open. Inside is a ring. Simple, elegant. A diamond surrounded by smaller sapphires, set in platinum. Absolutely beautiful. Perfect. Me.
“I’m not proposing,” he adds. “Not yet: I know it’s too soon, and you just got your life back, and the last thing you need is another commitment…”
I interrupt him, “Levi.”
“But I wanted you to know that I’m serious. That this isn’t just, I mean, I know we talked about it, but I wanted you to see… have something that…”
“Levi.”
He stops, eyes intense on my face.
“Ask me,” I tell him.
His eyes widen. “What?”
“Ask me.” I take the ring out of the box. “I’ve spent eight years making decisions for three hundred million people. I think I can make this one for myself.”
“Lina…” His voice is hoarse. “I was gonna wait. Do it properly. Dinner, candles, the whole…”
“I don’t need dinner and candles, my love.” I take his face in my hands. “I just need you.”
He stares at me for a long moment. Then he takes the ring from my fingers, slides off the couch, and drops to one knee. Coach Levi Hendricks is down on his fucking knee, for me!
“Lina Renee Kane.” His voice is steady, but his hands are shaking. “From the first time I saw you, I knew. You’re the one for me.”
My eyes are stinging.
“I don’t care about your titles or your legacy or any of it. I just want you.”
I laugh through my tears.
“I want to wake up with you every morning. Go to sleep with you every night. Build a life with you that’s just ours.” He holds up the ring. “So, baby. Will you marry me?”
“Yes,” I whisper. “Yes, yes, yes! A thousand times yes, Lev’!”
He slides the ring on my finger, and of course it’s a perfect fit, then he’s kissing me, pulling me down on the floor with him, and we’re both laughing and crying and holding each other.
“I love you, baby,” he says against my lips. “I love you so much.”
“I love you too, handsome.” I pull back to look at him, this amazing man who somehow saw me through all the armor.
He grins. “How about we tie the knot tomorrow?” He tucks a strand of hair behind my ear. “I’ve waited ten years. I’m not waiting anymore.”
I laugh through my tears and bury my face in my fiancé’s broad chest.
THE END