Chapter 8
eight
. . .
Nathan
Three little words that hit harder than any punch I’ve ever taken.
For a heartbeat, I just stare at her—messy hair, flushed cheeks, still wrapped in my blanket—and something in my chest comes undone. There’s no going back from this. Not for me. Maybe not for her, either.
Damn, it feels good to say it. Feels right. Like something just snapped into place.
But when she leans into me and I bury my face against her neck, I feel the smallest tremor in my hands. Because the second the world starts spinning again, once the roads clear, and my phone starts ringing, I know everything about this will get harder.
I should be thinking about what comes next. About my job and the gossip that’ll burn hotter than an inferno once people take notice and start talking.
But all I can think about is how right it feels to have Tessa in my arms.
This woman I’ve lectured, rescued, argued with, and now want more than my next breath.
Loving Tessa won’t be the problem. It’ll be convincing her to stay. That’s a problem for another time though, because right now…
“Need to fuck you again, baby. Can you handle it?” I growl.
She shrugs my blanket off her shoulders, exposing her bare body. Her nipples are hard and her pussy is soaked when slip my hand between her thighs.
“You are so fucking perfect.” I flick my tongue over one nipple then the other, all while I stretch her with my fingers so she’s ready for me.
Tessa arches her back and buries my head in her chest while rocking against the palm of my hand. “God yes, right there.”
I smack her ass with my free hand. She yelps, but the way her pussy squeezes my fingers tells me just how much she likes it.
Once I’ve coaxed the first orgasm out of her, I swipe everything off the kitchen table, letting dishes tumble to the floor so I can spread her out on the oak tabletop that I made with my own two hands.
Forget eggs and bacon, I’d rather have dessert.
Tessa opens her mouth, presumably to scold me for tossing our food aside like a caveman, but the words die on her lips when I open her thighs and slip my tongue inside her.
“Good lord,” she gasps.
I look up at her and smirk. “It’s Chief, baby. But I’m about to take you to heaven.”
Her laugh turns into a moan when my tongue flicks her clit.
I don’t stop eating her out until I know she’s right on the cusp of coming again. Then I stand and wrap her legs around my waist while I press my erection inside of her.
“Look at you.” My eyes drop to where our bodies are joined together. “You take my cock so well, Tess,” I say as I slide in and out of her.
“So full,” she replies, grabbing onto my forearms. Her nails dig into my flesh and selfishly I hope they leave marks. Proof that this isn’t all a dream.
“Kiss me,” she pants.
I lean down and brace my hands on either side of her head to devour her mouth. She reaches between us, and rubs her fingers quickly over her clit.
“Harder, Nathan. Please. Fuck me, harder.”
My hips move as I pound into her. Each movement forces the table to scrape across the floor, but I don’t care. She’s so close. The need to make her come so I can fill her up again consumes me.
She moans against my lips. Her pussy grips me like a glove and then her entire body begins to tremble.
“That’s it, baby. Come all over my cock.”
“Yes, yes, yes….” she chants over and over, her body arching into mine.
My balls tighten. I thrust into her one more time, filling her to the hilt with my cock and my cum.
Sweat runs down my forehead as my own body shudders. I press my lips to her again and repeat those three little words that mean so much. “I love you.”
Once I catch my breath, I pick her up in my arms and carry her to the sofa where I cradle her in my arms. The throw blanket barely covers us when I wrap it around us, but neither of us care.
The fire crackles, and for a long time she just sits in my lap, tracing her thumb over my wrist while I breathe her in and pretend like the rest of the world can wait.
Eventually, she sighs and playfully pinches my stomach. “You’re thinking too hard again.”
I huff out a laugh. “Occupational hazard.”
Her lips twitch. “You really don’t know how to turn it all off do you?”
“Not sure I remember how.”
She tilts her head, eyes soft but sharp as always. “You could try.”
I press a kiss to her temple. “I promise, I am.”
A twinkle of mischief sparks in her eyes. “Oh. So, you’re not going to say something about how you can’t because of me?”
“I’m still in a sex haze. Give me a minute.” I wink back at her.
“Is it always like this?” Tessa asks, tracing her fingers over my chest.
“Like what, baby?”
“So…explosive. So…intense. In a good way.”
“It’s only been like this with you,” I confess.
She rolls her eyes. “Bullshit, Chief. There’s no way a man like you was a saint.”
I lean down and gently bit her shoulder. “Never said I was. I just said it’s only been like this with you. You make me lose control. You consume all of me.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah. Oh.” I smirk.
Tess shifts and wiggles off my lap, taking the blanket with her.
I soak her in as she wanders over to the living room window and looks out at the snow covered world.
The snow’s deep, but I know the main roads have already been cleared thanks to early morning messages from both Shane and Charlie while Tessa slept. It’s only a matter of time before the phone rings or someone knocks, looking for me. Another occupational hazard.
“We should probably see about your car,” I finally say as I get up off the sofa and walk up behind her.
I wrap my arms around her waist and rest my head on her shoulder, not daring to tell her that I’ve already had her car towed out.
The front bumper is toast and the axle is cracked.
She won’t be driving anywhere for a while, but I’m not ready to break that news to her, yet.
“But first, a shower.”
Tessa nods. “Right. Back to reality.”
Her voice dips on the last word, and something twists in my gut. Because I know that tone—the one that says she’s already pulling back, bracing for the fallout of all … this.
Before I can stop myself, I spin her around and tip her chin up. “Tess.”
She looks at me, uncertain and beautiful and so damn stubborn.
“I meant it,” I tell her quietly. “Last night. This morning. Every word.”
Her breath catches. “You mean…?”
“I’m not walking away from this. From you.”
She studies me for a long second, eyes glassy with something that makes my chest ache. “You mean that?”
“Yeah,” I say, voice low. “I do.”
She lets out a shaky laugh, half relief, half disbelief.
I can’t help it. I pull her in again, holding her tight enough that I feel her heartbeat against mine.
Her head tilts back to see her eyes searching mine. “You’re not afraid of what people will say?” she asks.
“Baby, people are going to talk, no matter what. Might as well give them something to talk about.”
By the time we finish showering and get dressed, the plows have made another pass. The snow’s piled high along the road, but the worst of the storm’s over. It’s that quiet after where everything looks clean and sharp, like a fresh start.
Tessa stands by the door, dressed in the same clothes she had on yesterday, cheeks pink from the cold seeping through the seams. Her hand is resting on the knob like she’s not sure whether to open it.
“You ready?” I ask.
Tessa nods slowly. “I think so.”
I grab my coat and step closer, sliding my hand to the small of her back. “I’ll make sure you get home safe.”
She glances up, a smile tugging at her lips. “You always do.”
“Yeah,” I murmur. “But this time, I’m not handing out lectures about whatever infraction you’ve committed.”
Her eyes soften. “You’re serious about this? About us?”
“As a heart attack, Pope.”
“Let’s see if you’re still singing that tune when it's time to face my parents.”
Linda and Jack Pope don’t scare me. Much.
“Please, your parents love me.”
“That was before you defiled their daughter,” she teases.
A growl vibrates low in my gut, and she laughs at me. “You’re evil,” I say, brushing a kiss against her forehead before pushing the door open.
Outside, the sunlight hits the snow and throws it back in a thousand tiny sparkles like glitter.
“How is your driveway already plowed?” Tessa asked as we climb into my patrol vehicle.
“Perk of being a public servant.” I pause for a moment while starting the SUV. “I’m kidding. I actually pay a buddy to do it for me. Everyone was out early this morning while you were still sleeping, baby.”
I wait until we turn out of my driveway and come up to the tracks in the road where the tow company pulled Tessa’s car out.
“Nathan, where’s my car?” she asks immediately.
“Baby…”
“Chief. Where. Is. My. Car?”
“At the auto shop.”
“Paid someone to do that too, did ya?” She eyes me very suspiciously.
“Maybe.”
“Oh my God,” she reaches over and smacks my shoulder. “So much for ‘we’ll take care of it in the morning.’”
“I did take care of it. This morning.”
“How bad is it?” she sighs.
“Won’t be driving anywhere until it’s fixed. Luckily, Dawson owes me a favor, so it shouldn’t cost much and your insurance should cover everything except your deductible.”
“Shoot. Shoot. Shoot. I still have a bunch of work to get done and locations to film!” She leans her head back against the headrest while tears fill her eyes.
“Relax.” I reach over and give her thigh a gentle squeeze as I turn onto Snowberry Lane toward her parents’ house. “You can take my truck.”
“I can’t drive your truck!”
“You could always call Joe McGillicuddy. I’m sure he’d taxi you around town,” I tell her, jokingly.
“You are not funny. I think you’ve spent too much time with me. Each idea out of your mouth is worse than the last.”