34. Rory
Rory
Nate enters me, the delicious stretch highlighting the soreness from our activities last night, and my mind goes blank.
That’s the most delicious thing of all.
I let everything float away and sink into pleasure, and even when I’m lying there, sated and practically boneless, reality barely edges into my thoughts.
“You’re so amazing, Rory,” Nate says, pressing a kiss to my cheek.
He pulls the covers over me before he heads to the bathroom, and I giggle, thinking of our conversation just before this last round of sex.
I don’t think any vagina user manual, if there is such a thing, would recommend getting railed four times in less than twenty-four hours by a sizable dick.
I should ask Allie. If such a thing exists, I’m sure she knows about it.
I can practically hear the unhinged soliloquy already. She can come up with enough opinions to fill a book on almost any subject where she feels passionate.
That’s just what the world needs. Allie Hanson’s The Vagina: An Owner’s Manual. It would probably be a bestseller.
I wonder how Allie is doing. I should feel guilty that she came into town for me, and I took off on this little sex-fueled vacation, I suppose, but…this has been worth it.
Not just the sex, although that’s been fantastic.
We cuddled, too, and we talked. About us, about the future, about our hopes and dreams and our fears and all of that.
And as usual with Nate, we ran out of time before we ran out of things to talk about. I’m not even sure if he was in the middle of a sentence when I fell asleep, or vice versa. All I know is that I woke up in Nate’s arms, feeling safe and loved.
And then we had sex again. Obviously.
I hope my mother doesn’t ask what we did on our little getaway. I mean, I’m sure she can figure it out, but we’ve never had the kind of relationship where we talked about all the dirty details, and both of us have always been just fine with that.
I sit up in bed and run a hand through my hair. It’s full of knots, a product of our time on the floor last night, and I realize I forgot to bring a hairbrush.
Messy bun it is.
The shower shuts off. Nate offered me the bathroom first, but I was still recovering from this last round of pleasure, so I let him take the shower first.
I stretch, looking out at the view. A couple of runs are visible from here, skiers dotting the hill. This really is a perfect spot for a ski vacation. It almost seems like a waste that we’re here and not on the mountain today.
“You want the shower?” The door opens, and Nate steps into the bedroom, a white towel wrapped around his waist.
Seeing him practically naked like this… What I want is him, but my lady parts protest the idea of any more intimacy.
“Sure. Thanks.” I start to slide toward the edge of the bed, pulling the sheet with me, even though Nate’s seen it all. “What do you want to do today? Do you have plans?”
He shakes his head. “This is all up to you. I was just hoping to give you a chance to relax and clear your mind. If you want to stay here for another night or even two, the schedule is clear. But if you want to head back, we can do that too.”
I chew on my lip as I consider the options.
“As nice as it would be to stay here and…you know, I think we should head back,” I say finally. “Is that okay?”
“Sure,” Nate says easily. “Whatever you need, babe. Really.”
He’s so casual when he says it, like he truly doesn’t mind. And I don’t think he does. It’s the perfect complement to my people-pleasing ways.
In the shower, I do my best with the conditioner, trying to eliminate as many knots as possible. It takes a while—and several handfuls of the supplied conditioner, which smells like honeysuckle—but I finally get it as smooth as I can hope for.
The hot water soothes my muscles. The rainfall shower is luxurious in a way I never imagined—it feels amazing as it beats down on my back. I stay in there for way too long before I finally turn off the water and wrap myself in one of the oversized fluffy towels.
It takes me another few minutes to locate the duffel bag I brought—still in the entryway—and to pull on a pair of broken-in jeans and a T-shirt after towel-drying my hair.
When I go looking for Nate, I find him in the kitchen.
“Coffee?” He holds up a mug.
“Yes, please.”
I wait while Nate adds the milk—enough that it could almost qualify as a latte, if the base were espresso and not coffee—along with the sugar.
We carry our mugs to the living room and sit on the couch. The leather is surprisingly comfortable—I always imagined that leather couches are for looking at, not sitting on, and that they’re hard or cold or something. But the leather is supple and buttery, and the cushions have just enough give.
There are so many things that I’ve finally experienced, especially in the last year, that I imagined differently until I had a chance to see for myself.
Does everyone see the world like this, with preconceived notions of what things are like based on what they’ve seen in movies or books or in pictures? It can’t be just me.
Maybe that’s part of growing up, finally experiencing things that previously were just a concept in our mind.
Like sex, for example.
Okay, yes, my mind is completely in the gutter. But if you had more orgasms than you can count last night, yours would be too.
“You look lost in thought,” Nate says.
I smile and sip my coffee. No need to encourage him. Because if my mind is back on sex, God knows his mind is, too. It’s a stereotype that men are always thinking about sex, but in Nate’s case, it’s not wrong.
“I was thinking we could hang out here for a few hours, then head back to HiLo,” Nate says. “See if your mom needs anything. And you could spend some time with Allie once she’s done at the barn.”
I nod slowly. It all makes sense.
“And then…I’m wondering if you’d want to move back in. With me,” Nate clarifies. “I understand if you want to stay at your parents’ house as long as your mom is…around. But I want you to know that I want you there, when you’re ready.”
I lean my head against his shoulder. It does sound good, moving back in with him. Even if we can’t be in this worry-free vacation zone like we are now, having him around is what I need. He grounds me.
And even if I’m not staying at Mom and Dad’s house twenty-four hours a day, I’m still in the same town, just like Dylan is. I can be there any time they need me.
Plus, it would make Mom happy. I know she’s been a huge cheerleader for my relationship with Nate, and she’s right. He does make me happy.
I’d say I’ll do anything to make her happy, to grant any wish she has as the time she has gets smaller and smaller. But really, moving back in with Nate would make me happy, too.
“I’d love to move back in with you.” I look up at him and meet his gaze. “I’m sorry I ever moved out. Whatever happens, we can get through it together.”
“Yes!” Nate fist-pumps the air. “Yes. Thank you, babe. I love you.”
I laugh at his over-enthusiastic display.
“Let’s go. If you’re moving back in, I want that to start right now.” Nate starts to stand, but I pull him back down to sit.
“Calm down. Let’s relax a little longer. Besides, I only have some clothes. It’s not like I have an entire house to move back into your place.”
“True. You want me to see if Lawton can grab your stuff and move it over to our house?”
I love the way he says our house, but I shake my head. “Not right now. I want to talk to Mom and make sure she’s all right. And Dad, to make sure he doesn’t need me there at night.”
Nate pulls me close, his arm around my shoulders. “Fair enough. But soon, babe. I want you living under the same roof as me soon.”
I nod, savoring the moment. I’ve learned to be wary of things seeming to be too good, because when everything is going well, it only takes a second for everything to fall apart.
“Will you marry me?”
The question is like a jolt to my chest. “What?”
I must have heard him wrong.
“Marry me. Please,” he adds.
Okay, I get that this is the moment every girl waits for, or at least a lot of girls. But it’s supposed to be romantic, with a big buildup, not an off-the-cuff question thrown out there. A thousand yellow daisies and all that.
“That’s not how you propose to someone,” I point out.
Nate shrugs, his body moving alongside mine. “Yeah. I was just hoping that maybe you were saying yes to everything today, and I could slip that one in there.”
I turn my face into his chest as I laugh. This is what I want. Me and Nate, this easy conversation and silliness and our crazy dogs. Or at least, my crazy dog and his well-behaved one.
“It’s not a no,” I say finally.
“Hey, I’ll take it.” From where I’m curled against him, I can’t see his face, but I can hear the smile in his voice. “I’ll take it.”
A few flurries fly through the sky as we drive back over the pass on our way to High Lonesome. It’s supposed to snow tonight, another big storm, but even that can’t dull the warmth inside me.
As we get closer to town and we’re out of the dead zone, I send a text to Allie.
Allie
Hey, thanks for doing chores at the barn for me today. It was nice to get away for a bit. We’re heading back into town.
Glad you had fun! Stacey and I had a good time but it would have been better with you of course. Drinks tonight?
I’ll check on Mom and see how she’s doing and…then I’m going to move back in with Nate.
*heart emoji* so happy for you two!
He asked me to marry him
For real? What did you say?
Pretty sure it wasn’t all that thought out. I told him it wasn’t a real proposal so it doesn’t count.
Love that. More details tonight, right?
You know it.
Can’t wait, love. Text me later. My fingers are frozen.
“Everything good?” Nate asks.
“Yeah. Allie must still be at the barn.” I read him the last text, the one about the frozen fingers. “I know that feeling well.”
He turns the corner onto the side street. “Yeah, I can imagine. It’s going to get colder in the next day or so, it looks like. Make sure you wear gloves.”
He pulls to a stop in front of my parents’ house.
I unbuckle my seat belt and turn to look at him. “Thank you for an amazing night. It was…”
I’m not sure I even have words. It was everything I needed.
“My pleasure, babe. You want me to come in with you? Or do you want time alone with your parents?”
Dylan’s car is here, so it wouldn’t exactly be alone, but I appreciate the thought.
“You go ahead and pick up Ollie and go home. I’ll let you know if I’m coming over tonight or if I’m going to stay here another night.”
I lean over, and he holds my face with one hand as he kisses me, long and deep.
“Whatever you need, Rory. We’re in this together. Don’t forget.”
“I love you,” I whisper.
I grab my bag from the back seat before I open the car door, minimizing the time in the wind, then quickly walk to the front door, my mind swirling with what the future holds.
My heart beats faster as I think of me and Nate together. Of what our life could be like.
But when I pull open the door and step into the house, my heart stops altogether.