10. Rory
CHAPTER TEN
RORY
The hum of Ryan’s SUV is the only thing filling the silence as we pull away from my parents’ house.
The streetlights of Queen Anne flicker past, casting long, rhythmic shadows across the dashboard.
I can still smell the lingering scent of my mother’s pasta sauce and the faint, sugary ghost of the cannoli Ryan brought.
My skin feels tight, humming with the desire to jump his bones.
Ryan’s hand finds mine on the center console. He doesn’t look away from the road, but his thumb traces the line of my knuckles with a slow, deliberate pressure.
I watch the way his profile is carved by the passing lights. The sharp line of his jaw, the bridge of his nose, the way his eyelashes cast shadows against his cheek. My chest feels crowded, like I’ve swallowed something too large to digest. It’s a terrifying sort of fullness.
When we pull into the parking garage under his building, he doesn’t turn the engine off immediately.
He just sits there, hands still on the wheel, staring at the darkened front of his home.
The silence stretches, thick and charged, the kind of quiet that precedes a storm.
I can feel the heat radiating from him in the small space, a physical pull that makes the air between us feel like it’s vibrating.
"Do you want to move in with me?" he asks. He finally turns to me, his eyes dark and unreadable in the shadows.
"It’s so soon," I say, though my heart is already picking up a frantic, uneven rhythm. "Are you sure you’re ready for this?"
"I don’t want to spend another second without you.
" He says it without heat, but with a finality that makes my breath catch.
He reaches out, tucking a stray hair behind my ear, his fingers lingering against the sensitive skin of my neck.
"I want to know you’re in my home, in my bed, and all fucking mine. "
I draw in a deep breath, knowing that I’ll regret it if I don’t take this chance. “I can’t just move out and abandon Mia. Rent is painful in Seattle, but I wouldn’t be against starting to move my things into your place.”
“Sounds like a plan to me.” He leans over and kisses me to seal the deal.
He helps me out of the SUV and walks hand in hand with me to the elevators. It takes a freaking eternity for the elevator to finally come. I’m about to self-combust when the doors finally slide open. Luckily, the ride up to his floor is quick.
He unlocks the door, and we stumble in, the door clicking shut behind us with a heavy, definitive sound. The lights stay off, the interior bathed in the pale glow of the moon filtering through the windows.
He doesn't wait to reach his bedroom. As soon as we’re clear of the foyer, he spins me around, pinning me against the cool surface of the hallway wall.
His mouth finds mine with a hunger that feels like it’s been building since he walked into my parents’ backyard.
It’s a hard, demanding kiss, tasting of mint and something deep and masculine that is uniquely Ryan.
My hands find the hem of his shirt, pulling it up and over his head, my fingers tangling in the soft cotton.
He groans into my mouth, the sound vibrating through my entire body.
When he pulls away, his breath is ragged, his forehead resting against mine.
His scent is everywhere, filling my lungs until I can’t think of anything else.
"God, you’re fucking perfect," he rasps, his hands sliding down to grip my hips.
He lifts me effortlessly, and I wrap my legs around his waist, my skirt riding up as he carries me toward the stairs.
Every step he takes jars our bodies together, a rhythmic friction that makes my toes curl.
I bury my face in the crook of his neck, breathing him in, my teeth grazing the corded muscle of his shoulder.
His breath hitches, and I feel his hands flex on my hips like he’s losing his battle with self-control. Thank God, because I’m about to start climbing him like a tree.
We barely make it to the bedroom. Next thing I know, my back hits the door, and he sets me down just long enough to yank my dress up and off.
His mouth never leaves my skin. The silk is gone in a hot second.
I have about two seconds to realize I’m standing there in nothing but my favorite black lace panties before he’s peeling those down, too.
"Fuck me," he rasps, voice all gravel and desperation. "How do you get hotter every time I look at you?"
I don’t have answers. My brain has checked out.
I’m too busy tracing kisses along the sharp line of his jaw, loving the way his pulse jumps under my lips.
I yank at his belt, fingers fumbling with the stupid buckle.
He grins, just a flash, and pulls back enough to strip himself down, shirt and jeans hitting the floor in record time.
Holy hell. He’s pure muscle and dark, smoldering need. My jaw actually drops. I can't even be embarrassed about it. His cock is already hard, flushed, heavy against his thigh. I reach out to wrap my hand around him, but he’s faster.
He backs me toward the bed, pinning me with those storm-dark eyes until the backs of my knees hit the edge of the mattress. Next thing I know, I’m flat on my back, breath knocked out of me as Ryan towers over me like he’s about to devour his favorite meal.
Jesus. I actually whimper.
“Spread your legs for me, tiger.” His lips curve into a dangerous smirk as he yanks my thighs apart.
I’m soaked. Like, embarrassing-level soaked. My skin feels electrified, nipples so hard they actually ache for his mouth.
Ryan runs his hands up my inner thighs and just stares at me. “You’re unreal,” he murmurs, voice rough. “How did I get this lucky?” He doesn’t wait for me to answer. He dips his head, and his tongue finds my clit with zero warning.
I arch clean off the mattress. My hands fly to his hair, fisting it like I need something to anchor me to something.
He’s relentless. He alternates dragging his tongue over my clit with rough little circles that make my toes curl, then goes lower to taste every inch of me until my brain turns to mush.
Every lick, every suck, sends me higher. I’m wrecked in under a minute. My hips start moving on their own, chasing every bit of friction he gives me.
My thighs tremble, and I’m making desperate little sounds I’ve never heard come out of my mouth before. Ryan grabs my hips, holds me down, and just goes to town. Every rough suck and slow lick yanks another moan out of me. I fist his hair and arch so hard my back nearly snaps in two.
“Jesus, Ryan.” My voice comes out all breathy and wrecked.
He pulls back just long enough to rub his stubble over the inside of my thigh. “That’s it, tiger. Let me hear how much you want it.”
I swear I’m about to lose my mind. One more flick of his tongue and I go off like a grenade, everything tightening and then shattering all at once. My vision whites out. For a second, I actually forget my own name.
He slides up my body, leaving a trail of hot kisses up my stomach, over my boobs, and finally on my lips. I can taste myself on his mouth. Strangely hot. “You’re going to kill me,” I manage, still shaking.
“I like a challenge.” His cock is pressed against my thigh, rock hard and leaking all over me. He doesn’t even slow down. Just lines himself up and shoves in, so deep I see stars behind my eyelids.
“Oh my God.” I grab his biceps just to anchor myself. His arms are massive, so solid I might never escape. Not that I’d ever want to.
He gives me this dark, dangerous grin. “Told you. All fucking mine.” He pounds into me, each thrust rougher than the last, and I take every bit of it, loving the burn. My body meets him stroke for stroke, desperate to hold on while he tries to fuck me straight through the mattress.
"Harder," I gasp out, nails digging into his arms. My thighs squeeze his hips, and I swear I might actually combust from how freaking good it feels.
"You want it harder?" He grabs my leg, throws it over his shoulder, and drives in balls-deep. The edge of pain does something wild to me. I claw at his shoulders, totally shameless, crying out every time he bottoms out.
He doesn't slow down. He snaps his hips until the headboard thuds against the wall. I don’t care if we’re making all kinds of racket. All I care about is how deep he is, how much he wants me, and the way he keeps staring at my face like I’m the answer to every question he’s ever had.
Oh God. My body tightens up, pressure building until I can't even think straight. He pounds me through it, not letting up. "Come for me, tiger," he growls, voice right against my mouth. "Show me who you belong to."
That’s all it takes. I go off, pleasure rolling through me so hard I almost black out. “Ryan!” I scream it, not even embarrassed. He works me through every spasm, cock pistoning inside me until I see stars.
My body is still shaking, my pussy clamping down on every hard stroke Ryan gives me.
I swear I’m about to pass out from how intensely he works me over.
His hands dig into my ass as his cock pounds so deep.
My head thumps against the mattress as he drives into me, rocking the bed and making every nerve ending light up.
He comes with his face buried in my neck. His breath scorches my skin as he groans, “I love you, Rory.”
“I love you, too,” I manage to croak out past my dry throat.