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Her hips rock up to meet mine, her heels pressing into my back, her nails digging into my shoulders like she’s trying to keep herself tethered to reality.

But I don’t want her grounded. I want to lift her. Ruin her. Worship her until she forgets her own name and only remembers mine.

“West,” she gasps, her voice trembling. “Don’t stop.”

“Not a chance, baby.” I’m not sure I ever want to.

I ride her deeper, harder, but still somehow I’m still restrained. I don’t want to break her. I want her to feel me. To know, without a shadow of a doubt, that I’m hers.

Her breath catches. Her body arches.

“I – oh my God?—”

“I’ve got you,” I whisper hoarsely, kissing her throat. “Let go for me. Let me feel you come.”

And she does.

Her whole body goes taut, her eyes wide as her orgasm crashes over her. A choked cry leaves her lips, and then she’s trembling around me, pulling me in deeper with every pulse of her body like she never wants to let go. It’s heaven in human form. She’s around me, inside me. Everywhere.

And feeling as she takes her pleasure from me is all I need.

I follow her with a groan, burying myself deep as I come undone, emptying into her with a force that leaves me shaking. My heart pounds. My body feels wrung out.

But it’s not just a release. It’s something more. Something I never thought existed. At least not for a man like me.

I press my lips to her temple, still inside of her, still trying to catch my breath. She’s soft and boneless in my arms, her fingers brushing my back like she’s memorizing me with every stroke.

Eventually, I slide out and roll us to our sides without letting go, before I pull the covers up around us. Eden lets out a sleepy, contented hum, and nestles in closer until her face is on my chest. I can smell the sweetness of her shampoo, feel the cadence of her rapid breaths.

But more than anything, I feel something that I haven’t felt in a long, long time. Maybe not since I was a tiny kid.

I feel safe.

I wrap my arms tighter around her soft body, because if anybody isn’t safe right now, it’s her. My wife. The woman who thinks she can change the world one gray water system at a time.

She shifts against me, murmuring something I can’t quite understand. But it doesn’t matter. She’s here. She’s warm.

And mine. Completely and utterly.

For now, at least.

twenty-four

EDEN

What is this witchcraft I’ve just come downstairs to? – Eden

I hit the send button on my phone, looking around the kitchen. It’s almost nine, and the house is empty except for me. I have no idea what time West and Bennett left – I didn’t hear him get up or shower or even the rumble of the car engine when they left for the resort. I was too busy sleeping off a night of debauchery for that.

My cheeks pink up when I think about all the things he did to me. After that first time, he woke me up twice more. Once with his mouth, taking me to the edge until I was begging for him to take me again. And he did, by flipping me over, pulling my hips up to his, putting my face on my pillow, and filling me until I felt completely boneless and replete.

The next time was softer. Like he was trying to imprint my body on his brain. He sat on the bed, and I sat on top of him, softly rolling my hips, our mouths moving together until we werebreathless, and he was spilling inside of me as I came for what I think might have been the fifth time. Or the sixth.

I appear to have lost the ability to count along with the ability to walk without gritting my teeth because, oh my God, my body aches.

I think it’s what we call breakfast. A novel idea I know. How are you feeling? – West x

I press my lips together, trying not to smile, even though he’s not here to see it. This man is infuriatingly sweet. I shouldn’t like him. I shouldn’t like the way he runs his business or his life.