Page 45 of Suddenly Yours

“If you touch me, this will be over too soon.”

I wanted to tell him I was okay with that since I doubted I would last long either. But I knew the look he gave me all too well and willingly stilled.

“Good.” He sighed as he ran his eyes over me. “If we’re going to do this”—his eyes snapped back up to mine—“we need some ground rules.”

My heart skipped, but not in fear. In recognition. Cade had always been careful with the things that mattered most.

“Anything,” I said, meaning it with every part of me.

He shifted onto his side to face me fully. “First, whatever happens between us in the bedroom doesn’t break the years of friendship.”

Relief washed through me so fast it almost made my chest ache. I nodded immediately. “Friends forever,” I said softly. They weren’t just words. It was a promise I’d been keeping my whole life.

A corner of his mouth lifted. “Second,” he added gently, “because I know your history of going out with cheating men, I promise that while we’re together, there won’t be anyone else.”

Something inside me loosened, like I’d been holding my breath for years without realizing it. I knew he meant it and nodded again, slower this time. “Same,” I said. “Always.”

His hand came up to brush my hair back from my face, his touch reverent. “Last,” he murmured, leaning closer, “tell me if I do anything you don’t like.” His lips skimmed mine, barely there.

I smiled, my forehead resting against his. “I will.”

Then his fingers slipped under my panties and my eyes rolled as a moan of delight escaped me.

At that moment, I doubted there was anything Cade could do that I wouldn’t like.

Since I couldn’t return the favor, I dug my nails softly into his shoulders as he traced his fingers over me. When he dipped inside me, I splintered into a million pieces and cried out his name.

“More,” he growled against my skin. Suddenly he shifted until he settled between my thighs. Pulling my silk panties aside, he ran his mouth over me and slid his tongue in where his fingers had just been.

I couldn’t breathe. I doubted my heart was still beating. How could it be? How could this have been right here, all along?

Crying his name, I held on and felt my world shift as my toes curled.

Never.

I had never experienced anything like Cade lapping me up, pleasing me slowly.

“Cade, I… can’t, hold on,” I warned.

“Come for me, Missy,” he said against me. “Please, don’t make me beg.”

I wanted to hold out for him, to feel him inside me, but just hearing his rough voice as he begged undid me.

Once more, my world shattered. When I came back down to reality, he had shifted over me, his eyes glued to mine.

I tensed for a second, but he smiled. “Easy, I put on a condom.”

I chuckled. “That isn’t what…” I stopped on a moan. I wanted to do for him what he’d done for me, but now he was sliding slowly into me, fully hard. Of course he was.

I wrapped my legs around him and held on as he trailed his mouth over my neck.

“Home,” he whispered and I felt myself building again. This time, I knew we’d fall together.

* * *

The rain started sometime after eleven, the droplets whispering softly against the windows. The sound made Cade’s bedroom feel even warmer, more insulated from the rest of the world. We lay side by side beneath the quilt, the lamp on his nightstand still on low, casting an amber glow across the room. The house settled around us with familiar creaks, like it was learning us, memorizing the shape of this moment.

Being here with him felt surreal. Cade had one arm tucked behind his head, the other resting lightly at my waist, like he was afraid too much pressure might send me running. I shifted slightly so I could see him better. I ran my eyes over the day’s growth along his jawline, his dark lashes that cast shadows against his cheeks. He was so… Cade.