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She clamps around me, so incredibly tight, and I’m so sensitive without the condom that there’s no way I’m going to be able to hang onto my self-control. She’s just finished her climax when mine hits, and she slides a hand to the back of my neck and holds me there for a kiss as I come, spilling inside her without barriers, filling her with my seed.
“Fuck…” I gasp, my hips jerking, my cock twitching, as delicious spasms ripple through me.
When I’m finally done, I wrap my arms around her, and we exchange a long, luscious, sensual kiss.
“I’m so sorry,” I murmur when I eventually lift my head.
“Why?”
I kiss her nose, her cheeks, her eyelids. “For being so quick. I wanted to take you to bed and spend hours just kissing and touching. You get me so riled up.”
“My work here is done.” She giggles, then groans. “I’m all sticky now.”
“The one downside of not using condoms.” I grab a piece of kitchen towel for her.
“It wasn’t a complaint.” She lets me help her down. Then I pull her into my arms again. She slides her arms around my waist and snugglesright up against me, and we stand there like that for a while, feeling our heartbeats gradually slow.
I kiss the top of her head, then lift my hands to cup her face. I kiss her mouth, long and slow.
“Mmm,” she murmurs.
“What would you like to do?” I say softly. “Have a drink of something? Do you want to go home? Or would you like to stay the night?”
Our eyes meet, and she swallows. “Stay the night.”
Joy fills me. “Good. Come on, then, let’s get ready for bed.”
We brush our teeth standing next to each other, then climb into bed and pull the cool cotton duvet over us. Scarlett turns onto her side facing away from me, and I pull her close and wrap my arms around her so she’s cuddled right against me.
“Beautiful night,” she says, and I’m not sure if she’s referring to the party, what we’ve just done, or the moon rising slowly over the Pacific Ocean. Maybe all three.
“I’d like to do this every night,” I tell her. The confession surprises me—I must have drunk more than I thought. Or maybe it doesn’t. It’s only what was in my heart.
She doesn’t agree, though. I kiss her hair and ask, “Wouldn’t you?”
“Nothing’s changed,” she whispers. “We’re still worlds apart.”
I feel a deep ache inside. I know she’s right, but it hurts to hear her say it.
I refuse to think that’s it, though. “Nothing is unsolvable,” I point out. “There’s a solution to every problem.”
“Not this one, Orson. It goes too deep.”
“I don’t believe that.”
“That’s because you think you can change me, and it’s not fair.”
“It’s not about changing you. It’s about finding a compromise.”
“Meaning what? We build a house halfway between the club and the commune?”
“I don’t know yet. I know we have very different values and ways of living. But that doesn’t mean we can’t both make changes if we want to be together. Just saying ‘this is the way I am’ isn’t compromising.”
“That’s fair. But that’s not the only problem.”
I frown. “What do you mean?”
“I know my father would be deeply hurt and angry at the fact that I’m spending time with the man he considered his worst enemy. AndI know he’s gone now, but I loved and respected him so much, and it makes me feel uneasy to think how I’m going against his wishes. I’m not sure I can move past that.”