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Isla is warm and wet around me, her muscles sucking and clenching at my cock as I thrust deeper into her. She wraps her body around me, her heels digging into my back, her mouth against my ear.
“More,” she moans. “Oh Caden, please…more…”
I increase my pitch, barely able to help myself. She’s so fucking perfect—every inch of her, every curve and line and breath. I feel her tightness gather as my cock gets even harder, pumping into her, not gentle but demanding, and she wants it too, she wants to be consumed, to be set alight. I can feel it in the way her body reacts to me.
“Oh god,” she groans, her hands coming to grip my ass, bringing me even deeper and just when I think I can’t contain anymore pleasure, I give one final thrust and then explode, rocketed to the ultimate planes of ecstasy as I come hard and heavy inside her. It feels like I’ve been catapulted into the stars—my vision blurs, my cock shudders, and I feel a sense of release unlike anything I have ever known. Like I’ve been torn apart and sewn back together, somehow more whole than I was before.
I slump against her, my heart beating so hard it makes me dizzy. Her fingers rake through my hair and I feel her lips press softly against my damp forehead. I ease out of her and move to stand but she grabs my hand.
“Where are you going?” she asks, and there’s fear in her voice.
I kiss her palm. “Just cleaning up,” I say. I hurry to the bathroom and dispose of the condom. My dick aches in the best way and when I catch sight of myself in the mirror, I see a man renewed.
When I get back to the bed, Isla reaches for me and I pull her close, her head resting on my chest.
The gentle weight of her is comforting, and the soft sound of our breathing mixes with the chirps of birds and the faint chatter from the street that wafts through her open window. The sun is setting, filling the room with a rich light that makes everything seem dipped in gold.
I have never felt more sense of peace than I do in this moment. I think the last time I felt this way was the last time I was here—five years ago, when I woke up with Isla in my arms after that party. I remember the deep contentment that washed over me as Isla and I finally came together that night. The sense that my life had righted itself.
How much has changed. And yet, how little. I may have hid my feelings all these years, forced them into a box, taped them up, and shoved them into the darkest recesses of my mind. But they were always there.
It’s always been Isla.
“What are you thinking about?” Her gaze is heavy as she smiles up at me with lazy satisfaction. Her hair is mussed, her skin dewy, and her cheeks flushed. She looks as utterly happy as I feel.
“I’m thinking there’s nowhere else in the world I’d rather be right now,” I say. “I’m thinking I haven’t felt this way since the last time I was here.”
She cocks her head, and her hair tickles my chest with the movement. “I haven’t either.”
My heart swells up and bursts into a million, glittering stars. “Really?”
She nods. “It’s always been you, Caden. All these years. And all my years to come. It’s always you.” She bites her lip, her face turning sad, and I wonder if she’s regretting what we did. If I pushed her too far, too quickly.
Her fingers trace the tattoo on my chest, to where a hummingbird perches over my heart.
“Is this for Noah?” she asks. “Or your dad?”
“I told you,” I say. “My dad’s not on here.”
“So, who’s the hummingbird?”
I shift back against the pillows so that I can see her warm green eyes. “Can’t you guess?”
Her gaze widens. “Me?”
I nod. Isla’s whole body blushes, so hot I can feel it against my skin. “Really?”
I kiss her forehead. “Hummingbirds represent love. And joy. And good luck.”
“You think I’m lucky?”
“No,” I say. “I’m the lucky one.”
“But…what about Argentina?” she says, and the fear in her voice is back.
Suddenly, it all clicks together in my mind. The sadness, the hesitation…she thinks I’m leaving again.
I prop myself up on my elbow so fast I dislodge her. “I didn’t tell you.”