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She opens her mouth in a silent scream, and I fit my tongue in between her lips as I begin to fuck her. Sweat beads my shoulders, and heat pours off of me in waves. Our skin sticks together, then makes a sucking noise as I pull back and it releases. I’m inside her, with her tight, hot, pussy milking my cock. I groan into her mouth, grip her hip, and plant my other hand next to her to keep my weight off of her, then continue to piston into her. Again and again. And again. My cock thickens, and my balls draw up.
I sense her trembling, her pussy tightening in a way I didn’t think was possible. And when I sense her close to the edge, knowing I’m almost there, I tear my mouth from hers and growl, "Come."
She climaxes at once, her cry in my ears as I grunt and empty myself inside her. I collapse with my face in the curve of her neck, then manage to turn on my back and pull her onto my chest.
Her heart thunders against mine, her body twitching as she comes down from the high. I draw in a deep breath, and the scent of sex fills me, arousing me, yet also filling that space inside me I didn’t know was empty. I run my fingers down her spine. She cuddles closer, her cheek pressed to my chest. She draws circles around my nipples, and I groan. "I do need a few more minutes."
She chuckles. "Mr. Hot and Sexy Davenport admits to needing recovery time?"
I slap her butt playfully. "I’m the first to admit, I’m not perfect."
She looks up at me, then crawls up my body until she’s nose to nose with me. She looks deeply into my eyes. "I love you."
I was sure that’s what she said earlier, but hey, I had my cock down her throat, and no way, was I going to stop her from blowing me by asking her about it.
"I love you so very much," I growl.
Her lips curve in a beautiful smile, then she presses her mouth to mine. "I think I loved you from the moment we met."
"I know, you did." It might sound arrogant of me to say so, but I’m sure of it. She couldn’t have looked at me the way she did when we met and not felt something for me. I was sure she felt the attraction between us. Only, I thought I might have crushed it when I sent her away. And while I held out hope that she’d come to love me again, I admit, I wasn’t sure.
"I’m sorry I didn’t say it earlier. I knew I loved you. But…I needed a little more time before I could form the words." She presses her chin into my chest. "Can you forgive me for that?"
"There’s nothing to forgive. You’re with me, here in my arms, and that’s what matters." I cup her cheek. "I love you as much as I do Serene. You’re both a part of me. I’m incomplete without either of you. I’d never be able to live without either of you. I’ll never forgive myself for sending you away the day she arrived at my doorstep. I’m so sorry for all the time I wasted. I’m sorry I couldn’t sort through my feelings enough to realize I needed you so much then. I thought I'd lost you. And when you appeared again at my doorstep—something inside me was clear that I couldn’t let you go again."
She frames my face with her small palms. "You did break my heart. And yet, all the time I was away from you and Serene, I also knew my life would be incomplete if I didn’t see you again. I kept telling myself you didn’t want me, but it wasn’t enough to stop myself from hoping that we could be together some day. And I couldn’t explain to myself why I felt so powerfully drawn to Serene. But now we know."
"What I didn’t know was how empty my life would be when you left. How, while it was so busy and so full on one hand with Serene, something was missing. How, even as I didn’t have a moment to breathe while taking care of Serene, my instinct told me there was more. This wasn’t everything. I was losing out on something vital. An unshakable sense of absence gnawed at me. Something crucial was slipping away. I had let you slip away."
"You have me." She rubs her nose against mine. "You have me completely."
"I love you." I kiss her lips. "Only you. You have me body, mind and soul. All my emotions, my feelings, my thoughts, my yearning… It’s all for you. I’d give my life for you."
"And Serene," she murmurs.
"And Serene." I flip her so I’m arched over her, my lower body fitted to hers, my weight pressing her into the mattress. Her curves, the feel of her gorgeous body, her softness—all of it drains the blood to my groin.
"Whoa." Her eyes grow wide. "Is that?—"
"It is." I allow myself a smirk of satisfaction. "Are you ready for?—"
A plaintive cry reaches us over the baby monitor on the table next to the bed. I groan and press my forehead into hers.
"Serene," she says breathlessly.
"Serene." I push myself off my wife’s gorgeous body and roll to my feet. "Stay right there." I point at her. "I’ll be back."
EPILOGUE
Priscilla
Receiving is an act of courage. Trust it. Honor it. Allow the universe the pleasure of giving to you. Accept it.
-Cilla’s Post-it note
"Tiny, stay still." Serene places another sticker in the center of his forehead, then begins to line more over the curve of his eyebrow. The big dog has his tongue hanging out from a corner of his mouth, and a long-suffering look on his face. He makes a whining sound of protest deep in his throat but obeys Serene.
We’re at Arthur’s place for the weekly lunch. He’s seated by the fire in his comfortable armchair. It’s warm in the room, but when Imelda places a blanket over his legs, Arthur doesn’t protest. Fighting the Big C has left its mark on him.