Page 53 of Becoming Us

Our mouths crashed once more. He stripped off my shirt; I yanked his free. There was nothing gentle about it—only need. The desperate kind.

Everything he felt, everything he said, echoed in me. I didn’t feel like I had him back, not really. He still felt like something I could lose at any moment, like a dream I couldn’t quite touch. Like if I blinked, he’d be gone again.

He rolled us over, mouths still fused, kneeling between my legs as he stripped off my too-tight jeans in one quick motion. Then he dropped his weight onto me, mouth back on my neck while I wrestled him out of the rest of his clothes. I heard the dull thud of his shoes hitting the floor, and then his body—warm, bare—pressed down against mine.

I dragged my blunt nails down his back, drawing a groan from his lips.

“Let me get on top of you,” I said, nudging his shoulder.

He rolled us sideways, taking me with him, and I wasted no time, kissing down his body from his chin to his navel.

“Noah,” he panted, trying to pull me back up to his mouth.

I shook my head, curling my hand around his cock and stroking him.

“Fuck.” His eyes fluttered shut, throat arching as a low sound caught there. In the faint wash of moonlight, he was beautiful—achingly so.

I let my gaze fall between his legs, taking a moment just to admire before I leaned down, running my tongue over the head of his cock. He hissed, but it didn’t stop me. If anything, it spurred me on. I wanted to feel him unravel. I wanted him to know how much I wanted him—how I’d missed this, missed him, and how I’d do whatever it took to hold on to him.

I took him into my mouth—just the head—savoring every gasp I pulled from him. His hands tugged at my hair, but I didn’t budge. Still stroking him, I kept licking and sucking until his hips started to rise from the bed, seeking more.

“Noah, come here,” he gasped.

I shook my head and pressed my forearm across his stomach to pin him down. He groaned, and I took him deeper, holding him there before pulling back to start again.

Every gasp, every twitch of his thighs, every whispered curse urged me on. I ignored the ache in my jaw and let his body tell me what he needed.

He gripped my hair tighter. I only pushed down harder with my arm and doubled my efforts. With a rough, broken cry of my name, he came in my mouth.

I swallowed slowly, savoring him, softening my movements as he trembled beneath me. When his hips finally stilled, he reached for me, pulling me up.

I could still make out his flushed face, lips parted as he panted, brows drawn together in a silent plea for mercy. Without overthinking it—or stopping to wonder if he’d hate it—I climbed into his lap. He reached for me, but I pressed firmly on his shoulder and held his gaze, stroking my cock with fast, rough pulls.

Atty licked his lips. “Let me?—”

I pushed a little harder, shaking my head. “Stay. Look at me.”

He nodded, eyes locked on mine as the pleasure built. The want on his face, the short, shallow breaths slipping through his lips—this was Atty. Atty, back in my bed. Atty, who wanted to be here with me. Atty, who I got to love again. He was mine.

My nails sank into his skin as I groaned and came, my eyes fluttering shut from the force of it. I forced them open, watching as I painted his chest with jet after jet of release, shadows softening the sharp lines of his body.

He was mine.

Warm fingers skimmed my neck, tugging gently at the chain resting there, drawing my attention back to his face.

“Can you kiss me now?” he asked softly.

I didn’t hesitate. I leaned in and kissed him deeply, letting the taste of him and the glide of his tongue ground me. Our breaths mingled, ragged and warm, as I rode the tail end of the high.

When I finally pulled back, I swept his hair off his forehead and gave it a soft tug. “Don’t ever think that.”

“Think what?” His voice was rough, like it had been dragged over gravel.

“That I don’t want you. Don’t ever think that. You’re the only person I’ve wanted like this. Like I could go up in flames if I didn’t get to touch you. You’re the only person who’s made me want to stay inside my own head when we’re together.”

His head tilted slightly. “What does that mean?”

I kissed the corner of his mouth and rested my forehead against his. “It means I love you. And I trust you.”