Page 56 of From the Wreckage

Everett

By the time the music dies and the moon dips lower, something stirs inside my chest. Something I can’t fight anymore. I’ve fallen in love with her.

Brielle scaled the walls around my heart, tore them down, and slipped inside. She’s in my blood, my bones, my fucking DNA… and my soul.

There’s no coming back from this.

I should tell her to go back to her cabin, lock her door, and forget me. I should protect her from what’s coming, spare her the pain I know I’ll cause.

But when she whispers my name against my throat, soft and sure, I lose the fight.

“Come with me,” I rasp, my voice rougher than I intend.

I tug on her hand, leading her down the dock and across the clearing. My cabin looms ahead, dark and quiet, the shadows swallowing us whole. Every nerve in my body screams this is wrong and reckless. It’s the point of no return.

Sure, we’ve been together before—but tonight feels different. Even the air hums with it, like the world knows that bringing her to my bed tonight will tilt everything on its axis.

And still, I open the door.

She hesitates on the threshold, her chest rising and falling fast. As if she feels it too—that tonight is unlike any night before.

Then she steps inside.

The air shifts, becoming heavy and electric.

I don’t remember closing the door, but the click of the lock is final. My back hits the wall, her mouth on mine until my lips sting and hers are swollen. And I still can’t get enough.

My hands roam, greedy and trembling, memorizing every curve, every gasp, every soft sound that shatters me from the inside out.

“Brielle…” Her name breaks from me like a prayer.

She cups my face, her eyes burning in the dark. “Don’t stop.”

I carry her to my bed, every piece of me unraveling as I lay her down. Her fingers clutch at me like she’s afraid I’ll vanish.

Reaching over, I turn the lamp on beside the bed, letting light spill through the room. Letting her see all of me.

I peel her sleep shirt away slowly and reverently.

My mouth follows where my hands wander—her shoulders, the soft dip of her collarbone, the swell of her breasts.

When I cup them, she moans, threading her fingers through my hair, whispering my name.

My thumbs tease until she’s twisting beneath me.

Then I take one nipple into my mouth, sucking deep, watching her arch, nails biting into my scalp.

“Everett,” she breathes.

“Yeah, angel?”

“More.” She arches beneath me. “I need more.”

A wicked smile pulls at my lips as my hands and mouth drift down her stomach. Goosebumps pebble her skin beneath each kiss. She rolls her hips, urging me lower.

“Impatient,” I murmur against her skin. “But tonight, you’re mine. Every inch, every breath, every sound you make.”

Her groan makes me chuckle, but it vanishes when I kiss her trembling skin just above where she aches for me most.

I spread her wide, dragging my tongue slowly over her clit. She fists my hair, tries to grind against my face, but I hold her hips still.

“Let me savor you, angel.” My eyes meet hers. “Trust me.”

A moan spills from her lips when I suck her into my mouth. I alternate between slow, lazy licks and harder strokes that make her cry out. She’s trembling, gasping, shaking apart under me. I bring her close to the edge, then back away, until she’s begging.

“Come for me,” I growl.

She breaks, shattering against my tongue, and I don’t stop. I carry her through it, then do it again. And again. Until I’m drunk on her moans, her taste, the sound of my name on her lips.

When she finally pushes me back, her hazel eyes are fierce despite her trembling. “Your turn.” Her voice is wrecked, but steady.

Her hands tug at my clothes, shaking. She trails her lips over my chest, over the jagged scars I’ve hidden from the world. I expect to see shame in her eyes. But all I see is reverence. Like every ruined piece of me is worth worshipping. It nearly drops me to my knees.

Her fingers and mouth explore me, slowly at first, then with intent. I hiss from the pleasure, my head falling back. But she doesn’t stop, taking my cock into her mouth and teasing me until I’m gasping, her eyes never leaving mine.

“Bri…” My voice breaks.

She smiles faintly, fierce and soft at once. “I’m not finished.”

I groan, nearly losing control. “If you don’t stop, I’m going to?—”

I yank her up, crushing my mouth to hers, swallowing her gasp as I roll her beneath me. Our eyes lock, saying everything words can’t.

The moment I sink into her, she cries out my name like a prayer, clinging to me, and I know I’ll never recover.

I start slow, memorizing the way her body fits mine, like she was born for me. Her eyes never waver from mine, fierce and full of belief I don’t deserve. I want to keep her like this forever.

But when my thrusts increase and she starts begging, her nails clawing my back, I give in, driving inside her wetness harder and faster until we’re both lost.

“Everett.” Her voice breaks on my name, her body arching against mine.

We move frantically, desperately, breaking apart and piecing each other back together in every kiss, every vow, every trembling breath.

She shatters around me, sobbing my name, clinging like I’m the only thing keeping her alive. And maybe she’s the only thing keeping me alive, too.

I break with her name on my lips, buried so deep I couldn’t leave her even if I tried.

When it’s over, I collapse against her, panting, our hearts pounding in sync.

Once our breathing steadies, I roll, pulling her close. For once, the silence doesn’t crush me—it saves me. Her heartbeat under my hand steadies something I thought was ruined long ago.

By the time the first streaks of pink stretch across the window, I’m lying on my back, her head tucked against my chest, my arm banded tightly around her waist. For one perfect night, I had all of her. And I know I’ll never recover.

She stirs, lifting her head. Her hair is tangled, her lips swollen, her eyes hazy with sleep. “It’s dawn,” she whispers.

“Yeah.” I brush my fingers through her hair, wanting to keep her here forever. “Go back to sleep.”

But she shakes her head, mischief sparking in her gaze. “Race you to the lake.”

At first, I think she’s joking. Then she bolts from the bed, laughter spilling from her lips that are still swollen from my kiss. She yanks my shirt over her head like armor.

“Bri—”

Too late. She’s out the door, bare legs flashing in the early light, sprinting toward the dock.

I curse, scrambling after her, pulling my boxers on as I go. My lungs are burning with panic and something dangerously close to joy.

She dives off the dock, a clean arc shattering the glassy surface. By the time I hit the water, she’s already surfaced, hair slicked back, laughing like she doesn’t have a care in the world.

I drag her into my arms, her smile and laughter contagious, infecting me with a joy I’ve never felt before.

And it hits me hard—I’ll be destroyed if I ever lose her.

There’s no coming back from this. No erasing the sight of her glowing in the morning light, calling my name like it belongs to her.

I don’t regret a damn thing.

But I know, when this ends, it’ll destroy me worse than the wreck ever did.