Page 62 of Hard Rock Muse

With a pump of his hips and a whack of his hand, he pierced me to my core and slapped my ass hard. I shrieked as I went over the edge, trembling and throbbing, letting out gasps and sobs.

With a final thrust, he grunted out loud, straining against me. His fingers dug into my hips, keeping me in place as he found his pleasure.

I shuddered and flopped onto my chest, limbs weak. He panted heavily, planting his cheek on the skin of my back. We came down from the high together, until our breathing slowed. He slipped out of me carefully and I hissed at the last aftershocks of pleasure. We cuddled, face to face with arms and legs intertwined.

He rubbed a hand against the side of my ass, soothing.

“Was it too much?” he asked.

“It was not enough, actually,” I replied, nudging his nose with mine.

“My little masochist,” he chuckled lightly.

“Only for you,” I said. “I know you’ll never do anything I won’t enjoy.”

“If I ever do…”

“I’ll tell you,” I promised.

He gazed into my eyes.

“You’re perfect,” he whispered.

“I’m not.”

Julian let out a heavy sigh, his chest rising and falling. He squeezed me tight, almost enough to take the breath out of me. As if he were afraid I would slip through his fingers if he let go even an inch.

“I’m so fucking glad you’re back,” he murmured. “I can’t believe how lucky I am. Sometimes I can’t believe you’re actually here. Sometimes I worry I’m going to fuck it up again and—”

“Don’t.” I laced our fingers together. “It may have taken us some time, and we had to do a lot of growing up, but we found our way back to each other again.”

He dropped his head down to my neck and pressed a kiss there. It was tender, sweet. Not at all like the previous fiery kisses we’d traded.

“I just wish we’d been able to do that maturing together,” he said. “We wasted a lot of time.”

“We got to experience life without each other,” I reminded him. “We learned things about ourselves we wouldn’t have learned if we’d stayed together. And you know what they say,” I teased gently. “Absence makes the heart grow fonder.”

“It does,” he whispered. “I spent the entire time missing you.”

“Maybe that’s a good thing,” I replied.

He went quiet, his head ducking further into my neck, burying himself in my hair, as if to hide.

“What’s wrong?” I asked, concerned.

“I stopped writing my own music,” he whispered. “That’s why writing this song has been so hard.”

“What?”

Julian let go of me. He rolled onto his back, letting his arms fall to his side.

“After we broke up,” he started, “I stopped writing music. I joined Cherry Lips and Cerise was already so talented. I didn’t mind letting her take the lead.”

I leaned up on one elbow.

“But you used to compose music in your sleep,” I said. “Literally. Remember when you would wake up in the middle of the night with a melody in your head? We had to start keeping blank music sheets on the bedside table.”

“I know.” He smiled slightly, before his mouth twisted into a frown. “But after the two of us… I just couldn’t anymore. At first it was too painful.”