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Christian

A s soon as the lock to Maya’s old bedroom turns, my fingers reach for the hem of her dress. Before I lift it, though, I ask her one last time. “Baby, are you sure you’re ready for this?”

She arches a brow, giving me a look that says, “ Are you ready ?” since I’m the one who messed up the first time. There’s a small smile on her lips that tells me I’m not completely off base.

“I’ve been ready for this moment for years,” she says lightly, though there’s a seriousness in her tone that makes it clear this is more than a joke.

“Me too,” I agree.

I’m not going to question her further about whether she’s ready or ask if she’s just looking for a distraction from her grief. I know it’s none of those things.

This is Maya looking at me like she loves me, like she trusts and believes me.

I’ve waited too long for her to look at me this way and can’t fathom allowing even an inch between us.

For now, it feels like the past is forgotten, or at least forgiven.

So, I lift her dress up and off. When she’s standing before me in her matching black bra and panties, a blush colors her cheeks.

“God, you’re so damn beautiful. And you’re mine,” I tell her as I step forward and take her hands into mine. “I know I wasn’t the man you needed, that you deserved years ago, but I am now. I’ve had a lot of time to think about how stupid I was, how immature and insecure. I know how badly I hurt you, because I’ve felt that hurt, too. For years.”

“I know you have,” she says softly. “Let’s stop hurting.”

In a moment that feels like it’s been years in the making, she leans in. This kiss is different from all the others, ones rushed or in the heat of the moment when we pretended that they didn’t mean anything.

I press my lips against hers, letting the kiss say what I can’t articulate into words. Everything else falls away. The tension, the fear, the doubts—all of it vanishes with this kiss.

It feels like finally coming home to a home I’ve been needing my entire life.

Maya’s hands move to my chest, then she’s tugging my shirt up and over my head. I pull her closer, deepening the kiss and pouring everything I feel for her into it. I want her to know how serious I am. How much I love her.

God, I love the way her hands feel on me as her palms smooth over my bare chest, down to my stomach. She undoes my jeans and shoves them down. Our kiss breaks apart for me to get rid of my clothes. While I work on removing every article, Maya stretches out on the bed, waiting for me and putting on a show. I watch, mesmerized, when she unhooks her bra and tosses it aside. And when she shimmies her panties down her legs, I have to remind my dick to calm down. I am not going to ruin this for her a second time.

No, this time, we’re going to do it right, starting with me licking her until she’s soaking wet. I grab the condom from the wallet in my discarded pants to keep it close. I don’t want to risk getting Maya pregnant again until she’s ready for us to have another son or daughter. God, I would love that. But until then, I’ll be safe with her.

Crawling up the foot of the bed, I kiss my way along her inner thighs, taking my time. I don’t give a shit if anyone downstairs realizes what we’re up to. I’m not going to get in a rush.

Maya slides down the bed as if in a hurry for me to kiss another part of her body. I don’t keep her waiting any longer as I spread her legs apart. I bury my face between them while sliding a finger deep inside her.

“Mmm, Christian,” she moans before shoving her fist into her mouth to keep quiet. One of these days, I’m going to take her someplace where she can scream as loud as she wants. I’ve learned exactly what sets her off during our time together this summer, so my fingers and tongue make her back arch and her entire body tremble with a release within moments.

When her body finally relaxes, I kneel between her legs and roll on the condom before I even consider getting an inch closer to her heaven.

“Hurry up, I need you,” she whispers. I’m glad I put on protection early, because hearing those words from her lips, I can’t resist crawling up her body and lining myself up as I claim her mouth. Our tongues meet, and all thoughts of going slow are thrown out the window. We both frantically grab at each other, unable to get close enough.

Like the first time, her legs wrap around my waist, urging me forward so I slide inside her wet heat. We both gasp into each other’s mouths as I fill her for the very first time.

“Are you okay?” I ask against her lips.

“God, yes,” Maya agrees before her stroking tongue silences mine.

I try to pull out and ease back in slowly a few times to give her time to adjust to the intrusion, but Maya’s fingernails dig into my ass, urging me to go deeper, faster with each thrust. I’m so turned on I couldn’t hold back any longer if I wanted to. I slam inside her again and again.

“Fuck, you feel good,” I tell her as I kiss down her neck, trying to keep from finishing too soon. I want Maya to come again for me. Just when I’m about to reach between us to try to get her there, she cries out, then silences the sound by biting down on my shoulder. Her inner walls clench around me, her body shuddering with pleasure underneath mine.

God, it’s everything I’ve ever needed, as I let go, my face pressed to her neck. “I love you so much, baby. So much. Now you’re mine and I’m never letting you go again.”

I feel too amazing to even be embarrassed by my blurted-out declaration. Not that Maya seems to mind. Her arms wind around my neck, holding me tightly to hers long after our bodies go still. “I love you too. I’ve always been yours.”