Caspian (Carolina Reapers 8)

The sky was dark and clear, and it already lit up with bursts of fireworks. The town had mainly gathered in the pavilion with chairs, leaving us in our own little pocket of space on a concrete bench that sat tucked into the wide trees.

With the night came a chilled breeze that rose bumps on my skin. I rubbed my arms. “I should’ve gone home to change,” I said, glancing down at my simple sundress that had been perfect when the sun was up.

“You want me to take you home?” Caspian asked after sitting the cooler next to the little bench.

“No,” I said, glancing up at the sky that was a rainbow of color. “I don’t want to miss it.”

“Come here then,” he said, settling onto the bench as he unfolded the oversized blanket we’d brought.

I went to him without hesitation, settling onto his lap as he wrapped the blanket around us. His body quickly warmed mine, and we watched the fireworks, an easy silence settling between us.

“Do you remember the first time we watched fireworks together?” he whispered the question into my ear. I furrowed my brow, shifting enough to look at him. “I didn’t think you would,” he said, shrugging. “You’d just turned sixteen and you and London were sneaking sips from the wine coolers you’d stolen from your dad.”

I laughed, recalling that night. “You were there,” I said, remembering. “You had a date.”

He cocked a brow at my tone. “You aren’t seriously jealous of a memory, are you?” he teased.

“No,” I said, rolling my eyes at myself. “You always had a date.”

“And you always had a crush on me, didn’t you?” He nudged me playfully.

“Please,” I said, shaking my head. “You are so full of yourself.”

“And yet here you are,” he said, squeezing my hip. “Perched on my lap.”

I gaped at him. “Would you like me to move?”

He shook his head, holding me tighter. “No,” he said. “I like you right where you are.” I wiggled on top of him, and he groaned. “But if you keep doing that, I’m going to move you in other ways.”

Heat flared across my skin. “Is that right?” I asked, my voice cracking as my heart raced. “Right here? Anyone could walk by—”

“I don’t give a fuck who could walk by,” he cut me off. “I can’t turn off wanting you.”

“Have you tried?” I asked, the booming sound of fireworks ringing above us.

“Yes,” he admitted. “It’s not possible. I want you, Ryleigh. All. The. Time.” And from the look in his eyes, the serious way they churned with something beyond lust, I knew it wasn’t just about the sex.

And that notion, the idea that he might be losing his control for me like I was for him? It shifted something inside me, chipping away at the blocks of ice I held around my heart until there was enough room for him.

I moved then, turning until I straddled his lap. He adjusted the blanket to cover us, and soon I only saw the fireworks reflecting in his eyes. Because I wanted to tell him how much he meant to me, beyond our teasing, beyond the past…but I couldn’t. The words tangled in my throat, but I could show him. Show him that I wanted him just as badly on every possible level.

I brushed a kiss over his lips, sighing as he tilted his head back, opening for me. This massive, incredibly strong man, submitting to me, for me. Looking up at me like he’d give me anything I wanted, if only I’d ask.

And in that moment, there was only one thing I wanted.

Him. Body, heart, and soul.

I kissed him harder, sliding my tongue between his lips, shivering as his met mine. God, his kiss always seared me to my core. I knew I’d never get tired of kissing this man. He teased my bottom lip, nipping at it slightly as I rocked against him. I could feel him through his jeans, hard and aching, which made me ache more.

I held his gaze, my lips swollen from our kiss, as I slipped my hands between us.

“Ryleigh,” he whispered my name as I unzipped his jeans, and he shifted enough for me to wiggle them down enough to bare him under me. No refusal, no lecture on how we were in a public place, no cries that we should be watching the fireworks. Just pure, undiluted need that matched my own. “Fuck,” he hissed when I moved my panties to the side, sliding over his hard and ready cock with ease. “What are you doing to me?” He gripped my shoulders, holding the blanket in place so no one could see anything if they happened to walk by.

I slanted my mouth over his, sliding my tongue between his lips in a kiss that was both carnal and soft, needy and giving. I kissed him with every ounce of emotion I felt storming my soul at the moment, all the moments between us building to this grand conclusion I couldn’t possibly put words to.