The Boyfriend Arrangement

“I wanted to take my time with this,” he said, shaking his head.

She reached for the condoms and

handed him the box. “We can take our time later. I want you right now. I’m ready.”

“So am I.” He didn’t hesitate to tear open the box and grab one of the foil packets from inside. Within seconds Sebastian had the latex rolled down his length and in place.

Harper shifted her legs to cradle him between her thighs and slid her hips lower.

He leaned forward, bracing himself on his elbows.

Harper lifted her knees to wrap them around his hips, but he stopped, leaning down to kiss her instead. “Thank you,” he whispered.

“For what?”

“For this week. I know I was supposed to be helping you, but I needed this time away almost as much as I need you. So thank you for that.” Sebastian kissed her again and this time he pressed his hips forward and entered her, ending any further conversation.

Harper gasped against his lips as Sebastian filled her. She gripped his face in her hands and kissed him hard even as he eased back and surged forward into her again. She was surprised by the stirring of pleasure deep inside her. It wasn’t something she expected based on past experience, but there was something about the way he moved. A tilt of his hips, maybe, that made every stroke more amazing than the last in a way she couldn’t even describe. It was just like Sebastian to have mastered the mechanics of sex.

It was so intense, she had no choice but to close her eyes and hold on. She clung to his bare back and lifted her hips to meet his every advance. Her cries grew louder and louder as her release built inside her and she couldn’t hold back any longer. She shouted his name as the dam broke and the rush of pleasure surged through her.

He thrust harder then. Previously his movements had been controlled and measured in a way that was distinctly Sebastian. He seemed to be taking his time and yet ensuring every stroke made the maximum impact. As her orgasm started to fade, she realized the calculated Sebastian was giving way to a man on the edge.

He thrust hard, again and again, until he finally stiffened and groaned in her ear. He held perfectly still for a moment, his eyes squeezed tightly shut. Then he collapsed beside her on the mattress, his breath ragged with strain.

Harper curled up against his side, resting her head on his chest to listen to his heartbeat, which was faster than she expected. They lay together like that until both his breathing and his pulse had slowed to normal. At that point, he seemed to relax. He wrapped his arm around her and placed a kiss against her forehead.

“Everything okay?” she asked, lifting her head to look up at him.

“Yes, we’re good,” he said. “Great, actually.”

Harper chuckled and lay back. “I’m glad. I’ve been fantasizing about this moment all week.”

“Really?” Sebastian laughed. “I’m sorry to make you hold out so long. I figured you had other things on your mind. Speaking of which, you were really amazing tonight.”

“Well, thank you. I aim to please.”

Sebastian swatted her bottom playfully. “That’s not what I meant. I was talking about the reception. It took a lot of guts to get up there and take control of your situation. I was really proud of you.”

“Oh,” she said in a sheepish tone.

“What prompted it? You went to talk to Quentin and the next thing I know, you’re on stage.”

“I spoke with him, but it was apparent that he wasn’t involved. That scared me. I had no idea who I could be dealing with and I decided it wasn’t worth hiding any longer. You had been right from the beginning—exposing myself was the only way to take back my power. But I don’t want to talk about that anymore. It’s taken up this whole trip and I want to put it behind me. Tonight I’d rather talk about you for a change.”

She felt Sebastian stiffen in her arms at the mention of talking about him. “Please,” she added. “Tell me something I don’t know about you. Like why you decided to go into medical technology. What inspired you? And I don’t mean whatever practiced answer you put together for the company web site. The truth. What happened?”

He’d spoken about combining his engineering skills with Finn’s medical expertise before and it seemed a winning combination, but there was still more to it. She could tell. No one dedicated themselves to their work like that without a reason. A personal reason.

Sebastian sat thoughtfully for a moment. The silence was long enough for her to worry he might not answer. But then he began.

“I was a shy, nerdy sort of kid. I liked to tinker. My older brother, Kenny, was more outdoorsy. He was always riding his bike or skateboarding. He stayed active.”

Harper felt anxiety start to tighten her shoulders. She should’ve anticipated that this conversation wouldn’t be a cheerful one. With his type of work, inspiration likely came from some kind of tragedy. She wanted to kick herself and yet, in the moment, was so grateful he was sharing, she would happily listen to any story he told.

“His best friend in high school ended up getting a four-wheeler for his birthday one year. My brother had graduated from high school at that point and he and a couple friends had gone camping somewhere to ride the ATV and hang out for the weekend. I don’t know the details of what happened, but Kenny ended up rolling the four-wheeler. He was wearing a helmet, thankfully, but the ATV landed on top of him and crushed his lower spine. They were so deep in the woods, they couldn’t land a helicopter out there to get him, so they had to carry him out on a gurney until they could reach an ambulance, which drove him to a place where the helicopter could pick him up.”

Harper grasped his hand in the dark as he spoke, squeezing it tightly.