Trethan’s hips slowed until they hardly moved, until I spent lifetimes writhing with just the tip of his head pressed inside me, until I spent eons waiting for him to seat himself fully inside me again, until I spent eternity feeling that slow drag, the steady burn, and the desperate desire.
I was going to come again. And soon.
I gasped out a warning, but his hips gyrated so impossibly slowly. I couldn’t get any sort of purchase to fight the strong grip that immobilized me, so I hovered just on the edge of coming, unable to get exactly what I needed to tip over into bliss.
A litany of soft pleas fell from my lips, intermingled here and there with curses. I could hardly hear myself anymore, though. My entire world had narrowed down to the feelings of his skin against mine.
When he suddenly shifted gears and picked up speed, I practically screamed out his name.
This time, we came in unison.
Trethan’s hand found mine. His fingers twisted into the space between mine. I clung to him physically, even though mentally I was already too far gone to notice what was happening anymore. It was all pleasure, feeling his girth inside me, pulsing with heat. I trembled as wave after wave of ecstasy wracked my body.
And then, we both collapsed against the bed, fully spent. At least, for the moment.
Trethan kept his fingers tangled with mine even as he fell on his back, his chest heaving. “Jesus,” he muttered when he’d caught his breath a little.
I couldn’t help laughing, a giddy little sound that burbled up in relief after the years of pain and frustration between us. “That was pretty intense,” I said, my words slurring together a little as my eyelids drooped.
Trethan propped himself up on one elbow and stared down at me with an uncharacteristically serious look on his face. He studied me, as though wanting to memorize every detail of this moment.
I smiled up at him and then sleepily curled into his side, burying my face against his heated skin. He wordlessly draped an arm around my shoulders as he lay back, making sure that both of us were comfortable, his fingers still tracing aimless patterns across every inch of skin that he could reach.
“I never imagined it being like that,” he said quietly.
I froze, wondering if I’d done something wrong, if I somehow hadn’t measured up to his standards. I supposed it wasn’t so impossible to believe. He’d bedded dozens of women. He had to know what he liked. As for me, I’d only slept with a handful of people during college, and I had to assume I didn’t have enough experience to really thrill him.
I pulled away from him, swallowing hard, already feeling tears gather in my eyes. “Sorry,” I said, flinching as he reached for me.
“Hey,” he said gently, catching me as I moved to put my panties on. “Hey, come on, talk to me, Vanessa. What’s wrong?”
I shook my head. “I’m sorry,” I repeated. “I know that probably wasn’t what you wanted. What you’ve been dreaming about for years. That was the best that I could do, though.”
Trethan stared blankly at me for a long moment, as though he didn’t really understand what I was saying. Then, he laughed incredulously.
“Vanessa,” he said. “That was amazing.” He paused. “I’ve never slept with someone that I actually had feelings for before. Being with you was intense. I never thought being with someone I care about would be so different, but it was. It was better than I ever imagined.”
I blinked, searching his face mistrustfully for any signs that he was lying. But he seemed entirely sincere.
“Come here,” he said gently, opening his arms. I had no choice but to turn into them, letting him hold me close. “You’re so beautiful,” he said. By that point, I was already almost dozing off, but I spared a moment to think that, no, this was definitely a different Trethan than the one I had known before.
Chapter Twenty-One
Trethan
I couldn’t get over how right things felt between Vanessa and I later that week. We drove down a dusty country road, the sun slipping closer and closer to the horizon off to our right. Our fingers twisted together over the gearshift. It was something we used to do, back when we were teenagers, but now, it felt almost surreal to be back here, to be back to this. It was comfortably familiar, but also new and exciting, all at the same time.
I smiled over at Vanessa.
“What?” she asked, bursting out with laughter.
“What do you mean, ‘what?’” I asked.
“I mean, why do you keep looking over at me and just smiling?”
“Because you’re beautiful, and I’m lucky to be here,” I said simply.
Even though that shouldn’t have surprised her, she ducked her head, blushing cutely. I smirked again and turned us up the hill toward an overlook.