The Consequence of Loving Colton (Consequence 1)

“You are not knifing me in the pool!” I tried to get free from him but he grabbed me with those magic fingertips and superhuman strength and held me against him.

“I’ll make it fast!” He laughed.

“Colt!”

“Really,” he promised. “Like a Band-Aid.”

I slumped into his arms. “I hate you right now.”

“No you don’t.” His hands moved to my dress again. “I’m going to try one more thing.”

A large rip sounded.

And my dress floated up next to me. I was too shocked to do anything except gape when Colton pulled the dress off me and threw it to the side of the pool, a look of pure satisfaction on his face.

“Did you tear my dress in half?”

“I feel like cutting down a tree right now.”

“Huh?” Shivering, I swam over to him.

“Or shooting a duck.”

“You’re killing the mood.”

“Burping.” He nodded and winked. “That, Milo, was pure masculine awesomeness. Seriously, if we were stuck in the Stone Age—I would have been the guy inventing wheels and shit.”

“COLTON!”

“Yes, baby?” His grin was huge.

“You think we can, um . . .” I shrugged as my face heated, probably to a nice shade of scarlet, and pressed my lips together.

“What?”

“You know?”

“No.”

“Colt—”

“Milo, say the words. Marriage is all about communication and being open with one another, how can I see to my wife’s needs if she doesn’t—”

“Oh, my gosh, just have sex with me already!” I shouted.

My voice literally echoed in the night sky.

Great. So some five-year-old camping outside with his friends was probably going to have some questions for his parents in the morning.

“Get over here.” Colt reached for me but I swam away.

“No.” I kept swimming toward the deep end. “You ruined the moment and then made me ask my own husband for sex!”

“Before last year you were still spelling out sex in the air rather than saying it out loud. Progress, it seems, is being made if you can actually say it . . . I mean come on, sweetheart, if you can’t say it you shouldn’t be participating in it.”

“This is not helping my mood!” I kept swimming away.

I was living Nemo’s life.

Just keep swimming, just keep swimming, swim, swim, swim, what do you do you—“Shit!” His hands moved to my waist.

“Caught.” Colton’s lips moved against my ear. “And I won’t have sex with you . . . I’ll make love to you, I’ll tease you, taunt you, make you scream, taste, caress, I’ll do all those things.” His hands braced my hips as he pulled me back against his body. “And nothing is going to keep me from you.”

I relaxed in his embrace as his hands ran from my shoulders all the way down until he gripped my hips, flipped me around, and kissed me hard on the mouth.

“I love you.” Colt’s lips found mine again. He tasted like mint. “I’d freaking go to a Star Wars convention for you.” His tongue pushed against mine, then retreated. “I’d name our first child Luke.” His hands lifted me against him, then slowly grabbed each leg and wrapped it around his waist as he pulled our bodies together.

With a gasp I pulled back, but his mouth wouldn’t let me retreat, I didn’t have time to do the normal Milo thing. Where I compartmentalized every sensation and made diagrams about my feelings and obsessed like a lunatic. All I could focus on were the sparks—the things he made me feel that I’d never felt before.

“Milo.” Colton’s voice was gentle as he kissed me, said my name again, kissed me, then sighed against my mouth. “Focus on me, all right, sweetheart?”

I nodded.

Words were failing me.

“Of course I saw them!” Max shouted. “I’m not an idiot—and I can still see out of both eyes, thank you very much.”

Colt and I froze. I mean froze in each other’s arms. Maybe if we were really quiet they would just walk right by.

Right, they wouldn’t see two naked people in the pool.

Or the ripped dress on the concrete.

Or the underwear.

“Well, tic-tac-ho.” Max laughed. “You guys having a midnight swim? Why didn’t you say something! I would have totally joined!”

“Arousal gone,” Colt ground out, and then he swore. “Totally gone.”

“Not that kind of swim, Max,” I said in a nervous voice. Jason was standing right next to Max, meaning he could see me naked in the arms of his best friend, whom I’d just married. To be fair it wasn’t like we’d been caught doing something wrong, but still, it was my brother. I think he’d be happy if I drank chocolate milk my entire life and never even uttered the word sex.

“Hey, Jason,” Colt said nervously. “Can we, uh, help you guys?”

“It’s okay.” Max sat in one of the pool chairs. “You guys finish your swimming, we’ll wait.”

“Pervert,” Colt said.

Max winked and snapped his fingers. “Oh, right, now I remember. Your mom and dad are pissed because guests were asking about you guys and I didn’t have the heart to explain the whole tic-tac-toe thing to your mom in front of Grandma. That woman’s hearing’s just fine. Besides, it would have given her ideas about Reid.”