“Chels.” Owen says my name again, then clears his throat, his expression full of slumberous, hungry desire. He wants me. I can see it. I can practically smell it. “You don’t have to do this.”
“I’ve missed you.” I say nothing else, just let those simple words hang in the air as I whip off my tank top and expose my upper body completely. A strangled noise falls from his lips and heady, powerful pleasure swamps me, makes my knees weak.
I’m clad in only my turquoise-blue panties, with a little white bow at the center of the waistband. When I wear them I usually feel like a little girl, but I definitely don’t feel like one now. Not while standing in the middle of Owen Maguire’s bedroom with nothing else on but these panties, my br**sts heavy, my ni**les hard, and between my legs I can feel myself grow slick and hot.
“I’ve missed you, too,” he finally says, his voice rough. “So damn much.”
“I want you.” Glancing behind me, I start to make my way to his bed and suddenly he’s right there before me. His big hands grasp my waist, fingers pressing into my skin as he guides me down onto the bed, before he whispers against my lips.
“I want you, too. You’re my f**king everything.”
His words wash over me and I close my eyes, my breath catching in my throat when he kisses me. His full, delicious lips are finally on mine again and I want to cry.
But I don’t. I wrap my arms around his neck and hold him close. Spread my legs and feel him settle between them, his jeans rough against my bare skin, his belt buckle biting into the tender flesh just above my panties.
I help him shed his clothes and he takes off my panties, slipping them down my legs with shaky fingers that skim along my skin, his mouth on my br**sts, his hand settling between my thighs. I’m so wet for him it’s almost embarrassing, but before I can push him away or say something stupid, he rears up on his knees, leans over me, and pulls a condom from the bedside table drawer.
“I can’t wait. I want to be inside you too much.” He rolls the condom on and then he’s over me, inside me, filling me completely.
This is what I want. What I need. He feels so good inside me, so right. We’re not perfect, but we’re a perfect fit for each other. It’s all or nothing with Owen and me—and nothing is too hard for us to bear.
So I want it all. Everything. With Owen.
He rolls us over so I’m on top and he tugs the band from my hair so it falls past my shoulders in a riotous mess. “Ride me,” he whispers, his eyes glowing, his expression full of an unnamed emotion I don’t want to label.
Not yet. It’s too soon. It all feels like too much.
I do as he asks, sitting up and resting my hands on his hot, hard chest, my hair spilling all around me, the ends tickling my naked skin. I press my lips together and lick them as I slowly, surely start to move. Hesitant at first, but then Owen’s gripping my hips, showing me how to move, helping me establish a rhythm.
He reaches up to cup my br**sts and I arch my back, sliding up and down his erection, my eyes closed. I’m lost in the feel of him. His hands on my br**sts, his c**k in my body, and I know without a doubt at this very moment, I’m scarily in love with Owen.
“Fuck, you are beautiful,” he whispers as he moves his hands down from my br**sts to my waist, then my hips. “Your skin is so smooth, so soft.”
I open my eyes to find him staring up at me, wonder filling his gaze. I slow down, clamp my thighs tight at his hips, and slowly roll my body into his, sending him as deep as he can go.
He closes his eyes, a ragged moan escaping him, and I increase my pace, eager to find my orgasm and give him his, too. I want it. I want mine and I want his. Together.
I want it all.
Falling on top of him, I pump my hips, my mouth at his ear as I whisper how much I want him, how much I need him.
“Chelsea.” His hands are at my back, holding me tight, and then I feel him tense beneath me, his hips lifting. I know he’s close. So, so close and so am I, but I want to help him along.
“I’m in love with you,” I murmur just before I kiss his throat, his jaw, his cheek. “I love you, Owen. So much.”
A choked sound escapes him and he grips my backside, pulling me in so close to him I cry out, my orgasm coming out of nowhere as my clit brushes against the length of him, setting me on absolute fire. My body trembles, my belly clenches as I cling to him, as he clings to me.
This moment … I never, ever want to forget. Making love with Owen in his room while a wild party rages on in his house. We’re locked away in our own little world, where the only things that exist are him and me.
That’s all that matters. Owen and Chelsea.
Chelsea and Owen.
Together.
CHAPTER 22
One year later
Owen
It’s hot as hell outside as we sit under the blazing sun, watching the graduation ceremony. Autumn keeps toddling off, fast as can be on those chubby legs of hers, little screams of joy emitting from her rosebud lips as Drew or Fable chases after her.
I just sit there, a smile curling my lips, occasionally reaching out to snag her into my arms when she buzzes by me. She laughs and shoves at my chest, wanting out of my arms, but I know it’s just a game. She loves me.
At this very moment, for once in my life, I feel surrounded by love. Nothing nagging at me, reminding me I’m a terrible son or making me feel guilty.
Is it wrong that my mother died while in jail and I didn’t mourn her death for long? I was sad—sadder for the loss of the opportunities she’d wasted more than anything. She could have been someone. She could have had Fable and me as her family. She could have had Drew and then Autumn, too. Hell, even Chelsea.
Instead, she died alone, her heart giving up after too much drinking and drugs and bad choices. Fable was completely emotionless when she told me. She was the one who got the call from the county jail and in turn, she called me. I found out over the phone that Mom died without anyone.
It hurt, but mostly I was numb. When had she ever been a real part of my life? A meaningful part? Not in years, maybe not ever.
That night, I let Chelsea comfort me. She held me close and told me how much she loved me. Then she got naked and showed me how much she loved me, too.
I am one lucky motherfucker.
The people sitting around us are irritated with Autumn, but they keep their mouths shut because there’s a superstar in their midst. Freaking Drew took his team to the Super Bowl again … and they won. Again. Two years in a row. The man is a god. Cover of Sports Illustrated, cover of People, cover of … I can’t even remember, he’s been on so many magazine covers. Fable’s been on a couple of covers with him, too.