Connected (Connections, #1)(101)
When she’s finished, I lean in to kiss her as my hand gently rubs circles down her back. “Thank you for agreeing to go back there. I know it wasn’t easy for you, but I thought you needed to go, and it was important to me that you be there for our kick-off show.”
As I gently press kisses against her mouth, she moans against my lips. “I know, and I’m so glad I went. You were amazing; The Greek was just as amazing as I remember it. The whole night has been truly amazing.”
I pull back to look at her lovingly. “Dahlia, you’re the amazing one, and I’d do anything for you. I want you to be happy, always.”
She doesn’t say anything else; she just crashes her lips to mine as her fingers knot into my hair. I respond instantly. My hands wander up her naked body, touching each rib, sliding along the curve of each breast until they meet her hands in my hair where I clutch them and pull them down to our sides, holding her tightly, just for a moment.
I love her so much and I want to not only show her, but also tell her just how much. Letting go of her hands, I softly trail my fingers back up her body, playfully teasing her along the way, but stopping at her heart to trace it. I can feel the goosebumps form on her skin as I lower my head down to kiss the line I just etched. “I love you.”
I kiss my way back up to her lips and gently cup her chin. I look into her eyes and tell her exactly how I feel. “Dahlia, I will love you forever.” Then I kiss her and finish telling her my thoughts. “In this lifetime and in the next.”
She clutches my face, and I see the love and desire in her slightly hooded eyes. “River, I love you. So much.”
I smile at her and have one more thing I want to tell her. “You are everything I have ever dreamed about, you are my dreams.” I see tears welling in her eyes, and I don’t want them to spill so I kiss her softly, deeply, pouring all of my love into this kiss. Her head falls back further into the pillow and her breathing picks up. I know what that means and I can’t hold back any longer. I want nothing more than to be buried deep inside her, to feel our bodies as one, our souls forever connected.
The feel of her lips as she drags them down my jaw, along my neck to my chest makes me shiver with need. Tracing circles along the inside of her thighs I slip one finger inside of her, feeling her wetness and I know she’s so ready for me. I tease her a bit as I gently circle around, in and out, until she can’t take it any longer. “River,” she cries out as she arches her back, her breathing quick and shallow, her eyes now shut. “Please, I want to feel you inside me, make love to me.” As I easily slip myself inside her, her arms lace around my neck and her legs wrap around my body pulling me even closer and I know this is exactly where I always want to be.
A few weeks after the concert at The Greek, I decided it was time to ask her to be my wife. I wanted her to be mine in every sense of the word, more than anything I had ever wanted. My plan to pop the question was simple. Take her to one of her favorite places and ask her. Getting her there was just as simple. All I had to do was suggest we go for a sunset run; she always wants to go running. But arranging it all to go as planned was not so simple. There were so many restrictions and variables, so I just decided to keep it simple.
Pulling into the parking lot, it was late afternoon and one of the hottest days of the summer. Walking up to the hiker’s gate entrance, she steps forward and smirks at me, leaving just a few inches between us. “You sure you want to do this? Because I know, just as well as you do, that this little climb isn’t going to be easy in the scorching sun, and I’m not afraid to admit it.” She steps back, and I can see her eyes are deep brown as she smiles her mischievous, seductive grin.
She lunges forward to stretch, touching her fingers to her toes as her sweat pants ride down her hips a little. Damn, she’s good. She knows I’m powerless against her when she struts her body around like that. It drives me crazy, but what she doesn’t know is, I’m making this almost four mile up hill hike in the blistering sun for a greater purpose than seeing the view from behind the Hollywood sign. So I play her game and hmmm. . . and haaa . . . a little so she thinks I really don’t want to do this. Damn, I’m the good one. I even paid off the guard to stop anyone from following behind us. This way, when we reach the top of the hill, we will be all alone. Just the way I need it to be.
I fold my arms over my chest and watch her.
She walks down the path and turns her head over her shoulder asking, “You coming?” I run up behind her and pick her up. She squirms to try to free herself and she could if she really wanted to because her backpack is keeping me from really holding on tight. I set her down and laugh in her ear, “You know I never turn down a challenge.”
She is still laughing when she turns to look at me, and her beauty takes my breath away. She is just so natural and carefree. I have no doubts this is the girl for me—forever. With her I’ve had the best days of my life and there are only better ones to come.
As we approach the top, we’re walking single file up the dirt trail. My eyes follow her every move as she leans forward, stepping up onto the plateau.
She takes her camera out of her backpack. “I just want to snap a few photos before the sun loses its glow.”
Before handing it to me, she slips her Pac-Man bracelet off and zips it safely away. “Do you mind holding this while I climb up the H?”