Into the Tide (Cottonwood Cove #1)(63)

“You know, I’m happy to be home right now. That job in Chicago is going to be a lot. Sort of like school was. Long hours. Not much of a life outside of work. The city is so busy, you know? It’s been nice being home and being back in nature and not being rushed every second of the day. And I love working at the restaurant. It’s been a great couple of weeks so far.”

“Well, Hugh seems like a different person since you started working there, so thank you. He’d been stretched too thin. You’re helping more than you know. And he doesn’t seem to be out man-whoring anymore,” she said with a laugh. “I think he likes having you at the house.”

My chest squeezed at her words. Because I liked being there, too, at the house and the restaurant.

But my mind kept wandering back to what had happened in our hotel room a few hours ago.

What I was hoping would happen later tonight.

Butterflies swarmed my belly, and I glanced over to see Hugh laughing with his brothers.

“Thank you. It’s been really nice being home.”

The dinner was filled with laughter and several toasts to the happy couple, and I had a great time.

Each of Dylan’s sisters got up and said their favorite Rocky Balboa quote but geared it toward her wedding day.

“I stopped thinking the way other people think a long time ago. You gotta think like you think… on your wedding day,” Charlotte said.

One after the other had stood and read one to her over a room full of laughter, as apparently, they were big fans of the movies.

I happened to be a huge Rocky fan, too, so I thoroughly enjoyed myself.

“Okay, I need to get my beauty sleep, and all of my sisters are carrying tiny humans in their bellies, so we’re going to call it a night,” Dylan said as she pushed to stand.

Wolf pouted that they weren’t spending the night together, causing more laughter.

We made our rounds, hugging everyone goodbye, and we all piled into the elevator up to our floor, agreeing to meet the following day to head to the wedding.

Once we got inside the room, I wasn’t sure what would happen. I didn’t know what he’d meant when he’d said that he didn’t want to take anything from me.

He unbuttoned the top two buttons on his dress shirt and leaned against the bar area and watched me. “Do you want a drink?”

I shook my head. “No, thank you. I don’t want a drink.”

The corners of his lips twitched, and he gave me a half nod. “What do you want, Snow?”

“I’ve made it clear. I want you.”

“You sure about that?”

“Very.”

He raised a brow. “We can’t go back once we cross the line.”

“I’m not someone who does things spontaneously. I’m not looking to go back. I’m looking to go forward.”

“And you’re sure you want to do that with me? Even if I can’t give you what you deserve?”

“What is it that I deserve, Bear?” I asked, closing the distance between us.

“Everything. Every. Fucking. Thing.” His hand found my cheek, and he studied me. “You don’t want your first time to be with some guy who lives in Chicago? A guy you can date and end up with? I mean, you’ve waited all this time. There must be a reason.”

I reached up for the button on his shirt and slowly undid it. “I never knew what I was waiting for until that night out at the cove. And that’s when it hit me.”

“What hit you?”

“I think I’ve been waiting for you,” I said, moving my fingers down to the next button. “I wasn’t thinking about the future for the first time in my life. I was living in the moment, just like I’m doing right now. I went to school in Chicago for four years. I dated. I had plenty of opportunities, but none of them ever felt right.”

“And this feels right? Even with it being completely fucked-up in a million ways?”

“I know what this is. We’re good friends. We’re attracted to one another. I feel safe with you. I know it’s not forever. And I’m okay with that. We’ll do this for as long as we feel like doing it, and then when I leave, we’ll go back to being just friends. No one ever has to know. This is just for us.”

He nodded as I unbuttoned the final button on his shirt and ran my hands up his muscled abdomen and where his last name is written in script across his chest.

Reynolds.

“You know how much I care about you, don’t you?” he asked, as his thumb stroked my bottom lip.

“I’ve never questioned that. So, will you stop fighting me? Stop fighting this?”

His green gaze locked with mine, and he nodded slowly. “Yes.”

My fingers moved down to the waistband of his dress pants, and I lowered the zipper as his eyes stayed locked with mine. His tongue snaked out to wet his lips, and I’d never wanted anyone as badly as I wanted him. I slowly dropped to my knees and looked up at him one last time before tugging his pants down first and then his briefs.

His enormous cock sprung free, and I nearly gasped at the sight of it. A chuckle escaped his lips, and he lifted his legs a bit off the floor and freed himself of his clothing.

I hadn’t seen a lot of penises, but I’d seen a few.

And this one did not look like the rest.

This looked like the alpha penis. It was large and thick and magnificent.