“Me too. But I feel like we need a song. Our song, for our first dance.”
She starts humming, and it’s a melody I know.
“Little darling, it's been a long cold lonely winter,” I sing, poorly.
She looks up at me and we sing Here Comes the Sun by the Beatles. We can’t remember all the words, but we know enough to have us laughing and smiling, the rain on our faces and our shoulders, drenching us.
“There’s no sun right now, though,” I say as we finish our off-key rendition.
“I know,” she laughs, wrapping her arms around my neck. I pull her closer, both my arms holding onto her. “But that’s what comes after the rain.”
“I don’t want the rain to go anywhere. Don’t want you to go anywhere.”
She closes her eyes. “It’s not midnight yet,” she says.
I kiss her again, harder now, with need. Then I lift her up, into my arms, and open the door to the dry sauna that was built next to the patio.
“Oh wow, this is unexpected,” she says. I set her down and watch as her eyes take in the tile floor, the hooks on the wall, the bench where you can change before you enter the sauna.
“I’ve never shared this space with someone,” I admit to her. “My grandparents were from Finland. They had a sauna at their place and I always loved it as a kid. I told myself when I was grown, I’d build one too.”
“Do they live around here?”
“They did. Passed away from old age. My ma, she was sick while I was growing up, and she died when I was finishing school. Never knew my dad. I’m all that’s left of my family now.” I run a hand over my jaw. “What about you?”
“Just Tim and me. We were foster kids growing up. It’s never been easy. Now we live off the grid. No one could find us if they tried.”
“Who would try?” I ask, frowning as I flip on a switch so I can warm the sauna up.
“Uh, no one,” she says, but her eyes darken. I don’t press.
I show her the bathroom where there’s a shower, and plenty of towels.
“Here you go,” I say, handing her one.
She takes it from me. “He says the club is family, but if that’s what family feels like… I don’t know if I want that forever.”
“What do you want?” I pull off my flannel shirt, step from my leather boots. My fingers on the button of my jeans.
“I want to be settled. Safe.” She looks me over. The lighting in here is low, but I see her soft cheekbones, her delicate collarbone. “You’d think riding motorcycles would feel like freedom, but it doesn’t to me. It feels like I could end up anywhere.”
I step toward her. “And you don’t want that?”
She shakes her head as I set my hands on her hips. “No,” she says, looking up into my eyes and damn, it feels like the whole world changes right then, right there. She is mine. “I want to be grounded,” she tells me, her voice a whisper. But I hear her. “I want to know right where I belong.”
“Princess,” I say, cupping her cheek with my calloused hand. “You belong right here. With me.”
Rainey
He kisses me softly, gently and with devotion. Like right here, holding me in his arms, is the one and only place he wants to be. It’s where I want to be too. I step closer, my mouth open, his tongue pressed against mine. I whimper with desire. I feel him, need him. Those novels I read have nothing on this moment, right here.
“Come here,” he says, opening the door to the sauna. It’s warm, but not roasting. We stand, embracing, kissing, and heating up head to toe.
I run my hand over his bare, chiseled chest, feeling protected in a way I’ve never felt before. His hand cups my bottom, and I close my eyes.
“You okay?” he asks, his breath hot in my ear.
I nod, lifting the hem of my dress up over my head. I’m in panties, but no bra. My tits aren’t huge, but when he looks at me, I feel beautiful. His eyes are filled with more than longing.
For a moment, my heart hitches in my throat because I swear what I see is love.
I blink the impossible thought away. He just met me. And I just met him.
But still. Here we are. I’m offering myself to him, giving him all of me.
I have one night. I won’t waste it.
“God, you are beautiful,” he tells me, taking my breasts in his hand, caressing me like I am the most lovely thing he has ever held. I blink back the onslaught of emotion I wasn’t expecting. “Rainey, you’re shaking.”
“It’s just… when you look at me… I feel like you see me, Reed.” I shake my head. “Which is ridiculous. I mean…”
He smiles, pulling me closer. “I see you.”
I exhale, relieved. Nervous and excited. Ready. “I’m a virgin,” I tell him.
He runs his thumb over my cheek, the air thick. He lifts my chin so our eyes meet. “So am I.”
“Oh.” My eyes search his in wonder. This man, this strong and rugged alpha of a man is a virgin? “Why? A man like you could have anyone…”
“I didn’t want anyone.”
A smile blossoms on my face and grows in my heart. “Am I what you want, Reed?”
He groans. “Rainey, you are all I want.”
I close my eyes, smiling so hard it hurts. When I open my eyes, he has taken off his jeans and boxers and his cock is thick, hanging between his legs.
He’s huge, and my pussy whimpers with longing. God, I want this man to consume me, make me his princess. More. I want this night to last forever, but I know I have only a handful of hours. I won’t waste them.
Shimming my panties past my hips, I lick my lips.
“You’re perfection,” he says, kneeling on the wood planked floor. The heat of
