“I don’t want much, and I don’t need a lot. You have to get that it’s not me. I understand why you needed the business, and keeping the life you were used to, but I wasn’t used to that.”
“It was foolish. I sacrificed my happiness for my mom’s . . . I know this. All I’m left with is a shit show.”
The palm of his hand grazed my naked back. We were front to front, bared to the depths of our souls. It was the most honest moment we’d ever had.
“I’m sorry you felt you had to do that,” I said, running my hand through his rumpled hair. I loved that he left it a little longer. It showed his boyish side, but I had to remind myself that he was accused of a serious crime.
Addressing the elephant in our lives, I said, “Scratch that I don’t want much. I want you to be free of this. I feel like I’m loving you on borrowed time.”
“I didn’t do it,” he quickly said.
“I know you didn’t. In my heart, I believe you wouldn’t jeopardize something you’ve given your whole life for. Your happiness, your being, everything.”
“Exactly,” he said before fusing his lips to mine. “I knew you believed me.”
“But what are you going to do? Yeah, the media has died down, but this is serious, Aston. How are you going to beat this while you’re wasting your time and resources on me?”
“Hey.” He squeezed my butt. “I’m not wasting shit. I told you, I have a key person who’s going to clear me. I was going to share, but I can’t. It will compromise you and them. I’m not keeping secrets, but my lawyer and my PI are the only ones who know the details, and I need to keep it that way.”
“Because your PI has so much free time now?” Now it was my turn to joke. It was similar to nervous laughter—if I didn’t make jokes, I was going to fall apart.
“Yep. I get my intel on you firsthand now. It sure beats hearing from him.”
“Ha-ha. Seriously, I hope this works. For your kids’ sake, and for Piper.”
“And you,” he said. “It will, Bex. It will. Now, let’s try to focus on something good, like being in bed together, me staying the night, the kids all being busy so we don’t need to sneak around.”
Our mouths found each other’s, and our hands busied themselves with exploring each other’s naked bodies. I felt Aston’s moan into my mouth all the way to my core.
Raging with desire, I slid my hand under the blankets. Finding his already hardened length, I grabbed him tightly, firmly, the way he liked it, and jerked him.
“Ugh, this is so fucking sensational,” he said, his head hitting the headboard. “Just like that . . . God, that feels . . . so fucking perfect.”
Our lips fused tightly again, his tongue sneaking into my mouth, curling around mine, until his hand stilled mine. With his other palm on my shoulder, he urged me to get on top of him. I did as he wanted—after all, his wants mirrored mine. I seated myself on him, relishing the burn, the friction, the desire curling in my belly.
Moving slowly, Aston buried himself as deeply as he could possibly be inside me. I tipped my head back and let out a long moan. I didn’t know how badly I’d missed this type of passion and human connection.
Yet, despite it feeling incredible, small anxiety butterflies flitted in my chest. I sat up and watched the two of us connecting, Aston sliding in and out of me as I moved.
I was falling hard—incredibly hard—for this man again, and besides the kids and exes, the criminal charges still loomed. Even though he’d said to relax, that he had this, I couldn’t. He kept saying he had a plan, but I didn’t know what it was.
“Bex, don’t think so hard. It’s all going to work out, babe. Ride me, make yourself feel good,” Aston said, reading my thoughts.
“How do you do that?”
“I just do. It was what I was meant to do.”
He pulled my face down for a kiss, and I let myself get lost in him. He was meant to be with me—I wholeheartedly believed this. If not, we wouldn’t burn so brightly. We wouldn’t be so intimately connected.
My body moved faster with his, sliding up and down his length.
Aston was pushing up into me, friction setting a fire between the two of us. Of course, he was hitting all the right places. It had been years since we’d innocently groped and learned our ways around each other’s bodies. As an adult, Aston seemed to know exactly what to do with me, which buttons to push.
Within moments, I began to unravel, my entire body shaking with pleasure.
“That’s right, Bex, let yourself go.”
Aston didn’t need to encourage me. I wanted this. Needed this. Had to have this.
When I fell apart, Aston drove furiously into me, finding his own release. I’d never loved anyone’s pleasure as much as his. Seeing him climax and then come down was a secret pleasure I didn’t know existed.
Once again, we lay sated and sweaty in each other’s arms. This time, we lay there quietly, enjoying the moment.
Until Aston’s phone rang.
“Get it,” I told him. It was after one in the morning—only emergencies happened then.
My heart raced as fast as my runaway thoughts. What if it was his lawyer? Something happened with the witness? He was being taken from me again . . .
“Calm down, Mara. Tell me slowly,” Aston said into the phone.
My pulse began to calm, and then I mentally slapped myself. How selfish was I? My heart only calmed when I realized nothing was going to happen to Aston. If he’d dismissed my children, or just Tyler, in that way, I’d be furious.
Moving closer to Aston, I wrapped my arm around his back as he listened, nodding and murmuring uh-huh into the phone.
“What did Denise say?” he
